Let me start this off by saying that I am honored Curt Smith reposted my blog on his website, and generated some extremely interesting and controversial comments. I have read all the comments and responses. Some of you have made some really great points, and I have really enjoyed this as a learning experience. In my honest opinion, only information and education can open our eyes and hearts. Although politics is something I usually try to avoid just because of the difference in opinions and the heated debates it causes. But I want to go on record as saying that what I post is my opinion. I am only expressing my opinion and I do not think everyone should have the same opinion as me. I also want to thank everyone for their opinions and inputs. Everything I have read has been extremely informative. But now, let me address a couple of issues that were brought up.
The one statement which seemed to have gotten the most remarks was my statement: "in my experience, Republicans enjoy war." Wow! Never would have guessed the volume that one line created. But I wanted the chance to explain. As one person said, it was a Republican who got us out of Vietnam. But it was also that same Republican who attacked Cambodia, got us involved in the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971, and the Yom Kippur War in Syria. Gerald Ford attacked East Timor and got us mixed up in the Mayaguez Incident. Ronald Reagan had attacks in Beiruit, Grenada, and Nicaragua. Bush, Sr. attacked Iraq and had incidents in Panama. Bush, Jr. attacks Afghanistan and Iraq. So, out of the last 5 Republican presidents, military actions were used under each of their commands. Maybe I should have worded my statement in this way: "in my experience, Republican Presidents enjoy war." But those Presidents have a whole set of Republican advisors who also encourage them, so it isn't just the President. I know they believe this is a way to stimulate the economy, but I don't believe it is necessary. It worked in World War II, but hasn't really done much since.
I believe it was Suzanne who said we were attacked. I know many of you have already expressed the error in her statement. And with all the military interventions mentioned above, how many actually attacked the US? Only one. And the one thing that really comes to mind, the one person who is still sitting somewhere laughing at us is the one who attacked us. In my opinion, the attack on Iraq was just the son trying to impress the father and accomplish the one thing his father couldn't do. Hopefully, when Jeb comes to power as President we can go for the person who actually attacked us. And yes, that was a sarcastic remark.
Someone also remarked on how the Clinton Presidency was scarred with scandals. First of all, in the remark about Clinton being impeached. Clinton was aquitted on February 12, 1999 by the US Senate. You can have your own opinions, but truth is the truth. Secondly, has everyone forgotten Nixon's Watergate and Spiro Agnew scandals, Gerald Ford had the Nixon pardon scandal, Reagan had the Iran Contra Scandal, and Bush, Jr. has his actions after Hurricane Katrina and Guantanamo Bay. Okay, maybe Clinton got caught literally with his pants down and was embarrassed, but I think this is a little better than trying to upset the balance of governments and power in the world. But again, it is my opinion. But the truth is, every President has had scandals.
As for the comments Curt made, hands off, I agree wholeheartedly with his comments about health care. I too have seen people being turned away from hospitals. Working at Wal-Mart, many people cannot afford health care. We had a lady who worked at our store break her ankle trying to leave her house to come to work, was taken to the local hospital and turned away because of no insurance. The ambulance LITERALLY brought her to the store and put her into one of the store wheelchairs with the broken ankle to see if her job could do anything for her. This lady was NOT a minority. As one commented, how many people go to Canada for health care? I have known many, and I live in Texas. I have seen people who come to Texas from Canada for winter vacation, but have to rush back before their coverage ends. I have seen empty emergency rooms in Canada, but have to wait 4-6 hours to get blood pressure checked here in the states. Curt is correct in his thinking that health care should be a priviledge of living not a burden of income. I would gladly pay more in taxes for the comfort of knowing my family has insurance coverage. I also agree that none of the candidates have addresses the health care issue to the degree that it needs.
I did not know about the Jesse James remark from Bill Clinton. I regret hearing name calling in any means. My equality statement came from Obama's own plan. He talks about ending employment discrimination, hate crimes, deceptive voting practices for minorities, racial profile and his feelings on the need to strengthen civil rights enforcement.
On the remarks about celebrity endorsements. Yes, I agree with one person one vote. I believe that each person should research the candidates and make the best choice for themselves and who they think would be good for the nation. What's good for me is not what good for you, that's where our freedoms come in. Personally, I am not going to judge a person on who they vote for, I might not agree, but I am not going to judge. My problem is that I believe that glamorous celebrity endorsements blind some people into voting blindly for the people their favorite celebrity backs. They don't research, they don't listen, they don't educate, they just follow. Maybe it has never been proven that a celebrity backing has helped, but has a study been done? This is the truth I know. When Oprah started her book club, her army of followers turned unknown authors into overnight sensations. I have an extreme hunch that a good deal of Oprah's army will vote with her without question, just because it is her. I don't have a problem with celebrity endorsements, I wish more celebrities were more like Mr. Smith and bring food to the table to think about. I like hearing about where the candidates stand on issues and how likely those issues would work in real life. But when the celebrities rally their fans to just vote for their candidate, and people follow without question or education, that's where I have a problem. I hope this clarifies my earlier statement.
Finally, I do agree with Mr. Smith's statement on the same families have been in power for over 20 years, and I could see it going on potentially for 30 years, especially if my gut is right and Jeb Bush begins a run. I do have a problem with it, but that's when my personal concerns for the nation and my family comes in. I don't know if Obama has the experience and ideas to get this nation out of it's current downward spiral. My life right now is in hell. I have been trying to move up for the past three years and for every step forward, I get kicked three steps back and it is directly related to the economy. I need the knowledge that this is going to end. The Clinton's successfully rebuilt the economy after the Stock Market Crash of 1987 and the following recession. I believe with the experience they bring, we have a chance as a nation, which helps me give the chance to my family. Again, my humble opinion.
And once again, I thank you for listening. I am stepping off my opinionated soap box, and am anxious to hear what is to come.
Showing posts with label Election. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Election. Show all posts
Friday, February 8, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
BILL'S: Democrats and the Obama bin Laden
I have been watching the war in the presidential race. I have really been puzzled by the actions of the Democratic party and how the public is responding to it. I see Barack Obama's ratings on the rise against Hillary Clinton. Has anyone actually seen any of the debate footage? There was a beautiful example of Ms. Clinton calling out Mr. Obama on something that would not work. Mr. Obama starts quoting Bill Clinton. When Ms. Clinton informs him that she is not sure what her husband said, and he is not here, Mr. Obama responds with "Oh, I forgot who I was running against."
This seems to be an ongoing theme with his campaign. Always trying to find a scapegoat. He was the one who had to bring up that Ms. Clinton worked on the Wal-Mart Board of Directors, trying to use the Mega-monster of a company against her. I don't really see how actions from over 20 years ago really effects how a person will act today, especially with the changes Ms. Clinton has gone through. Back then, she wasn't in politics. Now she has had first hand experience of how the system works in Congress and at the White House. But even for a member of the Board of Directors, she tried to make changes. But just like her initial attempt at Health care reform 16 years ago, there was opposition in place preventing her from being able to implement the dreams she could have brought.
Then I watch Mr. Obama's commercial. He blames Washington for the problems in Health care, and in order to change it, you must change Washington. Again, this is blaming others. What do you intend to do? For the last two days, I have been researching his stance. Yes, it all looks good on paper. Make co-pays, deductibles, and premiums affordable. Okay, without the government taking over the Health care system, how can you do this? It sounds good, but there is no substantial way to implement this idea. Simplify paperwork. This has been attempted for the past 22 years. How much of a difference can he make? Again, looks good when speaking, but can't be put in practice. One of my favorites was for him to make it mandatory for all employers to give 7 days of sick time to each employee each year. Again, great on paper. But since he did so much research on Wal-Mart, let me use this as an example. What good is 7 days, if you can't take them? Companies like Wal-Mart don't just allow the employees to take sick time. In fact, the first day you are sick, it is just a lost day. You will not get paid for the first day you miss being sick. After the first day, you are encouraged to put in for a "Leave of Absence". In order to do this, you have to have an excuse from a doctor's office saying that you cannot go to work for several days. Then you can use your sick time. If you have the flu and are out for one or two days, forget it. So, again, what good is it to have that much sick time when the companies have systems installed to prevent you from using them?
On the Ms. Clinton side, she has detailed Health care reform on working with employers, providers, insurance companies, drug companies, and government actions to make health care more affordable. Her plan seems to work even off paper, and has the potential to work.
Eight years ago, when President Bush was elected into office, I turned to my wife and told her that we were going to war. And it didn't take long for it to happen. But it has been in my experience that Republicans enjoy war. Republicans worry more about overseas diplomacy than home soil problems. Again, I see a strong Republican side in Mr. Obama with his policies. He has a plan to implement a government in Iraq, launch an aggressive diplomatic campaign in Iran and Syria, stop genocide in Darfur.... How does this help us? We have problems here in the U.S. Ms. Clinton wants to stop the war. Plain and simple. And again, she has a detailed plan of how to do it, and still have stability, but to allow Iraq to gain it's own foothold.
And it doesn't end. Mr. Obama wants to fight discrimination against the blacks. Ms. Clinton wants to fight discrimination against everyone. One of my favorite programs Mr. Obama wants is to punish fathers who avoid their duty in paying child support. I even tried to contact Mr. Obama on this matter, and got a response that it was impossible to answer my question. You see, the question I asked was what about role reversal? I have had custody of my children for 6 years. During those six years, I have never received one penny of support from the kids mother. If he was going to punish deadbeat fathers, why not change it to deadbeat parents, and punish mothers who avoid responsibility? But that question was impossible to answer and he did not have time right now to concentrate on the matter.
Poverty is another fun game. With so many of the people in the U.S. now in the poverty level, what can we do about it? Mr. Obama wants to raise the minimum wage to match inflation. Since the last minimum wage increase, the cost of living has more than tripled. Again, let's look at Wal-Mart. That would bring the minimum wage to almost $18 per hour. Wal-Mart has been criticized for not bringing the average pay up to $10 an hour which has been proven possible without a decrease in income. If you make the company pay over $18 an hour for all employees, then you got the problem that this puts the majority of it's associates outside of the wage cap it has implemented. And it will also do severe cutbacks in personnel. With over 400 employees at most locations and thousands of locations, a mass exodus will jump the unemployment rate just from one company. Sounds good, but practically.... He also wants to start a "Green Job Corps" and to expand low income housing. Making the world a bigger ghetto.
But on the other hand, Ms. Clinton wants to lower costs to the families and reverse the Bush administration policies that have held back the U.S., and harness innovation to establish high-wage jobs of the 21st century. If you look at Sherman alone, the high pay jobs have left the area. All that is left is retail and restaurant. Jobs that pay minimum wage. Why raise the minimum, make more higher paying jobs. That would help this region out substantially.
The only thing that I can see is the celebrity endorsement for Mr. Obama. With people like Oprah Winfrey, Will.i.am, Scarlett Johanssen, and George Clooney rallying for Mr. Obama, it makes the people want to support their favorite actors. But just remember that these people get paid millions of dollars for six weeks of work. How much do you make in a month and a half. Do you think that they should be in the same category as the middle to lower class people? But all Americans can do is be blinded by the Glitz and Glam of the stars and who they promote. It's an "If they like them, then they must be good." attitude. To me, if they like them then they must be promoting the rich. If you look at the endorsements for Ms. Clinton, it is a list of people who work for the public and fight for the rights of their voters, workers, and people like you and me.
From the time I was old enough to vote, I have been democrat. I know that our country has it's own problems that we need to think about and to concentrate on. The way the economy is going, we need to act fast. I remember when President Clinton came to office. His dreams of Health care reform blew me away, and to see Ms. Clinton take an active role in office was inspirational. Yes, he did have his scandal, but my problem is this gut feeling I have that he was not the first, just the first to get caught. But the actions Clinton did taking us away from Reaganomics and rebuilding the economy is the enema this country needs at this time. To me, Ms. Clinton has been there when the country was down in a recession, and they pulled us out in no time. Now that the country has, in my opinion, passed the recession level and worked it's way into the beginning stages of depression, experience should be a prerequisite.
As I said before, I have spent the last 22 years of my life as a proud Democrat. I am proud to say that I served my country under President Clinton. But one thing I have to say, I missed the registration deadline for the Texas Democratic Presidential Primary, but I will be ready for the Presidential Election. And just know that if Obama beats out Clinton in the Democratic race, then I will be voting Republican in the next election. I just don't see the need to have a president who spends his time blaming everyone around for the problems plaguing us, or for a president who's policies could cause more problems that they fix.
This seems to be an ongoing theme with his campaign. Always trying to find a scapegoat. He was the one who had to bring up that Ms. Clinton worked on the Wal-Mart Board of Directors, trying to use the Mega-monster of a company against her. I don't really see how actions from over 20 years ago really effects how a person will act today, especially with the changes Ms. Clinton has gone through. Back then, she wasn't in politics. Now she has had first hand experience of how the system works in Congress and at the White House. But even for a member of the Board of Directors, she tried to make changes. But just like her initial attempt at Health care reform 16 years ago, there was opposition in place preventing her from being able to implement the dreams she could have brought.
Then I watch Mr. Obama's commercial. He blames Washington for the problems in Health care, and in order to change it, you must change Washington. Again, this is blaming others. What do you intend to do? For the last two days, I have been researching his stance. Yes, it all looks good on paper. Make co-pays, deductibles, and premiums affordable. Okay, without the government taking over the Health care system, how can you do this? It sounds good, but there is no substantial way to implement this idea. Simplify paperwork. This has been attempted for the past 22 years. How much of a difference can he make? Again, looks good when speaking, but can't be put in practice. One of my favorites was for him to make it mandatory for all employers to give 7 days of sick time to each employee each year. Again, great on paper. But since he did so much research on Wal-Mart, let me use this as an example. What good is 7 days, if you can't take them? Companies like Wal-Mart don't just allow the employees to take sick time. In fact, the first day you are sick, it is just a lost day. You will not get paid for the first day you miss being sick. After the first day, you are encouraged to put in for a "Leave of Absence". In order to do this, you have to have an excuse from a doctor's office saying that you cannot go to work for several days. Then you can use your sick time. If you have the flu and are out for one or two days, forget it. So, again, what good is it to have that much sick time when the companies have systems installed to prevent you from using them?
On the Ms. Clinton side, she has detailed Health care reform on working with employers, providers, insurance companies, drug companies, and government actions to make health care more affordable. Her plan seems to work even off paper, and has the potential to work.
Eight years ago, when President Bush was elected into office, I turned to my wife and told her that we were going to war. And it didn't take long for it to happen. But it has been in my experience that Republicans enjoy war. Republicans worry more about overseas diplomacy than home soil problems. Again, I see a strong Republican side in Mr. Obama with his policies. He has a plan to implement a government in Iraq, launch an aggressive diplomatic campaign in Iran and Syria, stop genocide in Darfur.... How does this help us? We have problems here in the U.S. Ms. Clinton wants to stop the war. Plain and simple. And again, she has a detailed plan of how to do it, and still have stability, but to allow Iraq to gain it's own foothold.
And it doesn't end. Mr. Obama wants to fight discrimination against the blacks. Ms. Clinton wants to fight discrimination against everyone. One of my favorite programs Mr. Obama wants is to punish fathers who avoid their duty in paying child support. I even tried to contact Mr. Obama on this matter, and got a response that it was impossible to answer my question. You see, the question I asked was what about role reversal? I have had custody of my children for 6 years. During those six years, I have never received one penny of support from the kids mother. If he was going to punish deadbeat fathers, why not change it to deadbeat parents, and punish mothers who avoid responsibility? But that question was impossible to answer and he did not have time right now to concentrate on the matter.
Poverty is another fun game. With so many of the people in the U.S. now in the poverty level, what can we do about it? Mr. Obama wants to raise the minimum wage to match inflation. Since the last minimum wage increase, the cost of living has more than tripled. Again, let's look at Wal-Mart. That would bring the minimum wage to almost $18 per hour. Wal-Mart has been criticized for not bringing the average pay up to $10 an hour which has been proven possible without a decrease in income. If you make the company pay over $18 an hour for all employees, then you got the problem that this puts the majority of it's associates outside of the wage cap it has implemented. And it will also do severe cutbacks in personnel. With over 400 employees at most locations and thousands of locations, a mass exodus will jump the unemployment rate just from one company. Sounds good, but practically.... He also wants to start a "Green Job Corps" and to expand low income housing. Making the world a bigger ghetto.
But on the other hand, Ms. Clinton wants to lower costs to the families and reverse the Bush administration policies that have held back the U.S., and harness innovation to establish high-wage jobs of the 21st century. If you look at Sherman alone, the high pay jobs have left the area. All that is left is retail and restaurant. Jobs that pay minimum wage. Why raise the minimum, make more higher paying jobs. That would help this region out substantially.
The only thing that I can see is the celebrity endorsement for Mr. Obama. With people like Oprah Winfrey, Will.i.am, Scarlett Johanssen, and George Clooney rallying for Mr. Obama, it makes the people want to support their favorite actors. But just remember that these people get paid millions of dollars for six weeks of work. How much do you make in a month and a half. Do you think that they should be in the same category as the middle to lower class people? But all Americans can do is be blinded by the Glitz and Glam of the stars and who they promote. It's an "If they like them, then they must be good." attitude. To me, if they like them then they must be promoting the rich. If you look at the endorsements for Ms. Clinton, it is a list of people who work for the public and fight for the rights of their voters, workers, and people like you and me.
From the time I was old enough to vote, I have been democrat. I know that our country has it's own problems that we need to think about and to concentrate on. The way the economy is going, we need to act fast. I remember when President Clinton came to office. His dreams of Health care reform blew me away, and to see Ms. Clinton take an active role in office was inspirational. Yes, he did have his scandal, but my problem is this gut feeling I have that he was not the first, just the first to get caught. But the actions Clinton did taking us away from Reaganomics and rebuilding the economy is the enema this country needs at this time. To me, Ms. Clinton has been there when the country was down in a recession, and they pulled us out in no time. Now that the country has, in my opinion, passed the recession level and worked it's way into the beginning stages of depression, experience should be a prerequisite.
As I said before, I have spent the last 22 years of my life as a proud Democrat. I am proud to say that I served my country under President Clinton. But one thing I have to say, I missed the registration deadline for the Texas Democratic Presidential Primary, but I will be ready for the Presidential Election. And just know that if Obama beats out Clinton in the Democratic race, then I will be voting Republican in the next election. I just don't see the need to have a president who spends his time blaming everyone around for the problems plaguing us, or for a president who's policies could cause more problems that they fix.
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