Pardons, Rosie, and Bailouts

Retraction requested-I read a comment on a blog of a friend about how the President really doesn't have that much power because of the checks and balances in our government. In your Utopian dreams buddy. Farce! Cockamamie! D's vote with D's and R's vote with R's. Everyone with a (D) or (R) next to their name has to vote with "their" president or be refused democratic/republican communion. The days of Representative government that thinks more about what's right for the country and less about what's self-dealing are nirvanic antiquities. There are very few real patriots in our current government.

Anyway...I digress..the Presidential pardon is an interesting part of our constitution. It enables the President to commute a sentence or pardon someone outright regardless of their crimes. I know Clinton and even Reagan did their fair share of pardoning in their days in office..mostly near the end of their terms. Does anyone else find it interesting that the President can be the judge of all judges and override the sentences of those convicted by trial? All I can say is I'd be pretty ticked off if I spent a 2 months serving jury duty to convict a guy and then the president said "It's okay...you are really a good person...and I love you...so I am going to set you free....because I can!" Seems pretty crazy to me. I need to figure out why the founders put that in the Constitution..they had to have a better reason than to excuse tax fraud and bank embezzlers from their prison "duties". By the way Mr. President, if you could swing it, I'd like a pardon from work this week....thanks.

Rosie O'Donnell-She has her own "variety" show? Come on NBC! I know revenues for advertising are down and that the major TV networks are asking for bailout money too but come on! So they can't sell enough advertising to fund their programming budgets-and they think people will want to advertise during a Rosie O'Donnell variety hour? Must be giving away free airtime. I'd personally rather watch a naked Rosanne Barr at a fast trot on a treadmill for an hour. (honestly try the visual for more than 5 seconds) Whatever is being passed around the boardroom table at NBC programming meetings must be pretty strong.

The Citi never Sleeps...Citi finally got their bailout today. Goodie. $20 Billion now and $306 Billion dollars of freakin' taxpayer money to grow on. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Thanks Citi...glad we could help out with your business ventures. My future grandchildren would thank you. What's in your wallet?

Break my System and I will Break Your Bones!

Carlee and Kory Hoopes from choopes.com and insomniacsoup.com made me aware of the Constitution party's presidential candidate Chuck Baldwin tonight. He seems like an honest guy and I wish they would give some air time to him but of course his validity is compromised by what Americans see as gospel and that is the media's opinion. I don't know if I would necessarily vote for Baldwin just because I haven't seen enough of him to know what his character and background looks like. I don't know. It's a broken system. I wish we could get someone with the same ideals it sounds like Baldwin has to run on a national republican or democrat ticket so it actually would be a possibility to become President. The way our government works with the current two party system is like a best ball four man scramble. It doesn't really matter who wins the white house because politics will continue as usual. The Republicans don't want to support a third party candidate because it takes votes from them and Democrats won't support a third party because third parties always seem to be right of center. For a democrat, there is nothing else. If conservative Americans had a brain in their head collectively, they could come up with someone like Baldwin, nominate him and put him out there as the standard of conservatism a year in advance. It happened with Reagan after Carter. But Reagan started running for President in 68 and wasn't elected until 80. It's an overused euphemism but we really do need to break up the old boys club in Washington. I laugh when I hear Sarah Palin and John McCain say they will change everything in Washington. There is so much corruption in Washington behind dirty money, they would squash Palin in a heartbeat. If they walk in there on day one and do what they said they'd do, Congress would shut down completely and render our government good for nothing for at least 4 years, McCain would be a one-termer because the country would revolt because of the inaction of government and this has historically always been pinned on the president. Yet another flaw in our country's political mores. If my life is bad, I'm blaming the president. It's happened all through our history. There needs to be a period of complete humbling in America. (Perhaps we need an Obama to screw us over so completely for 4 years that we have to come up with a massive uprising.) Until then, we can expect more of the same. Dems and Repugs will never bring the change that we all want. Third Parties are the only option right now and until we can create a system with more diversity in thought we will be stuck right where we are...waiting for the second coming to sort it all out.

Obvious lack of a life

I have no life. I find myself at the ripe old age of 27 reading National Geographic (my favorite left leaning-save the planet magazine) and watching the History channel specials on presidents. That's right my friends, I have become so incensed with the current political campaign machine that I have turned to not only the History Channel but the specials they show High School kids without commercials. I have covered all of the 20th century as of tonight and find myself as hopeless as ever for the state of our country. I am sorry for whatever affection you hold for any particular POTUS in the past or fantasy world that you've imagined where every POTUS is an upstanding principled man with impeccable character. I realize after watching this that every president in the history of our country was defined by some cause that he took upon himself to be the national champion of. Most men were not elected to office because of who they were in the eyes of Americans (with maybe the exception of Gen. Eisenhower) but from the dire circumstances created by the government of their past presidencies/congresses. Each came to office with certain goals, some egotistical and some admirable. Some were effective and some found their goals were victims to an unsettled American public.

Today, I see the thin veil of ignorance in today's political campaigning. Every POTUS was seen as, expected to be and championed as the "Messiah" and the one who would stand up for the "average American" and get us out of this mess. Call me cynical but one man at the head of a massive and corrupt government can't change the world no matter how "called" he may feel to the task. Real change has to occur with each and every American. We again revert back to the topic of "if someone else will do it for me, I'll let him" mentality.

What if each American said to him/herself....hey wake up (self) and take a look at what I am doing to solve the problems I complain all day about. Hey(self), what am I doing to give back to the making of a better country and hey (self)...am I draining on the system? and if I am...I'm going to get off my @$$ and make a difference myself instead of trying to anointing some "savior of the country" to be my big bad boyfriend whose going to show those Republicans/Democrats back in Washington a thing or two. By the way I think if the tables were reversed and the Republicans were in the lead, had an influential and historical figure, that they too would anoint him the flag-bearer of a "new day" in Washington. These ideas and tactics are not party-specific.

Now, perhaps the only thing to do is throw a History Channel Party and immerse ourselves in the 1800's for fun next.

What are you anyway?

I find it intersting to think that the average American feels compelled to paint themselves into a corner when it comes to your political identification. I did myself until 2005. I was a card carrying Republican and was sure that was what I was "supposed to be." After all, I do have a strong opinion about abortion and the sanctity of life. (another topic for another day) Since Democrats are usually pro-choice and Repubs pro-life, You can guess where my allegiance fell. After all it is a Republic not a democracy right? I soon became incensed with the two parties and unregistered myself from any political party affiliation.



I was asked today if i am not a Rebulican or a Democrat then am I Libritarian. I then thought I should clarify so you know if you are reading a commy's blog or not.

Can I be honest with you? I don't want to be any of them.

I didn't live back in the "good old days" when it was "cool" to be patriotic-but I wish I did. I would have loved to have been a soldier as they came home from Germany and seen the ticker-tape parades of the 40's. I would have loved to feel that Americana, that sense of pride and accomplishment as a nation.

I was in Austria on 9/11 and for the few months following the attacks, I heard of the patriotism in the States and even saw a little when I returned in 2002. Why does this ever have to disappear? Looking through my rose colored glasses, i don't even understand why it requires a terrorist attack to make us all realize that we need each other.

I guess what I am getting at is this---Politics are politics and I am not ever going to be able to change that. There will always be the party system that bickers and squabbles back and forth until eventually nothing gets done. However, I can still dream of a time when perhaps there will be another option. Until then, when asked what I am, I will simply answer I am an American. That should be enough shouldn't it?

Blame Game

Have you ever listened to a debate or even an exchange on a cable news show between a commentator and a pundit (Republicans or Democrats) or even a congressman or house member and wanted to pull your hair out?



The commentator spends the entire time trying to get the other to admit fault and cross his words while the guest spends the whole time prancing around a real answer and dodging the question.



What ever happened to a man owning up to his mistakes? And why is it such an accomplishment to be the one to get someone to cross their words or admit something that will end up on the Drudge report?



Example today with Chris Matthews and a Republican House Member-Matthews could not ask the question more forcefully if the Repub would admit that the President's policies put us in the financial mess we are in as a nation. Obviously there have been some big goofs on the part of practically everyone but the Repub could not defend the president or he'd be seen as a Bush supporter and ostracised by his own party but could not deny the truth or he would give ammo to the demos against McCain. So he danced.......and Matthews went for blood. He saw himself being replayed on YouTube all day tomorrow.



Dale Carnegie gave very simple and profound advice when he said,"If you're wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically.". Now that would blow some minds and make the news!



Otherwise, the same old stuff makes for great TV or Radio-if you're into the "throwing people under the bus for self agrandizement" stuff. Obama's a great mentor. Ask his grandma.







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