Month: April 2012

A Good Idea No Matter From Where It Comes

News Flash!  In case you missed it…Santorum suspended his campaign yesterday….so now there are three….but only one that will now focus on sniping at the president…….pretty much hands Mitt the nomination on a silver platter…….well played Mr. Romney!

I have said that I would support an idea no matter where it comes from as long as it passes my test…that being in the best interests of the people of the US……and now it is about time for the deficit circus to begin again……..but it will be the same partisan game they have been played since the election of Obama….none of these worthless individuals are concerned with the country and that sucks!

The Repubs have their plan…..Dems have their plan……The White House has their plan…..an NO one talks about it…..all they can accomplish is a sprint to a microphone and sling out lame ass talking points…..this accomplishes absolutely NOTHING!

Personally I like the Simpson-Bowles solution from a couple of years ago……it was a perfect place to start the conversation….but NO the players had to go back and be told what to believe and it did not fit into the scheme of their political BS……in case you missed it back when it was published let me refresh your memory…….

Social Security cuts:

  • Index the retirement age to longevity — i.e., increase the retirement age to qualify for Social Security — to age 69 by 2075.
  • Index Social Security yearly increases to a lower inflation rate, which will generally mean lower cost of living increases and less money per average recipient.
  • “Increase progressivity of benefit formula” — i.e., reduce benefits by 2050 for middle, and, especially, higher earners, relative to current benefits.
  • Increase the Social Security contribution ceiling: while people only pay Social Security taxes on the first $106,800 of their wages today, that’s only about 86% of the total potentially taxable wages. The co-chairs suggest raising the ceiling to capture 90% of wages.

Tax reform:

  • The co-chairs suggest capping both government expenditures and revenue at 21% of GDP eventually.
  • In their first plan, called “The Zero Plan,” they suggest reducing the tax brackets to three personal brackets and one corporate rate while eliminated all credits and deductions. Without any credits or deductions (including the EITC and mortgage interest deductions), the 3 tax rates would be 8, 14 and 23 percent.
  • In their second plan, they would increase the personal deduction to $15,000, create 3 tax brackets (15, 25 and 35%); repeal or significantly curtail a number of popular tax deductions (including the state and local deduction and the mortgage interest deduction); and eliminate other tax expenditures.
  • The third plan would force Congress to undertake comprehensive tax reform by 2012 by raising taxes for each year Congress fails to act.
  • All their proposals limit Congress to collecting taxes on income made within the United States, reducing or eliminating taxes on American expats and revenues companies earn abroad.
  • They also suggest raising the federal gas tax by 15 cents per gallon.

Medicaid/Medicare cuts

  • Force more low-income individuals into Medicaid managed care.
  • Increase Medicaid co-pays.
  • Accelerate already-planned cuts to Medicare Advantage and home health care programs.
  • Create a cap for Medicaid/Medicare growth that would force Congress and the President to increase premiums or co-pays or raise the Medicare eligibility age (among other options) if the system encounters cost overruns over the course of 5 years.

Discretionary spending cuts

  • Eliminate all earmarks.
  • Eliminate the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools.
  • Freeze federal worker wage increases through 2014; eliminate 200,000 federal jobs by 2020; and eliminate 250,000 federal non-defense contractor jobs by 2015.
  • Eliminate subsidized student loans, in which the government makes interest payments while the student is in school.
  • Establish co-pays in the VA medical system and change the co-pays and deductibles for military retirees that remain in that system.
  • Eliminate NASA funding for commercial space flight.
  • Require the Smithsonian museums to start charging entrance fees and raise fees at the national parks.
  • Eliminate funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting — which many conservatives suggested in the wake of the firing of former NPR contributor Juan Williams.
  • Reduce farm subsidies by $3 billion per year.
  • Create a Committee to eliminate unnecessary programs to the tune of $11 billion by 2015.
  • Merge the Department of Commerce and the Small Business Administration and cut its budget by 10 percent.
  • End “low-priority” Army Corps of Engineers programs to the tune of $1 billion by 2015.
  • Cut the State Department’s overseas budget by 10 percent by 2015; reduce the proposed foreign aid budget by 10 percent in 2015; and cut voluntary contributions to the United Nations by 10 percent in 2015.
  • Eliminate the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, which provides subsidized financing and political risk insurance for U.S. companies’ investments abroad.
  • Cut $900 million in fossil fuel research funds.
  • Force airlines to increase their contributions to airline security costs and allow them to increase per-ticket security fees.

Defense spending cuts:

  • Double the number of defense contractor positions scheduled for elimination from 10 percent of current staff augmentees to 20 percent.
  • Reduce procurement by 15 percent, or $20 billion.
  • Eliminate the V-22 Osprey program.
  • Cancel the Marine Corps’ Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle program.
  • Halve the number of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters in favor of F-16s and F/A-18Es.
  • Cancel the Marine Corps F-35 program.
  • Cancel the Navy’s Future Maritime Prepositioning Force.
  • Cancel the new Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), the Ground Combat Vehicle, and the Joint Tactical Radio.
  • Reduce military forces in Europe and Asia by one-third.
  • Send all military children based in the U.S. to local schools.

I know it is a lot to digest but if you do not know what is being offered then it is possible that the MSM will make all your political decisions for you………this would be a great place to start negotiations…provided that was ever the intention……

Dis-United States Of America

Join or Die
Join or Die cartoon

Do you recognize the above?  Contrary to popular belief it is NOT a flag.  Not the same as the irritating Gadsen flag.  But rather a political cartoon published by Ben Franklin asking colonist to unite behind the idea of independence…the colonies needed to join together or die as a dream of an independent country….where freedom and equality would rule.

This cartoon shows a snake cut into eight pieces, each labeled with the name of one of the colonies. The position of each colony in the snake corresponds to the geographic position of the colonies along the American coast, with the snake’s tail pointing south and the head pointing north. The colonies, from tail to head (south to north), are: South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and New England (New England referred to the colonies of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Hampshire). The caption reads, “JOIN, or DIE.”

The cartoon appeared along with Franklin’s editorial about the “disunited state” of the colonies, and helped make his point about the importance of colonial unity.

If you already knew this I apologize but I felt I needed to give a bit of the back story for this post……

It is election time and what an election it will be……both sides of the joke we call the political system will be going negative….that is they will be highlighting the negative aspects of the others candidates….yes….I know this is nothing new….but it has began to get worse and worse to the point that absolutely nothing is getting done beyond re-naming a couple Post Offices………

As a political analyst I feel that this situation is getting more pathetic by the day, week and year….we, Americans, are no longer looking for a leader but someone who is NOT the current leader…..and look what that has gotten us in the last 20 years……

Back to the Franklin cartoon…..it is as important today as it was back in the 1700’s…..we do not have a unified country…..we do not have a country that is about the DofI anymore…..we are about a system, a 3 tier system, that is for sale to the highest bidder….all this influence from organizations other than the people is going down a road that will bring about the end of the system that our founder’s were willing to die for…….

Has anyone today asked….what is best for the country?  Oh sure…this candidate is better than that one….but NO one says why…other than some God ignorant crap about a political ideology…….it is a rel shame that our Founding fathers cannot see what a pathetic joke our system, that they designed, has become….

Please before someone reads every other word and starts lambasting me with political do-do….I am not choosing one ideology over another….bother these clowns are as responsible as the other…..and as soon as all Americans realize this can we get back to being the nation our founders foresaw……

But until then we will have a nation run by people that are out of touch with average citizens…..that are paid spokepeople for a wealth of special interests…………

On a side note: Dems blame Repubs, Liberals blame Conservs, candidates blame the president……….. civil discourse is dead in this country and that is the biggest contributor to the demise of the system……and since it is the strongest in the Congress….we need to vote for “NONE OF THE ABOVE”……I have absolutely NO confidence in the leaders of our government…..and the sooner we can replace ALL of them the better….but someone from another party is going to do NOTHING to fix our problems…..Washington is the problems and NOT the solution…….politics in America is ‘poli’  meaning many and ‘tics’ meaning blood sucking insects……that is the BEST I can say about our politicians!

The words of the cartoon is as true today as they were in the 1700’s……we Americans need to join together for a better country or we will DIE!

SOPA Morphs!

For all my liberal friends that were applauding the demise of SOPA…..i suggest we wake up and smell the coffee!

SOPA is NOT dead!  SOPA has morphed into CISPA…..that is right SOPA is not going away…the trickery bastards are renaming it……On November 30, 2011 representatives Michael “Mike” Rogers (R-MI) and C.A. Ruppersberger (D-MD) introduced H.R. 3523: Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011, which has 106 co-sponsors.

Govtrack.us reveals the synopsis of H.R. 3523:

“Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011 – Amends the National Security Act of 1947 to add provisions concerning cyber threat intelligence and information sharing. Defines “cyber threat intelligence” as information in the possession of an element of the intelligence community directly pertaining to a vulnerability of, or threat to, a system or network of a government or private entity, including information pertaining to the protection of a system or network from: (1) efforts to degrade, disrupt, or destroy such system or network; or (2) theft or misappropriation of private or government information, intellectual property, or personally identifiable information. Requires the Director of National Intelligence to: (1) establish procedures to allow intelligence community elements to share cyber threat intelligence with private-sector entities, and (2) encourage the sharing of such intelligence. Requires the procedures established to ensure that such intelligence is only: (1) shared with certified entities or a person with an appropriate security clearance, (2) shared consistent with the need to protect U.S. national security, and (3) used in a manner that protects such intelligence from unauthorized disclosure. Provides for guidelines for the granting of security clearance approvals to certified entities or officers or employees of such entities. Authorizes a cybersecurity provider (a non-governmental entity that provides goods or services intended to be used for cybersecurity purposes), with the express consent of a protected entity (an entity that contracts with a cybersecurity provider) to: (1) use cybersecurity systems to identify and obtain cyber threat information in order to protect the rights and property of the protected entity; and (2) share cyber threat information with any other entity designated by the protected entity, including the federal government. Regulates the use and protection of shared information, including prohibiting the use of such information to gain a competitive advantage and, if shared with the federal government, exempts such information from public disclosure. Prohibits a civil or criminal cause of action against a protected entity, a self-protected entity (an entity that provides goods or services for cybersecurity purposes to itself), or a cybersecurity provider acting in good faith under the above circumstances. Directs the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board to submit annually to Congress a review of the sharing and use of such information by the federal government, as well as recommendations for improvements and modifications to address privacy and civil liberties concerns. Preempts any state statute that restricts or otherwise regulates an activity authorized by the Act.”

Do not be so proud of the victory with SOPA and PIPA……your 1st amendment is at risk yet again……if you are opposed to SOPA then learn as much as possible on the new attack on your rights…..CISPA!

Or you could just go along with the flow and lose your rights……no biggies….but YOU NEED TO CHOOSE!  Or shut up!

Ever Heard Of James Mill?

College of Political knowledge

Since the SCOTUS judgment on the “Citizen United” case there has been a massive argument or exchange or debate on the values or not of letting special interests buy the government (in case there is any doubt….I think the ruling was the most detrimental ruling in a century)……..I have given my readers lots to think about…at least I hope they are thinking and acting……over the years many political philosophers have seen the harm that could be done by special interest cash flowing to politicians……

In case there is any doubt…..I have been a radical from most of my adult life and have studied the radical theories and writings throughout history….I happen to remember something written by an English radical, James Mill not to be confused with John Stuart Mill (that is a post for another day)……however James was his father.

The Utilitarian and Philosophic Radical James Mill (1773-1836) wrote a series of articles for the Supplement to the 1825 edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica. In the article on “Government” he warns of the dangers of the selfish and “sinister interests” all those who wield power, unless checked by an informed people:

We have seen already, that if one man has power over others placed in his hands, he will make use of it for an evil purpose; for the purpose of rendering those other men the abject instruments of his will. If we, then, suppose, that one man has the power of choosing the Representatives of the people, it follows, that he will choose men, who will use their power as Representatives for the promotion of this his sinister interest.

We have likewise seen, that when a few men have power given them over others, they will make use of it exactly for the same ends, and to the same extent, as the one man. It equally follows, that, if a small number of men have the choice of the Representatives, such Representatives will be chosen as will promote the interests of that small number, by reducing, if possible, the rest of the community to be the abject and helpless slaves of their will.

In all these cases, it is obvious and indisputable, that all the benefits of the Representative system are lost. The Representative system is, in that case, only an operose and clumsy machinery for doing that which might as well be done without it; reducing the community to subjection, under the One, or the Few.

When we say the Few, it is seen that, in this case, it is of no importance whether we mean a few hundreds, or a few thousands, or even many thousands. The operation of the sinister interest is the same; and the fate is the same, of all that part of the community over whom the power is exercised. A numerous Aristocracy has never been found to be less oppressive than an Aristocracy confined to a few.

The general conclusion, therefore, which is evidently established is this; that the benefits of the Representative system are lost, in all cases in which the interests of the choosing body are not the same with those of the community.

Since the beginning (well almost) men with far reaching thinking have seen the damage that money and special interests can do when it drives the political agenda…..and what that agenda  can do to the health of democracy….WHY CAN’T WE?

The Ethics Of Mind Control

Yep, Sunday…..Happy Easter by the way……my last day to post a saved draft and use my mind for other things……well, it is that sciencey stuff and technology thing…..yes, I know…i seem to be fixated on the ethics of all this super technology and not so much on the benefits to humankind…..well, with good reason……I have seen what human nature is capable of……….

Source: US News

A future of brain-controlled tanks, automated attack drones and mind-reading interrogation techniques may arrive sooner than later, but advances in neuroscience that will usher in a new era of combat come with tough ethical implications for both the military and scientists responsible for the technology, according to one of the country’s leading bioethicists.

Moreno warns in an essay published in the science journal PLoS Biology Tuesday that the military’s interest in neuroscience advancements “generates a tension in its relationship with science.”

“The goals of national security and the goals of science may conflict. The latter employs rigorous standards of validation in the expansion of knowledge, while the former depends on the most promising deployable solutions for the defense of the nation,” he writes.

Much of neuroscience focuses on returning function to people with traumatic brain injuries, he says. Just as Albert Einstein didn’t know his special theory of relativity could one day be used to create a nuclear weapon, neuroscience research intended to heal could soon be used to harm.

Moreno says there is a fine line between using neuroscience devices to allow an injured person to regain baseline functions and enhancing someone’s body to perform better than their natural body ever could.

The military, scientists and ethicists are increasingly wondering how neuroscience technology changes the battlefield. The staggering possibilities are further along than many think. There is already development on automated drones that are programmed to make their own decisions about who to kill within the rules of war. Other ideas that are closer-than-you-think to becoming a military reality: Tanks controlled from half a world away, memory erasures that could prevent PTSD, and “brain fingerprinting” that could be used to extract secrets from enemies.Moreno foretold some of these developments when he first published Mind Wars in 2006, but not without trepidation.

“I was afraid I’d be dismissed as a paranoid schizophrenic when I first published the book,” he says. But then a funny thing happened—the Department of Defense and other military groups began holding panels on neurotechnology to determine how and when it should be used. I was surprised how quickly the policy questions moved forward. Questions like: ‘Can we use autonomous attack drones?’ ‘Must there be a human being in the vehicle?’ ‘How much of a payload can it have?’. There are real questions coming up in the international legal community.”  (I know the feeling….it seems that he and i have that in common)……..

I have said that to dismiss these concerns shows a lack of comprehension of what we humans are truly capable of doing when we are allowed…..

But I am glad that I am not the only one that sees a potential problem……

Is A Singularity Possible?

Once again the weekend has crept up on me….I need some mental down time….and I need to cut some slack to my daughter for she is really irritated with me and the Neds/Cros thing……for the sake of serenity I will move on….(for now)……

Sciencey stuff!  My readers know that I have some reservations about the innovations that meddle man and machine…..my reservations are NOT about the technology but what it will do to human nature…..and it looks like the singularity is moving ever closely……..

Source: Gigaom

Cramming biology on silicon is not a new effort, and it’s one that has helped advance the science of genomics and led to the $1,000 genome. But in the last few weeks, I’ve noticed some pretty sweet combinations of biology and chip research. They will first end up helping biological research and test new drug compounds, but in the future might become something out of Ray Kurzweil’s The Singularity, the melding of man and machine.

A gut chip for a gut check: You and I might not want a chip that mimics the entire process of a human digestive system including peristalsis and living bacteria, but folks trying to test out drugs do. And now, thanks to researchers at Harvard University they have one. The lab-on-chip uses two thin channels coated in a biological growth medium and human intestinal cells to create a mini-intestine that apparently can sustain actual gut bacteria for about a week. Who needs an ant farm anymore?

A silver voyeur to monitor cells’ secretions: Researchers at Lehigh University have developed a biosensor that is so sensitive it can monitor the protein secretions of cells. It’s composed of a thin silver skin on a glass slide that contains two slits. Lights shined onto one slit sets off a reaction and interference pattern that is captured and read by a special microscope. Each pattern represents a different type of protein, letting scientists understand what’s happening (and growing) inside their petri dishes in real time.

Nanoparticles that build themselves: Instead of putting a biological process on a chip or creating a chip to measure biological processes researchers at the University of Michigan have created materials that mimic proteins. These man-made materials act like biological processes and can self-organize in predictable ways, giving researchers new ways to create biomedical devices, solar panels or even new drugs. The team is working to create nanoparticles that will self-assemble into enzyme-like particles that can be used to catalyze biological and chemical reactions.

History has shown us that we humans are very capable of using technology for greed and dominance……..I worry that with this age of corruption and greed…..we mere mortals will be crapped on and once crapped on it will be hard to put the crap back from whence it came……

Obamacare: Repeal And Replace

The Supreme Court has in its hands now…it has already made a decision but they need 3 months to write up the ruling…..it is NO secret that I think SCOTUS is a joke but they are the final word on constitutional matters and we will have to wait for the news of their ruling and that should be good for a couple of weeks of MSM jaw bumping…….

Until then let us look at the GOP’s favorite slogan….at least for now…..Obamacare:  Repeal and Replace….we Americans have been exposed to this bumper sticker for almost a year…but if it is repealed what will be its replacement?

From The Week Magazine……..

Republicans charged into the 2010 midterm elections with the battle cry: “Repeal and replace” the Democrats’ massive health care reform law. The GOP rode that promise to a landslide victory, but once conservatives took control of the House and were strengthened in the Senate, the “replace” part of the equation sort of disappeared. With the Supreme Court seemingly on the cusp of striking down or neutering ObamaCare, effectively carrying out the “repeal” part of the GOP promise, there’s a new urgency regarding what, if anything, would take the law’s place to fix America’s broken health care system. Do Republicans have a plan?

No. “Replace” was always a lie: Republicans have been promising to unveil their ObamaCare alternative for 15 months, says Jonathan Bernstein at The Washington Post. And here we are — still waiting. “The truth is that ‘replace’ has always been a fraud, cooked up presumably because a flat-out repeal of health care reform polls much worse than replacing it with some unspecified legislation.” If the Supreme Court does toss out the law, at least it will call the GOP’s bluff.
“The GOP’s ‘repeal and replace’ fraud”

Of course Republicans have a plan: “There is a Republican health plan,” says John Goodman at Fox News. But just as Democrats are often loathe to discuss ObamaCare, “Republicans are just as afraid to talk about their plan.” That’s because it’s “more radical and progressive than ObamaCare”: It scraps all the “arbitrary, unfair, and wasteful” federal and state tax subsidies for insurance coverage and gives every America the same amount of money to buy their own insurance. Problem solved.
“There is a GOP alternative to ObamaCare”

The GOP solution might look a lot like ObamaCare: Even ObamaCare opponents know that some parts of the law — like the rule preventing insurers from turning away customers with pre-existing conditions — are “overwhelmingly popular,” says Eli Lehrer at The Huffington Post. But such provisions cost money. So we ObamaCare detractors have “a rather unenviable set of choices”: Find a way to pay for the popular parts of the law, or oppose it all and take a political hit. The sad truth? Keeping the popular parts of the law means embracing a solution that will be awfully similar to ObamaCare.
“An unenviable health care choice for conservatives”

Well Romney’s plan is out for it looks like Obamacare.  So what s left?  Tax credits?  Savings accounts?  what is the GOP’s stand on getting adequate health care for Americans?  A better question is…Is there a plan?

I guess these questions will be answered in June when SCOTUS chimes in……

What Now, Syria?

It has been a year since the “Arab spring” caught fire in Syria….now after massive destruction, thousands dead and many many maimed….what will the future bring?

I wrote recently that the US was joining in a multi nation attempt to solve the problem in Syria by arming and equipping the resistance….the problem is NO one knows who they are…..a slight kink in the plan…..but what if it fails?

There have been lots of opinions flying around from Congress from the media and from us bloggers….but what are we really looking at?  Some want the US to go in and attack….others want to try and sanction Syria into submission and then there are those that just could not give a crap……

For those that say we need to act more aggressively…the US has this strategy for taking out what we deem as dictators……..I offer up this analysis from the site StratRisks.com……..

1. The target cannot have nuclear weapons. Strongmen in Pakistan and North Korea by virtue of their nukes are exempt from American reaction (unlike Syria or, at present, Iran) — unless they directly threaten our existence or that of our allies. With the end of the Cold War, many rogue states lost the Soviet nuclear umbrella and are still scrambling to acquire their own nuclear weapons to ensure them deterrence, especially against the United States, which has not yet invaded a nuclear nation.

2. We do not attack large countries. About 30 million or so — roughly the population of Iraq or Afghanistan — is the upper limit. That criterion suggests that we will not ourselves seek regime change in Iran (population: 65 million) through force — a different case from punitive bombing or preemptive air attacks on its nuclear facilities.

3. The target should not directly border either Russia or China. We violated this commandment in Afghanistan, apparently encouraged by the global climate of goodwill toward America after 9/11, the short and mountainous Chinese border, and the fact that China shares our fear of radical Islam. But otherwise, after Vietnam and the Cold War, the former Soviet republics, North Korea, Tibet, and the countries of Southeast Asia will always be off-limits to U.S. intervention.

4. U.N. sanction and U.S. congressional approval, however praised and sometimes sought, seem irrelevant. We obtained neither before bombing Serbia, the former but not the latter in Libya, and the latter but not the former in Iraq. We obtained both for Gulf War I, but neither for Panama or for Grenada.

5. Africa seems exempt. Tens of thousands perished in Congo, Darfur, and Rwanda. Africa has oil. No matter. Somalia is as much Middle Eastern as African, and our intervention there was a particularly half-hearted affair. In Africa, even genocide is not a reason for U.S. military intervention — quite in contrast to Serbia, where NATO finally intervened. Idealism is often as praised as it is subordinated to realist concerns.

6. We often intervene in Central America and the Caribbean — the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Haiti, Panama — but are less likely to do so in South America, where the politics are riskier, the distances greater, and the nations larger and stronger.

7. Intervention is mostly a bipartisan affair. Democrats went into Haiti, Libya, Serbia, and Somalia, Republicans into Afghanistan, Grenada, Panama, Iraq, and Libya. Republicans may have intervened a little more since Vietnam, but then there have been more years of Republican administrations. Anti-war protests are usually aimed at Republicans, rarely at Democrats, who enjoy far more latitude in the use of force.

8. There is no consistent or predictable rationale for invading a country; it can be supposed national interest and/or oil (Iraq, Libya), “humanitarian” considerations (Haiti, Serbia, Somalia), spheres of interest (Grenada, Panama), or simple retaliation (Afghanistan).

9. The insertion of ground troops is necessary to create postwar governments (Afghanistan, Iraq, Serbia, etc.); without them we have little influence (Libya).

10. The target is usually a government rather than gangs, tribes, or terrorists; if it is one of the latter, either we do not go in to remove those in control, whatever the provocation (Lebanon), or we fail when we do (Haiti, Somalia). The verdict on Afghanistan is still out.

11. We are adept at removing dictators (Afghanistan, Grenada, Iraq, Libya, Panama, Serbia), but less so at fostering calm in their wake (Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya).

12. The American people usually favor intervention at the outset, but regret it when hundreds of Americans are killed, or violence continues. Those who most assiduously demanded action are most likely to blame the leaders who followed their advice, apparently embarrassed when violence continues and our losses mount.

13. Russia and China almost always oppose our intervention. nations that support our intervention usually do so privately — and publicly only to the degree post facto that it is clear that we succeeded quickly and without much turmoil.

14. The U.N. has far more problems with removing genocidal dictators than with allowing them to perpetuate genocide.

15. No intervention provides much of a model for any other.

So my question is….at what point do you think the US should get involved in the action in Syria?  Do we chance another war to bring democracy to another country?  or do we allow the Syrian people to choose the course that they feel is best for the country and the people?

Afterword:  since I wrote this draft a new situation has arisen….Syria has agreed to a ceasefire……

(Newser) – Bashar al-Assad’s regime has agreed to begin implementing Kofi Annan’s UN- and Arab League-backed peace plan by April 10, and to cease hostilities entirely 48 hours later, diplomats told reporters today. Syrian officials confirmed as much for al-Jazeera, but said the deal would fall through if Annan couldn’t get the opposition to sign on. “A plan wouldn’t be successful unless everybody is committed to it,” one official said.

In a briefing today, Annan urged the Security Council to support the April 10 deadline. But he added that there had been “no progress” in implementing the plan, which calls for the UN to monitor a ceasefire, as soldiers and heavy weaponry are pulled out of cities. US ambassador Susan Rice emerged from the meeting sounding less than reassured. “We have seen promises made and promises broken,” she told the BBC. Past experience “would lead us to be skeptical.”

personally….it is a delaying tactic….Assad wants time to re-group and then push forward……

I Will Not Have An Obasm!

An Obasm?  Yep, an semi-orgasmic delight of Obama….I wish I could say that the term was mine and mine alone….but alas I cannot…..

The Urban Dictionary has had a definition since 2007: “The pleasure that a liberal-leaning journalist gets when writing a fawning story about U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL). An ‘obasm’ is a story so gushy and so fluffy, bereft of objectivity, that one imagines having to clean up after the writer with a mop and bucket.”

Personally, I never thought that change was gonna come with the election of Obama and I wrote about it on Daily Kos and was attacked because I was not 100% behind Obama as the site was…..goes to show that even us Leftist do not want to hear the truth……..both parties are concerned with power than solutions and the American voter is more concerned with who is president than what is done for the country they proclaim that they love and honor…….

I will not write a flowery post about Obama just because he is Obama….I will defend a policy that I think is best for the country and its people….I care not who is in power…I will not defend someone that I do not agree with or someone whose policy is not in the common good……

I have spent time reading blogs, both left and right leaning and i still shutter when I see the condemnation of anyone just because they are of a different stripe……..I may think a person is a moron and an idiot but I try to refrain from calling them such (not always successful, but t least I try….more than many can say)…..I am not condemning the person but rather a policy I do not agree with….

These days we hear much about ‘moderates’ or ‘independents’………in my mind a moderate is  a made up term to make someone appear more reasonable……an independent is someone who will put political agenda aside to work for the good of the country…….

Recently when I was having an exchange with a friend and loyal reader of Info Ink, Terrance of Sibboleth Nation (go to blogroll and visit his site…it is thoughtful and well written)………he stated that he was not sure where I stood on political issues, at times I sound like a socialist and others a straight liberal….and that exchange got me to thinking that there maybe others out there that would like to know where I stand…..it is a fair question and a fair request…….

And this is something that I have seldom told anyone….for reasons I cannot say….

I am a Leftist and I guess one can analyze that anyway that they choose….I believe that government has a duty to look after the people that it rules…to see that everyone has an equal opportunity at life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness (sorry could not resist)……when I was very young my grandfather gave my a copy of Paine’s “Common Sense”…..and that work put me on the road that I still travel…

But the biggest influence was a man named Ahmed Massoud…..a man I met during the time that I was in service to my country….it is not my intent to write a biography of the man just to illustrate how he influenced my political thinking….(Google him if you want to know more about him)…..

He was a leader of men….he would not set himself above any of his men, he cooked, washed, stood guard duty and when ever he entered a village he would shake the hand of everyone and acknowledge them, he would not take special gifts that the villagers offered because they needed it more than him…..his first concern was for the safety of the people above all……the needs of the people and the wants whenever possible…he listened to every person that wanted to talk with him, whether it was a problem, idea or just a bitch and he would act on them as he had promised….he never told the people anything that he was not willing to do……of course, he had is agenda but he never let his political ambitions get in the way of his duty to the country and its people…….he would put aside his ambitions whenever it conflicted with the needs, desires and wants of the people……

After watching this man in action, I felt that American politics should function along these lines…our politicians pretend to care, pretend to listen but their actions show they do not CARE…..policies have a dollar value in this country……..much can be learned from people like Massoud…it is a shame few listen!

Who Really Owns The US Debt?

it is election time and we hear from the Right about the evils of China….first, they are stealing American jobs…that is an oversimplification….the jobs are given away…not stolen….second, those Chinese devils own massive amounts of American debt….so in essence they are our creditors…….let us look at the debt thing before you go out and start believing the Mitt tale on China….

The recently released Federal Reserve Flow of Funds report for all of 2011 reveals that Federal Reserve purchases of Treasury debt mask reduced demand for U.S. sovereign obligations. Last year the Fed purchased a stunning 61% of the total net Treasury issuance, up from negligible amounts prior to the 2008 financial crisis. This not only creates the false appearance of limitless demand for U.S. debt but also blunts any sense of urgency to reduce supersized budget deficits.

It is true that the U.S. government has never been more dependent on financial markets to pay its bills. The net issuance of Treasury securities is now a whopping 8.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) on average per annum—more than double its pre-crisis historical peak. The net issuance of Treasury securities to cover budget deficits has typically been a mere 0.6% to 3.9% of GDP on average for each decade dating back to the 1950s.

But in recent years foreigners and the U.S. private sector have grown less willing to fund the U.S. government. As the nearby chart shows, foreign purchases of U.S. Treasury debt plunged to 1.9% of GDP in 2011 from nearly 6% of GDP in 2009. Similarly, the U.S. private sector—namely banks, mutual funds, corporations and individuals—have reduced their purchases of U.S. government debt to a scant 0.9% of GDP in 2011 from a peak of more than 6% in 2009.

The Fed is in effect subsidizing U.S. government spending and borrowing via expansion of its balance sheet and massive purchases of Treasury bonds. This keeps Treasury interest rates abnormally low, camouflaging the true size of the budget deficit. Similarly, the Fed is providing preferential credit to the U.S. government and covering a rapidly widening gap between Treasury’s need to borrow and a more limited willingness among market participants to supply Treasury with credit.

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Looks like all the chest thumping in the GOP ranks, at least at this election time, may be just another blowjob handed to the voter……please spend a little time checking the issues that will decide this election…please become an informed voter……..please help save this country from itself!