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Monday,
August 30, 2010
The
economy seems to be headed for a double dip - down. There's talk
of another stimulus. Really? I don't think handing people money
will solve the money. Small business is the key. Small business
must feel secure about expanding and hiring more workers. That's
the problem in a nutshell. Business, especially small business,
is afraid of the unknown. What should President Obama and the
Democratic congress do? I would call the bluff of the
Republicans. I would schedule a news conference and announce
that the Bush tax cuts will be extended for one year so business
will have some sense of security and stability. Next, I would
make a presidential executive order to postpone the health care
bill and any other ambiguous legislation affecting business
until an exact accounting and determination of the
responsibility and requirements of such legislation is laid out
for all business concerns. The Republican leadership as well as
the Tea Party groups have been criticizing the administration
for these things, so, call them on it. The Democrats must beat
the conservatives at their own game and get a handle on the
economy. The American people would perceive the congress and
administration as taking the leadership role in turning around
the economy. Perception, not reality, is the bulwark of the
conservative movement. Democrats, hijack that stance and beat
the Republicans at their own game. Do you have any better ideas?
Big
Brother 2010 is really getting boring. The houseguests who
remain lack the excitement and pizzazz necessary to make the
last few weeks in the house breathtakingly interesting. The
power in the house is now more than ever a function of the HOH
and VETO competitions. The personal appeal has diminished. The
fire is gone. Boring.
Saturday,
August 28, 2010
OK.
Here we are again. The Florida primary is history. Kendrick Meek
won the Democratic primary for the US Senate, Rick Scott won the
Republican primary for Governor and the other results were
pretty much expected. The Alaskan primary produced a win for the
Sarah Palin backed Tea Party Republican candidate. As a result,
the party choice Senator Lisa Murkowski may run as an
Independent in November. Maybe Independent is the way to go.
When party (Republican or Democratic) candidates are too
extreme, then maybe the more traditional party favorite should
run as an Independent. Interesting. The general election
campaign should be interesting, too.
The
outspoken extreme right TV/radio personality Glenn Beck is
hosting his Washington rally today at the site of the Lincoln
Memorial. Think the Democratic civil rights activists are seeing
red? You betcha. It seems to me that the Tea Party activists are
too extreme, too right and too much against federal protection
of civil rights. What are they trying to take back? Do they want
a return to a 1950's style America? Or are they just too upset
because the face of America is no longer white and they do not
like to share? I'm just wondering?
Tuesday,
August 17, 2010
Washington
D.C. is a ghost town. Most federal government workers are on
vacation. President Obama is campaigning throughout the country.
Later this week he and his family will start a 10 day vacation
at Martha's Vineyard. That's Washington. In Florida the heat is
on, and I don't mean the Miami Heat. Although the Miami Heat is
gearing up too, but that's another story for another posting.
The Florida primary will be held August 24. Big election. The
Republican governor's race as well as the Democratic U.S. Senate
race are monumental. The ads are continually airing on TV. In
the air there's a feeling of disdain and contempt. Primary
election day August 24, can't wait. Even after the primary, the
general election campaign will be exceptionally interesting in
Florida. Can't wait for that either.
Saturday,
August 14, 2010
How
is the President doing? Oh goodness, not very well I suppose. He
has been overwhelmed by a variety of issues since taking office
in 2009. The economy should have been item #1 on his agenda. The
other business including Health Care should have taken second or
third or moved to the second term, if there is a second term.
The President should have determined that the financial
situation of the country was paramount to his success in any
other arena. The economy should have been number one on his to
do list. Small business and keeping the status quo on taxes
should have been and should continue to be on the forefront in
dealing with the economic downturn and all of it's problems. A
president must be able and free to adjust priorities when
necessary. Instead of politicking so much, the President should
have anticipated the Republican point of view, worked with them
and then shared the recovery process with them. No one has all
the answers. I feel that there are some real deficiencies in the
President's approach to the economy. I don't understand the
reason for the irresponsible spending by the federal government.
I don't understand the purpose of throwing money to the public
sector when the private sector is in a state of collapse and
confusion. The private sector, small business, must be reassured
that the administration is doing all it can do to help them.
Jobs are produced by the private sector, small business. Is the
President ignorant of these facts or is he relying to much on ill prepared,
misinformed and unsubstantiated advice from his advisers? In any
case, get over it, regroup and solve the nation's economic
problems. The loyal opposition has attacked the administration
and will continue to do so until such time that they feel part
of the solution. This may not happen until after the mid-term
elections. If the House and/or Senate changes party control,
then the Republicans will become a player in the solution to
these problems. There is no excuse for the behavior of the
Republicans. Republicans have been and continue to attack
everything and anything that the administration and Congress
attempt. This is wrong and should not have taken place. The
solution to our nation's problems must come from bipartisan
cooperation. I hope the mid-terms even out the disparaging
attitude in Washington as well as the rest of America, and the
long anticipated economic recovery is realized.
Friday,
August 13, 2010
Friday
the 13th - my lucky day. Ever since I was a kid Friday the 13th
has been my lucky day. I remember once in school we had a U.S.
History test on a Friday the 13th and I was concerned. As it
turned out, I did fine. Every since I've considered it my lucky
day. Why? Well, I'm a person that takes on a realistic point of
view concerning human life. I figure good things as well as bad
things will happen to each of us sometime in life. Concentrate
on the good. I do believe that there is evil in the world and
beyond, but we can rise above it. Rise above it with faith in
the good. Call it God or whatever you prefer, ultimately that
good will always protect us, if we believe. Now I don't get over
confident. I don't think that good will always happen. I don't
go looking for the bad. I do live life with the sense that good
and bad exist and I vote for good.
I
must comment of Big Brother 12. Rachel was evicted from
the house. Good. She and Brendon really showed their
questionable character in the waning days of their week on the
block. They both are a little disgusting. Brendon will probably
be evicted this week. Wait, I just checked the spoilers and
discovered that Brendon actually won the HOH competition. He's
safe for the week. He calls the shots for the week. Nice win,
but it will be short lived. He has no allies in the house. Next
week he will be ineligible for HOH. He will probably be evicted.
It will come down to the POV competition. What are his chances?
The Brigade needs to be busted. Someone must get lucky and
uncover it. I do not understand how the Brigade - Hayden, Lane,
Enzo and Matt have kept their alliance a secret. The other house
guests seem to be so-called floaters. However, being floaters
may prove a successful strategy. Floating, keeping a low profile
and not making waves, has gotten them to the second half of the
game. The evicted house guests starting with Rachel will make up
the jury. The jury, sometimes with modifications, decides the
winner. One thing is for sure, a good portion of the game is
luck. The host, Julie Chen, intimated to Rachel that she may not
have seen the end of the Big Brother house. Umm, expect
the unexpected. It's not over, until it's over.
Monday,
August 9, 2010
Either
Brendon or Rachel is going home. I'm talking about Big
Brother 12, of course. Matt is the HOH for this week.
Britney won the POV. POV ceremony airs on Wednesday. So, it's
not definite, but unless Britney does something drastic, either
Rachel or Brendon will be evicted. I hope it's Rachel. As the
show goes on, Rachel is exposing her real person. And it
"ain't" good. Believe me. She seems to be an
egocentric, self absorbed egomaniac. Brendon appears to be weak
and dependent. He should have seen through her and dumped her
weeks ago. Although that would have been suicidal for him. He
may have discovered that and is working the situation. There
have been some hints to that effect. If Rachel is evicted, which
seems to be the case, we will see how Brendon reacts. Perhaps he
will be stronger and survive. I doubt it. The so-called Brigade
is strong and will work to eliminate him in record time. The
number of house quests is dwindling. The Brigade must eliminate
the others or risk being eliminated themselves, one at a time. I
just can not believe that the house guests have not caught on to
the Brigade. That's a tribute to the four Brigade members. It
seems to me that the majority of the house guests are timid to
be anything but floaters. By the way, the last evictee, Kristen
was very close to exposing the Brigade. At the end she was
wondering why the four Brigade members were so close. I think
she would have discovered the truth if she were still in the
house. If she wasn't evicted, then Hayden would have been and
Kristen would have uncovered the Brigade and their plan within
the next week. I'm sure of that fact. That would have given the
show a interesting twist. It's so exciting. In fact five minutes
before the start of Sunday's episode I ran into the computer
room and searched the spoilers for updated information. I
couldn't wait for the show. I like to know what's going to
happen. It gives me time to either prepare myself for the worse
or revel in victory. I can't check the spoilers any sooner than
right before the show because then I would loose interest and
the show would be a flop for me. Go figure. It's been a slow
summer.
Sunday,
August 8, 2010
Congress
is a mess. Both sides of the aisle are acting out, so to speak.
Democrats and Republicans attack each other while the people of
America suffer. Democrats throw money to the poor and
downtrodden in an irresponsible manner. They do so in order to
keep support. The Republicans fight the leadership out of spite
and selfishness. At the same time they fight to keep the Bush
tax cuts for their supporters, the wealthiest of Americans. The
whole process is out of control. The good of the people is being
short sided for partisan control. Too bad. Whatever happened to
compromise? Neither side seems to want to compromise with their
opposition for the good of the people of America. Too bad.
Conservatives are calling for revolution, of sorts. In my
opinion, all of this is providing the environment for a real
revolt in America. I don't think that the revolution will be
Republican, conservative kind, nor Democratic, liberal kind
either. Demise by trouble within. Many great societies fall due
to internal strife. Is this the fate of the United States of
America? Wake up America. Wake up American governmental leaders.
Internal strife will cause external extinction unless the
internal divisions are mended and wounds are healed. Individual
selfishness and political corruption for personal gain must
stop. Selflessness for the good of all people must be the priority
in government in order to solve America's many problems. Will it
happen? December 2012 is coming. Will the predictions be
accurate?
Sunday,
August 1, 2010
Happy
August! I love August. The end of the summer is still weeks away
. School doesn't start for a few more weeks. We still have a lot
of uninterrupted summer fun. That's the way I remember it. Now,
it's a little different. However, I still get that August
feeling. When life becomes dull, boring and matter of fact, then
it will be time to hang it up. As long as I'm living I will be
remembering and looking for more ways to enjoy this fabulous
life. Don't get bored. Live life to the fullest, even in these dog
days of summer.
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