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In 2008, while on the campaign trail, then candidate Barack Obama made the following statement: But the truth is, is that, our challenge is to get people persuaded that we can make progress when there's not evidence of that in their daily lives. You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration, and the Bush administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. So it's not surprising then that they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustratio ns. The reaction was swift and furious from then rival Hillary Clinton and soon to be rival John McCain.   Mr. Obama was called an elitist, pundits claimed

·          "I understand why Barack Obama wants to send every kid to college, because of their indoctrination mills, absolutely. The indoctrination that is going on at the university level is a harm to our country." ·          "That's why he (Obama) wants you to go to college. He wants to remake you in his image." ·          “President Obama wants everybody in America to go to college. What a snob” ·          “I would say any type of sexual activity has absolutely no place in the military” What we're doing is playing social experimentation with our military right now. And that's tragic." ·          “I don't believe in an America where the separation of church and state are absolute.” ·          “I think it's harmful to our society to have a society that says that sex outside of marriage is something that should be encouraged or tolerated, particularly among the young. And I think we've very, very harmful long term consequences to our soc

·          America’s problem isn’t regulation, it’s writing regulations.   The law that created the American banking system in 1864 was 29 whopping pages, the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 was 32 pages, and the post 1929 crash banking reform act, known as Glass-Steagall, was 37 pages.   The 2009 Financial Reform Act Dodd Frank is 848 pages.    ·          Marie Colvin just before her death in Syria: “Well, not sure it was my smartest move but I have made it to Baba Amro. Nightmare here, but so anger-making it is worth it.” ·          I think Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuis is in cahoots with the GOP to beat the war drums with Iran, spike oil prices, and cause President Obama’s defeat. ·          Pot and Kettle moment: Billionaire douche Steve Wynn has ousted his long time business partner Kzauo Okada for alleged misconduct citing “company’s high ethical standards”.   Steve Wynn the Las Vegas Casino Mogul with operations in Macau citing high ethical standards.   I think he spen

Here I am still stuck in the middle with most of you. Education I believe that union failure to adopt a meritocracy versus last in/first out is a major roadblock to education reform.   I also believe that Federal and State Governments must work in concert in developing an education system that will return the US to a competitive position.   Our inability to produce sufficient scientists, engineers, and technologists is accelerating our competitive demise.    While we need to establish applicable metrics to track progress, the kind of change we need will not be addressed by teaching to a standardized test and solely measuring test scores to determine success or failure.   We are talking about a cultural shift that elevates education, school attendance, parent involvement, and progressive thinking.   And for once, can we study the best, no matter where it maybe, to improve instead of this nation’s fixation on studying the failures as a means of understanding success? Debt and Deficits Ta

The axiom ‘Divide and conquer’ has roots dating back to Julius Caesar and has been cited by military generals, sovereign leaders, and economists.   It is also a political tool for both incumbents and challengers and in its more controversial version: ‘Class Warfare’ in the political arena.   On September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district, the Occupy Wall Street movement inaugurated a public outrage: the 99% versus the 1%.   Citing excessive income disparity and the lack of justice, the OWS movement spread across the globe and in the process set the stage for battle lines between super rich and everyone else.   The 99% focused on the Wall Street versus Main Street battle, the lack of prosecutions against those that perpetrated the global economic crisis, and the unfettered greed of the rich and shameless.   Progressives and liberals jumped to defend the OWS movement while conservatives mocked and ridiculed the protesters and those t

Irony 101: Authorities arrested 17 students at Texas Christian University on Wednesday as part of a six-month drug sting, an especially embarrassing blow to the school because it included four members of the high-profile football team.   Texas Christians huh? The great Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis envisioned the state legislatures as "laboratories of democracy". I guess that makes Arizona, Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Virginia meth labs. The biggest threat to America’s global leadership is competitiveness.   Without competitiveness we will continue to lag behind financially until the American Dream comes crashing down.   The key to regaining out competitive advantage is Education.   And yet, Republicans want to end the Department of Education and if that isn’t bad enough GOP frontrunner Rick Santorum wants to end state funded education as well.   This is absolutely crazy.   When Communism was the global threat and the Soviet Union the evil empire, did any

The Obama administration has created the textbook game plan in its handling of the recession, subsequent credit crisis, and sluggish recovery.   Knowing that household and balance sheets needed to be shored up and that states needed some breathing room, the President kept the federal spigot opened to keep the recovery from slipping back into recession.   Over the last three years, businesses have returned to fiscal health and many American households reduced their debt loads.   Now as private and consumer spending ramps up, the federal government will be able to scale back its spending in 2013 and beyond.   By keeping state coffers filled with federal money, states were able to keep teachers, fire, police and other state employees working through 2010 and while they have been forced to reduce staffing now at least the private sector is recovering to more than offset the public sector losses.   It is classic diversification.   Oh and those on the right that think it was the wrong thing

Should we rejoice when our enemy is vanquished?   Should we celebrate his demise?   Can you celebrate victory without cheering your opponent’s defeat?   Is war hell?   Is one man’s freedom fighter another man’s terrorist?   When does a feeling of nationalism become a blood lust? I am struck by the range of response I witness when it comes to killing in the name of country especially in the realm of limited and covert operations. Four recent events have struck me with respect to how we feel about killing and assassination: the killings of Osama bin Laden, Muammar Gadhafi, Iranian Nuclear scientists, and Anwar al-Awlaki.   In the case of bin Laden, there was nearly unanimous acclamation for the killing on the grounds it was justified for the global reign of terror, especially the 9/11 attacks.   There was a lesser effusion of celebration as many Americans felt uneasy high fiving the taking of a life, even someone the likes of Osama bin-laden.   Nonetheless, the scenes outside the White H

A lot is being made about Maine Senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins breaking from the GOP and voicing support of President Obama’s contraception policy.   Sorry if I am not as effusive in heaping praise onto the ladies when they really haven’t changed their position, only their self-survival political nature.   It seems in 2001 both ladies were pretty straightforward in their respective stances.   “Women shouldn’t be held hostage by virtue of where they live,” Snowe told a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing in September of 2001. “It simply is not fair.” “All we’re saying in this legislation is that if health insurance plans provide coverage for prescription drugs that that coverage has to extend to FDA-approved prescription contraceptives. It’s that simple.”   Collins, in supporting her fellow senator said “While women clearly view contraception as basic to their health and to their lives, health insurers in the United States traditionally have not. Whi

Bringing this week to an end: ·          I don’t understand why some liberals get so upset when there isn’t any balance on cable news shows.   Cable News is a business owned by big business.   Now, I will complain about the likes of Dylan Ratigan, Joe Scarborough, and Chris Matthews, not because they criticized President Obama, but because they believe they ARE the story.   Their egos and how they treat their guests is the stuff that makes Limbaugh ‘Limbaugh’.   If you don’t like the show, don’t watch and change the channel. ·          Want to know why Rachel Maddow is the best cable news talk show host?   Research and fact-based data and analysis by her and her tireless staff.     While most of her peers love to demonstrate their dominance by talking like an expert, Maddow backs up her assertions, hypotheses, and conclusions effectively and efficiently.   And that is what makes going on her show dangerous for the wing-it (and wing nut) kind of guest and equally dangerous for anyone e

  A remarkable awakening has been taking place over the last 90 days in Washington.   On November 3, 2011, the ABC News/Washington Post President Obama’s approval rating sat at 44% with a disapproval rating of 53%.   Three months later, the ABC News/Washington Post President Obama’s approval rating rose to 50% and the disapproval rating dropped to 44%.   It went from (-9) to (+6); a remarkable change over three months.   Remarkable in that it was a steady increase without the boost of any special or one off ‘bumps’ like the May 2011 6-10 point bump the President got after the killing of Osama Bin Laden.   So what is behind this, with all due respect to Rick Santorum, surge? The simple answer is a series of savvy political moves, the GOP clown car Presidential campaign, and the economic recovery.   It is also a worth noting that the President has simply got better at the politics of the presidency.   Whereas early on he allowed himself to get caught up in small matters such as the Profe

In honor of Clint Eastwood’s Super Bowl ad with Chrysler, here are some headlines that would ‘make my day’: Pentagon confirms that Seal Team Six is the U.S. Armed Forces first all gay unit. Eric Cantor indicted on insider trading scam involving several Wall Street Hedge Funds. Gisele Bundchen leaves Tom Brady for Eli Manning. David Chase announces Soprano’s movie that will explain the ending of the last episode Levi Johnston elected Alaska’s Governor. Citing U.S. led sanctions, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Iran will give up its Nuclear Program In a surprise election result, Netanyahu government defeated by Labor opposition. U.S. Government sells its last remaining shares in GM and nets the American taxpayer a $10Billion profit Obama/Biden rout Romney/Santorum 328-210 Congressman Ron Paul admits to not only knowing the contents of the racist newsletters, he actually wrote a few. NBC announces that Rachel Maddow to take over as permanent host of Meet the Press. Arizona Gove

I am neither a woman nor a Catholic.   It would be insensitive, inappropriate, and indecent of me to simply write this off as the latest political attack from the right on President Obama.   This issue transcends the typical conservative cries of ‘War on Religion’ ‘War on Christianity’ ‘Trampling the Constitution’.   This is about another attempt by Social Conservatives and their cadre of warriors to  assualt a woman's access to legally protected healthcare.   I firmly believe that the 1 st Amendment’s establishment clause was to protect religion from governmental interference and to prevent government from establishing a state religion.   The false claims that the White House is forcing contraception on Catholics are as ludicrous as the mock outrage from the likes of John Boehner, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, etc.   But let’s deal with the facts. Legal precedence.   In December 2000, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission made it clear that an employer’s failure to provi