House passes health care reform 220-215
Throughout the day Saturday, one could never tell what was about to happen. First, there was news that President Obama would be traveling to Capital Hill to woo Democrats who were thinking about voting against the health care legislation Nancy Pelosi was trying to pass. Then came word from Speaker Pelosi that the vote on H.R. 3962 may be delayed until next week. Imagine my surprise (not really) when the breaking news alert from ABC News came to my email inbox that the legislation had narrowly passed the House, in a vote of 220-125. In her usual ramrod manner, Nancy Pelosi had managed to get what she wanted. I have been reading through the actual text of the bill and needless to say, it can be confusing As with any legislation Congress comes up with, it is loaded with lawyer speak and multiple sections and sub-sections. For someone like me, with limited legal language skills (why don't they just use plain English), it takes several readings to really get the gist of what they are attempting to do with the legislation. I may never get through the entire bill, at least not without getting a headache, but there are sections that cause me great concern. As has been reported over the past few weeks, the House version of health care reform does contain penalties for those who fail to purchase acceptable health care coverage. From what I can gather from reading and re-reading the text, the penalty is going to be a ...
To kill or not to kill, that is the question for Iraq
A lot of people, myself included have questioned George W. Bush about the war in Iraq. I have always liked the man, but that didn't keep me from questioning the validity of sending our troops into the country and removing Saddam Hussein from power. Not that I was a great fan of Hussein, but I have always thought we should have focused more on Afghanistan and cleaning it up, rather than Iraq. Even though Bush declared victory early on, it soon became clear that the war was not over. Remember how the attacks and suicide bombings escalated before the somewhat successful troop surge in 2007? Here is something to keep in mind about those attacks. American troops were often caught in the crossfire but it is important to remember who was attacking who. Not only were the insurgents attacking American forces, but they were also killing their own people. The Sunni and Shiite Muslims hate each other with a passion, only slightly less than they hate us. When the attacks were on the rise, they were targeting each other as much as they were targeting Americans, maybe more so. The success of the troop surge came as a surprise to a lot of people. I wondered if it would work, but apparently, it has. Part of that success came from the fact that we basically paid local Iraqi tribes to align themselves with us instead of al-Qaida. That's right, we gave them money to stop fighting us and instead, help us to ...
Death to Obama?
Over the past several weeks, I have been listening to and reading the news and reading blogs, etc. as the rhetoric over health care reform and other policies of the Obama administration heats up even further. Both sides of the debate are going back and forth like a couple of alley dogs in a fight, posturing and snarling, showing their teeth. During the discussion on an article of my own, a commenter brought up something that actually happened several seeks ago. I don't know how I missed the news of this, but I did. It may be old news, but I feel it is still relevant and newsworthy. Back in June, Reverend Wiley Drake, of the Southern Baptist faith, said the death of Dr. George Tiller was an answer to prayer and said also that he had been praying the same kind of prayer about President Obama. When asked repeatedly if he was actually praying for the death of the President, Drake answered yes. Let's fast forward to August 31 and Tempe, AZ and to the church of Reverend Steven Anderson. The good reverend preached a sermon entitled "Why I Hate Barack Obama" and it has been the center of quite a controversy. He has said the sermon was in response to President Obama's stance on abortion and on the Iraq war. Since that time, he has continued asking the members of his church to pray for the death of the President, but at the same time, he says he does not condone ...
Should We Lower the Drinking Age?
There has been much discussion in the past year about reducing the drinking age to 18. The “21” law took effect in 1987 and imposed on states that did not comply a 10% reduction in state highway funds. The simplest argument for “18” is straightforward: in America an 18 year old can marry (but not have a glass of champagne at the wedding), sign a contract, vote, be tried and convicted as an adult, and fight and die for our country, but they are not mature enough to have a beer. In the past year a group of over 100 college presidents launched the Amethyst Initiative, a proposal to reopen national discussion on the Federal drinking age largely in response to rampant binge drinking among college students. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) presents compelling statistics to support the argument that “21” saves lives and should not be touched. I’ve read a fair amount on the subject and have concluded that a Federal minimum drinking age is simply inappropriate. The drinking age should be state mandated and the Federal government should not be holding the states hostage by threatening to withhold highway funds. The view from the Amethyst group is that “21” is not effective because it drives drinking off campus and underground where it cannot be monitored or policed. In addition, when trouble arises at parties where underage drinking occurs students hesitate to call police for fear of repercussions. In one notable case a fraternity pledge consumed massive amounts of alcohol as ...
Hillary: The Movie
Coming Soon to the Supreme Court: “Hillary: The Movie” On September 9th the Supreme Court will rehear the case Citizens United vs Federal Election Commission, better known as the Hillary: The Movie case. The case revolves around the First Amendment right to free speech and the McCain-Feingold law restricting corporate campaign financing. Is the movie just a “movie” or is it an “attack ad” financed by a conservative corporation? Not much has been made of this case but the ramifications for future elections could be enormous. The Court has gone out of its way to expand the breadth of the case by asking attorneys to prepare briefs on whether a key section of the McCain-Feingold law should be overturned. In 2003, with Sandra Day O’Connor providing the deciding vote in a 5-4 decision, the Court affirmed McCain-Feingold. But O’Connor’s replacement, Samuel Alito, is thought to have a different view thereby giving the current conservative justices an opportunity to overturn their 2003 decision. If they choose to issue a broad decision overturning a key provision of McCain-Feingold, and the will of the People as expressed in a law passed by Congress, then the concept of “activist justices,” so maligned by the GOP in strong opposition to Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination, will take on a whole new meaning. A little background starting with a simple question: Should a corporation or labor union be allowed to make unlimited campaign contributions to a candidate or other political entity? I think most readers recognize the potential for corruption inherent ...
News/Politics
The New Homebuyer Tax Credit
Last week the President signed a new $24 billion stimulus bill including measures to extend jobless benefits, to provide tax relief for struggling businesses, and to expand the homebuyer’s tax credit introduced earlier this year. The measure passed the Senate unanimously (98-0) and the House overwhelmingly (403-12) and was signed by President Obama. Ordinarily I would expect to applaud any measure... [Read more]
Catholic court documents ordered released
As a disclaimer, let me state categorically that I am not trying to bash the Catholic Church with this article. If there is one thing the Catholic Church is known for, it is it’s secrecy. I am not versed at all in their religious proceedings, but the first thing I think of when I hear the Catholic Church mentioned is how secretive they are. It seems that the theme filters from the Vatican, all... [Read more]
Health care debate moves to the Senate
I knew there was a reason I liked Joe Lieberman. With the House passing their version of health care reform late Saturday night, the battle over how to reform the system moves to the Senate and conservatives seem to have an ally in the Democrat turned Independent Senator from Connecticut. The plan pushed through the House by Nancy Pelosi contains a public option in which the government would offer... [Read more]
Fort Hood – Questions and answers
As the aftermath of the shooting at Fort Hood begins to unfold and more details are released, one thing is apparent. There are a lot of questions and no so many answers. It is now known that Major Nidal Malik Hasan is still alive and is in stable condition. The female civilian police officer who exchanged gunfire with him was originally thought to be dead as well, but she appears to have survived and... [Read more]
Shooting at Fort Hood
Even though I made the decision to cover breaking news and current events after the 2008 Presidential election was over, I hate writing about happenings such as this. Around 1:30 PM this afternoon, a soldier went on a shooting rampage at Fort Hood, TX and at the last count, 12 people were dead, including the shooter, and 31 were wounded. Some of the wounds were very severe. Although details are still... [Read more]
How well has the economic stimulus worked?
Remember how Barack Obama and his hordes of aides descended on Washington, D.C. before he even took the oath of office and began making the push and the sell for a massive economic stimulus package? To the tune of $787 billion, they told the American people that it was necessary and vital to any economic recovery. They told us how it would preserve jobs and even how it would create new ones. That has... [Read more]
Republicans win independent voters
As the news coverage of the GOP wins in Virginia and New Jersey continues, it is clear November 3rd was a big day for the Republican Party. Even though they lost the congressional seat in New York, they managed to pull off big wins in both of the previously mentioned states. The win in New Jersey itself was no small feat. Most of the stories that I have read or listened to have all alluded to the fact... [Read more]
Maine voters say no to gay marriage
It is a well known fact that voters in the New England area of our country are more independent than most and tend to vote more on the liberal side of the political spectrum. That statement is not meant to be a slam towards those voters, just an observation. When the Maine legislature voted in a state law to legalize same-sex marriage, it’s implementation was delayed because a voter referendum... [Read more]
Election results – November 3, 2009
Does anyone remember how it was last year around this same time? Barack Obama had just won the White House, due in no small part to a large influx of new voters, people who usually did not participate in the election process. For weeks now, we have heard how today, November 3, 2009 would be a test of the political clout President Obama still had left. There are three main contests that are being watched... [Read more]
Republicans boycott Senate meetings on climate control
For most of this year, it seems all I have written about has been the health care reform debate. Every time I turn around, there is something new to add to the discussion and even though I get tired of writing about the same old song and dance, it is news and that is what I want to cover on the blog. There are other stories in the news however, stories that should not be overlooked. As President Obama... [Read more]
Hyatt Hotels’ Housekeepers Histrionics
There was a story out last month about Hyatt Hotels’ mistreatment of its housekeeping staff in three Boston hotels that I let pass due to the more engrossing health care reform debate. There was yet another editorial in todays paper, however, and so I thought it was time to take this issue on. For those who may have missed it (I don’t know how much play it got outside the northeast) this... [Read more]
New York congressional race heats up
I have been out of the news loop for most of the weekend, due to having other obligations and it appears that I have missed a lot. Mike has already written about the struggle between the conservative and moderate factions of the Republican Party and how this struggle is playing out in the race for the congressional seat in upstate New York. The seat has been in Republican hands for a long time, yet... [Read more]
More arrests in California gang rape
News stories began to break over last weekend about a tragic turn of events at a homecoming dance at a Northern California high school last Saturday. I have yet to write about this case and have no intentions of getting into the specifics, but I have been watching it with interest, mainly from a father’s perspective. From the evidence so far, it appears the 15-year-old girl had left the dance... [Read more]
The NFL, Congress, & football – The way the game is played
I know, I know, this is an unusual post for me. I do not generally write about sports related issues, but as I begin to hear and read about the hearings held by Congress today, I decided to make an exception. Those of you who do not know me personally have no idea that I grew up listening to the Oklahoma Sooners and the Dallas Cowboys on the radio. It was an every Saturday and Sunday tradition for... [Read more]
Bombs in Pakistan
Early reports this morning are saying that a major explosion has taken place in Peshawar, Pakistan, killing at least 80 people, with the death toll expected to go higher. Care to take a guess at where the bomb went off? It was at a women’s market. According to FOX News, more than 200 people have been wounded. This attack highlights the problem that those who would oppose the Taliban must always... [Read more]
Republicans vs. Conservatives in NY Congressional Race
The race for the NY congressional seat left vacant when President Obama named moderate Republican John McHugh secretary of the Army has become the epicenter in the fight over the soul of the GOP. The county GOP chairmen chose moderate Dede Scozzafava as their nominee and tea party conservatives, with the growing support of national political figures, have flooded the blogosphere and the region in support... [Read more]
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