In the Good Old Days

There's a reason that people called them the roaring twenties. They were too drunk to see the bad old thirties coming. I don't know how we're going to refer to the nineties, but most people were too high to see the current decade coming. George W. Bush said in the liked article that he didn't want to be seen as another Herbert Hoover. I can guarantee that nobody will. Herbert Hoover was a brilliant economist who had served as Secretary of the Treasury. George W. Bush was elected Governor of Texas because his dad had been president once.

Skip ahead to their reactions to crisis. When the stock market fell to hell on Black Tuesday, Herbert Hoover said that the economy would correct itself and wanted to let the free market do its thing. When George W. Bush saw the stock market implode after September 11, 2001, he sent troops without going to war. If he would have gone to war he could have mobilized the entire economy towards the war effort like every other president has in war time so that the economy would improve during the fighting, but Georgey wouldn't know that because he's dumb. Then, seven years later, when the economy had gotten even worse, he decided to print $700 billion dollars and give it away because he doesn't know how inflation, exchange rates, or the basic principles of supply and demand work.

George W. Bush would be lucky to be remembered even close to Herbert Hoover because most people credit Herbert Hoover with getting stuck in the wrong place at the wrong time. George is just stupid.

Silence is golden

Okay guys. I know I have been away for a bit. I am coming back with a very important bang. Today I want you all to realize that whether you like it or not, the government works against you by default. I am not going to rant or put out a diatribe. I only want you to watch this and also watch the less interesting part 2. This video could possibly save your freedom or at least thousands in fines. So I wont say anything else but PLEASE WATCH THIS. Thank You.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4097602514885833865

Who Plays What?

Condaleeza Rice gave a piano recital for the Queen of England.  Did you know she could play?  I didn't.  I think it's pretty cool.  She played Brahms Op. 34.  I didn't know what it sounded like so I am posting the video so you can listen to the third movement if you don't know it and would like to hear what she played.

Look Who's Talking

 When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as  Europe . 

 The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not. 

 It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world. 

  I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.

 My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government. 

 No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms. 

 The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government. 

The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.

 To compel a man to subsidize with his taxes the propagation of ideas which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical.

'I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered..'

I received an email with the above-listed quotes.  I thought about using them in different blogs, but then I thought, "Why not just post them?"  Here is the game.  Guess who said them.  You have heard similar sayings out of many, including both of the authors of this blog.  You might be surprised who said these things.  The answer will be posted on Tuesday, December 9th.

Nuclear Winter?

Tensions are rising between India and Pakistan. Russia is sending envoys to Cuba and Venezuela. Iran has been reported to have enough enriched uranium for one nuclear weapon. China is still engaged in sovereignty struggles with Taiwan and Tibet. I don't know if you guys have heard of this little country called Israel, but they aren't doing too well internationally either.

Now North Korea is saying that they are going to turn their nuclear reactor back on. Experts agree that the main purpose for this maneuver is to try and show the United States that they won't be pushed around by any one country. Pyongyang wants to maintain the six country talks but not submit to unilateral pressure. That makes complete sense. We, most of all, should understand this. While we won't bend to the desires of Russia or Iran, we will listen to NATO or the UN. Nobody wants to be bullied.

It makes sense for us to be worried about any other nation to gain nuclear armaments. It also makes sense for other nations to be wary of our current ownership of such. What right do we have to be the sole owner of these weapons? Who gave us permission? Did we ask? Do we have to? The answers are none, nobody, no, and no. The answers for any current non-nuclear nation is sovereignty, nobody, no, and no. If a sovereign nation wants to make nuclear weapons than they can, because they are sovereign. Look up the word and realize that that means the United States cannot dictate terms to anyone else.

Notice also that North Korea is perfectly willing to do without American aid and doesn't mind being on the blacklist of terror-supporting nations. They don't need our help and don't recognize our list as anything with power. Good for them. Maybe if more countries acted this way we would stop being imperialist. I have a feeling that this won't be the last we hear about nuclear weapons because of the first pararaph of this blog. Get settled in for a long nuclear winter.

Aw, Cheese and Rice

Libertyhound has been making fun of my accent lately, and rather than saying Jesus Christ, some people say Cheese and Rice since it sounds similar. You kind of had to be there, but I laughed.

Anyway... back to the news. Apparently it is in the Kentucky Department of Homeland Security charter that they have to officially thank God for his help in maintaining the security of the Commonwealth. I have a few questions. Whose God? Even after you pick a religion, there are several different interpretations of the deity in each. So after whose god, which of their gods? Let's just go with the Christian Southern Baptist Male Father God. If the government thanks Him for His divine intervention, does that mean that the government is both supporting the belief in and invoking the name of one deity of another? I'll make it easy, yes. That breaks with the founding fathers' desire to prevent state-sponsored religion.

This country wasn't started by a bunch of Christians who wanted to get away. That's what started the colonies, sure, but they were British Christians. When we became Americans we wanted to prevent another Anglican Church and therefore allowed citizens to practice if and how they wanted and also kept it out of the government. Money says, "In God We Trust" because many of the founding fathers were deists who believed in the existence of a supreme power, but didn't label it or persecute others.

Sorry, I got off on a tangent. It comes from my actual study of American history. It is not for the government to pray for the protection of any deity. Members of the government are free to do as they please and religious organizations are formed for that very purpose. God and government do not go together like peanut butter and chocolate. God, I mean any non-specific deity, is good and government, I mean any non-specific ruling body, is not. Worshipers of gods may not be good and members of governments may be good, but that is a reflection of the duality in humanity not the nature of the groups they are in. Basically, keep your god out of my government and I'll keep my government out of your god. That's how Thomas Jefferson and a few others wanted it anyway.

Russo Sino Presto Chango

This guy in Taiwan is upset because the US is inconsistent of its treatment of Georgia with regards to Russia and its treatment of Taiwan with regards to China. I think I'm going to have to outline my personal feelings on our foreign policy if I haven't already: we shouldn't have one. I don't really want to go into it because it's pretty simple. Question 1: does the proposed policy deal with our nation or a different nation? If yes, perfect it and implement it. If no, burn the paper and fire the author.

The farthest we should go when it comes to international policy is maintaining membership in the UN to make sure that our domestic policies are protected. The Monroe Doctrine, Roosevelt Corollary, Truman Doctrine, Bush Doctrine, and our membership in NATO should be discontinued. Libertyhound does not agree with UN membership, but I think that we should support a global government (hence the moniker Leviathan, it was a book). I realize that sometimes this country doesn't treat other countries fairly or properly and there should be someone to, at the very least, slap our wrist to let us know we did wrong. Please refer to the last blog I wrote about how the World Court should shine an eye on us also.

We should treat Russia, China, Georgia, Taiwan, and any other country the same: leave them alone. If Teddy Roosevelt did one thing right, it was Big Stick Diplomacy. We should let everyone know that we are powerful enough not to be messed with, but not actually hit anybody with our stick. Sticks break, wars last longer than they are supposed to, and WMDs disappear.

The Politics of Justice?

Shouldn't our politics take into consideration everyone else as well? Sorry, I like puns. The article comes out of Egypt's equivalent to TIME magazine. It discusses why some criminals on the international stage are dealt with more severely than others.

The International Criminal Court shouldn't be concerned with the politics of nations. However, realizing that no system can ever be implemented perfectly, I'm not going to go into that argument. I also recognize that the ICC is a part of the World Court, which is a subsection of the UN, and therefore any of its actions can greatly impact the dealings of any of the member nations of the UN. The World Court has to be even more careful not to come to a quick judgment than the US Supreme Court. I think that the ICC needs to follow some advice I got when I was running for office: Either be completely clean or completely dirty.

What I mean by that is that the court can go one of two ways. If the court wants to make sure that no decision it makes ever disturbs any nation's political institutions ever, then that's fine, it can make nominal convictions and nobody will ever really care about the international court. If the court wants to make convictions of real meaning so that even governments know hat nobody is above the rule of law and that justice is universal, then they will have to start muddying the water a little bit.

The author of this article mentions George W. Bush a little bit. The court is well within its charter to investigate whether or not the United States government acted legally and if not prosecute it. They should also look into whether or not Putin and the Russian government and Saakashvili and the Georgian government acted legally last August. How about the civil wing of the World Court look into international corporation tactics and see if they are acting legally also. Just some ideas. But this line of action would piss off a lot of people and upset a lot of current political and business practices.

I guess the title should have been politics or justice...

Get 'em While You Can

With the Obama presidency only 64 days away its time to stock up on all the guns you can. Gun sales are at an all time high in this country in preparation for the coming growth of government control over gun rights. President-elect Barry has stated many times his feelings on gun rights. He supported gun bans in Chicago, Detroit, and DC which still have the highest murder rates in the country. According to the NRA, "Since D.C. imposed its 1976 laws, it has earned the unfortunate distinction, “murder capital of the United States.” D.C.’s murder rate had been declining before 1976, but it increased thereafter. Between 1976-1991, it rose 200%, while the U.S. murder rate rose only 9%. (FBI, D.C. Police)" The DC gun ban was ruled unconstitutional on March 9th, 2007, so it had to be changed. The current law is still a de facto ban which makes it nearly impossible to own a gun. There is plenty of info out there about this new ban so i wont post any particular link. Some of the problems are that the "Gun Free Zones" take up a large portion of the city. The law was specifically worded to make carry nearly impossible but if you can get a license, you can own a gun in your home. In a city where even the postal workers are armed, I would want to carry mine. Also any bottom loaded gun (which is most modern handguns) are considered machine guns and may not be owned.

Here is a thought. ANY GUN BAN IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL. I believe in militias, armed citizens, and guns for everybody. Most of these laws are no longer even argued as being for crime reduction because there is a complete lack of evidence. Violent crime goes up when gun laws go into place. Obama and his socialist friend Nancy Pelosi will quickly push for gun restrictions that ban certain types of guns. Most of the differences in "assault rifles" and hunting rifles are cosmetic. These bans do nothing but raise gun prices, which leads to more crime, and it makes it harder for honest citizens to protect themselves. Everyone go out and buy an AK-47, blast out a few rounds at the range, then shoot any hunting rifle off the Wal-Mart shelf and tell me there is a huge difference. We all must start the work now of protecting our rights. Freedom is a constant battle against those who would take it away. unfortunately that is the federal government in this country. If you want to read a bit more about gun rights read this.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul211.html

Coup Ne Pas

The United States has one government and only one president at a time.

With that President-elect Obama let the press know that even though he was elected on a basically anti-Bush platform, he respects the administration and does not intend to try to do anything presidential until he is actually president.

The speech was decent, but I thought the question and answer segment was the most interesting part of the article.

I am gunna get married and become a Christian

I saw the recent post about the pastor telling the women to have more sex and it reminded me of this wonderful gem of religion on the internet. I think the Leviathan needs to hook up with one of these girls. If he can stay of church long enough to get it on.

http://christiannymphos.org

Wood Not Linked to Fire

Oxygen and Heat also among the list of possible suspects, though local authorities are not going to say who is at the top of the list. This coming just days after Gas was fined for contempt of court for its inflammatory attitude.

This blog is a joke, but the title is the actual title of the news article out of Australia; it's linked, read it and see.

A Good Example

Here's an example of how the free market works. The Nintendo DS is not a new system. It's not even really the best handheld out there. Now the DS is coming out with new games that are focusing on trying to help people improve themselves. The game specifically mentioned in the article is My Stop Smoking Coach. A game that helps people quit smoking. Did the government tell Nintendo to do this? No. Was there a voter referendum saying that games are too pro-smoking and that a non-smoking alternative needs to be marketed? No. A private business realized that it had the potential to both help people and make money. Welcome to the invisible hand, ladies and gentleman.

Sex for Jesus

More sex is one of the best things you can do for your kids. That's what the minister of this megachurch is going to say on Sunday. I can't say I agree with his logic, but whatever. I don't know if I'm comfortable with ministers telling their congregations to get busy, but whatever. Makes me almost want to get married and move to Dallas...

Slipping into Socialism

First off, lets get one thing out there. The American people have developed this attitude that when a problem arises it is the job of the federal government to fix it immediatly. This philosophy of the cult of the omnipotent state has permeated the electorate of this nation like a plague. There was a time when this nation's policy was based on simple foundations like liberty. Now, we have moved into a method of reaction. The faith in liberty which once kept us calm in times of crisis now had been replaced by an panic and outcry to the government to fix everything for us. We beg Uncle Sam to save us from ourselves by making drugs illegal, stoppping us from smoking, and forcing us to wear our seatbelts. It is this kind of regulation in business, economy, and our personal lives that has created many of this nation's problems that we are now crying out to the government to fix for us. It seems odd to me that if a person takes their car to a mechanic over and over and the car keeps getting worse they take it to another garage, but when the government keeps dropping the ball we go right back to have them fix the problems they casued. The recent economic crisis caused by the FEDs dramatic slashing of interest rates, the debasing of the dollar, and the government proping up Freddie and Fannie for years has been "solved" by the creation of TARP. The Troubles Assets Relief Program gives Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson far more power then he was ever intended to have. Congress appropriated 700 billion dollars for this program to bail out troubled lending institutions. This program was created under the guise that the money would be used to buy up defalted mortgages. Now, Paulson says this money will be used to buy massive amounts of stock in failing companies to flood them with money. This, in effect, will make the federal government part owner of all the countries major lending institutions. There are problems with this.

As you will all learn of me, I believe in principles. There is a word for the Government owning business. That word is Socialism. Is our political memory so short that we do not remember the years our young men died fighting socialism and communism? Now we beg the government to take ove the education of our children, our medical care, our economy, and our lending institutions. Now, Dems are begging for money to bail out the auto industry! Does no one care that this is YOUR MONEY? Does no one care that a once free nation is plummeting into socialism. This nation was once the most prosperous on the planet. We became the premier superpower on this planet under the protective umbrella of liberty and a free market. Now, our freedoms are dissolved to nothing and the market is anything but free. If a business takes part in bad business practices they should fail and make way for those who have dedicated their lives and money to good business practices. When we bail out the businesses that are in trouble because of bad business practice we perpetuate these bad business practices. The government is here to protect the people. Not to give out guarentees. Freedom gives you a chance, not a guarentee. Okay, so we raised FDIC by more than double. Great! Inflation had made the $100,000 protection chump change. We cannot sit out a abide by the federal governmetn giving out billions of dillars of OUR MONEY.  We cannot abide by this nation, that was once free and prosperous, slipping into the failed system of socialism. We must begin to not only ask the question what should the government do, but we must ask should the government do anything? Markets peak and valley. It is just the way it is. When the federal government tries to control a force of nature, like an economy, the peaks and valleys only get bigger. Sorry AIG, you made your bed, and its bed time for you.   

Oceans of Eleven

On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month 90 years ago, leaders of the world joined together in Paris to sign peace agreements ending the "war to end all wars." Wilson rode victoriously into Paris even though we really didn't show up until the end of the war and his attempt to have big government reign over the whole world has led to this country's current predicament. If you wish to hear people whine about US imperialism, ask Libertyhound or a million other bloggers. Back to what I was talking about. Regardless of politics or ideology, veterans are this country's second greatest resource after children. if we could get veterans to teach children lessons of service, duty, and pride who knows what could happen? I digress. If you know any veterans, please try to let them know how much you appreciate their sacrifice. My grandfather served in WWII, many of my friends have served in Iraq, and a lot of my new political contemporaries (old people) have served in Korea and Vietnam. I am pleased by how big of a turnout we had this election cycle. Many have died and struggled so that we can have the right to take power through election, and we at least owe them to use it. Please remember the 11th of November and all of our veterans.

New Writer

I hope you all enjoy the newest member of my writing team. I am changing the format of my blog slightly with this move. It is going to be, basically, a political blog. Libertyhound, who will have to reveal his own name if he wants it known, is a very good friend of mine who is strongly Libertarian and feels strongly about his views. While I don't agree with him on everything, I think his views are valid and should be heard. In Time I will try to find other writers who have other points of view so that you all can hear as many different viewpoints as possible.

I will continue to write mainly about news articles that I read, and if any of you want to get a copy of my subscription list, just ask for it. I will also continue to share articles that I think are worth reading but not really needing of comment. I'm hoping that this change won't alienate my current readers, but rather increase the reader base and improve the political conversation in our country.

7 Steps To a Better America

Over the last 232 years this nation has taken a tremendous turn. We were once a nation of ideals and personal responsibility. Freedom was the word on the lips of every citizen and liberty was the ultimate value. Now, with every passing day, we turn away from those ideals and values. We are a nation who exists only to fear, obey, and consume. The catalyst for our war for independence was essentially a 3% tax on paper goods. Now, we never even see nearly 33% of the money we earn. On top of this everything from gas to death is taxed. With our citizens being choked to death by taxes, we are still nearly 11 TRILLION dollars in debt. Our extravagant spending habits must be curtailed. We MUST get this nation back on track before we are completely owned by the Chinese. We are basically slaves for 4 months of the year to pay the bill to oppress Arabs, limit freedoms here in the US, and give your money to those who are in their 4th generation of people who have never worked.
In order to get our nation back on track there are sacrifices that must be made. ONE OF THEM IS NOT FREEDOM. If we make these changes we will see more prosperity and security than can ever be desired. WE MUST:

1. End the income tax. We must end slavery in America and choke out the spending power of the federal government.

2. Bring home our troops. Not only from Iraq, Iran and Syria but from all the 130 nations where they are currently exploited.

3. End the war on drugs. WHY THE HELL ARE THERE PEOPLE IN JAIL FOR SMOKING POT?!?! In order to be free people we must own our own bodies. I have to have the ability to abuse and poison my body to be free. Government intervention in this issue does nothing but take away your freedom and exacerbate the drug problem.

4. End social welfare. Jesus died for preaching that we should love and help each other, especially the poor. Now, we have given that responsibility away to the government and they are doing a terrible job. Welfare programs do nothing but breed crime and ignorance. If kids are working they aren't joining gangs.

5. We must never again interfere in other nations' issues. When we give large amounts of military and economic aid to other nations we hurt them far more help them. We destroy their economies and enter into entangling alliances that have never worked for us in the past.

6. We must end fiat money. We need commodity based currency so that we aren't destroyed by inflation. Currently the dollar trades internationally at record lows. This raises the price of all imported goods. Currently gas prices are so high because we have oil barons running the country and it takes far more dollars to pay the same cost internationally. If the value of the dollar is high it takes less dollars to buy oil from foreign countries and the price domestically drops.

7. Stop Public Education. When schools have to compete, educational values go up. Since the federal government put its filthy hands in the education of our children, The quality of education in this country has dropped significantly. Those who make it to college these days will see that people are functionally illiterate at best. Public education is no longer about educating the children and has become about teaching a test and portfolio so that schools can get a bigger budget and more sports arenas.

WE THE PEOPLE must stand united to fight the eternal fight for freedom. Prosperity will follow as a natural effect of liberty. Look at history. When we traded freely with all nations and kept our military here for defense our nation became a superpower. Now that the government has its hand in every aspect of society, we cannot even pay our bills and we have great enemies that threaten us at every turn. It would be great if government could make everything perfect, but we all know this isn't the case. We must take care of our own to keep Uncle Sam out of our lives and pockets.

Somebody Call Christopher Walken

Because I really need to hear him say, "Wow!" American Express wants to become a bank. I guess next week when Bush has to ask for the last $350 billion of the TARP funding American Express is going to ask for their cut. Wow! Someone over at American Express was actually thinking.

Irony Anyone?

The linked blog is titled 'Could AIG Kill GM?' How ironic would that be? An auto insurance companytaking all of the money necessary for the survival of an auto maker. I think if more cars were made the price would drop and then more people could afford cars and then the new car owners would have to buy car insurance. But for that effect to happen AIG would have to be contented to wait for up to a cuple of years for that kind of cause and effect to come through. In the world of quarter to quarter profits has anyone thought about what is best for their customers, or even the long-term survival of their company?

Racial Junction

Conjunction: a word that connects a racist attack and Barack Obama.

I think the guy has a good point but I don't really like how he says it. I do like that one line though. Classic.

Three Months?

Three months? Dude rapes his 14-year-old step-daughter and he only gets three months? Then his lawyer says the ruling is too harsh? You have got to be kidding me. I normally don't look at this news, but come on... seriously. Three years might not be enough. If I would have had consensual sex with that girl I would have gotten more than three months. I was only 20 at the time.

Slow Your Roll

The writer of this opinion needs to slow his roll. He's telling Obama to increase the size of the government and get really progressive. There's a difference between progressive and big government. This other article makes an argument that conservative isn't just the Religious Right. Same principle, other side. There are ways to make the society more progressive and socially liberal minded without increasing taxes or spending or regulation. Now that we are starting to see the major differences in party membership it is especially important for people of our generation to buck off the two-party trend of our ancestry and start fresh. There should be at least five major national parties (I'll even keep some of the common names): Democrats- big government, socially liberal; Republicans- big government, socially conservative; Libertarians- small government, socially liberal; Conservatives- small government, socially conservative; and Centrists- do I need to explain? There are a lot of people who don't really care about politics that would do well to vote for Centrist Party members. Heck, they might even have a majority in Congress. It might help avoid the dramatic swing of the two parties.

By having those five basic parties people can become more closely aligned to other members of their party. Right now I am a registered Democrat and I am grouped in with a lot of big governmment nuts. (You're not really nuts) I would convert to the Libertarian Party but third party members don't get elected right now. I think the United States and Britain are the only democracies in the world with two parties. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Knock It Out

This video is only really appropriate for 18-25 year old males. Anyone else can watch it, but don't say I didn't warn you...

An Answer to the Call

Nancy Gibbs wrote this article.

Fareed Zakaria wrote this one.

Please read them both, they don't really need a comment from me. In the new light of my recent election loss, I would like to say that I intend to do as Obama has asked me and everyone else to do. I am going to continue to try to make change and help others and make a better place for those that are coming after me. Just because I am not one of the people in official power doesn't meant that I am not a person in actual power. I have gotten the attention of the Pikeville establishment and I have 664 people who think that I know what I'm talking about. It all starts in the cities and moves up to the nation and I will do my part to help. Will you?

An Exception

I don't normally like to comment on other people's opinions, but I had to this time. Please read the article, it's really short.

There.

How dumb is this lady? Hillary Clinton is more qualified than any Bush Secretary except Condaleeza Rice and is more than capable of taking any cabinet post except Secretary of Defense (in my opinion).

Secretary of Health and Human Services... does anyone remember that whole healthcare plan that everyone loved Hillary for.

Secretary of State... she does know a lot of foreign heads of state and she was hanging around her husband an awful lot on those overseas trips.

Secretary of Education... who doesn't like helping kids learn how to read good. Even if the building is barely big enough for ants. Thanks, Derek.

Those are the three I think she'd be really good at, but she certainly has the intelligence and ability to be able to give Barack good advice in any of the others. A cabinet post is always better than a cupboard stub.

Election Blues

Hey everyone. I'm glad that Barack Obama won and sad that Bruce Lunsford lost. In other news... the terrorists haven't invaded yet. I lost. Big. I had 664 votes and the other 4 had a mean of 1500 each. It really didn't help that I was fifth on the ballot of a pick 4 vote. Meh. I had a lot of fun doing this. I can't believe I actually go that many votes. Nor can anyone else. Thanks to all my supporters and congratulations to the victors. See you again in two years :P I guess I'll have time to blog again.

Plagued by Whiners

Blizzard put out another plague in their game World of Warcraft. Read the article to find out what the plague did, I don't really care. A lot of players got upset that their characters were dying and started complaining that they thought it was unfair. Poor babies. Why play a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game if not to see interesting changes with a large environment. You don't see rpg players sending square enix nasty letters because they just got hit with a silent spell and they thought it wasn't cool. Waah.

The Tao of Toctrine

I also could have called this the Dao of Doctrine, but it's not as much fun. So there is a Russian Orthodox Church in Cuba now. Hugo Chavez is having serious talks with the Russians for military support. I am sure that Monroe and Roosevelt are rolling over in their graves. I guess that was bound to happen though. When a person oversteps his bounds and starts telling other people how to live he is sure to find many disobey. That is the way of things.

Class Tech?

Oh sweet lord. Somebody get my protesting kit. Another teacher is trying to use technology in the classroom. This totally goes against my 29th Amendment right to not have my children influenced by the tools of the evil one... doesn't it?

They're People... and They Have No Homes

The title is the last part of one of my favorite lines in the movie Dirty Work. I can't believe it has been almost three weeks since I've blogged. Just to let you know what has been going on: I stopped hanging out at my wifi spot as much and started 'working' at a gym. I sat around all day to make sure the doors stayed open and nobody stole stuff. I've been working hard on this election and I'm feeling really confident that I'm going to do well. No matter how it turns out it has been a positive experience and I'm glad I have tried. Ok, now that we've caught up- on to the news.

The Georgia Supreme Court has said that part of the sex offender law that says that sex offenders have to register their address is unconstitutional because it is unfar to homeless people. Apparently, sex offenders started becoming homeless and since they didn't have a home to register they were getting arrested for breaking the sex offender law. I'm glad someone is making sure that all Americans' (except the fur-ih-ners) rights are being protected.

This brings me to my favorite line from Dirty Work: You know how I feel about the homeless, they're people and they have no homes.

When Unstable Markets Meet Unstable Nukes

Someone on the staff at Newsweek has been trying to let people know about Pakistan. The linked article is the most recent in a string of stories that claim that Pakistan is the most dangerous country in the Middle East, and rightly so. It's even worse now that the global economy has done this...



I'm not even really going to try to go into great detail about their problems, I'm just going to try to list them. The Taliban is gathering increasing strength in the northern hills. India just signed a nuclear trade deal with us, which puts two enemies on the United States' ally table. Pakistan's relations with us are becoming more and more strained. The last president was kicked out and the newest one is the widower of the assassinated lead candidate. The United States is continually invading their territory to hunt down terrorists. Now there is no money. Power outages are wide spread. Why do they scare me more than Iran, Syria, North Korea (not Middle Eastern but scary anyway), Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, the other Stans? Because they have nukes. Not in the way that Iran almost might have the technology to start thinking about nukes. They have nukes, in the current sense. They have a new government that is on very thin ice. Not in the way that Kim Jong Il is crazy and we don't know how to deal with him. There is no way of knowing if their government will exist in a year, in the junta sense. I am far more frightened of practiced terrorists getting their hands on nuclear weaponry in Pakistan than I am with any other situation in the Middle East. I'll bet India and Afghanistan and Saudia Arabia are too.

What is It Good For?

War? Huh? Yeah... we still aren't fighting a war. Congress is the only body with the power to declare war and they haven't done it yet. So the Bush Doctrine, as described in the linked article, is neither preemptive not preventative war: it it preventative military action. I know it doesn't seem like much of a difference and in a culture earlier described as lacking in the ability to maintain focus saying preemptive war seems easier it is still incorrect. Otherwise I agree completely with this guy's opinion.

No Company Left Behind

The newest attempt of the Bush administration to make sure that nobody feels like they are any less important than anyone else is the economic bailout. We cannot allow any student to fail because that would lower their self-esteem and make them feel like they aren't as much of a person as the one who passed. Now we cannot allow companies to fail because then the free market that we set up wouldn't be able to correct itself. Sorry Lehman Brothers, you guys flunked out before we were able to pass this landmark legislation. We are setting up a very dangerous precedent. What will stop a restaurant from asking for federal money when they start to go under. What makes the any less deserving of the money than AIG? That's the problem with federal money and federal legislation: it has to be fair for all, not the liked. An individual company can choose to loan out money to whomever they want because it's their money. But the government is not private, it's public. I wish I would have been able to vote for something this large. I also wish that we were allowed to vote on a lot of things. So much for democracy. I guess I, along with Washington, missed that day of class and was passed through to keep up federal funding.

Bad Economy

The Dow just lost more points this week than in any other week in history. The economy is falling down around us and I guess that makes Ron Paul a bit like Chicken Little. In fact, we are so poor (How poor are we?) that we are even becoming unable to pay attention. I liked the pun there, I hope you did too. The linked article is a couple months old and it describes how the internet is destroying our ability to pay attention because we skim everything. I am just as guilty of this as everyone else. Probably more. I 'read' 130 newspapers a day. I don't actually sit down with a massive stack of paper and go page by page. Instead I check my RSS reader and scroll through headlines trying to find articles that interest me enough to read. I don't remember the last book that I read from cover to cover. I have seven books with marks in them right now because I have to read each of them one chapter at a time and switch to a different book to keep my mind engaged. Fortunately I am still able to watch an entire feature-length film; but that's not exactly exemplary is it? Do any of you actually read the full article I link to? Or do you just read my opinion about the article? This hit me recently when I was talking to someone about news. If you watch CNN you do get a lot of news, but 24 hours is a long time. After a while they stop giving news and start giving opinion. Opinion is not news. I am not a journalist I am a blogger.

I have asked people to pay attention to something for even a sentence before and that much concentration was painful. To think about trying to maintain a single stream of conciousness for a couple hours is almost beyond society's grasp. Can we stop this? Sure, we could. Will we? I don't know, what's on another channel?

Photosynthetic Oil

I love the Taipei Times. They have a lot of really good research and commentary in it. The title article discusses a possible alternative fuel: algae. I don't even care if it works or not, it's good tom know that there are people out there thinking about this stuff. Developing nations are displeased with corn- and wheat-based biofuels because they drive up the cost of food. Most people are still afraid of nuclear energy. West Texans think wind towers are ugly. I just hope the algae aren't stinky otherwise we'll never find another fuel source.

Dirty Money

Massachusetts recently got some figures on how much money the state could make from allowing homosexual marriages. From hotels to restaurants to chapel rentals the income would be phenomenal. Who would have thought that allowing people to do what they want to do would make a lot of money? I know it's "icky" to think about members of the same gender being with each other, I disagree but who listens to me, but that's not really the issue at heart here. Government shouldn't issue marriage licenses, I think I've mentioned this once or twice before. It is not the government's place to interfere with a sanctified union between a man and a woman, if that is your personal belief on the matter. Likewise, the church should not tell the government who is and is not allowed to have visitation rights. Government is not supposed to be moral and church is not supposed to be egalitarian. Who was that guy that talked about this... hmmm... Oh yeah, Thomas Jefferson, one of those pilgrims who founded this country on Christian morals and values. I had forgotten.

Snack-tastic!

Parental advisory: bad language in the provided link. Once you've read the comic, go to Gamer Grub's website and click on the different varieties of the snack. It's trail mix!!! It's nothing new. It is just a different packaging for trail mix for people who don't walk on trails. They are missing the point of gamer snacking. That's why many nerds are starting to become more fit. With the rise of pc gaming (I mean mmorpg's that involve the entire keyboard) we are seeing fewer gamers who train themselves to eat and play at the same time. When I was a growing gamer, I would have a box of Cheez-its in one hand and a two liter of Mountain Dew in the other and I would proudly do my best to munch down a few carbs during a save point. I would slurp a few gulps of nectar while the announcer would count down time before the fight started. It used to be a conversation piece to describe to other nerds just how much you could do while you gamed. Even when I played an MMO, I maintained my eating regimen. Sure my keyboard got crumbs in it, that 's why they make keyboard cleaners. I'm not asking for anything much, really. I know that the business industry is trying to get as much money as they can out of nerds. Kudos to them. Unfortunately, new packaging means higher costs and nerds spend more on games than on snacks. Sorry old white guys who know nothing about gaming. We need the old nerds to teach young nerds how to effectively game and bring back the full box of Cheez-its and two liter of Mountain Dew. We need to stand up for ourselves and not be pandered to. We need to... man I'm tired, anybody got some Gamer Grub?


Tee hee! Seriously though, jerks, leave me alone. I snack just fine.

Why Can't I get Paternity Leave?

Sorry it took me so long to get to this article, dated July 14, but I've been a little busy running for office and all. All excuses aside, I have been thinking about this issue a lot now that Sarah Palin is running for Vice President. The article discusses how many of the benefits for women in Britain, such as a full paid year maternity leave, is now becoming more of a bust for women than a boon. My mother was off work for six weeks if I remember correctly when she had me. Our family happened to be in the position where Dad's job allowed him to spend more time at home. This raises my title question: why can't men get paternity leave? If a woman wants to go back to work the father should be allowed to get paid time off of work to raise the baby. Especially in an era where evidence is showing that fatherly presence is both lacking and of growing importance, this policy seems to allow the best of both worlds. Otherwise women, who have fought hard for these benefits, will find themselves jobless until 40.

If I recall correctly the purpose of the women's rights movement was equal treatment. Well, I'd like to be treated equally sometimes, too.

And the Fight Was On...

I don't think these guys have any idea what debating is. They keep talking to the moderator. The keep talking to the camera. What happened to a good old-fashioned fight? If I was one of those guys, I would call him out on every incorrect statement he puts out. How come Barack Obama doesn't bring up the $10 billion in spending every month in Iraq? 18 Billion in a year or in three years is nothing compared to the defense budget. This might be why they don't let me debate...

Kudos

Kudos indeed to Brian Green who blogged about this video and having watched it I am now also blogging about it. Watch the video and enjoy.

Mah-wedge

Anywho, back to the news. A bishop said that people shouldn't get married in churches until after hey have the civil ceremony to take care of the legal business. I agree because I think that there needs to be a strong separation of church and state. I fully intend to be married in a church, but if I have to go to the courthouse first, that's fine with me. Two benefits: the government won't be considering a constitutional amendment limiting the pursuit of happiness and churches won't have anything to do with legally binding contracts. Just a thought.

Do You Know Jack?

The link goes to a quiz on American history. I got a 76.67%. Please take the quiz and post a comment with your score in it. I think schools need to do more to focus on history. When I was in school I didn't pay very much attention, hence the 76... While I recognize that the last statement would tend towards someone telling me that I should have worked harder to learn what they were teaching me, I also know that I went to high school before NCLB which I would contend has lessened the amount of time spent on teaching history.

Pwned

I don't think I have ever heard David Letterman be angry before. I think it is so cute when old people get bitter and sardonic. It makes me happy inside that David Letterman was giving John McCain a chance to come on the show and talk about himself and when blown off Dave says, "Screw this guy!"

McCain, by the way, was talking to Katie Couric (He likes younger attractive women doesn't he? I guess we could ask his ex-wife).

When the Cover is Funnier than the Cover it's Covering

Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert posed for the cover of Entertainment Weekly and held the same pose as the famed picture of Barack and Michelle Obama. It is a delightful parody, or cover in the music business, of an originally upsetting piece. I thought the original picture was quite hilarious because it showed exactly what everyone was afraid of and I think it shows just how ludicrous most attacks on Obama are. It also has the text of the interview that Stewart and Colbert had with EW and I think they give a particularly good insight into why I hate 24-hour news and modern politics. Enjoy!

My Kind of Segment

One of the many things I love about this segment is that it combines international politics with movie clips. Priceless. Also the comment about flowers is rather catchy. Enjoy.

Randy Newman-ia

I know I say a lot of things, especially not on this blog, that go against the leadership of this country. I know I think a lot of things about how it could probably be done differently. This song really spoke to me and made me feel a little bit happier about being American. I hope you feel the same way too.

Blog with No Name

I really liked this video. I love this chick's voice. And the song by Randy Newman is both funny and poignant.

And really, I mean really. I got this in an email and I thought it was hilarious.

If I Did It

O.J. Simpson is on trial again. The video clip that is linked is an SNL sketch discussing the difficulty in finding impartial jurors. Due to the high-media nature of cases like O.J.'s, both his current and his previous cases, he really shouldn't even have a jury trial. He should face a tribunal of some sort of judges who have sworn an oath of impartiality and duty toward the law. I guess the only problem with that would be that were the judges to stay impartial there would actually be justice in the justice system and not politics, and I don't know if our country can handle that.

Queens, Kings, and Prime Ministers

The link goes to the full episode of the Daily Show from September 18. I was going to do just one part, but the whole thing ended up being really good. Please watch it.

Tony Blair is spot on. He does a really good job of explaining his decision-making process and beliefs in world affairs. The reason I made sure I posted the whole episode is because John Stewart does a better job of explaining that the world is far more complicated than Blair allows for and that the current course of action should never have been pursued.

I really can't say anything about Sarah Palin because once I get started it will be like Theo just told me he got a girl pregnant (uh-koo-koo-kajoo). I just hope she realizes that while Miss America gets a crown and rules supreme over... something for one year until someone younger and better-looking comes along, the President does not get a crown (the role was designed to be the opposite of a King) and usually age and looks don't have anything to do with the political process. I think her campaign manager should get her that memo. Aside from looks and youth, she really doesn't have anything to qualify her to be Vice President, except maybe an ability to lie to her electorate, steal from Congress, and make the media feel bad for questioning her leadership. Maybe she did get the memo from her campaign manager...

Humpdy Dumpdy is King of the NYSE

Reinstate the WPA to rejuvinate the economy? That'll never work. We don't allow that kind of Communist bologna to work in this country. When the stock market is falling around us, jobs are leaving, we see an influx of veterans, too many people are on SSI, those kind of conditions are just plain wrong for the government to subsidize work. Especially since our new system of creating public works through shady earmarks works so much more cheaply and effectively. Oh wait. Never mind, this has been Rosanne Rosanna-Danna reporting.

Something About Us - Cover of Daft Punk

This video starts out decently, but it isn't anything special. I don't want to ruin the surprise, but watch the whole thing, it's pretty cool.

Martyrs on Both Sides

Please read the article first.

Thank you. I'm just going to talk about the attacks on the Danes since 2005 when they created the Mohammad cartoons. There are cartoons about Yahweh, Jesus Christ, Buddha, and Joseph Smith but for some reason it's not cool to have a cartoon about the Prophet Mohammad. I understand that their religion says that there shouldn't be any depiction of the person, but I also understand that not everyone in the world is Muslim. And while I also appreciate that not everyone has grown up with the concept of the freedom of speech, I'm Amero-centrist leave me alone.

Now to the real point of the article. During the French, English, and American Revolutions (I know ours was really a war of independence, but I'm going with popular titles to maintain a theme) people fought and died struggling to maintain what they believed to be a God-given right to express whatever they felt without persecution. While most people think that this means no governmental persecution, it actually means no persecution from any source. That's a point that a lot of Americans miss but I'm not going there right now.

I want to know why people now don't feel like it is their duty, and governments don't think it is their right, to die for what they believe in anymore. If Dutch publishers want to put cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammad, fully recognizing that there will be repercussions, then they should be allowed to. Why is religion the only cause worth dying for? Why is Islam the only side that has martyrs in this fight?

When the people of the world tell terrorists that they aren't afraid of their antics, then suicide bombers stop being martyrs and become something much easier to deal with: criminals.

Look Who's Talking Now

When Barack Obama said that the United States needed to openly talk with Iran he was practically labeled a traitor for daring to offer diplomacy as an option for foreign policy. In the linked article, five former Secretaries of State have come out and said that the United States needs to openly talk with Iran. I hate to sound like a broken record, but I think I also said, in my Resolution for Iraqi Peace, that we need to openly talk with Iran. John McCain and George Bush are saying that Iran needs to continue to be left alone and sanctioned for daring to want to join the world by having nuclear energy. I guess John McCain wants there to be nuclear energy more widely used... here. I guess John McCain wants there to be alternative energy sources... here. I guess John McCain wants there to be environmental progress... here. Too bad the rest of the world can't join us...

We're Talking about Cuba Again?

This is probably the only time that I am going to say that John McCain could be an agent for change if he is elected. The tone of the article is that Obama will change relations between the United States and Cuba and that John McCain will not. I buy fully into the John McCain=John McSame campaign, but in this particular matter the point is moot. If Barack Obama is elected his campaign has said that he will change policies to try and improve relations and the general quality of life in Cuba, which sounds really great to Cuban-American voters. If John McCain is elected his campaign has said that it will pretty much stay the way it has been for the last 46 years.
The reason that this is a moot point is that we aren't the only interested parties. I'm not going to discuss all the changes possible if Barack is elected because 'everyone' agrees that change will occur. If John is elected we could see the most important events in foreign policy since the Fall of '62. McCain will not change the policy towards Cuba but Cuba is far different than it used to be. Raul is not his brother and we have yet to see exactly what that means for the island nation but we will see objective identifiable change in the coming months. McCain is also ramping up his oral belligerence towards Russia. I seem to recall Russia being a major ally of Cuba. Since we have already signed up to put a missile defense system in Poland, it wouldn't surprise me greatly if McCain sees missile installments get put in Cuba. Russia can say that they are using the installments as purely defensive in nature and that they are aimed at Central America or northern parts of South America. It worked for us in Poland. If McCain is elected then I foresee Cuba becoming an even bigger supporter of Russia and Communism as well as a bigger antagonist towards the US. If Obama is elected it could go either way depending on which way he wants to go and how well he enacts it and how well it is received.
If we are at all interested in not seeing Russian missiles within range of the entire South and D.C. then we need to proactively remove the trade barrier set up around Cuba. We need to open serious discussions to improve relations between the US and Cuba. We need to address our immigration policy to allow for a new flow of immigrants and also deal with the illegal ons we have now. We need to Work to bring Cuba into NATO before Georgia or the Ukraine, since that move would annoy Russia but not seriously threaten it. We need to dump our pride at our border and remember that we aren't the only country in the world.

Call Now to Get Your Own Loan Giant for Ten Easy Payments of 10 Million Dollars

I'd like to first of all say that I think that the columnist is going a bit overboard. But I won't hold that against her, she makes incredibly valid points. It used to be that you went to a bank to store your money and a brokerage firm to invest it. That now is not true for homeowners.
While 9% doesn't sound like very much, it is one in eleven. Do you know eleven people who are in the process of paying a mortgage? Just think that one of them lost their home before June. On the scale of 44 million people paying mortgages that's massive.
I think it is nice that the columnist says that the market can't fix itself as an excuse for the government to create further regulations to protect consumers from bad business. However, it is not completely true. It would not be pretty to watch most of the home loan companies sink into the ground and millions more lose their homes. It would not be enjoyable to see property values plummet for those fortunate few who already own their home or survive the crash. After the smoke cleared though, the country would still be here. The economy would still be here. The people will still be here. Maybe a good Depression is what we need to fix some of the social ails of the nation. The first generation after the Great Depression is called the Golden Generation, after all.
The great thing about free markets is that while it isn't always pretty or enjoyable it does always work. After a while there would be no home loan companies left, there would be terribly low property values, and there would be a lot of empty houses. Sounds horrible right? Well maybe in that situation someone like me, a white-collar worker who makes more than minimum wage but not so much that buying a house is a plausible goal, might actually be able to afford a house to build a future in. Maybe the next time that millions of people want to buy houses they will know better than to sign any paper that a bank puts in front of them on a house they can't actually afford. Maybe people will learn what some of us have always known: a house is not a right, it is earned through hard work and frugality.

What is the Deal with Vista?

I have to admit, I don't much understand the new line of Microsoft commercials either. It just adds to my delight in using Linux. Parental advisory on the link in the title btw.

Goldilocks is Ukranian?

Ever since the trouble in Georgia that I already wrote about a lot of commentators have said that Ukraine is next. While this seems cliche it is also rather accurate. I think that that is a bit too direct for the chessmaster [Putin] to put into play. He does not want another world war and he certainly doesn't want another Cold War. He is going to continue to use maneuvers that are sneaky and completely legal, well, legal enough to get by with anyway. What many Americans don't understand is that Putin doesn't have to think in terms of four years like our presidents do. He can be making plans five, ten, fifteen years down the road and they will be carried out. Also, he doesn't have to carry them out himself. Bush is a cowboy and wants to make sure that everyone knows what he is up to. Putin is a spy and wants to make sure that as few people as possible know what he's up to. Medvedev is not quite the lapdog that many assume him to be but he is still not the leader of his party or the prime minister or the man in charge. Poland is in far more danger than the Ukraine is right now because they just signed a deal to have our missile defense system installed. While Putin almost certainly won't pull the same military trick he pulled in Georgia (tricks like that only work once, ask Andrew Wiggin), he will use political and economic pressure to make Poland a very unhappy place. The problem with countries that stop practicing major diplomacy is that politicians eventually forget how to use it. Our politicians have, for the most part, forgotten how to dance the dance of international politics. I think this can be evidenced by the statement, "I know how to deal with Russia because I can see it from my house."

Lipstick on Pig Good for Book Sales

Read the story and watch the video, they don't really have anything to do with each other except that they both reference the book 1984. I think the author of the article brings up quite a few good points so I wanted to give it more notice than just sharing it.

Where's Paris

This is the video from SNL last night that had Tina Fey as Sarah Palin and Amy Poehler as Hillary Clinton. It would only have been better if Paris Hilton would have been there to mention that the white-haired dude wanted her to run. Please enjoy this video.

I Just Don't Know How to Quit You

Unless I=Pakistan and You=War on Terror. George W. Bush reportedly approved missile strikes within the borders of Pakistan without asking Pakistan (a nuclear ally) if it was ok. Pakistan has done really well so far in at least appearing like they want to help us end terror. Now that Pakistan knows that he has allowed the disrespect of its territorial integrity, it has threatened to quit the War on Terror. I guess the ball is in our court now. A wonderful play by Pakistan. I want to know how much longer our administration can hold onto its hypocrisy and how much longer people will listen to John McCain and Sarah Palin say that we need to continue in the Bush Doctrine. George W. Bush has no more doctrine in his foreign affairs than I have 'game' in picking up women. You can go out and ask many who know me, I simply have no game. If throwing darts at a map and saying, "There are tur-uh-rists there" is not a doctrine; it's a frat game.

No Party For Old Men

John McCain doesn't want Democrats to control the White House and Congress. He hasn't even started talking about picking Justices for the Supreme Court. I can't imagine a world where one party controls all three branches of government. Unless you consider 2000-2006...
But we're not talking about the Republicans, we're talking about Democrats. I happened across an article that showed the number of years each president had Congress with him. It seems that there is a correlation between the number of years that a president's party had control of Congress and how well liked that president is. Since a president can get more done with a strong Congress behind him, it would make sense that usually people would like him; or really hate him...

Women Cooking? Really?

Since I've used two sexist titles today, I think I need to make something clear. I am not a sexist, I use sexism and attacks on feminism in my humor because that's how I deal with stress. I also think that if any movement is going to survive it needs to be able to survive a few jokes. It's great that the hosts of The View bit into John McCain about Sarah Palin. What a wonderful thing that a group of hardcore feminists showed that just picking any old woman isn't enough to get the female vote. I guess grabbing Sarah Palin to get Hillary Clinton's voter base is like grabbing a stale banana to make apple pie.

Can You Believe It?

Booyah. I called it. Oil at $100 before the end of the year. I also said that the NY Times was overzealous in saying it might get as low as $70, but since it's only September, I might be wrong on that. Of course, upon rumors that Georgia (US) ran out of gas, people here started fearing $5 or $6 gas and started running to the pumps. This has now caused shortages here which may, in itself, cause $5 or $6 gas. Irony anyone?

A Bear of a Blog

I apologize in advance. This blog is going to be long. I am going to use the Russia-Georgia conflict as the basis for what our future foreign policy should be.

To begin, America is losing a lot of face with the conflict in Iraq and the semi-depression of the summer. On July 3, President Medvedev of Russia spoke about a conversation he had with Henry Paulson Jr. (our Secretary of the Treasury) and said that the United States 'had other things to worry about' than complaining about Russia's apparent lack of human rights and democracy. This began a string of articles that popped to my attention throughout the summer. In Al-Ahram, a weekly journal out of Egypt similar to Time, there was an article about the diplomacy methods of Joeseph Nye. The thesis raised by this former US assistant secretary of defence and former dean of Harvard University's John Kennedy School of Government is that there is a difference between hard power and soft power, both of those being terms he coined. Hard power is monetary and military force imposed on others and soft power is influencing and inviting others to join a movement or cause, perhaps for monetary or military gain.

Then it happened, on August 8 Russia invaded South Ossetia. Forbes wrote that Russia was showing that Georgia was not a safe point for oil and natural gas. Far more importantly, however, is that Russia showed that it can attack wherever it wants whenever it wants and there isn't much that anybody can do about it. If Nixon knew anything, it's that the only way to fight a nuclear power is with nuclear weapons. That's why Nixon didn't fight Russia. He also didn't use words like terror to describe Russia.

I don't know when everyone boarded the train of forgetfulness, but apparently everyone forgot that in most countries that have Prime Ministers the Prime Minister has most, if not all, of the power. All of a sudden Forbes reported that Putin showed who has the real power in Russia. You don't say. Leader of the only political party, former President, current Prime Minister, former KGB member, the guy who picked the current President, that Vladamir Putin? He has all the power in Russia? I wouldn't have guessed... oh wait, yes I did. Back when I read this article about Putin being the Prime Minister of the Russia-Belarus Alliance. I, in fact, can be quoted by my former room mate, Cecil Hatfield, as saying that if I were Putin I would attack Georgia in my quest to take back the old Soviet Union. That was six weeks before the attack. I know I'm not the smartest guy in the world so I couldn't possibly be the only person that thought of that. I didn't even know that Georgia had oil and gas lines.

Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., said that Russia needed to stop Russia's campaign of "targeting of civilians and campaign of terror as well as its destruction of in Georgia's infrastructure." Strong words from a strong man, Captain Insano. That's a quote from The Waterboy. Captain Insano in this particular case is George Bush speaking through his mouthpiece to the UN. This ties in with the first point of this rant, that the United States is hardly in any position to tell other countries that they can't invade another nation. Especially since Russia is saying that Georgia is systematically killing off South Ossetians and Abkhazians. Where else have I heard about a nation invading a foreign land to protect the rights of its citizens and overthrow a genocidal leader? Point made.

Then came the real icing on the cake. Russia removed its troops and recognized the independent governments of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. With this move it sought to make itself look like a liberator instead of invader and a savior instead of thief. If the United States would have done this in Iraq it would have worked with perfection. Even Sweden's Foreign Minister has called this maneuver a "direct violation of international law."


So how do we move forward? Delicately, to say the least. What the United States needs to recognize is that we are in a post-Soviet era, to quote an article in the Moscow Times. We can not treat the Russians like we did in the Cold War, like many assume John McCain would, and we also can't be too soft with them, like many assume Barack Obama would. We must not try to deal with Russia single-handedly. I hope everyone reading this is sitting down. We must work with China and Iran to let Russia know that they don't have a free ticket to break the rules. This means, of course, that we must be far more friendly to China and Iran. We must return to a position where Europe is steadfast in it's approval of us. We must do more to improve our position with continents like Africa and South America, the ones that are developing and violent. We must redevelop the soft power that we had so that when we need to use hard power, like we could in the case of Russia, we can have a reliable network of support from other nations so that Russia will find itself alone and powerless, which it isn't right now.

The pressure isn't all on us, however. Many are calling for action on Russia's part. Nobody wants another Cold War, not even Vladamir Putin. It has to work more diligently and patiently with us in the light of changing administrations. It has to be more diligent in its use of the UN Security Council in preventing us from doing things it views as undesirable.

Perhaps in the future it would be better if all parties involved didn't do anything rash over something as silly as a flat tire.

Can I Slalom Through Baggage Check?

Finally the TSA is doing something to hurry security. I don't fly as often as other people do, but I recognize patterns pretty quickly. So after the third time of having to remove my shoes and take off my belt and take my laptop out of the bag I don't think I'll ever forget the routine. I wear sandals and athletic shorts to quicken the first two problems and pack less in my laptop bag so that I can quickly remove it and put it back in. It's not that hard to remember where you are and what you are doing. It would be nice if they would stop announcing that the terror alert level has been raised to orange. It's always been orange in airports and always will be.

Capital Bit of Humor

I at first only shared an article from a paper that described which pig Obama was referring to. But this cartoon is great. Please also read the comment underneath it by Robert Mann.

Woman Hush!

The title is derived from the famous 1 Timothy passage that tells women to be quiet. I thought it would be cute to use it in reference to a blog about Sarah Palin's first interview since becoming the VP nominee.

A couple of brief notes:
-It is pronounced nu-kle-er not nu-kyu-ler.
-Muslims are not the only people to strap bombs to themselves.
-Being able to see the eastern coast of Russia does not provide special insight into Moscowan politics.
-Iran is a democracy also.
-The best defense is not a preemptive strike (the old saying goes the best offense is a good defense, not the other way around)
-Not all terrorists are Islamic Extremists.
-Invading allied nations that are nuclear powers is not a good idea; especially when most of the Islamic Extremists that you want to defeat so much actually come from there and are a breath away from taking over and having nukes under their control.
-Ahmedinajed does not want to give terrorists nuclear weapons, he wants to use them himself on Israel, where have you been?

Thank you and good day.

Not at the Mountaintop Yet

Several associates and friends of the late great Martin Luther King, Jr. are working to make a global initiative to end racism and bigotry. This is incredible. One of the organizers of this campaign, who also helped end apartheid in Africa, said that "young people are transcending race." I'd certainly like to think that my generation can learn the lesson that I learned during my tenure at Central State University: color, dress, and language do not translate into intelligence, ability, or drive. Black people are just as good as white people and there are white people who are worse than many of the stereotypes of blacks. People are people, everywhere and always. I've been saying that for years, you can quote me. I think I'm going to close by asking a question posed to me by the Black Eyed Peas, "Where is the Love?" The answer is just a little further in the future, when we finally reach the mountaintop that MLK Jr. saw from 45 years ago.

Quit Talkin' 'Bout My Girl, Man

John McCain's campaign has said that people are unfairly attacking Sarah Palin for her background. He should have known better before nominating her for Vice President. Once someone elevates to the level of national politics all bets are off. There is a very good reason for this. As City Commissioner and later Mayor of Wasilla, Mrs. Palin had a direct effect over 9,500 people. As Governor of Alaska, her 'imminent domain' raised to 663,661 according to the 2005 census. Yes I recognize that imminent domain has nothing to do with direct control of constituencies, but sphere of influence allows for the total realm of influence and governors can reach around a bit (giggity). Back to the point. As Vice President of the United States of America, she would suddenly be the number two voice for 300,000,000 (million) people. Not to say that she can't do the job, she may be exactly the right person for it, but she does deserve the scrutiny. Especially with what we are finding in her background. John McCain should have known what he was getting this woman and her family into, and he should be thanking Obama for not attacking her on her family values since she's attacking him on it.

Pat Buchanan: What happens if Obama loses?

I don't like how much I have been agreeing with Pat Buchanan lately...

Go Home Louie, There's No Family Feud Here

When Obama asked that his family be left off limits everyone thought that he was crazy. People told me that it was stupid for him to say that because family is a part of politics. It's good to know that when the Republicans are staring at a huge scandal, as far as family values goes, Obama is saying that their families should be left alone too. It seems to me that he is saying, "Thank you for leaving us alone, we'll return the courtesy."

This is a Rant

I'm watching a program on C-SPAN about the Republican National Convention, it's not actually the convention because they decided to limit the convention activities because of Gustav (no comment). A woman called in saying that she is displeased that nobody is talking about education. One of the moderators of the program said that education is 'generally in the purview of states and localities what would they be talking about it in a presidential election for?" I would normally agree with this woman emphatically since we live in a system of local control for local schools. Unfortunately, the Bush Administration passed No Child Left Behind which thrust national control into education and therefore making education a national issue. That is, of course, until someone revokes NCLB and allows kids to learn for the sake of learning and not for the right to have federal funding.

Release the Hounds

I waned to get a video clip of Montgomery Burns saying that line but I couldn't find one. I know I already blogged about Sarah Palin, but I have been reading more and more about her. I'd like to mention my glee that within 48 hours of her nomination reporters ahve already found scandals of abuse of power, flip-flopping, and a question of who the mother of her fifth child is. It's incredible how this defender of the second amendment and ethical government has been torn apart by the national media. They haven't even started comparing her to Biden yet and she's already losing McCain votes. I guess if he wanted to steal Obama's thunder he should have done it with Romney.

And the Winner Is...

All right, guys. I was trying for a beauty pageant joke there for the text of Sarah Palin's acceptance speech. She spoke in the Nutter Center just outside of Dayton, OH. i graduated from high school in that arena. Not that that matters, but I like bringing it up. I think it was a fine speech. This is the beginning of a long week: the Republican National Convention. I don't like thinking along party lines, but since they're going to be bashing my candidate I'm going to hate it. I personally think that the choice of Sarah Palin is a really good and a really bad move. I think it was good that the RNC wanted to steal the Clinton votes and the uninterested female votes. I think it's bad because for a campaign that has been attacking Obama's lack of experience to pick someone who is less experienced is hypocritical. I don't know if she will pull in the conservative vote or alienate the conservatives that hated Hillary Clinton for being a woman.

Mexican Everclear

Some Mexican farmers are growing corn instead of blue agave. I guess they can distill everclear instead of tequila (everclear is a corn-based liquor that is 190 proof). You can ask around or you can take my word for it, I have been saying for a year that the way to save Mexico is to teach their farmers how to properly grow corn. Developments in fertilization and irrigation and equipment could help them potentially grow enough corn to supplement the world's need both for food and ethanol fuel. The money made from this corn would be a significant boost to the Mexican economy. A possible side-effect of this boon to the economy and increase in jobs would be that fewer Mexicans would immigrate to the United States. Rather than attempt a dangerous journey to live in fear as felons, many would stay home and make good money at home with their families. Then, continuing on through linear reasoning, relations between the bordering nations of Mexico and the United States would improve and border security would also prosper. It'd be nice if the Mexicans are recognized for their efforts to create more food, lower food prices, have the same effect on fuel, and improve regulation of immigration and security.

He's Not Crying Wolf

A senior official in Iran said that an attack on Iran would start WWIII. I pray that Washington doesn't view this as empty posturing. They have been very consistent in Tehran about only threatening violence in response to violence. This statement falls completely in line with what they were saying before. It's a funny story, we used to be a military power that only fought when attacked...

Who's Number One?

The United States got the most medals overall in the Olympics but China got the most Gold. America is upset that Russia is liberating South Ossetia and Abkhazia, which may have shown us how to act in Iraq, but we aren't renaming Vodka Freedom Juice. The linked article is a commentary by Pat Buchanan, a man with whom I rarely agree, and I think he hits the nail on the head. I have heard mention of the article "The End of History" by Fukuyama more than once this week. The joke speech that I commented on also brought it up. I read that article and I'm glad that the present is showing that there will be plenty of past to talk about in the future.

The reasons that people are more satisfied in Russia and China than they are here are as follows: the authoritarian societies in which they live won't allow them to be unhappy publicly, and since they were born into these authoritarian societies they are used to them. Since America is a democracy, the last 8 years of authoritarian control have been out of place, awkward, and unappreciated. They also do authoritarianism much better than we do, they've had practice. I hope they get to Carnegie Hall (another joke that's for me).

Al Gore's Invesco Field DNC speech text

I think this is the best speech ever given by Al Gore. I think he's had it in a lockbox for seven years. Ok, nobody else remembers the lockbox huh? I laughed, so I got what I needed out of the joke.

I especially like how the beginning of the speech sounded like he was saying, "if you would have elected me we wouldn't be here... haha!!!" It was a proud proclamation of 'screw off and die' from a former Vice President.

Why Sarah Palin Is Likely to Belly-Flop

A commentary on why Sarah Palin is a weak choice. He should have picked Romney, but I didn't want him to win anyway so I guess I should be glad.

David Brooks: A speech to the delegates - International Herald Tribune

I started reading this thing thinking that it was a real speech. By the end i realized that it was a hilarious commentary on how interesting and hypocritical our politics are. Please read it and get a good laugh.

Barack Obama's convention address | courier-journal | The Courier-Journal

I would argue that this is the greatest speech of my generation. If anyone has any suggestions for a better speech given since 1975, post a comment and let me know.

Papa's Got a Brand New Bag

Tonight at the Democratic National Convention, there were two grand speeches: one by Bill Clinton; and one by Joe Biden. I'm not really going to comment, please read their speeches, it's worth the time. I'm going to list my favorite quotes from each speech.

Bill: "People the world over have always been more impressed by the power of our example than by the example of our power."

Joe: "Millions of Americans have been knocked down. And this is the time as Americans, together, we get back up. Our people are too good, our debt to our parents and grandparents too great, our obligation to our children is too sacred."

The Cut of Her Jib

As someone who as commented on the increasing shortness of cheerleading uniforms, this story really gets me. If the uniform is too short for the classroom, it is too short anywhere. Plain and simple. The school can't say, "We want you to look like jailbait on Friday night but don't distract others in the classroom."

The First Wives Club

Sorry about the scary reminder, but they made that movie. That has nothing to do with this article really, but I thought it was clever because I am including links to the text of the speeches by a former First Lady, Hillary Clinton, and hopeful future First Lady, Michelle Obama. I don't normally like to listen to feminists talk only because so many of them tend to get into penis-hating monologues that I can't listen to because I keep my ears close to my brain... yeah the other one. These two women, however, spoke as strong women who support a common goal: electing a Democrat as president. They each had a very different tenor to her speech and each was elegant in her delivery. I am glad that women like Hillary and Michelle are the ones being listened to on national television. They do women across the country a great service with their intelligence, eloquence, and exhuberence.

I Do Declare

I don't think President Medvedev could say that like Foghorn Leghorn, but I'll imagine it and laugh anyway. He declared that South Ossetia and Abkhazia are independent nations. I think it's incredible that Russia was able to militarily invade Georgia and show the world just how hypocritical this administration is. In no way could the United States realistically take the moral high ground when it comes to having military operations in a nation that contains genocide and terrorism. Especially since Georgia borders Russia. Then Russia removed troops, something that we haven't done yet, and then recognized the independence of the two nations.
More importantly than what has happened is what will happen. The United States will continue arguing that Russia had no right to recognize them and I don't think we'll recognize them for at least 7 or 8 years, we haven't recognized Myanmar yet and it has been called that since 1989. The new nations will be most grateful to Russia for being the first to recognize them and that will have quite a bit of influence on what kind of governmental and economic systems they put into place. To say that Putin will have no input at all is naive and that he will be the sole decider is overly pessimistic.
While Georgia has been democratic and a U.S. ally, I doubt greatly that South Ossetia and Abkhazia will be either. Perhaps we should be trying to put that missile defense shield in the Ukraine instead of Poland... not that I'm saying the Ukraine is on the list, I'm just saying that Poland has successfully prevented a takeover by Russia before.

Sheep

Everyone who shops at Hot Topic is a sheep. Baa!!! They shop at Hot Topic to say that they are nonconformist and want to rebel against society, but they conform to what Hot Topic says is rebellious. I gather this opinion because of the phenomenon of The Nightmare Before Christmas. There is no reason to love this movie as a pop culture icon, perhaps pop subculture icon, except that Hot Topic started selling it on shirts, hats, shoes, wristbands, patches, watches, necklaces, ear rings, and socks (this list is probably not exhaustive).

It's Our Turn

Please read this article then refer to my previous post titled Tongue Twister
. Now not only does Russia agree with my Resolution for Iraqi Peace, but so do the Iranians and the Turks. I wonder if Joe Biden would like it...

Texas Tea Party

I'm going for a few references on this title also. The Boston tea party was an act of American terrorism to show the British that we would not be taxed unfairly any longer, the steady drop in demand of oil is an act of American patriotism to show OPEC, futures traders, and oil companies that we will not be priced unfairly any longer. I'm mostly writing this because I really loved when the authors of this article mentioned that oil is becoming practically a new currency and that our economy is losing ground with the black gold standard. What a great line. Now let's load up the truck and move to Beverly... Hills, that is.
I don't pretend to understand half of what they were saying, someone please take more time to educate me because I'm interested. I get the basics of it though, and it sounds a lot like the way everything was traded way back in the day when people were allowed to trade on margins. My grandfather can tell you about the ails of the Great Depression, the result of such reckless abandonment of reality.
The authors do make a point that I disagree with. They say that these unfair practices are bringing down America. I take that to mean that if the trend of future speculation and oil dependency continue then our country will fall. I can not agree with that thought on any level. The oil scare of the 1970's was bad, but we survived it. The Depression of the 30's was bad, but we survived it. The slumps in our economy before and in between have been bad, but we have survived them also. This is a nation of survivors. Life may be inconvenient for a while, life may be expensive for a while, and life may seem bleak for a while but we will survive it as well.
A brief side note, it is only by weathering the storms of complete capitalism that we may evolve into socialism, just thought I'd throw that out there, before people start thinking I'm a Libertarian or Republican again.

A Plant Without Plants

In the debate over the energy crisis, many point to ethanol as a partial solution to our problem. I saw this article talking about an ethanol plant coming to Pike County and I said, "But we don't have any corn..." Well it turns out you don't need it. They're building an ethanol plant in a landfill and they're turning our garbage into fuel. How do you make a good deal better? Make it free! Yes, I said it, free! The company that is going to operate the plant is paying all of the upfront costs, so no taxpayers' dollars are going into this. I am completely behind this and am glad that it's coming to Pike County.