Dr. Robert R. Owens

Why the Congress Must Rein in the Supreme Court

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."Please notice that this, the foundational sentence of the American way of life does not say "endowed by the Supreme Court."

Why the House Must Impeach President Obama

In America today, just like in Lake Woebegone, every child is above average and every child gets a trophy. We may score low in international grade comparisons but we rank number one in self-esteem. In other words, American students may not be doing well but they think they are. Those of us old enough to remember how Dad could control the situation with a look and when you got in trouble in school your parents didn't sue or contact the School Board, you got in trouble at home, too, are also old enough to remember Watergate.

Not Worth a Continental

The Federal Reserve System (the Fed) was established in 1913 as one of the cornerstones of the Progressive agenda. They said it was a way to stop the boom and bust cycle which has always been a fixture of capitalist economies. The Fed is America's third Central Bank.

Hunker in the Bunker and Wait for the Rain

As those of you who follow these wandering pages know I have recently re-aligned my life to turn and face the strange changes that are overtaking Western Civilization with ever increasing speed. Like ripples whose shape and size shifts but never leave the stream, change is the only constant in a society careening towards a cliff.

The No Growth Zero Sum Pie

Has America reached the stage where we all stand in a circle and take turns holding a constantly shrinking dollar?

What’s Mine is Mine What’ s Yours is Negotiable

The economy is scheduled to plunge off a cliff in January. Back in the first two years after the Progressive's November Revolution of 2008, the big government party enacted tax increases not scheduled to take place until after the 2012 elections.

America Lost in a Bubble

All bubbles burst. This is a law of nature. No matter from what material the bubble arises. No matter what forces propel its expansion. All bubbles burst.

When Will Enough Be Enough

When taxes become destructive they've surpassed the consent of the governed bending to the will of tyranny. When regulations strangle competition instead of securing it from evil combinations they've become counterproductive and defeat the very purpose for which they were proposed. When foreign entanglements bleed the nation but do not secure the peace or defeat the enemy they've become interventionist vehicles for vested interests. When spending becomes a hemorrhaging of assists leading to national bankruptcy those who continue to pile debt upon debt seek not the good of the nation but instead its destruction. When leaders selected to unite instead do all they can to divide they no longer advance the interest of the whole and are instead partisan leaders in a factional fight.

If I Wanted to Make America Prosperous Again

First, I would ask myself how did our ancestors build America from an agricultural colony on the edge of civilization into the number one manufacturing and commercial nation the world had ever known.

Liberty is Null and Void

America was founded as a Federal Republic. This means our nation was designed to have two levels of sovereignty. The States which pre-date the central government and which created the central government is to be one level and the central government they created was to be the second. The separate States first combined to found a central government when they drafted and ratified the Articles of Confederation in 1781. This combination was strengthened and expanded in the writing and ratification of the Constitution in 1789. However, in both of these new beginnings it was always stated and assumed that the States were the building blocks out of which the whole was built.

The Heart of the Problem is in the Heart

Benjamin Franklin told us, "Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters."

Supreme Contempt

Recently President Obama made this remarkable statement, "Ultimately, I'm confident that the Supreme Court will not take what would be an unprecedented, extraordinary step of overturning a law that was passed by a strong majority of a democratically elected Congress." For someone reputed to be a former professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Chicago this statement is hard to explain. Any high school student in a sophomore American History class knows there are many precedents for the Supreme Court making laws passed by Congress null and void. As a matter of fact, in the system of government tradition has delivered to us overturning laws as unconstitutional has been an important power of the Supreme Court for more than two hundred years.

Where Does the Supreme Court Get Its Power?

This week the eyes of everyone concerned with the continuance of limited government were riveted on the Supreme Court. For three days the nine Justices heard arguments by the Solicitor General in favor of ruling the individual mandate which is the keystone of Obamacare constitutional. They also heard the representatives of twenty-six States argue that it is unconstitutional. This is the first time that a majority of the States have combined to protest an act of Congress. Now We the People must wait while the fate of our Republic is decided in secret by our Black Robed rulers from whom there is no appeal.

We Know the Problem… What’s the Answer?

This weekly column, which I have been privileged to submit for your consideration for the past three years, elicits many comments and questions. The most common of which can be summed up as, "I agree with your analysis, appreciate the Historical context, but how about some practical suggestions."

Praetorian Progressives and Their Imperial Dreams

Under President Obama we doubled-down in Afghanistan? We sent more of our fellow citizens to a long hard slog in a country whose synonym is Quagmire while announcing the eventual date of their withdrawal at the same time. In an unprecedented action Mr. Obama announced our attack as he heralded our retreat in a calculated political decision that has cost lives, squandered treasure and told the Taliban to wait in the wings for the second act.

Real Rebels and the Counter Revolution

Think of America's Founders. These were real rebels.

None Dare Call It…

In 1777 the British thought they had finally hit upon a strategy to crush the rebellion. They would divide the colonies. General John Burgoyne had presented a bold plan to the government in London. He proposed to invade New England from Canada marching down the Hudson River Valley. There British troops moving up from New Jersey and New York under the command of General Howe would join Burgoyne and effectively cut the colonies in two demoralizing the rebels and discouraging the French who were considering recognizing the independence of America.

The Forbidden Word Impeach

What does History tell us about the impeachment of an American President? It has only happened twice.

The Man Who Would Be King

In 114 BC, Rome was a democratic Republic. Representatives elected by popular vote filled the Senate, and the Senate ran Rome. The Empire was conquered in the name of the Senate and the People of Rome, symbolized by the ever present SPQR seen on every Roman standard in every gladiator movie you have ever watched.

The Sun is Setting, Tell Everyone You Know

If we say nothing while watching someone walk off a cliff and plunge to her death we would be criminally negligent. If we ride past a home in the early morning and see smoke rising from the roof and don't call 911 we would be criminally negligent. Today, as we watch our nation walk off a cliff, as we watch the smoke rise from the home of the brave and the land of the free, if we do not do all we can to raise the awareness of our fellow Americans we are criminally negligent.