What we are seeing in Minnesota is just the Very Small tip of a very large iceberg. If we use their numbers and extrapolate for a national figure we are a over a halt a Trillion dollars and I think in the final analysis it will be much larger.. However we have other contributing factors that make it much worse than just the amount of the Fraud. I call this whole thing the 4 whammy's

1- the fraud itself

2- The interest. We are in deficit spending in the U.S. so in fact every dollar stolen is borrowed money.

3-We have at ;east 14 states who are projected to have deficits this year so they will intern have to pay interest on their shortfalls.

4- Much of the fraud money is being sent out of the country according to FBI investigations. According to economists money earned ( or stolen here) and sent out of the country robs our economy of the economic benefit of that money. Theory says that money earned here and spent here in the economy has a 5X multiple effect. Our economy takes a big hit because of the actual loss of the money stolen but also the loss of that Multiplier effect..

If we can stop the fraud or at least minimize it we could eliminate much of our federal deficit. And deficit in many of the states as well.

I am who I am because of my Parents. My dad in particular, had a way of teaching things about life, that many times I don't think he really knew he was teaching at the time. It was not what he said most of the time, it was what he did. The way he worked, the way he dealt with neighbors, friends and even strangers. This podcast is just one example the important life lessons he taught me, by doing it, not saying it. This experience has had a major impact on my life, I hope it can help others the way it has helped me.

The Myth of the "Good Old Days"

we’re told today that we’ve never been more divided. We look at the shouting matches on cable news the hate and the vitriol and think, "It was never like this before." But history tells a different story. The 1800s were brutal. We’re talking about a century that started with a duel between Hamilton and Burr and peaked with a literal Civil War.

But tucked away in the corners of that violent history are stories that feel almost impossible today. Stories of men who spent their days trying to defeat each other's ideas, but the nights protecting each other's dignity. Today, we’re looking at the "Odd Couples" of the 19th century to see if they can teach us how to get past the hate.

"The 'better part of valor' isn't a relic of the 1800s. It’s a tool. It’s the discretion to know that the person you're arguing with on the House floor or across the dinner table is someone you're going to have to live with tomorrow.