Friday, October 31, 2008
Who are you?
I feel compelled to share a bit more about how I came to be the person I am and characterize this blog by what is really behind it. Some who are reading this may think I am a strong McCain supporter. You could not be more wrong. John McCain was not my choice - no, he is far from the representative that I was interested in electing to the office of President. That being said, he is the strongest candidate for that office at least on the areas that I care deeply (national security, the sanctity of life, individual rights, responsibility) about. Again, I said he is the best still standing.
The media in this country took away my chance to vote in the primary for the candidate that I thought would be best for this country. How? Why? They did it by backing John McCain and Barack Obama and by the time it was my turn to vote .... well, the choices had been dwindled down. Yes, the media did it. So why would the media back John McCain and Barack Obama? And what happened to that support (at least for McCain)? Quite simply put - John McCain was the closest thing to a Democrat that the Republican party had to offer and they saw this as the closest to an acceptable outcome as possible. Once the rest of the candidates were run off - the press' true colors came through and they showed that even an 'isle crosser' from the Republican party would not be acceptable. Why Obama? Because he is the most liberal candidate to ever step forward ... in the history of this great country. The press loves this and is the sole reason they continue to block and tackle for the candidate as he inches closer to the most powerful and most prestigious job in the entire world.
Why does any of this matter? If you have children you already understand this. Take the position of parent as you watch your child or children grow. When they are small you encourage them to take steps, you follow behind to pick them up when they fall. When they are taking steps on their own, completing sentences without your assistance and beginning to find and make friends your job as parent takes on another role. Now, you are looking out for who/what will interact with your child and you do things help to shape who your child is. I am specifically referring to monitoring and at times controlling who your child interacts with. We all know the 'Do not talk to strangers' part of this, but what is even more important is the investigating that we all do to know who our children are associating with. Who do they play with on the playground? Who do they eat lunch with at school? What are their parents like? What circle does my child run with?
This continues throughout the life of your child. Why? It is the associations that we have in life that make us the people we are. We all have found good and bad in people and we make judgement calls as to whether or not to continue the relationship. As a child we can't understand why we are or are not allowed to play with certain kids. As adults we understand that we are 'the company that we keep'. Character matters and part of that character is understanding who we should and should not associate with.
Back to politics .... or did we never leave. Barack Obama's associations are not ones that I wish for my children to have. To that end, they are not associations that I wish for my country to have. To many - comments such as these would be considered negative but the inverse could not be more true. It is simple honesty and innocent report of facts that should measure the tenor of the commentary.We need to grow up and be the parents. We need to stand up when we see something that is wrong in our society. We need to find ways to fix what is broken. We need to participate to insure we have the opportunity.
God Bless the United States of America!
The media in this country took away my chance to vote in the primary for the candidate that I thought would be best for this country. How? Why? They did it by backing John McCain and Barack Obama and by the time it was my turn to vote .... well, the choices had been dwindled down. Yes, the media did it. So why would the media back John McCain and Barack Obama? And what happened to that support (at least for McCain)? Quite simply put - John McCain was the closest thing to a Democrat that the Republican party had to offer and they saw this as the closest to an acceptable outcome as possible. Once the rest of the candidates were run off - the press' true colors came through and they showed that even an 'isle crosser' from the Republican party would not be acceptable. Why Obama? Because he is the most liberal candidate to ever step forward ... in the history of this great country. The press loves this and is the sole reason they continue to block and tackle for the candidate as he inches closer to the most powerful and most prestigious job in the entire world.
Why does any of this matter? If you have children you already understand this. Take the position of parent as you watch your child or children grow. When they are small you encourage them to take steps, you follow behind to pick them up when they fall. When they are taking steps on their own, completing sentences without your assistance and beginning to find and make friends your job as parent takes on another role. Now, you are looking out for who/what will interact with your child and you do things help to shape who your child is. I am specifically referring to monitoring and at times controlling who your child interacts with. We all know the 'Do not talk to strangers' part of this, but what is even more important is the investigating that we all do to know who our children are associating with. Who do they play with on the playground? Who do they eat lunch with at school? What are their parents like? What circle does my child run with?
This continues throughout the life of your child. Why? It is the associations that we have in life that make us the people we are. We all have found good and bad in people and we make judgement calls as to whether or not to continue the relationship. As a child we can't understand why we are or are not allowed to play with certain kids. As adults we understand that we are 'the company that we keep'. Character matters and part of that character is understanding who we should and should not associate with.
Back to politics .... or did we never leave. Barack Obama's associations are not ones that I wish for my children to have. To that end, they are not associations that I wish for my country to have. To many - comments such as these would be considered negative but the inverse could not be more true. It is simple honesty and innocent report of facts that should measure the tenor of the commentary.We need to grow up and be the parents. We need to stand up when we see something that is wrong in our society. We need to find ways to fix what is broken. We need to participate to insure we have the opportunity.
God Bless the United States of America!
Thursday, October 30, 2008
A lesson on taxation
I was recently sent an email from a friend that I thought was simple enough that most people could understand. I have pasted it below verbatim:
UNDERSTANDING ECONOMICS (OR) BAR STOOL ECONOMICS
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all 10 comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve.
Since you are all such good customers, he said, I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks for all of you will now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so:
The first four men were unaffected, they still pay nothing and will drink for free. The other six men -the paying customers had to decide how to divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share". They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33, but if they subtracted that from everybody's share then the fifth and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay. And so,
Each of the six was better off than before and the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
"I only got a dollar out of the $20" declared the sixth man he pointed to the tenth man "but he got $10" "Yeah, that right" exclaimed the fifth man 'I only saved $1 dollar too" "It's unfair that he got ten times more than I" That's true! shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only $2".
"The wealthy get all the breaks!!!
" Wait a minute' yelled the first four men in unison "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the Poor" We didn't get anything at all" The nine men surrounded the 10th and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him.
But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them, for even half of the bill!!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction!! Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy and they just may not show up anymore.
In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible-they will go ahead and vote for Obama.
UNDERSTANDING ECONOMICS (OR) BAR STOOL ECONOMICS
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all 10 comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
- The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing
- The fifth would pay $1
- The sixth would pay $3
- The seventh would pay $7
- The eighth would pay $12
- The ninth would pay $18
- The tenth man ( the richest) would pay $59
The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve.
Since you are all such good customers, he said, I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks for all of you will now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so:
The first four men were unaffected, they still pay nothing and will drink for free. The other six men -the paying customers had to decide how to divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share". They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33, but if they subtracted that from everybody's share then the fifth and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay. And so,
- The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving)
- The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% savings)
- The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% savings)
- The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings)
- The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 ( 22% savings)
- The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 ( 16% savings)
Each of the six was better off than before and the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
"I only got a dollar out of the $20" declared the sixth man he pointed to the tenth man "but he got $10" "Yeah, that right" exclaimed the fifth man 'I only saved $1 dollar too" "It's unfair that he got ten times more than I" That's true! shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only $2".
"The wealthy get all the breaks!!!
" Wait a minute' yelled the first four men in unison "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the Poor" We didn't get anything at all" The nine men surrounded the 10th and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him.
But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them, for even half of the bill!!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction!! Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy and they just may not show up anymore.
In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible-they will go ahead and vote for Obama.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Preparing for the 'unfiltered' Obama
I personally think the idea of buying up all of the air time so that a politician can 'sell' his message to the world is a great idea. I find it humorous that Mr. Obama is the one doing it. Why? Hasn't he had the time that he wanted without ever spending a dime already? With the main stream media taking the cues and input from his campaign and running with every positive story he thought important, what could he have possibly missed?
Apparently, he has not gotten his message out - so now he is taking a half hour spot on a number of networks to tell the world exactly what he wants us to hear. I will not be able to listen to it as I will be traveling home from a business trip - but I am sure it will be rebroadcast over and over again with his lap dogs carrying it to the finish line. While it is combative to bring it up - I thought McCain-Feingold had a provision that restricted air time as we edged closer to elections ... in an effort to stop what is about to happen. John McCain started working on this years ago because he saw what was possible.
Lastly, Mr. Obama appears to have more money than he could possibly know what to do with it. I wonder how that philosophy (raise as much as possible and make sure you spend all of it) will translate to a Obama presidency? The heir-apparent has already started campaigning to have people stay home from work and skip school to help 'make history'. This is not what this country needs and is 100% focused on Obama the individual instead of the citizen of this great country.
Apparently, he has not gotten his message out - so now he is taking a half hour spot on a number of networks to tell the world exactly what he wants us to hear. I will not be able to listen to it as I will be traveling home from a business trip - but I am sure it will be rebroadcast over and over again with his lap dogs carrying it to the finish line. While it is combative to bring it up - I thought McCain-Feingold had a provision that restricted air time as we edged closer to elections ... in an effort to stop what is about to happen. John McCain started working on this years ago because he saw what was possible.
Lastly, Mr. Obama appears to have more money than he could possibly know what to do with it. I wonder how that philosophy (raise as much as possible and make sure you spend all of it) will translate to a Obama presidency? The heir-apparent has already started campaigning to have people stay home from work and skip school to help 'make history'. This is not what this country needs and is 100% focused on Obama the individual instead of the citizen of this great country.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Where is the honesty?
Not that there are many of you out there reading my posts, but if you have read them you sense that I am rather annoyed with the media in the U.S. . Politics is a simple area to see how one-sided, skewed and self-promoting the media is in this country. There was a time, I have been told, that the media (print, radio, television) actually reported the news. They investigated all aspects of a story and provided that information for the world to consume.
That time is definitely either a dream, a point in history that has been passed by, or simply a creative thought that my parents shared with me as a child and I believed them. The news media, specifically print and television, is so focused on getting their story out there that they often create news instead of merely reporting it. Reading about Sarah Palin (you name the topic) it is very clear that a team of investigators took their charge to dig up information very seriously. This is something that the media should do. However they failed to do the same research on Joe Biden, Barack Obama and John McCain. Perhaps they think that everyone knows how much each of them spends on their wardrobes or how much money they have tied up in family business ....
That being said - it appears that they simply have a plan to report every negative aspect of the governors life in an effort to create/sway public opinion instead of simply reporting it. If they really were about informing the public they would have gone through the same level of investigation and speculation about Joe Biden. Something as simple as :"How can a United States Senator, for several years, be in a position to only be worth $63,000?". Talk about judgement - if he has nothing more that $63K saved after all those years living on the public dime, then how ready is he to be President? Balance a budget? Get us out of this economic crisis that he helped get us in to?
So, until the press decides to act as an unbiased observer and researcher - I will not recommend them for anything other than lining my daughter's rabbit cage and another reason to limit the amount of time my children watch television.
That time is definitely either a dream, a point in history that has been passed by, or simply a creative thought that my parents shared with me as a child and I believed them. The news media, specifically print and television, is so focused on getting their story out there that they often create news instead of merely reporting it. Reading about Sarah Palin (you name the topic) it is very clear that a team of investigators took their charge to dig up information very seriously. This is something that the media should do. However they failed to do the same research on Joe Biden, Barack Obama and John McCain. Perhaps they think that everyone knows how much each of them spends on their wardrobes or how much money they have tied up in family business ....
That being said - it appears that they simply have a plan to report every negative aspect of the governors life in an effort to create/sway public opinion instead of simply reporting it. If they really were about informing the public they would have gone through the same level of investigation and speculation about Joe Biden. Something as simple as :"How can a United States Senator, for several years, be in a position to only be worth $63,000?". Talk about judgement - if he has nothing more that $63K saved after all those years living on the public dime, then how ready is he to be President? Balance a budget? Get us out of this economic crisis that he helped get us in to?
So, until the press decides to act as an unbiased observer and researcher - I will not recommend them for anything other than lining my daughter's rabbit cage and another reason to limit the amount of time my children watch television.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Experience Matters?
Here we sit 15 days before the 2008 election and the political 'analysts' continue to push the 'Sarah Palin is not qualified to be President' message and to a large degree they are correct. She has not been truly tested on the international stage and voters should be informed and concerned. However, the last time I checked she was running for the office of Vice President. Yes, a heartbeat away ... but let's keep the facts straight. Where is the honesty in the reporting of the other side? What qualifies Barack Obama to be President? Other than the now famous quote from former President Bill Clinton 'he is 35 years of age ...', I just don't see it. He has never governed/managed ... ANYTHING. "He is a United States Senator" - so what? What has he done of any real note? Nothing!
What is fair is fair - I just wish the media in this country would be honest in reporting information instead of continuing to try to create it. We just heard Colin Powell come out to support Mr. Obama for President and he cited a few items that should be addressed:
Mr. Powell questions John McCain's judgement in selecting Sarah Palin as a running mate. At the same time condeming Mr. McCain for questing Mr. Obama's judgement with his association with Bill Ayers. If judgement is something that should be considered in the selection of a President (which I think it should) then judgement should be considered from both candidates.
Mr. Powell questions John McCain's ability to find a way through the current economic crisis. What about questioning Barack Obama's connection to those that caused the majority of the current economic crisis?
I have long admired Mr. Powell. His service to his country and to be honest - his ability to influence individuals with his words. I was fortunate enough to hear Mr. Powell speak at a work event and he was captivating. What I admired was not the words he used, it was the way he used them. I do not fall on the support side of many things Mr. Powell advocates, but his ability to move an audience is incredible.
I always look at individuals for what I can take/learn from them. I then try to find ways to make those things I like part of my own being - redefining who I am. Being is sales - I found a lot to like in Mr. Powell.
What is fair is fair - I just wish the media in this country would be honest in reporting information instead of continuing to try to create it. We just heard Colin Powell come out to support Mr. Obama for President and he cited a few items that should be addressed:
Mr. Powell questions John McCain's judgement in selecting Sarah Palin as a running mate. At the same time condeming Mr. McCain for questing Mr. Obama's judgement with his association with Bill Ayers. If judgement is something that should be considered in the selection of a President (which I think it should) then judgement should be considered from both candidates.
Mr. Powell questions John McCain's ability to find a way through the current economic crisis. What about questioning Barack Obama's connection to those that caused the majority of the current economic crisis?
I have long admired Mr. Powell. His service to his country and to be honest - his ability to influence individuals with his words. I was fortunate enough to hear Mr. Powell speak at a work event and he was captivating. What I admired was not the words he used, it was the way he used them. I do not fall on the support side of many things Mr. Powell advocates, but his ability to move an audience is incredible.
I always look at individuals for what I can take/learn from them. I then try to find ways to make those things I like part of my own being - redefining who I am. Being is sales - I found a lot to like in Mr. Powell.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Tired of the future
How far have we come? Not very far if you ask me. What am I talking about? What ever happened to keeping your word? Standing up for what you believe in? Standing up for those that can't stand up for themselves?
When I was growing up, my parents along with their neighbors taught us to honor your word. Keep your commitments, respect each other and above all understand that you are part of something larger. With the current political situation in the United States it is obvious that the lessons of yesterday have been thrown out the window.
After watching the debates last night and listening to the morning after quarterbacks - either I did not watch the same debate, or I am living in an alternate universe. Neither candidate is clean in this election. They have both been a part of the failed economic decisions that have brought the financial crisis on the world. Yet, they both claim to have done something in the past that should have averted it. Mr. Obama - sending a letter to a chairman DOES NOTHING. If you really believed what you wrote a year and a half ago - why didn't you do something as senator? Mr. McCain - if the Republicans held congress when you signed on to the bill that went down in defeat - WHY COULDN'T YOU GET IT PASSED? Failure to lead is failure to act!
The facts are the facts. The corruption in Washington brought us to this point. Yes, greed on Wall Street played a part, but it is the underhanded actions of the Washington insiders that started this ball rolling. Once moving in a direction they wanted - they were all too willing to support whatever promoted their cause. Now, they want to place the blame on President Bush and anyone who ever voted in support of one of his policies. Well, I hate to break the news to you but for as many failures as the Bush administration has had you can't pile this crisis on them.
This started long ago with well-intentioned individuals trying to bring the American dream to those that were less fortunate. While admirable, it only goes to show the law of unintended consequences is alive and well. Lowering the barrier to home ownership is looking out for the little guy (or girl). Forcing institutions to make risky loans was the wrong approach to take. Now, piling on to those that were told to do it and found a way to make money in the process (which is the goal of business in the first place) is down right immoral.
Stand up for what you believe in! Work towards solutions that help everyone instead of pitting groups against each other! Take the blame for what you did ... or did not do! Honor your words and actions if you want us to support your future plans!
When I was growing up, my parents along with their neighbors taught us to honor your word. Keep your commitments, respect each other and above all understand that you are part of something larger. With the current political situation in the United States it is obvious that the lessons of yesterday have been thrown out the window.
After watching the debates last night and listening to the morning after quarterbacks - either I did not watch the same debate, or I am living in an alternate universe. Neither candidate is clean in this election. They have both been a part of the failed economic decisions that have brought the financial crisis on the world. Yet, they both claim to have done something in the past that should have averted it. Mr. Obama - sending a letter to a chairman DOES NOTHING. If you really believed what you wrote a year and a half ago - why didn't you do something as senator? Mr. McCain - if the Republicans held congress when you signed on to the bill that went down in defeat - WHY COULDN'T YOU GET IT PASSED? Failure to lead is failure to act!
The facts are the facts. The corruption in Washington brought us to this point. Yes, greed on Wall Street played a part, but it is the underhanded actions of the Washington insiders that started this ball rolling. Once moving in a direction they wanted - they were all too willing to support whatever promoted their cause. Now, they want to place the blame on President Bush and anyone who ever voted in support of one of his policies. Well, I hate to break the news to you but for as many failures as the Bush administration has had you can't pile this crisis on them.
This started long ago with well-intentioned individuals trying to bring the American dream to those that were less fortunate. While admirable, it only goes to show the law of unintended consequences is alive and well. Lowering the barrier to home ownership is looking out for the little guy (or girl). Forcing institutions to make risky loans was the wrong approach to take. Now, piling on to those that were told to do it and found a way to make money in the process (which is the goal of business in the first place) is down right immoral.
Stand up for what you believe in! Work towards solutions that help everyone instead of pitting groups against each other! Take the blame for what you did ... or did not do! Honor your words and actions if you want us to support your future plans!
Friday, October 3, 2008
First post
I have been attempting to blog at work, using my company provided service. I found myself wanting to share opinions that are not necessarily ones that should ever be attributed to my employer. So, here I am moving out to blogspot. I don't know how often I will be posting but this is where some of my direct opinions, concerns and passions will show up.
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