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Tag Archives: As I see It

Kathleen Parker opinion-with My Comment


“Republicans plan to commence focus groups and voter-based polls to discover the mystery behind their loss. Having sat staring into space the past couple of days, they now want to get to the bottom of it. The bubble in which most politicians and their staffs live is not just a metaphor, apparently. The answer has been so obvious for so long and in so many ways, one has to wonder what these people read in their spare time. Old issues of Boys’ Life? If nothing else, one had to look only at the two political conventions. One was colorful, vibrant, excited and happy. The other was pale, moribund, staid and restrained. If the latter sounds like something in the final stages of life, you’re not far off. A couple of weeks before the election, I spoke to an audience of about 450 in Florida, the demographics of which were about 80 percent male, 90 percent Republican and, oh, about 99.9 percent white. What could be more fun than that! Alas, the bulk of my talk was criticism of the Republican Party. If Mitt Romney loses, I told them, it will be largely the fault of the party. As I spelled out the details, nary a creature was stirring. It was painfully quiet. Even my best jokes fell flat. Hey, guys, that was funny!  It was hard to tell whether they resented the messenger or were trying to digest the unpalatable truth. Truth is often painful, and the days since President Obama’s reelection have been a salted slugfest. Amid the writhing, I rest my case. Some Republicans stubbornly insist, of course, that the problem was that Romney wasn’t conservative enough. Really? In his heart, this may be true. I never believed Romney was passionate about social issues. He embraced them because he had to, but he had no intention of pursuing a socially conservative agenda. But the real problem is the Republican Party, which would not be recognizable to its patron saint, Ronald Reagan. The party doesn’t need a poll or a focus group. It needs a mirror. The truth is, Romney was better than the GOP deserved. Party nitwits undermined him, and the self-righteous tried to bring him down. The nitwits are well-enough known at this point — those farthest-right social conservatives who couldn’t find it in their hearts to keep their traps shut. No abortion for rape or incest? Sit down. Legitimate rape? Put on your clown suit and go play in the street. Equally damaging were the primary leeches who embarrassed the party and wouldn’t leave the stage. Nine-nine-nine, we’re talking about you, Herman Cain. And Gov. Oops? You, too. And then there were Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann, who never had a real shot at the nomination and certainly could never win a national election, yet they refused to surrender to the certain nominee. Did they have a right to persist in their own fantasies? Sure. But not if they were serious about getting a Republican in the White House. Thus, for months and months, Romney had to spend his energy and, as important, his money to prevail in the primaries against opponents who had no chance and who ultimately hurt him. During that same precious time, Obama’s campaign was busy pinpointing specific voters, practically learning the names of their dogs, and buying ads in niche markets. More to the point, the GOP seems willfully clueless. There’s a reason there are so few minorities in the party. There’s a reason women scrambled to the other side. There’s a reason Hispanics, including even Cuban Americans this time, went for Obama. The way forward is about love, not war, baby. Women’s reproductive rights need to come off the table. As Haley Barbour suggested long ago, agree to disagree. Compassionate immigration reform, including a path to citizenship, should be the centerpiece of a conservative party’s agenda. Marginalize or banish those who in any way make African Americans, gays, single women or any other human being feel unwelcome in a party that cherishes the values of limited government, low taxes and freedom. A large swath of conservative-minded Americans are Democrats and independents by default. Mitt Romney would have been a fine president and might have won the day but for the party he had to please.”kathleenparker@washpost.com This opinion explains a lot but the real problem is still in the Senate. Mitch McConnell has outlived his usefulness, his shoot from the hip approach which appears to be blatantly biased is not in the best interests of the country and possibly never has been. This is a very good example of having term limits on Congress no matter what party they are associated with. To advance the UNITED STATES we must decrease the long term influence of power mad national representatives who have no agenda beyond their own welfare.

What A Load of C_ _ p!


ST. LOUIS (AP) – A coal producer owned by a longtime critic of President Barack Obama’s energy policies will lay off nearly 160 workers at Illinois and Utah mines, blaming the freshly re-elected president for a “war on coal.’Ohio-based Murray Energy Corp. said in a statement supplied Friday to The Associated Press that it would give pink slips to 102 workers at its West Ridge Mine in Utah and 54 at its underground mine in the southern Illinois town of Galatia. Both mines are run by Murray Energy.

The above excerpt indicates the racism in America. This mine owner would rather lay off workers and devastate families than make an effort to produce coal. The president has never said “stop using coal”! The Presidents aim is to use renewable or green sources of energy. At this time we are years away from the everyday use of these sources, meanwhile it would be prudent for this mine owner to keep mining coal and possible looking into more efficient production. It is not a stretch to think that this owner is probably anti union and would if possible remove all safety measures to save money.  This is the type of business man who would blame a mining accident on the workers. If Mr. Romney had won the Presidency would he have fired his workers? If not then his actions are racist.

 

How We Are Handled.


A recent story about the upswing in firearms and ammunition sales is pure manipulation by any one of several factions in the firearms industry. There has been no talk of the President doing anything to curtail, change or  alter current firearms and ammunition laws. When the President first ran for office there were factions asserting that the current firearms laws were going to be altered. these alterations ranged from restrictions on purchasing firearms and ammo to high-priced licensing. Many of the restrictive laws having to do with firearms are mandated by individual states and municipalities. As an example Kennesaw , Georgia has a law mandating that residents have firearms while NYC has a strict ban on ownership. The surge of sales and subsequent price raises in firearms and ammunition has nothing to do with the President but more to do with the manufacturers taking advantage of  long time low prices and slow sales. There certainly are proponents and anti’s for  firearms and ammunition  ownership, yet some folks cannot get beyond the issue of Race and politics to see the full picture. We are handled by using our  personal biases and misinformation to skew the truth. There is no specific truth in what a political party thinks about the control or regulation firearms and ammunition beyond the available public (and private) support from being pro or con. How do we avoid being handled? We all need to read more and not rely on well known talking heads in  the media who often run with an idea without determining its merits or lack of.

Buskers In Congress


The big push against the millionaires tax has been a big deal in Congress possible because many members are millionaires. The people we have elected to protect and serve are doing just that but not for us . This tax  cut would affect people making over 250,000 annually but it would also affect many in the Congress providing an incentive to keep it in effect. There are many in the lower level of these cuts who would be affected but in order for Congress to maintain theirs they put the onus on the people on the lower end. This also covers the major contributors to many Congressional campaigns. Now that this election season is over what will we think of the also rans who so prominently entertained us with the shouts of eliminating the “Affordable healthcare Act”? Congressman Ryan who was featured  publicly in the run for the office now has to decide what he needs to do, should he do what should have been done such as make the Affordable healthcare better instead of starting from scratch? Will the other participants in the Congressional play do what is right instead of appearing in and on the media as opponents of everything? What will Mr. Romney do now, I am sure with his wealth he has no reason to be unhappy except for possibly  having let his backers down. The last word on this election was had by the voters, who recognized the misinformation and sometimes lies put out by the Party. Everyone enjoys Buskers except when they are Congressional members.

How To


I recently made some repairs on my microwave, I had to replace the latching mechanism and waited several months for the part. Having replaced it and had all parts working again, I thought about the “public” and “work” microwaves I have encountered. The common factor in these units is that no one takes responsibility for the cleaning of these units. Occasionally someone will attempt the cleanup but more often than not they go uncleaned after spills. While I do speculate on the folks who do not do any cleanup after themselves in this instance, I am more concerned with the life of the unit and the inconvenience of its demise to others. Basic maintenance of a microwave is this: After use wipe the side walls, top and bottom and the plate. Use a mild soap solution but be sure to follow  with a clear rinse to remove ant sops film. The final stage is to wipe the door, the door ledge and door gasket. Doing this will extend the life of the unit and prevent an early demise. Two last but important points are to insure the vent (s) are not blocked by being placed near a wall or in some cases a cabinet (if the cabinet has an open back, it is usually OK) and cover what you cook or heat, I use a wax paper under a lid if available for the cooking utensil. Microwaves are not tremendously expensive any  more but why buy one when you can extend the life of the one you have.

Preckwinkle


Preckwinkle has backed off of the surcharge on bullets but still wants to levy a $25.00 charge on all guns sold in Cook County. Here we are again with the legal firearm owners being charged for the fiscal irresponsibility of the city. Preckwinkle needs to go back to the drawing board and perhaps levy a fee on bicycles, motor scooters or archery equipment. Those will make as big an impact on the mortality of the citizens of the State of Chicago. We on the outside of the State of Chicago can take care of ourselves.

Who Will Remember?


Does anyone remember Dan Quayle? Will anyone remember Paul Ryan? These two gentlemen have something in common except Mr.  Quayle made to the white House and Mr. Ryan hasn’t yet. Mr. Ryan’s ideas are a bit off-center (hard to tell which way). His proposals for fiscal change will result in bigger problems than we have now but the extreme conservatives of all sorts are for it no matter how it affects the famous 47%.  I believe it is better to go with a known quantity than an unknown at this point. The economy no matter how slow, is growing yet the aspirants to the White House are inserting the auto companies into the fray with incorrect information and allegations. The auto company’s have answered with the truth so who do we want leading us, some with a poor to non existent grasp of the situation or some one who has put us on a path to fiscal health? it is important to understand that even after Mr. Obama’s second term there will still be some uphill climbing to be done, lets hope the next office holder continues forward.

Does Willard Romney Really Care?


The recent weather disaster should give pause to folks who are considering voting for Mr. Romney. Under the guise of  suspending the politricking, he asked for food donations at his rally, this is to be distributed in the communities affected by the adverse weather. The real President suspended his election activities to do what Presidents do, guide and watch over the weather related problems. Any person who is on the fence should see that we already have a President who is doing the work  that is required up to and including the so called “OBamacare”. The health plan is named “The Affordable Health Care Act” and has afforded healthcare for millions of folks already. If Mr. Romney prevails all of that will be lost and the country’s health care will be in shambles. There are now people who are judging the actions of the President in this problem as politics but what should he have done? Remember Katrina?, its aftermath is still in evidence in the areas affected. I consider myself an independent voter but I spend a lot of time reading several papers and poring over  many websites to glean middle line information and facts yet I sometimes miss items. Consider what information the people who do not search for truth are getting and acting on. These are the folks that lean toward or are behind Mr. Romney. It does not matter to me who people vote for as long as they have done their due diligence in determining the facts.

What Is Really Wrong


matter who is in the White House, you will still have same old Congress. The economy is picking up as predicted and it is slow going as predicted. Our old Congress through the graces of millionaire donations which are the funneled into anti Obama ads while supporting pro Romney ads are showing what is really wrong. Our Congress does not want change because they would lose their sweet deals and perks provided through the auspices of wealthy donors. If we voters (no matter what party we support) would realize that through ads, misinformation and sometimes outright lies we never get all of the information required to be an informed voter. These campaigns are playing to our biases and ignorance of certain facts. The current stalemate in Congress is on hold until the old guard sees who is elected. If it is Mr. Romney then it will be business as usual, if it Is Mr. Obama then the same hedging as before. It is the right of the people to yell, scream and write to your representatives and get the changes needed. Splinter groups do it all of the time and get things done that do not necessarily reflect all of our opinions and views. The real way to change no matter who is in the White House is to weed out the old guard , put in some new people and demand changes that more reflect the original purpose of Congress.

If You Would Only Read


The current and recent past Presidential election has shown how un evolved we are. The bonobo Chimpanzees have more moral turpitude than we do in election seasons.  Some of us  have shown our true “colors” during this campaign yet refuse to acknowledge that you could be Racist. If this is your true being then live it or give it up. There  are  some of us who through ignorance or pejorative preference  cannot understand the real reasons for voting. The advertising of candidates has presented what each candidate wants us to hear and unfortunately many of us do not avail ourselves of any additional available information to corroborate or disprove what is being presented. If life was like a school , many of us would be failing. Life teaches us many things but not necessarily how to live, how to progress or even exist. These things come from our homes, teachers and parents even then there is room for personal reconciliation of the facts and ideas presented. If we would only read, explore the wonder of newspapers (notice this is pluralized) and news magazines, each presents a different slant on current events but it allows for a well-rounded view of a topic. There is always time for a quick read instead of accepting the information presented by a distinguished looking man or nice looking woman as fact. You barely believe the weather person yet any other information presented is accepted as fact. Finally why is that many of us want the worst to be true because it fits our personal biases?