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Monthly Archives: March 2012

Government


Looking at the current and near recent Legislative efforts (or non) to get a handle on the economic situation, I am reminded of two terms that describe their actions.

1. Crabbing an aviation term which describes a method of landing an aircraft when the wind is actually pushing the aircraft from the side, to adjust the pilot has to steer in the opposite direction so that the plane will land on the  area.

2. In sailing the same maneuver is called tacking  (there are variations on this).

What is it about our Congress that reminds me of those maneuvers?

It’s On!


Now that the Administration’s healthcare bill has arrived in front of the Supreme court some perhaps misunderstood facts may surface that will alleviate some of the fears that the country has about the bill and its various segments. All of this could have been avoided had our distinkguished Congress just done its job. Their job is (simply put) to receive these  bills  and look at them to determine feasibility and how to pay for them. Since the first day President Obama took office the Congress built a wall of political rhetoric that put the Nation in a divided stance much like precivil war times. Instead of doing their job without the nonsense they elected to play Racial politics under the guise of party politics. These Representatives have led the population down a path of misinformation and party politics not seen in the last 50 to 60 years. There will always be disagreement on any proposed legislature but these last 3 years have been totally outrageous and inappropriate. The egregious actions of our Congress has allowed many Americans to believe our President is not an American and is a Muslim while they sit on their hands and point. There will never be an end to the Racial divide as long as we have the top elected officials playing the game of Racial politics. We have sent these folks to Congress to represent All of us no matter the color, religion or sex yet they cannot find the key to doing the job. We essentially have 500 plus people playing pin the tail on the President while their work goes undone. The only way to fix this is for the voters to fix them by not electing  them again. There are probably many Unemployed Americans who could do a better job than those Federal employees. The lives of  millions are affected by the misspent efforts of the  500

What Is Wrong With Us-Again


Several conservative columnists and former Speaker Newt Gingrich have piled on to the Presidents remarks regarding the murder of Trayvon Martin. The gist of their rantings is that the President is “Race Baiting”. Is it possible that the Race Baiting is coming from them?  I am not altogether sure if all conservatives agree with them but I certainly know that all Americans can see that the true problems in our society lie with the  opportunists who leap on to an issue that they seem sure backs up any assertions and misinformation that they have put forth. I have included the brief writing that is called “Race baiting”.

Numerous Republican pundits and politicians have blasted the president, with some going so far as to call him a “race-baiter.”

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich called the president’s comments “disgraceful.” “It’s not a question of who that young man looked like. Any young  American of any ethnic background should be safe, period,” Gingrich said during a radio interview with Sean Hannity.

“Is the president suggesting that if it had been a white who had been  shot, that would be OK because it didn’t look like him? That’s just  nonsense dividing this country up … Trying to turn it into a racial issue  is fundamentally wrong,” he added.

Obama spoke about the death on Friday, saying that if he had a son, he would look like Martin. He also said that Martin’s parents “are right to expect that all of us as  Americans are going to take this with the seriousness it deserves,”  adding, “We’re going to get to the bottom of exactly what happened.”

Conservative columnist Michelle Malkin said in her blog that Obama was all too willing “to pour gas on the fire,” and Rick Moran, writing for the American Thinker, said no one, including the president, really knows what happened that night.

“Obama leaves no doubt that he has taken sides on the issue — something a  president should only do when the facts are clear and  incontrovertible,” he said.

In my opinion these folks are what is wrong with us as they seem to think their opinion has some merit.

No One Cares.


Why is it that no one cares about healthcare until it’s no longer available? Why is it that no one cares about Government assistance until its gone?  Let’s just look at these two items. I have found that more people are willing to believe the negative and lies about so called “Obamacare” than actually read the tons of information about what it is. The idea is that since we have a Non white President, he is doing everything he can to hurt White folks, this is the guilt of slavery. I have found that the guilt and fear of Some Americans is rooted in pre civil war slavery notions of who Black folks are and what they are about. The standard put downs of laziness,theft and eating watermelon is simply a way that the plantation owners and other Southerners of the times used to maintain the wall between the races. It is unfortunate that these same notions were passed down through the generations and now still appear in today’s world. This is not to say that there are not Black folks who have been instilled with the same type of Racial misinformation about White folks but in the middle are the rational folks of all colors who look at these stereotypical ideas as foolish and unfounded. To get to my point, it appears that it’s easier to reject a hand up if it is not the same color as yours, if these people who are so ridiculously Racist (some closeted) why are they enjoying the freedoms of the United States rather than Cuba, Mexico or Russia? A  little reading goes a lot further than the sound bites that give half the story and further the mental machinations of the small minded. All Americans of poor (and not so poor)  circumstances benefit from some parts of the health Care law and other Government programs so what is the problem other than racist nonsense.

WTF!!


Is Racism dead , dying or just in hibernation? We have seen evidence of it across the country, it has been especially apparent in our political arena and invoked by our reputed honorable Congress, some State executives along with a host of lesser municipal officers.  This has not been a overt activity but evident none the less and tacitly condoned. This nationwide rise of the Racism from the ordinary citizen to high officials and business leaders is indicative of the stagnation of our country. There may never be an end of Racism in this century but it is time to put the issue on the table but not in the political arena. We can always elect a less than desirable National leader but it should never be based on Race. We brought up issues of religion, military service or lack of but now that there is a Non white leader,  the sewers are running over with C**P!  Is it better to have a less than qualified person who is not of color than one who is better qualified regardless of Race, religion or military service (if that matters). Our politics have not seemingly moved from the 19th Century when the country was in the throes and end of several conflicts.  I have said to many people after I was asked about the current White House resident ( it’s the old assumption that  All people of a Race  know one another), most of them receive the same reply from me and that is : we have had the same Congress through several administrations and since no laws can be enacted without Congressional action, then who would you suppose has the responsibility for our current fiscal and military problems?  We the People have believed the hype and near truths of our long serving Congress each time elections arrive and  by keeping them in office even when they have obviously been untruthful with us have condoned their actions. There are too many of us voters who are one (1) issue voters and thereby  allow our representatives to stay in office when they champion that one issue. I have one comment on that  – WTF!

About Previous Posts.


At my advanced age, I began to write letters to the editors of local papers and a small amount of success. I soon realized that newspapers only print what is pertinent to their agendas so I began this blog (originally under Choseit), I posted over 200 entries some of which were posted in local papers and many that were not. This new event (word press) is an extension of that effort.You can still find some posting from choseit at:http://michael1942.choseit.com. There is no longer a link to this website. All previous posts are gone but I have saved some in hard copy form which I will be posting in the near future.

My Concern


My concern about our election system is one (1) issue voters. In these modern times the media coverage allows candidates faces  and any theme messages to be seen nationwide. Each candidate has a main theme and add any themes relating to local issues that will hopefully garner additional support along with votes. The issue I have is that with so many speeches in so many places many voters lock onto one theme that strikes home with them and vote accordingly. This method of voting leaves the door open for elected officials to do what is in their best interest under the guise of serving the people. If you do not believe this is the case then look back at the past 4 years of war in the Congress and the ongoing mismanagement of  Federal funds and programs. It is certainly easy to blame the elected head of the country as this is one person but there are 500 plus individuals who have more to do with what is done or not done than the Titular National leader. I am  absolutely ashamed that so many Americans allow Color (Race) to dictate their voting preferences while the real issues go unaddressed. This Racism is not White and Black but multicultural as America is still a melting pot and our political establishment uses this issue to divide us for their own gains. The issues that need to be addressed are put forth as single items rather than the entire issue and how it affects Everyone! My concern is that not enough of us care to know or believe its true.

1975


I begin this writing by addressing the current issue of gasoline prices. No matter who is President the gas prices will rise and drop according to the market and the events that occur in the oil producing countries. We have many people who really should know better but either refuse to acknowledge the facts due to a political or personal agenda. The President can only make a decision to use the “Strategic Oil Reserves” in a time of extreme crisis or national emergency namely  An all out attack on the Country or perhaps a world-wide war. It is unfortunate that many people feel that these reserves should be used to keep gasoline prices down under $4.00 per gallon but this would be a waste of this resource if we would ever need it later. The current President is pushing for alternative energy to maintain these reserves intact, if we use these reserves we will need to replace them at a higher cost so where is the advantage? We need to remember there are countries who if allowed would declare open warfare on the rest of the world with no regret and without a thought as to the consequence. These factions have pounded their own economies into the ground along with their people ( do the names: Hitler, Qadhafi or Hussein ring any bells?). I am including the website for the US  government webpage :http://www.spr.doe.gov/default.htm, this website tells about the US strategic oil reserves.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) is an emergency fuel storage of oil maintained by the United States Department of Energy. It is the largest emergency supply in the world with the capacity to hold up to 727 million barrels (115,600,000 m3).The current inventory is displayed on the SPR’s website. As of February 29, 2012, the inventory was 695.9 million barrels (110,640,000 m3). This equates to 36 days of oil at current daily US consumption levels of 19.5 million barrels per day (3,100,000 m3/d).[1] At recent market prices ($102 a barrel as of February 2012 [2]) the SPR holds over $26.7 billion in sweet crude and approximately $37.7 billion in sour crude (assuming a $15/barrel discount for sulfur content). The total value of the crude in the SPR is approximately $64.5 billion USD. The price paid for the oil is $20.1 billion (an average of $28.42 per barrel).[3]Purchases of crude oil resumed in January 2009 using revenues available from the 2005 Hurricane Katrina emergency sale. The DOE purchased 10,700,000 barrels (1,700,000 m3) at a cost of $553 million.[4]The United States started the petroleum reserve in 1975 after oil supplies were cut off during the 1973-74 oil embargo, to mitigate future temporary supply disruptions. According to the World Factbook,[5] the United States imports a net 12 million barrels (1,900,000 m3) of oil a day (MMbd), so the SPR holds about a 58-day supply. However, the maximum total withdrawal capability from the SPR is only 4.4 million barrels (700,000 m3) per day, making it a 160 + day supply.

Confusion


I have received several “robo calls” from various candidates then hearing and viewing the many  ads on TV and radio. I have concluded that the old Temptation’s song Ball of Confusion is apropos.  I am not sure if it is generational, electronic or just indifference but  the current method of campaigning  is as vile as any smear tactics as I have seen in my 70 years. These attack ads do no more than muddy the waters enough to create confusion (as in ball of) but what can we expect when we rally behind candidates who “approve” these messages. Unfortunately these are “modern” times we live in and along with it we have evolved criminals , political hacks ood.aspirants. I believe  we need to up our  game as voters and cease to be pawns in political games which cause  more harm than good. If a candidate has to trash the opponent then do we want that person to represent us when they have possibly lied about their opponent and their own credentials?

Just Do It Right!!


The ability of seemly well read and informed daily columnists to write about things they apparently have no full knowledge of is at once sad and anger provoking. There is so much written about what the President does and does not do creates a rampant wave of criticisms based on huge amounts of unfounded and unproven information. It is bad enough that the current candidates seeking the privilege of running for the office are advertising their way along the campaign trail but when columnists whose job is supposed to be reporting and writing about verified information submit incorrect information towards generating negative views about serious issues, then it is too much. All of information surrounding the interactions between our President and the heads of other country’s does not  have to be public knowledge. If this information was made public, it would only serve to create more dissidence and anxiety among the very public that the withholding of this information protects. These writers take small bits of information (not always correct) and brew it with their own pejorative views, this type of writing serves only the people who agree with it while confusing others and in doing so denigrates the idea of a Free Press. This very much like the detested “Yellow Journalism” that prevailed earlier in our history and looks similar to the type of journalism practiced by an international news syndicate.