Scoring the Candidates

1.) War on Radical Islam/ Military Preparedness
2.) Courts/Judicial Restraint
3.) Protection of Life, Family and Marriage
4.) Border Security/Immigration
5.) Economy/Low Taxes/Limited Government
6.) Maintaining Science and Technology Superiority
7.) Protecting 2nd Amendment Rights
8.) Education/School Choice
9.) Restoring Market Forces to Health Care

Issue #	Romney	Guliani	Huckabee	McCain
1	2	3	0	2
2	2	2	2	0
3	2	0	3	1
4	2	2	1	0
5	3	3	0	1
6	2	2	0	1
7	1	0	3	2
8	2	2	1	2
9	0	2	1	2
Unweighted Total	16	16	11	11

Scoring: Outstanding =3, Good =2, Fair =1, Poor=0

Ranking the Issues

The Arizona Conservative has endorsed Mitt Romney for the next President of the United States. While the Strenuous Life has not endorsed a candidate it will attempt to score the leading Republicans on the most important issues of our day. Since it is self evident that any of the present GOP candidates is preferable to any potential Democratic opponent the SL will support which ever Republican candidate emerges. Albeit this may be reluctant support.

Recognizing that Ronald Reagan is not an option the SL will nevertheless judge the candidates using the Reagan yardstick. Unfortunately, many of our present day GOP leaders have strayed from his great principles which is why we have not already settled on the nominee. The first step in the process is to identify and rank the issues.

In order of importance they are

1.) War on Radical Islam/ Military Preparedness
2.) Courts/Judicial Restraint
3.) Protection of Life, Family and Marriage
4.) Border Security/Immigration
5.) Economy/Low Taxes/Limited Government
6.) Maintaining Science and Technology Superiority
7.) Protecting 2nd Amendment Rights
8.) Education/School Choice
9.) Restoring Market Forces to Health Care

Note: Global warming, transgender rights, and strenghening the UN were not in the top 100.

Candidate rankings to follow.

An American Hero...

is an inspiration to the New York Giants and football fans everywhere.

Over the Past 35 Years

"... 50 million people who might have been are not... Would we be fighting the battle over immigration had we not rid ourselves of a generation of humans who likely would have done the work for which we are now importing illegal aliens? Actions have consequences."

This is an excerpt from Cal Thomas' recent column that so succinctly captures the origins and consequences of the American abortion holocaust since the Roe v. Wade decision 35 years ago. He also points out that abortion death rates have dropped over the past decade largely due to the tireless efforts of committed pro-life warriors. Moreover, as imaging technology improves and acess to information grows all but the most entrenched pro-aborts will become convinced that abortion on demand cannot be accepted by civilized society.

U.S. Birthrate Increasing

This is very good news for America, and TR would have loved it. While the rest of the Western world is contracting and being over run America might just survive, albeit alone. Preservation of the English speaking peoples is the last best hope for mankind. Now we just need to make sure we remain English speaking. Obviously, multiple factors are contributing to this trend, but much of it is due to the fact that Americans value family and children. Furthermore, we have fortunately turned our back on the secular leftist fear mongers of the 60's and 70's that vilified those who chose to have more that 1 or 2 children.

Eat (vegetables), Drink and be Active

Newmax reported on a couple interesting studies yesterday. It seems that regular physical activity and a moderate level of alcohol consumption is just the thing for a long and healthy life. Throw in more fruits and vegetables and avoid smoking and you can’t do much better. However, there was a strange twist to the story in that it was noted that increased physical activity can partially counteract the adverse effects of abstaining from alcohol. Imagine that. So if you are compelled to avoid alcohol you really need to be attentive to your exercise program.

Walk to Reverse Metabolic Disease

Researchers from Duke University reported in December 15 edition of the American Journal of Cardiology that that walking provides a significant benefit in reversing metabolic syndrome components. The metabolic syndrome is defined by increased abdominal fat, elevated blood pressure, blood sugar and triglycerides, as well as low levels of the protective form of cholesterol known as HDL. Metabolic syndrome doubles the risk for cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and death from cardiovascular disease. For overweight or obese individuals who are physically inactive, brisk walking equivalent to 1 to 2 miles most days of the week might be the best exercise prescription for shedding excess pounds and reducing the risk of metabolic syndrome. This benefit occurred even without a change in diet. The study used data collected from the Studies of Targeted Risk Reduction Intervention through Defined Exercise (STRRIDE). Interestingly, the study also found that in terms of improving metabolic syndrome the same amount of exercise at a more vigorous intensity did not significantly improve results. In short, sedentary life is injurious to metabolic health while moderate activity is sufficient to reverse much of the associated risk.