George Bush’s last State of the Union Address – there are no sweeter words

Have sweeter words ever been spoken?  One day last week I was working away on my computer with the TV on in the background.  I heard the words “next Monday will be President Bush’s last State of the Union address”.  My eyes widened, my jaw dropped and I turned my head slowly to stare at the television.  There was no reason for that since after that point I could not hear or comprehend what was going on around me for several seconds.  And I thought “Could that be true?  Oh, my God, it is true!”

And I thought, Thank GOD this will all soon be over.  If I look at the 2008 Presidential Election from a broad perspective, as open minded and balanced as I can be, I know in my heart that there is no way another republican can be elected.  After the voter fraud and recounts of the election in 2000, I did not think we Americans could survive 4 long years until this autrocity could be corrected.  Then 2004 came around and once again voter fraud went unchecked, but to an even greater degree, the American voter population was somehow fooled again.

But no longer will be have to be exposed to the lies and rhetoric of the Bush Administration.  No longer will we daily uncover more untruths, half-truths, outright lies, and above all, cover ups and manipulations.  It is almost over.  We just have to hang on a bit longer.

So wait with me, be silent a little more with me, hold hands with me, kneel before whatever spiritual being you might pray to and wait for it all to finally be over.  We will eventually be released from this 12 year old child who is running our country as a puppet under the control of Dick Cheney. (Check out PBS.ORG for video on the Cheney administration).

I am listening to the State of the Union address as I write and can not believe what I am hearing.  I can’t watch anything else because since Bush came to power, my livelihood, the economy, the way of life I had known for years, is gone.  As a result I had my cable TV ripped out because I can’t afford it anymore.  I am invisible to him.  And he doesn”t care.  But it is almost over.  So sit and wait with me and pull the right lever at the right time.  We will get there together.

If you don’t know who to vote for, if you don’t know which candidate has beliefs and opinions that closely match your beliefs and opinions, go to http://www.vajoe.com/candidate_calculator.html .  It’s a great site that helps you determine which candidates match up with your viewpoints.

The real issues in the 2008 presidential election.

Sometimes I sit here and think “do people even know HOW to vote?”  I don’t mean do they know how to pull the lever, I mean do they know HOW to decide for whom to cast their vote.

What are the real issues that affect us every day of our lives?  What are the issues that make a real difference in the way we live our lives?

Is it being a Republican or Democrat?  No.  The party with which I think I identify myself or the party the President belongs to has no affect on my daily life. And you?

Is it abortion?  No, I don’t know one person right now struggling with that issue and even if I did, it would not affect MY LIFE.  Abortion is a difficult decision no matter the circumstance.  I hope that people struggling with that decision make whatever choice is right for them.  But you will not convince me that ANYONE in this country has to struggle with abortion on a massive scale every day of their lives. That’s not the issue.  It has no affect on my daily life; and you?

Is it religion?  Who you pray to, or whether or not you choose to pray at all, as no affect on MY LIFE whatsoever.  And you?

Is it terrorism?  Some might think it is but we don’t get attacked every day, I don’t think about it every day, and quite frankly there are things that I worry about every day that in the big scheme of things are small compared to terrorism, but my comparatively small issues are what keep me up at night, not whether or not we have incoming missiles.  And you?

So what are the issues that are common to all of us.  Well how about these?

How am I going to afford to put gas in my car and groceries on the table?  How will I afford to send my children to college.  Are my children getting involved in drugs.  Are my friends and family healthy, depressed, happy?  What happens if I lose my job?  What do I do now that I have lost my job?  Why is it that everyone I know is financially struggling whether or not they even have a job?  If I own my business, how can I be more successful?  How can I provide for myself and my employees? I want to wake up and feel proud to be living in this day.  I want to be proud to be an American.  I want to help other people and give back to the community because no matter how bad I think things are, I am blessed and have gifts that should be shared with others.  These are the things that unite us as human beings.  These are the things I worry about. And you?

So I can only hope that when it comes time to make decisions about who should lead this country, that we give pause and think about what really matters and who will inspire us, help us, lead us, and unite us in the things that are common to all of us.  I am so tired of talking about, and hearing about, our differences.  What I want is a leader who is a real person, flawed like all of us are flawed, and some one who worries about how we Americans will put food on the table and gas in the car.  A leader who worries about my job and what happens if I lose my job.  A leader who will restore America’s name around the world as a nation of generosity and hope. 

There are things in hindsight that we know haven’t worked.  Trickle-down economics for example.  I don’t want to go back to the Reagan years, I don’t want to go back to the Clinton years, and I certainly don’t want to maintain the Bush years.  I want to go forward with the new American years.  The years where America restored its sense of decency, restored its sense of pride, and restored the opportunity for each and every American to live a happy and healthy life.

If you don’t yet believe that Dick Cheney is evil…

Have you ever heard of the OLC?  Yeah, neither had I until I watched the Frontline (PBS) special called “Cheney’s Law”.  Here’s a link to the show from the PBS web site http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/cheney/view/main.html

You will not believe what you see.  Your jaw will drop, or should drop, open and you will stare at your television in disbelief at what has been going on in the Bush/Cheney Administration since the very day Bush was elected.  Bush shouldn’t worry too much about his legacy and what history will say about his presidency because in reality, it isn’t his presidency.  This is all about Dick Cheney and what he was able to accomplish while pulling the wool over the eyes of the American public, Congress, and in some cases other members of the Executive Branch in the Bush/Cheney Administration.

For those of us that don’t know, OLC is the Office of Legal Council.  It’s a sort of mini-supreme-court that operates rather covertly.  I say that because I can guaranty you that most people have never heard of it, yet they have given legal advice regarding the constitution to the President and his administration to that they know via the OLC what they can get away with (based on the OLC legal opinion) before they do it.  And Oh Lord what they have gotten away with is amazing.

Before you even think about who you are going to vote for in the 2008 election, please go watch this program. If for some reason the link doesn’t work, go to PBS and find it.  You will be amazed.

A theory on why Obama won’t win, unfortunately

This is my theory on what is actually going on with Barack Obama.  White people like Obama because he’s not “that black”.  He is accepted by the white establishment.

Blacks think that Obama is “flattering” the whites (according to scholar Shelby Steele on “Bill Moyer’s Journal – PBS) and so they will separate themselves from Obama.  They still want white America to pay for the sins of our southern forefathers. This is a form of racism on the part of Black America.

Underneath all of it, white America is still fundamentally racist.  When you have a Caucus you essentially vote “out loud” so you can’t be publicly racist. When you have a Primary, voting is private, so you can be racist when you vote.  So Americans who are fundamentally racist won’t vote for Obama behind closed doors.  This is the regular form of racism.

So Obama is stuck in the middle.  Blacks won’t vote for him in the end because the whites like him and they don’t want whites to get what they want.

Whites won’t vote for him in the end because they won’t vote for a Black man for president of the United States.

I don’t understand why after everything that has happened with the current republican administration, we can’t all just vote for the person who will do the best job regardless of the color of that persons skin.

Miracle on 66th Street – If you don’t believe in miracles…..?

Then read this story about a man who fell 47 stories, and survived.   I will say it again.  FORTY SEVEN STORIES.  Here’s the link, courtesy of The New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/04/nyregion/04fall.html?ex=1357189200&en=5eb48493173b6168&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Take back the election (Part 2) – it’s time to study for the final exam

In a previous post, I had asked that each of us concentrate on our own state, our own candidates, and not worry too much about what’s going on in Iowa and New Hampshire.  They happen to voice their opinion about the presidential candidates first, but they are not the only ones who get to have their say.

Each state has a primary.  It is our duty as citizens of these states to find out what each candidates stands for and what his or her plans are.  Then match up those views with what you believe in, and vote with your conscience when it comes time for your primary.

In tis country, we are not used to doing our homework when it comes to elections. We are used to relying on the media (too heavily) whether it be newspapers, magazines, or talking heads on the tube.  In many ways elections results can and are molded by the media and to whom they choose to pay attention.  A large segment of the population votes based on what Letterman and Leno had to say; or take their cues from Jon Stewart on The Daily Show.  All good, all funny, and all probably even get us to think.  But that is their opinion, what about yours.

But that’s not how it should be and not how our founding fathers wanted it to be.  There are untold number of resources available to each of us to find out what each candidate stands for.  The Internet itself is a vast source of information and while the Internet can contain bias just like any other medium, the sheer volume of information available to us allows us to weed through it all and make judgements of our own.

So please, let’s not rely on other people to tell us who to vote for.  And please don’t make assumptions about candidates simply because they are democrats or republicans, women or men, black or white.  There is simply too much at stake here and the lines between party lines have blurred so much (like it or not).  For example, a democrat may find a republican that has opinions more in line with what the democrat believes in,  like say fiscal conservatism.   Maybe you consider yourself to be a very progressive liberal, but you struggle with the idea of abortion.  Not all democrats agree with how things should be done, nor do all republicans, or any other second political party.   Can you even name another polictial party (other than “independent”; that is not a political party, it just means unaffiliated with the well knows Dems and Reps).

I am not here to ask that you vote a particular way or for a particular party.  I will not spout off my political views and try to convince you of anything.  I am asking that each of us do our homework.  Don’t vote blindly based on what you think is popular opinion or the party line.  If you are not sure of a candidates position on a topic, find out.  If you can’t find it easily, call the closest headquarters for the candidate.  They will be happy to explain their position.  If you don’t have access to that, call the candidates office.  They all have toll free numbers.

Did you really understand what Al Gore, John Kerry, or George W. Bush stood for before you pulled that lever?  Can you look back now and question whether or not you had educated yourself enough to make the decision that you made?  That’s the point of the posting.

I’ve only become somewhat political in the last year or so.  All I can tell you is that if you want information or answers, it is out there. 

If you understand how much say you really have and how important this election really is, then I believe that you will all be Pioneers.  You should at least know what isn’t working, in your opinion, so you know who NOT to vote for.   Again, your opinion and your vote matters, as long as you cast your vote with conviction based on what YOU believe and you alone.

In other countries, as I am writing this posting, there are people being murdered for their political beliefs.  I don’t want to get all sappy but I don’t think we realize what a privilege we have to be able to pick our own president.  So go out there, trust democracy, get educated and cast your vote.  If no, what will you tell your children about how this whole thing works.

Think ahead, and thank you for stopping by.

Take back the election

We’ve have had some interesting elections lately.  But these are almost nothing compared to what happened leading up to and prior to the early 1800’s.  Before that time, Americans didn’t realize that they themselves elected a President, not the Washington insiders.

Take it back.  Speak your voice, speak your heart, speak your mind, and speak with your vote.  It counts.  Forget caucuses and primaries, there is so little we can do about those.  But go out and learn about who is running, what they stand for, and vote for the one who stands the closet to what you believe.  If you have a minute, try to convince one other person of your point of view.  That is politics. Make it simple.  And think ahead.

What is a Pioneer?

To me a pioneer is not someone who knows what he wants or knows how things should be.  A pioneer is someone who knows what he DOESN’T want and  knows how things SHOULDN’T be.  And then takes action.

Think ahead.