Iran's attempt to obtain a nuclear bomb is a clear and present danger, not only to the Middle East and Israel in particular, but to the whole world and the kind of peace it (world) needs.
The attack on the British Embassy in Tehran yesterday makes it official that the government of Iran will do anything to push its agenda of spreading its brand of Islam through force and military power; and that constitutes a threat to all countries and their embassies, which under International law, are safe havens.
By flouting the law governed by the Vienna convention, Iran is acting as an undesirable country that must be faced before it does more damage to bilateral relations, which must be observed by all nations.
What makes the attack more dangerous is that the protesters include members of the secret police and the paramilitary basij brigades, which are under the control of Iran's Revolutionary Guards.
The reason for the invasion is quite obvious that the British is taking the recent report by the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) seriously, that the Iranians are up to no good.
The report cited "credible" evidence of Iranian scientists experimenting with a "nuclear warhead design." That alone must sound an alarm to the rest of the world that Iran is not just close to having the "bomb", but it is preparing to give a surprise to whomever it chooses, either to Israel or even the United States.
That is the basis upon which the UK is making a strong decision to "sever ties to the Iranian banking system and parliament, the Majlis," and it (decision) has annoyed the Iranian government so much so that, it has to give the order for the protesters to storm the embassy.
That must be quite obvious, because a squad of Iranian riot police has been assigned to the embassy, but it (police) is not able to put up any kind of resistance to stop the attack.
The scene is said to be similar to the seizure of the U.S. embassy in 1979; but as events in history tend to repeat themselves, America must not rest assured that nothing sinister is coming its way.
It all goes to show that the United Nations resolutions and sanctions cannot deter Iran from pursuing its plans; so, isn't it about time some dramatic action is taken before the inevitable happens?
The British embassy today, the U.S. embassy the next; and on and on it will go, by a terrorist country that has no respect for International law.
.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
CAIN & MAINSTREAM MEDIA.
Herman Cain's denials of his philandering habits have been grabbing the headlines this week.
As he continued on the campaign trail, his popularity would be waning, and the numbers, lining him up with the front runners in the polls were likely to go down and into single digits as the weeks progressed, and that would not be a good sign for his candidacy to succeed.
The accusations have bitten too much out of any advancement the former Godfather's pizza chairman has made, and a whole lot of enthusiasm has gone from his efforts; and also he was not being looked at, from a public perception, the same way again as before.
The political donations were not going to be as forthcoming as his camp had anticipated; and that too could upset his plans in the Republican Party nomination race to which frequent donors were needed to finance a campaign of that caliber.
It was not one for a local political office; it was for the presidency of the United States; and so the funds must have a continuous flow.
Even his friend Newt Gingrich, who has similar charges made against him in the past was joining in giving advise to Cain for him to come forward and addressed the issues without holding anything back.
The accusations by more than two or three women, and now four, as an Atlanta woman has become the latest of Cain's accusers, could not be forthrightly faced with mere denials.
The story from Atlanta by this person for having a 14 year affair with him took the cake. That was not a stint; it was almost a lifelong relationship, as even many real marriages did not last that long or far less.
For any amount of amnesia that Cain has had over the years, he would remember something or some feature of his accuser for that length of time, starting with the face and the last encounter with that face, at least.
The mainstream media would be courting him as much as they would like, but that was what they gained their revenues from; from sordid news about a high profile person, as he, Cain, now was. They would be harping on the same topic, leaving him no chance to fully concentrate on his campaign.
What he himself must be sure of was not to bring his family or marriage into the fracas, for he would have done not only a personal damage to himself, but also one to those whom he loved and had devoted his life for; like his wife, his children, and so on and so forth.
One would be asking whether his campaign would get him anywhere, on his journey to the White House, but one would not have an answer to that question.
It would take Cain to decide, if the whole thing, meaning this episode in his life, was, or has been or would be, worthwhile for him personally.
As he continued on the campaign trail, his popularity would be waning, and the numbers, lining him up with the front runners in the polls were likely to go down and into single digits as the weeks progressed, and that would not be a good sign for his candidacy to succeed.
The accusations have bitten too much out of any advancement the former Godfather's pizza chairman has made, and a whole lot of enthusiasm has gone from his efforts; and also he was not being looked at, from a public perception, the same way again as before.
The political donations were not going to be as forthcoming as his camp had anticipated; and that too could upset his plans in the Republican Party nomination race to which frequent donors were needed to finance a campaign of that caliber.
It was not one for a local political office; it was for the presidency of the United States; and so the funds must have a continuous flow.
Even his friend Newt Gingrich, who has similar charges made against him in the past was joining in giving advise to Cain for him to come forward and addressed the issues without holding anything back.
The accusations by more than two or three women, and now four, as an Atlanta woman has become the latest of Cain's accusers, could not be forthrightly faced with mere denials.
The story from Atlanta by this person for having a 14 year affair with him took the cake. That was not a stint; it was almost a lifelong relationship, as even many real marriages did not last that long or far less.
For any amount of amnesia that Cain has had over the years, he would remember something or some feature of his accuser for that length of time, starting with the face and the last encounter with that face, at least.
The mainstream media would be courting him as much as they would like, but that was what they gained their revenues from; from sordid news about a high profile person, as he, Cain, now was. They would be harping on the same topic, leaving him no chance to fully concentrate on his campaign.
What he himself must be sure of was not to bring his family or marriage into the fracas, for he would have done not only a personal damage to himself, but also one to those whom he loved and had devoted his life for; like his wife, his children, and so on and so forth.
One would be asking whether his campaign would get him anywhere, on his journey to the White House, but one would not have an answer to that question.
It would take Cain to decide, if the whole thing, meaning this episode in his life, was, or has been or would be, worthwhile for him personally.
Monday, November 28, 2011
THE AMERICAN MIDDLE CLASS & WORKING PEOPLE.
The middle class and working people of America have never had a sympathizer as President Barack Obama, since LBJ's war on poverty, which many thought was a camouflage for JFK's death, and never trusted him, until they were able to get him out of office, using the Vietnam war as a pretext.
It was with a heavy heart that he made his resignation speech, saying the famous words, "I will not run for president,", on March 31st, 1968.
In his mind, he thought that Americans, and particularly the masses, who were mainly poor and of middle class background, would back him, because he was fighting their cause; and they were such a disappointment, it made him sad and close to tears.
His program later degenerated into making America a welfare state, which most came to detest, and thus making Johnson's ouster a reasonable feat.
The analogy here was Obama sticking his neck out for the very same middle class and working people against the enormous power of the 1% of the population that ran the United States with their investment portfolios and bank accounts. Those were the corporate and industrial moguls in the country.
Nobody could face them head on and not get hurt, and it took the bravest to challenge them and be able to remain in the White House, as Obama was doing. He had said that they should pay their fair share in taxes, and how dared he to say so, since they were the job creators and business builders.
They (moguls) could not have better persons to champion their claim than the Republican Party members in the U.S. Congress, most of whom were millionaires themselves, and the propaganda machinery of their party targeting to discredit the Obama administration's policies as repulsive, unproductive and failures.
They have used a single word, "spending" to organize a stiff opposition, which has come to be known as "the tea party", that was made up of all manner of people, but mostly of racist in nature; and together, they have sworn to uproot Obama from being the president of the U.S.
It (spending) has become a magnet even for simple folks to assume the nation's debt to be rising exponentially, since Obama took office; but where the vast majority of the spending was going, his detractors refused to say. It was feeding two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and defending the nation from its enemies, besides other relevant expenditures that any government should incur.
Corporations and big businesses have money reserves sitting idle in vaults and out of commission. They have stopped hiring people; as well as many so called small business entrepreneurs or owners, who were out to cheat their workers, by refusing to give them the same healthcare coverage that they had, have joined the band. They objected to the new healthcare law by the president, "Obamacare", as they themselves called it.
Hence, the extraordinary downturn of America's economy and high unemployment, which were being aided by the many upheavals going on around the world.
Nevertheless, all the actions of the opposition were geared to destroy Obama and his administration.
If there were to be a class warfare, Obama did not start it. It was the wealthy 1% that had a political party carrying its banner, and utilizing its resources to terminate him, because he was overly protective of the middle and working class people.
The Occupy Wall Street demonstrators should have come out showing their support for his American Jobs Act proposal, but it did not outwardly do so; however, many could imagine that the demonstrations taking place all over the country were the beginnings of a social groundswell, which would be ready to give him a second term.
Unlike LBJ, he was not going to throw in the towel, with the middle and working class people looking in. He deserved their support in the 2012 general election, and he should get it.
Besides, a former governor of Massachusetts, who left with a profound unemployment in the State, and an intellectual elitist, who made his money writing books, were not the ones to carry the nation forward, emotionally, economically and politically.
Their sole ambition was to interrupt Obama, which should not be permitted by the middle and working class people of America.
P.S. This blog remains neutral.
It was with a heavy heart that he made his resignation speech, saying the famous words, "I will not run for president,", on March 31st, 1968.
In his mind, he thought that Americans, and particularly the masses, who were mainly poor and of middle class background, would back him, because he was fighting their cause; and they were such a disappointment, it made him sad and close to tears.
His program later degenerated into making America a welfare state, which most came to detest, and thus making Johnson's ouster a reasonable feat.
The analogy here was Obama sticking his neck out for the very same middle class and working people against the enormous power of the 1% of the population that ran the United States with their investment portfolios and bank accounts. Those were the corporate and industrial moguls in the country.
Nobody could face them head on and not get hurt, and it took the bravest to challenge them and be able to remain in the White House, as Obama was doing. He had said that they should pay their fair share in taxes, and how dared he to say so, since they were the job creators and business builders.
They (moguls) could not have better persons to champion their claim than the Republican Party members in the U.S. Congress, most of whom were millionaires themselves, and the propaganda machinery of their party targeting to discredit the Obama administration's policies as repulsive, unproductive and failures.
They have used a single word, "spending" to organize a stiff opposition, which has come to be known as "the tea party", that was made up of all manner of people, but mostly of racist in nature; and together, they have sworn to uproot Obama from being the president of the U.S.
It (spending) has become a magnet even for simple folks to assume the nation's debt to be rising exponentially, since Obama took office; but where the vast majority of the spending was going, his detractors refused to say. It was feeding two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and defending the nation from its enemies, besides other relevant expenditures that any government should incur.
Corporations and big businesses have money reserves sitting idle in vaults and out of commission. They have stopped hiring people; as well as many so called small business entrepreneurs or owners, who were out to cheat their workers, by refusing to give them the same healthcare coverage that they had, have joined the band. They objected to the new healthcare law by the president, "Obamacare", as they themselves called it.
Hence, the extraordinary downturn of America's economy and high unemployment, which were being aided by the many upheavals going on around the world.
Nevertheless, all the actions of the opposition were geared to destroy Obama and his administration.
If there were to be a class warfare, Obama did not start it. It was the wealthy 1% that had a political party carrying its banner, and utilizing its resources to terminate him, because he was overly protective of the middle and working class people.
The Occupy Wall Street demonstrators should have come out showing their support for his American Jobs Act proposal, but it did not outwardly do so; however, many could imagine that the demonstrations taking place all over the country were the beginnings of a social groundswell, which would be ready to give him a second term.
Unlike LBJ, he was not going to throw in the towel, with the middle and working class people looking in. He deserved their support in the 2012 general election, and he should get it.
Besides, a former governor of Massachusetts, who left with a profound unemployment in the State, and an intellectual elitist, who made his money writing books, were not the ones to carry the nation forward, emotionally, economically and politically.
Their sole ambition was to interrupt Obama, which should not be permitted by the middle and working class people of America.
P.S. This blog remains neutral.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
THEY ARE SEEING THE LIGHT.
PROPAGANDA: "is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda).
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is the official name of the Obama administration's health reform, which the Republicans and other Conservative groups have named as "Obamacare".
They are vilifying it in such a way that people are wondering why it is being attacked so much; that it is a bad program, it costs too much, and it is very unpopular, according these groups.
However, the fact is that it has given healthcare insurance coverage to an additional 30 million people. They are now insured, and they and their families can go to the ER, when they need to without any problem.
Most of the candidates running in the Republican Party race for nomination have vowed to repeal it. Romney, Bachmann and Cain have all forcefully come against it. It is their aim to dismantle it and to put it back together again their own way.
So, the public knows that it is obnoxious, but nobody has come out rebelling against it, in the form of a demonstration, such as Occupy Wall Street, an anti group against capitalism.
Or even the grassroots membership of the Republican Party and Conservative groups are not showing outwardly and protesting its existence. Where are they? The streets belong to them too.
For a measure of good reason, some people are skeptical of the attitude of those who are slamming the program, and are wondering, if it is not just pure propaganda by those, who are railing against the new healthcare program; and if that is true, then who must be behind the opposition.
Can it be the Private Insurance companies that used to run their own programs before and have messed the healthcare industry up; or the doctors and specialists, who are believed to have bled those programs to death, by high costs and exorbitant charges that patients cannot afford?
As a result, many people are denied policies due to high premiums, which they cannot pay; and the ones that are branded as having preexisting conditions are made to lose their policies, and are evicted from hospitals or turned away from healthcare facilities; some of whom die off needlessly.
Are they going to be forced to go back to that?
The healthcare industry has become so dysfunctional; a factory type of business, where people are treated as undesirable entities, because their health problems happen to be too laborious, in so many cases, to the point that policies are denied them, left, right and center. The shame of it all is that most of them are poor people and the elderly.
The only way to get the healthcare industry going well again is to completely overhaul it, and that is exactly the objective of the Obama administration from the very start.
The bad management of the system is what has caught the attention of the Obama administration before, and during its first days in office, to decide to reform it for the better.
The latest claim by those who used to hawk private insurance policies is that the new health law is a "job killer"; yet, they are failing to convince most people of that as being factual, except that they are using the high unemployment rate to support their argument.
Politicians, who are receiving campaign contributions from these healthcare companies and other private investors, must be behind all that hullabaloo, that Obamacare is worse than the previous system, and that they will repeal it to let it become the cornucopia for their backers as in the past; hence the heavy strain of propaganda against the new healthcare law.
However, will their tactics work?
Many are doubting whether their strategy will catch fire with a majority of healthcare users, as going back to "the status quo" will be impossible. They detest the past healthcare services, and if they do not like the new law, why are they not out there protesting against it?
They can see that all that the opposition is doing is spewing out sheer propaganda to discredit President Barack Obama; and that is all there is to it.
Will it (propaganda) fail? Yes! Of course. Why? Because most Americans are saying so; for they are seeing the light.
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is the official name of the Obama administration's health reform, which the Republicans and other Conservative groups have named as "Obamacare".
They are vilifying it in such a way that people are wondering why it is being attacked so much; that it is a bad program, it costs too much, and it is very unpopular, according these groups.
However, the fact is that it has given healthcare insurance coverage to an additional 30 million people. They are now insured, and they and their families can go to the ER, when they need to without any problem.
Most of the candidates running in the Republican Party race for nomination have vowed to repeal it. Romney, Bachmann and Cain have all forcefully come against it. It is their aim to dismantle it and to put it back together again their own way.
So, the public knows that it is obnoxious, but nobody has come out rebelling against it, in the form of a demonstration, such as Occupy Wall Street, an anti group against capitalism.
Or even the grassroots membership of the Republican Party and Conservative groups are not showing outwardly and protesting its existence. Where are they? The streets belong to them too.
For a measure of good reason, some people are skeptical of the attitude of those who are slamming the program, and are wondering, if it is not just pure propaganda by those, who are railing against the new healthcare program; and if that is true, then who must be behind the opposition.
Can it be the Private Insurance companies that used to run their own programs before and have messed the healthcare industry up; or the doctors and specialists, who are believed to have bled those programs to death, by high costs and exorbitant charges that patients cannot afford?
As a result, many people are denied policies due to high premiums, which they cannot pay; and the ones that are branded as having preexisting conditions are made to lose their policies, and are evicted from hospitals or turned away from healthcare facilities; some of whom die off needlessly.
Are they going to be forced to go back to that?
The healthcare industry has become so dysfunctional; a factory type of business, where people are treated as undesirable entities, because their health problems happen to be too laborious, in so many cases, to the point that policies are denied them, left, right and center. The shame of it all is that most of them are poor people and the elderly.
The only way to get the healthcare industry going well again is to completely overhaul it, and that is exactly the objective of the Obama administration from the very start.
The bad management of the system is what has caught the attention of the Obama administration before, and during its first days in office, to decide to reform it for the better.
The latest claim by those who used to hawk private insurance policies is that the new health law is a "job killer"; yet, they are failing to convince most people of that as being factual, except that they are using the high unemployment rate to support their argument.
Politicians, who are receiving campaign contributions from these healthcare companies and other private investors, must be behind all that hullabaloo, that Obamacare is worse than the previous system, and that they will repeal it to let it become the cornucopia for their backers as in the past; hence the heavy strain of propaganda against the new healthcare law.
However, will their tactics work?
Many are doubting whether their strategy will catch fire with a majority of healthcare users, as going back to "the status quo" will be impossible. They detest the past healthcare services, and if they do not like the new law, why are they not out there protesting against it?
They can see that all that the opposition is doing is spewing out sheer propaganda to discredit President Barack Obama; and that is all there is to it.
Will it (propaganda) fail? Yes! Of course. Why? Because most Americans are saying so; for they are seeing the light.
Friday, November 25, 2011
GOOD SHOW, Mr. PRESIDENT.
America could not have had a younger president, who spoke with so much conviction that it was his prayer that the nation could come together to solve its problems, just as a tenacious family would do, so that there would be no deep seated animosity among its members.
President Barack Obama showed that spirit in his weekly radio address, (which was also teleivized) without making himself look like a demagogue peering down from on high at those below him. He came down to earth and became as one belonging to a common family living anywhere in the United States and sharing his life with those around him at a thanksgiving dinner table.
He seemed to be saying, "if we were to drop the things that put wedges between us, together we could do what we were supposed to be doing; and that was to help each other,"
He was speaking, primarily, to lawmakers, but he also meant everyone in the country to get the message.
To him, probably, togetherness was lacking in Washington D.C., and that has caused so much aggravation to the whole nation in the past few months, in addressing the issues that were the underlying factors of America's standard of living.
They were, 1. a strong economy, 2. less unemployment and 3, fiscal freedom, which must be on the minds of all members of the U.S. Congress; and that opposing the correction in any of them by the use ideology created "gridlocks" and elements that curtailed a nation's progress to prosperity. There must be one (prosperity), not just for a lucky few, but for all individuals, rich or poor.
In a jocular way, while pardoning the two turkeys, on the same day, but in a different setting, he wanted his audience to take him seriously, that the act of pardon should not be done in a meaningless fashion. It must be performed honorably, with character and dignity.
Back to his speech, he was casting his eyes out to see what was going on around him, with the soldiers in the field fighting to protect US, and also what their families were going through.
Dad was missing at the tablehead, and Mom was not in the kitchen. So, if it was not for the family, of aunts and cousins, and the care of neighbors and friends, etc., what would the children do? They would be sucking their fingers all day, with no nourishment coming to them from that.
He was urging Americans to build strong bonds and vital relationships, which were the tenets of an enlightened society, so that each member would see what the other was experiencing, rather than to be isolationists and selfish people.
A family that shared common ideals, made for a united community, where all considered the safety of themselves and of their fellow citizens to be paramount.
The division in the erstwhile Super Committee did not bade well for the country, as it was the sequel of another failure to improve the state of the sagging economy that it (country) was facing; instead, it pulled back the little advancement that has been made.
In another light, he saw his job, and not excepting those of his colleagues on Capitol Hill, as a struggle to find solutions, when he said, “The problems we face didn’t develop overnight, and we won’t solve them overnight.” Here too, the emphasis was on "WE".
He was speaking to unite the country on a onerous Thanksgiving Day, and to remove the differences people carry that were also hindrances; for they could adversely affect us all, one way or another.
President Barack Obama showed that spirit in his weekly radio address, (which was also teleivized) without making himself look like a demagogue peering down from on high at those below him. He came down to earth and became as one belonging to a common family living anywhere in the United States and sharing his life with those around him at a thanksgiving dinner table.
He seemed to be saying, "if we were to drop the things that put wedges between us, together we could do what we were supposed to be doing; and that was to help each other,"
He was speaking, primarily, to lawmakers, but he also meant everyone in the country to get the message.
To him, probably, togetherness was lacking in Washington D.C., and that has caused so much aggravation to the whole nation in the past few months, in addressing the issues that were the underlying factors of America's standard of living.
They were, 1. a strong economy, 2. less unemployment and 3, fiscal freedom, which must be on the minds of all members of the U.S. Congress; and that opposing the correction in any of them by the use ideology created "gridlocks" and elements that curtailed a nation's progress to prosperity. There must be one (prosperity), not just for a lucky few, but for all individuals, rich or poor.
In a jocular way, while pardoning the two turkeys, on the same day, but in a different setting, he wanted his audience to take him seriously, that the act of pardon should not be done in a meaningless fashion. It must be performed honorably, with character and dignity.
Back to his speech, he was casting his eyes out to see what was going on around him, with the soldiers in the field fighting to protect US, and also what their families were going through.
Dad was missing at the tablehead, and Mom was not in the kitchen. So, if it was not for the family, of aunts and cousins, and the care of neighbors and friends, etc., what would the children do? They would be sucking their fingers all day, with no nourishment coming to them from that.
He was urging Americans to build strong bonds and vital relationships, which were the tenets of an enlightened society, so that each member would see what the other was experiencing, rather than to be isolationists and selfish people.
A family that shared common ideals, made for a united community, where all considered the safety of themselves and of their fellow citizens to be paramount.
The division in the erstwhile Super Committee did not bade well for the country, as it was the sequel of another failure to improve the state of the sagging economy that it (country) was facing; instead, it pulled back the little advancement that has been made.
In another light, he saw his job, and not excepting those of his colleagues on Capitol Hill, as a struggle to find solutions, when he said, “The problems we face didn’t develop overnight, and we won’t solve them overnight.” Here too, the emphasis was on "WE".
He was speaking to unite the country on a onerous Thanksgiving Day, and to remove the differences people carry that were also hindrances; for they could adversely affect us all, one way or another.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
HOLIDAY GREETINGS.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY FRIENDS. WE HAVE ALMOST FINISHED ANOTHER YEAR, UNSCATHED; WITH ALL THE PERILS AROUND THE WORLD. WE HAVE TO BE THANKFUL FOR THAT.
P.S. EXCEPT FOR THE "SUPER COMMITTEE" LETTING US (UNITED STATES) DOWN, WE CAN SAY THAT WE ARE ALRIGHT..
P.S. EXCEPT FOR THE "SUPER COMMITTEE" LETTING US (UNITED STATES) DOWN, WE CAN SAY THAT WE ARE ALRIGHT..
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
COULD GINGRICH UNSEAT OBAMA?
People should remember Newt Gingrich, during the Clinton impeachment days, when he was the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and played a leading role in the impeachment procedure, and helped the process to take place.
That was his time to have made claims on getting to the presidency of the United States, as he was very popular, younger and likable, even by those who thought politics was a "double cross" occupation.
However, for some reason, he did not show the nerve he was showing now, that he wanted to be president; and he started dressing up shabbily, became even dishevelled at times, and as if wanting the public to take its eyes off him.
Yet, that was his time, and not now.
As in all the Republican Party debates, he has proved his eloquence and intellectual abilities high above his rivals to get to the front of the pack at this very moment.
In yesterday's debate, he was shrewd, smart and well informed on all the topics. He knew about them long before; and he had experienced them, when he was the Speaker; and so, none of his challengers was as prepared as he was.
He must have considered that, he should not try to outperform those he had with him on the stage, but by being himself, all would show up in the form of knowledge ability and strong background.
So, he won hands down, with smart answers, and making his colleagues look like students, and earning his front runner position from Mitt Romney, who was forcing his responses from a litany of ideas that his advisers have given him for the event.
The others tried and tried their best; with Jon Huntsman providing an insight into his diplomatic understanding, and Michele Bachmann using her short stint in the...House of Representatives as a shield or a badge of honor.
Rick Perry was "uninventive" as usual, throwing things out and unable to find ways to replace them with anything, and thus not scoring him any points; and Ron Paul being the isolationist that he has always been, with no change of any kind in what he believed and in what has been telling the American people in all the the debates.
Santorum was as eclectic as he has been throughout; and as for Cain, his answers came from pictorial studies overnight, with no real substance in them; although, in his own mind he thought he was doing very well.
All in all, Gingrich was the winner. Yet, the question remained whether he could use his past to unseat President Barack Obama. Could he? Many doubted it.
That was his time to have made claims on getting to the presidency of the United States, as he was very popular, younger and likable, even by those who thought politics was a "double cross" occupation.
However, for some reason, he did not show the nerve he was showing now, that he wanted to be president; and he started dressing up shabbily, became even dishevelled at times, and as if wanting the public to take its eyes off him.
Yet, that was his time, and not now.
As in all the Republican Party debates, he has proved his eloquence and intellectual abilities high above his rivals to get to the front of the pack at this very moment.
In yesterday's debate, he was shrewd, smart and well informed on all the topics. He knew about them long before; and he had experienced them, when he was the Speaker; and so, none of his challengers was as prepared as he was.
He must have considered that, he should not try to outperform those he had with him on the stage, but by being himself, all would show up in the form of knowledge ability and strong background.
So, he won hands down, with smart answers, and making his colleagues look like students, and earning his front runner position from Mitt Romney, who was forcing his responses from a litany of ideas that his advisers have given him for the event.
The others tried and tried their best; with Jon Huntsman providing an insight into his diplomatic understanding, and Michele Bachmann using her short stint in the...House of Representatives as a shield or a badge of honor.
Rick Perry was "uninventive" as usual, throwing things out and unable to find ways to replace them with anything, and thus not scoring him any points; and Ron Paul being the isolationist that he has always been, with no change of any kind in what he believed and in what has been telling the American people in all the the debates.
Santorum was as eclectic as he has been throughout; and as for Cain, his answers came from pictorial studies overnight, with no real substance in them; although, in his own mind he thought he was doing very well.
All in all, Gingrich was the winner. Yet, the question remained whether he could use his past to unseat President Barack Obama. Could he? Many doubted it.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
PUKE IT UP.
How many times was the United States Congress going to fail in addressing the most pressing issue of the times, to find an effective way to deal with the National Debt.
The start of the effort to stringently tackle it (National Debt) was during the debt ceiling debates, when the deficit reduction was brought in to counteract the borrowing by the government from China. Each time there was a financial crisis, the nation turned to China in particular for funding, and thus making that country the U.S.'s highest creditor..
It must stop; all the people in Congress were saying, and the blame was pointing to President Barack Obama, who has inherited so much debt and financial responsibilities from the previous government, he was overwhelmed; and his only option was to get more cash from somewhere for his administration to survive.
A government without funds was no government; and so, the national debt, not began to, but continued to grow as usual. Besides the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, that contributed more to the debt, there was the discretionary spending to take care of.
Economists of all kinds were called in to analyse the problems, and the only answer was, more borrowing, which put America over by an enormous amount. The nation now stood at $15 trillion dollars in a straight jacket of debts. The situation was still counting; and surely, it was becoming a risky scenario for posterity.
The whole Congress has become so dysfunctional, and so the only alternative was to come up with a "Super Committee" to resolve the problem, with a backup plan that if it failed, an automatic measure could be used to make an across the board cuts, starting with domestic spending through to the military budget, with the entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid stretching in the middle.
What would conclude the plan was tax revenues, which should come from corporations, companies and individuals. Yet, there was a fence put around them by Conservative ideologists, that tax increases should not be permissible. Those were sacred cows, as they created jobs and made the economy to grow.
However, those three entities could stop manifesting job creation and paying taxes. They could not be forced to do otherwise, no matter how hard the government tried, as in their opinion, they were lumbered with so much revenue collection and that was more than enough.
It would be like squeezing blood out of a stone on the part of the Super Committee to deal with a problem that Congress itself could not undertake. Hence, another failure from the debt ceiling debates that did nobody any good.
Members of that committee, and Congress as a whole, could mask that failure with as much rational as possible, and that would not work; because the American people were tired with excuses of difficulties standing in the way of those who have been elected to run the country's affairs. They said they had the nerve to handle them (affairs); and if so, it was about time they proved it.
If not, what should be a fair answer to its (America's) problems? It should throw them out and vote for a new set of people to start all over again. The next Congressional elections must be able to do just that. Period.
The Super Committee still has 24 hours to rehash what the members have been contemplating in the past four or five months. Many would give them the benefit of the doubt, that they were sore in the throat, but they could come up with something substantial and puked it up, even at the eleventh hour.
The start of the effort to stringently tackle it (National Debt) was during the debt ceiling debates, when the deficit reduction was brought in to counteract the borrowing by the government from China. Each time there was a financial crisis, the nation turned to China in particular for funding, and thus making that country the U.S.'s highest creditor..
It must stop; all the people in Congress were saying, and the blame was pointing to President Barack Obama, who has inherited so much debt and financial responsibilities from the previous government, he was overwhelmed; and his only option was to get more cash from somewhere for his administration to survive.
A government without funds was no government; and so, the national debt, not began to, but continued to grow as usual. Besides the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, that contributed more to the debt, there was the discretionary spending to take care of.
Economists of all kinds were called in to analyse the problems, and the only answer was, more borrowing, which put America over by an enormous amount. The nation now stood at $15 trillion dollars in a straight jacket of debts. The situation was still counting; and surely, it was becoming a risky scenario for posterity.
The whole Congress has become so dysfunctional, and so the only alternative was to come up with a "Super Committee" to resolve the problem, with a backup plan that if it failed, an automatic measure could be used to make an across the board cuts, starting with domestic spending through to the military budget, with the entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid stretching in the middle.
What would conclude the plan was tax revenues, which should come from corporations, companies and individuals. Yet, there was a fence put around them by Conservative ideologists, that tax increases should not be permissible. Those were sacred cows, as they created jobs and made the economy to grow.
However, those three entities could stop manifesting job creation and paying taxes. They could not be forced to do otherwise, no matter how hard the government tried, as in their opinion, they were lumbered with so much revenue collection and that was more than enough.
It would be like squeezing blood out of a stone on the part of the Super Committee to deal with a problem that Congress itself could not undertake. Hence, another failure from the debt ceiling debates that did nobody any good.
Members of that committee, and Congress as a whole, could mask that failure with as much rational as possible, and that would not work; because the American people were tired with excuses of difficulties standing in the way of those who have been elected to run the country's affairs. They said they had the nerve to handle them (affairs); and if so, it was about time they proved it.
If not, what should be a fair answer to its (America's) problems? It should throw them out and vote for a new set of people to start all over again. The next Congressional elections must be able to do just that. Period.
The Super Committee still has 24 hours to rehash what the members have been contemplating in the past four or five months. Many would give them the benefit of the doubt, that they were sore in the throat, but they could come up with something substantial and puked it up, even at the eleventh hour.
Monday, November 21, 2011
ELECTION DAY OF 2012.
Moody's chief economist Mark Zandi was very pessimistic about the economic future of the United States, if the Super Committee failed to reach a compromise on cutting $1.2 trillion dollars from the national deficit.
Other politicians on the committee asserted that they were close to an agreement except for the Republican Party members adding the Bush tax breaks for the wealthy on their list, and wanting an extension for it. What?
So, why were the Republicans so adamant in taking that off the table and making the committee not to succeed? Would it be that, if the committee was capable of getting its job done, the result would boost President Barack Obama's approval rating?
It would be like shooting themselves in the foot; and for that they would never do, because it would help the president in winning a second term, which they dreaded more than anything on earth.
However, was not that an indication of putting party before the nation in a crisis? Which of the two would be considered as more important; the Republican Party or the United States?
The economist, Mark Zandi, came on Fox News Sunday, with a straight face, forecasting a " 'Tough' Year Ahead Without Deficit Deal." and thus making the committee's assignment extremely important.
He added that for the low expectation Wall Street had for the committee to really cut the deficit, the stock market would not react pretty quickly, if an agreement was not reached; but the failure of it (committee) would have serious repercussions later in the coming year, if not years, ahead.
That in turn would affect the already sluggish economy and would send the unemployment rate skyrocketing.
Those were strong statements for the committee to utilize the next 24 hours, at least, to find a way out of the despicable situation that it was in, as failing to get a consensus would be detrimental to the nation's future well being.
Tax revenues of about 14000 millionaires, who were not paying any taxes at all, was the issue before; as the Republicans were saying that raising taxes in a recession would exacerbate the problem of unemployment; and so they must be left alone.
While the president was saying that those people should pay their taxes just like any other citizen; however, they were the ones that the Republicans were protecting.
In other words, the Republicans would rather have Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid slashed, instead of those millionaires being forced to pay their fair share in taxes. Thus making the controversy to circle around "tax dodgers or seniors".
That seemed to be the hurdle now for the Super Committee; and if it could not overcome it, whom must the country blame?
That is the question that needs to be answered, come election day of the 2012 presidential election.
Other politicians on the committee asserted that they were close to an agreement except for the Republican Party members adding the Bush tax breaks for the wealthy on their list, and wanting an extension for it. What?
So, why were the Republicans so adamant in taking that off the table and making the committee not to succeed? Would it be that, if the committee was capable of getting its job done, the result would boost President Barack Obama's approval rating?
It would be like shooting themselves in the foot; and for that they would never do, because it would help the president in winning a second term, which they dreaded more than anything on earth.
However, was not that an indication of putting party before the nation in a crisis? Which of the two would be considered as more important; the Republican Party or the United States?
The economist, Mark Zandi, came on Fox News Sunday, with a straight face, forecasting a " 'Tough' Year Ahead Without Deficit Deal." and thus making the committee's assignment extremely important.
He added that for the low expectation Wall Street had for the committee to really cut the deficit, the stock market would not react pretty quickly, if an agreement was not reached; but the failure of it (committee) would have serious repercussions later in the coming year, if not years, ahead.
That in turn would affect the already sluggish economy and would send the unemployment rate skyrocketing.
Those were strong statements for the committee to utilize the next 24 hours, at least, to find a way out of the despicable situation that it was in, as failing to get a consensus would be detrimental to the nation's future well being.
Tax revenues of about 14000 millionaires, who were not paying any taxes at all, was the issue before; as the Republicans were saying that raising taxes in a recession would exacerbate the problem of unemployment; and so they must be left alone.
While the president was saying that those people should pay their taxes just like any other citizen; however, they were the ones that the Republicans were protecting.
In other words, the Republicans would rather have Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid slashed, instead of those millionaires being forced to pay their fair share in taxes. Thus making the controversy to circle around "tax dodgers or seniors".
That seemed to be the hurdle now for the Super Committee; and if it could not overcome it, whom must the country blame?
That is the question that needs to be answered, come election day of the 2012 presidential election.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
NO MORE DOWNGRADING.
The Super Committee is still hollowing out the difficulties and the impediments in its attempt to slash the national deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars.
The deadline for its members is set for Nov. 23rd, 2011; and that is fast approaching. In fact, they have only four days to get there, from today, 11/19/11.
The sky will not fall in, if they do not reach an agreement, but then, it will markedly show how weak the United States Congress has become, of which the Super Committee is part, to solve the nations problems, no matter what they are.
The shameful side of it is that the whole world is watching the U.S. to see if its people are made of sterner stuff.
They have always portrayed that facade, and of tenacity and resilience, in fighting in world wars and other conflicts; and going to the aid of countries hit by earthquakes and Tsunamis around the globe, when they occur.
It is the land of the free and the home of the brave; as those words are vividly enshrined in its national anthem. A nation that the world looks up to, from world leadership and as the only super power to McDonald's cheese burgers that millions of people love.
It (world) has been disappointed, when the debt ceiling and (hello!) deficit reduction talks broke down, and made America's credit rating to be downgraded, and becoming lower than that of other lesser countries.
The world financial markets were affected very badly, and that has not even receded, since that time.
The stock market and other markets around the globe have suffered considerably; and as if that was not enough, another or similar failure was imminent and stirring them in the face like a doomsday prediction. "Is America going to fail again?" they were musing quietly.
How come has the strongest nation in the entire world become so incapable and extremely disoriented, the world should be saying, in its quest to address its own financial problems? When would it come to grips with putting its financial house in order? Have Americans changed so much in the last few decades, so that even its business leadership has become "lazy"?
Those would be some of the questions that people would be asking around the world, if the Super Committee should stop at reaching a compromise and failing to come up with the amount that it has been assigned to reduce from the nation's huge deficit.
Should more downgrading happen, if the committee did not meet with its expectation? Let us hope that should not occur. Yet, nobody could forecast.
The deadline for its members is set for Nov. 23rd, 2011; and that is fast approaching. In fact, they have only four days to get there, from today, 11/19/11.
The sky will not fall in, if they do not reach an agreement, but then, it will markedly show how weak the United States Congress has become, of which the Super Committee is part, to solve the nations problems, no matter what they are.
The shameful side of it is that the whole world is watching the U.S. to see if its people are made of sterner stuff.
They have always portrayed that facade, and of tenacity and resilience, in fighting in world wars and other conflicts; and going to the aid of countries hit by earthquakes and Tsunamis around the globe, when they occur.
It is the land of the free and the home of the brave; as those words are vividly enshrined in its national anthem. A nation that the world looks up to, from world leadership and as the only super power to McDonald's cheese burgers that millions of people love.
It (world) has been disappointed, when the debt ceiling and (hello!) deficit reduction talks broke down, and made America's credit rating to be downgraded, and becoming lower than that of other lesser countries.
The world financial markets were affected very badly, and that has not even receded, since that time.
The stock market and other markets around the globe have suffered considerably; and as if that was not enough, another or similar failure was imminent and stirring them in the face like a doomsday prediction. "Is America going to fail again?" they were musing quietly.
How come has the strongest nation in the entire world become so incapable and extremely disoriented, the world should be saying, in its quest to address its own financial problems? When would it come to grips with putting its financial house in order? Have Americans changed so much in the last few decades, so that even its business leadership has become "lazy"?
Those would be some of the questions that people would be asking around the world, if the Super Committee should stop at reaching a compromise and failing to come up with the amount that it has been assigned to reduce from the nation's huge deficit.
Should more downgrading happen, if the committee did not meet with its expectation? Let us hope that should not occur. Yet, nobody could forecast.
Friday, November 18, 2011
A NEW SYSTEM IS REQUIRED.
When one takes a look at what is going on in the world, and particularly, in the Western World, one sees the discrepancies in society stemming from only one source, namely, "education".
It underlies all the institutional systems, from government through to the life of a panhandler sitting in the corner of Union Square in New York City and expecting passersby to help him or her. His or her daily bread depends on other people's generosity.
To be panhandler in America is for foreigners; it will be for a citizen to forsake one's prior education to be that way. Some people, who have taken advantage of the education system are doing well; while others, for some reason or another, are not.
Yet, the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations vividly show what the education system has produced; and that is a host of people, who are to face life without planning for what the unknown has in store for them.
What most of them know is that one goes to school and "starts breaking the ground", in terms of getting knowledgeable information, and ending up with some kind of certification, like a law or engineering degree or a bachelor's degree in business, and then one will work for a corporation or a well established company and make it in the world.
However, after a while, many people come to realize the myth behind that concept, and that not every person is cut to fit that mold. Some will have difficulty in acquiring the background, as described above, because of the inability to absorb what is generally termed as "the beginnings of education"; as they may suffer from a learning impediment of some sorts.
Others may find different niches, and unlike those who are born with silver spoons in their mouths, pursue them and become successful in life. Those from rich families need not bother about making it to their goals, because everything has been made available and affordable to them, by virtue of been born a "prince" or a "princess".
Moreover, there are those who will fail in fitting into those two general categories, of the scholarly type and the not so good, but can be regular artisans or even common laborers.
There are also those who are good for nothing, and they are the ones that tend to create problems for society, when it (society) fails to direct them, by knowing their short comings right from their infancy, and how their learning disabilities can be turned into something useful, at the expense of the rest of the communities in which they are born into.
They may have other talents, which are sometimes hidden, but they (talents) are not analyzed from the very start, when they are young, due to lack of resources, most usually, of poor parentage.
That is when formal institutions, which have governmental initiatives, commonly referred to as programs, must come in to help and to bring out those, who have the chance of being helped, and in many cases, to institutionalize those, who are beyond any type of assistance.
There may be mental facilities or even prison establishments, depending on their social behaviors, to take care of those in the community, who deserve such services; however, a great deal of the people are just unemployed, poor or disadvantaged, and are to a large extent, capable of leading "normal" lives.
From this vast scenario, out of which basically comes the two main factions of society, of those who can manage themselves and succeed in whatever they do, and the ones who need help to survive and be useful; with the resultant factor that society becoming divided is inevitable in the real world, in which the two basic factions live alongside each other. As such, a class society can come about.
That is the source of most human experiences, interactions and animations. Politics and economics are two good examples, as Capitalism versus other social groupings, some of which are liberal and radical in nature, or are carrying all kinds of differing ideologies, operate in the same vicinity. The lives of the people and their activities permeate into the economic, political and social settings that are formally based on the tenets, of law and order, which provides a picture of how communal life is built.
Other such institutions coming from that source are political parties, social clubs, environmental organizations, financial concerns, etc.
In other words, rules are set in place for the people in the society to follow, abide by and respect. Those tenets are paramount, and so, the upheavals in the streets of cities and towns occur mainly on short notice, which sometimes catch law enforcement by surprise; or they originate from lack of proper foundations that have not been laid to initiate people into the many kinds of environmental situations and conditions that are common place in most societies.
Those foundations or tenets must be seen as being vital, as they provide for the upbringing, support and manageable functionality of families. Otherwise their (society) members enter into them (environments) haphazardly, and as a result, not all are able to come out smelling fresh or good or nice and clean. There also the possibility of lawlessness and chaos.
Most of the time, conflicts thrive in societies, which are promulgated on the pillars of division, under the circumstance; and that tend to create factions of "haves" and "have nots", which in turn nurtures a fertile ground for greed, disparity, animosity, hatered and other humand short comings that have been laid bare for people to address, redress or to take advantage of. Most usually, people do go for the last one; mainly for selfish reasons and not for the wellbeing of the whole.
If that description does not give other people a printout copy of modern societies, then nothing else can.
That is the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations; that is a dysfunctional Congress of the United States; that is the endless fight between the business world and Trade Unions; that is the scuffle involving the rich the poor; or what is termed as "class warfare".
In short, the best education must be crafted to suit society; and not society to be designed to fit what is formerly referred to as "education".
If a change is needed for a better world, it is now that it must occur. Or the same struggles, as are prevalent today, will continue to plague societies indefinitely.
It will seem as advocating communism, for people to be vetted, and to start life equally, but it is not, when weaknesses that are found early in humans are corrected, before they bloom into making, for example, those that have mental deficiencies become the species society cannot understand or be able to handle.
Becoming a scholar, a banker, a business entrepreneur, have all been made easy; however, the rest has been left to chance or to go to waste; the bulk of which constitutes the teeming majority or masses of people, some of which are found in streets of towns and cities demonstrating in civil disobedience and thumbing their noses at law enforcement.
Change the educational system to be beneficial to all; and reforms for all other human institutions will follow suit.
It underlies all the institutional systems, from government through to the life of a panhandler sitting in the corner of Union Square in New York City and expecting passersby to help him or her. His or her daily bread depends on other people's generosity.
To be panhandler in America is for foreigners; it will be for a citizen to forsake one's prior education to be that way. Some people, who have taken advantage of the education system are doing well; while others, for some reason or another, are not.
Yet, the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations vividly show what the education system has produced; and that is a host of people, who are to face life without planning for what the unknown has in store for them.
What most of them know is that one goes to school and "starts breaking the ground", in terms of getting knowledgeable information, and ending up with some kind of certification, like a law or engineering degree or a bachelor's degree in business, and then one will work for a corporation or a well established company and make it in the world.
However, after a while, many people come to realize the myth behind that concept, and that not every person is cut to fit that mold. Some will have difficulty in acquiring the background, as described above, because of the inability to absorb what is generally termed as "the beginnings of education"; as they may suffer from a learning impediment of some sorts.
Others may find different niches, and unlike those who are born with silver spoons in their mouths, pursue them and become successful in life. Those from rich families need not bother about making it to their goals, because everything has been made available and affordable to them, by virtue of been born a "prince" or a "princess".
Moreover, there are those who will fail in fitting into those two general categories, of the scholarly type and the not so good, but can be regular artisans or even common laborers.
There are also those who are good for nothing, and they are the ones that tend to create problems for society, when it (society) fails to direct them, by knowing their short comings right from their infancy, and how their learning disabilities can be turned into something useful, at the expense of the rest of the communities in which they are born into.
They may have other talents, which are sometimes hidden, but they (talents) are not analyzed from the very start, when they are young, due to lack of resources, most usually, of poor parentage.
That is when formal institutions, which have governmental initiatives, commonly referred to as programs, must come in to help and to bring out those, who have the chance of being helped, and in many cases, to institutionalize those, who are beyond any type of assistance.
There may be mental facilities or even prison establishments, depending on their social behaviors, to take care of those in the community, who deserve such services; however, a great deal of the people are just unemployed, poor or disadvantaged, and are to a large extent, capable of leading "normal" lives.
From this vast scenario, out of which basically comes the two main factions of society, of those who can manage themselves and succeed in whatever they do, and the ones who need help to survive and be useful; with the resultant factor that society becoming divided is inevitable in the real world, in which the two basic factions live alongside each other. As such, a class society can come about.
That is the source of most human experiences, interactions and animations. Politics and economics are two good examples, as Capitalism versus other social groupings, some of which are liberal and radical in nature, or are carrying all kinds of differing ideologies, operate in the same vicinity. The lives of the people and their activities permeate into the economic, political and social settings that are formally based on the tenets, of law and order, which provides a picture of how communal life is built.
Other such institutions coming from that source are political parties, social clubs, environmental organizations, financial concerns, etc.
In other words, rules are set in place for the people in the society to follow, abide by and respect. Those tenets are paramount, and so, the upheavals in the streets of cities and towns occur mainly on short notice, which sometimes catch law enforcement by surprise; or they originate from lack of proper foundations that have not been laid to initiate people into the many kinds of environmental situations and conditions that are common place in most societies.
Those foundations or tenets must be seen as being vital, as they provide for the upbringing, support and manageable functionality of families. Otherwise their (society) members enter into them (environments) haphazardly, and as a result, not all are able to come out smelling fresh or good or nice and clean. There also the possibility of lawlessness and chaos.
Most of the time, conflicts thrive in societies, which are promulgated on the pillars of division, under the circumstance; and that tend to create factions of "haves" and "have nots", which in turn nurtures a fertile ground for greed, disparity, animosity, hatered and other humand short comings that have been laid bare for people to address, redress or to take advantage of. Most usually, people do go for the last one; mainly for selfish reasons and not for the wellbeing of the whole.
If that description does not give other people a printout copy of modern societies, then nothing else can.
That is the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations; that is a dysfunctional Congress of the United States; that is the endless fight between the business world and Trade Unions; that is the scuffle involving the rich the poor; or what is termed as "class warfare".
In short, the best education must be crafted to suit society; and not society to be designed to fit what is formerly referred to as "education".
If a change is needed for a better world, it is now that it must occur. Or the same struggles, as are prevalent today, will continue to plague societies indefinitely.
It will seem as advocating communism, for people to be vetted, and to start life equally, but it is not, when weaknesses that are found early in humans are corrected, before they bloom into making, for example, those that have mental deficiencies become the species society cannot understand or be able to handle.
Becoming a scholar, a banker, a business entrepreneur, have all been made easy; however, the rest has been left to chance or to go to waste; the bulk of which constitutes the teeming majority or masses of people, some of which are found in streets of towns and cities demonstrating in civil disobedience and thumbing their noses at law enforcement.
Change the educational system to be beneficial to all; and reforms for all other human institutions will follow suit.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
EMPTY CAMPAIGNS.
The candidates in the Republican Party race for the party's nomination are getting pretty frisky and greatly perturbed.
They are looking for the proverbial straw to hang on to for dear life, as the least utterance by President Barack Obama, will scathingly be described as being bad for the country.
They are grabbing the "straw" as a man or woman, drowning in a big river, like the Hudson, at its confluence in New York City; and no one knows whether they are doing so in desperation to win the Republican nomination or to cause a distraction from the busy schedule of the president.
The president has been in Hawaii for the APEC conference of world leaders. He is now in Australia, and his itinerary has been keeping him so busy. People are wondering where he gets his energy from.
Yet, on the campaign trail on mainland America, his words are being monitored, and they are being used against him by his "opponents to be".
The latest is his comment of Americans being, "a little bit lazy," during a speech at the Hawaii summit.
Minutes later, Rick Perry, a presidential candidate, will be in front of a camera, vociferously disowning the president by saying,
“Can you believe that? That’s what our president thinks is wrong with America? That Americans are lazy?” and “That’s pathetic.” (Politico, 11/17/11).
The chorus is then taken over by Mitt Romney, the front runner of the Republican race, uttering the most stupid and infantile statement thus,
“Sometimes, I just don’t think that President Obama understands America,"
What? The person has been president for the past three years, and he did not understand America?
The scenario looks like they are saying, "Please, do not pay any attention to the president of the United States; pay attention to us instead," and "What we are doing here is more important than what the president is doing abroad,"
However, what the Republican candidates are up to is very simple to figure out; they are using the president's own words to ridicule and undermine him in their individual sluggish and empty campaigns.
Many believe that the president's remarks are to encourage Americans to do better in their business endeavors. Just as those before them, who have built the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate Bridge, they are capable of doing the same. They (Americans) should never despair.
The entrepreneurial spirit is not dead in them, and like sleeping giants, they must wake up and replicate the achievements of their forebears.
That is what the little phrases the president is sharing with his audiences are all about. They are not to insult people; they are to pry them to do more for their country and fellow Americans, so that the nation will maintain its "city on a hill" status to the rest of the world.
The Republican candidates must concentrate on their own fragile campaigns, while remembering what another president, President John Kennedy, had said before,
"And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country." (http://www.famousquotes.me.uk/speeches/John_F_Kennedy/5.htm).
They are looking for the proverbial straw to hang on to for dear life, as the least utterance by President Barack Obama, will scathingly be described as being bad for the country.
They are grabbing the "straw" as a man or woman, drowning in a big river, like the Hudson, at its confluence in New York City; and no one knows whether they are doing so in desperation to win the Republican nomination or to cause a distraction from the busy schedule of the president.
The president has been in Hawaii for the APEC conference of world leaders. He is now in Australia, and his itinerary has been keeping him so busy. People are wondering where he gets his energy from.
Yet, on the campaign trail on mainland America, his words are being monitored, and they are being used against him by his "opponents to be".
The latest is his comment of Americans being, "a little bit lazy," during a speech at the Hawaii summit.
Minutes later, Rick Perry, a presidential candidate, will be in front of a camera, vociferously disowning the president by saying,
“Can you believe that? That’s what our president thinks is wrong with America? That Americans are lazy?” and “That’s pathetic.” (Politico, 11/17/11).
The chorus is then taken over by Mitt Romney, the front runner of the Republican race, uttering the most stupid and infantile statement thus,
“Sometimes, I just don’t think that President Obama understands America,"
What? The person has been president for the past three years, and he did not understand America?
The scenario looks like they are saying, "Please, do not pay any attention to the president of the United States; pay attention to us instead," and "What we are doing here is more important than what the president is doing abroad,"
However, what the Republican candidates are up to is very simple to figure out; they are using the president's own words to ridicule and undermine him in their individual sluggish and empty campaigns.
Many believe that the president's remarks are to encourage Americans to do better in their business endeavors. Just as those before them, who have built the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate Bridge, they are capable of doing the same. They (Americans) should never despair.
The entrepreneurial spirit is not dead in them, and like sleeping giants, they must wake up and replicate the achievements of their forebears.
That is what the little phrases the president is sharing with his audiences are all about. They are not to insult people; they are to pry them to do more for their country and fellow Americans, so that the nation will maintain its "city on a hill" status to the rest of the world.
The Republican candidates must concentrate on their own fragile campaigns, while remembering what another president, President John Kennedy, had said before,
"And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country." (http://www.famousquotes.me.uk/speeches/John_F_Kennedy/5.htm).
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
POLITICIANS & THE PEOPLE'S NEEDS.
A great deal of confusion continued to invade the Super Committee, as the deadline of Nov. 23rd. 2011 drew near, and still, there was no deal in sight to avert the "across the board 'trigger' cuts" measure in the law that brought it into being, with respect to reducing the national deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars.
The members would have thrown up their hands in the air in desperation; wanting the floor to open and swallow the whole committee, for the exasperation it felt all around.
On the Republican side, it was raising taxes that was objectionable. It was tantamount to deserting their core values and convictions; in that, the idea of tax revenues should not even be entertained to fulfill part of the deficit reduction.
“Republicans should not raise taxes — it’s counter to our core principles, bad for the economy and politically short-sighted.”, according to Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC). (Politico, 11/16/11).
They (Republicans) were even "proposing to permanently extend the Bush-era tax cut..." or tax breaks, which way one might want to call the tax relief for the rich, instituted during the Bush administration.
Democrats detested it as free lunch for the elite few, and it cost them the 2010 mid-term elections, when President Barack Obama gave in and extended the tax breaks for the rich. Though, they would expire at the end of this year; they have been repugnant to Democratic liberals.
The Democrats were prepared to see some reductions in the health programs, namely, Medicare and Medicaid, of $275 billion dollars; and they also were far open to reductions in government spending, such as $240 billion in cuts that would affect the federal workforce. Those were very good concessions.
Yet, the stalemate between the two sides dominated the proceedings of the committee now, more than ever, as the Republicans, particularly, would not yield, with respect to tax revenues being raised.
The few days that were left for the committee to reach its goal were smothered in rejections and counter rejections, leaving every suggestion to mere semantics.
Given that members of the committee would allow the wind a chance to filter through their minds with some new ideas, which was doubtful as matters stood at present, there was no "give and take" on either side.
The nation was literally caught in the throes of die-hard politicians, and the grips of "a do nothing Congress," as the present session of the United States Congress has come to be known.
In other words, instead of innovative thoughts to be piquing their minds in the interest of the people that sent them to Congress, members of both parties have become acclimatized with the slow economy and high unemployment situation that the country was in. They would be damned, if they broke away from party ideology and served the needs of the people.
However, when the chips were down, real political power remained in their (people's) hands, and they would use that potential to oust all those members of Congress, who resisted the compromises that were required to get America out of its fiscal pain.
They refused to see the light at the end of the tunnel; that disagreements would not work to solve the nation's financial problems, and that the peoples needs were paramount.
The members would have thrown up their hands in the air in desperation; wanting the floor to open and swallow the whole committee, for the exasperation it felt all around.
On the Republican side, it was raising taxes that was objectionable. It was tantamount to deserting their core values and convictions; in that, the idea of tax revenues should not even be entertained to fulfill part of the deficit reduction.
“Republicans should not raise taxes — it’s counter to our core principles, bad for the economy and politically short-sighted.”, according to Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC). (Politico, 11/16/11).
They (Republicans) were even "proposing to permanently extend the Bush-era tax cut..." or tax breaks, which way one might want to call the tax relief for the rich, instituted during the Bush administration.
Democrats detested it as free lunch for the elite few, and it cost them the 2010 mid-term elections, when President Barack Obama gave in and extended the tax breaks for the rich. Though, they would expire at the end of this year; they have been repugnant to Democratic liberals.
The Democrats were prepared to see some reductions in the health programs, namely, Medicare and Medicaid, of $275 billion dollars; and they also were far open to reductions in government spending, such as $240 billion in cuts that would affect the federal workforce. Those were very good concessions.
Yet, the stalemate between the two sides dominated the proceedings of the committee now, more than ever, as the Republicans, particularly, would not yield, with respect to tax revenues being raised.
The few days that were left for the committee to reach its goal were smothered in rejections and counter rejections, leaving every suggestion to mere semantics.
Given that members of the committee would allow the wind a chance to filter through their minds with some new ideas, which was doubtful as matters stood at present, there was no "give and take" on either side.
The nation was literally caught in the throes of die-hard politicians, and the grips of "a do nothing Congress," as the present session of the United States Congress has come to be known.
In other words, instead of innovative thoughts to be piquing their minds in the interest of the people that sent them to Congress, members of both parties have become acclimatized with the slow economy and high unemployment situation that the country was in. They would be damned, if they broke away from party ideology and served the needs of the people.
However, when the chips were down, real political power remained in their (people's) hands, and they would use that potential to oust all those members of Congress, who resisted the compromises that were required to get America out of its fiscal pain.
They refused to see the light at the end of the tunnel; that disagreements would not work to solve the nation's financial problems, and that the peoples needs were paramount.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
A PERTINENT WARNING.
The Defense Secretary Leon Penatta's assessment of the "trigger cuts across the board" painted a grim picture for the United States, if the special committee, set up after the debt ceiling and deficit reduction talks failed in Washington D.C. a few months ago.
That special committee, now commonly known as the Super Committee, has been assigned to reduce the national deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars, with Nov. 23rd. 2011, fixed as the deadline for the committee. Failing to do so would cause the deficit to be slashed by a "trigger" measure that would automatically and indiscriminately apply the cuts.
The Super Committee, comprised of 6 Democrats and 6 Republicans, has met behind closed doors for the last eight weeks, deliberating on how to come up with the proposed amount in cuts, in order to stop the indiscriminate measure from being used, starting in the following year.
The reductions should come from the entitlement programs, namely, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and other discretionary spending by the government.
The defense department came under the mandatory spending of the administration, but it would be affected anyhow to make up for the overall deficit cuts. However, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has warned that any serious reduction of the military budget would force his department "to rethink its strategy."
"We would have to formulate a new security strategy that accepted substantial risk of not meeting our defense needs. A sequestration budget is not one that I could recommend," said Panetta, among other statements designed to convince the Super Committee to move to beat the deadline. If not, the consequences would be desastrous for U.S. National Security.
The bigger picture was even more foreboding in a Fox News article (11/15/11) with, "the Pentagon faces some $500 billion in reductions in projected spending over 10 years -- on top of the $450 billion already under way."
A statement, which has every indication that any additional cut would be more than devastating; and adding by quoting the Defense Secretary speculatively as saying,
"The number of U.S. ground forces would drop to levels not seen since 1940, the Navy would drop to the smallest number of ships since 1915 and the Air Force would be the smallest ever, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said," the article continued.
The end product of all that was not something to toy with, given that the Super Committee has to endeavor to find a solution to an issue as dire as bringing the national deficit down in a reasonable fashion to avoid future catastrophes to the nation's defense and security; and that the committee must rush to do something very effective than kicking the can down the road.
Otherwise the outcome would cost more, in terms of the military having shortages in personnel, and the national defense being short handed of important strategic weaponry of all types, needed here at home and abroad; thus the stakes were too high, as they would put the United States in an unnecessary and great jeopardy.
It (U.S.) was doing so at a time, when the world was becoming increasingly dangerous, such as North Korea using all its resources to become a military power, and Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The Super Committee must do all it possibly could to reach a compromise on this particular matter, for the sake of the nation.
That special committee, now commonly known as the Super Committee, has been assigned to reduce the national deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars, with Nov. 23rd. 2011, fixed as the deadline for the committee. Failing to do so would cause the deficit to be slashed by a "trigger" measure that would automatically and indiscriminately apply the cuts.
The Super Committee, comprised of 6 Democrats and 6 Republicans, has met behind closed doors for the last eight weeks, deliberating on how to come up with the proposed amount in cuts, in order to stop the indiscriminate measure from being used, starting in the following year.
The reductions should come from the entitlement programs, namely, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and other discretionary spending by the government.
The defense department came under the mandatory spending of the administration, but it would be affected anyhow to make up for the overall deficit cuts. However, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has warned that any serious reduction of the military budget would force his department "to rethink its strategy."
"We would have to formulate a new security strategy that accepted substantial risk of not meeting our defense needs. A sequestration budget is not one that I could recommend," said Panetta, among other statements designed to convince the Super Committee to move to beat the deadline. If not, the consequences would be desastrous for U.S. National Security.
The bigger picture was even more foreboding in a Fox News article (11/15/11) with, "the Pentagon faces some $500 billion in reductions in projected spending over 10 years -- on top of the $450 billion already under way."
A statement, which has every indication that any additional cut would be more than devastating; and adding by quoting the Defense Secretary speculatively as saying,
"The number of U.S. ground forces would drop to levels not seen since 1940, the Navy would drop to the smallest number of ships since 1915 and the Air Force would be the smallest ever, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said," the article continued.
The end product of all that was not something to toy with, given that the Super Committee has to endeavor to find a solution to an issue as dire as bringing the national deficit down in a reasonable fashion to avoid future catastrophes to the nation's defense and security; and that the committee must rush to do something very effective than kicking the can down the road.
Otherwise the outcome would cost more, in terms of the military having shortages in personnel, and the national defense being short handed of important strategic weaponry of all types, needed here at home and abroad; thus the stakes were too high, as they would put the United States in an unnecessary and great jeopardy.
It (U.S.) was doing so at a time, when the world was becoming increasingly dangerous, such as North Korea using all its resources to become a military power, and Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The Super Committee must do all it possibly could to reach a compromise on this particular matter, for the sake of the nation.
Monday, November 14, 2011
THE WORLD AND IRAN.
During the Republican Party Foreign Policy debate last Saturday, the most serious subject was Iran, the regime and its nuclear ambition(s).
Rep. Ron Paul, one of the party's staunch advocates to prevent Iran from going nuclear, was as vociferous as ever in saying, "....We -- we as commander in chief aren't -- to make a decision to go to war," and that was as strong, if not the strongest statement, as could be by any person, who was aspiring to become the president of the United States of America.
His colleagues/rivals seemed to collaborate with his thoughts, by expressing similar remarks with caution, as they knew the situation to be volatile, as it was dangerous, not only for that country, but the whole world.
Some of the statements made by politicians and others were as irresponsible as some of the irritable statements coming from Iran.
Even a child would know that Iran was attempting to acquire a nuclear bomb, and it was very close in that respect, according to the most recent report by IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency), the international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Whatever happened, it would be able to do just what other nations, like India and Pakistan have done; and North Korea, as well as countries, which did not have the economic means within their disposal, were pursuing. They were all trying to have nuclear capability or capabilities.
All that depended on what they wanted nuclear power for; whether for peaceful use or for war against other nations, whom they considered to be their enemies.
As Iran has threatened to do with Israel, so should Israel ensure to defend itself, and to make it impossible for that to ever happen. It was on the verge of attacking Iran and stopping that threat; and if it was not for the restraints of the U.S. administration, Israel would have done so in recent weeks. It was even poised for that task, presently; yet, where would all that end should be what the whole world must think about.
President Barack Obama has met with the Russian and Chinese leaders to discuss the topic in Hawaii, which emphasized the seriousness and closeness of how a nuclear warfare could take place.
The president mentioned sanctions against Iran, which have "enormous bite", but military action was not off the table; and if that should not take the breath out of every person on the earth, with the leader of the Western world making such an awesome statement, nothing else would.
Yet, from the point of view of many peace loving people in America and around the world, there were talks about neutralizing Iran's nuclear goal(s) by other scientific methodology some time ago. Was that idea among the other methodologies on the table?
If such a method existed, would it not be the proper one to go for, instead of starting a war with a nation that did not care a farthing about its own people? Iran's present regime would kill for no reason at all, as has been witnessed in recent years.
Of course, the whole world was angry with Iran for its nonchalant behavior toward its neighbors; however, must it (world) cut its nose to spite its face?
Would it not be the best thing to follow up on; the development of the neutralizer that scientists spoke about?
Nobody knew whether that would be the solution to the issue; but it was worth trying, instead of unleashing nuclear arsenal on one nation, and then another, and then another; because they all had the same ambition(s); and that was, to have nuclear power, and probably the "bomb".
A nuclear war by anyone, any country or any entity, would not solve world problems, as there would be nothing left to salvage after that. It would not only destroy the world; it would annihilate it.
Would that be what we all wanted?
Rep. Ron Paul, one of the party's staunch advocates to prevent Iran from going nuclear, was as vociferous as ever in saying, "....We -- we as commander in chief aren't -- to make a decision to go to war," and that was as strong, if not the strongest statement, as could be by any person, who was aspiring to become the president of the United States of America.
His colleagues/rivals seemed to collaborate with his thoughts, by expressing similar remarks with caution, as they knew the situation to be volatile, as it was dangerous, not only for that country, but the whole world.
Some of the statements made by politicians and others were as irresponsible as some of the irritable statements coming from Iran.
Even a child would know that Iran was attempting to acquire a nuclear bomb, and it was very close in that respect, according to the most recent report by IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency), the international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Whatever happened, it would be able to do just what other nations, like India and Pakistan have done; and North Korea, as well as countries, which did not have the economic means within their disposal, were pursuing. They were all trying to have nuclear capability or capabilities.
All that depended on what they wanted nuclear power for; whether for peaceful use or for war against other nations, whom they considered to be their enemies.
As Iran has threatened to do with Israel, so should Israel ensure to defend itself, and to make it impossible for that to ever happen. It was on the verge of attacking Iran and stopping that threat; and if it was not for the restraints of the U.S. administration, Israel would have done so in recent weeks. It was even poised for that task, presently; yet, where would all that end should be what the whole world must think about.
President Barack Obama has met with the Russian and Chinese leaders to discuss the topic in Hawaii, which emphasized the seriousness and closeness of how a nuclear warfare could take place.
The president mentioned sanctions against Iran, which have "enormous bite", but military action was not off the table; and if that should not take the breath out of every person on the earth, with the leader of the Western world making such an awesome statement, nothing else would.
Yet, from the point of view of many peace loving people in America and around the world, there were talks about neutralizing Iran's nuclear goal(s) by other scientific methodology some time ago. Was that idea among the other methodologies on the table?
If such a method existed, would it not be the proper one to go for, instead of starting a war with a nation that did not care a farthing about its own people? Iran's present regime would kill for no reason at all, as has been witnessed in recent years.
Of course, the whole world was angry with Iran for its nonchalant behavior toward its neighbors; however, must it (world) cut its nose to spite its face?
Would it not be the best thing to follow up on; the development of the neutralizer that scientists spoke about?
Nobody knew whether that would be the solution to the issue; but it was worth trying, instead of unleashing nuclear arsenal on one nation, and then another, and then another; because they all had the same ambition(s); and that was, to have nuclear power, and probably the "bomb".
A nuclear war by anyone, any country or any entity, would not solve world problems, as there would be nothing left to salvage after that. It would not only destroy the world; it would annihilate it.
Would that be what we all wanted?
Saturday, November 12, 2011
SUPER COMMITTEE & PATRIOTISM.
Regarding the work that the Super Committee has to do to reach a consensus, partisan influence should be far removed from its members personal thoughts.
That was the only thing holding them back; and to enable them to adopt a fair and balanced approach to resolve the issue at hand, they should abandon partisan-ism. In fact, the question was, should they make their decision based on party ideology, or on patriotic notions that ran through their minds most of the time?
What they eventually do would be for the benefit of all Americans and not for any party's goal, whether to win the White House in 2012 or to clinch a second term.
If those two elements could be set aside, the committee would have every chance to succeed in its efforts to come to a compromise.
It was such a good idea for President Barack Obama to call the two co-chairs of the committee before the departure of his Asian tour.
He has a great deal of confidence in them, and he was, from every aspect, basking in the hope that the committee members have the same spiritual aspirations in themselves, to tackle their assignment and be able to accomplish a breakthrough result, irrespective of party politics.
In that, he was on the verge on an important trip, but he took time to talk to the leading members of the committee, which meant that his eye was still on the ball. It was like saying, "I am going away, but I am with you in your deliberations."
Nobody, outside of the White House, could speak for the president, but his calling Senator Murray and Rep. Hensarling and encouraging them to finish their work in style was an indication of affection for them and for what they were doing for the country.
Party or partisan politics formed the core of the political system in the country; it was the basis of democracy, in which the separate factions would butt heads before an agreement was reached.
There was nothing wrong with that; but a bi-partisan decision crowned an achievement that had patriotism built into it.
That was what both the president and the nation were expecting from the committee; to do what was equitable, and to arrive at a compromise, with patriotic feelings built into it.
That was the only thing holding them back; and to enable them to adopt a fair and balanced approach to resolve the issue at hand, they should abandon partisan-ism. In fact, the question was, should they make their decision based on party ideology, or on patriotic notions that ran through their minds most of the time?
What they eventually do would be for the benefit of all Americans and not for any party's goal, whether to win the White House in 2012 or to clinch a second term.
If those two elements could be set aside, the committee would have every chance to succeed in its efforts to come to a compromise.
It was such a good idea for President Barack Obama to call the two co-chairs of the committee before the departure of his Asian tour.
He has a great deal of confidence in them, and he was, from every aspect, basking in the hope that the committee members have the same spiritual aspirations in themselves, to tackle their assignment and be able to accomplish a breakthrough result, irrespective of party politics.
In that, he was on the verge on an important trip, but he took time to talk to the leading members of the committee, which meant that his eye was still on the ball. It was like saying, "I am going away, but I am with you in your deliberations."
Nobody, outside of the White House, could speak for the president, but his calling Senator Murray and Rep. Hensarling and encouraging them to finish their work in style was an indication of affection for them and for what they were doing for the country.
Party or partisan politics formed the core of the political system in the country; it was the basis of democracy, in which the separate factions would butt heads before an agreement was reached.
There was nothing wrong with that; but a bi-partisan decision crowned an achievement that had patriotism built into it.
That was what both the president and the nation were expecting from the committee; to do what was equitable, and to arrive at a compromise, with patriotic feelings built into it.
Friday, November 11, 2011
SUPER COMMITTEE'S OBLIGATION.
Just as the failure of the debt ceiling talks caused the United States to lose its credit rating a short while ago, there was another threat looming over the nation, if the Super Committee that was set up to deal the deficit reduction, should fail in its obligation to arrive at a sensible compromise.
The committee's terms of reference was to scale down the deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars, and the deadline was set for Nov. 23rd., 2011, which from the layman's point of view, was a simple assignment to be given to 12 Congressional Representatives to deal with.
However, up until now, the prospect of the committee succeeding was pretty slim. Why? That was due to the same argument of slashing government spending through entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and military expenditures only, without considering tax increases of any kind to help in bringing down the deficit.
It would stand to reason that the reduction of the deficit from these programs alone would not be enough to cover the targeted amount, and the only solution would be to find the remainder from other sources.
That would fall on none other than tax revenues to be raised from whatever sources that were available to the government; and the suggestion has been that the more affluent Americans should pay a bit more taxes out of their incomes, starting from those earning $250,000 and up.
The Republican Party members on the panel have always objected to that idea, but somehow, there has been a change from that direction, and the main party, or the GOP, has come up with a new proposal, presumably, to avert a crisis; but it was being met with a stiff opposition.
"Republicans are facing resistance from their own party on the GOP proposal — which calls for $600 billion in revenue, something that some conservatives are calling a tax increase." (Politico, 11/11/11).
That has made the situation to be so grave, because the rejection of such a proposition would be insane, as that was what the committee needed to finalize a deal; otherwise, all the proposed reductions or cuts would come out of the military budget and the so called entitlement programs, namely, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
Fortunately enough, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, has come out with a timely and strong warning that the Military Cuts Would Invite 'Aggression', meaning in effect that the automatic trigger cuts across the board, if they were allowed to take place, would be disastrous.
"Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned Thursday that sweeping military cuts which could be triggered by the failure of the congressional deficit committee to strike a deal "invites aggression" from abroad." (Fox News, 11/11/11).
The Super Committee's failure to reach an agreement, was not an option; as it was unnecessary, since the solution to the problem was within its grasp. Failure would also send an adverse rippling effect throughout the world's financial markets, which would offer no good response to the United States' current slow economy and high unemployment status.
1.2 trillion minus 600 billion = six hundred billion (Google Search).
That was exactly half way to the proposed deficit reduction target; and wherever the opposition to the GOP idea was coming from was as unpatriotic as kicking the nation in butt.
If it (GOP idea) was accepted, and it should be accepted, it would be for the Democratic Party Congressional membership to shoulder the other $600 billion dollars, by allowing for the entitlement programs to be trimmed of waste (and graft) to cover that amount.
That would clinch the goal for the Super Committee; that would be the success that the whole nation wanted for the committee.
For now, all the praise and adoration should go to the GOP (Grand Old Party), for showing a great initiative on behalf of the American people.
America appreciates it. It (America) cannot afford any more failures after the downgrading of its high credit standing.
The committee's terms of reference was to scale down the deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars, and the deadline was set for Nov. 23rd., 2011, which from the layman's point of view, was a simple assignment to be given to 12 Congressional Representatives to deal with.
However, up until now, the prospect of the committee succeeding was pretty slim. Why? That was due to the same argument of slashing government spending through entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and military expenditures only, without considering tax increases of any kind to help in bringing down the deficit.
It would stand to reason that the reduction of the deficit from these programs alone would not be enough to cover the targeted amount, and the only solution would be to find the remainder from other sources.
That would fall on none other than tax revenues to be raised from whatever sources that were available to the government; and the suggestion has been that the more affluent Americans should pay a bit more taxes out of their incomes, starting from those earning $250,000 and up.
The Republican Party members on the panel have always objected to that idea, but somehow, there has been a change from that direction, and the main party, or the GOP, has come up with a new proposal, presumably, to avert a crisis; but it was being met with a stiff opposition.
"Republicans are facing resistance from their own party on the GOP proposal — which calls for $600 billion in revenue, something that some conservatives are calling a tax increase." (Politico, 11/11/11).
That has made the situation to be so grave, because the rejection of such a proposition would be insane, as that was what the committee needed to finalize a deal; otherwise, all the proposed reductions or cuts would come out of the military budget and the so called entitlement programs, namely, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
Fortunately enough, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, has come out with a timely and strong warning that the Military Cuts Would Invite 'Aggression', meaning in effect that the automatic trigger cuts across the board, if they were allowed to take place, would be disastrous.
"Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned Thursday that sweeping military cuts which could be triggered by the failure of the congressional deficit committee to strike a deal "invites aggression" from abroad." (Fox News, 11/11/11).
The Super Committee's failure to reach an agreement, was not an option; as it was unnecessary, since the solution to the problem was within its grasp. Failure would also send an adverse rippling effect throughout the world's financial markets, which would offer no good response to the United States' current slow economy and high unemployment status.
1.2 trillion minus 600 billion = six hundred billion (Google Search).
That was exactly half way to the proposed deficit reduction target; and wherever the opposition to the GOP idea was coming from was as unpatriotic as kicking the nation in butt.
If it (GOP idea) was accepted, and it should be accepted, it would be for the Democratic Party Congressional membership to shoulder the other $600 billion dollars, by allowing for the entitlement programs to be trimmed of waste (and graft) to cover that amount.
That would clinch the goal for the Super Committee; that would be the success that the whole nation wanted for the committee.
For now, all the praise and adoration should go to the GOP (Grand Old Party), for showing a great initiative on behalf of the American people.
America appreciates it. It (America) cannot afford any more failures after the downgrading of its high credit standing.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
THE JOB MUST GET DONE.
It is not surprising that many Republicans are making tax increases and subsidy reductions as part of their talking points in their speeches lately; and they are also proposing means tests for some Social Security and Medicare recipients, who can forego any type of financial assistance.
Many lawmakers now agree that waste of every kind, big or small, must be eliminated to help the reduction of the national deficit, as some bills have passed in both chambers of the United States Congress in recent months to make that possible.
Yet, looking at unemployment and other benefits, like subsidies for rich farmers, and for those who do not actually need them is one thing, the real matter is to have enough revenue that will make a substantial dent in the overall deficit.
That is the purpose of the Super Committee, which must put everything on the table, including tax increases and parts of entitlement programs that are considered to be wasteful.
The nation is in an emergency situation, and the committee has been assigned to deal with it. Their assignment will be the fore runner of a tax reform that must come out of Congress to tackle the national debt of more than $14 trillion dollars.
It is a problem that is stirring all Americans in the face, and it is not going to go away anytime soon, as the government must hold back on spending in order not to make it worse.
President Barack Obama was seen a while ago signing an executive order for government departments to reduce spending. They (departments) must show frugality in their expenditures, as the order was instantaneous; thus reinforcing the June , 2011 executive order, "Delivering an Efficient and Accountable Government."
It is also a good sign that some Republicans in Congress are realizing the need to find ways and means to tackle the nation's number one obstacle, the national debt, and that has to include tax hikes on the rich, an idea they are always fighting against.
Their (Republicans) means tests and cutting of farm subsidies will only amount to nickle and dime savings on entitlement programs; but that is not what the fiscal situation of America is calling for. Deep cuts in entitlements and revenues from the people who can afford to pay them must apply, under all circumstances.
A real tax reform is needed to turn things around; and for all Americans to pay their fair share in revenues; but it (reform) is still a long way away; hence, the Super Committee.
It has been specifically set up to deal with the deficit reduction, to bring it down by a measly $1.2 trillion dollar (as compared to the national debt, which is standing at $14 trillion). That target must be reached, even then, it is only for starters.
The committee requires all the help it can get, before the due date of Nov. 23rd, 2011, when the automatic trigger cuts across the board will be in effect.
When, and if that happens, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will not be the same again. They will adversely be affected, according to official predictions. Also, the military will have problems, as its budget will go under the knife as well.
In that wise, the U.S. National security may be in jeopardy, as speculated by many military experts; and that must not be allowed to happen.
This blog may sound like a repeat of yesterday's blog, but it is not. It is to emphasize the importance of the Super Committee reaching an agreement before the deadline.
Many lawmakers now agree that waste of every kind, big or small, must be eliminated to help the reduction of the national deficit, as some bills have passed in both chambers of the United States Congress in recent months to make that possible.
Yet, looking at unemployment and other benefits, like subsidies for rich farmers, and for those who do not actually need them is one thing, the real matter is to have enough revenue that will make a substantial dent in the overall deficit.
That is the purpose of the Super Committee, which must put everything on the table, including tax increases and parts of entitlement programs that are considered to be wasteful.
The nation is in an emergency situation, and the committee has been assigned to deal with it. Their assignment will be the fore runner of a tax reform that must come out of Congress to tackle the national debt of more than $14 trillion dollars.
It is a problem that is stirring all Americans in the face, and it is not going to go away anytime soon, as the government must hold back on spending in order not to make it worse.
President Barack Obama was seen a while ago signing an executive order for government departments to reduce spending. They (departments) must show frugality in their expenditures, as the order was instantaneous; thus reinforcing the June , 2011 executive order, "Delivering an Efficient and Accountable Government."
It is also a good sign that some Republicans in Congress are realizing the need to find ways and means to tackle the nation's number one obstacle, the national debt, and that has to include tax hikes on the rich, an idea they are always fighting against.
Their (Republicans) means tests and cutting of farm subsidies will only amount to nickle and dime savings on entitlement programs; but that is not what the fiscal situation of America is calling for. Deep cuts in entitlements and revenues from the people who can afford to pay them must apply, under all circumstances.
A real tax reform is needed to turn things around; and for all Americans to pay their fair share in revenues; but it (reform) is still a long way away; hence, the Super Committee.
It has been specifically set up to deal with the deficit reduction, to bring it down by a measly $1.2 trillion dollar (as compared to the national debt, which is standing at $14 trillion). That target must be reached, even then, it is only for starters.
The committee requires all the help it can get, before the due date of Nov. 23rd, 2011, when the automatic trigger cuts across the board will be in effect.
When, and if that happens, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will not be the same again. They will adversely be affected, according to official predictions. Also, the military will have problems, as its budget will go under the knife as well.
In that wise, the U.S. National security may be in jeopardy, as speculated by many military experts; and that must not be allowed to happen.
This blog may sound like a repeat of yesterday's blog, but it is not. It is to emphasize the importance of the Super Committee reaching an agreement before the deadline.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
SUPER COMMITTEE'S RESPONSIBILITY.
The Super Committee, the panel of 12 that was appointed to find ways and means to cut the national deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars was still deadlocked, as the deadline of Nov. 23rd, 2011 was speedily approaching.
If it failed, the Committee would have been a sheer waste of time; and not counting its cost to the nation, it would mean that the United States Congress, which selected the committee members, has not done a good job.
As such, the automatic cuts would set in to reduce the costs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and nobody knew what the outcome would be; however, many visualized that the cuts, if they were too severe, would devastate those entitlement programs.
The stalemate has stemmed from tax hikes that would make up for the targeted amount of $1.2 trillion, should committee members agreed on introducing a legislation that would ensure that the entitlement cuts went, at least, half way on the reduction, while taxes supplemented the remainder of that amount.
Now, nobody wanted to hold the Republican members as being responsible for the committee's disagreements, but they have defended the tax issue in such a way that, there should not be anything done about it or with it. It (tax issue) was completely out of bounds in their view. It should be "off the table", they have maintained.
If that should happen, then the proposed reductions would only fall on the entitlement programs, which the Democratic members were passionate about, and ensuring to minimize any cuts that affected them, to save senior citizens, particularly, from facing hardships, if they were forced to dig too deep into their Social Security benefits to support the cost of their health care.
The poor must also be amply covered, when it came to health services. However, if Medicaid was slashed severely, coverage for the poor would be so limited, there would be no room in the Emergency Rooms in the nation's hospitals to accommodate the number of people needing care, due to the time they would spend there for attention, and that would be unimaginable.
The only alternative was to bring in tax increases, which the Republicans have adamantly refused to do.
They have highlighted the schedule "A" itemized deductions portion of the tax code as being their contribution to the huge deficit deduction, and that would not help in the slightest.
Besides, the schedule A deductions were part of the tax loop holes that the Democrats were determined to close to complete the whole deal of the deficit deduction; and so making them to stand out separately as being "tax increases" would just be a ruse on the part of the Republicans.
Committee members should come to grips with themselves, and they should dramatically do something to avert the automatic reductions; as shirking their responsibility of cutting the deficit would be detrimental, not only to the entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, but also the U.S. military budget, which would in turn put the National security at risk. There have been speculations of that happening.
They know exactly what to do to reach a settlement; but why are they not doing it?
If it failed, the Committee would have been a sheer waste of time; and not counting its cost to the nation, it would mean that the United States Congress, which selected the committee members, has not done a good job.
As such, the automatic cuts would set in to reduce the costs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and nobody knew what the outcome would be; however, many visualized that the cuts, if they were too severe, would devastate those entitlement programs.
The stalemate has stemmed from tax hikes that would make up for the targeted amount of $1.2 trillion, should committee members agreed on introducing a legislation that would ensure that the entitlement cuts went, at least, half way on the reduction, while taxes supplemented the remainder of that amount.
Now, nobody wanted to hold the Republican members as being responsible for the committee's disagreements, but they have defended the tax issue in such a way that, there should not be anything done about it or with it. It (tax issue) was completely out of bounds in their view. It should be "off the table", they have maintained.
If that should happen, then the proposed reductions would only fall on the entitlement programs, which the Democratic members were passionate about, and ensuring to minimize any cuts that affected them, to save senior citizens, particularly, from facing hardships, if they were forced to dig too deep into their Social Security benefits to support the cost of their health care.
The poor must also be amply covered, when it came to health services. However, if Medicaid was slashed severely, coverage for the poor would be so limited, there would be no room in the Emergency Rooms in the nation's hospitals to accommodate the number of people needing care, due to the time they would spend there for attention, and that would be unimaginable.
The only alternative was to bring in tax increases, which the Republicans have adamantly refused to do.
They have highlighted the schedule "A" itemized deductions portion of the tax code as being their contribution to the huge deficit deduction, and that would not help in the slightest.
Besides, the schedule A deductions were part of the tax loop holes that the Democrats were determined to close to complete the whole deal of the deficit deduction; and so making them to stand out separately as being "tax increases" would just be a ruse on the part of the Republicans.
Committee members should come to grips with themselves, and they should dramatically do something to avert the automatic reductions; as shirking their responsibility of cutting the deficit would be detrimental, not only to the entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, but also the U.S. military budget, which would in turn put the National security at risk. There have been speculations of that happening.
They know exactly what to do to reach a settlement; but why are they not doing it?
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
CAIN'S DIABOLICAL BEHAVIOR.
It is now becoming impossible to say anything more about Herman Cain, since his own Republican Party friends are doing it. Queries are getting closer home from the people he personally knows.
He is having a press conference in Arizona on Tuesday, and he tells Jimmy Kimmel, after a fourth woman comes out with a new charge of sexual misconduct by Cain toward her, that "We're taking this head on..." ("We" here meaning himself and his campaign staff).
Bill Bennett, the conservative author and former education secretary, is telling Cain to give a full press conference, "dedicated exclusively to this issue and these allegations."; and be honest about it (issue).
Newt Gingrich, who is Cain's rival in the Republican nomination race is saying that, "I think at some point in the near future that Herman and his campaign have to lay all this out and put it to rest."
Haley Barbour, governor of Mississippi, "is urging the Georgian businessman to get ahead of the sex harassment scandal in the wake of a woman coming forward at a press conference." A cogent piece of advise from a true friend.
They all are of the same accord that Cain has become a side show of what the Republican Party must be doing right now, and that is to concentrate on the 2012 general election to defeat President Barack Obama.
He (Cain) is a distraction that nobody can afford, let alone a conservative political party as the GOP, which is in a fight to replace the Democratic Party, and to form a government next year.
The fourth woman accuser has appeared on national television to graphically describe Cain's inappropriate behavior, and her lawyer has made it quite clear that her client would pursue the matter to the very end.
However, instead of Cain admitting his guilt and apologizing to those women, he would hold a press conference in Arizona today to address the allegations, only to make matters worse for himself, if he repeated his negative responses, since the news broke.
He could also deal with the issue in a different way at the press conference, pleading with the women that he knew that he has offended them in the past, and that they should all move on with their lives. Showing a remorseful nature could put the matter to rest; and it would free Cain to carry on with his campaign.
Yet, that was not what news reports were predicting, and that he intended to counter the newest complainant with denials. He would expose her as a gold digger; thus making the woman, who gave her name as Sharon Bialek, to be just another victim of Cain's scurrilous misconduct.
"Cain's campaign calls Sharon Bialek a 'woman with a long history of severe financial difficulties,' " ; and that her ulterior motive was to cash in on the situation; as she would be cutting deals with media outlets and using the proceeds to recover from her own financial troubles.
That would be another mistake in the Cain saga, if he tried to frame her as a liar, as he has done to the others. The dark clouds would continue to loom over his head, as well as his campaign, if he took that route.
He should take the good advise from his friends in the Republican Party, and not from the hired hands that were surrounding him now.
The news conference offered him the last chance to come clean of those sexual harassment claims.
He is having a press conference in Arizona on Tuesday, and he tells Jimmy Kimmel, after a fourth woman comes out with a new charge of sexual misconduct by Cain toward her, that "We're taking this head on..." ("We" here meaning himself and his campaign staff).
Bill Bennett, the conservative author and former education secretary, is telling Cain to give a full press conference, "dedicated exclusively to this issue and these allegations."; and be honest about it (issue).
Newt Gingrich, who is Cain's rival in the Republican nomination race is saying that, "I think at some point in the near future that Herman and his campaign have to lay all this out and put it to rest."
Haley Barbour, governor of Mississippi, "is urging the Georgian businessman to get ahead of the sex harassment scandal in the wake of a woman coming forward at a press conference." A cogent piece of advise from a true friend.
They all are of the same accord that Cain has become a side show of what the Republican Party must be doing right now, and that is to concentrate on the 2012 general election to defeat President Barack Obama.
He (Cain) is a distraction that nobody can afford, let alone a conservative political party as the GOP, which is in a fight to replace the Democratic Party, and to form a government next year.
The fourth woman accuser has appeared on national television to graphically describe Cain's inappropriate behavior, and her lawyer has made it quite clear that her client would pursue the matter to the very end.
However, instead of Cain admitting his guilt and apologizing to those women, he would hold a press conference in Arizona today to address the allegations, only to make matters worse for himself, if he repeated his negative responses, since the news broke.
He could also deal with the issue in a different way at the press conference, pleading with the women that he knew that he has offended them in the past, and that they should all move on with their lives. Showing a remorseful nature could put the matter to rest; and it would free Cain to carry on with his campaign.
Yet, that was not what news reports were predicting, and that he intended to counter the newest complainant with denials. He would expose her as a gold digger; thus making the woman, who gave her name as Sharon Bialek, to be just another victim of Cain's scurrilous misconduct.
"Cain's campaign calls Sharon Bialek a 'woman with a long history of severe financial difficulties,' " ; and that her ulterior motive was to cash in on the situation; as she would be cutting deals with media outlets and using the proceeds to recover from her own financial troubles.
That would be another mistake in the Cain saga, if he tried to frame her as a liar, as he has done to the others. The dark clouds would continue to loom over his head, as well as his campaign, if he took that route.
He should take the good advise from his friends in the Republican Party, and not from the hired hands that were surrounding him now.
The news conference offered him the last chance to come clean of those sexual harassment claims.
Monday, November 7, 2011
THE PUSHING OF CAIN.
Herman Cain has bitten more than he could chew, since his campaign to run for the presidency of the United States was being battered so much, he tend to muscle against reporters, whose job was to ask him questions.
From his lack of foreign policy to the holes in his 999 tax plan, they would pepper him, and then some. With all that came the accusation that he has harassed women, yes, women, not one, not two, but so far, three, who have been paid "settlements, agreements and severance pay" to keep them quiet in the 1990s.
At the time, Cain was the CEO of the National Restaurant Association, and all the sexual harassment charges happened in the workplace, when those women worked, under different work categories, for him.
Cain's versions of the incidents have been deceitful from the start, for telling reporters that he did not even know any of the women complainants or the circumstances under which those accusations took place were mythical; and besides, all his responses, at best, have been contemptuous, because he tried to parry the questions as insignificant, and the accusations as being falsehoods; thus making the women the liars instead of himself.
He was running from his past deeds right at the time, when he was running for the nomination of the Republican Party for the 2012 presidential election; and the media would not permit him to get away.
Though, they have to be nice to him, it was their job to frisk him for anything and everything, including salacious allegations about him. He has been doing all he could to run away, but the media would not let him go that easily.
Cain should know that the presidency was not for even people, who flip-flop their positions on issues, let alone those, who were trying to hide their past. The public would want to figure out the personality of a candidate running for office, and how his or her character fit the tenets being advocated by him or her.
He has all along portrayed himself as plain speaking, decent and honest on the campaign trail, and those attributes have endeared him to potential voters, in such a way that he has been leading in more polls that have been conducted by both independent and media pollsters, than any of his rivals in the Republican race.
Yet, his background had to be probed; and besides him being conversant with managing companies, he had a character flaw. He has not been completely forthright with his backers, and that would cost him, no matter what he did. That was what the reporters were simply magnifying.
All the Sunday news programs mentioned him, and they were very polite with their comments of his situation, except Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol who said, “He’s not going to be the nominee, if I can just be honest here. He was never going to be the nominee,” on Fox News Sunday.
Others made pretty similar comments, but nothing harsh; which went to show that Cain was virtually out of the race, and that there was no need to attack him personally. Even if he decided to continue through the Republican primary caucuses, his chances to win the nomination would go from being slim to slimmest.
The moment his position dropped to third place in the any of the Caucasus, he would be counted as a "has been" candidate and nothing more.
No one was pushing Cain out; but he himself should now see the writing on the wall.
From his lack of foreign policy to the holes in his 999 tax plan, they would pepper him, and then some. With all that came the accusation that he has harassed women, yes, women, not one, not two, but so far, three, who have been paid "settlements, agreements and severance pay" to keep them quiet in the 1990s.
At the time, Cain was the CEO of the National Restaurant Association, and all the sexual harassment charges happened in the workplace, when those women worked, under different work categories, for him.
Cain's versions of the incidents have been deceitful from the start, for telling reporters that he did not even know any of the women complainants or the circumstances under which those accusations took place were mythical; and besides, all his responses, at best, have been contemptuous, because he tried to parry the questions as insignificant, and the accusations as being falsehoods; thus making the women the liars instead of himself.
He was running from his past deeds right at the time, when he was running for the nomination of the Republican Party for the 2012 presidential election; and the media would not permit him to get away.
Though, they have to be nice to him, it was their job to frisk him for anything and everything, including salacious allegations about him. He has been doing all he could to run away, but the media would not let him go that easily.
Cain should know that the presidency was not for even people, who flip-flop their positions on issues, let alone those, who were trying to hide their past. The public would want to figure out the personality of a candidate running for office, and how his or her character fit the tenets being advocated by him or her.
He has all along portrayed himself as plain speaking, decent and honest on the campaign trail, and those attributes have endeared him to potential voters, in such a way that he has been leading in more polls that have been conducted by both independent and media pollsters, than any of his rivals in the Republican race.
Yet, his background had to be probed; and besides him being conversant with managing companies, he had a character flaw. He has not been completely forthright with his backers, and that would cost him, no matter what he did. That was what the reporters were simply magnifying.
All the Sunday news programs mentioned him, and they were very polite with their comments of his situation, except Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol who said, “He’s not going to be the nominee, if I can just be honest here. He was never going to be the nominee,” on Fox News Sunday.
Others made pretty similar comments, but nothing harsh; which went to show that Cain was virtually out of the race, and that there was no need to attack him personally. Even if he decided to continue through the Republican primary caucuses, his chances to win the nomination would go from being slim to slimmest.
The moment his position dropped to third place in the any of the Caucasus, he would be counted as a "has been" candidate and nothing more.
No one was pushing Cain out; but he himself should now see the writing on the wall.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
CAIN'S ATTITUDE.
Herman Cain, a savvy businessman and politician, has made a mess of himself, in regard to the sexual harassment accusations directed against him, while he was the CEO at the National Restaurant Association.
One of his accuser's lawyer has released a statement in which his client was said to be a victim of a "series of inappropriate behaviors and unwanted advances" from Cain.
Throughout the scandal, Cain has made a mockery of his executive and managerial skills by telling his part of the story in so many different ways, which were tantamount to telling falsehoods, if not outright lies.
The media have questioned him in all kinds of interviews, and his response has always been one of nonchalance; although, he was aware that the sexual charges leveled against him were serious, and they would be more so, if his accusers followed up on them.
The media have been enjoying every development of the scandal, and they have been having a field day in that respect, by following Cain wherever he went.
In all those developments, the women complanants have been the first victims of Cain's misconduct; however, the public has become a victim too, since all the trash involving the case or cases, as they might become, has been blasted and dumpped on it (public).
The Republican Party has an ethical role to play in the matter, but it was allowing the candidate, who was running in the party's nomination race for president to move freely and to carry on with his campaign as if nothing was going on. Did not the ethics code of the party apply here?
The party seemed to have turned a blind eye on Cain's indiscretion of how he must treat all Americans with respect and dignity, but he has failed to do so, miserably; and by coming out with the truth, so to put the public's anxiety to rest.
He was being applauded at conservative political meetings; and he has even been rewarded with high poll numbers, probably, to spite the American people; but why?
The same individuals and their party have always maintained that politicians of all parties must be held to a higher standard of behavior or conduct; they must be held accountable for their actions, but under the present circumstances, not a poop has been heard coming out from their midst.
His own rivals in the Republican nomination race have not uttered a single criticism of Cain's approach to a serious crime as sexual harassment, if all the allegations were proved.
Supposing for a moment, if the allegations were made against another person from the Democratic side, the reaction would be quite different, as that person would be attacked ferociously; and if that was not a double standard, then nothing was.
Cain himself must stop parading as a hero, as his victims were still suffering from the disrespect he has shown them. He has turned the whole episode into a circus, much to their chagrin.
He must rather render numerous apologies to them and their families. The public would accept and appreciate it very much, if he decided to take such action. His attitude must change for the better.
One of his accuser's lawyer has released a statement in which his client was said to be a victim of a "series of inappropriate behaviors and unwanted advances" from Cain.
Throughout the scandal, Cain has made a mockery of his executive and managerial skills by telling his part of the story in so many different ways, which were tantamount to telling falsehoods, if not outright lies.
The media have questioned him in all kinds of interviews, and his response has always been one of nonchalance; although, he was aware that the sexual charges leveled against him were serious, and they would be more so, if his accusers followed up on them.
The media have been enjoying every development of the scandal, and they have been having a field day in that respect, by following Cain wherever he went.
In all those developments, the women complanants have been the first victims of Cain's misconduct; however, the public has become a victim too, since all the trash involving the case or cases, as they might become, has been blasted and dumpped on it (public).
The Republican Party has an ethical role to play in the matter, but it was allowing the candidate, who was running in the party's nomination race for president to move freely and to carry on with his campaign as if nothing was going on. Did not the ethics code of the party apply here?
The party seemed to have turned a blind eye on Cain's indiscretion of how he must treat all Americans with respect and dignity, but he has failed to do so, miserably; and by coming out with the truth, so to put the public's anxiety to rest.
He was being applauded at conservative political meetings; and he has even been rewarded with high poll numbers, probably, to spite the American people; but why?
The same individuals and their party have always maintained that politicians of all parties must be held to a higher standard of behavior or conduct; they must be held accountable for their actions, but under the present circumstances, not a poop has been heard coming out from their midst.
His own rivals in the Republican nomination race have not uttered a single criticism of Cain's approach to a serious crime as sexual harassment, if all the allegations were proved.
Supposing for a moment, if the allegations were made against another person from the Democratic side, the reaction would be quite different, as that person would be attacked ferociously; and if that was not a double standard, then nothing was.
Cain himself must stop parading as a hero, as his victims were still suffering from the disrespect he has shown them. He has turned the whole episode into a circus, much to their chagrin.
He must rather render numerous apologies to them and their families. The public would accept and appreciate it very much, if he decided to take such action. His attitude must change for the better.
Friday, November 4, 2011
CAIN'S PEACE OF MIND.
How on earth could a man, who wanted to be president of the United State of America, not take control of a situation, as the one swirling around businessman Herman Cain?
The sexual harassment accusations against Cain were not tidbits to sniff at, and if they continued to unfold, as they would, he would be counted out of the Republican Party's nomination race, geared to select a competent person as the party's candidate for the presidential election in 2012.
Competent was not a strong word to use for any person, who was striding for a high post, such as president; yet, judging from how Cain was handling his present predicament, he would be classified as an incompetent individual, because even his spatial movement has become a problem.
He and his entourage have been hemmed in by the media wherever they went, for the candidate to become catatonic at one point, when he was heard to be yelling, "Excuse me", once or twice, trying to get some room to breathe.
He has been CEO of many renowned companies and organizations, Coca Cola and the National Restaurant Association among them, but his campaign management for such a more important position as president was as infantile as a "trick or treat" ensemble.
He and his advisers were a bunch of ignoramuses, and so, the media has taken over control of their organization instead, and were kicking their candidate around like a rag doll. What?
However, it was for Cain himself to be at the helm of his group, and not the cigarette smoking imbecile, who could not even sit straight, while he was being interviewed on national television.
President Barack Obama, the person that Cain would challenge in the 2012 general election, was none of the above. His campaign was being managed by real professionals, and he was surely getting ready to defend his performance as president and to win his second term bid.
To put a person like Cain against him would be like pitting a small fishing boat against the Titanic, right in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The small boat would be sank in two minutes, and there would be no trace of it for any number of years.
Many outsiders have been kind to advise Cain to take his whole situation in a different direction. He has lawyers; so, why were they not given the responsibility to handle his interrogations?
He could have interviews by the media, but they would not be the circus that was being witnessed, or how his campaign has been allowed to look, just like a "high tech lynching" mob.
He still has the chance to take control of himself and of his organization. He should be telling the people around him of what to do, and not the other way around, as it seemed to be at present. He has managerial skills; so, why not use them, when they were needed?
No one was speculating that Cain would win the Republican nomination; but there was the possibility of that happening; as in politics, nothing could be taken for granted.
His political contributions were coming in, but to have spent so much of his own money to run in the present race and lose, would be a great financial loss for him, to say the least.
Needless to say that it would be an additional woe to his sexual harassment accusations, which were brewing horrifyingly, as more women were coming out to dump some more charges on him, would not at all be far from the truth.
His whole life would be a disaster; and many Americans would not want one of their senior citizens to suffer so much. They could only wish him well, and for him to have the peace that surpassed all understanding.
The sexual harassment accusations against Cain were not tidbits to sniff at, and if they continued to unfold, as they would, he would be counted out of the Republican Party's nomination race, geared to select a competent person as the party's candidate for the presidential election in 2012.
Competent was not a strong word to use for any person, who was striding for a high post, such as president; yet, judging from how Cain was handling his present predicament, he would be classified as an incompetent individual, because even his spatial movement has become a problem.
He and his entourage have been hemmed in by the media wherever they went, for the candidate to become catatonic at one point, when he was heard to be yelling, "Excuse me", once or twice, trying to get some room to breathe.
He has been CEO of many renowned companies and organizations, Coca Cola and the National Restaurant Association among them, but his campaign management for such a more important position as president was as infantile as a "trick or treat" ensemble.
He and his advisers were a bunch of ignoramuses, and so, the media has taken over control of their organization instead, and were kicking their candidate around like a rag doll. What?
However, it was for Cain himself to be at the helm of his group, and not the cigarette smoking imbecile, who could not even sit straight, while he was being interviewed on national television.
President Barack Obama, the person that Cain would challenge in the 2012 general election, was none of the above. His campaign was being managed by real professionals, and he was surely getting ready to defend his performance as president and to win his second term bid.
To put a person like Cain against him would be like pitting a small fishing boat against the Titanic, right in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The small boat would be sank in two minutes, and there would be no trace of it for any number of years.
Many outsiders have been kind to advise Cain to take his whole situation in a different direction. He has lawyers; so, why were they not given the responsibility to handle his interrogations?
He could have interviews by the media, but they would not be the circus that was being witnessed, or how his campaign has been allowed to look, just like a "high tech lynching" mob.
He still has the chance to take control of himself and of his organization. He should be telling the people around him of what to do, and not the other way around, as it seemed to be at present. He has managerial skills; so, why not use them, when they were needed?
No one was speculating that Cain would win the Republican nomination; but there was the possibility of that happening; as in politics, nothing could be taken for granted.
His political contributions were coming in, but to have spent so much of his own money to run in the present race and lose, would be a great financial loss for him, to say the least.
Needless to say that it would be an additional woe to his sexual harassment accusations, which were brewing horrifyingly, as more women were coming out to dump some more charges on him, would not at all be far from the truth.
His whole life would be a disaster; and many Americans would not want one of their senior citizens to suffer so much. They could only wish him well, and for him to have the peace that surpassed all understanding.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
CAIN'S CAMPAIGN.
As more women begin to come out with allegations of sexual harassment by the GOP frontrunner Herman Cain, a case begins to build up against him and portraying him as one, who only sees women as sexual objects.
A third person has surfaced, claiming that she has been sexually harassed in the work place by Mr. Cain; and if that should continue, with numerous women accusing him of inappropriate conduct toward them, his political campaign would be completely damaged.
His staffers have been claiming that they were receiving more campaign contributions now than before. They have collected $400,000 in just one week, and that was a record for a week's contributions to their candidate. They were supposing that the general public was sympathising with Cain.
However, though monies were involved in at least two cases in which the women were remunerated in the form of settlements or agreements, or even severance pay, it was not money per se that made his circumstances to stand out.
It was the nature of a man, who wanted to be known as "Mr. Clean" on his political journey to the White House, and his attitude on the campaign trail, which showed that he was plain and forthright speaking, has caught the notice of many voters, as a bold and outspoken individual.
Such a person would not hide any shortness in his character, particularly, from his admirers. He was striving to be a man of integrity, honesty and valor, and to indicate to the public that he was fit for the office that he intended to occupy without blemish. In their view, he was truthful, so far.
He has set a high standard for himself, thinking that it would be difficult for any of his political rivals to match. He was one such formidable candidate that no one could and should compare himself or herself with; but he conveniently forgot that he had a chink in his armor; a weakness that he thought would never come to light.
Yet, when it did, he wanted to stave off the charges with lies and false statements; but that would not work with the media. They would throng him and ask provocative questions, to get him to lose his cool.
What was happening here was that Mr. Cain had a character flaw, and no amount of statements, as those from his campaign manager, to cover up his past deeds, would succeed.
Cain and those around him have also fallen for "the act", when the media had a person or persons in the palm of their hands, that the more statements they were making about the allegations, the more contradictory some of them would sound; and that would force the Cain campaign to go under a tacitly and unintentional lock-down.
Any statement that came out of there would be guarded pretty closely, and it would be whitewashed; but could that also get them in more trouble?
The media had all the time in the world to wait, for them to solicit all the answers they would require to sell the information they gather; and so they would examine each statement very carefully to make sure that Cain was fully exposed for his habitual female misconduct, if in fact, he did the things that he has been accused of.
Cain had always thought that they (media) were friends; but they were not. They made their living on what people did or said. He trusted them, but the sad result was, that he did not realize that until now. It was something that all seasoned politicians knew about, that "the press" was always neutral and objective; but it had been too late for him to internalize that fact.
If Cain could surmount all the allegations, his campaign would have some life in it, and it could continue; however, from the looks of what was going on, with new complainants coming forward, it was very likely that it has only the slightest chance to move on as usual. Or, its (campaign's) days were numbered.
A third person has surfaced, claiming that she has been sexually harassed in the work place by Mr. Cain; and if that should continue, with numerous women accusing him of inappropriate conduct toward them, his political campaign would be completely damaged.
His staffers have been claiming that they were receiving more campaign contributions now than before. They have collected $400,000 in just one week, and that was a record for a week's contributions to their candidate. They were supposing that the general public was sympathising with Cain.
However, though monies were involved in at least two cases in which the women were remunerated in the form of settlements or agreements, or even severance pay, it was not money per se that made his circumstances to stand out.
It was the nature of a man, who wanted to be known as "Mr. Clean" on his political journey to the White House, and his attitude on the campaign trail, which showed that he was plain and forthright speaking, has caught the notice of many voters, as a bold and outspoken individual.
Such a person would not hide any shortness in his character, particularly, from his admirers. He was striving to be a man of integrity, honesty and valor, and to indicate to the public that he was fit for the office that he intended to occupy without blemish. In their view, he was truthful, so far.
He has set a high standard for himself, thinking that it would be difficult for any of his political rivals to match. He was one such formidable candidate that no one could and should compare himself or herself with; but he conveniently forgot that he had a chink in his armor; a weakness that he thought would never come to light.
Yet, when it did, he wanted to stave off the charges with lies and false statements; but that would not work with the media. They would throng him and ask provocative questions, to get him to lose his cool.
What was happening here was that Mr. Cain had a character flaw, and no amount of statements, as those from his campaign manager, to cover up his past deeds, would succeed.
Cain and those around him have also fallen for "the act", when the media had a person or persons in the palm of their hands, that the more statements they were making about the allegations, the more contradictory some of them would sound; and that would force the Cain campaign to go under a tacitly and unintentional lock-down.
Any statement that came out of there would be guarded pretty closely, and it would be whitewashed; but could that also get them in more trouble?
The media had all the time in the world to wait, for them to solicit all the answers they would require to sell the information they gather; and so they would examine each statement very carefully to make sure that Cain was fully exposed for his habitual female misconduct, if in fact, he did the things that he has been accused of.
Cain had always thought that they (media) were friends; but they were not. They made their living on what people did or said. He trusted them, but the sad result was, that he did not realize that until now. It was something that all seasoned politicians knew about, that "the press" was always neutral and objective; but it had been too late for him to internalize that fact.
If Cain could surmount all the allegations, his campaign would have some life in it, and it could continue; however, from the looks of what was going on, with new complainants coming forward, it was very likely that it has only the slightest chance to move on as usual. Or, its (campaign's) days were numbered.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
BATTLING HERMAN CAIN.
Businessman Herman Cain is in trouble, and many people think that he knows it; but he is taking it too far and making it a point to defend himself to the hilt, and that is a mistake.
He is old enough to know that honesty is not a commodity that is sold in the market. It is not even a habit of nature; it is cultivated, and then it becomes part of the psyche of a person.
If one does not learn it that way, one will be picking it up intermittently through life, to face challenges and experiences; and when that happens, one becomes inwardly agitated, as to when to be or not to be honest.
In other words, it becomes a matter of convenience and a habitual tool, to use it or not to use it, where and when. It tends to be a second nature of the person, which forces him or her to defend a position with nothing but, to put it tacitly, lies and amnesia.
The contradictions will be a heavy load on the conscience, and the conscious mind will begin to plot against the inner person, who knows the difference between being truthful and telling a lie; however, the outer personality, will go for the latter, because he or she cannot help himself or herself.
It would be presumptuous to say, that was what Herman Cain was experiencing now, with respect to the sexual harassment charge(s) leveled against him. However, he knew what was going on, that it was an awful situation that he has found himself in, but a fight it was; a struggle in itself, and he would be damned, if he chose not to engage in it, due to his present place in life.
He had thought of running for president, but he did realize that he would climb up so high in the polls, and even be his party's front runner. So, whatever should happen in the course of events connected to that position, he should defend it in such a way to make what was not honest to be honest. That was honestly called fabrication.
He has made so many conflicting statements in several media interviews about the accusations by two women; and that they have been compensated, due to unwanted sexual behavior by Mr. Cain toward them.
He knew about those charges; however, when they came to light, he wanted to put them behind him. He would not have normally done so, but because of the status that he has acquired in politics in recent months, he should build up a strong defense to "stem the tide", so to speak.
Yet, by so doing, he was digging a deeper hole for himself, as the media would go to any length to expose any skeletal remains that he had in the cupboard or closet. He would want to be truthful and honest in his responses to the questions he would be confronted with, but his answers would be like pouring cold water on ice. He was adding to it and making the ice more and harder, as people would still associate him with being dishonest from the very start.
"He knew about the scandal ten days ago; he was not aware or could not remember if an agreement or a settlement was reached with the two women that have lodged the complaints; it was false; and that it was not true ........" and on, and on he went.
It was just like pulling the wool over the eyes (of the American public); and that was going too far by a real patriot as Mr. Cain.
To be honest with Mr. Cain, his advisers should stop him, and that they should ask him nicely to step out of the Republican Party's nomination race; because if things continued the way they would, owing to the inquisitive nature of the media and probable attacks, they would leave a bad impression on people's minds about the party.
It was a fact that Mr. Cain was an African American (he would prefer the word "black"), and that went against him in the society he lived, whether he agreed or not. So, his adversaries would want him out, under the circumstances; therefore, he should butt out of the contest.
It would be in his own best interest to remove himself from the Republican nomination race without delay. His staying in it would have an adverse impact on all black Americans; and those in Herman Cain's own life.
He is old enough to know that honesty is not a commodity that is sold in the market. It is not even a habit of nature; it is cultivated, and then it becomes part of the psyche of a person.
If one does not learn it that way, one will be picking it up intermittently through life, to face challenges and experiences; and when that happens, one becomes inwardly agitated, as to when to be or not to be honest.
In other words, it becomes a matter of convenience and a habitual tool, to use it or not to use it, where and when. It tends to be a second nature of the person, which forces him or her to defend a position with nothing but, to put it tacitly, lies and amnesia.
The contradictions will be a heavy load on the conscience, and the conscious mind will begin to plot against the inner person, who knows the difference between being truthful and telling a lie; however, the outer personality, will go for the latter, because he or she cannot help himself or herself.
It would be presumptuous to say, that was what Herman Cain was experiencing now, with respect to the sexual harassment charge(s) leveled against him. However, he knew what was going on, that it was an awful situation that he has found himself in, but a fight it was; a struggle in itself, and he would be damned, if he chose not to engage in it, due to his present place in life.
He had thought of running for president, but he did realize that he would climb up so high in the polls, and even be his party's front runner. So, whatever should happen in the course of events connected to that position, he should defend it in such a way to make what was not honest to be honest. That was honestly called fabrication.
He has made so many conflicting statements in several media interviews about the accusations by two women; and that they have been compensated, due to unwanted sexual behavior by Mr. Cain toward them.
He knew about those charges; however, when they came to light, he wanted to put them behind him. He would not have normally done so, but because of the status that he has acquired in politics in recent months, he should build up a strong defense to "stem the tide", so to speak.
Yet, by so doing, he was digging a deeper hole for himself, as the media would go to any length to expose any skeletal remains that he had in the cupboard or closet. He would want to be truthful and honest in his responses to the questions he would be confronted with, but his answers would be like pouring cold water on ice. He was adding to it and making the ice more and harder, as people would still associate him with being dishonest from the very start.
"He knew about the scandal ten days ago; he was not aware or could not remember if an agreement or a settlement was reached with the two women that have lodged the complaints; it was false; and that it was not true ........" and on, and on he went.
It was just like pulling the wool over the eyes (of the American public); and that was going too far by a real patriot as Mr. Cain.
To be honest with Mr. Cain, his advisers should stop him, and that they should ask him nicely to step out of the Republican Party's nomination race; because if things continued the way they would, owing to the inquisitive nature of the media and probable attacks, they would leave a bad impression on people's minds about the party.
It was a fact that Mr. Cain was an African American (he would prefer the word "black"), and that went against him in the society he lived, whether he agreed or not. So, his adversaries would want him out, under the circumstances; therefore, he should butt out of the contest.
It would be in his own best interest to remove himself from the Republican nomination race without delay. His staying in it would have an adverse impact on all black Americans; and those in Herman Cain's own life.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
HERMAN CAIN Versus VOTERS.
Businessman Herman Cain, whom everybody knows by now, has to come up with some truthful answers about his sexual harassment accusations, before they get stuck and become problematic.
He has told television pundits his story in several ways. However, he must realize, that is what journalists hate most; and that is to give so many accounts of the same event, particularly, when the person involved in telling these stories is running for political office. They call it "flip-flop", and it goads them into asking more questions.
Cain is giving them a chance of a lifetime, and they have come to love him for that Those of them who want the public to loathe him as a person, will make use of all the material they need to tear him down.
The same thing is happening to former Gov. Mitt Romney, that he changes his mind to suit his political ambitions; and that he is like a weather vane. Anywhere that the wind blows, there he manages to have a differing opinion from a previous one.
On Roe versus Wade, on climate change, on cap-and-trade, on homosexual "marriage"; he is "for" at one time, but now, he is against those issues. He does so by assuming a different position on the same issues, whenever he finds the opportunity to do so. He does all that to get support from a political base and make himself available to its (base's) cause.
However, that is dishonest; that is insulting to a larger section of the population, showing that a person, like Romney, indulging in such habits has no real scruples. Those habits become, together, an infectious disease that can extend into his core values. In fact, they undermine his Mormon faith that he is so proud of.
What a person actually stands for is extremely important, when that person is offering to be the leader of a nation; and in Romney's case, not just any nation, but the United States of America, and that makes it more so than ever.
In Cain's case, the inconsistencies are too numerous, they are bound to sink his campaign before too long. He maintains from the beginning that the sexual charges are false, then he overturns that and says the complaints have been made, and monies have changed hands to compensate the two women complainants.
Throughout his questioning by the news media, he has been building a substantiated case against himself, by giving different responses to the same questions.
One can trick these so called media pundits some of the time; but not all the time. They are too smart for Cain to be changing his position on specific questions; and if he does not know that by now, he is in an entirely new ballgame. They will prod him to speak his mind and get him to say what they want to hear; and doing so, by getting him to lie through his teeth.
Just as he is trying not to baffle his listeners, he insists on the same mode of answering; but at the same time, he is baffling himself with the basic argument that he has to face a sexual harassment charge, at least, once in his career, which he has to deny, for personal reasons, from the beginning.
Has he ever been accused of sexual harassment before? He may answer that trying to evade the question by answering it haphazardly; but if he emphatically says "No", that will be a lie, because he has to encounter one such charge; as he finally admits somewhere down the line.
His own camp is also coming out with some answers that contradict what he is narrating to reporters, and his whole campaign is fast becoming an easy fodder for Democratic analysts, strategists, critics and political campaign operatives. They are all going to come down on him like a ton of bricks in the next few days.
Now that he is enjoying his first or second place in the Republican Party's slate of presidential candidates, according to media and other straw polls, he has to be pretty careful of what he says; because every single utterance of his will be scrutinized for the bare facts.
Voters will want to meet with the true Herman Cain, if he wins the Republican nomination race, before they cast their vote in the 2012 presidential election. They will not vote for a liar; mark it on the wall, Mr. Cain.
He has told television pundits his story in several ways. However, he must realize, that is what journalists hate most; and that is to give so many accounts of the same event, particularly, when the person involved in telling these stories is running for political office. They call it "flip-flop", and it goads them into asking more questions.
Cain is giving them a chance of a lifetime, and they have come to love him for that Those of them who want the public to loathe him as a person, will make use of all the material they need to tear him down.
The same thing is happening to former Gov. Mitt Romney, that he changes his mind to suit his political ambitions; and that he is like a weather vane. Anywhere that the wind blows, there he manages to have a differing opinion from a previous one.
On Roe versus Wade, on climate change, on cap-and-trade, on homosexual "marriage"; he is "for" at one time, but now, he is against those issues. He does so by assuming a different position on the same issues, whenever he finds the opportunity to do so. He does all that to get support from a political base and make himself available to its (base's) cause.
However, that is dishonest; that is insulting to a larger section of the population, showing that a person, like Romney, indulging in such habits has no real scruples. Those habits become, together, an infectious disease that can extend into his core values. In fact, they undermine his Mormon faith that he is so proud of.
What a person actually stands for is extremely important, when that person is offering to be the leader of a nation; and in Romney's case, not just any nation, but the United States of America, and that makes it more so than ever.
In Cain's case, the inconsistencies are too numerous, they are bound to sink his campaign before too long. He maintains from the beginning that the sexual charges are false, then he overturns that and says the complaints have been made, and monies have changed hands to compensate the two women complainants.
Throughout his questioning by the news media, he has been building a substantiated case against himself, by giving different responses to the same questions.
One can trick these so called media pundits some of the time; but not all the time. They are too smart for Cain to be changing his position on specific questions; and if he does not know that by now, he is in an entirely new ballgame. They will prod him to speak his mind and get him to say what they want to hear; and doing so, by getting him to lie through his teeth.
Just as he is trying not to baffle his listeners, he insists on the same mode of answering; but at the same time, he is baffling himself with the basic argument that he has to face a sexual harassment charge, at least, once in his career, which he has to deny, for personal reasons, from the beginning.
Has he ever been accused of sexual harassment before? He may answer that trying to evade the question by answering it haphazardly; but if he emphatically says "No", that will be a lie, because he has to encounter one such charge; as he finally admits somewhere down the line.
His own camp is also coming out with some answers that contradict what he is narrating to reporters, and his whole campaign is fast becoming an easy fodder for Democratic analysts, strategists, critics and political campaign operatives. They are all going to come down on him like a ton of bricks in the next few days.
Now that he is enjoying his first or second place in the Republican Party's slate of presidential candidates, according to media and other straw polls, he has to be pretty careful of what he says; because every single utterance of his will be scrutinized for the bare facts.
Voters will want to meet with the true Herman Cain, if he wins the Republican nomination race, before they cast their vote in the 2012 presidential election. They will not vote for a liar; mark it on the wall, Mr. Cain.
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