There is, as one observer put it, an incredible amount of “noise” surrounding our industry’s professional and politically connected issues. The positions held by various factions in our nation and others are often starkly different. That begs a simple question. What is true?
That challenge of competing storylines or narratives also begs a question similar to the one in the headline from famous British bestselling author G.K. Chesterton – what is right? More specifically, Chesterton said: “What is wrong is that we do not ask what is right,” according to GoodReads.
Want to make complex issues as simple as possible?
Discerning the truth can often be as simple as temporarily ignoring what this or that group or person’s agendas is, and first determining what is right and what is wrong.
Let’s look at a specific example that is highly relevant to our industry.
One of our new headline reports linked below is on the incredibly important affordable financing issue. Given that Congress passed a law 12 years ago mandating that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac provide a secondary market access for affordable manufactured housing lending, how is it possible that the aim of a federal law – the so-called Duty to Serve Manufactured Housing – has been largely ignored, re-routed, or sidestepped for a dozen years?
It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that something is wrong in that sadly factual reality. A dozen years have elapsed. Largely a few ‘insiders’ benefited, but millions are being left out in the cold.
That’s wrong.
Once someone realizes that a good federal law exists that is being twisted, stalled or ignored, it does not take a genius to realize what has to be done. What is wrong must be made right.
See how simple the brilliant and penetrating Chesterton’s insight is?
Please learn this simple mantra – courtesy of a literary king of paradox, G.K. Chesterton: “What is wrong is that we do not ask what is right.” That simple statement is a discernment tool like few others. By the way, his name “G.K.” is short for Gilbert Keith Chesterton.
What is right and wrong does not change with the times. Some people say or think that morality changes. Nonsense, and we’ll prove that in a moment. That said, it is true that perceptions of morality vary. But what is right and wrong are timeless. Let’s look at two easy examples to make the point.
Have you ever known someone who had property stolen or vandalized? Was there disappointment, frustration, or anger as a result of that theft or unjust damage?
Of course. That’s natural, it is human nature. It might be the kid at school that had his lunch money stolen. Or it may be some piece of property at your residence or business that was impacted. Did you or those who had such an experience like it? No.
Then ponder for a moment about a time when you or someone you know was lied to, manipulated or deceived. Next, recall when they or you realized that manipulation or deception. When that “moment of truth” finally came, how did it feel? What was it like to realize that someone – perhaps someone long near or dear – betrayed you or a friend. What where those emotions like? Painful, surprised, stunned, or perhaps even disbelief?
The pain of theft or lies felt the same 100 or 1,000 years ago as it does today. Because objective reality – truth – is timeless. The pain of being lied to, betrayed, or to have someone’s property taken or destroyed is as authentic now as in ancient times.
Back to Basics
When a person, family, company, profession, or nation is in disarray, it is a signal that it is time to regroup. Let’s restate the headline. Turmoil is a sign that it is time to get back to basics.
The basics are what help us sort out the clever lie or dodge from what some might think is a perhaps bland but nevertheless important truth.
That noted, let’s circle back to two points above. Because they each illustrate a basic belief common to the vast majority of Americans.
- There can only be ‘theft’ if someone believes in private property.
- There can only be a lie if there is truth or objective reality.
Hold those thoughts, and let’s look at an increasingly popular belief, especially among the youth of America.
Socialism, said Karl Marx, was a steppingstone onto Communism. That’s not the mere opinion of this writer or MHProNews. That is the words of one of the founders of Marxist, Socialist, Bolshevik, Jacobin, or Communist ideology – Karl Marx.
Vladimir Lenin – a leader of the Bolshevik, think Marxist or communist, takeover of Russia in 1917 – made it clear to his followers that lying was necessary in order to get what they wanted.
Why was lying necessary for socialist-communist leaders like Marx, Hitler, Lenin, Mao or Castro? That is simple. Because the vast majority of people would never follow socialism or Marxist thinking if they knew the truth.
Socialists, Marxists, Communists, anarchists, Antifa, Black Lives Matter (the nonprofit group as distinct from the slogan) and other leftist groups hold some specific and common views. If you drill down, those leftist views are routinely contrary to personal property rights.
- If you or someone you care about is among the roughly 2/3 of Americans who own or are buying a home, do you want to see those private property rights lost?
- Hold that thought, and set housing aside for a few moments. Even non-homeowners who have worked for the money to earn and buy a smart phone, a TV, a vehicle, bike or book, or those groceries in the refrigerator. Should someone other than the owner be allowed to take that – steal it – without any compensation or consequences?
- The vast majority of Americans would condemn the taking of privately owned property as theft.
But that is not always viewed as theft to the hard-core Marxist. A black BLM activist recently made the argument that looting was justified. That widely seen video ignored the point that many of the independently owned businesses that were broken into, looted, or set ablaze were owned by minorities. How did one or more minority members violating the rights of another minority business owner help any just cause?
Those who ‘teach’ the path of ‘socialism’ may or may not say or realize that Marx himself said it leads to Communism. Those who justify looting or acts of violence against a person or property no doubt would not want their own rights violated.
Racial injustice and slavery has, as MHProNews previously documented on more than one occasion, existed in every part of the world, save perhaps Antarctica. Lies are often designed to twist emotions, which is why the ancient wisdom – the truth will set you free – is so vital.
If socialism takes hold in America, the independents in our profession can largely hang it up. Why? Is that an exaggeration?
As the quotes on this page demonstrate, hardly. Just look carefully at the positions being advanced.
- The Green New Deal pushed by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-D) and others who think as she does would “fund” tens of billions in socialized housing. Our industry is based upon the notion of selling manufactured homes to consumers. Stop and think of where that leads.
- The sale of a manufactured home to renters would at some point logically cease if socialists came to power and actually implemented socialized housing. Perhaps big connected businesses could continue, they would build that ‘socialized housing.’
As left-of-center CNBC put it on November 14, 2019, former Democratic Presidential Candidate Senator Bernie “Sanders and [Representative] Ocasio-Cortez unveil $180 billion ‘Green New Deal’ for public housing.”
- If you like your stuff, better vote against those who back socialist ideas, or those who accept the support of socialists.
Don’t forget. It was independent community owner Marge Clark from Iowa told MHProNews that the biggest competitor for our industry is subsidized or public housing.
The facts are there for those who are willing to look at them in an objective manner. MHProNews is aware of management level people in financing, for example, who were Sanders supporters. Did they realize that if Sanders ideals came to be adopted – regardless of who is the person up front – that their company would in time cease to be?
When Lenin and Trotsky came to power in Russia, the private property rights of the middle-class people began to vanish, sometimes in a violently or even in a deadly fashion. As JSTOR put it, “One aspect of the Russian revolutions of 1917… expropriation of bourgeois and noble property during the revolutions…” As an FYI, JSTOR is “a not-for-profit organization helping the academic community use digital technologies to preserve the scholarly record and to advance research and teaching in sustainable ways.”
When law and order break down due to ongoing anarchist or other violent behavior, who is harmed the most? Those who have property. But not long after that, those business owners that are forced to close obviously end up laying off their workers. Now, the community suffers. A black woman was shown on TV several months ago lamenting the loss of the local grocery store that she was able to walk to; that store was looted by a violent mob.
When not enough police are available, citizens must defend themselves.
But Socialists and Communists routinely do not want you to own a gun. Notice that gun-control goes hand in glove with socialist propaganda. Why?
Ponder Lenin’s sobering words.
100 people without a gun can be controlled by 1 with a gun. That has played out time and again in scenarios in so-called ‘gun free’ zones.
This is the cold, hard truth. Socialists and communists come to power via lies. They then hold power by force. That’s the brutal lesson of history. Look no further than Cuba or Venezuela to see how sadly true that statement is.
Keep going back to the basics. Keep returning to the questions. What is right? What is wrong?
Socialism is always wrong. Communism is always wrong. Anarchy – lawlessness – are wrong. Just law and order matter.
If you value your profession, do not let liars gain power through their lies. It can be as simple as that.
Denial
There are nuances that could be explored, but let’s keep it simple. When someone is confronted with an uncomfortable truth, a common reaction is denial. It is like the 5 stages of grieving. Denial often kicks in, rather than embracing the difficult but sobering truth.
Rationalization and habits are precisely the types of things that the powers that be rely upon. Like him or not, Warren Buffett is correct in the following observation.
There is always more to know. See the Postscript following today’s headlines.
Manufactured housing has historically been about affordable home ownership. Sure, there has long been those who bought and rented mobile or manufactured homes. That gave rise to the old song, “trailers for sale or rent.”
But our industry evolved from the trailer house era into mobile homes. Then mobile homes evolved into manufactured homes. Our industry can proudly say that our factory-crafted housing product evolved into truly durable, safe affordable permanent homes that rival conventional housing for a fraction of the cost.
So, why is it that our industry is struggling some twenty years after the passage of the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000?
The problematic answer is ironically linked to the same people who are funding those socialists, revolutionaries, anarchists, and communists. History tells us that funding must exist for such revolutionary activists.
Really? Of course. Tell your circle who are falling into those deceptions to stop and think. Those signs, websites, and nonprofit groups that may be seen protesting on TV must have money behind them. Some of them are paid to do that “work” of protesting and organizing others to protest.
Don’t believe it?
See the Shut Down DC report among the headlines for the week below. See where the money trail leads.
Senator William Proxmire was a Democrat. He wisely said the following.
Periodically Marty Lavin, J.D., sends in an on the record comment. See his latest on the hot-button finance topic, linked on the Saturday Daily Business News report further below.
Lavin wasn’t the first or the last to say ‘pay more attention to what people say than what they do.’ Lavin wasn’t the only one who said ‘follow the money.’ Investigators and truth-seeking journalists have long used that mantra. One example of that pithy truism is from the author below.
But when journalists wittingly or not peddle or half-truth’s themselves, simple tests are needed. That test needs to be boiled down to the basics.
What is wrong? What is right?
Keep that in mind as you peruse the headlines and reports that are linked below.
An important point before voting or before advising others on voting. There are no perfect people walking planet earth. Obviously, there are mistakes and problems in every organization, company, or political party. But what happens when a mistake is discovered? Is it just covered up? There are two ways to look at it, pick the ‘lesser of two evils,’ or ‘pick the greater good!’
Don’t miss todays postscript, following the headlines.
With no further adieu, let’s dive into the headlines for the week that was from 10.11.2020 to 10.18.2020
What is New from MHARR
The Latest on MHLivingNews (Note, an additional article is coming…stay tuned)
What is New on the Masthead
https://www.manufacturedhomepronews.com/masthead/pay-to-play-joe-biden-says-n-ger-on-video-bidens-klan-buddy-byrd-racist-and-corrupt-behavior-explored-president-trump-vp-biden/
What’s New on the Daily Business News on MHProNews
Saturday 10.17.2020
Friday 10.16.2020
Former President Barack Obama Proven Correct; “A Tale Of Two Cities”
Thursday 10.15.2020
Wednesday 10.14.2020
Tuesday 10.13.2020
Monday 10.12.2020
Sunday 10.11.2020
Postscripts
- Some years ago, MHProNews posted a video on YouTube about tornadoes and windstorms. It has topped 500,000 views. It is by far the most viewed video on that topic. It was a lower tech ‘desktop’ production, but 555,000+ viewers and still counting make it a clear hit.
Part of what keeps that video ‘hot’ are the comments. When a negative comment comes in, MHProNews responds with a reply and a link that often goes to this newer video.
Perhaps YouTube has played with the search results? But that second video, which covers ground with updated materials that are far better has not had the same traction. Nevertheless, it is arguably the best video on the topic, because it uses numerous third-party information.
MHProNews wasn’t paid to do that, we did it because the manufactured home industry needed them. We’ve been told that savvy sellers in our industry that they use those videos with specific prospects that have fears about manufactured homes and windstorms.
Those are just two of hundreds of examples of information found on MHLivingNews, which was launched a few years after MHProNews. We’ve never lost sight of the mission of getting to the root causes of what has kept our industry underperforming for so long.
- The Biden Campaign and Never Trumpers.
Give the pro-Biden Democrats their due. They are bombarding people with their messages on TV, radio, online, by mail, and by phone.
This image below is from the pro-Biden “establishment” Republicans who are “never Trump” types. More on that in a moment. As you look at this, don’t forget that recent media reports say that some 25 to 30 percent of attendees at Trump rallies are registered as Democrats. Think about that for a few moments.
That said, this front-and-back postal mailer is a masterpiece of propaganda. It could be a case study in propaganda.
First, the above is an authentic picture used by that never Trump front group. But that photo – carefully viewed – is of a peaceful protest. Where is the violence, looting, or arson?
By contrast, that image is a far cry from the violence that has rocked cities and towns from coast to coast that have Antifa, Black Lives Matter, or other pro-socialist or anarchist groups finger-prints on them.
The back side of this never Trump piece of propaganda would be debunked by the actual video that the phony ‘good people on both sides quote’ is taken from. See that video below. It is an accurate quote, which makes it paltering, because it is taken badly out of context. That same video makes clear that President Trump at that time condemned racist behavior repeatedly, violence from both left and right, including at that same press conference.
But that piece of debunked propaganda has been repeated over and over by people that know better. It is a reminder of what Samuel Clemens, a.k.a. Mark Twain said.
See the report linked here for a detailed examination of the videos through the years of President and private citizen Trump saying the opposite of what leftist and never Trump media claim.
A lie can be told in seconds. It takes hours to organize the evidence that debunks it. The lie told in seconds may take 15 minutes or an hour of reading and viewing to disprove. That’s why lies are used! They are EASIER to say and it takes serious effort to debunk a lie. Many will never see the evidence that refutes the lie.
So, back to basics. It is up to forward thinkers to influence others in your circle who are sitting on the fence or who may not see the truth clearly.
It doesn’t take much. Send a link to an article, as them for their comment on it. Don’t say you endorse the article, just as for a comment. Some will get it, others won’t. But that is how spreading the truth begins.
A Never Trumper…
A ‘never Trumper’ was interviewed on Fox News recently. He pointedly explained his doubts about candidate Trump in 2016. He flatly said that he voted against him. But that never Trump then said he watched the 45th president fight to execute on his campaign promises, despite fierce opposition over the next 3 years. That made him look again. That “never Trumper” then told the reporter he would now “crawl over twenty miles of broken glass” to vote to re-elect President Donald Trump.
Those words will send numbers of current “never Trumpers” who believe the years of disinformation they have heard into orbit. But check the emotion, and look at the evidence.
We’ve all been lied to on any number of issues. Isn’t it at least possible that some level of deception has occurred about the president? Let’s quickly note that doesn’t mean he’s perfect. He’s not. We can tick of his weaknesses as easily as you can.
But compared to the scandals that are coming to light about the Biden family international influence peddling scheme, doesn’t that sound eerily like the Clinton Foundation schemes that came to light during Secretary Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign? Pay to pay influence peddling?
There has been corruption involving members of both major parties for years. So, this isn’t just bashing Democrats. It must be acknowledged that what occurred during the Bush 43 Administration years wasn’t improved upon during the Obama Administration years. The two major parties changed control over the White House, but the purported corruption went on.
Step back and look. President Trump took on members of his own party, including the Bush dynasty. Of course, there were and are Bush-McCain type “Establishment” Republicans – those Lincoln Project type Republicans – who hated candidate turned President Donald Trump.
There is a mountain of difference between giving away the presidential salary – as President Trump has done since he’s taken office – and the Biden family keeping their salary and purportedly doing influence peddling for years. The evidence, say some voices across the left-and right, is in the open. How did “lunch bucket Joe” get the money for a multimillion-dollar mansion on a Senator or VP’s salary?
But beyond that, look at policies and results.
If the Obama-Biden plans were so good for minorities, why did crime in Democratic run cities like Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Barack Obama’s ‘hometown’ of Chicago continue unabated during their 8 years in office? That’s why the message of Black Republican Kim Klacik has gone viral.
Democrats have a history of pay for play politics. But there is a new crop of Trump-Republicans rising. They are often people of color. They have learned to fight back with facts. Joe Collins is another such candidate.
That Democrats have historically had something akin to what Tammany Hall in New York was all about. That doesn’t mean that all Democrats are in that camp, but there is still a history of that in their party.
Democrats were the party of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). That’s simply historic fact. See black professor Carol Swain explain that history. She went from the left to the right, based upon facts and history. Note that MHProNews is politically independent, which means we are looking for the truth, not partisanship.
Is it a surprise that Black Lives Matter or Antifa type groups are the modern ‘militant’ or ‘radical’ arm of the Democratic party and their donor class, just as the KKK was during the decades of segregation or slavery before it?
People have to be willing to look at the competing claims. Then they have to ask the objective question and seek the honest answer. What is wrong? What is right?
Eternal truths are just that – eternal. It may be uncomfortable for some to think in terms of religious beliefs. It is no surprise that some BLM and antifa types have been attacking Christian, Jewish, or Catholic houses of worship.
It is also no surprise that those justifying their beliefs are turning literally to Satanism.
The lies, half-truths, and deceptions on the left can be debunked. But it takes time.
That is why a simple method must be used between now and the election.
- What is wrong is that we do not ask what is right.
- It is time to get back to basics.
A Simple Call to Action
You can keep it simple. You can even be arm’s length. It is this easy. Share links to articles like this one. You don’t have to endorse it. Just ask your friends, ‘Would you take a good look and tell me what do you think about this?‘
“What is Wrong is That We Do Not Ask What is Right;” Sunday Weekly Headlines Review
There is always more to know, read, and more to come. Stay tuned with the runaway number one source for authentic “News through the lens of manufactured homes and factory-built housing” © where “We Provide, You Decide.” © ## (Affordable housing, manufactured homes, reports, fact-checks, analysis, and commentary. Third-party images or content are provided under fair use guidelines for media.) (See Related Reports, further below. Text/image boxes often are hot-linked to other reports that can be access by clicking on them.)
By L.A. “Tony” Kovach – for MHProNews.com.
Tony earned a journalism scholarship and earned numerous awards in history and in manufactured housing.
For example, he earned the prestigious Lottinville Award in history from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied history and business management. He’s a managing member and co-founder of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com.
This article reflects the LLC’s and/or the writer’s position, and may or may not reflect the views of sponsors or supporters.
Connect on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/latonykovach
Related References:
The text/image boxes below are linked to other reports, which can be accessed by clicking on them.
Who is “Drinking the Kool-Aid” – Sunday Weekly Headline Review
Leaked Secret Democratic Memo On Black Lives Matter Emerges; “Haven’t Seen Sh-t Like This Before”
