News of Zicam and its “side effects” was reported all over the news. Those people who have lost their ability to smell are all really upset, and who can blame them? Zicam now faces lawsuits after lawsuits and they can’t get it off the shelves fast enough. The media is having their frenzy and an article from CNN Money explains that because Zicam was classified as a homeopathic remedy, it was able to be marketed without “government oversight.” (Click here)
So what now? I see several things. And some are not pretty.
For one, Zicam will certainly be crushed as a business. Perhaps they will have to change their name because the stench of this catastrophy reaches to every consumer. More also, they will have to be prepared to give up a lot of money in their deep pockets. Eesh, I don’t want to be a worker in that company…
I know a lot of people are complaining of the lack of oversight because of the “loophole”, but does anyone smell a scam?
Think of it this way: The Federal Government caused much of the present distress through the loan giants of Freddy Mac and Fanny Mae. Not to mention all the other bumber of bueacracies like the EPA which are very inneffective in both their treatment and in their broad and ‘useless’ powers. I’m not saying we should let people like Zicam get away with it. It’s just that with these crises we’ve been having, your freedom to do things, or in this case manufacture, are being threatened by well meaning jerks from Congress.
Someone please tell me how the Feds are not intruding in more than they can bite. When the Feds are able to reign in their spending and make their present programs work then they can say something.
You see, the real oversight needs to come from the consumer. Think about it. How many of you would buy a hamburger if you knew there was arson in it? Capitalism shuts down the bad practices and upholds the good. It is the only oversight you need unless your ok with your Big Brother telling you what to shop for and where to shop.
Just when you think it’s all fun and games, people have to ruin it. At least, another thing on Obama’s list is growing. Obama certainly can’t appease every wish-washy group and yet “publicity” like with the disabled isn’t helping him, nor with the “transparencies” of the White House.
Today (April 27, 2009), 91 people got citations at the White House by the park police when they chained themselves to the fences surrounding the White House. The police were authorized to cut their chains and when they did, only gave them warnings/citations rather than putting them in jail, which they certainly had the right to do.
So who were these people? The disabled. It seems they want the president to support legislation giving people with disabilities in need of long-term care alternatives to nursing homes. But President Obama isn’t acting fast enough, they say.
I know this may sound gloomy and somewhat dark, but an optimist like myself sees the bright side. You see, in this “crisis”, they think Obama should fork over more money to help them. Can’t do that in a real depression, can you? Unless the Administration is all about social change, in which case money is irrelevant. If only that were so…
Then Robert Gibbs gives the press an ‘A’ for their coverage of the White House, even though the reporters aren’t all giving him the same. Many are complaining of the favoritism and selective press releases of the Administration, like releasing the Bush “torture” memos and not revealing who is with the President at 7 am or how they get to decisions.
This is a dangerous toy the President has. Both to avoid harming himself and to be hated for doing it. In fact, the issue with the reporters with Gibbs is yet another example of both the flaws with Obama’s promises and the different lenses we people look at things. Both bring to light the dangerous power the White House has over being transparent and the apparent lack of understanding much of his supporters have.
Why is the issue of transparency becoming an issue? Why should the average American care about the protests of the disabled? Because they reveal a deeper issues which are at stake. To the disabled, the truth in the advertising (i.e., their is NO depression, just the loan market tanked). T Gibbs and the press, the clear misunderstanding between Obama and “his” people, which grows every day.
So be aware of what the political aspects come of each report. Do your own research and keep our politicians honest as you want a lawyer to be (my apologies to lawyers out there). Be American.
I cannot believe Obama is really going to hinder Israel by this pressuring! Or wait, I can. Obama is using Israels history and dependence on allies as a means to stop this “aggression”, but is it naive? Post: TheAge.com
It is something to behold indeed with caution when for an ideology and save face many lives are threatened. If it weren’t for America, Israel would just be another crater on the map. Who can forget the Six Day Way? Had America not been supplying her with those materials, Israel might have had another history by now.
I know, Obama is trying to do what he sees best, given his ideology. His threatening of Israel to maintain peace is understandable. Obama, like many of his constituents, wants peace. He more than the rest because he has an image to keep. But the path our President has chosen is a dangerous one, for it disregards Iran’s threats as like a child, when he is angry at his parents, that with enough soft speech, he might make both sides to be at peace, even if it is a shaky one.
However, Obama fails to regard history, or for that matter, basic detective work. It doesn’t take rocket science to figure out Iran loathes Israel. And when you mix in the pot the fact Iran has been developing the nuclear bomb in sharp arrogance towards the West, you get your ingredients for another ‘81.
Certainly then it must irk Obamawhen Israel threatens to attack anyway. How can they do this to him? He is supposed to have brought a new era with him, don’t they know he can solve this problem without military force? Unfortunately for Obama, time is not on his side. Nor is the idea of self-preservation ingrained in our President’s heart. Nothing creates suspicion greater than recent aggression. And when your adversary both speaks of you as the devil and talks of your extinction, you cannot help yourself but be on your guard.
Perhaps Obama needs to think on this. In some ways, I think Obama is right if he wants to avoid war, but the alternatives to strictly war are not very many. For Obama, it is understandable, though NOT excusable, for him to become a little hostile to the people he sees as troublemakers. At least, troublemakers at this point.
So for the President and his party, it is something of a curse, this situation. It will be morbidly interesting to watch it play out.
The Stimulus Bill isn’t looking too good. Not that it won’t pass, but that the Democrats will be the only ones voting for it. The basic laws of Economics have been ignored, and the Republicans are so disorganized. Lord knows what will happen!
This Stimulus Bill is the worst ever! One look at the bill and you see so many political stunts in it
Why do we need to fund more grants? As nice as this sounds, did you know every year millions of dollars in grants are never spent? Why do we need to add more to the ‘pile of uselessness’? And a Recovery Act Accountability and Transparency Board ($21 Million) which the term length is prescribed by the President only? I don’t like the sound of that, where’s the bipartisan lines?
$44 Million for repair, construction, and improvements in the Department of Agriculture.
$209 Million for deferred maintenance on Agriculture Research Facilities. An additional amount for ‘‘Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations’’, $350,000,000, of which $175,000,000 is for necessary expenses to purchase and restore floodplain easements
“Watershed Rehabilitation Program’’, $50,000,000, to carry out rehabilitation of structural measures:
Now it does give money (lots of it) to change the loans ($22 billion) of which 3% (or $678 Million) will be used for salaries!?!
More money to improve systems of the many agencies in the RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE (Almost $3 billion)
Tittle 3: The Commerce
A billion more for the Census without any checks. NATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION, another $350 million for salaries, and the improving of the systems not forgetting the conversion to cable another $65 million. $400 million for habitat rehabilitation (not humans, of course) $600 million for advancing the Satellites (about $150 million will be spent on climate data)
Title 3: The Judicial $3 billion to be available for the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant. Another billion for the Community Oriented Policing Services.
Title 3: Science $400 million for more research on global warming. $50 million for more Disaster Relief. $2.5 Billion for the National Science Foundation for RESEARCH (not application). $100 million for Education and Human Resources. Another $400 million for more research, too.
Title 4: Department of Defense $4.5 Billion for Department of Defense facilities, restore and modernize Army barracks, and invest in the energy efficiency of Department of Defense facilities.
Here’s the breakdown:
Operation and Maintenance Research, Development, Test and Evaluation
The Army $1.5 Billion. $87.5 million
Navy, $624 million $87.5 million
Marine Coprs, $128 Million
Air force, $1.2 Billion $87.5 million
Defense Health Program, $454 million
Army Reserve, $110 million
Navy Reserve, $62 million
Marine Corps Reserve, $45 million
Air Force Reserve, $14 million
Army National Guard, $300 million
Air National Guard, $14 million
Defense-Wide $87.5 million
Title V:
$250 million for the ‘Community Development Financial Institutions Fund Program’ which aims at helping low-income or burdened people get into homes and nice things like that.
$125 million District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority to continue implementation of the Combined Sewer Overflow Long-Term Control Plan
$5.5 billion to the Federal Buildings Fund. I suppose some of this will help create jobs.
Business loans won’t even peak above $700 million, the very people which this “Spendulous” is supposed to help.
Well over $4 Billion dollars for homeland security and other things like revamping the bridges. We do have the best in the world already, but I guess we’ll need better.
TITLE VII:
For INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES, fork over billions here.
I could go on, but you see the point. Most of this won’t actually stimulate anything. What is worse, is many of the later things are very political in nature, such as making a new bureaucracy to control doctors,
(where more red tape must be crossed to even TREAT you, and terminal disease? Don’t bet on being a patient, because this will not be encouraged. Worst of all, better hope your problem is when your younger because chances are your to expensive to even GET the treatment!!)
giving funds only to un-religious schools and places in schools. The list goes on, but I want to keep you sane still. The idea only 4% will be spent in 2 years is scary.
So Obama is worried he won’t get any votes, and no wonder! With things like asking older people to just accept their doom and to discourage “costly” research for the elderly and others, no wonder no Republican voted for it in the House!
One thing to note here as well: The very idea of the stimulus, pumping people with money, ignores the very basics of economics. Basic Economics tell you that when you take tax the people with the extra free money (i.e., the “evil” rich) they don’t spend anything and you lose business!
What would really help us out of this? Cut taxes and get rid of the useless, but well meant, programs that soak up our money. Capitalism will take care of itself. Socialism never has and never will, so why are we trying to bring this about?
Now the Republicans are in disarray, but this may unite them. Behold! “The mirror of Truth” will be seen as people see what is real and what is liberal, ‘the fuzzy end of the stick’. I know this sounded zany, but just you wait and see. If people like Specter realize the danger they pose, this depression could be the best thing which happened to America.
Remember, it was GOVERNMENT doctrine which got us in to this, not the Capitalists. It was the Government which forced banks to give bad loans as it let Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac to soak the ground with their horrid loans (this Stimulus would actually INCREASE Fanny’s and Freddie’s loaning capacity)!
So in conclusion, the Stimulus Bill is nothing more than more pork and a political move, i.e., social reform. This is the most dangerous thing we face, let us hope Republicans can stand firm and protect us down the road! That people may be able to see so clearly the discrepancies of the liberal ideology and true Reganism may return!
Wednesday was the happiest moment of this week! Not only has this week been great, from Blago getting kicked out, but the House of Representatives, the one place where conservatives are scarce, actually showed up!
Take Wednesday. The House has been known for its moderate Republicans who should, for all intensive purposes, be Democrats. They actually stuck together and voted no on the bill! I cannot remember in a long while that they did this.
Obama was furious that he LOST 11 votes in the house, but he’s not somebody to be beat so easily. Already, the bill is being changed to get rid of some of the bad stuff in the bill, the parts which are merely pork. Let’s hope Republicans as a whole don’t follow along with the ‘deception’.
Though to be honest, the bill is really one fat pig. Most of it doesn’t actually help boost our economy. In fact, it really is a social machine to empower the Democrats by making the USA a nanny state and further other socialistic idealogies. Don’t get me started on how badly we’ll have to pay for it. For instance, (look at this page) That the bill won’t be spread evenly isn’t even on Obama’s radar. Seems only the “wicked evil rich people” should pay up to their nose for being so hardworking.
Than Blago gets himslef kicked out. Even though he tried to plead with the senate, nothing could catch their eyes at all, as they kicked him out unaminously. 59-0. Ouch. You’d think if he was even a little bit innocent he’d get one vote. For Blago, this is the end and Obama can’t help him out of it.
The only sad thing I see in this whole thing is the rest of Illinois doens’t get it though their heads: You’ve got a corrupt state which buys seats. Unless you bring outside help, your in some serious trouble.
In the end, this week has brought some nice things. Blago and the House are two fine examples of Justice and Wisdom. Blago’s political death will at least get rid of one slimy politician, but there are many more to be spotted. For places like Chicago, I hope the people can realize that socialism only ensnares people and that the end NEVER justifies the means.
Whether or not the Republicans can keep up their unity will remain to be seen. And this might affect the future decade of the Party.
Seeing everything, I stop and smelled the roses today, only to be shoved back by some enviralmentalists. No, this didn’t happen, but it sure felt like that.
Earlier today, my man Rush Limbaugh spoke about Obama telling the Republicans to not listen to him. I thought this was kinda funny and pretty desperate by Obama. For Obama knows he needs the Republicans in the mix when the bailout plan fails, and it will. What is at steak? The private sector.
Obama and Rush Limbaugh, like two opposing forces, they clash yet again. Obama can do nothing but try and plea with members of Congress to stop listening to him and let the Dems with their petition against Rush for his comment, ‘I hope he fails’, the most misrepresented topic of 2009.
Who is anyone kidding? Rush was talking of his policies, which are liberal. These are the things he doesn’t believe will work and will be bad for our country. But you know, the reality is socialism never works. This is why Obama wants those Republican votes, because being able to point the finger at the Republicans will work if they vote for it.
Prime example why Obama must have their votes: In 1993, Clinton presented a Savings and Loans Bailout package which the Republicans voted no on. The bill still got by, but because it failed so miserably in real life, people immediately turned to the Republicans (conservative base) and they had a Majority in the House like they hadn’t had in years. Of course, nobody really mentions this besides conservatives.
Everyone knows the saying, ‘those who don’t know their history are doomed to repeat it’. Even Barney Frank was cited that he’d like to see the private sector merge with the public. How can freedom be kept? Doesn’t big Government usually take over that which it “helps”? Doesn’t anyone pay attention to their history to know the Dems will try, try again?
But my friends, this what is the saddest. The bill will most likely pass eventually since all the Dems need is a couple more votes and we have some moderate Republicans. The nation will watch as this legislation falls on its feet and will hear from the media and the Democrats, ‘its the Republican’s fault!’
In all honesty, the bigger government people have voted for themselves will be hard to get rid of, and I just hope that doesn’t mean the end of capitalism.
Look for the Private sector to make less than 60% of the GDP. You’ll see.
Ah, ‘but hope remains, while company is true’ (a line from LOTR). If anybody wants to return the power to the private sector, people need to get involved with their local politics. Only then can we defend our freedom, so scarce and so wonderful in this world.
In this day, treachury runs deep. It is our duty to be informed when we vote, and to help stop or uphold every politician for what is right and not what is “fair”.
Well, Obama made the Presidency and made history already. But he can’t keep his promises or he’ll sink us into even more debt; Republicans now have the opportunity to return to conservatism, led by my man, Rush Limbaugh; Obama will be the next gaff that came in the wrong time.
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Obama is the first African-American to be president. I may not like him, but I am proud that racism can never be said to prohibit anyone anymore, or what people hope for. In fact, Race will continue to be the reason Obama gets a free ride. This is wrong, and any respectable black person should be highly offended at Obama being treated any less or more than a normal man.
I wish I could say Race and gender are proving themselves irrelevant in the struggle of whose superior, but as Obama’s Presidency continues, he will continue to be endeared so ‘disgustingly’.
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Now Obama will inherit the White House with even less experience than Palin. Clearly that was not a factor in the election, but it will be a factor in the White House. Even with his victory speech, Obama pointed out he would make mistakes (“have some false starts”), and even has done a few already, so let the Democrats beware. Would you hire an organizer off the street to be your CPA?
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And for his talk, unfortunately, that’s all it really cracks up to be. Obama will disappoint many people because he made such high and “noble” goals which won’t be reachable. Just look at this economy: How can Obama raise the spending by a trillion dollars, get out of Iraq real quick without losing the war (an even worse gaff than the whole of the Bush Administration), and tax the rich, and still keep the US afloat economically? He can’t! Instead, Americans will find that talk is cheap and that they hate deadbeats, especially in office.
(Even his inauguration speech wasn’t very good as his earlier ones)
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Thus, Obama will be hated by somebody all the time. Obama will have trouble from Code Pink, to the middle-class in the form of taxes (or the lack thereof), and his own base if he doesn’t implement his policies. Certainly he’s in trouble:
Code Pink will hate him if he doesn’t immediately get out of Iraq. So will all the other anti-war people, but if he does too soon, the Dem’s may have a “Vietnam” on their tabs.
The middle-class (the “poor” folks) will hate him if he doesn’t make those rich guys eat the dust, but that would ruin the economy! Fact is, you don’t raise taxes in recessions (the last person to really do so was Hoover) because the rich, like the oil companies, will raise the prices to make up for the lost income or they’ll fire people. Thus the cost would come right back on the consumer. That’s basic economics for you.
His base will hate him if he drills for oil, so gas prices will continue to rise. Medicare reform? Every business will go bankrupt if he does that now! But not doing so would be going back on that fluffy and heavenly tale he gave the Americans.
Thus Obama will be stuck in the middle with no solution. The Obama Administration is really another Herbert Hoover in sheep’s clothing. Like Hoover, Obama will inherit a recession. Since liberal policies gave birth to this, Obama will not have anywhere to go but off the cliff of Futility and Despair.
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Obama certainly is not the man of our times. Like the title suggested, Obama will make gaff after gaff, all in the name of his own party and will be kicked out, disgraced even further than any president in his lifetime. If Obama had only become President when the economy was decent! Instead, he’s got the nightmare of his life when everything he does is wrong. As a sponger, either Obama will destroy our economy or he’ll be painted a fainéant and unfaithful person. Not the kind of place I’d want to be.
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This is the makings of tough times, but which the Republican’s can use to restore their conservatism. The firing pan is on, and the heat is getting hotter. The opportunity there can be summed up by looking at California: Here Cal voted in majority to Obama and yet every real conservative measure on the ballot got passed!
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Real conservatism, like Sarah Palin, is candid and transparent, and loved by everyone. Conservatism proves better than socialism because it encourages entrepreneurial growth. Conservatism always does the right thing because true conservatism is based off of the realities (absolutes) of this world, which we love Reagan for making it so clear.
Now Rush Limbaugh and the conservatives will be on the campaign, prepping for the next time, ridding of the wolf in their flocks, while the harsh realities of this world crush the liberal dream and its leader, the wastrel of the liberal party.
But the fight will be hard. Already many of the failed moderates on McCain’s campaign tried to save their rear ends by blaming Palin for their own incompetence. But many of the real Republican Party are fighting back at them and so a sweet opportunity arises. People will see, in the years to come, why conservatism always works, why in this modern economic problem capitalism is the solution.
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To the future of this great nation, as dark as it be: I say, America is the best and brightest country and may God Bless America!
Well, Obama certainly has outdone himself, spending all the money he has. And with Mexico perhaps on the verge of collapse, we could be faced with some dire problems.
Obama will spend over 45 million dollars for his inauguration. Funny how the press hammered Bush for “extravagant” event he pulled. So I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the apple tree after all.
Consider this: You have a nation which is poised to the edge of ruin. At any time DURING your reign the nation could collapse economically due to the same ideas which you think will be best (i.e. more government interference). For a guy who let the media harp on Palin for her “abuse” in clothes, Obama doesn’t know where to stop. Now let me clarify, I don’t mind him making this what it is, a historic event. I just worry Obama doesn’t understand what makes the economy go. Government spent money doesn’t make the world go around, and he’ll find no way around being ‘Hoover’s son’, if he continues.
Now Mexico is on the brink of collapse, as the U.S. Joint Forces Command has said; This is treacherous waters. Mexico, filled with corrupt people and gangs throughout the nation may find itself with an even worse dictator. Now that’s something which bothers me. The US military has already declared they may have to ‘intervene’ with the situation, so it tells me they think they might be a serious threat.
Ultimately, the methods Mexico has used to further their economy and keep its citezens is pretty pathetic. Of course it’s controlled partially by gangs, and you know why? Because gangs give Mexicans the things they don’t have: Stability and food.
My Question is, will Obama try to talk with gangsters by “peace talks” or will he use limited force? Let’s hope he never has to choose in the first place.
The new Year has been going fairly good, given the ups and downs. Israel has been active, the Stocks are happy; but Britain has had one too many drinks, and the Military is cautious about Obama with his do-nothing Congress.
In all the World, I cannot speak enough good things about Israel. Their reaction to Hamas should be applauded. With the killing of a top Hamas, leader and cleric Sheikh Nizar Rayyan, and the bombings of several terrorist cells, Israel is showing gut.
And I like that about them. Never afraid to strike their opponents, Israel sends a message to a ruthless Hamas, saying they won’t be intimidated by their actions. It comes no sooner than from the recent news that Hamas will now start to Crucify Jews, an act so despicable and telling. Even the few who are from Europe and the US, cannot justify away this (though they do ignore).
The fact that Hamas hates Israel is no surprise to anyone learned. Hamas is a terrorist group from the “radical” side of Islam and ever since they seized power after the offensive in Lebanon, have continued to persecute the Jews as you would a diseased rat. This despicable organization has bleed and will continue to do bleed until Lebanon changes their focus: the annihilation of the Jews.
So the French, like they always do, are asking for a “truce”, ignoring history yet again. Doesn’t anyone in Europe remember what Hamas did or even remember what Hitler did in World War Two? As it is said, ‘those who don’t know their history are condemned to repeat it.’and force others too.
The French don’t understand Israel or Hamas. All they know is the idea of “peace” and do not perceive the concept of victory. Giving the bad guys another free blow at you is not smart. No self-respecting football team would ask for a truce before the other team scores another Touchdown on them; Opportunity knocks and the wicked answer.
On another note, Britain is sinking with accidents again this year, since people are drinking their booze like there’s no tomorrow. As the Drudge Report reported, every seven seconds there was another call for help. How pathetic; for a nation that persecutes its law-abiding citizens, this is simply another thing they do.
People who are raised with the idea everyone owes them something unfortunately don’t know when they go too far, in as much as they never had restraints. Not that all Britain’s are like this, but the majority do. It doesn’t take one long enough to see the socialism attached to the Government, and see cases where the thief sues his victim successfully.
Now the Military doesn’t feel very well about Obama, and why not? Given that he comes from a no-guns, peace loving family, Obama simply doesn’t have the understanding or confidence in a time of ongoing war. The fact that many of the branch show pessimism, only goes to show Obama’s lack of record, if he even has one.
As a critic about our President-Elect, Obama faces a problem, not only in pleasing his troops, which he will hold responsibility for, but also in making the wise choice to not waist American lives, and pulling out of Iraq real quick doesn’t help it. In the end, Obama’s failure to grasp the concept war will hurt him with the Military families for a long time to come. Let’s pray our security won’t be included too.
Lastly, the Do-Nothing Congress. Voting for a plan, which will cost us a trillion dollars, after only a week of deliberations is preposterous. That Congress is filled with a bunch of “children” (I’m sorry children, don’t be offended), when it comes knowing about economics, should make the average American fear for their future. If Congress just wasted 300 Billion Dollars for not having the scope to see how to fix the problem, how will they be able to cure it with a Trillon Dollars?
Congress shows once again, as Rush says, that the way to go up in the Democrat Party is failure. And this time it’s with Bills. If the first was bad, then you need more funding! Clearly money can both give us happiness and fix all the problems in the world! Never mind how we’re going to pay for it, or what it will be used for, we need lots of money and it now!
Sounds like a punch line, or from a script? It isn’t. And this is what makes us afraid.
Still, all in all, things could be worse: Israel could be doing nothing, and we could all be in the next Great Depression 2.0. The fact we aren’t yet, means there is still time for true conservatives, of either party, to rise and defend our Sacred Country. The New brings hope because, as the sun must come after the darkness, so the evils of this time will be done away with it. At least, as long as the Sun still has strength, and this will be the test of our generation.
Sarah Palin mentioned a while back how she loves small towns and quoted James Pegler “we grow good people in small towns”. So here’s a short essay on why she’s right that small towns, with their honest people and wonderful surroundings makes them the best:
Small towns still manage to attract a host of professional people. The group Thuringer Salonquintett, which played in VVC Saturday, said that community colleges and small towns were where they played the most, because of “the friendly nature that surrounds the community colleges that you can’t match anywhere else”. Just look up the names of the teacher’s you have in your community colleges and you’ll be surprised by what you’ll find. Take Mr. Odell Moon, he’s a CPA since 1976 and a tax attorny since 1979. He’s the only law school adviser on campus with more than 30 years to back up his fabulous career.
Small towns are quite places for great minds to rest, where there’s beauty and people who are generally good, so it makes an ideal place to dwell in.
Not that I’m surprised much. Like with Sarah Palin, the town allows a closer alliance of people and generally have much higher standards which lead to people taking charge of their sacred honor. Small towns give you an edge in society, because you can be anybody, anywhere. Unlike the big cities, you don’t need gobs of money to run for office, just a well dedicated troop and you have a good chance. In small towns, you get to know the mayor and officers in the town because they’re usually your neighbor and are close enough to visit them often.
You even get to know nature better. Town’s usually are cleaner (since there’s less things), so the sky is clearer and the animals and plants are in greater numbers; one thing the High Desert boasts of over other places is its amazing skies. The different clouds that are seen are seldom seen anywhere.
I’m sure this is partly why Palin likes small towns. Towns give hope, energy, and the sheer innocence that you just can’t get anywhere else. It’s like a getaway from life into a friendly and “peaceful” atmosphere.
Joe Biden got some pointed questions recently in a five-minute satellite interview with Barbara West of WFTV, a Florida TV station; he couldn’t handle it. You can watch it here:
Biden just couldn’t answer those questions because they were true. Fact is, spreading the wealth is spreading the wealth and connecting yourself with George Bush is not a good retort. If Biden complains of the media he stubbled into, he should be consuling Palin for the harsh treatment and questions she has gotten, from the “Bush Doctrine” to the fake insults from a recent reporter.
So what did the Obama campaign do? They reportedly canceled all future interviews with the channel. Fact is, the media has been extremely biased. So when something out of the ordinary comes their way, the Obama camp looks flustered. This is a fresh reminder of what real reporting looks like with real question that force the candidates to answer real question. Is that real enough for you!?!
(Ok, I agree, that was a terrible joke and I was killing the use of the word.)
This reporter was even told to do so! The reason was because they didn’t want fluffy questions asked. Reporting should relay useful messages, not repeat, as I did the word ‘real’, the same dogma and stump speaches that the first two Presidential Debates did.
Note From Author: I apologize for the bad grammar in this article. I was rushing and did not stop and check. I will endeavor to not repeat this.
Seeing how it’s really close to Nov. 4, I will endeavor to give some of my many reasons for voting Yes on Prop 8 by answering the top 9 arguments I hear around.
Argument 1: But Same-sex marriage is CURRENTLY LEGAL in California. Prop 8 will end that!
Fact 1: Same sex UNIONS have been legal. In fact, the ‘Civil Union’ is the proper term of two people of the same gender coming together. Marriage in the dictionary is “the union between to people of the opposite sex.”. Therefore doing so will only make the term ambiguous and would not help people define marriage.
Argument 2: Voting NO on Prop 8 WILL NOT force schools to teach same-sex marriage
Fact 2: “The California Department of Education’s own website says that 96 % of public schools provide instruction under the Comprehensive Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Prevention Act (Educ. Code Sec. 51930, et seq.) and every school that provides instruction under that Act must provide instruction and materials that teach about marriage. Additionally, the Department of Education’s own checklist for instruction under the Act confirms that instruction about marriage is required for the school district to be in compliance with state law.” (Fromschools-must-teach-marriage).
Therefore the argument is bogus. In fact, the idea that “you love someone” is not enough to marry. If the reason for marriage is that, then why stop from there? Why not allow multiple wives/husbands and marry animals? And lets go farther and say you can have group marriages and marry children, regardless their age!
So then you would cause havoc in the school curriculum and cause kids to both not be able to identify their gender, and make ambiguous the reason to marry in the first place. Thus unsafe activity would be increased (licentious behavior is a pool for AIDS). There is not enough incentive to do so.
Argument 3: Voting NO on Prop 8 WILL NOT force Churches to recognize same-sex marriage and they WILL NOT lose their tax-exempt status
Fact 3: Although this is true, one simply has to look around at the places that do and you’ll find that the contrary is true. Take recently how when two physicians, Dr. Christine Brody and Dr. Douglas Fenton, refused to artificially inseminate her when she asked for the procedure:
Benitez said they denied her because she is gay; the doctors argued it was because she was not married. Robert Tyler, the doctors’ attorney, has said his clients, who are Christian, suffered a “crisis of conscience” when asked to perform the insemination and play a role in creating life.
The court found that federal and state constitutional rights to religious freedoms and free speech do not mean that doctors can violate California’s Unruh Act, a set of civil rights laws that govern businesses, “even if compliance poses an incidental conflict” with a doctor’s religious beliefs [Source]
Or how about when a church refused to allow a same-sex wedding on their own property? The church got sued because they wouldn’t allow it on their property, ‘the nerve of them’! [Source]
It’s nice to think positively on things like this, but loopholes through laws are just the thing that happens. Good intentions just can’t measure up to lost liberties, or the opportunity to lose them.
Argument 4: Domestic Partnership and Marriage ARE NOT the same!
Fact 4: Again, the correct term is civil unions, and they have the same rights as married couples, from visitation rights to power of Attorney. Proposition 8 doesn’t take away any rights or benefits of gay or lesbian domestic partnerships. Under California law, “domestic partners shall have the same rights, protections, and benefits” as married spouses. (Family Code § 297.5.) There are NO exceptions. Proposition 8 WILL NOT change this.
Argument 5: Banning same-sex marriage is unconstitutional and un-American
Fact 5: It is American when you look before you leap. There is a host of studies and all confirm that the ideal place for children to be in with their biological parents. To knowingly force them from what’s best from them is wrong. And that is exactly what same-sex marriages will do.
Argument 6: But many people are opposed to it!
Fact 6: Two-thirds more agree and most are from California; the initiative didn’t pass for nothing. Check out some of the list on ProtectMarriage.com: [http://www.protectmarriage.com/endorsements]
Note: The Teacher’s Association did not ask their own people whether they agreed but used their money for the opposition to Prop 8
Argument 7: The Supreme Court overturned the ban on same-sex marriage because it was UNCONSTITUTIONAL
Fact 7: The Ban had nothing to do with the so-called constitution. In fact, marriage as an idea of between one of each sex has been around before recorded history and is part of both this physical world and our psychological well-being. The decision should have therefore been up to the people as our founding father’s had intended such “trivial” things to be.
Argument 8: The California Supreme Court Justices ARE NOT activists!
Fact 8: Judicial activism – an interpretation of the U.S. constitution holding that the spirit of the times and the needs of the nation can legitimately influence judicial decisions (particularly decisions of the Supreme Court)
These judges fit the definition, regardless of whether they are moderate or not. Our Founding Fathers were the most brilliant people on the subject and should be listened to. Therefore to ignore them because of mere opinions and feelings, which is inserting your own ideas as absolutes, is the most arrogant thing to do, in my argument.
Argument 9: But you’ll take away all this profit the weddings that’ll take place!
Fact 9 : Actually, implementing this would cost the state Billions. From changing the written laws, to implementing it, and especially all the lawsuits that will come from it
Millions of dollars would be spent on the lawsuits that always follow. (e.g., photographers cannot refuse to photograph gay marriages, doctors cannot refuse to perform artificial insemination of gays even if they showed them to willing doctors)
Even if courts eventually find in favor of a defender of traditional marriage (highly improbable given today’s activist judges), think of the money – your money – that will be spent on such legal battles.
Conclusion:Prop 8 is the best because it will reverse the Judicial activism that threatens our liberties and protect our prosperity in the Future. Prop 8 will keep sacred the fundamentals of society while instilling the civil liberty that all covet. Prop 8 is good for you and your families and prevents rash decisions being made by Adult Desire and Activism.
Now to really read the best insight on the subject, and see where I base my opinions from, read Glenn T. Stanton’s Ten Persuasive Answers to the Question…”Why not gay marriage?”
Ok, so the last post was kinda sketchy. That’s because I was rushing to respond someones blog. I’ll try not to do it again.
This election has the looks for one of the most exiting finishing in recent history. Obama’s is behind in the Zogby Poll, so he’s taking no chances, even going as far as having a ad which calls for everyone to take the day, vote, and get out the vote. McCain is storming back, preaching out how Obama’s socialistic tendencies are dangerous for this Economy and how his inexperience will result in the worst things happening.
Then now look at Biden, afraid to return to several news stations because of the “tough” questions he’s been getting and looking rather flustered. You also have Palin, standing out like she has been lately, taking every interview she can get her teeth on and speeking to large crowds with the honesty which has affended the mass media.
The polls show McCain has been coming back in a bunch of states. He could win big or lose big. In the recent polls, depending on what poll you look at, McCain is literally one or two points away. See FoxNews Results
Bush is at 30% approval, and Congress is at 18% and yet the Democrats expect to get 60 in Congress this year while the Republicans see this as an opportunity to reclaim some static as more then 40 of their party in Congress thankfully won’t run again.
This election will declare what will happen for the next four years, and possible the next generation. I look upon, as many do, with excitement and expectation.
Here we have, in our time, a great catastrophe for the Republican Party. They’re in shambles and the Democrats control all three avenues of the Government. But hope can come.
In 2008, John McCain ran for the chance to be President of the United States. He ran as a moderate, trying to please everyone he saw, and it worked for him for a while. Then the race got closer with a man named Mitt Romney. Romney was much more conservative then he was and was pushing his way to the front of the pack, until, to McCain’s good fortune, another man named Mike Huckabee stayed in the race to beat him. Because Romney was a Mormon, many conservatives shirked away and went to Huckabee. Even Huckabee never had a chance, he still kept on and it enabled John to win the caucus.
So now John McCain was running for President. But things weren’t looking so good: Hilary hadn’t ousted Barack Obama, and Obama was poised to just overrun McCain. So John looked and looked for the right VP, and finally he found someone he immediately liked. She was a bright and rising star in Alaska, and a maverick like himself. So McCain picked her and what an astonishing speech she gave at the convention!
Now John was ready to make his comeback, but his pattern of trying to stay politically correct was taking its toll on John. John repeatedly failed to really put the hammer on Obama, expecting that his niceties would propel him in the office. And when Palin got those first two interviews, things had gotten out of hand. Yet McCain had thought his restriction of her would be best and was becoming more alert of the fact that the train had lost its speed.
So when John tried to be tough, nobody was satisfied. He had tried as much as possible to stay in the middle while hitting Obama, what more could you ask for? Then Palin did real good on her debate and McCain was finally convinced to start and let her free. She got better real fast, and it gave him some hope in his time of need. But John was too stuck in his ways and refused to speak about Wright, hoping that the conservatives would like him for staying with his “promises”.
Unfortunately, John just never made it real close to Obama. What had happened? He had thought they were real close, and Obama’s mysterious ways were sure to have cost him the election. Why did 6 million Republicans not vote as they did last time? He had done everything he knew was pleasing of both sides, so what had failed him?
The result was that John McCain had lost. He had lost because he refused to be unapologetically conservative. He had thought the pandering to the liberals would help him, but it had not. When Obama latched onto some “conservative” ideas of “lowering” taxes, he got more success than poor John did saying the same things.
The conclusion is, my friends, that you cannot dance around the fire and think you won’t get hurt. You can’t bend over and please every side because they are so different; they are so contrary of each other. Conservatism believes in the fallibility of man, and knows that when you put competition in his way, it gives him a reason to do better so he might live. Conservatism also believes very strongly in the absolutes which God put on this earth and understands the ‘how’s and ‘why’s which make the world work so well.
Let the horn of Reagan sound again, lest it be too late. Let real freedom sound its troops to raise once again the cry for moral and economical truths. Let true conservatives, who call themselves Republicans, weep at their lack of care. For they thought that only the utterly perfect would inherit the earth and had been deceived and were paying dearly for their mistake.
But there is hope; a window of opportunity for them; Sarah Palin has aroused something in them that has been lost since the days of Reagan, something candid and real; Something that would put the government back to doing what it should be doing in the first place. But it won’t happen unless they kick out the wolves, until they repent of their wicked deeds and acknowledge to their Maker that they had failed the American people; they had failed themselves.
Only then when the Republican Party is unified around the truism of speeches and the realism of its actions, will the tunnel be gotten out of, will the prisoner be set free.
Palin once again is receiving the brunt of attacks, and it’s past election night! Once again, conservatism causes others to squirm in their seats.
Palin is getting all kinds of low attacks, such as ’she doesn’t even know that Africa is a continent!’ and other such nonsense. The thing that puzzles people is the fact that election was over a week ago, so why all hupla?
Seems Palin has scared more than just Liberals because her own base hates her. Not the actual voters, mind you, but failed “advisors” who dislike her stance on many things. And this is her simple conservatism. Palin’s views worry the moderates because she is the emblem of Ronald Reagan, her beliefs so similar, and this would ruin the careers of those moderates who call themselves the Right.
So people will still try to say that she hurt McCain’s chance at the White House ignoring the intricate fact that Conservatism won wherever it really was. Or that before Palin, McCain’s campaign wasn’t even going to get off the ground. Whenever a Republican washed his views up to please the moderates, he actually lost ground because of it. Because the Republicans and the Democrats looked the same, and because Bush was in office, Republicans felt disenfranchised over their party and didn’t vote, and Democrats and the undecided voted for the more honest party. I could make a pig joke, but I’ll refrain myself from such pettiness.
So you see, conservatism causes people to squirm because it demands an honesty and selflessness that many Politicians lack. And nobody likes their deeds exposed.
With the Financial community at a crisis, it seems that Congress doesn’t really understand our plight. With Paulson doing what he thinks is best, we have given the position such power which cannot be understood.
Here we have a crisis. Financially, the main portion of the US economy is fine, but big industries like the Auto and the Banks are losing there grip on control and are spirialling into failure. Or is that true?
Let’s look at the record shall we? The DOW is in shambles. What was once a real force, topping in July at its best, now the giant has been reeling at such an alarming rate that peolpe are buying and selling in erratic waves. Credit is crunched and many businesses find they cannot get loans to pay for their debts like they used to. Now big and well known banks like Fanny, Freddie, WaMu, and local banks have been bailed out by the central government.The choice was to prevent the banks from simply tanking and pulling with them thousands of fortunes which people have saved up.
But this didn’t stop the downward trend, even after we forked over billions of tax-payer dollars to AIG. Now the Auto Industry is looking deathly sick. The big companie GM is looking at possibly tanking by next year, so Paulson changed the rules (not that they were concrete) to lend them a hand, hoping that saving the Auto Industy will help keep millions of people with jobs.
But all this bailout hasn’t yet even helped the economy. Yes it’ll help in the short term, but when you encourage bad managing and bad company strategies, you are only masking the real problem, which can be likened to cancer. Truth is about these bailouts, is this: If your big enough then it doesn’t matter what you do, the government will protect your backside and kindly lend all its money so that you can continue your bad policies. Sounds eerie, huh?
The banks that failed, walked into it. When you loan big money to people who can’t pay it back, you risk losing all of it. And when that happens you demand money from other people who owe you. So what would have been a slight recession, turns out to be a fiasco. Now the Auto company, by the name of GM, is suffering, though not necessarily because of the recession. No, it’s more because their own labor unions are crushing their intuitiveness, and their ability to expand.
Really, when you look at the big picture, why would you want to bailout someone who is irresponcible with their money in the first place? When you were (or presently) in school, if your teacher told the class, “OK Johnny, now you’ve been doing a fine job in school with all those lovely A+’s, so now I’m going to take away from your GPA and give it to some of these unfortunate people who only can get C-’s.”, you’d be outraged! Yet, we allow the Feds to ’spread the wealth’, which we have earned so hard, and have given it to people and companies who don’t deserve it.
This is a real picture of the power that Capitalism has. In true Capitalism (we don’t because of the “oversight”), the best survive, eliminating from its pack the weak. If GM were to die, yeah, that would be bad, but in the end, it would be the breeding grounds for growth. To those who remeber the Great Depression: in that awful time, what happened that raised us out? War. But it was in that war which shows what Capitalism does, for invention was all over the place. Many of our present day gadgets which we have, could not have happened if the their had been no need, if the economy was just fine. “Necessity is the mother of all invention.”
Now we have given immense power in the Secretary of State while we ignore the reality that all men are inheritly evil and if given the chance, many will choose to take advantage of their surroundings and seize its prey. Not that I mean your going to have a real dictator from the Treasury or something, but inevitably, your going to get corrupt influences and actions. Anybody disagree? Just look at Fanny and Freddie, what was the oversight like?
As America, we will find the pathway out of the Land of Vanity, we will be able to stand on our feet, but WHEN we do, is entirely up to the people of this great nation. Now that we are OK with the government playing Big Brother with everyone, we suppose that it’ll work. Clearly nobody understands their history. Communism, the USSR, tried this, and what happened? When the other super power put the squeeze on them, they collapsed.
Hillary Clinton either is the biggest loser or a very shrewd person. Either way, Obama is sure looking like the man many had tried to paint his as: inexperienced and foolish.
Hillary Clinton was disgraced in the Primaries, pushed out of “her” party for 2008 while her “first black” man Bill did nothing to sway more to her side. But Hillary was smart. Using her very shrewd personality, she got Obama to make the playing field “fair” by lowering the amount to win and nearly lost the primaries.
Yet for her great move and even aided by the Right, Hillary just wasn’t able to make the cut. So now she had to look on the outside and watched Obama getting ready for McCain, the ’sweetheart’ of the moderates. But then Palin came in the scene, and at that moment, Hillary saw a chance to not only get into the White House, but perhaps win her support on the way without campaigning yet.
So Hillary made a deal with Obama, and Obama was easy to convince. She wouldn’t try to bring him down, even though they didn’t like each other much, but would help him get the disgruntled liberals to Obama if Obama would give her a position in the White House. And what a position!
So now come January the 20th, Hillary will once again step into that big white house that she always desires. And this time, as Secretary, she could ruin Obama without a word and gain her ticket to the Whitehouse.
At least, this looks how its going to be played. Does Obama ever learn? Sadly, no. For a man who supposedly didn’t realize that Bill Ayers wasn’t repentant and doesn’t really know his history very well, Obama has just allowed the camel in the room. It’s sad to think that our nation chose someone who is ill-prepared to deal with the crafty and someone who certainly doesn’t understand even the basic principles of economics.
(‘The Worldly Philosophers’ by Heilbroner)
Let the reader remember what I say and others before me. Obama is about to get burnt by the very people who gave him his position. How Irony strikes us all.
I haven’t written in a while but it’s not due to the election. Indeed, though I did not vote for Obama, like any President he’s mine. America is a place which can demand such devotion without looking harsh because the ‘yoke’ is bearable and, even for some, enjoyable.
In all the world, I would rather be here than any other place. The sheer opportunity it offers makes it abundantly clear of its greatness. America from its very roots has always stood for the little guy without cutting out the big one, and yet no one is left in the cold; from America the world’s best scientist have both begun and were made famous here.
In America people all around this lovely country have made it their home due to it’s stance on religion. The idea that one can have his belief without someone killing him for it is something which drew the founding fathers here. And beyond this, America was a place in which many a person could start anew, many a person could make himself a name with such a different veriety of people.
But most importantly, let none forget what God has blessed us with: With the best Constitution anyone could ask for, with the gift of talent and protection in times of great needs (just look at the stories from the War of Independence), to the blessings of wealth and like minded people which has enabled the USA to be the best in every area, from its military might to its charity.
In light of this, I cannot be anything beyond grateful to a nation which has blessed us with freedom unparalleled with any other country, where black and white and Hispanic alike, and any other color, may participate and make something of themselves. Where power has always been peacefully transitioned and where even in the midst of heated disputes everyone stops to help in the time of great need.
Christmas is about to hit, and many are getting on with their vacations. With the Snow in parts of America and Christmas Eve looming, many can forget about the troubles at home and dwell on family and friends. But for some, this is merely and breadth before the dive, before their informed they don’t have a job and the solution is taxes and more taxes for the “greedy” guys.
Let’s not forget, Christmas truly is the best time of the year. You have all the Christmas lights up, and people cheerful with hot cocoa all around! The Turkey is being prepped and the kids are acting like angels waiting for the day Santa comes around.
Now many people are traveling to places they’ve always wanted to go or are enjoying a pleasant time with their special someone. For Christmas is a time to sit and recall memories of loved ones and to relax.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the end for many a poor soul this winter, for Christmas spells the end of their careers. Many a company is forced to get rid of employees for they cannot sustain them!
And with the Financial Crisis looming over our heads many in Washington think the answer is to tax the rich who enabled many to take their vocations! Ignoring the reality that many people are able to do more than own a small store, Washington will tax all their hard earned money and give it to the “poor” who don’t work anyways. Ah, yes! Real equality!
Yet for all this, they fall short of reality, for true equality, as Milton Friedman said, is the freedom of opportunity, stating, “A society that puts equality-in the sense of equality of outcome- ahead of freedom will end up with neither equality nor freedom. The use of force to achieve equality will destroy freedom, and the force, introduced for good purposes, will end up in the hands of people who use it to promote their own interests.”
” To desire the attainment of this equality or superiority by the particular means of others being brought down to our own level, or below it, is, I think, the distinct notion of envy.” ~Joseph Butler
For this equality would only discourage true entrepreneurs. Who would want to work hard when you can make the other guy suffer and still get paid? Why work as hard when someone else can be coerced into paying you money through “fairness”?
In the end, people will find the cost of ‘freedom’ this year, is their livelihood, their career.
Now this isn’t the end of the story, for Christmas is more than about gifts and friends, or even the destruction of these things, it’s about the Savior who is born. And what a Savior! To be offered Salvation so freely a simply child could understand it is the thing which makes Christmas so special!
Recently, some people have asked that I continue this blog. The only catch was I was to make it more personal and less about the outside world.
So that’s what I’m going to do…
Recently I’ve had the desire to join the Air Force Reserve. So I thought I’d look up on the web to find a office close by. Finding this, I attempted to contact the recruiter only to find the recruiter was off on a once-a year training session for the recruiters.
So I left a message and when she came back (she said when she’d return) I called her, each time only to get her nice voice machine. Even after the fifth message, my ticket out of here refused to answer.
Thus disillusioned with this person, I looked to see if there was a local office nearby. To my delight I found that the nearest and only place in the Victor Valley was a block away, hidden among several stores.
Seeing my chance, I seized the opportunity and planned out my victorious entrance. I was so relieved since this person could not ignore me!
My Father suggested I call first before I raided the place so I picked up the phone, my excitement at getting to see him.
I called and waited. The voice message came on and his voice came into my ear. To my severe chagrin the man informed me he had just LEFT the place a mere 20 hours ago and wouldn’t be back for a time.
Now my life has no purpose. My thoughts painfully thinking of what would never be. How could I have failed? That wonderful plan I had was useless now!
So now I know what the Riddler goes through. The pain we both feel, frustrated at the enemies brilliance and sheer luck. Knowing we will never get our questions answered and yet we can never give up.
Posted by JustThinkStupid 
Posted by JustThinkStupid 
Posted by JustThinkStupid 
