Ten Principles to Live By, taken from Jims Owens' book,
Cowboy Ethics: What Wall Street can learn from the Code of the West, and how they should apply to Congress and the Executive Branch as well.
1. Live each day with courage. This means standing up for what is right. having the courage to dig out corruption in your own group or party. Have you seen how Pelosi is protecting Rep Rangel (D-NY) from ethic investigations and charges for tax cheating allegations. And this is after her promise (see Ethic #6) about "changing the culture of corruption". What a hypocrite!
2. Take pride in your work. If Politicans took pride in their work which is representing the interests of their constituents and the best interest of the Country, these politicans wouldn't have the inclination or time to be having a poke with one of their campaign workers or aides.
3. Always finish what you start. Iraq and Afghanistan pops into my head on this ethic. It seems like we're spending more time trying to find an "exit strategy" than winning the Global War on Terrorism,..or should we call it "Overseas Contingency Operations"? Hey, here's an idea,.....lets just kill those radical Islamists, where ever they are, and get it done with.
4. Do what has to be done. Another foreign policy link,..Iran and North Korea. Waiting on other countries like China, Russia and those gut less European countries to build a coalition to effect trade embargos, etc.,....is doing little good. Sometimes you just gotta have the courage of conviction and do what has to be done, regards of who is supporting you.
5. Be tough, but fair. The obvious example to me is the tax code and efforts to take from those who have and give to those who have not.....in fact legislating an abdication of individual responsibility that this country was founded upon as a large percentage of our tax dollars go to social welfare programs. If politicans live by
being tough, but fair there would be no pay taxer support of abortions, no taxing of private "Cadillac" health care plans in the proposed, but unconstitutional, Health Care Bill sitting at Congress right now. Americans are the most generous people in the World,......no other Country in the World does more for the economically disadvantged people and countrys. Just sticks in my craw that our Government wants to control how much each of us pay to support social programs.
6. When you make a promise, keep it. Practically imposible for all Politicans to live by this code as their whole election process seems to be based on making promises to specific interest groups in order to get elected.
7. Ride for the brand. Boy, I wish Obama would have kept this code,...maybe he wouldn't have launched to Europe and the Middle East on his "Apology Tour". The Unitd States has NOTHING to apologize for except electing an unprecedented number of un-ethical people to Congress and the White House.
8. Talk less and say more. Ever watch a Pelosi press conference or that Buffoon of a Presidential Pres Secretary,...what's his name? Gibbs?,.....anyway, doesn't seem like they talk for 20 minutes in a circle, spining the facts as they seem fit and what will support their current arguement. When it's all said and done, you still don't know what they meant.
9. Remember that some things aren't for sale. I don't know, maybe I'm naive, but what shouldn't be for sale is the Politicans vote on legislation. Have you heard of the "Louisiana Purchase" or the "Cornhusker Kickback"? These were barely veiled attempts to buy votes in support of the pile of manure known as the Health Care bill.
10. Know where to draw the line. This undoubtably should pertain to the budget and out of control spending. My Lord! We are indebted to the Communist Chinese and Russia to such a large extent, and, that combined with our other debt and ecomonic status has threatened The U.S.'s AAA bond rating. The fact that Congress spends money like a druken Sailor at port call, pisses me off as most responsible American families have to live within a budget or live under a bridge.
