Your Life Today

Continuation

2010-08-01T21:19:00.000-07:00

Red and blue lights splashed across the pavement as the crowd gathered. Whispers floated above the crowd as neighbors stared with wide eyes in anticipation. The boy had been missing for days and it looked like the happy ending to this tragedy had died with the missing boy.

A woman was escorted by the grizzled police sergeant. Despite the years on the job and countless similar scenes, the pain in his face was visible as he led the woman towards the police cruisers.

A hush settled over the crowd as a scream ripped through the air. As the scream trailed off the silence was palpable, then a buzz picked up in the crowd. Such a sad thing, parents shouldn’t have to bury their children, some said. Who would do such a thing? Others wondered.

The mother was pulled away from the scene and led to a cruiser. The sergeant looking over the scene shambled back towards the boy who was lying next to the stoop of the brownstone. The boy looked to be sleeping curled up on his side with his head resting on his jacket. There wasn’t a mark on his body and the paramedics were baffled as to what caused the death. No signs of trauma or abuse. No blood, no bullet holes, nothing that indicated a crime had occurred. Not that it mattered. The boy was dead and there was no changing that. The sergeant clenched a fist and cursed

A Short Story

2010-05-30T23:15:00.000-07:00

I've been writing a few short stories lately. I'd like to share them, but you must give constructive criticism because I really don't know how to write and would like to learn how to be better. This story is very short. I've left it open to interpretation as to who the characters are and what is happening. It was inspired by a test used to find the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama.

Dust drifted through the shaft of light coming from the small window overhead. The room was small and smelled of old wood and moth balls. Around the room were belongings that could easily be mistaken for junk. A rusting wrench, a small toy boat, some clothes and other items that are so easily collected throughout life and yet difficult to part with even after the owner has died and turned to dust.

On a stool in the center of the room an elderly man sat watching a small child walk around the room examining all the items. With the seriousness of a toddler the boy stooped to look closely at the wrench and then becoming bored tottered over to the robes. Picking up the robes the child giggled and a small grin creased the lined face of the old man. The child then spied the small toy boat and quickly tossed the robes down and hurried to snatch up the wooden boat. The sail was old canvas that was more brown then the original white and the paint on the hull had chipped and cracked. The child grabbed hold of the boat by the mast and gave it a big shake, hoping for noise or lights that he was used to seeing with his toys at home. Disappointed the child waddled over to the old man and handed him the boat with a look of hope in his eyes.

The old man took the boat from the child 's outreached hands and with tears in the corners of his eyes croaked, "Sorry little one."

A dark, tall figure that had been observing the exchange stepped forward.

"Frederick," the old man said. "Please take the child."

"Of course, sir." Frederick answered with a voice as cold as winter night. With the stiff-backed tread of a man accustomed to military marching, Frederick walked up to the little boy and with gentleness that belied his demeanor, took the boy's hand.

"Come, child. It's time to leave this place."

Turning quickly he led the small child through the door, leaving the old man weeping gently in the silent, dusty room.

Health care reform's suckiness

2010-03-21T21:56:00.001-07:00

I'm pretty sure I invented that word.

Suckiness; noun, meaning to suck so badly that it deserves a title or label.

Health care reform is a good thing. I'm not against it in general. I just can't believe how far off base Washington has become. We're creating this huge entitlement program in the middle of a recession people! Companies stand to lose millions of dollars if they keep their current workforce. What do you think they'll do? I hope you brushed up on your Spanish or Mandarin because you will need to learn how to say Si, Senor if you want to still be working.

My prediction. Stock market will drop like a rock tomorrow. Good luck in November Dems!

Biggest reasons I'm not happy with this crap sandwich of a bill.

1) Cost. I know you don't want to hear this but when the national debt is over $12trillion dollars and rising, not to mention the recession, this is important. $940 billion for the first 10 years. What they don't tell you is that the plan isn't even enacted until 2013. So 3 years of tax collection without any services is the only thing from making this cost much much more. So despite the gimmick. It's going to be expensive at a bad time.

2)$450 billion cut from Medicare to go into subsidies for people making under $88k per year to buy insurance. Most of those cuts are coming from provider reimbursement cuts. So if you see a lot of Medicare patients, you'll be making a LOT less money. I can't understand why someone making $80k can't buy their own insurance anyhow. Also, expect a lot of doctors to stop taking Medicare patients, which is legal. You can refuse service, which is already starting to happen.

3)Cost comparative and effectiveness board. It's a bureaucracy panel that determines which treatments are most effective for the best price. This is to save money overall. So like Seth said, instead of getting radiation and drugs, you lose your jaw. You're still alive and it's cheaper. This will also depend on lobbyists and who can convince this board what is best for patients. How do you think chiropractors will fair when AMA lobbyists start getting involved? This is going to hurt.

4) Individual mandate. Everyone has to buy insurance whether they want it or not starting 2016. If you don't you face a fine of $695 or 2.5% of your income, whichever is greater. Also included in this particular plan is a chunk of money set aside to expand the IRS. They will be the ones enforcing the fine.

Companies will also have to pay fines for not paying for health insurance. Up to $2000 per employee. What was once a perk or benefit is now a mandate. Do you think companies won't ship those jobs to China or Mexico to cut cost?

5) Insurance companies cannot refuse or charge more for people with pre-existing conditions. This sounds good in theory, but it means that premiums for everyone will rise. So that guy that sits around playing Nintendo all day smoking and eating Twinkies will only have to pay the same amount as his neighbor who eats right, exercises and only goes to the doctor for checkups. How is that a good thing? Shouldn't people be held somewhat accountable for their decisions? And shouldn't people who make good decisions be able to benefit from that?

I'm all for health reform. But this particular bill was not only off target, but I think it will be pretty harmful to this country in general for a long time coming.

Never too late

2010-03-21T21:55:00.001-07:00

I might start posting a bit more. Watch for updates.

More of the Same

2009-01-21T09:53:00.001-08:00

The only liberal who wasn't too drunk or high on Obamism to realize that it's more of the same.

Thanks HotAir

So much for change

2008-12-11T07:56:00.000-08:00

Everyone has heard by now about the Governor of Illinois and the arrest by the FBI on federal corruption charges. What everyone seems to be forgetting is that a connection does exist between Obama and Blagojevich. Whoa! Hang on. I know. I know. Obama is not being charged with anything and there is no connection to any crime on Obama's part. Let's just clear the air on that.

Everyone from Obama's camp and almost the entire media is in denial that Obama barely even knows Blagojevich. You're telling me that the Senator of the state of Illinois has never met with the man? Talked with him? David Axelrod, Obama's chief advisor was Blagojevich's main advisor during his campaign! There is a connection... but it isn't criminal. So let's stop pretending that Obama is completely in the dark about this guy.

The other problem for Obama is that the probe into Blagojevich (forever known as the Blag henceforth due to having to look up his name each time I type it) stems from the FBI investigation into Tony Rezko. A close confidant of the Obama family. Also the person who helped Obama secure a pretty sweet and fishy land deal. So if Rezko is singing, Obama might not come away clean. Even if it's not a huge scandal... is this really the change you voted for? More Chicago politics????

Been awhile

2008-12-11T07:54:00.000-08:00

I know i haven't been writing much since the election ended. In all honesty I knew all the hub-bub around the President-elects appointment would be mundane and less than newsworthy. I noted earlier that his transition team looks like the Clinton Administration v2.0 and so far his appointments have failed to change that opinion. So much for change.

Prove it!

2008-11-04T20:45:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Obama. History has been made. Black people in this country can no longer say that it isn't possible for them to achieve any dream. 40 short years ago no one would've dared to think that America would have it's first black president. There are no excuses any more for any one in this country for not achieving their dreams. Race, poverty, immigrant, farmer.... from a small state or urban city center.... we can all make it happen.

Now the onus is on Obama. He made a lot of lofty promises and speeches. He raised people's 'hope' to levels not seen in politics in a long time. Expectations are extremely high. Can he do it? I don't think he can, that's why I didn't vote for him.

Congratulations. You talked the right talk. Now you have to prove it to us that you can really do what you promised.

Can't take his own job seriously... why give him a better job?

2008-10-29T23:49:00.000-07:00

2008-10-29T09:27:00.000-07:00

Someone who gets it.

2008-10-24T17:10:00.001-07:00

New Taxes in Economic Crisis

2008-10-21T10:24:00.000-07:00

Does that even make sense? Let's tax big businesses and give their money to poor people? How will that help anyone? They don't have jobs, but heck they got a stimulus check for $1200. That's the change we wanted!

What Obama and his economic advisors are missing is that big businesses create jobs. They create economic growth. They create investment opportunities. 401k plans are investments in big business. In his own word with the "greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression" looming, he presents us with increased taxes on businesses and the wealthy and a tax break for 95% of Americans. Well how can you give a tax break to 95% of Americans when 40% of Americans don't pay any taxes at all? How does that create jobs? When was the last time a guy making $20k a year gave you a job?

I'm concerned with this because I am about to start a small businesses. If I want to hire employees than I need to earn enough money to pay them. Let's say I pay them about $15 per hour, which is a decent wage. I would have to earn at least $60k per year just to pay for 2 employees!

What about my businesses expenses? A good business runs at about 50-60% overhead cost. So overall if I want to make $120k before taxes, I would have to make about $250k. So I'm going to be taxed at an ever increasing tax rate under Obama, even though I don't get to take home that money. So my $120 grand turns into about $70k. Not bad right? Well considering that i had to put in enough work for $250k and only get to take home about $70k is not exactly fair. Especially when my taxes end up going to a guy who hasn't made enough money to even pay taxes and now he gets my taxes as some sort of bonus!!!???? Good job, you don't work nearly enough, here's some money from that guy who works too much.

So some Joe Schmoe gets to not only keep 100% of his earning, because he doesn't pay taxes, and on top of that gets some of my money. While I only get to keep about 30% of my earnings? What's so fair about that?

Well guess what, I guess I'll let one person go, save $30k and try to make up some of the difference. That plan sure created more jobs didn't it? Nope.

The comprehensive argument against Barack Obama

2008-10-21T10:23:00.001-07:00

Everyone should take a look at this article. I thank HotAir for putting it in such a concise manner.

Lighter Side of Politics

2008-10-17T20:01:00.000-07:00

Good to See!

Why I don't vote Democrat.

2008-10-08T22:07:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I feel like life would be easier voting Democrat. It certainly the popular thing to do right now. Hollywood is pretty left. A lot of the media is pretty left. Most colleges are left. Even my profession is considerably left leaning. Why would I vote Republican?

***Disclaimer: No. Republicans are not perfect. There are things they do that make me want to hammer nails into my skull, but they are more aligned with the subjects that are important to me.****

Personal Responsibility: I'm a strong advocate of "you reap what you sow" If you work hard and mind your P's and Q's, I believe that life will treat you well. I don't want government to bail me out. I don't want government to bail you out if you make a mistake. That's part of life.

I'm the one that is responsible to make sure I have health insurance. I'm the one that is responsible for making sure I read the fine print on a mortgage and not borrow more than I can afford. I'm the one that is responsible for making sure that my neighbor is not starving to death and can heat his home. NOT Government. Government should watch out for people taking advantage of us or attacking us..... that's about it. Democrats love to let government take over a lot of these problems for us. Universal Health Care. Retirement benefits through Social Security. Welfare. Medicare. Medicaid. ETC. Etc. Don't you worry.... we'll take care of it. Leave it up to the massive buearacracies. Really?

All I can say is... No thanks! I want government to stay away from me as much as possible. Lower my taxes and get back!

*****SIDE NOTE ON WELFARE******You want to help the poor? Don't give them money. Give them a job! Give them work. Give them skills. You give a man a fish and he'll be hungry the next day. You teach a man to fish and he'll never go hungry again. *******

Abortion: I am Pro-Choice. Not Pro-Choice choose to have an abortion. I believe that you have a choice. That is to have sex or not. That was your choice. Not only did you choose to have sex, but you chose to have un-protected sex. Oooops... now your pregnant. Really!? Sex actually leads to pregnancy!? Who would've thought? Now you want to kill that baby because it is going to inconvenience you in some way. No. You don't want it. Put it up for adoption after it's born. Parents who are desperate for a baby are waiting up to 2 years and going to China to get a kid.

If that choice is taken from you, as in cases of rape or molestation, then I believe that you can choose if you want to have an abortion or not. Your freedom of choice was taken from you. You may now choose to have that baby or not.

Democrats are pro-choice, abort a baby, that's your right. What about the baby's rights? You made your choice... now give your baby a chance to make someone else very happy and make choices of their own.

Military: I believe a strong military is the key to prosperity. We are able to protect our self-interests and those of our allies. I don't believe that Dems think we should have a weak military. I do feel that Democrats don't feel the military is as important as it is in today's world. I grew up with Clinton shutting down base after military base. Now we're stretched thin. If we hadn't closed up so many bases we would have been able to handle both Iraq and Afghanistan without a problem. I also get the feeling that the more far left leaning Democrats really do not like the military in any way. They see them as a great evil spreading war upon the land. If we didn't have such a great military, there would be even more war upon the land... and in our backyards.

Nationalism: Also known as Patriotism. Whoa whoa whoa.... you are going to tell me that Democrats aren't patriotic!? No. I'm not. There are plenty of Dems that are patriotic. I feel that the way we view our country is completely different. Democrats have a glass half empty view of our nation. We are not liked.. we need to change our image.... we need to be more like X country.... we are too aggressive.. we're not involved in the global community enough... we're too greedy... we are destroying the planet... etc. And what do they propose we do to change that? Let the government fix it! That's right. Obama and his Democratic Congress are going to change that. Really? The government?

I see it as a nation with a glass half full. We are an amazing nation. We have done more for our fellow man than any nation in this world. We are the liberators of concentration camps, countries and the oppressed. We have fought at the 4 corners of the earth defending nations against tyrants. We could've sat it out, but we didn't. We are a nation that has brought more economic wealth to the world than any nation ever. Have we made mistakes along the way? Yes. We are not a perfect nation, but we are a great nation. The reason we are a great nation is because of WE THE PEOPLE. If we want this nation to be better, if we want to be viewed by the world as a great nation, then WE THE PEOPLE need to change. We need to take responsibility for ourselves and our country and stop trying to pass the buck onto the government. If we don't do that, then no political party will be able to change that... no, not even Obama.

Economics: Tax the rich! Even the playing field! Right? Equality for everyone, despite their job. Doctors and Lawyers shouldn't make more than their secretaries. Tax them more so that it evens it up. Everyone the same. aka SOCIALISM/COMMUNISM.

Ok. Tax the rich. Who creates businesses? Poor people? Nope. Rich people. Who spends more money to create business? Rich People. Who provides loans to small businesses? Who hires people? Who pays those wages? Poor people? Nope. Rich people.

They take the risk. They invest the money. They work pretty damn hard to make it to where they are and now you want to take that away from them? Why would they want to go through all that risk and work just to give it to the government? Why wouldn't they go to Ireland where it's cheaper to run a business and make money? You tax the rich, you lose jobs. Raising anyone's taxes will only hurt the economy. It takes that money out of the economy and puts it into the governments hands.

You want a strong economy? Put more money into the economy. Give everyone tax breaks. EVERYONE. Rich, poor, middle class, businesses big and small. Get that money circulating.

Wrap up: These are my views. This is what is important to me at this time. We can't continue down this path of dependence on the government. We have to take charge of our own affairs and watch out for ourselves and our neighbors. I'm not rich. In fact I'm poor right now. But I know that this country gives me the opportunity to become rich. This is one of the rare countries where I know that I can become something even though right now I'm an average Joe. I love this country and I'm going to continue to fight to make it better. That means getting involved. We can do it. WE THE PEOPLE!

Debate v.2

2008-10-08T22:01:00.000-07:00

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Oh wait... It's over?

Who was the moron who picked those questions!? Oh right... Tom Brokaw. Did he not see the first debate?? Because I'm pretty sure he picked the same questions. What was new? What was different? That lame question at the end about what the candidates didn't know? Right... that was insightful.

This was a sharp reminder why debates are boring and no one should base their vote on a debate. If you can't take 5 minutes out of your life and look at each candidates positions then maybe you should sit this vote out.

Debate

2008-10-07T16:24:00.000-07:00

Presidential Debate tonight at 9pm Eastern. I don't expect many fireworks to fly, or for it to be as lively as the VP debate, but it should be good. I'll post my opinion afterwards.

Where is the prosecution!?

2008-10-02T12:18:00.001-07:00

I know.. youtube video day here... but they put it better than I can.

Burning Down the House: Who is to blame for the economic crisis

2008-10-02T11:15:00.000-07:00

I started a very long post responding to who is to blame for this economic mess. Well the biggest problem was subprime mortgages which led to inflation of home prices. Why did this happen?? A little known bit of legislation called the Community Reinvestment Act brought to us by Jimmy Carter and the Democrats. I was going to go through the long explanation, but then I found this youtube video that explains it quite succinctly. I checked out the facts.. you can to.

I know its long, but it's worth it. Watch till the end.

A Democrat I would vote for....

2008-10-01T18:56:00.000-07:00

On the 20th of January 1961, John F. Kennedy stood to give his inaugural address. This was in the midst of a cold war with a fellow superpower. We faced the possibility of global catastrophe as both the U.S. and the USSR were trying to one-up each other. During this troubling time President Kennedy uttered these words, "my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country."

I find it interesting that today, as we face an economic crisis, our President and leaders in Congress are not asking this same question. Are we not the driving economic force in the world? We the people? Have we not overcome depressions and recessions in our economy before, only to emerge stronger and richer? We the people?

Instead our government expects us to swallow a bailout of corrupt Wall Street, while claiming that this socialist approach is for our own good. Really? You screw up by not doing YOUR JOB of oversight.... and then you expect us to believe that you can fix it?

Volunteer

2008-09-30T19:44:00.000-07:00

Today I had some extra time at work and so I decided to go volunteer for the McCain campaign. My super-important duties consisted of doing phone surveys. Yep... I think I pretty much won McCain the presidency single-handedly.

Even though my work wasn't important, I knew that simply getting involved was important. It doesn't matter whether we support Obama or McCain. It doesn't matter if we live in a battle-ground state or not. We should do what we can to participate in our governance. The Constitution, the most fundamental principles of our nation begins.... We the People....

This is what makes this nation great. Not our politicians or our money. The people. We are a nation of nobility and peasant living side by side. The great melting pot of the world. For any American to name their exact heritage is difficult. We're British, German, Irish, Italian, Chinese, Pacific Islander, African, etc.

If we are apathetic and don't do our part, then the sacrifices of our forefathers was for not. Get out and do something for your neighbor, community or country.

Quote

2008-09-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

Via HotAir

"When the government fails to pass a socialism bill and the market goes south, let it go south."

-Rush Limbaugh

Did the economy take a hit? Yes. Is it gonna be the end of the world? No. We've maintained our standard of living and the economy has managed to make it through rough times. Let's be patient. No need to rush bad legislation to a panicky public.

The Fix is in.....

2008-09-29T19:58:00.000-07:00

Media in the bag?

Hard to see any evidence to the contrary... minus Fox

Something Different

2008-09-29T18:49:00.000-07:00

My wife asked me why I don't post about different current events right now. I really didn't have an answer. I've been caught up in politics because it's something I've studied and enjoy. My other interest is in history. Which is something no one really likes to hear about. Well tough! I'm gonna talk a bit about it anyway.

This weekend we went to Memphis and made a trip out to the Shiloh Battlefield. The Battle of Shiloh was one of the largest battles the US had faced since it was a nation. (It was later eclipsed in this tragic war) Over 2,000 souls were lost and 5 times as many were lost to wounds.

Walking through the cemetery and visiting the battle site was one of the most humbling experiences of my life. I can't fathom the courage it takes to run across a field into the face of muskets, cannons and bayonets to attack your enemy. Every time I think about it it makes me immensely grateful for the brave men and women of our military. They risk it all, so that we can have the freedoms that we enjoy. If you know anyone serving in the military.... thank them for their service. It doesn't matter if they fought in Iraq or were part of the National Guard. They deserve our thanks.

The reason I have the picture at the top of the blog is to remind us that this is the greatest nation on earth and the men in that picture are the reason for that greatness. It's a nation worth fighting for, whether you pick up a rifle or pick up a pen to write you Congressman, fight to protect her.

Financial Crisis

2008-09-29T18:40:00.000-07:00

Today Congress failed to reach an agreement on a bailout package. I say, "Good!"

I don't agree with the bailout, even though I think it is now necessary. Why am I happy it failed? This is the single largest acquisition of assets by the Federal Government in the history of our nation. Not only are there acquisitions of debt, but of mortgages, insurance and everyday loans. This is not something that should be shoved down our throats because the media has everybody in panic mode. It's time for rational thought and discussion. If it takes 2 weeks... "Greeeeat!" Just make sure that when it's done... it's done correctly. We're already facing bankruptcy of Medicaid and Social Security because they were poorly thought out and implemented. Let's not saddle ourselves with more problems and no one to bail us out.

P.S. The blame game going on by politicians right now is really pathetic. Everyone is to blame. Both parties. Greedy banks. Greedy people in real estate, construction and home owners with poor credit and no financial intelligence buying McMansions.

Student, car debt quietly added to bailout plan

2008-09-23T21:45:00.000-07:00

Unbelievable.

As if this bailout idea wasn't bad enough. The government keeps making it bigger and bigger. Why hasn't this been killed already!?

"The costs of the bailout will be significantly higher than originally considered or acknowledged," said Joshua Rosner, managing director of Graham Fisher & Co., who charged that the Treasury and Federal Reserve have not been "forthright" about the ultimate cost to the public. The plan gives Treasury the discretion to buy the non-mortgage loans and securities in consultation with the Fed.

This guy is speaking my language:
Sen. Jim DeMint, a South Carolina Republican who announced his opposition to the bailout Monday, said he simply doesn't believe Mr. Paulson when he says it will solve the market problems.

"His predictions have been consistently wrong in the last year," he said. "It's a sad fact, but Americans can no longer trust the economic information they are getting from this administration. ... There are much better ways of dealing with this problem than forcing American taxpayers to pay for every asset some investor doesn't want anymore."

How is it that we are suppose to implicitly trust the same people that got us into this mess in the first place!? If they couldn't predict this meltdown occurring now, then how can they predict what this huge bailout will do to our economy in the future?

Health care in U.K. vs. U.S.

2008-09-23T18:45:00.000-07:00

A national health care system vs. a free market health care system.

Read from the above link.

This is something that hits close to home since I'm in the health care industry. I'm not saying that nothing should be done, but the last thing that should be done is have our inefficient government take over something so important. They can't keep Medicare and Medicaid out of bankruptcy, let alone Social Security. Why would we trust them to take it over completely!? Regulation.... depends. Take it over... provide health care coverage? NO!

Kids: Argument for having them

2008-09-22T18:41:00.001-07:00

I decided to part from politics to talk about my kids. I'm a proud dad of 2 beautiful boys. They are still young and still get excited to see me. When I come home they yell "Daaaaaaddy!!!" The oldest runs to give me a hug and the youngest (very much a mama's boy) walks over to see what the fuss is about.

I never pictured myself as a Dad. I never felt ready for kids. I still don't feel ready for kids after having two of them. Maybe that's the wonderful thing about kids. They give back so much more than they take from us. We can make claims that money, clothes and houses are needed first and then kids, but to do so would rob us of a greater joy than any material possessions. Just hearing my kids call out when I come home is worth more than any house.

Obama Promises To Stop America's Shitty Jobs From Going Overseas

2008-09-21T16:34:00.000-07:00

*Tongue planted firmly in cheek*

Obama Promises To Stop America's Shitty Jobs From Going Overseas

Infanticide

2008-09-19T10:59:00.000-07:00

This subject has been popping up. While in Illinois, Obama voted and spoke against a bill that would provide care for fetuses that had been aborted, but survived the abortion to be born alive. At the time the fetuses were simply left to die. His argument against it was that it did not provide a neutrality clause. The measure failed, but a federal bill was brought up while Obama was in the US Senate. Obama's own committee placed a neutrality clause in the federal bill, which Obama then voted against. Luckily the bill passed.

Why do I bring this up? Obama is attacking John McCain with this ad:

That despicable liar John McCain... right? Wait.. he didn't even put out the ad!? That's right. A PAC for born alive advocats put out the ad. Not McCain.

And just in case you don't believe me. Here is a recording of Obama arguing against the bill because he thought that bringing in a 2nd doctor to take care of the infant would put too much burden on the person who is having the abortion.

Whose really despicable here?

Who's the better uniter?

2008-09-18T10:31:00.002-07:00

This is from the Washington Times. Great Article.

Also click here for Hotair's take on it.

In brief. Obama voted along party lines 97% of the time. McCain voted along party line 85% of the time. Obama has never sponsored a bill that require bipartisan work. The one he touts is his Ethics reform, but that was so widely popular it passed in a vote 95-0. McCain has worked with both sides on campaign finance reform, Wall Street reform and immigration. Some passed... some didn't.

When you want to truly change Washington you need to learn to work with your opposition. McCain has a proven track record. Just ask the Clinton's about Obama's track record...

Taxes

2008-09-18T10:31:00.001-07:00

Tax cuts for the rich. Give back to middle-class Americans. This is Obama's stump.

This is why I don't believe it.

First: The tax cuts were mostly for corporations. The US corporate tax rate is one of the highest in the world. That means if you want to run a company it would cost you more to do it here than Ireland, which has a lower corporate tax. If your a global company.... what would you do? You would do what any good company should do and lower your costs of doing business. That means these companies take their jobs overseas to do business cheaper. That means jobs go overseas. Which means a worse economy here.

Obama wants to roll back those tax breaks and give them to middle class. Which means that we would lose even more jobs in the poor economy that we have and that the middle class would actually be worse off. The problem of his argument is that the middle class doesn't really pay much in taxes anyways. So in reality the government would keep more of the taxes while claiming to help out average Americans. This means less money in the economy and poor economic growth.

"Middle class Americans pay lots of taxes!" you say. Ummmm no not really. 42% of Americans pay no taxes at all. In fact the top 5% wage earners pay over 60% of our taxes. The top 20% pay 95% of our taxes.

"Well, they are rich, so they need to be taxed more" you say. Yes and no. They should pay their fair share, but you have to remember that taxes don't create more jobs. Money in the hands of consumers creates more jobs. The more you tax the wealthy the less they spend, which means that again.... economic slow down.

Raising taxes is risky even in a positive economic environment. Doing so in an economic downturn would be a disaster. Remember that while you think about who to vote for...

Biden: Higher Taxes is Patriotic

2008-09-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

Riiiight.

First of all, people keep saying how clueless Palin is???? Really?? And then you see the schmuck out there? They say picking your VP is the most important decision a candidate can make and it shows how different the candidates can be. McCain has energized his conservative base and brought on a huge media storm, which pushed Obama out of the headlines. Obama picked Biden.... who has done nothing but make dumb comments like the one above and has done nothing to energize voters.

2008-09-17T10:50:00.000-07:00

Obama blocks troop withdrawals

2008-09-17T10:29:00.000-07:00

via The New York Post

According the the Iraqi Foreign Minister, while Obama was in Iraq he told the nation's leaders to stop dealing with the President and his Generals and wait till after the election. What's wrong with this you ask? First of all, it almost smacks of treason. He didn't go far enough, but the man was clearly in the wrong. Senators are not authorized to deal with any foreign negotiations. This undermines the chain of command.

Second, if Obama really wants the troops out of Iraq asap, why is he stalling negotiations that will allow them to leave? Answer: He's banking on winning the election and then being able to claim victory in Iraq. He's politicized the war and the troops that are currently in harms way. He doesn't truly believe that pulling the troops out is important... unless it wins him votes.

Did Obama's camp deny this? Nope. They can't because there were witnesses. They essentially confirm it in their press release. via HotAir, plus McCain's response.

McCain predicted Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Bailout??

2008-09-17T10:22:00.001-07:00

Brilliant article found on Hotair by Ed Morrissey.

Funny that Obama, who has become Fan and Fred's favorite politician by giving him 4x's more lobbying money in 4 years than it gave McCain in 20+, is claiming that the bailout is a result of the Republicans failed economic policies. Really? Wasn't it Bill Clinton and the Dems that created Fannie and Fred to provide mortgages for lower income families? People, who it turns out, can't afford mortgages and are now in a bigger financial crisis by having to deal with foreclosures? Hasn't Fan and Freddie been led by Jim Johnson who was leading up Obama's VP candidate vetting?

So much for free speech

2008-09-16T09:29:00.000-07:00

I find it funny that the campaign for change is resorting to good old fashion mob mentality.

Who is the villain that they need to silence? David Fredosso. Author of the book The Case Against Barack Obama.

So much for free speech and the opportunity afforded both sides to air their opinions. Even if they disagree with Fredosso (which they would have to be stupid not to disagree with him) they lend credence to his argument since they are so vehemently opposed to him appearing on an AM talk show. Makes you wonder if he might've gotten it right in his book....

E-mail to Obama: dishonest TV ad, wrong audience

2008-09-16T08:57:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles Times, Jonah Goldberg

After running a brilliant and historic primary battle to defeat Hillary Clinton, the Obama campaign is now in disarray. Why?

Perhaps it's because Barack Obama has never run a competitive race against a Republican. After all, Obama won his U.S. Senate seat in Illinois by running against Alan Keyes, a fire-and-brimstone, right-wing black carpetbagger from Maryland (or perhaps Mars) who had no real ties to Illinois.

Now, facing John McCain's blistering ads, Obama seems unable to fight fire with fire. The Democratic rank and file are furious (while simultaneously denouncing McCain's negativity).

Obama, they may be realizing, doesn't know how to close the deal.

Nonetheless, the Obama campaign has vowed, once again, to take the gloves off and go after McCain hard, linking him to President Bush and highlighting the fact that the Arizona senator is out of touch.

One flaw with this supposed course correction is that it isn't one. McCain-Bush-Economy has been Obama's message for months now. Indeed, ABC News' Jake Tapper wrote on his blog that this is actually the fourth time Team Obama has pledged to engage in a bracing round of fisticuffs.

To prove his newfound determination to go bare knuckle against McCain, Obama unveiled a new TV ad, to air in key states.

It begins with the date "1982," a picture of a disco ball and footage of McCain in clunky glasses from his first year in Washington. "Things have changed in the last 26 years, but McCain hasn't," explains the announcer. "He admits he still doesn't know how to use a computer, can't send an e-mail, still doesn't understand the economy and favors $200 billion in new tax cuts for corporations, but almost nothing for the middle class." All the while it shows ancient computers and a cordless phone that looks like a World War II-era walkie-talkie.

The tax-cuts and economy barbs are familiar boilerplate. What's new is the charge of computer illiteracy and the blatant attempt to attack McCain as too old for the job -- and that speaks volumes.

First, the ad is dishonest. McCain has been one of the Senate's leading authorities on telecom and the Internet.

In 2000, Forbes magazine called him the "Senate's savviest technologist." That same year, Slate's Jacob Weisberg gushed that McCain was the most "cybersavvy" of all the presidential candidates that year, a crop that included none other than Al Gore. Being chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, Weisberg explained, "forced him to learn about the Internet early on, and young Web entrepreneurs such as Jerry Yang and Jeff Bezos fascinate him."

Weisberg, an Obama booster, now disingenuously mocks McCain as "flummoxed by that newfangled doodad, the personal computer."

One reason McCain is not versed in the mechanical details of sending e-mail and typing on a keyboard is that the North Vietnamese broke his fingers and shattered both of his arms. As Forbes, Slate and the Boston Globe reported in 2000, McCain's injuries make using a keyboard painfully laborious. He mostly relies on his wife and staff to show him e-mails and websites, though he says he's getting up to speed.

"It's extraordinary," Obama spokesman Dan Pfeiffer said, "that someone who wants to be our president and our commander in chief doesn't know how to send an e-mail." For the record, President Clinton sent exactly two e-mails while in office, according to the archives in his presidential library.

Besides, by this logic, Obama is even less qualified to be commander in chief because, unlike McCain, Obama has never fired a gun, flown a plane or led men during wartime.

And if the Obama campaign did not intend to mock a disabled veteran, what does it say about his supposedly "cybersavvy" campaign that they don't know how to conduct a five-minute Google search to find out these things?

But the most revealing aspect of the ad is who it speaks to. According to Gallup, Obama has a 20- to 30-point advantage over McCain among 18- to 29-year-olds. Indeed, his base (not counting African American voters) is upscale college kids and new-economy young voters. These are the voters most likely to think being able to send an e-mail is, like, totally crucial.

The only other constituency -- other than the press -- that will be jazzed by such an attack are the Web-symbiotes of the left-wing netroots, another demographic Obama has locked up.

Older Americans, working-class Americans, veterans and other voters Obama desperately needs probably won't care and might even take offense at Obama's condescension.

There are two explanations for the ad. One is that Obama released it to reassure his base that he's serious about attacking McCain, not to win over swing voters. That, or the campaign actually thinks it's an effective ad.

Either way, the lesson is the same: Obama doesn't know how to get outside his echo chamber. He talks about being bipartisan to hard-core liberals who like the words, but he hates actual deviation from the liberal line. He talks about new ideas, but he merely repackages old ones.

He is a candidate who has never had to sell himself to voters who weren't already sold. And it shows.

(Emphasis - Me)

Dividing the Country

2008-09-14T18:50:00.001-07:00

Or call it slinging mud, personal attacks or whatever. When it comes to campaigns it is almost second nature for candidates to 'attack' their opponent. Many people complain about the negativity of the campaigns and explain away their antipathy towards voting. The thing I find most interesting about this attitude is that many think its only in American politics. Or that people think that it's been getting worse. Obviously neither is correct.

Politics have been around since man formed tribes. Since the beginning it has been notorious for verbal and physical attacks. Nations have been torn apart by civil war simply because the wrong party won or lost the election.

America has been unique in the fact that elections don't lead to violence. We were one of the first nations to have a democratic process with two political parties and almost no violence. Parties who loss peacefully left office and the new party didn't go out of its way to in avenging themselves upon the losers.

People and voters would love to have an election without negativity. What is negativity in politics? Is defining the difference between your positions negative? Is stating that your policy is better than your opponents better? Is contrasting your experience versus your opponents negative? Is saying that your opponent is old and out of touch negative?

What I'm getting at is what we find negative in politics is what allows the candidates to define themselves. We need to see the contrast. We need to see the differences. If they were the same candidate, we wouldn't care who won. They are different and those differences need to be shown.

This does not divide the country. This does not lead to violence and civil war. So lets stop claiming that one party or the other is causing the country to be divided. That's politics. I heard a saying that politics is like opinions and that opinions are like your ass... everybody has one and it's always divided.

Tall = Happy

2008-09-12T17:18:00.000-07:00

I normally wouldn't post articles like this, but I have to make a dig at my older, shorter sister. I won't relate her exact height, but I beat her by a good 16 inches. Love ya Breeze! It's not too late to turn from the dark side!

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Taller people are happier on average than shorter people, with each extra inch in height giving as much satisfaction as a four percent increase in income, according to a U.S. study.

Data from a Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index study found taller people were more satisfied with their lives, more likely to report positive emotions like enjoyment and happiness, and less likely to report emotions like anger, sadness, and stress.

"On average, men who gave their lives the worst possible rating were more than three-quarters of an inch shorter than the average man," the researchers said in a statement.

The Gallup data suggested it would take a 29 percent increase in income to have the same effect on men's life satisfaction as moving from below-average to above-average height.

"Alternatively, each additional inch of height has the same effect on reported life satisfaction as a four percent increase in family income," they calculated.

But the Gallup Poll Daily said there were also other factors that had to be taken into account when relating height to happiness -- not least income and education.

Men who did not graduate from high school are on average more than an inch shorter than average-height men are and are up to two inches shorter than the average college-educated man.

The differences were found to be slightly less for women.

"The main reason why taller people do better is because they have higher incomes, they are better educated, and they work in higher status occupations," said the researchers.

"People with more education have higher income and higher status jobs, and they earn more money. Money, in turn, is a powerful predictor of life satisfaction.

The researchers deferred to other studies which have looked at why taller people are more likely than shorter people to have reached their full cognitive potential which suggested cognitive and physical function developed together.

The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index tracks the well-being of U.S. residents daily with the results of this survey based on interviewing over 1,000 people a day from January 2 to July 7.

What makes people vote Republican??

2008-09-12T11:38:00.000-07:00

Great essay by a liberal atheist associate professor. Hard to believe those words just came out of my mouth and onto this page.

"Haidt has conducted research in which liberals and conservatives were asked to project themselves into the minds of their opponents and answer questions about their moral reasoning. Conservatives, he said, prove quite adept at thinking like liberals, but liberals are consistently incapable of understanding the conservative point of view. “Liberals feel contempt for the conservative moral view, and that is very, very angering. Republicans are good at exploiting that anger,” he told me in a phone interview." - Judith Warner, New York Times

9/11: Where I was and what has changed.

2008-09-11T10:35:00.000-07:00

9/11/01 I was in a studio apartment on top of a concrete house in the middle of Hermosillo Mexico. I got a phone call from a friend freaking out because he thought we were at war. At first I couldn't figure out what he was talking about. Twin towers? Planes? Bombs? What!? It was a bad day because I was moving and the neighbor that was helping me move didn't want me to go out. He was worried about having an American gringo on his hands. There was always an undercurrent of tension as an American in Mexico. So we went over to his house where we watched the towers tumble. Only later in the month did I learn about the Pentagon and Flight 93. Disbelieving the implications I shrugged off suggestions that I should go home. In my mind I was wondering what it meant... War? More attacks? Friends? Family? Were they safe? Was I safe?

What has America learned since 9/11.

The First Lesson: Know thy enemy.

We knew about Bin Laden and Al Qaeda. We knew about threats against the U.S. The USS Cole had been attacked. The Twin Towers had been bombed in the previous decade. Our embassies overseas had been attacked. What we didn't know was how desperate and fanatical they had become. We couldn't fathom the lengths these young men were willing to take. The disbelief of US Navy Captains felt as Kamikaze pilots dove their planes into our ships during WWII was shared nationwide as we watched the planes of 9/11 smash into the towers. Was this really happening?

The Second Lesson: Never underestimate your enemy

This proved to be the most detrimental factor leading up to the attacks. We assumed we were safe. Those terrorists were overseas, we were safe. Boy, we were wrong.

The Third Lesson: Be prepared

This has been hammered home by the attacks of 9/11. Security which had been minimal jumped into overdrive. People who had never planned ahead, were suddenly gathering food stores and saving their money. The American public realized that globalization had finally reached our shores. We vowed to never be taken by surprise again.

Report card:

9/11 has forever changed the landscape of America. We have become stronger. Everyone must face trials in order to become stronger. The refining fire of 9/11 was our generations trial. The question is: will it be our only trial?

Obama vs. Palin: A losing proposition

2008-09-11T10:22:00.000-07:00

It seems that the media and even Obama have forgotten that it's McCain running for President, not Sarah Palin. Oh yes, we get the rhetoric of "she's only a heartbeat away from being president" but who knows when someone will die. As of right now he's perfectly healthy and who hasn't heard of someone being declared terminally ill and still living long after anyone expected. The argument is asinine.

Running against Sarah Palin will not win Obama votes. Instead he needs to counter the enthusiasm for her with his own enthusiasm. Give the voters concrete answers and numbers to what your 'change' will be. As they always say... the best defense is a good offense.

Palinmania!

2008-09-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

Palinmania is sweeping the country. Whether you love her or hate her, you are talking about her. Many in the news are trying to vilify her while the Republicans vaunt her to the echelons of the Gods.

My opinion. Love her. She represents everything that Obama/Biden and even McCain try to be. A real person who really understands what everyday middle America goes through.

Obama and his Ivy League education and multi-million dollar house doesn't understand us. He claims we cling to our guns and religion to his millionaire friends or mingles with celebrities who pay $30,000 a plate to eat at Jon Bon Jovi's house.

Biden has been in Washington longer than almost anyone. He's been there longer than McCain. If Obama is trying to change Washington, why did he pick a guy that is practically a keystone to Washington and a Congress with a 9% approval rating. He obviously doesn't speak for those of us no entrenched in Washington.

I will even argue that McCain does not get us. He's married to a millionaire and has been in the Senate for 20+ years. He comes from a family with a rich military history. His grandfather and father were both Admirals in the Navy. He's never really been part of middle America.

McCain's pick of Sarah Palin is politically brilliant. He understood that he couldn't connect with the American public. He knew that Obama was connecting with the American public through his speeches, but that we don't know him well enough to trust him. So who does he pick? His buddy Liebermann? That would be as bad as picking Biden. Romney? Yeah right, the American public is not going to connect with the millionaire and many still have problems with his religion. So he picks a little known governor of Alaska. Why?

Sarah Palin is genuine. She is a real, middle American who has been thrust into politics by standing up against entrenched politicans and corruption. She's Mr. Smith Goes to Washington in the form of a woman. She was in the PTA, became a city council member, mayor and then Governor. She has an approval rating of over 80% in Alaska which is unheard of for any politician. She has a young family with real American family problems. She's tough and she's not the ideal politician, feminist or media darling.

After the pick the media began to rip into her. They questioned her marriage, her family, her baby, her kids and daughter. It was unlike anything I've seen. This was the speech that she gave after 4 days of these attacks.

McCain/Palin '08!!!

I'm baaaack.

2008-09-08T21:45:00.000-07:00

I know that there has been anxious anticipation for my blogging. Fortunately circumstances have turned for the better and I have plenty of time to begin rambling about my thoughts on events that are 'above my paygrade.'

Temporary Hiatus

2008-03-09T20:12:00.001-07:00

Wow... it's been a while since I wrote into my blog. I apologize to my faithful followers. In other words, my wife. She's the only one who reads this thing.

I will continue to post when I can, but I am in the middle of my national board exams for my licensure. Studying for this has been stressful and I can no longer keep up with my family and all my other activities. I'll try to post when I can, but until then I will have to apologize for the long break in between posts.

McCain vs. Romney

2008-01-31T19:11:00.000-08:00

The Republican primaries are down to essentially a two man race. As much as Ron Paul supporters would love to hang on and see if he can pull out a miracle, he's never won much more than 10% of the vote in any race. Huckabee hopefuls are also hoping (or more likely praying) for a miracle. He hasn't made a decent showing since Iowa. There is a glimmer of hope for Hucksters and that is the South. Huckabee has been polling well down there and he may pick up a few more delegates to make it interesting. I personally think that he's merely hanging on for a chance at VP with McCain... but that's just my opinion.

So really it's down to McCain and Romney. Two candidates who didn't look like they had much of a shot 6 months ago. Here's a small break down of their differences.

McCain has many years experience in the US Senate and ran an unsuccessful campaign in 2000 against Bush and was rumored to have sought out a VP post with John Kerry. He is known for being a POW during the Vietnam War and as a big proponent of the War on Terror. He is credited with strong foreign relations and famous for his temper. He introduced a few controversial pieces of legislation, McCain-Feingold and McCain-Kennedy which were very unpopular with core Republicans. His current run for president was almost derailed by McCain-Kennedy which granted illegal aliens a fast track to citizenship.

Romney is known as a successful businessman having made a fortune running companies. He also saved the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City from scandal. He ran for governor of Massachussetts and won in a very liberal state. He's credited with creating a health care plan that doesn't depend on hug government oversight. During his tenure he initially supported the woman's right to choose an abortion, and then back tracked and changed his mind. This also has caused some dis-ease among the Republican base.

So who is going to win? Well according to the huge media push for McCain, he's a shoe-in right? Maybe. First, he has to make a better showing at debates. He seems to be indecisive and more focused on attacking Romney than making his policies clear. He also won't win all of the upcoming primaries on Super-Tuesday. Also, reports are surfacing that he's all but bankrupt and in need of fundraising on a major scale. But he has the heart of the media and some good endorsements in some big states.

So is it hopeless for Romney? I don't think so. I think if he hangs tough this will go to a brokered convention. And no independent or democratic votes to help McCain along. Also if Huckabee drops out then he would pick up a few more votes. Either way this has been one of the most interesting primary elections in a while. It's only gonna get better.

The High Cost of Hillary

2008-01-28T17:53:00.000-08:00

Interesting article. It's interesting to hear Democrats complaining about their former infatuation.... the Clintons. This quote was particularly amusing:

"allow me to apologize on behalf of all other liberals concerning the Clintons, though I doubt I'll be the only one. They really are the soulless, cynical spinmeisters that many on the Right made them out to be… Speaking only for myself, I never actually thought there were purely political motives for conservatives to detest the Clintons that much. The visceral hatred directed at them always seemed sincere enough to me, just hard to understand because apparently so excessive. But now that I'm on the opposite side of them in a campaign for the first time (as an Obama supporter), I know what it feels like to wake up each morning and face ever new depths of shamelessness from the Macbeth Family. Now I may actually catch myself going back to Impeachment Trial evidence for the sake of Schadenfreude. I'm starting to regret not having enjoyed it at the time."

Florida Primaries

2008-01-28T17:35:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow are the Florida primaries. This is going to be a very big day for the candidates, well for the GOP candidates anyways. Florida is the 2nd state to lose all of its delegates for moving its primary date earlier than the DNC wanted. (Michigan was the first) So the Dems really aren't campaigning at all in Florida. They're preparing for Super Tuesday.

The GOP is going crazy for Florida. Right now it is a statistical dead heat for McCain and Romney. Both are riding high after some big wins in earlier primaries. Guliani, the GOP frontrunner is lagging behind in 3rd-4th place. Rather than spend time and money in the early states, Guliani broke from tradition and gambled on the larger states later on in the race. It appears from the polls that the plan has backfired. He hasn't been in the media nearly as much as McCain or Romney who received some free advertising from their respective wins.

Will Rudy drop out if he performs poorly in Florida? Probably.... he took a gamble and it will either break or make him. I don't think he has the money to compete in Super Tuesday states without a serious win in Florida. So who does that benefit? Well it's hard to say because Rudy pulls voters from both the central party goers and medium-hardcore Repubs. So expect both McCain and Mitt to get some help if he flounders and bails. With Fred out of the race now, I'm backing Romney. I'll explain why in another post.

Lazy

2008-01-28T17:26:00.000-08:00

I've been lazy on my posting due to an increase load at school. This will soon be rectified as I'm in my final year. It'll be weird being out of school and even stranger to carry the title of doctor...

Primaries

2008-01-19T11:17:00.000-08:00

Nevada is already voting and Fox is claiming that Mitt Romney ran away with it, while the Dems still haven't had a clear winner yet. South Carolina is also voting with many of the stragglers trying to make a big stand in this state. McCain and Huckabee have led in the polls so don't be surprised to hear one of those names called out as the winner.

Fred Thompson is making SC a sort of last stand state. He hasn't been polling well and it looks like his campaign is sagging. I hope he makes it to Super Tuesday on Feb 5th, but he's still a long shot. But hey, who doesn't like rooting for the underdog? I think that's what has carried Obama. If Edwards would just see the light and drop out, then Obama would really have a chance.

Update! Soldier gets vandalized right before deployment

2008-01-18T22:05:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Michelle Malkin for this update.

I still think this guy got off easy, but what can you expect in our court systems nowadays. However, I have to say that this is a big victory for the blogging community who was the big push behind getting the word out about this incident and making things happen. The voice of the people is still heard in this country!

Iwo Jima

2008-01-18T11:10:00.000-08:00

The picture that makes up my banner is the flag raising on the Mt. Suribachi during the battle of Iwo Jima. Suffering more casualties than on D-Day, Iwo Jima was one of the greatest battles fought in WWII. Iwo Jima is a small island south of the Japanese islands that provided a landing strip and radar for Japanese fighter planes. The few civilians that lived on the island were evacuated before the battle and therefore was mainly a military base. The Japanese were expecting an attack, but realized that the island could not be saved. Therefore the defense of Iwo Jima was mostly used to delay the Americans as they pushed toward the Japanese homeland.

The U.S. decided that Iwo Jima was important because the proximity of the island to Japan would allow escort fighters to accompany bombers to Japan. After dropping thousands upon thousands of pounds of shells upon the tiny island, the US decided the time for attack was at hand. Little did they realize that due to massive underground tunneling, the Japanese defenses had suffered very little damage.

After a very quiet landing, the marines suddenly faced a nearly invisible enemy who fired from pillboxes and tunnels. The beach was made of a very fine black sand that made it very difficult to more, which caused the troops to bunch up. Eventually they made it off the beach and pushed north toward Mt. Suribachi, the highest point of land on the island. It was on top of that mountain that the above picture was taken.

After 35 days of fighting, the Americans declared the island secure, although an estimated 3,000 Japanese soldiers were still hidden underground. Some of the soldiers surrendered although the majority committed suicide. The last soldier to surrender had hidden in the tunnels for 6 years and finally surrendered in 1951.

Of the 21,000 Japanese soldiers that fought on Iwo Jima, only 216 were captured/survived. The rest died in battle or committed suicide. The U.S. lost over 6,000 dead and over 19,000 wounded, making Iwo Jima one of the costliest battles during the entire war.

May we never forget the sacrifice and bravery of those who died for their country.

Race baiting and the war on drugs

2008-01-14T12:08:00.001-08:00

As the political scene is heating up before the next slew of primary elections begin, the Democratic campaigns are turning ugly. Obama supporters are charging Clinton of being racist for saying that Lyndon Johnson was the one that finally got Civil Rights for blacks by pushing it through Congress (which he did) instead of MLK doing it through his walks, strikes, speeches and death. (Which he didn't) She didn't disparage him in the least, but that's not what Obamites like to hear.

On the other had Clinton never fails to bring up Obama's drug use (which he did and admits it) or the fact that he has no experience (which neither of them do, unless you count watching what your husband did at his job then claiming you can do it too). They also tend to trump the classic sexist card. Hillary as the first woman to be president, breaking barriers etc etc. That should be my reason for voting for her? So women can say we have had a president too? What kind of qualification is that?

Democrats and their candidates need to be careful. If this race gets tight, which it probably will be, then things could get really ugly which could turn off a lot of independent voters. Remember, no party has a clear majority. Both right and left depend on garnering that all so important independent vote. If the race gets too ugly, independents might be turned off to Democrats and start listening to the Republicans battle over taxes and immigration... which as dull as that sounds is much more appealing than listening to frantic calls of racism or dredging up past sins.

NFL Playoffs: Championship Games

2008-01-14T12:06:00.000-08:00

Patriots vs Chargers
Packers vs Giants

Who do you pick? I'm taking Patriots and Packers, which will be an awesome Super Bowl, but I fear that the Patriots have the clear advantage of a more impressive offense and tougher defense than Green Bay currently has.

Random Video

2008-01-11T18:28:00.001-08:00

The ninja baby.

Iraqi Soldiers Bravery

2008-01-11T17:14:00.000-08:00

I don't think we give the brave men and women enough credit for standing up and volunteering to protect and serve their country. Each of them faces incredible danger for doing so. This story exemplifies their bravery.

To:
Malik Abdul Ghanem
Asa’ad Hussein Ali
Abdul-Hamza Abdul-Hassan Rissan

May your sacrifice be remembered and may you rest in peace.

Open for Comment

2008-01-08T08:05:00.000-08:00

I apologize to the millions of you wanting to comment but not being able to. I recently became aware that commenting was restricted, so it is now open to the public. I know poor blogspot is going to have several server crashes trying to keep up, but it's worth it. :-)

New Hampshire Primaries tomorrow

2008-01-07T19:42:00.000-08:00

New Hampshire is voting tomorrow. The big story is whether Obama can keep his momentum or if Clinton can regain some footing. Also it's going to be interesting for the Repubs if Romney can pull out ahead. The tension is building!!! ooooooh!

I have a hard time being interested in these early states, although the upset of Hillary's "coronation" in Iowa has me paying attention.

Book Review: An Inconventient Book by Glenn Beck

2008-01-07T18:54:00.001-08:00

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the author Glenn Beck is a popular radio talk show host and has his own show on CNN. He is a reformed alcoholic turned Mormon which is a topic that comes up frequently in his book. The book itself discusses a lot more than Glenn’s personal life. He takes on topics that are in the news like global warming, illegal immigration and islamofascism. He also broaches a lot of topics we deal with daily like dating and marriage.

His approach is light hearted and easy to read. So for those of you who don’t enjoy the serious political books... (really who does?) He also includes lots of eye grabbing graphs and pictures to make it seem less tedious and more enjoyable. My favorite part of the book are his inserts of ADD moments which are random thoughts inserted into serious topics. It’s like he picked out the weird thoughts all of us have when contemplating anything serious or sitting through a Biology lecture.

At the end of the day, this book makes sense. He states his opinions very clearly and lays out a good foundation for the reader to do their own research and form their own opinion. He also doles out advice that is reasonable and understandable.

Overall I give the book a 9/10. This book is appropriate for anyone over 18, mostly because kids wouldn’t understand it. I would highly recommend this read to all my friends, even to those who don’t like to read.

Fred on the Factor

2008-01-07T18:53:00.000-08:00

Fred comes onto Bill O'Reilly's show and lays out his policies and viewpoints.

Movie Review: I am Legend

2008-01-04T18:16:00.000-08:00

Not exactly a new movie... I know. But, I saw this a while ago and kept wanting to do a movie review on it.

Overall, it's a good suspenseful drama. Those that go to this movie expecting a horror show will be disappointed as there are some tense scenes, but not anything that will make you jump out of your seat. It is definetely intense. There is a scene where his dog accidentally runs into a dark building (dark = vampires) and he goes into the building to find him. The whole scene had me sitting on the edge of my seat right up until the end.

This is also your first exposure to the vampires of the movie, which are done entirely with CG. This has to be my only real complaint with the movie. Why can't actors play the vampires with some makeup? I feel that the creativity of Hollywood is floundering due in large part to the advent of CG. It's much easier to draw stuff on a computer than create it in real life. Soon we'll have nothing but Beowulf-esque movies. Ok, end of tangent/rant.

The movie delivers. You are entertained from beginning to end. Will Smith proves that he doesn't have to be funny all the time and he can create intense drama through his improved acting. Overall I'd give it an 8/10. Go see it.

Fredhead

2008-01-03T00:09:00.000-08:00

Ok, I'll admit it. I'm a Fredhead. For those that don't know what that means, I'm supporting Fred Thompson for President.

Reasons: He's a true conservative and he's not a politician.

What!? Not a Politician you say. No, not in the true sense of the word. Who can doubt that the only reason Hillary ran for Senator in New York was because she could win and it would set her up to run for President. Who can doubt that McCain who has been in politics since leaving the military is not a politician. Fred Thompson was Senator of Tennessee for a bit and then left because he felt that people shouldn't be in politics for life. This kind've straight talking and sensible thinking is what I love about him. He didn't answer a BS question from some liberal moderator and he doesn't play games with the media. He has a strong plan for immigration and this country and really gets down to the source of the problem instead of trying to create another government bureaucracy to take care of it.

If your Republican and voting in the primaries... give Thompson a look. You won't be disappointed.

Soldier gets vandalized right before deployment

2007-12-31T18:03:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Black Five for this story for this story.

A marine has his car vandalized and the city prosecuter won't pursue felony charges. The offender is a fellow lawyer and since the soldier is being deployed in January, he probably won't win this case. Such an abuse occuring willingly to our men and women who are serving us abroad is a travesty. Scroll through the comments at black five to see how you can help.

Moving Day

2007-12-22T22:20:00.000-08:00

The reason for the switch is that townhall is a pretty conservative web site and although I am pretty conservative myself, not all my topics, discussions, opinions, etc are conservative. So i would like a more neutral setting. Feel free to continue commenting on anything posted.