That was when I first learned about Ray Stevens, and years would follow in which I enjoyed his humorous and obviously creative songs.  Whether Stevens was lamenting about adventures with out-of-control Shriners or deep breathing phone stalkers, his language was always clean, his content funny, and one never had to worry if grandmother was listening too. That would be enough for most people to buy Ray Stevens’ albums. This singer-songwriter-comedian has stayed successful with his unique product for decades. However, Stevens has one more quality that has been made public in recent years. He is without a doubt an American Patriot.

In October 2011, I had the opportunity to interview Ray Stevens on my radio show, Conscience of Kansas. Stevens was
gracious and funny, but also very candid about his concern for the future of America. He told me that as he has got older, he pays more attention to what is taking place in America. The comedian is unhappy about the current direction the country is heading. Stevens said a certain amount of blame should be shared by the liberal media who, he believes, lies repeatedly to the American people about the news. He also places blame on many teachers who, Stevens feels, are not teaching children accurate history of our country. This comedian was very serious when he spoke about his rude awakening to the problems this country is facing.
He contributes much of his current knowledge to listening to Fox News and conservative talk show hosts, such as Rush Limbaugh.

Ray Stevens is not a Barack Obama supporter, and his highly successful 2010 album, “We The People,” as well as his new release “Spirit of 76,” both reflect his concerns over issues such as out-of-control government spending, border security, national security, and in many ways, the arrogance and incompetence of the current President in the White House. During our interview, Stevens was gracious, humble, funny, and very honest about who he is and who he is not. This song writer made it plain that he is not a politician and made no assertions about being a specialist or an expert in the world of politics. What he did make clear was that as an American he needed to do something, and so he decided to take his song writing and singing skills and take his stand. I think he is accomplishing more than even he knows.

The truth is that taking back this country will be a long, frustrating, and protracted battle. To win in the end, conservatives must keep their morale up as well as have a strong spine. Humor has always been the conservatives’ ally but sometimes it’s in short supply. That is where conservatives with a true funny bone like Ray Stevens come in and re-energize the Americans who continue the struggle to keep conservative values. Indeed it is something worthy of a Nobel Peace prize though that award is now reserved for those who have not yet accomplished anything. That’s not to worry, however because in the greater
scheme of things, Stevens will leave a much more beloved legacy to more Americans than will Obama. For me, the interview with Ray Stevens was a pleasant journey over the years, beginning with hot pizza and a naked runner and ending with an insightful, indeed delightful exchange with a comedic, patriotic icon.   

Paul A. Ibbetson is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and his Ph.D. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of several books including the 2011 release “The Good Fight: Why Conservatives Must Take Back America.” Paul is also the radio host of the Kansas Broadcasting Association’s 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 award-winning radio program, Conscience of Kansas airing on KRMR The Patriot 105.7 FM, www.ibbetsonusa.com. For interviews or questions, please contact him at ibbetson105.7@gmail.com

In the current GOP 2012 presidential debates, all the Republican candidates have voiced the need to drastically re-structure the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Under the current EPA director, Lisa Jackson, the Obama administration is unleashing on the country the most comprehensive and far-reaching environmental regulations ever seen.

Framed around the need to fulfill job growth in conjunction with cleaning up America’s portion of the planet, Jackson disseminated $ 6.2 million for Brownfield clean up jobs in July this year. This benign sounding
program was advertised as an environmentally “friendly” job plan that would clean up old gas stations, smelter plants, and industrial properties. Of course what is not mentioned during the high-blown rhetoric about saving Mother Earth
by uniting government and environmentalism is that businesses that find themselves in ideological conflict with the ever growing list of “Green initiatives” will face a monstrous State apparatus that is all too eager to unleash “green justice” on all violators. Herein lies the economic quandary for Kansas.

In my interview, Huelskamp made clear his concern. It is a concern that is on the minds of many Americans, namely, that the EPA is overregulating business and industry in the country. In Kansas alone, Huelskamp said that the EPA treats farm “spilt milk as if it is an oil spill.” The Congressman is also aware of new EPA regulations that make the common practice of transporting fuel, over 119 gallons, a violation of Federal law without a hazardous materials permit. Obviously the bureaucrats that are crafting EPA regulations have never worked on a farm. But, is it simply ignorance that brings about such terrible regulations or is there another agenda still? 

In reality, the EPA monster is motivated by a mentality that opposes the capitalistic free market foundations of traditional
America.  On the subject of the chasm that exists between big Green governmental ideology and the free market Kansas mentality, Huelskamp commented that a business owner in Kansas told him that liberals in Washington see all business as nothing more than a “bunch of crooks.” They are bad guys that need to be taken down a notch. I feel that the current
administration’s hostility toward free market initiatives in places like Kansas goes far deeper. There appears to be anger in Washington toward the American spirit that fights for individualism and against becoming part of the
collective, even when that collective is touted as being beautifully “green.” It has become all too apparent when we watch the EPA monster grow larger each day and the idea of the individual becomes ever more endangered that without the
American people adjusting the leadership of this country, the American economy remains at great risk.  What is the EPA’s
goal? The monster wishes to gorge on both the innovators and free marketers in Kansas and elsewhere. 

Paul A. Ibbetson is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and is currently completing his Ph.D. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of several books including the 2011 release “The Good Fight: Why Conservatives Must Take Back America.” Paul is also the radio host of the Kansas Broadcasting Association’s 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 award-winning radio program, Conscience of Kansas airing on KRMR The Patriot 105.7 FM, www.ibbetsonusa.com. For interviews or questions, please contact him at ibbetson105.7@gmail.com

Need a job? How about a job that pays the bills? These questions no longer apply to isolated parts of the country that have faced natural disasters or workers displaced by ENRON-type white collar criminal activity. In America, finding substantive work and keeping it has now become a national question of importance to everyone. For a growing number of people, the answer from the business world to the question of employment has been, “We are
not hiring at this time.”

As reported by Chris Stirewalt on Fox News, the argument for saying America is not in a recession because we have stopped having three sequential quarters of negative growth becomes moot when every quarter’s growth is so small that it cannot improve the economy. The truth is that America’s economy, and its subsequent lack of job growth, is like a heavy anchor dragging the bottom of the deepest ocean. Now imagine the American worker strapped to that anchor, and the mental image is complete.

As Shaila Dewan writes in The New York Times, we see that the most recent reports show the unemployment rate at 9.1 percent. These numbers are scary enough, but they fail to show just how bad unemployment really is. Given America’s current economic dilemma, the percentages of the unemployed whom people read about in newspapers
and hear discussed on the television should be more accurately described as “nice scenario” numbers, because “true unemployment” numbers are much, much higher. In reality, unemployment figures for Americans are at least double of those reported: more and more people continue to run out of Obama’s extended unemployment benefits and no longer qualify to stay on the rolls; others are tired of looking for jobs that don’t exist and simply abandon the job hunt and go home to stare at their sofa cushions. People who have fallen off the official
count of the unemployed are not the only means by which the current employment numbers in America are being obscured; there are also the Obama “fantasy employment numbers.”

The Obama “fantasy employment numbers” are undoubtedly a fiction originally created to combat the administration’s inability to make good on the president’s pledge to the American people to stop unemployment numbers from reaching 8 percent if given a historic “good faith” loan of $787 billion. After the president’s social programing and “shovel ready” New Deal approach failed, the administration started counting unemployment from a new perspective; that is, new jobs would be counted from people who still had jobs. If this sounds a little weird, that’s because it is.

As if pulling a clip from an episode of the Twilight Zone, the Obama administration said America’s new reality on unemployment would now be evaluated from the perspective of people who didn’t lose their jobs due to the president’s actions. As reported by William McGurn in The Wall Street Journal as early as 2009, this method of gauging how Obama’s economic stimulus plan is affecting American jobs was full of phony bologna number crunching. There is no way to quantify jobs saved by the stimulus package; this is a projection of pure fantasy born of desperation. At least in a real Twilight Zone episode, Rod Serling would have taken viewers to the side and told them they were now leaving the real world. Barack Obama needs to be dragged back to our reality, because Americans are just too broke to be able to play along anymore.

The truth is that Obama’s philosophy and the capitalistic/free market system, the system upon which America was founded, cannot co-exist without American workers suffering. Employers of businesses that are still economically viable in today’s economy will not expand their companies nor, hire new employees, so long as the Federal government impinges on the free market and creates future economic uncertainty. The administration’s failed economic policies have protracted an employment downturn beyond what political spin and fantasy statistics can legitimize. Our country’s painful reality is that the more common job status question for the average America is not, “What do you do for living?”, but “Do you do anything at all?”

Paul A. Ibbetson is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and is currently completing his Ph.D. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of several books including the 2011 release “The Good Fight: Why Conservatives Must Take Back America.” Paul is also the radio host of the Kansas Broadcasting Association’s 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 award-winning radio program, Conscience
of Kansas airing on KRMR The Patriot 105.7 FM, www.ibbetsonusa.com. For interviews or questions, please contact him at ibbetson105.7@gmail.com

Opportunities to do good are lost every day. Either through apathy, stupidity, or unfortunately sometimes, bad intentions, situations where good can be done are not only lost, but are replaced with something that is detrimental to society. The Martin Luther King, Jr., Monument in Washington’s National Mall is just such an example. The series of events that brought “this version” of the depiction of the famous civil rights activist to “thislocation” shows the world just how out of line the culture of our country has now become.

First, the King monument is placed in the National Mall, a location specifically designated for U.S. Presidents and fallen soldiers. There is a strong argument to be made that the sculpture of the civil rights icon would be better placed in a different location. However, this argument pales in comparison to the residual implications derived from who actually created the monument and how King is portrayed in stone.

As reported by John Hayward in Human Events, in oddly bizarre fashion, the King monument was not
commissioned for creation by Americans, but was rather given to the fifty-seven year old Chinese Communist, Lei Yixin. Yixin is known among other things for his stone depictions of the Communist Chairman Mao Tse-tung. He thus created a depiction of King that some would say runs counter to a true reflection of the man and what he stood for. Martin Luther King Jr. looks decidedly Asian. The civil rights leader, who was known for both kindness and compassion, is reflected in stone by Yixin having a stern look on his face and with arms folded as if he is in opposition to those who view him. In the stone statue King also grips an unknown document with force, and one can only guess if the artist meant the document to be one with biblical scripture, the constitution, or one of Mao’s many versions of the “Little Red Book.”

Some have asserted that the carving of this statue should have been commissioned to a black artisan; however, I think that King would have preferred to look at quality of character, and artistic ability, over color of skin.  With that
observation in mind, it is still hard to fathom that King would have wished that his memorial depiction to be created to exhibit a Communist mentality, certainly void of the Christian values he championed. The “angry Asian, the Communist Martin Luther King, Jr.” monument also includes inscriptions of many of King’s famous quotes, but minus his famous “I have a dream,” apparently, purposely omitted. This lack is almost fitting as little of King’s true Christian nature is on display.

The final note, in what has become a sad story, is that it appears that the King monument was never intended to be designed for posterity, but rather for family profit. As reported in the New York Post, the Martin Luther King, Jr., family charged to the foundation that built the monument $800,000 to use King’s words and image. This King family money scheme further removes the appropriateness of the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial being placed alongside distinguished U.S. Presidents and fallen soldiers whose families never asked, nor received any residuals for the honor of being memorialized. Sadly, there are now no redeemable qualities to retrieve from exhibiting a King memorial in Washington, as both Communism and family greed have instead simply created an anathema of a
monument now placed in the National Mall.

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life deserves a more honorable and precise legacy than what is depicted in the new Washington memorial. It is said that the reported inspiration for the piece came from King’s “I have a dream” speech in which the civil rights leader stated, “Out of a mountain of despair, a stone of hope.” Instead of a noble transformation, people in the National Mall will now view a Marxian mountain that is too arrogant and more fitting to a Communist bloc than to the powerful role Martin Luther King Jr. played in a movement for equality gained through passive resistance and the power of prayer. Opportunities to do good are lost every day, but some
are more painful to watch than others.

Paul A. Ibbetson is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and is currently completing his Ph.D. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of several books including the 2011 release “The Good Fight: Why Conservatives Must Take Back America.” Paul is also the radio host of the Kansas Broadcasting Association’s 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 award-winning radio program, Conscience of Kansas airing on KRMR The Patriot 105.7 FM, www.ibbetsonusa.com. For interviews or questions, please contact him at ibbetson105.7@gmail.com

As Republican presidential candidates file in and out of contention and Americans wait to see the final line-up of GOP contenders for 2012, Barack Obama stands in the left’s corner alone. The question is: just how alone is the Democratic Party’s golden politician from 2008, the man Oprah Winfrey called “The One.” Traditional wisdom in the politics game is that
anything can happen and that a year’s worth of happenings can transpire in a week in the wacky world of Washington. While this is true, there is also a time-tested wisdom that some losers are just so obvious that even their loving
mothers quietly bet on the other side. Barack Obama will be such a loser; in fact, Obama’s defeat will be so widely one-sided as to make John McCain’s loss in 2008 seem like a squeaker.

The typical mindset in the political game is to maximize voter output by projecting to the public that all races will be close
ones, that every vote is required to win, and that the opposition is just as close to victory as those on the side of the angels. There are strategic reasons for this method of thinking that I would not obstruct, but I would also say that there are even more practical reasons to say that Barack Obama and his reign over America do not fall within the normal parameters of American history. In short, the president has created an environment in which his removal from office is now a requirement for the survival of the country.

Obama’s historic transgressions against the American people are beyond count. From the president’s takeover of the private market and his failed promise of lower unemployment rates to wild edicts for the Attorney General to usurp American law and no longer enforce the Defense of Marriage Act, Obama has created an environment where the America people
question not only his competence, but whether or not he is actually attempting to destroy the country. Obama jokes about his desire to bypass Congress in the law making process while talking to radical anti-American organizations such as
La Raza while the majority of the country looks on with a combination of slacked jaw amazement and growing rage.

The president has made the answer simple for the American people as to his political future. To avoid economic collapse, Barack
Obama has to go. To avoid a complete breakdown of national security, Barack Obama has to go. To avoid the utter destruction of the moral fabric of this country, the American people have no choice, Barack Obama has to be made a one-term
president.

Traditional Americans should show due diligence in gathering numbers at the polling booths to send Barack Obama packing. Much work needs to be done in this arena. What they should not fall victim to is the coming hype from the liberal media that the president’s opposition is too weak to win, or that Obama is too strong, worthy and dare I say, “historic” to lose. The truth of the matter of America’s future is that we are about to survive the most destructive president in this country’s history and we are going to do it by the skin of our teeth, but do it we will. While there are always several architects to a one-term presidency, the most powerful force in Obama’s political demise will be himself and what he did to our country, what he is doing now and
his historically destructive plans for the future. 

Paul A. Ibbetson is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and is currently completing his Ph.D. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of several books including the 2010 release “Oliver’s Tale: A Squirrel’s Story of Love, Courage, and Revolution.” Paul is also the radio host of the Kansas Broadcasting Association’s 2008,
2009, 2010 and 2011 award-winning radio program, Conscience of Kansas airing on KRMR The Patriot 105.7 FM, www.ibbetsonusa.com. For interviews or questions, please contact him at ibbetson91.9@gmail.com

In 2005, in the heat of the Defense of Marriage Act debate, liberals within Kansas and across the nation attempted to push conservatives within the state into bypassing an initiative to vote on whether or not marriage should only be between a man and a woman. Liberal politicians in Topeka appeared ready to stand firm on refusing an amendment vote, while
hundreds of conservatives across the state went to the state capital and discussed, lobbied, and prayed that our government would let the people vote on the issue. During this period, liberals attempted the very same demonization
that is now heaped upon the Tea Parties of this state, by saying that Kansans who believed in traditional values were “hate mongers, intolerant, prejudiced,” and the list goes on. After a lengthy battle, the people of Kansas were allowed
to vote on the issue and 70 percent of state voters stated their desire for marriage to be only between a man and a woman. Following this hard-fought victory in Kansas, states such as Wisconsin, Virginia, Tennessee, South Dakota,
South Carolina, Idaho, Colorado, Arizona, Florida and even California would vote for traditional marriage. What one state can do, so can another.

It’s not that Kansas is always a conservative bastion of perfection. We lose our way from time to time. What makes us unique,
or might I say heroic, as a state is that our moral compass is directed by people who will acknowledge their mistakes and will make the often-painful course corrections when necessary. A salient example, and one mentioned far less than it should be, was the massive conservative victory against the country’s most liberal homosexual bill created and passed in Manhattan, Kansas.
On February 8, 2011, a liberal majority within Manhattan’s city government with support from a homosexual advocacy group, Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, and Transgender (LGBT) pushed through an anti-discrimination ordinance alteration that created arbitrary punishments for traditional Kansans, and ran counter to the values of Christians. In the face of heavy liberal opposition, Kansans came together and voted in a conservative majority in Manhattan, Kansas, and repealed the homosexual bill. What one town can do, so can another.

Today, Kansas leads the nation in bringing back to national consciousness the reality of the sanctity of life before birth. Kansas House Bill 2218 acknowledges medical evidence of the pain capability of the unborn, and bans abortion after 22 weeks in all cases except to save a mother’s life. Under Kansas House Bill 2035, the simple but land-breaking word change
found in all abortion law language will now describe the unborn as a “child” and not a “fetus.” As well, this bill requires that both parents, instead of one, be notified when a minor requests an abortion. Among other ground-shaking
strides for life that are taking place in this state, Title X federal money for 'reproductive-related' services have been designated by law to only go to public health clinics giving full service primary and preventative care. Simply
put, for the first time, Planned Parenthood does not qualify for those taxpayer funds. On this issue, Kansas is currently fighting Planned Parenthood in what can be seen as the conflict over “health dollars versus abortion dollars.” Win or lose on this issue; once again, conservatives in Kansas are doing tremendous things.

Pick your issue, and you will see that time and time again Kansas conservatives do the right thing when doing wrong would be cheaper, easier and more politically correct. This is superhero work. While the people of our state get far less media attention for their many substantial victories, I can tell you with absolute certainty that the victories of the people of Kansas are on the minds of Americans throughout the country. Through my work in radio I have received e-mails from conservatives across the country, and in every state they praise the resilience and consistency of Kansas conservatives. Most notable are the conservatives of blue states that desire what we have here in the beautiful flatlands, a clear consensus on core value issues. Yes, the people of Kansas are superheroes to many across the nation. 

There will be those that will attempt to diminish the value of what we have accomplished, and what we will do in the future. There will certainly be those that will attack me personally as the messenger and as one that holds the banner of conservatism in this state so proudly. I say on all counts, let the liberal detractors come, let them all come, and may the better
values win. Praise has been earned by the people of Kansas, but with it comes the reality that the people of this state will continue to be challenged to do what is right, when doing right will be the harder thing to do. We must not fail, we must hold to our values to make a better state and in the end, to save this country. With great power comes great responsibility.

Paul A. Ibbetson is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and is currently completing his Ph.D. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of several books including the 2010 release “Oliver’s Tale: A Squirrel’s Story of Love, Courage, and Revolution.” Paul is also the radio host of the Kansas Broadcasting Association’s 2008,
2009, 2010 and 2011 award-winning radio program, Conscience of Kansas airing on KSDB Manhattan 91.9  FM, www.ibbetsonusa.com. For interviews or questions, please contact him at ibbetson91.9@gmail.com

If you want to see another blatant example of social activism at the expense of traditional marriage, go no further than The
Learning Channel (TLC). Part of TLC’s knowledge-enhancing program lineup is the show featuring polygamist Kody Brown and his ever-growing, Utah-based harem of “Sister Wives.” The show is spun as a unique look at a non-traditional family
that faces the same struggles as regular folks and manages to make it through life with strong bonds of love and respect. That sounds really nice doesn’t it? The truth of this dysfunctional group and their attempts at TV stardom are much darker, and much more dangerous to traditional American culture.

Researching the Kody Brown clan forced me to delve into the TV program. From doing so I discovered that Kody Brown, a sales and advertising agent, married his first wife Meri conventionally in 1990. Since then, Brown has been collecting and impregnating additional concubines, likeJanelle, Christine and Robyn, at a consistent rate. Brown’s women take on his last name, bear his offspring, and work to pay for the cost of the polygamist lifestyle. The show, Sister Wives, despite being given a positive spin, still highlights the cult-like mentality of polygamy groups.

Kody Brown emanates a shyster vibe that is common with manipulators found in cult settings. He preaches to his bedroom cohorts that they are each individually special and respected while at the same time adding new women to his brothel. Even during the two seasons of Sister Wives so far, Kody Brown has decided that three special wives is just not enough, and
has added another woman to his collection. What we have here is one serious jive turkey in Kody Brown running some even more serious jive of some impressionable women. However, if we look at Sister Wives more critically, we can access Brown and the layers of hypocrisy in this show more adequately.

Brown’s jive is more clearly seen as a constant manipulation of the women he exploits. Within the Brown polygamy system, he
alone receives the carnal benefit of a sexual smorgasbord of duped female lovers, while the women do nothing more than bear and raise his children and sell jelly at the airport. This is truly cult-like activity. It is doubtful that Kody Brown’s cherub-like smile would withstand a request from his stable to bring another man into the love circle. I suspect that would spoil the
“specialness” of these marriages.

The next example of hypocrisy that screams to be addressed is the fact that this cult is not behind bars. Utah has anti-polygamy
laws and this faction has more than written their confession to the crime of polygamy on national television. Where is the law here? One cult leader, four wives, sixteen children and no legal accountability.

Brent Bozell in NewsBusters adequately shows that Kody Brown and his Sister Wives wish to push polygamy into the mainstream culture and are willing to flout the laws of the land to do so. For them, breaking down traditional marriage is more than potentially circumventing the law; it is an attempt to be accepted into a culture that has traditionally been bound by biblical values on the subject. Sister Wives is nothing less than a counterculture advocacy program that undermines biblical values and promotes sexual perversion.

Lastly, and probably the largest example of hypocrisy is that TLC allows itself to be the vehicle for the dissemination,
and the accomplice in the crime of polygamy. There is no rational spin that can be forwarded that will decrease their culpability in this attempt to lead the American culture astray on the values of marriage.

Traditional marriage is the cornerstone of America. The guidelines to this institution are firmly and clearly laid out within God’s
law and are in clear opposition to the Sister Wife lifestyle. To deviate from the cornerstone from which American life springs forth is to guarantee social calamity, suffering and pain. It matters not whether the merchants of deviance wish to push gay
marriage, adultery, polygamy or any other cleverly altered variation of this kind. We would be wise to fight it, we would be just to defeat it, and we would be blessed to teach our children to do the same.     

Paul A. Ibbetson is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and is currently completing his Ph.D. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of several books including the 2010 release “Oliver’s Tale: A Squirrel’s Story of Love, Courage, and Revolution.” Paul is also the radio host of the Kansas Broadcasting Association’s 2008,
2009, 2010 and 2011 award-winning radio program, Conscience of Kansas airing on KSDB Manhattan 91.9 FM, www.ibbetsonusa.com. For interviews or questions, please contact him at ibbetson91.9@gmail.com