Man's Best Friend

I've been reading all about the first Presidential promise from President-elect Obama. His daughters have been promised a puppy. The official First Dog has yet to be found or chosen, but it is promised. I also read a comment made by the Senator in which he said something about a pound puppy, but then made a personal reference using the word, "mutt." Well, as a Heinz 57, myself, I'd like to make a few comments and offer some advice when it comes to dogs, but first I'll quote President Harry S. Truman. He said if you want a friend in Washington, better get a dog! He offered Missouri wisdom, and here comes some more from his home state!
I have a very special dog, that came into our lives just recently. We were just heartbroken to not be able to maintain a "farm dog" that didn't like free range chicken dinner. So, I prayed about it and I knew we were going to end up with a free puppy and there was some sort of abandonment in the details, but I wasn't sure about that, until . . . I saw an ad that said FREE puppies and called. The woman went on to explain that a female dog had been "dumped" in the late spring. She said it quickly became very apparent that this dog was going to have puppies. She had nine, and then when the puppies were 12 days old, she was hit by a car. The woman hand fed all these pups for the next four weeks until she could advertise them. We went that same day and I immediately fell in love with a short haired black male puppy with four large white paws, that we named Geronimo. Short hair is best for allergy problems. Our grandson is terribly allergic, so I made a point of choosing the pup with the shortest hair and our grandson has had no problems. Geronimo became part of the family immediately. Now, we have no idea this little guy's background, but I expand his collar weekly. We have no idea how big he will get, but he is certainly growing at a steady and rather rapid rate. Clearly a pure pedigree is out of the question, but every morning and every night he goes with me to do chores and he hasn't helped himself to any chicken dinner! Mutts are great!
I have two more mutt stories that I must share. When I was having a terrible time with my MS, I decided a dog would be a great companion and possibly offer some assistance. I went to a shelter and saw cage after cage of dogs, but none spoke to me, until we got to the cage up at the end of the trail. I was walking with two crutches at that time and when I looked into the cage of five large dogs, one looked back at me as though we were old friends, and we soon became just that. He was, as best we could tell, a German Shepherd and Golden Retriever cross. He was the best of all worlds. He was loyal, he was smart, he was great company and he was a big gentle giant. Again, mutts are great!
The last mutt story I will reminisce is one that came into our lives on an election evening. It was 1984 and I had just gotten home from work, preparing dinner, when my then 8 year old daughter came to the door with a puppy of some mix, and tears in her eyes. She said some people were going to destroy a litter of puppies, could we keep this one. His name became Fritz, named of course for our candidate, Mondale. Fritz was a great dog. We never knew his background, but he was small and seemed he might be of more of an ornamental small dog background, but he was the watchdog of all times, but never even showed his teeth. He always slept on the mat at the door and even though he was small, he had a "big dog" bark. People were always shocked to see what small creature had produced such a bark from the other side of the door.
To the Obamas, I couldn't recommend more strongly, a pound puppy. They are the best. I've owned a pedigreed pup or two, and I would never, ever seek anything but a lovable faithful mutt. Not only are they man's best friend, this girl gets pretty attached to them, as well.
A righteous man regards the life of his animal . . . a Proverb of Holy Scripture

Unresolved Issues

I awoke this morning to a gay man in California speaking to a reporter, saying something to the effect of, 'We cannot be used as political pawns!' And I logged in to a forum complaining about the Democrat's stance on right to choose. I'm not going to belabor these points or issues, but I would like to ask just a few questions.
I'll start with abortion.
Dear Conservative Voter,
I realize you will be faithful to the party that claims to value life, with the word "claims" being the operative. Now I have a question with observatory comment. We have had, for the last 8 years, a President that claims to be conservative and pro-life. Until November of 2006, we had a Congress that was republican since 1994, a Supreme Court that is comprised of seven out of nine Justices appointed by Republican Presidents, and yet . . . nothing has changed about the subject of abortion. What is your party doing, regarding the actual laws pertaining to abortion? I've heard the rhetoric, but what was being done all those years of conservatives in power? I saw the anti-Obama add with the nurse talking about the horrors she witnessed at the hospital where she worked. I realize she wants to change legislation, but she never mentioned changing her job or taking a stand against this horror at her place of employment . . .
on the gay issue
Dear LGBT,
Just a couple of questions on this whole marriage thing? You refer to the gay lifestyle as "alternative." If your lifestyle is alternative, why do you want to do what heterosexuals are doing? How is that alternative? And, for general information, just how many happily married heterosexuals do you even know? The divorce rate is astronomical! In the very brief time Massachusetts has had same-sex marriages, they have also had to figure out how to grant a same-sex divorce. You said alternative, and you call it gay. Why give all of your lifestyle power to the politicians and the voting majority, which probably happens to be, for the most part, dissatisfied heterosexuals. Do you realize how much personal power you are giving up to be political pawns every election season?
The reason these issues remain unresolved is because they are religious issues that have been politicized. The Bible does discuss both topics and the Bible separates abortion from murder, and actually I don't know of a specific statement regarding lesbianism, but It does talk about homosexuality and cross dressing. The deal about this though, is this. The Bible is the living standard for people that are in Covenant with G~D and accepted HIS invitation to live by laws of the Bible. It doesn't apply to people that don't want to do it or don't believe the Bible. The Bible is not the book designed to ignite political hot button issues, the Bible is G~D's Word to man and man can take it or leave it. It really is that simple, and nowhere in the Bible is man instructed or admonished to sprinkle a few Biblical principles over his politics. Biblical principles and commandments are for those that believe It.
If you love me, keep my commandments. Messiah

Wednesday Seemed Pretty Normal When I Awoke

Earth appeared to still be tilted and spinning the same direction. I heard part of President-elect Obama's victory speech and he sounded good, but then he's always been eloquent, and I have no idea where he stands, except soon, it will be at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. I heard part of Senator McCain's concession speech and he was absolutely sharp and defined, and every bit the gentleman, hero that he is. As far as I'm concerned, he knew what he was up against and I don't mean his opponent, but rather the reputation of the entire republican party. John McCain was at times funny, sometimes tense, but always he looked like he knew how this would go. I truly think most of us did. As for the President elect, the timing and circumstances were certainly on his side in many ways. I'm guessing there was no other man on earth that would have taken Oprah's endorsement away from Hillary last winter. There's never been a time in history in which the sitting president had a lower approval rating and no rising star in his party, so although I think P-E Obama is an intelligent man and gifted speaker, another time and another circumstance might have insisted that we know more about him. I promise to be at least as supportive of his administration as I have been of the last one. I do like his VP, however; a lot more than what we've had for the last 16 years.
I have an off topic issue that I wanted to mention today. It involves a telemarketing experience that compares to none other I've had. We were enjoying brunch when the phone rang and my husband answered it. I could tell right away, it was someone promoting something. He told them he wasn't interested three times, and that he was eating. The gentleman, Aaron, was so insistent, my husband offered the phone to me, as I usually have a knack for handling the telemarketers. I never hang up on them. Remember, we don't have a TV, and everyone needs a little entertainment. This Aaron continued with his schpeel, to which I continued to tell him I wasn't interested. He got his supervisor and she proceeded to go on and on about how educated she was sure I was by the way I spoke and carried myself. hello! All I had said was, "I'm not interested," repeatedly. Finally she explained to me that by not hanging up I had wasted everyone's time. The company was, Calypso Cay, a timeshare deal, and when I decided to mention this on the blog, I Googled "Calypso Cay." Sure enough, I found many complaints regarding their way of doing business, if you can call it that, and read many posts about very similar experiences to ours. Unfortunately, some of these people had actually given them their credit card information. I was fortunate, I just got a lecture from them regarding time management.
Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. a Proverb of Holy Scripture

Life As We Know It

Today is the big day . . . Can you believe it, just two years ago, this all began and here it is the finish line? I've been reading the headlines, of course, and participating in a few conversations and forums. So far, my boycotting of the election has resulted in no applause or accolades, whatsoever. I have been referred to as a lemming and been called apathetic, not to mention lectured on my civic duty and national responsibility. Even so far as to be told I had no respect for what our founding fathers stood for. Let me just make a few comments regarding our founding fathers. First when our founding fathers established this nation, it completely disenfranchised the original inhabitants and certainly discounted the potential for someone like Senator Obama. I checked before I began typing. Black men were officially granted the privilege of voting in 1870 with the 15th Amendment, although some states still found ways to disenfranchise them as voters, it was federal law. Women were allowed to vote with the 19th Amendment in 1920, and American Indians were granted citizenship in 1924, allowing them to participate in elections in some states. Many states still argued the decision up into the 1960's. As for true patriots, I do not discount the men that founded this nation and considered other races and ethnicities to be of less value than themselves, but I don't necessarily have to embrace the late coming invitation. But I did for years. This year and I'm not saying it's a permanent decision, but for now, I just didn't want to vote against something or someone. I won't vote until I can vote FOR someone. I know Obama is getting many, many anti-Bush votes. I also realize he's getting many votes simply for the color of his skin. Oprah and Colin Powell have made sure of that. And I can't say I wouldn't feel the same way if a Native American were running. John McCain is clearly getting the anti-Obama vote, and the hang on to the power at any cost, vote. I know that, I heard most of the republicans pundits trashing him through the primaries. Most of his votes are simply because he's the one running in the GOP, and staying home, according to many GOP talking heads is like another vote for Obama.
Well, I'm no lemming, I'm not standing in line for hours to help determine which way we lean as we go off this cliff. And I'm far from apathetic. My latest book, "The Threshold of Technocracy," will be available on line at our website later today.
I am rather curious as to what the talking heads and the comedians are going to do after this election, though. If we have a President Obama, he's not going to be as easy to make fun of as the last one has been, and there's the whole political correct thing to consider, racially. If we have a President Obama, the talking heads will go right on trying to scare their listeners, but if we have a President Obama, they and their listeners will realize their listeners are no longer the powerful party.
Now, if we have a President McCain, I'm guessing there is going to be some question and possible uproar about the results to begin with. Once that is settled and if there is a President McCain, Tina Fey is going to be the busiest person in the nation, and you talk about job security . . . you betcha! But the conservative talking heads will have nothing. They can't trash the new administration and they can't blame the last one. And to go clear back to the Clinton years, well . . . that dog just won't hunt, no more!
I've heard one promise change and one promise reform, but American politics has proven to be business as usual, even through these campaigns. In the economic crisis, both candidates voted the same way, with our money. Change and reform is not a plan, it's just campaign rhetoric. As far as I'm concerned, anyone that spends millions upon millions of dollars of money donated by hard-working financially stressed and strapped Americans to get a job that pays thousands with personal perks, has no business making any major financial decisions.
Yes, life as we know it will be forever changed, but it is sheer arrogance to think America is really going to change the world with this election, either way. After this election, the American administration will continue to cave and cater to powerful expectations, the election results just determine whose expectations will be the most powerful!
Where there is no vision, the people perish . . . a Proverb of Holy Scripture

Every Day The World As We Know It; Changes

Well tomorrow, the world, the US will never be the same. Every day is like that, but these monumental moments accentuate that fact. By this time tomorrow, most of the voting booths will be closed in America, except Alaska and Hawaii. Interesting that it is these two states. In mentioning Hawaii, I read that Obama's Grandma passed this evening. I'm sorry that she didn't get to see the fullness that her grandson has become, but then again, I'm sure, as a grandma, she already saw all his potential! The Alaska results won't be tallied yet either this time tomorrow, and after seeing more of Sarah, I have nothing but pity for her. She is just pathetic. Is this truly the best Alaska can do for intellectual leadership? If so, I'm just sorry. I think she really tries to be cute and ornamental . . . and that's just not enough when it comes to American politics, except after 8 dismal years for her party. I read today that Cheney gave his endorsement to the McCain-Palin ticket. Great! A Cheney endorsement is just the last kick in the teeth this "debilitated duo" needed. I would think, at this late date an endorsement from Cheney compares to the need for a jump start at the Indy500 in the last lap. But then, there are the two swing states that are up in the air, and I live in one. With Murtha's comment about racists in Virginia and Missouri's inability to discern, as it is the "show me state" could there be two states this time that hold the key to the country's future? And the sudden tape revealed about Obama's declaration against coal mining. That might be the deciding factor for Pennsylvania, but I'm guessing it will be more dramatic than that. Wow! What drama may be unfurled tomorrow.
The one thing I do know, as an American, I heard first thing this morning on the radio at about 6 am. "If you don't vote, you have no right to complain!" And oh, let me mention a man that has a business near here that made just a cameo appearance in an Obama ad. He is actually receiving harassment from a local radio show and receiving very negative e-mails. I'd like to mention that whether I agree or disagree with his stand, it is his right to promote a candidate and I absolutely applaud his courage for doing so as a business man! I never heard the name of the business, which I find interesting, but I applaud him none the less, and when I do hear the name of his business, I will post it here and support his right to free speech!
Now as for the mandate "if you don't vote, you can't complain." My complaint is the lack of choice for a prepared leader. And so, after tomorrow, it has been mandated in this land with a Bill of Rights of free speech . . . for the first time, I won't be voting, I can no longer complain. Since our world, will once again be forever changed by an election, I'll simply observe, as an outsider. Undoubtedly, after tomorrow, just like any other day in history, the world will never be the same.
Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! New Testament

Boycotting the Election

Well, for the first time since the bicentennial year, in which I turned 18, I'm not going to vote. It's like going through withdrawal. I've been saying for months, I'm not about to vote for the lesser of two evils, because even the lesser is still evil. I also made the statement that I thought it was already decided and with the price of gasoline, I wasn't going through the motions. Well gasoline prices have dropped, here I am looking at the last week-end before the elections, and I'm really not going to vote. I do still think it's already decided, so in the spirit of free elections, I have elected to not vote!
Although I am a libertarian at heart, and would love smaller government, I know that party has their own agenda, as well. Besides, the libertarian candidate has had little more media coverage than I have, and I'm not running for anything. Most of America doesn't even know the libertarian candidate's name.
I've been getting the "voter's guides" in my e-mail and frankly some of them I find quite offensive, the religious ones in particular. Vote the Bible, which means exactly what? I can't find a single election in Scripture, except for the occasional casting of lots. My religious beliefs basically amount to this, regarding politics. Mixing politics and religion amounts to idolatry. Let the empire run and pay the taxes they ask for and go on living by G~D's standard, that's what Messiah did. I'd think his followers would want to do the same.
As for war and economy, I can't hear much difference. John McCain said he'd stay in Iraq for as long as "it takes" whatever that means and Obama has changed his stand through the course of his candidacy, so my guess is, Iraq will be the one that decides when they want America out of there and whomever is sitting in the Oval Office will find themselves needing to accommodate the decision of Iraq. Besides, we'll be having to tend to somebody else's business by then, anyway. Now, as to the economy, although we are hearing two different things, semantically speaking, it's basically the same message. The government will need to be funded to determine what needs to be spent. McCain will take from everyone to give to the rich, in the promise of something trickling back down on the poor. Obama will take from everyone to spread it everywhere, except . . . the rich all have the best tax deductions and unless and until someone revamps the IRS, the rich will always have tax shelters. Tax shelters are pretty expensive to maintain, so the poor will just have to settle for the entitlement "spread." This man talking about spreading the wealth does live in million dollar mansion.
I'm just so very glad we aren't electing a President and Vice President like governor and lt. governor. The choices are bad enough, but I know I couldn't take four years of Obama-Palin.
Both candidates and the republican VP have been very clear that they will be expecting a lot out of "we the people" and "we the people" can expect them to be in charge. All I've heard out of the candidates is the cry to the people to either fight or serve, serve or fight . . . and let's not forget pay, Pay, PAY! I'm boycotting the election as a matter of principles and convictions, but even if I weren't, I still have no idea who I would want to see declare victory next Tuesday night!
If they say . . .Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: a Proverb of Holy Scripture

Mere Conjecture . . .

I've been thinking for some time now that the GOP was trying to throw this election, for a number of reasons. Today, I'm going to address a few things that could have gone differently if they hoped to win. Oh, and I know, I've been following the various poll reports that say John McCain is closing the gap. Well, to that I would applaud the eleventh hour drama. This should be real good if Pennsylvania is the "deciding" state this time. Between Murtha's comment and Pennsylvania's leaning history, it may involve the Supreme Court again! But I do think the GOP has this under control and has truly tried to throw the election, and if not, then they are just not as smart or strategic as I've given them credit for being. And I know, I read, now that Sarah has hit the national limelight, she's not going to fade back into the land of the midnight sun and six months of darkness. Oh, no, she's tasted the ultimate in attention and she's staying for more. Another big surprise from the GOP. Now back to a winning strategy, if there was to be one.
First, don't let all the pundits trash the one that will ultimately be the candidate. There were pundits praising Huckabee, Thompson, and Romney, but none were jumping for joy over McCain. Second, after a horrible hateful campaign against the fair haired boy of 2000, don't expect the die hard faithfuls to embrace the major contender. When a primary portion of the voting block are fans of an endorsing minister, don't let the candidate renounce his endorsement. Now, when all these bad ideas are already in place, the best solution would be to head for a moderate position, or better yet, combine the strengths of the party, but no, McCain went to the most distant state and found the farthest candidate from moderate and strategic; and chose her. Did this choice truly draw the undecided? I don't see how.
Here's the simple truth. Every republican, James Dobson included, was going to vote for McCain, regardless of what they had said through the primaries, for one simple reason. The republicans are convinced if you stay home on election day, that's the same thing as voting for Obama. I know, I've heard them say it. So, McCain already had the evangelicals, the neocons, and the NRA. Did Sarah gain him any other votes? Again, I don't see how. For the most part, if intelligent women want to be represented by another woman, they want her to be intelligent. For most of the moderates, Sarah Palin is anything but moderate, although really I don't know what she is all about except attention, but I digress. If the GOP wanted to win this, first, McCain would not be the candidate, then the VP would not be Sarah Palin, and there isn't a GOP candidate that would renounce the endorsement of the religious right.
I'm guessing, even if it is close, and I think that is just for dramatic effect, but I'll give the benefit of the doubt and say, even if it is close, the GOP doesn't want victory in 2008. I think the GOP has the brightest strategists in politics and these candidates and publicity statements are not the product of intellectual strategists, that is if winning is the objective!
The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools. Ecclesiastes of Holy Scripture

What Happens Next?

Tonight is the big night for Obamamercials! So important is he, it's pre-empting the beginning of the World Series game! If I had a TV, I suppose I would be spending 30 minutes of my life watching him not tell us more. And I suppose if I had a TV I could be watching Sarah P. trash Obama while her supporters say she's being picked on. I guess if I had a TV I could be watching all sorts of things that would raise my blood pressure, increase stomach acid or affect my heart rate, but not to worry, last I saw of TV, there are plenty of pharmaceuticals advertised.
I read today that the banks are really accepting these governmental funds, not to loosen lending to help "we the people" but rather to have the funds to buy troubled institutions at a bargain rate. I just heard the interest rate has been reduced once again. What is this the 4th or 12th solution for home buyers facing foreclosure? Why not just declare a big "DO OVER?" Instead of starting on Wall Street and then spreading the wealth, why don't we just discount everything in America by 25% from the inflated loans to inflated stock values? Rather than more tax dollars thrown at things, after we declare a 25% deflation at the grocery store and the gas pumps, let's reduce wages and see if some of these small business owners can't keep their doors open without credit to pay their crew? Why don't we just declare America solvent at the value things should really be and dust ourselves off and really get started, rather than make another false bottom that is only going to give way? Whether it's a new resident in the White House or more credit at reduced rates, the problem with basing our solutions on remedies outside of our control is the fact that no one has to take ownership of the problem. More credit will not stabilize the economy. Credit is not the backbone of any economy and if it continues to be presented to be the solution, the economy will never be solvent. Gasoline prices have dropped dramatically! That is the best thing this campaign has produced, so far! I read that OPEC is thinking of cutting back production to increase demand. Big surprise, I was expecting prices to go up after the elections with our without OPEC doing anything.
Now that Wall Street is on welfare, what will America's class distinctions be based upon? The big banks are taking government funding to devour the smaller banks that are not eligible for the bail out and that is going to produce nothing but one centralized bank, ultimately. I'm sure that's a big surprise!
Basically when the term "tanked" is used to describe the economy, it means we are sunk. And as the USS Americredit sinks, next Tuesday we are going to decide which way we lean as we plummet.
A TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) a.k.a. "Corporate Welfare" won't help a sinking ship, and the Captain and Crew have already bailed . . . They've thrown our money and life savings at it, and as of November 4, many of them are about to abandon ship!
He that trusteth in his riches shall fall . . . a Proverb of Holy Scripture

I Find Myself Pitying Everyone Involved

As the election approaches, I find myself just wanting to suddenly be offered a completely different choice for America, but I'm guessing, short of the Second Coming, it will be politics as usual, one week from today. As I peruse the headlines, I feel sorry for everyone. The candidates all have issues, presently or in their past that truly do touch the heart strings. And, we the people, have had a rough several years. So first I'll address why I feel sorry for the constituents, that we are so willingly led and misled. We think we can blame the politicians, rather than accept responsibility, but we still pay the price of the mandates of the politicians. Americans are responsible for where we are and what we've become and we're responsible for the fact, we have reduced ourselves to such a choice. I still pity us, though. We got caught up in the scenery of the blame game and while we all thought a flag in the front yard made us a patriot, we forgot, the true patriots stood up against ruthless, expanding governments, and the patriots stood up, themselves, they didn't send someone else to fight the rich old men's battles. The true patriots of our early nation fought the rich old men . . .
I both respect and pity John McCain. He was a prisoner of war and stood against the present administration when it came to legislating terror. Hats off to John. His weakness for younger attractive women appears to be nothing new and for that I pity him. It's cost him respect, both when he pursued Cindy and left his first wife that waited for him through his POW years, and now that he's paraded Sarah.
I pity Obama. I'm sorry he grew up not feeling truly connected anywhere. I'm guessing that was what caused him to choose his associations later in life that he did. I'm sorry for what he went through. Although I don't agree with his views, I can understand where he thinks the world would be better if it were without economic class differentiation. I truly hope he doesn't exact too much vengeance.
I feel sorry for Joe Biden. I like him. I've said before, I don't agree with all of his politics, but I like his smile and even when he says too much, he is articulate and well spoken. I feel sorry in that I know he still must miss his first wife and little girl. That would be a horrible tragedy that one would carry for the rest of their life.
And I feel sorry for Sarah Palin, because she's Sarah Palin. She's pretty and she's powerful and I think she thinks that's why people don't like her, but I don't think that's the reason at all. I think she's more agenda oriented than Hillary, and I think she needs an awful lot of attention. And I pity that.
Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? New Testament

The Big Count Down

Can you believe it, this is the last week before the National Election? The campaigning will be over in 1 week and 1 day. I checked a few dates before I began this blog, just make sure I retained the proper perspective. Sure enough, we've had a presidential campaign going for nearly 2 years. I would think the candidates would be exhausted. I know, many of the constituents are. The way I understand elections, Senators are elected to a six year term, so now let me share this perspective. First we have Senator Hillary Clinton of New York announce her candidacy in January of 2007, just one year after she began her second term and just seven years after she arrived in New York to begin her first term. If memory serves, the Clintons bought a home in New York, while still living in the White House, so she could run in New York. Then Barack Obama, a junior Senator from Hillary's home state announced his candidacy in February of 2007, just 2 years and 1 month after being sworn into the National Senate, which calculates to serving 1/3 of his freshman term. I find both candidacies fascinating in that they maneuvered addresses and timing with amazing precision to accomplish the ultimate goal in record time! Unfortunately for Hillary and fortunately for Obama, the timing was metered in '04, not Hillary's year to garner national attention, but clearly by the DNC it was Obama's year to be "put in place." Why, we've received two calls just this evening from Obama's campaign to see where we stand, here in Missouri. Now, we go on to the Republicans. Near the beginning of the year of 2007, McCain, Huckabee, and Romney all announced their candidacies, while Fred Thompson waited until the more "respectable" time of the fall of 2007, to declare and go nowhere. I shouldn't leave America's mayor out. Rudy Giuliani put all his eggs in one Florida basket and then went home.
Back to the big countdown. I have no doubt that this is entirely orchestrated and from the sound bytes of John McCain's camp, they've all but conceded. Back to the current campaign. I like Joe Biden. I think some of his views are skewed, and I'm no longer a Democrat, but I just simply like the guy, so if I were going to vote, he'd hold some power to sway my vote. Sarah, now Sarah, she's a deal. The RNC has spent a ton of money to dress her for "polite society" claiming her frugality while she hit the state of Alaska for all kinds of expenses for her family. And I find it interesting that her term, "rogue," which she used to describe her ex-brother-in-law is being used now, to describe her. I've read that she is "despised" and "loathed" by some and I think those that loathe and despise her are simply jealous. I don't see her as that big of a player until 2012 and I don't see it so personal as to despise or loathe her based upon her personal life and her manipulation of the political game. She's an attractive woman that has the ability to use that to get everyone in place and then she is in charge. Unfortunately for her, she doesn't come across as an intellectual. What's to loathe unless you're jealous? She has no power without the people electing to give it to her . . . My thought is, if the American people can't see through that, then she will be elected in 2012. Still no reason to loathe or despise, just simply a statement of our values of women needing to control!
Back to the big count down. Now that I'm finishing this blog and realizing the election returns will be rolling in, in less than 200 hours from now, I think it will be a relief. I think it's time for at least one Senator to get back to Senate business and the American people to get back to the real issues at hand. Our current administration has arbitrated stock deals in banking and perhaps heading toward the auto industry and we attacked Syria. Just in case anyone is paying attention to anything besides Barack Obama's next promise and Sarah Palin's next inappropriate comment.
And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with . . . the cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. New Testament

I'm Back and Things Appear About the Same . . .

I've been celebrating Sukkot, or Feast of Tabernacles. I love it. Religious camping! So, I've not been keeping up with radio or computer or anything to speak of for the past week, and it seems that things are about where I left off, anyway. I see the money gods on Wall Street are still needing to be propped up. Our present legislators and administration seems all too willing to sacrifice the offerings of "we the people." Our national politics and economy is a lot like a soap opera. You can miss a week or two and tune back into the same ol' same ol'. Now that I mention it, I wonder just how much influence prime time soaps have had on American politics. I mean, we've all lived "Dallas" for the last 8 years, even somebody shot, but it wasn't JR and we all know who did it, because it was an accident and everything is "off limits" when it comes to questioning Cheney! It does seem kind of odd, when I think about it and now with Sarah Palin in the mix, I keep thinking about that other soap in the early 90's, Northern Exposure. I didn't watch it, but I remember the bits and pieces. No wonder I haven't missed TV in 10 years, I still read the news. Who needs prime time programming when we have political headlines?
I do think, I'm not predicting, just observing. I think Obama will be our next president, and I think the republican party has promised Sarah the moon in 2012. My opinion is based on a few facts I've noticed. I've already blogged several times that the republicans truly do want to dump this mess for a bit. It hasn't even taken 2 years to have their constituents hollering about this Democratic Congress . . . even though it was a Republican Congress for 12 years prior. The American memory is amazingly short. I'm watching the revisionists revise right before our eyes. This next president cannot make the necessary changes without one of two things happening. One, we are too far gone to fix and he simply gets to be the Captain of this sinking ship, or two, he makes serious changes that will result in losing his popularity. Back to Sarah for a minute. I'm sure someone high up in the party has told her two things. One, nobody knew who Obama was in '04 and now look at him. And two, we've already aired her dirty laundry and her people love her. The pundits have already done the damage to McCain back before the primaries and that brings me to my last observation that makes me think Obama is in. The pundits and their accusations regarding the media. I guess TV media is liberal and Talk Radio media is primarily conservative or neoconservative. Doesn't Ted Turner own most of Montana? And wasn't Rush's new contract for $400M? The real financial power in this country is in broadcasting and so . . . the "liberal visual media" and the "conservative talk media" need each other and need viewers and listeners; and to maintain an audience, they need material. Obama is their man on both counts. The "liberal media" can continue to follow him like groupies and the "talk media" can circle and continue to pick like vultures. From night time soaps to talk radio to news headlines, and infomercials, media feeds and feeds off of our consuming society.
But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: a Prophet of Holy Scripture

New Terms and Redefinition

First the BailOut became a Rescue, then golden parachute became stability for the working class, and now I think we're about to behold an all new understanding of "National Bank." I remember, as a kid, banks all had catchy names like for the area and then there was National or State added. Savings and Loans often had what sounded to be creative names but included words like Federal so you knew they meant business. At any rate, Wall Street has rallied at the hope of being bailed and the Dow has rallied at the hope of more credit and our economy is saved because . . . the government is going to become shareholders in many of the banks. And all this sounds good, how? Wall Street went begging and as far as I'm concerned, is now Panhandler/Huckster Central! Who actually has any authority and comprehension of responsible money management? I realize there are plenty of people with authority, assumed or elected, but I've yet to see anyone actually willing to just stand up and say, "It's time to pay the piper, not borrow from Peter to pay Paul." The neo-cons are blaming the borrowers that can't repay their mortgages. Reality check! How long has it really been since the people trying to work their way up, had any sizable power at all? Oh, that's right, never. Now, some of this may be the result of over extending or trying to live large, but some of this could also be the result of American businesses tanking and what used to be a secure job has now been eliminated. Not everyone got over their heads intentionally or irresponsibly, some merely trusted their place of employment to continue and never imagined their government would become this huge, edacious, insatiable, unsustainable beast. While we are discussing irresponsibility and short sightedness, let's not forget the proposed cost of the Iraq war, when we were sold that bill of goods. And let's not forget about those lovely golden parachutes. I read the muckity-mucks of AIG had a half million dollar retreat after they received their $85B. Does it look like they are going to handle borrowed money any better than they handled invested money? Not to me, it doesn't. And I'm not going to just pick on the present administration. What does any politician really know about building, managing, or maintaining economically? They get well connected in college or some are even born into good connections. Next, they hone their "people skills" so other people invest in their popularity contest. Next, if they succeed, they have the opportunity to play with all kinds of money, called taxes for earmarks and pork barrel projects. Then, three to four years later, when the taxpayers have no idea what really happened to their tax dollars, it's time to start campaigning again and to do that, it's time for fund raising. I said three to four years later, except in the case of Barack Obama, who was clearly running for President before he was ever even elected to the Senate in '04.
There used to be colloquialisms about New York bankers and Philadelphia lawyers and now we call it political satire!
As a roaring lion, and a ranging bear; so is a wicked ruler over the poor people. a Proverb of Holy Scripture

Freedom Isn't Free and Neither are Entitlements

I believe I got some of the strangest advice I've heard in ages. This came from a religious right neo-con fan of the present administration. Let me tell you, those members of that twenty some percent think they are a pretty exclusive and cerebral bunch, and frankly I find them extreme. Today, as I was building the kid page at eingedi.us, the phone rang. This particular person loves to attempt to debate politics and religion with me. I don't know why, I've been very clear that I'm not a bit interested in being talked out of my faith and after the last 7 1/2 years of mess, I don't want to hear one more Bush-ite tell me something about Bill Clinton's sex life. If Hillary doesn't care, why should I? Even if she did, that is such old news, and I never knew how it made such huge news when it was current. Anyway, back to this brilliant idea. First let me qualify this with my beliefs. I don't believe in social security for two reasons. One, I believe, as a servant of G~D, I'm not supposed to plan to retire and when I can no longer work, I see no reason for the younger generations to exhaust their funds keeping me alive and unproductive. There is no Scriptural reference for retirement. Second, I don't believe in social secuirty, because I'm not a big fan of socialism and I continue to be amazed at the people who are so anti-communist and anti-socialist, but defend their right to their entitlements. And although I didn't mention a third reason, there is a very clear one and the example has been demonstrated so elaborately these last few years. Why would I want to trust a government to care for me financially, when this particular government has gone in the hole to the tune of trillions? So the idea that was presented was this. Since I have MS and my husband is now an amputee, we should go on disability and since we don't believe in collecting, give the money to our daughter. No, really, that was the suggestion. Now, let me also clarify this by saying, my husband wasn't employed when he became an amputee. He had already decided to semi-retire and publish. I am a writer and a minister, so MS hasn't really affected my work, either. I realize we could both get in line for our entitlements, but why? I wrote my first book while sitting in a wheel chair and my husband lost his leg, he still has both hands, and he always liked to sit to work anyway. Putting two more people on the government dole isn't really going to help the economy that has been sunk for the past 7 years. I saw the hand writing on the wall, when President Bush wanted the "younger work force" to start investing their own social security into Wall Street. That was the first attempt at a bail out and how long ago was that? Hummm . . . this money game has been in the works for awhile, eh?
So now that the economy is openly known to be a mess, getting more people to compromise their values is exactly what was prophesied to occur, in the coming apocalypse recorded in the Revelation. I just keep finding so strange that it's the religious right trying to get everyone to put their faith in the government. Daniel was faced with the same choice presented as an opportunity. Maybe if he'd have gone along with the government protocol, he wouldn't have spent a night saying, "Nice kitty," but then again, all the government officials would have thought they truly were more powerful than G~D.
Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his G~D.

Joe Sixpack for US Treasurer

Now that I've read the US Treasury is going to expand their "debt auctions," I realize our entire government is out of touch with reality. Buying and selling debt? No wonder we're broke. Sometimes life just brings a coincidence too good to not share. About the same time I was hitting the "publish post" button on yesterday's blog, I received a notice of new mail. It turned out to be a delightful message regarding our economy. I would suggest since the Big Wheels on Wall Street are having difficulty making the books balance and Wachovia has proven that a banker's handshake means nothing, they might benefit from the information I'm about to post. I now see why it will take those of us on Mainstreet to Bail Out those on Wall Street and provide the paper for the printing press in the Federal Triangle. I cannot take credit for collecting this particular data, but I would like to share it. Perhaps, instead of Sarah promising Joe Sixpack to take care of his needs, maybe she could be quiet and learn a thing or two.
Here you go Sarah, from Joe Sixpack . . . Darn good info, you betcha!

If you had purchased $1,000 of shares in Delta Airlines one year ago,
you will have $49.00 today.

If you had purchased $1,000 of shares in AIG one year ago, you will have
$33.00 today.

If you had purchased $1,000 of shares in Lehman Brothers one year ago,
you will have $0.00 today.

But, if you had purchased $1,000 worth of beer one year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the aluminum cans for recycling refund, you will have received $214.00.
Based on the above, the best current investment plan is to drink heavily & recycle.
It's called the 401-Keg.

A recent study found that the average American walks about 900 miles a year.
Another study found that Americans drink, on average, 22 gallons of alcohol a year.
That means that, on average, Americans get about 41 miles to the gallon!

Makes you proud to be an American!

Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts. Let him drink, and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more. a Proverb of Holy Scripture

What Sarah Said Was Just, Well, "Darn" Stupid

I didn't blog on the VP debate last week, because the financial fiasco was so reprehensible Friday. Not the meltdown, the bailout, but I won't go there today. I'm going to discuss the debate. First, let me say, I don't agree with all of Joe Biden's politics, but I sure like the guy. For a career politician, he seems pretty real. She walked out, extended her hand to shake his, and asked if he minded if she called him Joe. He referred to her as Gov. Palin, what a gent! Now, on to the "maverick," Sarah. Who by the way bills herself as a Washington outsider, but has held some political office since 1992. Granted, her political career has not been in Washington, but she's been successfully politicking since before she was 30. I was simply flabbergasted by her comment regarding being in touch with the average American, and making reference to "Joe Sixpack." To quote her well worn use of "darn" and "you betcha." "I found that darn offensive, you betcha!" I am not married to a Joe Sixpack, my father is not a Joe Sixpack, and I hope my sons-in-law are not Joe Sixpacks. I know a number of men that are concerned about the state of our nation and whether or not they'll have a job and be providers, that are not Joe Sixpacks, either. And what does that make all of us women that aren't pitbulls in lipstick or hockey moms or whatever? Wanda Winecooler or Myrna Minivan. I don't like the idea that someone making such a condescending caste statement would presume to identify with us and consider herself qualified to make decisions for us. She can't relate to what we are concerned about and neither can her husband. He doesn't have a worry in the world as long as she keeps running her mouth and running for some office. I first heard he was on an extended leave of absence, then I read he was a former oilfield worker. Either way, he doesn't have to worry about that Joe Sixpack label, but a few other labels do come to mind, as he does the bidding of his feminist wife. Next, she wants to argue with McCain about Michigan. She said she and Todd would go there. This brings me to two points. One, McCain is the candidate for president, not Palin, so who does she think she is. If McCain thinks she's going to quietly be the VP, he truly is out of touch with reality. My next point is regarding the fact she included Todd in the campaigning. So, who is raising all these babies she's so proud to bring into the world? Maybe more women would get into motherhood, if they had the best government nannies, money can buy. I read the Obama girls are spending a lot of time at their Grandma's. Just who is supervising the Palin children while mom is busy politicking and volunteering Todd? It's fine to be pro-life, how about outside of the womb, Sarah? Do the kids ever get as much attention as mom?
I'm not thrilled with the choice America is facing in November, but I know I don't want anyone making decisions for me that would have such disrespect for men.
I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully. New Testament

Well they Did It

This is going to be fairly short today. There is no reason to beat this dead horse in the middle of the stream, anymore. With several "earmarks" or pork barrel projects or whatever one side of the aisle calls it when the other side attaches more expenses to get something passed, the Big BailOut is already signed! I did notice there were several interesting additions amounting to billions of dollars, with one being more mental health coverage for insured employees. Pardon my paranoia, but will this just be one more way to get what few people that are still employed, into the system or reprogrammed? I've ranted, I've raved, and now I'm just sorry that our entire government doesn't mind using my grandchildren to pay for poor decisions made by people that will never have one moment of wondering whether they can afford gasoline or milk. I have learned something that I just didn't want to see. When both parties quit bickering and finally agree on some bipartisan legislation, it's merely the power of the politicians against and over the will of the people, for the sake of the plutocrats.
But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you . . . New Testament

The Solution . . . Of Course

Now I understand the solution. It was just so very simple, all along. All financial balance sheets have a "bottom line." Our brilliant administration has discovered the temporary solution and a permanent new direction. Remove the bottom line! We will simply operate the American budget without a bottom line. Of course, this is so simple, why didn't we come up with this earlier? I heard my home state Senator McCaskill quoted this morning on the news, saying, " . . . the credit will flow . . ." Credit flowing is what got us to this point. I think this amounts to nothing more than socializing business and debt. Is it socialism if it's debt and fascism if there's a profit? I've heard all week that this bailout will cause banks that have not beein willing to loan money to keep the small businesses and independent businessmen going for things like payroll, etc., to loosen up and provide credit once again. Having been in business, and certainly small and independent, let me tell you something. If I can't buy inventory or supplies and I can't make payroll without a loan, I'm not making money, anyway. What's the point of being in business? This entire solution amounts to nothing more than nationalized counterfeiting. Making paper money to keep Wall Street and the big banks going is like playing Monopoly with one player getting to use the copier when "times get tough." Of course, it benefits all the players, right! What happened to the idea of the big guys just downsizing and paying their debt? Say, I have another idea, since this is going to happen, anyway. What if we divided that $700B or half of that amount and simply used it to actually bail out the people being foreclosed upon? Since the government is going into the banking business and has already entered the real estate mortgage business, why not just use the money directly on the problem? If the government is going to hold the deeds to the mortgages, simply catch up the foreclosures and let the real estate market balance itself back out? And I can't say this often enough. NO Golden Parachutes. When an independent small business man fails, he's lucky to get out with the shirt on his back. NO Golden Parachutes. If CEOs are going to run businesses into the ground and spend money like a teen-ager with their first job, then it's time they learned to live like the rest of us.
I admit I do not have a college math degree, but this I remember from basic Algebra. An equation with all variables and no constants has no justifiable solution OR, any desired answer can be declared . . . Adding more variables to a difficult equation does not help in the solving either. Here is the equation our government is offering if our economic crisis were an algebra problem.
x + y (z)to the -9th power - f = C
I'll now identify the variables.
x is the actual problem, not the meltdown, but what caused the meltdown.
y is the future generations
z is all the money that will be printed, but not backed by anything
f is what the government will do
C is the constant, which is credit.
Now, even with the variables identified, the only constant is the direction. . . down, so we removed the bottom line.
We have one other real problem with this solution. If D is debt, and C is credit, when D = C, or D > C, we are back to an absolute value of 0. Let us not forget that 0 times anything and everything is still nothing!
The only thing that will change with no bottom line, is the fact, we can and will fall far below zero.
And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. a part of the Revelation

Stepping Up to the Plate

I've been blogging along making political commentary for some time now, regarding this financial fiasco, but today, I'm going to tell it like it is, at least from my perspective. The problem is not all on Wall Street, therefore the bailout, will not help. The solution certainly isn't in Washington. We can see from Monday and Tuesdays stock drop and stock rally, that even with the bailout, they plan to run on credit, the direction will not change. I've spent my entire life listening to people talk about money and hard times and a couple of weeks ago I went to my Grandma's 90th birthday celebration and got a whole new perspective, just in time for Wall Street's Meltdown. I say "meltdown, shmeltdown!" Now, knowing that our fearless, thoughtless leaders are going to put this burden on the taxpayers if they can, I say it's really just a matter of which generation of taxpayers is stuck. My recommendation is this one! Somebody has to stop this insanity. Some generation has to just step up to the plate, suck it up and pay the piper, and I'm okay with it being mine. I'm 50 and I'd rather start over and live simply than prop up Wall Street and keep America's god on life support. It's time to lay the old idol to rest, once and for all. We've been running a long time on this present method, which amounts to little more than fast credit, payday loans for the majority of us. Taking down the mobsters in the 70's and 80's was the only way the government could tax the loansharking with those little "corner check-cashing" shops. This is what happens when an economy is based on the perpetual motion of credit. It's far worse than counting your chickens before the eggs are hatched. It's more like ordering omelettes and quiche before the eggs are laid. Now back to my thoughts. I grew up hearing how much everything cost! I mean everything! My parents were very money conscious and from appearance and knowing my dad, I'd say they are comfortable and debt free, and were that way long before they retired, and they still are not 70, so I think their money concerns have served them well. I remember when my Grandpa, who was a self accomplished man, also, explained to me about CDs and FDIC. He told me to never have more than 10 CDs in one bank, and never mature at the same date. And I still live by that advice, only now as an adult I understand those CDs must have been $10,000.00 each. He's gone now, he's been gone for most of my adult life and I still miss him terribly. I think my parents are set for their old age, which brings me to the real point. I have a grandma and I have grandchildren. My grandma has spent her entire life doing what she wanted or what she thought was best. She's 90 now and I think she's covered for life. In celebrating her birthday and looking at the scrap books some of my cousins had assembled I had a revelation! As you can probably glean from this blog, our family has close generations. I remember well, my Grandma's parents, my great Grandparents. As I looked through the scrap book and saw the pictures from days gone by, I remembered the story of my great Grandparents losing their farm in the Great Depression and building a house on a smaller acreage up the road that my Grandpa had inherited. I heard how they lived in the chicken house while he built the home I remember visiting as a child, years later. What caught me odd, though, was the number of professional pictures my Grandma had taken of herself through the 30's, already a young adult. I was amazed at the outfits and the, well, they looked like glamour shots. There were a number of them, a significant number. I know it was all through the 30's, as she married my Grandpa in 1940 and my mom came along in 41. She was a waitress in town in 1934 or 35 and when social security was first established, most of her income would have been unaffected. And from the pictures, I would say the hardships I heard about through the Great Depression appeared to leave those young adults unaffected, as well. Maybe she went to the big city in hopes of being discovered . . . I have no idea.
I made the decision years ago, to pay in to cover my generational obligation, but not to collect social security, because I didn't intend to retire, and I refused to apply for disability when I was diagnosed with MS, so I'm at peace with no expectations or entitlements from the government. I'm also at peace with knowing the young adult generation of the Great Depression that left the farm and didn't look back are taken care of, and their children that worked so hard to amass, probably won't lose most of their pensions, etc. So while the older ones are cared for and the younger ones are just beginning, I say, we'll still take care of the rebels of the Great Depression and the anti-establishment generation will put the brakes on and get this thing turned around without leaving the same burden we inherited.
In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge. a Prophet of Holy Scripture

Oversight for the Bail Out

I'm really confused about this mess. First the Democrats don't want to do it because it's a White House idea, then the Republicans don't want to do it, because the Democrats have added some stipulations. Then it was supposed to be a bipartisan agreement and a go ahead with Oversight! I checked the meaning of oversight, as I thought it used to mean an omission resulting in error or a mistake from not paying attention. Turns out, that is only one of the meanings. The other meaning is management of a situation. Wow! Who knew? But with our government, I'm guessing we can get both meanings out of the same circumstances. I'm sure there are many bureaucratic departments in which the oversight is caused by oversight, or the oversight is implemented as a result of oversight. At this point, I'm guessing there are actual meetings and tax dollars spent to come to some sort of "agreement on the wording" of just such circumstances.
Now to get back to our legislature. I read a headline that said, the Bail Out Bill Failed. I don't really think I'm unhappy about that, but I don't understand what I read about it. It would seem, 60% of the democrats did vote for the bail out, but the republicans were offended by Nancy Pelosi's comments just prior to the vote, so they changed their vote . . . Please! Excuse me, representatives, this isn't about you, remember! It wasn't about any one's partisan feelings when the other side was dragging their feet. It was about helping America! So what gives? Just how long does anyone in Washington think we are buying this? We on Main Street have to be careful about what we buy and invest in or try to be, we don't have anyone to legislate our bail out. As a matter of fact, we are expected to finance this one, so quit trying to sell us your nonsense. I, for one, am not buying it. Although, considering the value of the dollar, I don't know why I'm still being so careful with my money. I think it's time that Washington got back within reach of the people. This plan of not listening to the people and implementing huge expenditures is exactly why we became a country of our own, to begin with. Remember? This plan this week-end amounted to nothing more than sending the tea tax to England and being told the next move from the throne.
Now, if anyone is really willing to sink America over partisan pandering or being offended, I'm guessing those are the ones that are not up for re-election next month.
If the bill was bad, take credit for voting against it. If the bill was good or well it can't be good, but if you were honestly going to vote for it, before Nancy said anything, Grow up and be a representative! This sounds like bickering on the playground in elementary school. Representatives, you are there to represent the best interest of the people that elected you. I really don't care who likes you and who you don't like, just do your job for which you are overpaid and overcompensated. When I first read the headline about the bill failing, I though some of your consciences finally got the best of you and you decided to work for the people that sent you, rather than be bought. But then I read the rest of the story and realized it was just petty politics, as usual.
He that oppresseth the poor to increase his riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want. a Proverb of Holy Scripture

The Show Must Go On

Senator Obama,
I realize you feel the debate takes precedence to actually tending to the task of your present position, which is Senator. I know you have your sites set on 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., but right now, your employment address is Capitol Hill and frankly, if you are going to call in "busy" and not even "present," I really don't think you should be drawing your Senator salary. Do you? You're not sick, and clearly you are absent more than you are "present." And oh, by the way, if you do end up with the Oval Office, when the red phone rings, "Present" will not be enough of an answer from our Commander in Chief. Which reminds me, I'd really like to know just a little more about what you really believe and where you really stand. I'm thinking that just might give me a clue as to where you intend to lead us. I'm not trying to get real personal, here, but you do seem to have a difficult time really saying what you mean and standing for specifics, and your wife. Let's just say, she seems aggressive, maybe frustrated. 'Nuff said there. Back to politics. I read briefly about your state Senate service. It seems, as soon as you were re-elected, you began running for another office, but that didn't work out, so you ran again for the state position, then you no sooner had it, you were setting your sites on national. I have to tell you. It really seems like a put on deal. I mean you were not much more famous than I was before the Democratic National Convention in 2004. Let's face facts, everybody can stir up scandal and most everybody has beaten Alan Keyes, who came in very late in the campaign to replace the guy ridden with scandal that was running against you. So your confident victory looks all but choreographed to me and I made that comment in '04 as you were introduced. Granted, G~D has given me the gift of discernment, so maybe everyone hasn't noticed this, but it is clear. You are where you are right now, and it is not simply from being in the right place at the right time with the right answer. I haven't heard any of your answers, but your wife says we all have to work, you are going to make us. Not to nag, but maybe you ought to see what you can do to calm her aggression or ease her frustration.
I am a Libertarian and to be honest I didn't intend to vote for either of you, but your comments regarding the debate and the urgent situation in Washington has certainly elevated John McCain, in my eyes. You should go to Washington for this major economic discussion and at least say "Present."
If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small. a Proverb of Holy Scripture

Coming Attractions . . . but now Our Main Feature

It is so difficult to address just one issue, because so many are being thrown at us on a daily basis. Here I was planning to share my perspective on the latest news from Big Brother, a.k.a. Department of Homeland Security, and I will give just a portion. Here is the link: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,426485,00.html
and here are just a few of the highlights.
It would seem that our DHS has now managed a way to read our thoughts and they are just darned proud of that fact.
Coming soon to an airport near you . . .
I quote from various paragraphs in the article.
MALINTENT, the brainchild of the cutting-edge Human Factors division in Homeland Security's directorate for Science and Technology, searches your body for non-verbal cues that predict whether you mean harm to your fellow passengers. . .
This whole security array — the scanners and screeners who make up the mobile lab — is called "Future Attribute Screening Technology" — or FAST — because it is designed to get passengers through security in two to four minutes, and often faster. . .
If you're rushed or stressed, you may send out signals of anxiety, but FAST isn't fooled. It's already good enough to tell the difference between a harried traveler and a terrorist. Even if you sweat heavily by nature, FAST won't mistake you for a baddie. . .
"If you focus on looking at the person, you don't have to worry about detecting the device itself," said Bob Burns, MALINTENT's project leader.
FAST may also incorporate biological, radiological and explosive detection, but for now the primary focus is on identifying and isolating potential human threats.
And because FAST is a mobile screening laboratory, it could be set up at entrances to stadiums, malls and in airports, making it ever more difficult for terrorists to live and work among us.
Burns noted his team's goal is to "restore a sense of freedom."

Now, that we have this to look forward to, let's address the topic at hand.

The BIG Bail-out!
I don't like to be negative and just say everyone is wrong, without a solution, so here is my idea for handling this huge mess on Wall Street.
First, we are not just going to throw money at it. I started to type "good money after bad" but no standard for our currency isn't "good money" to begin with. Clearly the taxpayers will have to rescue this mess, we always do, but this time, we need to explain. Our money, our rules.
First, everyone will sit down and offer one logical, reasonable change they are willing to make in representing and governing, then . . .
We will bail Wall Street out, but the CEOs are under investigation and either they leave with hat in hand and tail between their legs and NO severance pay for failed leadership or they face criminal fraud charges! That seems pretty simple.
Now, on to Washington. There will be no more blank checks. We taxpayers know we are paying for all this, now we want some evidence of getting what we're paying for.
For every politician that wants to be re-elected or cares at all about their constituents, here's what needs to happen. You know all the gifts and fringe benefits of being representatives and all the lovely gifts from the lobby. Here's the plan. Do their favors, do their bidding, but all the pay-offs come to "we the people." And you know, it just wouldn't hurt for all of Congress to spend one year living like local City Council members, on a modicum of expense vouchers and a complete account of expenditures, if you want reimbursement . . . no automatic salary or expense account. Just for a year, the year of the citizen. Remember, constituents are also called voters and November is just a little over a month away.
That's it! I'm declaring 2009, The Year of the Citizen. Michelle or Sarah, just hold on til 2010, it's our turn first. The Year of the Citizen will involve this. We are no longer leaving our future in the hands of elected officials. All citizens must make one change toward independence and remove themselves from one area of dependence upon their government. Everyone that has a window, needs a window box with something growing in it. Everyone with a yard needs some project in the works. Everyone with a garage needs some project in the making. We have to get back to being a people that are not afraid of a new frontier, or even better get back to a people that made the frontier a wonderful place to live. The handwriting is clearly on the wall. It's time to do something about it.
They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver. . . In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote upon the wall of the king's palace . . . And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; G~d hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. a Prophet of Holy Scripture

What Lack of Experience for Washington?

I think the critics have underestimated Sarah Palin's readiness for Washington. She says she is prepared and ready to serve and I think her resume speaks for itself. Let's talk about her real experience in politics and ability to stand in leadership.
She already knows John McCain is counting on her and he'll do whatever it takes to keep her happy to keep the party rallied with those contributions and votes coming in. That seems like a simple example of "I'll scratch your back, you scratch mine." Clearly preparedness for Capitol Hill.
The town in which she served as mayor, became deeply in debt through her leadership, but they got a great ice hockey rink. I don't even have to draw any parallels to Washington on this example. The girl is a shoo-in. She already thinks like someone with a great deal of power and somebody else's money. Say WASHINGTON!
Next is this famous or now infamous "Troopergate." Although she welcomed the investigation in July, she is now free to not cooperate, as it is now deemed "partisan politics," and her staff and First Dude are free to disregard subpoenas regarding this Troopergate situation. Sounds like she knows when to holler "partisan" and she truly is exhibiting her right as a politician to be above the rules the rest of us have to live under. Sounds like Washington material, to me!
Then there's the "Open Record" rule in Alaska, for official state business to be available to the public. So she runs some state business through a personal yahoo account. I don't know any of the facts, except, her personal account has been hacked and posted. According to investigators, the account contains official State business, so the hacker is now wanted by the FBI. She is SO ready for Washington.
Sarah Palin seems to be the kind of person that receives pity where others are judged, praised where others would be criticized, and applauded where others would be tarred and feathered. If that doesn't scream Washington republican, I don't know what does!
With all the politicians getting caught and resigning in shame the last couple of years. She sounds to me like just the gal to bring reform to Washington. She can go there and teach them how to get away with it, even when they get caught!
That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered. Ecclesiastes of Holy Scripture

My Two Cents Worth . . .

I realize I seem to be stuck on this banking, financial ruin this country is going through, but this morning the news is just "priceless." It hasn't been a month ago that our leader told us we are merely experiencing an economic slowdown, that didn't quite rally as they had hoped with the tax rebate plan. Now, I'm hearing the same old tired mantra from the White House, "if Congress doesn't hurry and act . . ." And oh, the whole world is watching. Well the whole world's been watching this complete farce for the last 7 1/2 years, and six of those years we had a republican Congress that was apparently just twiddling their thumbs or enjoying the wining and dining by corporate lobbyists. I really think our government saw this coming. I saw the real estate bubble ready to burst in 2005 and I'm just a small time minister/writer, hardly Wall Street or Washington material. In seven years, we've nearly doubled the national deficit and those of us that call attention to that fact are being labeled, unpatriotic. I think our government has done two things. I think they have weakened this entire nation and lost our credibility throughout the world. I can't blame all of this on the government. Even American religion has managed to self-sanctify greed.
This time, however; it would be nice if Congress stuck by their guns and didn't just bluster before handing the President another blank check! There is a fundamental flaw with this continual rhetoric of "not allowing these businesses to fail." The fact that the books don't balance and they've lost billions is failure. Even if they receive the billions upon billions over the 1/3 of the tax rebate they've already received, insolvency in banking is failure. Insurance companies that need a loan to keep operating, much less cover claims, is failure. And so our government has rewritten the rules for the last two investment banks. That's right, down to two. Now these two banks can receive deposits . . . Since banking is now a not for profit business, and receiving federal funding, will the deposits be tax deductible?
Our own government is taking us down and they want us to finance the conquest!
Even if the money gets printed and pumped into Wall Street, it's strength and power will not be restored and the government will have the assets held by the companies on Wall Street. If this present insane plan does pass Congress, it's lose/lose/lose for we the people. But hey, they're going to give us 4 shiny new pennies in '09!
Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: New Testament

Dear Mr. President,

Why aren't you listening to the people? I'm not talking about the upper echelon corporates and suits around you, I'm talking about those people that are working every day or trying to, that you are supposed to be governing and more importantly protecting.
I answer questions regarding savings and budgeting. I even answer questions pertaining to self reliance and various rights afforded us here in the US of A. Let me share a basic foundational thought in dealing with budgeting and it applies to monetary sums ranging from 1st grade allowance to the national budget of a world superpower.
YOU CANNOT BORROW YOUR WAY OUT OF DEBT!
It's a simple, yet time honored fact. We are tired of hearing what is made to sound like the facts changing, depending upon the presentation. Some of us know better than that.
I'm sorry some of your friends mismanaged their businesses, but I don't want to bail them out. I don't understand why Wall Street, who is supposed to be handling the money for Main Street, needs to be funded and subsidized by many that can't afford housing on Main Street, much less to play the numbers on Wall Street.
This just isn't right and it doesn't set will. And it really looks bad that even more mess is happening on your watch. I realize your faithful few are still grasping at straws to blame the previous administration. Come on, you know you walked into much less mess in the Oval Office, than your successor will in '09.
You're not a grandpa yet, so you probably can't relate to what I'm about to say, but I'm going to share it anyway. I feel very strongly about leaving a heritage, not a debt. Our generation will not live long enough to even make a dent in the interest that is gathering on the debt you have led our nation into. It's bad enough my grandchildren will be paying for a war that was unprovoked and unnecessary, I hope my grandson is not called upon to fight in it. He's 6 right now, but he wasn't even a year old when you started this war. It's been over 5 years since you said Mission Accomplished, so we just don't know how long this mess will continue, do we? And no offense to all the seniors, but most of them have plenty of money and plenty of health care provided by your revision of MediCare, to live long enough to spend my generation's inheritance. That's fine, but I really do hate the fact that my hard working children are paying into a social security plan that is charted to be bankrupt the year I turn 60, much less for them to ever see any hope of return. Not only do you have family money to enjoy and inherit, you have a Presidential pension for life. Again, Mr. President, I implore of you to think about what you are doing. The more unbacked money you throw at a situation, the less America's assets are worth. And if the money you're throwing around is backed, it's borrowed. Please refer to the capitalized statement above.
I've been to Washington DC and New York City. I have to tell you, much of the rest of the country doesn't choose to live that way, therefore we don't care to finance it and subsidize it. And for those that would like to live extravagantly, they deserve the right to spend their money; I repeat, their money, no one else's.
This country is made up of strong hard working individuals. We've had some of the greatest inventors and entrepreneurs the world has seen in the last couple of centuries, and many of them didn't succeed the first time. We've had Presidents with failed business ventures, I'm sure you are aware, but many of them had nothing to fall back on and no one to bail them. They simply picked themsevles up, dusted themselves off and started again. It's what America plans to do in January of '09.
A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children . . . a Proverb of Holy Scripture

Up in Smoke?

I awoke to more financial woes and unfortunately the promise that our President was looking into this matter. This isn't going to be a lengthy blog going over all the particulars and political elitist's concerns. This is simple and straight to the point. We, average citizens, can't afford our own lives, much less to bail out multi-million and billion dollar corporations in which the CEOs and Board of Directors will maintain their current standard of living. There is no reason to try to keep Wall Street"business as usual" while the rest of us finance their rescue. I keep hearing the term bail out because we can't afford for a particular company to fail. If it needs bailing out or bankruptcy protection, it already has failed. Our President is promising money he doesn't have and his generation, which is also mine, will not live long enough to earn or repay the loan.
If the Federal Reserve truly has the money and they are the financier for the government, why don't they pay down some of the deficit, instead of covering poor decisions made by the greedy and the wealthy?
The "much needed" bail out yesterday was at the top of the news this morning. The government had to bail AIG because the entire world was affected. The entire world was watching what our government would do with AIG and now all eyes are on WA-MU, which I think sounds like something the GOP VP should be hunting next month.
This American administration has already pumped $50 billion into corporate America, with the tax rebate incentive earlier this year and financed Chase to consume Bear-Stearns. Now owns Freddie, Fannie, and the Federal Housing Administration. They've taken just as much real estate from home owners as the original settlers took from the Indians. I never allowed my children to use the "F" word, but I'm thinking Federal is the new "F" word of the 21st Century.
So, as the world watches for the sake of the global economy, I just can't help but think of the apocalyptic passage regarding the demise of the Harlot of Babylon in the Revelation. I think the whole world is watching as we go up in smoke!
For in one hour so great riches is come to nought . . . And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning . . . the Revelation

For a Mere 85 Billion . . .

Our present administration is now bailing out yet another over-extended, short-sighted, greed driven company. I'm still sorting out the facts as to why Fannie and Freddie were bailed when Bear Stearns was allowed to sink, and why AIG is being bailed right after the Lehman Brothers filed bankruptcy. . . and I am trying very hard to not use the term, anti-Semitic. So, I'll move right along here. For a mere 85billion dollars, our government has managed to obtain 79.9% of the assets of a company worth more than a trillion dollars. Wow! You talk about an investment, I'd almost call it a gamble! That got me thinking, however; as to why our government is so far in debt when it's raking in markers like this. The part I just don't understand is this next move to hold an auction for bonds.
So, our government, being what it is, is spending 85 billion dollars of taxpayer's hard earned money to own almost 80% of a trillion dollar company, and I still haven't seen where the taxpayers benefit, but . . . then the federal reserve prints bonds to sell, to restore the reserve, because our government has been bailing ailing corporations out in an "attempt" to save our economy . . . and the taxpayers are supposed to be supportive of this measure, even feel good about the economy. I think not!
If our government can spend 85 billion to hold the assets of a company that is worth over a trillion, why are we in debt? Why is there a deficit, at all? This seems like some pretty savvy business investments. Or does our government only invest in sinking ships that belong to old cronies?
Since our government has shut down loansharking and racketeering, our administration seems to have the exclusive to high interest rates and placing a rock on the assets.
This particular business maneuver seems a lot like walking into Wal-Mart and buying stock with Monopoly money and then telling the greeters and the cashiers, as well as the bakery crew that 80 cents on every dollar will need to be given to ME! What a plan!
YHVH shall open unto thee HIS good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in His season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow. Torah of Holy Scripture

It's Only Money . . .

I remember hearing that saying as a child, but never at home. I awoke this morning to the announcer proclaiming more economic woes for some truly big money American entities. Monday, Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection. This company is 158 years old and was one of Wall Street's giants. This company clearly survived the Civil War and the Great Depression, but was unable to hang on through what the present administration lightly refers to as an "economic slow down!" I don't care what euphemisms someone uses, the facts speak for themselves in this. Merrill Lynch, didn't quite make the century mark, but the 94 year old company sold itself to Bank of America. As a religious fanatic, I've been wondering what financial institution would represent America in the global economy that Bush 41 called the New World Order. I'm not going to prophesy here, as to the potential finality at this time, but Bank of America does seem fairly clear and concise. This morning it's AIG. AIG is hitting all sorts of issues with me for a variety of reasons. Insurance companies that collect premiums for years and then make bad investment decisions don't have enough accountability, but who will hold them accountable? Our government doesn't have enough accountability and our government can't handle money either. And it's one of those acronym names that just screams transparent elusiveness! A company that promises to take care of me from cradle to grave with insurance needs, investments and retirement, but needs a loan to the tune of billions, should be facing some sort of false advertising claims on top of facing some true accountability. I'm tired of these big companies either getting government assistance or hiding behind bankruptcy while the CEO retires with a portfolio worth millions. Why is that all right? Martha went to jail for a questionable stock sale when she owned the stock! What's wrong with this bigger picture?
The feds are going to provide stability by not changing the interest rate, but they may later. If it gets much lower, we're going to have to pay the banks to keep our money!
Of course, this is becoming great fodder for the presidential campaign. None of these candidates have any idea what the American public is going through. And I realize that is a quirk of American politics that's simply a fact of life. No average ordinary person is going to be on a national ticket, so the candidates simply convince those they can, that they are in touch with their concerns. Obama says the economy is a mess. Really? And we all know his solution will be more taxes, mandatory health care, and required volunteerism. Yeah! McCain on the other hand says the economy is fundamentally stable because it is based upon the American worker. The American worker is a dying breed, and dying faster than the social security collectors!
The economy is not stable because it's based on the perpetual motion of paper and that's all. The stocks on Wall Street aren't real businesses any more, they are simply paper changing hands. Mutual funds are an absolute joke by now, and were nothing more than living large before the Great Depression. It was the best way to "invest" without actually owning anything except a piece of paper from a company that kept the investments rotating to never lose money. Mutual funds hit an all time high just a few years before this mess began to spiral down.
Once again what we learn from history is that we don't learn from history.
My recommendation at this point for the economy is to become more ecological and agricultural. If we're going to have an economy based upon the perpetual motion of paper, then let's save some trees and keep the motion seasonal. That way, rather than years of disaster in the making and years more in the attempt to repair, we simply replant every spring!
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; Holy Scripture

I'm Thankful

I'm thankful that there were few fatalities when Ike roared in. I am sorry for the ones that did occur, but I'm truly thankful that there were few. That makes me thankful for answered prayer, as I know I prayed and I'm sure several others did, as well. I'm also thankful for people that are brave enough to tell their government they will "ride it out." After so many years of being told we are supposed to be afraid of everything seen and unseen, I was thankful to read about people that simply said, "If it's my time to go, I'm going and if it isn't, nothing will happen." I'm also very thankful that the weather that was falsely prophesied our direction didn't happen! I'm thankful that September is cool, and I'm thankful for the warnings that there may be an early winter. I'm thankful to still be able to write blogs with my opinion, openly. And I'm thankful for our new webpage for kids. I got in such a dither over Wild Blue, but they are only part of AT&T, so no point in dithering, just throw them some more money and realize two things. The Reagan years caused so much of this, but they are over, and I must be reaching more readers to require more bandwidth, so I'm thankful.
I'm thankful that Sarah Palin is running for VP, not that she has my vote, but I'm thankful for her little baby boy. When Sarah was first "tapped" to be VP, she said something about her husband and a leave of absence from his job to be Mr. Mom. Well, with all the photo ops for the campaign, little Trig is getting to have some quality bonding time with Mom.
And last but certainly not least, I'm thankful that our national elections are finally winding down and either Obama will actually be present for Senate votes or be replaced by someone that will attend. I'm also very thankful that our Presidential elections don't run like the gubernatorial races. In our state, we elect a Governor and a Lt. Governor, separately. I'd say the polls are pretty clear about what would be happening right now, if that were the case. We'd be looking at two clear landslides and bracing ourselves for President Obama and VP Palin. I'm thankful we won't have the two of them at the same time. I think those two on the same side could truly change America and bring reform, but I'm not sure we'd recognize anything when they were done. I'm not happy with a number of decisions being made in America, but I'm truly thankful to know, either way, by November, we'll only have one reformer that's going to run our lives.
That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving . . . a Psalm of Holy Scripture

Out of the Wild Blue . . .

If you are reading this blog, you are probably aware that I write nearly every day. I also host a webpage and I'm working on a couple of books. Imagine my dismay to discover that in trying to upload my webpage and download the latest virus protection, I exceeded my "bandwidth" and due to the Fair Share Policy or whatever it is, I found myself in cyber-exile. That's right, I'm 50, paying $50.00 a month in the middle of nowhere to be connected with the world wide web and Wild Blue grounded me from full privilege access. So, in the time I was grounded from full privilege, I of course ran my bandwidth up worse, ignorantly attempting to upload and download, until I had no choice except . . . Wild Blue has this interesting plan. The days overages roll over every day, so the overage today, automatically sets tomorrow up to be over, and if I stayed off the internet, within 30 days I'd be back down into my "acceptable usage" range, maybe sooner. Well, that didn't even set with me. I thought, well, I might as well just accept the fact I'm going to pay $50.00 for dial up speed and live with it. That's when I discovered, upon my umpteenth call to Wild Blue, that my overages were getting even higher, so here's what I could do. I could upgrade and in paying more, of course, I'd be allotted a greater amount of bandwidth, because we share and to be fair . . . So, then we began to discuss the various plans. My present one, of course, has gone up in price and my contract has ended, so that's good and bad. The good thing is, I'm not stuck paying if I change companies, the bad thing is, I can't go back to that price after I change plans. When I first called and heard that they were part of AT&T, I knew what I was probably in for, and I wasn't wrong. Now, with the first level of upgrade, I'd still be over my 70%, because even though I am supposed to pay 100% of my monthly bill and they advertise so much download and upload speed and space, I'm supposed to keep it under 80% . . . or else. So, in order to get out of cyber-exile, I would need to go to the most expensive plan. I'm sure we are all surprised about that offer, eh? I'm feeling like a big corporate executive or politician tonight though. Here I am back at it, living large and all I had to do was pay my way out of trouble!
The poor useth entreaties; but the rich answereth roughly. a Proverb of Holy Scripture

The Government Has Our Fannie . . .

I was shocked and dismayed and altogether; resigned to the fact that our government has orchestrated the most unusual of rescues. Why, when the American dollar is nothing more than monopoly money, do we need to formalize the nonsense? I can answer that. Because the formalization of such nonsense changes the status of the Deeds. That's right, while the American dollar declines and the American currency is worthless, American real estate, although inflated still has value, and that is the issue. Money is worthless, but; once again, the land is desired. Freddie and Fannie, Mac and Mae . . . are being baled out, not the homeowners, but the fact is, the corporate bail out will reap a benefit. The benefit is the fact that the money being used for the bail out is virtually worthless and losing ground around the world, while the tangible asset being bailed, corporate stock and real estate, has a value on the global economic market! Ultimately in constituent language, that means, the government, once again at the expense of the taxpayers has bailed out the corporation, and in the process become the feudal lord! Does anyone see a double dealing, double speak, problem here? The federal reserve bank is saving us from the mortgage bank! While we are all concerned about our tax dollars used to bail Fannie and Freddie, or being told of the great rescue, the Warranty Deeds of American homes have fallen into the hands of the government!
. . . so the land became Pharaoh's. Torah of Holy Scripture

On a Positive Note

I've been pretty negative as of late, because I'm just disappointed in what we've become. I'm cranky, because I, like so many Americans, have become aggressive about my views and blinded to any others. I think our political system is only as good as the people involved and if this is the best America can do, well then . . . I'm not happy about that. Now I have to sit back, after months of thinking the republicans were trying to throw this election and watching the democrats go from Hillary being a sure thing to Obama, and admit that I just don't have any idea what's coming next.
So I decided I would find something good in each of our national candidates and blog about that.
I think Joe Biden comes across very well. He's the same age as my brother-in-law and he just seems like everybody's favorite uncle. I know he's a career politician that really went through a horrible trauma losing a wife and a daughter in an accident and I'm glad he's not vying for the martyr vote. I think Obama needs his wisdom and experience. Joe Biden seems like the kind of man that would sit down to a horrible meal as a guest and then when asked behind the cook's back would graciously use euphemisms. He wouldn't lie, he'd just say crispy instead of burnt, or unusual instead of awful. He seems like a politician that uses words his listener would prefer, but he doesn't appear to flip-flop.
Barack Obama has been quite a deal! He has campaigned on the promise of running a positive campaign. That in itself is change; not the promise, but a positive campaign. I don't have TV, so I don't know how positive his ads have been, but I've read more about everyone else's negative stuff, than his, so if he's being negative it isn't even headlining at Fox. Absolute KUDOS when he said candidate's kids were off limits. I think, considering the fact the other party is parading all of her family's dirty laundry, shows remarkable self control on his part.
Sarah has totally reformed the connotation of barracuda. She makes that old slang term, indicating treacherous, sound like it should mean something good. She has thrilled the aggressive anti-choice base and is actually causing a few Obamaites to question his promised change. She's doing exactly what she's supposed to be doing as VP, but there was never any doubt that she wouldn't excel! She's smart, she's pretty, and she is the one republican woman that I've heard be so pro-war that is actually glad her son is going to Iraq. Most of the republican women are all about this Iraqi war, but when I ask them if they believe in it enough to want their sons or grandsons in it, they back up quickly. Not Sarah!
John McCain - Brilliant! Who is going to look at this ticket, now, and think of G.W.? Here I thought the republicans were trying to throw this election. And if they are, he's every bit the maverick they say he is, because this VP choice was the most brilliant strategy I've seen in American politics in my lifetime!
Seek good, and not evil . . . a Prophet of Holy Scripture

Pro-Life or Anti-Choice?

Why is it? The people that are pro-life seem to refuse anyone any choices. It's like you cannot disagree with them about anything! I've not had positive commentary on Barack Obama, but I must take this opportunity to mention the fact that he said "Families of candidates are off limits. Children especially, are off limits!" Now, he's not saying anything and Sarah Palin just keeps using her kids for props and calling attention to Bristol's situation. So, the opponent isn't addressing the topic of her kids, but she's going to use them. Oh, well, they're her kids! I'm sure the conservative base will rally around what a great supportive mother she is. Wow! I remember when I was a teenager and my republican parents found out they were going to be grandparents! The republican party has come a long way, one might use the term; progressive! I had watched some women use babies and pregnancy to trap and control a man and I had no intentions of using a baby to trap some guy, so I was by definition, not doing the right thing. I've still not figured out, all these years later, how a shotgun wedding makes atonement for fornication. But then, in reading all the bio and seeing all the pictures, I can now see that some people can use a baby to influence and control, more than just a trapped man, and more than just her own baby! This pro-life candidate now seems to have two babies to work with to garner control, and still come across as a stoic, martyr. She is quite a woman. I see her kids in the pictures and I think of that little handicapped baby. If we saw a little baby being dragged around Wal-Mart at 10:00 at night, we'd comment about what's wrong with the mother's judgment, but this little guy can get dragged through the noisy crowd til almost midnight and that just makes her more beloved.
More in the life of Sarah, and we know just how pro she is on that topic. I read something today that the media is smearing her. You know, TV isn't doing any more against her than talk radio has done against Hillary and Obama. TV wasn't even nice to Hillary. As far as magazines . . . Sarah do your homework before you smile for the camera and give an interview. If the editor is a staunch democrat, what do you expect? Tell your loyal fans to quit sniveling. Do you think Obama would expect a great write up in an NRA magazine? The conservative religious right needs to remember G~D didn't separate life and choice, he put them together! My personal opinion is that Sarah Palin is very pro-life for Sarah Palin, and all those around her, have no choice.
therefore choose life, that both you and your children may live: Torah of Holy Scripture

Balanced Insanity!

Well, the politics are getting interesting, or really I guess, entertaining; is a much better word. Unfortunately, it is real people involved and they are living real lives with no commercial breaks from their sponsors. I'm going to leave the children out of this because I just think the Palin kids have enough to deal with from their Pro-Life mom, who seems to sacrifice them when convenient and uses them as props for photo-ops. I'm going to address the things I've noticed on both tickets. First, let's consider the fact that when given a choice in the party, the country doesn't want either Biden or McCain. So we have two old political warhorses that nobody wants in the White House, if we have our "druthers." Next we have two relatively obscure newcomers, each bringing their own special tokenness to this political hoopti-la. If we look to the left, we will see that we have a freshman Senator that just happens to be a black man, that comes across as some sort of rockstar messiah, married to a very outspoken strong wife who happens to be quite connected in the corporate world, on leave of absence to campaign for her man. And now, if you'll move your view to the right, we find that we have a woman governor in the Yukon, that's been in local politics for nearly 20 years, with a son on his way to Iraq, a brand new baby, and a grandbaby on the way. And if that weren't enough, you talk about a strong woman, she hunts caribou. Her husband is supposed to be a union man, who is also on an extended leave of absence, to be Mr. Mom, so she can campaign for VP and maintain the highest executive office in the largest state in the union.
One of the great points in this balance of insanity seems to be the fact that most people who are discussing their choice of candidates have primarily based their decision, not on the best candidate, but against who they perceive to be the worst. So, the choice appears to be truly balanced. Rockstar-siah with Old guy or Old guy with Wonder woman . . .
Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: a Proverb of Holy Scripture