The U.S. is showing signs of becoming a “postage stamp republic,” a term I first learned as a boy from my stamp collection. Historically, “postage stamp republics” were weak, unstable nations, issuing new stamps frequently to raise money and signaling constant inflation through fluctuating postal rates. Today, the U.S. mirrors that pattern: new stamps appear constantly, often sold more to collectors than used, generating profit for the postal service, while postal rates jumped three times in 1981 alone from 15¢ to 18¢ to 20¢. Beyond stamps, these signs hint at broader issues political instability, inflation, and the gradual erosion of freedom. It’s a wake-up call that something more fundamental than postal rates needs fixing. #PostageStampRepublic #Inflation #PostalRates #EconomicStability #PoliticalInstability #Freedom #USPolitics #FiscalAwareness #GovernmentOversight #HistoryLessons

Sometimes it seems Washington’s planners compete to find the most absurd ways to spend our money. Take Baltimore’s “Block” of strip joints and adult shops: $338,000 is being spent to make the area more accessible with tree plantings and wheelchair cuts apparently ensuring the physically disabled can comfortably visit porno shops! While satire aside, one wonders if resources couldn’t go toward more practical projects like park benches for the homeless or a museum celebrating disappearing Americana like farm mules or outhouses. Bureaucratic priorities often feel out of touch with common sense, and while humor helps us tolerate the madness, the underlying question remains: are we running out of meaningful ways to invest public funds? #GovernmentSpending #Bureaucracy #WastefulSpending #PublicFunds #WashingtonDC #FiscalResponsibility #Satire #CommunityDevelopment #HUD #Priorities

Over-licensing and over-ticketing have become a modern assault on American initiative and freedom. A young entrepreneur with a camera and a pony, providing a wholesome service, faces fines and potential jail simply because he cannot secure 82 separate municipal licenses—licenses that serve the cities’ revenue more than the public good. Meanwhile, real criminals often receive lighter consequences than law-abiding citizens, highlighting a system that targets compliance rather than justice. Excessive licensing and petty ticketing erode trust in civil agencies, limit independence, and punish enterprise, turning ordinary citizens into revenue sources while stifling opportunity. True freedom and initiative are being curtailed under the guise of regulation. #OverLicensed #OverTicketed #CivilLiberty #Entrepreneurship #FreedomUnderThreat #Bureaucracy #AmericanEnterprise #OverRegulation #TaxShakedown #LibertyMatters"