All You Need Are Friends

Earlier this weekend, something by Charles Krauthammer caught my eye. Unfortunately I now can’t find the exact article but I clearly recall his question; Where are Barack Obama’s friends?

I have read a lot about Obama, seen two different biographies on him and watched him during the DNC Convention. Yet I don’t recall ever seeing any mention of or interview with his friends. Whenever a man runs for president there have always been interviews with old high school friends, basketball teammates, college roommates, and past girlfriends. But I don’t think I have seen any of these in regards to Obama. Have you?


Doesn’t that seem a little bit strange? Even now, other than his wife, who would he call his best friend? In direct contrast, John McCain seems to have made friends in every stage of his life. In the Senate, he has friends on both sides and though his Democrat friends may strongly disagree with his politics, they still like him as a man. But where are these friends for Barack Obama?

Yes, this man does give wonderful, warm and stirring speeches but that is not out of character. When you give a speech there is this invisible wall separating the speaker from the audience. Plus the speaker is in complete control and is speaking prepared lines. On the other hand, Barack does not do at all well in Town Hall forums. This forum requires that the wall separating him from the audience is gone and instead he has to interact with people and do so extemporaneously.

Not surprisingly, John McCain is the exact opposite. He does very poorly when giving speeches because there is that invisible wall separating the speaker from the audience. Instead he is wonderful in a Town Hall or one on one forum. John is definitely a people person who truly enjoys being with people and talking to them. (This must have made all those years as a POW and in solitary confinement so much worse for him.) Senator McCain comes across as someone you would enjoy having a drink with but I am not so sure the same could be said about Obama.

So to repeat my question, where are Barack Obama’s friends, roommates, teammates or even old girlfriends? I have often thought that he appears aloof and even cold at times. That he is not a people person, and is more comfortable dealing with law or procedures or strategies than dealing one on one with people. Yet it is one thing to be a loner and self sufficient but not to find anybody who was his friend is ridiculous. What does that say about how he would govern or interact with other leaders?

Ironically, the one man who has been found to be his friend was Reverend Jeremiah Wright. We know how voters thought of that friend! And was Obama really a closer friend to that 1960’s radical and former Weathermen, Ayers? Are there more “friends” like this out there but keeping quiet for fear of doing further damage to Obama’s image?

It does make you wonder. Here is this candidate for President who seems to have very few friends and the only close associates found so far are extreme radicals. Someone needs to do some more digging into Obama’s life. Either through out his entire life he never made any close friends, or his friends are like the two discovered, Wright and Ayers, who are so radical that Obama had to disown their friendship. In either case, it doesn’t bode well for someone who wants to be the next President.

Thanks Obama - Now I remember why I am a Republican

When I first heard the soaring rhetoric of Senator Obama I was not only impressed but I was starting to be convinced that he should be the next President. Until last night. Once he got past the historical implications of his running and into the heart of his speech I was reminded why I was proud to be a Republican. I not only disagreed with much he said but I actually felt disenfranchised. That not only did I not belong with the Democrat Party but that they thought I was radioactive and wouldn’t take me even if I wanted to join them.

My whole career has been spent climbing the corporate ladder. I got pretty far and am damn proud of it. In fact I would give anything to be back there and only a serious health problem could have taken me out of the life I loved, the corporate life. But to a Democrat, according to Obama, I felt as if I were anathema to the thousands there last night. As if I were that mean old Mr. Potter to Obama’s George Bailey.

Perhaps it was no mistake, even 60+ years ago, that nasty Mr. Potter owned a bank and foreclosed on homes. For here we are again, half a century later and Obama is talking about yet another mortgage crisis and people losing their homes. Having worked in the banking industry I can tell you that most of the employees are nice, not mean, but the banks did make some really stupid decisions. Not only did they offer loans to high risk customers, but then they began to keep much less in their loan loss provision in order to artificially inflate their profits.

But what gets me is that when I went house hunting, I recognized that I had a budget; that I couldn’t afford my “dream” home or take on a monthly payment that would be a stretch. I purchased a more modest house that was within my budget. So why should I now be asked to help pay the outrageous mortgage of someone who bought a house they couldn’t afford in the first place? That just doesn’t seem right.

I also wonder if Obama does tax the big corporations, well, after more than 25 years working for them, I know what they will do. Part of the increased expense will come from increasing the prices of their products, but a big portion will come from salary freezes or even layoffs. Thanks Obama.

Perhaps I sound as cold hearted as Mr. Potter or as awful as the epitome of the mean business person, Scrooge. Yet I have to agree with Scrooge when he said, “Don’t I pay taxes?” We pay a hell of a lot more taxes now than back then and still it isn’t enough to help the poor and underprivileged. I guess the root of it is I don’t mind helping someone if they are also trying to help themselves. I often gave a helping hand to people climbing the corporate ladder by boosting them up another rung through training and education. I had a young single mother working for me and each year I often gave her bonuses and high pay raises not because of her personal situation but because she worked hard and deserved it. But none of that seems to count according to the Democrats.

Am I a Scrooge or another Mr. Potter? I don’t know. But thanks to Obama, I remember now why I am a proud Republican. I believe in rewarding people based on their hard work and effort. Not simply because they have their hand out and never because they have a knife to your back demanding that you pay them.

I don’t buy into Obama’s and Al Gore’s unrelenting diatribes about how awful everything is and that we are faced with never ending doom and gloom. I truly believe this is still a land of opportunity. And with the first African American running as President against a senior war hero and a woman VP, how can you not be inspired by the greatness of this country and the unending possibilities?

Short Retort

I just did a double take while watching the convention. In fact I hit the reverse button then played the last few seconds over and over again. For what I thought I saw on a sign did turn out to be quite different then what was really on the sign. But I wonder if others might also subconsciously initially think the same thing...

The sign actually read:
Obama
and
Biden

But what I first thought I saw was:
Osama
bin
Laden

Words vs. Action – Monday Night

This convention has been a fascinating study between actions and words. So far almost every major speaker (or non speaker) has presented one image while their words reflected something entirely different. In some cases it was on purpose but in most I am not sure if they realize the gulf between their action and words. Then again perhaps I am just being naïve. However, in addition to the gap between what they said and how they looked I am sure they were quite aware of the gap between what they said and what they didn’t say.

One of the first things the convention did on Monday was to give a tribute to President Carter. Everyone saw a nice film about him and then he and his wife came on stage to wave to the crowd. And that was it. No speech for this past president who has become a major liability. Obama already has problems getting the Jewish vote and so he didn’t need for them to see Carter, who has alienated these voters with his strong support of Palestine. So you saw him but did not hear him.

Then there was Teddy. For the first time in his long and sometimes sordid career, everyone came together to give him a wonderful salute. Sure there were a lot of words left unsaid about his past but in this case it was forgivable. As for his speech, I disagreed with just about everything he said and yet still wanted to give him a standing ovation for being able to say it with his old vigor and strength. Plus everyone was choked by the realization that the last of the Kennedy brothers was nearing his end. And when all is said and done, the little brother would have made his big brother’s proud of him and all he accomplished in his 40+ years in the senate.

Michelle Obama was the prime speaker Monday night. Her goal was to present a softer side to herself. As many are saying, she could have tossed her speech and simply had that scene with her little girls and Obama. So much for the man who said he would not use his children. Yeah right. As for her speech, it was ok. Many pointed out what she did not say, such as where she went to college for her post graduate and graduate degrees. I guess ivy league schools didn’t go with her supposed image of a regular person. Michelle also dissed a lot of middle class people when she continuously knocked working for a big corporation. Not everyone can take the pay cut required to work in the public sector.

This next observation may sound racist and if it is, so be it. People have become comfortable with the idea of a black man in the White House. After a year and half of having Obama in the news we are use to him. Plus as Michelle said, Obama seems more exotic than black. Monday night Michelle reminded us that he is black, with a black family. Even that is starting to be a non-issue. Who could not think those little girls are adorable. But here is where there might be an issue. All through her speech there were video clips of her father, mother, brother, friends, etc combined with the camera showing excited and even teary eyed faces in the crowd. And all of these were African American, too. And that starts to get a little uncomfortable. To think that perhaps whites could be the minority in Obama’s administration. So while Michelle’s words might be comforting the accompanying pictures might have been a little disconcerting. But maybe that last picture Monday night of those little girls makes it all seem not only possible but even tolerable.

Phenoms

In April 2005, friends and family of golfer Chris DiMarco were crossing their fingers when Chris found himself tied with Tiger Woods by the end of the Masters. In the first sudden death hole, we thought Chris was going to win as Tiger was off to the left and long. But then the impossible happened. As the AP reported, Tiger chipped in and his ball aimed straight and true to the hole, where it paused right on the cup’s lip. After a second or two, which felt like an eternity, the ball slowly rolled over into the hole giving Tiger another Master’s win. To this day, that shot is considered one of the most amazing golf shots in history. How could Chris have possibly competed against that?

I think Chris and that guy who lost to Michael Phelps by a fingernail should get together and talk. I should probably extend that invitation to anyone who lost to Tiger Woods or Michael Phelps or Bolt, that amazing runner. But it doesn’t only happen in sports. Ask Hillary.

Tiger, Phelps and Bolt are all what I would call “Phenoms”. And heaven help anyone who competes against them. I truly feel sorry for the DiMarcos, and other swimmers for if it had not been for these rivals they would have easily won. But they had the bad luck to be on the playing field when these Phenoms are at the top of their game.

Obama is not a true Phenom, such as these athletes. It wasn’t until he started to gain momentum earlier this year that he turned into a Phenom. Even though people still were voting heavily for Hillary, the media had crowned him the next political whiz kid, the next JFK. It was to be expected that because of their similar racial mix, there were more and more articles comparing Obama to Tiger Woods, thereby implying that Obama was as much a winner as Tiger. The stories grew until everyone, even Obama, assumed that he was unstoppable. That Obama was “The One”.

The convention this week will work to convince the rest of the world (and I do mean world and not just the USA) that Obama is the chosen. Once both conventions are over the race moves into overdrive for the next two months. As DiMarco, and many of the Olympic athletes would tell you, it is not easy to defeat a Phenom.

McCain’s campaign, however, is doing a brilliant job. Athletes are Phenoms based on measurable results. But other than barely beating Hillary, Obama is a Phenom because the press said so. It is sort of like the old story about the emperor's clothes. This time it is McCain’s campaign which is pointing out that the emperor isn’t wearing any clothes, or rather that Obama is not a Phenom. In fact, McCain is ridiculing Obama for even thinking that he is “The One”.

Will this strategy work? I don’t know but I sure hope so. Making fun of Obama is better than believing the hype. For then McCain would be trying to compete against Obama as a Phenom, and as Chris DiMarco and many many others can tell you, it is nearly impossible to win against a true Phenom.

Short Retort

I didn't even realize that earlier this week I wrote my 100th blog! Congrats to me. And if you notice a change to the look of my blog - you are right! I found out how to add a picture - so expect more of those in the future and how to stretch the post to take up more room and eliminate all that wasted space.

I started PC Fugitive late last year with no thought as to where it might go. All I knew is that here was a chance to write. Someone recently asked me how do I determine when and what I write. Truth is, I write when I am inspired. Yes, it is mainly politics because I have always been a political junkie and now I have my very own bully pulpit to tell my opinions. What fun! But I also write about every day things or things that annoy me or whatever catches my eye. But inspiration comes and goes. Some weeks it is hard to crank out even one article. Other weeks I could easily write every day.

Actually this is one of those times when there is so much news that I know I will be writing a lot more than usual. I also want to apologize about the length of my articles. I try to keep them short but somehow they always end up long even after I edit them.

Anyway, I have really enjoyed it and I hope you have too. I know that over the past nine months readers come and go and I want to thank all of you. Yes, I have said that I would still be writing this if no one read it, but it is nice to know that there is somebody out there who does read what I write.

Thanks everybody and I hope we all find the next 100 postings to be as much fun as the first 100!

Biden Time

After all is said and done I think Biden was a one-sided selection. If you have had any news on then you've heard how he will shore up Obama's lack of foreign experience and it could be said help Obama's lack of experience in total. Biden is also supposed to be a good attack dog which will allow Obama to stand above that sort of thing. Overall, he will help Obama nationally with the independent voters.

However, I am guessing that the core Democrats involved in this race are not happy. To be honest, the Clinton supporters would not be happy with anyone other than Hillary. I think they might have been more understanding if Obama had picked some outsider. Instead they go with someone who is old school, which she is, too. Why go for someone with a good resume when you could have someone with a great resume? And already PUMA is arguing that Biden had a whopping 9,500 votes during the primary vs. Hillary's 18 million. (I know it isn't a fair comparison as Biden dropped out early but who ever said politics is fair?)

But it is the core Obama people who are also rumbling a little bit this morning. Obama's entire campaign is based on change. But his first importatnt decision to select his running mate and he completely turns his back on the idea of change. Instead of an outsider he went with Biden who is yet another old white guy who has been in DC since Watergate. Or as I heard one African American reporter tell it - she wasn't even born when Biden was first elected.

I would also think that Obama's advisors aren't that pleased either. There are two primary jobs for a VP candidate. The obvious one is to step in as President in case the President is unable to perform his job. The other purpose of a VP is to bring in votes that the President elect may not have been able to capture himself. I am not sure how much Biden will help Obama in this. In the past VP candidates have come from large electorial states or from swing states or from geographical areas that normally go for his oponent. But not Biden.

As everyone now knows - Biden is from Delaware which has a whopping 3 electorial votes. Nor is Delaware a key transitional state. Some analysts are saying that Biden may not readily have a large group of people that will now be for Obama but he might have large corporations and big bucks behind him. And every candidate always could use more money.

Later today Obama and Biden will officially announce this in Springfield Ill. (And didn't Obama's idea of texting his supporters first backfire. But more on that another time.) Anyway, back to the picture of the two of them standing together, most likely with raised hands held together as you always see it. And how will that look? How will America react to this picture of a youngish good looking black man holding hands with an old grey haired white man? In spite of what the picture might indicate, is America ready for an African American President?

Now that the Olympics are wrapping up tomorrow, let the real games begin!

Fayed Out

Perhaps it was simply a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time but I don’t recall ever becoming this angry at a group of TV anchors before. Let me tell you what happened and see if you don’t agree with me.

Thursday night (8/21) I turned on the Weather Channel to see the forecast but instead of the normal weather they were showing a special – Storm Session 2008. At the time I turned in, there were four people talking about reporting during hurricanes. They were trying to one up each other in terms of the highest speed hurricane winds they had been in and then teasing one of them who had never been in the eye of a hurricane. After listening to them for a few minutes I become furious at all of them and ended up writing a very irate email to The Weather Channel.

Why was I so angry? At the time these reporters where joking about being in hurricanes, my house was being pounded by Tropical Storm Fay. Although not a hurricane, it was close enough what with gusts over 50 mph and torrential rain. (In one 2 hour period we got 4 inches of rain!) I don’t recall ever seeing this much rain and I lived through Hurricane Charlie, Francis and Jean in 2004. In fact, I said in my email that I had these three hurricanes go right over my house and it wasn’t something to joke about. I further added that lives were lost and property destroyed so they needed to show some respect. I would have written more than my 499 characters but they only allowed 500 characters.

What gets me so angry is that all anchors, not just these, no longer seem able to understand that these “stories” are real. They are not simply potential award winning reports which make them look good or a chance to get more on air time. Some of the old time reporters still have some empathy but to the younger ones, the stories they report are as real to them as the video games they play.

I didn’t think of this until now but perhaps lack of empathy isn’t the only problem. Maybe the bigger problem is that reporters see themselves as being the story. Why else would those Weather Station guys stand in hurricanes? Not to emphasize the hurricane but to make themselves the story. In fact just today, one young reporter who was standing in knee deep flood waters got splashed by a car going by. Although I was without electricity and couldn’t see the footage I did hear her on my radio. For the rest of the broadcast she complained about getting wet. There are streets full of homes in 2 feet of water but all she could do was whine that she got splashed. Once again the story was no longer about the flood waters but about the reporter.

Here is the real irony of this. The most self centered woman currently in the news also happens to live in my “back yard” so to speak. Of course I am talking about Casey Anthony, the young mother of the missing Caley. Casey has no thought in her head except about herself. Yet I bet some of these young reporters would give Casey a run for her money in terms of egos. Then these same egotistical reporters have the nerve to report on how self centered Casey is! (OK, it may seem like the pot calling the kettle black as I sit here writing a blog about myself. But this is different, this is fluff, not the news and not about a missing child.)

Anyway, Tropical Storm Fay has finally moved away from my town but it has left a trail of destruction behind her. I tell myself that I am lucky. All I have is a leak in my roof with water damage on a ceiling, more water marks down a wall and some kind of electrical problem due to water damage. It could have been much worse. So now I sit and wait for the insurance claim adjuster to call me back. As slow as that call may be I bet that I will hear back from the adjuster sooner than I hear back about my email to the Weather Channel! Then again, couldn't you just see a group of reporters doing a segment or even a whole show on how reporters have become the news! And sadly, they would never see the irony in that, either.

(In case you are wondering, my electricity came back on after about 12 hours. But I am almost sorry because now I not only hear but have to see that reporter getting splashed again and again and again….)

Obama's Bio

CNN had two interesting features last night; one on McCain and the other on Obama. I am not sure if I learned many new things about Obama but this was the first time I saw his life laid out in a chronological order. It is both impressive and scary. Underneath his friendly demeanor is a man who goes to almost any length not just to win but to undermine his opponents. Based on that CNN show and Biography.com I have put together a timeline of his life including how he won (or lost) each of his elections. I think this gives a look into his life and what we might expect from him in the future. To help, I have included his age after the year and key political events in his life are in red.

August 1961 – Born to Ann Dunham and Barack Obama
1963 – (2) Parents separated and later divorced
1965 – (4) Ann Dunham marries Lolo Soeturo
1965 – (4) Moves to Jakarta Indonesia with mother and step-father
1966 – (5) Attends Catholic school and then a public Indonesian school
1971 – (10) Obama sent back to Hawaii to live with grandparents and received a scholarship to an exclusive private school
aprox. 1976-1979 (15-18) Uses alcohol, marijuana and cocaine
1979 – (18) – Graduates high school. Goes to Occidental College in LA
1981 – (20) Transfers to Columbia University in NY
1983 – (22) Graduates from college with a degree in political science
1983 – (22) Takes a job with Business International Corp in NY
1985 – (24) Moves to Chicago to be a community organizer. Joined Trinity Church
1988 – (27) Attends Harvard Law school. He is first black editor of Harvard Law Review
1991 – (30) Graduates magna cum laude.
1991 – (30) Moves to Chicago. Works as a civil rights lawyer (where he meets Rezco), heads Project Vote where he has the most successful voter registration drive in Chicago’s history and teaches at University of Law School
1002 – (31) Barack and Michele are married by Reverend Wright
1995 – (34) Writes autobiography Dreams of My Father
1996 – (35) Runs for State Senate against favored incumbent. Found invalid names on opponents nominating petition and knocked the incumbent off the ballet, as well as all three other candidates.
1997 – 2005 – (36 - 41) Illinois State Senator
2000 – (39) Decides to run for Congress against four term incumbent Bobby Rush. Race became personal and nasty. Rush beat him by nearly 2:1.
2000 - (39) Tries to network with leaders at 2000 DNC Convention but not even allowed on the floor.
2000 – (39) Told by many that politics is people not just policies. So he began to cultivate a network including Rev. Wright and Illinois State Senate President
2001-2003 – (40-43) In the Senate, Barack starts to have more bills with his name on them. But he also votes “present” 129 times and wouldn’t commit on controversial votes.
2002 – (41) Begins to run for Senate. Gives speeches opposing the war.
2003-2004 (42-43) In the US Senate race there are unsubstantiated scandals which force both the Republican candidate and the favored Democratic candidate to leave the race. Barack is now the Democratic candidate against a last minute replacement for the Republican candidate – Alan Keyes.
2004 – (43) Gives the keynote speech at Democratic Convention. He then wins the Senate race by a landslide.
2005 – (44) Freshman Senator but with high recognition due to speech yet “like most Senate Freshmen, legislature record is thin”.
2006 – (45) Obama joined partisan group, including McCain to write an Immigration Bill, bill but when it got to the floor he distanced himself from it and voted for amendments favored by labor groups. Bill died in Senate. “Critics said Obama put partisan politics above bipartisan reform.”
2006 – (45) Write second book Audacity of Hope
2007 – (46) Announces candidacy for President

Short Retort

I just heard on the news that Hillary will have a "whip" team of 40 supporters to help her during the Democratic Convention. And what will they be doing? They are supposed to keep Hillary's supporters quiet during the appropriate times and not disrupt the convention. I guess I called it on my previous blog about these feisty ladies, didn't I?

Feisty Ladies

It is no surprise that my mind is preoccupied with feisty ladies. The biggest one, of course, is tropical storm Fay who will be passing close to my home later today. Unlike the three hurricanes that went right over my roof during a 6-week period in 2004 this one will be more ladylike. As of this morning, Fay is taking her time as she dawdles up through Florida leaving a trail of minor wind and rain damage.

The other feisty ladies are four groups I happened to find while surfing the internet. I would look for these ladies to be raising their voices next week in support of the feistiest lady of the land, Hillary Clinton. According to The Stiletto, these different groups are now all coming together into one group, The New Agenda, to promote a variety of women’s issues.

It is more interesting, however, to look at the individual groups. I think the largest group is PUMA, which stands for Party Unity My Ass. Ever since Obama won the Democratic Primary, Howard Dean and Barack Obama have been continuously lecturing that all Democrats must now come together as one party. The name of this pro-Hillary group pretty much sums up what these women think about that!. As Hillary supporters they are demanding a roll call of votes during the DNC Convention next week to remind everyone how many votes Hillary did have and just how close Obama came to losing plus they wanted Hillary to have a prime time slot for her speech.

I Own My Vote is a group of Hillary supporters who argue that their votes do not belong to any party or candidate and that they will vote however they like. See a trend here? In fact their website http://www.iownmyvote.com/ would make a McCain staffer proud. They are also demanding a roll call of votes during the DNC Convention to remind everyone how close the race was etc.etc.etc.

Just Say No Deal appears to be a group of PUMA bloggers who are demanding a roll call of votes to remind everyone blah blah blah. Together 4US is a group of 8,739 women who have signed a pledge requesting that the DNC Convention have a roll call of votes yadda yadda yadda. You get the picture.

Four different groups of women, all furious with the Democratic primary, all continuing to support Hillary and not only wanting Hillary to be recognized during the DNC Convention but to remind Obama that he just barely won. For many, they are not only pro Hillary but have become anti Obama as evidenced by their stinging rhetoric in their websites and by their "NOBAMA" signs. Apparently some of these women have reached the tipping point where they are so angry with their party that they are actually voting for McCain. This is making an impact as the polls have been showing that Obama is not doing as well as expected in the "white women" group.

Now all these pro Hillary groups are merging together. Tropical Storm Fay might be causing havoc this week but it sounds as if these other women might do the same during the DNC Convention . I think that Howard Dean just might have his hands full if these women come out in force in Denver. I also wonder what would happen if they all start to chant for Hillary, especially if they do so while Obama is standing by himself in that stadium. Fay may have moderately high winds and even throw off some tornadoes but nothing will come close to what Dean and Obama might have to face as they are reminded of that oh so true statement: Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned…

Round One - McCain

A politician is someone who will never allow himself to be pinned down on a specific answer for fear of antagonizing somebody. A lawyer is someone who will analyze both sides of an issue in order to best argue his case. A professor is a professional student constantly learning who in turn will then lecture people, telling them everything he knows on that subject.

Barack Obama is all of the above; a politician, a lawyer and a professor. This became clearly evident in the “debate” last night. When he was asked a question the professor in him wanted to explain everything he knew about the subject while the lawyer in him wanted him to analyze both sides of the issue and the politician side of him would not let him ever give a specific answer. So he would hem and haw, go this way then that way and finally circle around and finish without ever giving a definitive answer.

The few times that Obama did give an answer they were basically non answers. Who did he think were the three wisest people he knew? He said his grandmother and his wife were two of them. Oh gag me with a spoon. Although it does make me wonder how much influence his wife will have if he were to win…

Obama also gave a strong clue as to how he would act as President. He said he would want a table of people who would analyze a situation and give him advice. Again this clearly is the lawyer and professor in him wanting to look at something from every angle. But as recent history has shown, we often don’t have the luxury of time for something like that.

Then there was John McCain. His answers tended to be short, concise and to the point. Although I have never been in the military, I still can’t help but think that this showed his military training. Quickly analyze a situation and give an answer. On the battle field you can’t stand there wondering if you should go this way or that or amassing others opinions while musing about a half dozen factors. By the time you reach a decision or more likely before you even have decided what action is needed you would be dead.

There were times, though, when instead of a brief answer, McCain would tell a personal story that was extremely compelling. What a life! No one can come close to what he experienced while a POW. Plus his years in congress have given him dozens and dozens of stories he can use to illustrate a point. And that is clearly his advantage to being older.

I shouldn’t admit this but perhaps my behavior was not unique. I don’t know. All I do know is that I kept zoning out during Barack Obama’s time. His smooth voice which never really had much change in tone regardless of topic had a tendency to put me to sleep. I found it difficult to stay with him as he talked and talked and talked but rarely gave a clear answer. John McCain, on the other hand, kept me engaged throughout his time. Overall, McCain left me with wanting to hear more while Obama simply left me feeling groggy and tired.

Short Retort

I know that I just watched history as Michael Phelps won his 8th gold medal. I am happy for him and congratulate him on his brilliant showing in the Olympics. And yet a part of me is sorry to see Mark Spitz's seven medals beaten. Not because it is the end of an era but because now there will no longer be a reason to show those wonderful pictures of Mark in his swimsuit. Oh my.... Way back when, Mark Spitz and his poster was to teenage girls what Farrah Faucet was to teenage boys. So goodbye Mark Spitz, but just know that Phelps may have beaten your medal count but no one will ever come close to the impact that you in a swimsuit made on a generation of teenage girls....

And speaking of winning - didn't McCain do a wonderful job tonight? I was worried that he would be overshadowed by Obama but just the opposite seemed to have happened. Where Obama hemmed and hawed, McCain gave strong decisive decisions. Yeah McCain!

How Did This Happen?

I have a question. No it’s not about radical Islams or terrorists nor is it about what’s happening in Georgia or Iraq. I am not even asking who McCain or Obama are picking for Veep or if China or US will win more medals. No, I am taking a break from all that for today. What I want to know is this: When did my bathroom counter and cabinets look like some old person is living in my house?

Sure my question might sound petty to you, but obviously you’re under 40 where there is only one pill, The Pill, to be concerned about. (Did I just show my age? Does The Pill still stand for the birth control pill or do people now think of Viagra instead?) Anyway, it is ironic to think how excited we were when we got that first prescription. A whole generation of young women seemed to be suffering from excruciating periods that required that beautiful, wonderful little pill. Today it is no big deal and in fact mothers are taking their teenage daughters to get the pill. Yes, the times they are a changing. I mean, really, could you imagine going with your mother to get on the pill when you were 17 much less when you were 13?

But back to my bathroom counter. I took a look at it today and wondered if maybe my grandmother was staying with me, until I realized she’s been dead for over a decade. So that means that all those bottles of pills and creams and other crap are mine. Yikes! How did I go from that one little prescription to a whole pharmacy?

Ok, so instead of the pill today I have a hormone replacement pill. Ugh. But that’s just for starters. Are you like me and have high blood pressure? Then you have at least one if not two more pills to take every day. Then there are pills for arthritis and pills for allergies and pills for your heart. And I don’t care if Sally Fields only takes one pill a month for osteoporosis it is still yet another bottle of pills in your bathroom cabinet!

It doesn’t stop just with prescribed pills. My cabinets are also overflowing with over the counter pills. At least two or three times a week I am reaching for a pill to take care of acid reflux. Yuck. Just the name of that sounds gross. What I don’t understand is that I don’t recall ever hearing about acid reflux 20 years ago much less suffering from it back then. But if those pills don’t work then I have a bottle of Tropical Fruit Tums (think fake fruit flavored chalk) and two thirds of a bottle of that gelatinous pink stuff.

Do you have a cold? Then you’ve come to the right place. I have a half empty bottle of that marvelous grape syrup for colds and sniffles and sneezes and coughs. If that sure fire remedy doesn’t work then I have a handful of zinc tablets, some cough drops which are stuck together into one big piece and a bottle of some vile green stuff but the lid seems to be glued on and won’t come off. And if you think you have a fever you’re in luck as I have not one but two thermometers.

Then there are all the pain medications that take up almost a whole cabinet themselves. I have pain pills for every type of pain imaginable. And as I get older not only do I have more pains but I am discovering areas on my body that I didn’t realize could even become painful!

Speaking of painful, bending down to look into my counters under the sink is painful on so many levels. But once down there, it is almost worth the aching knees and back. You see looking into my cabinets is like walking down history. Take my hair care products, for example. I actually still have old fashion foam curlers, hot curlers from the 80’s, three sizes of curling irons (for large, medium and small curls of course) and a flat iron for when I don’t want curls. Do you have a sprain? I have three or four ace bandages of varying sizes not to forget the two ice packs in the freezer in addition to the two heating pads somewhere under the sink. But I have discovered that I don’t seem to use cotton balls anymore. I found a nearly full package that I bought in the 1970s!

Oh shoot, all of this is giving me a headache. I wonder if I should take a pill or a capsule or a powder for my pain and if I want it regular strength, maximum strength or prescription float to the ceiling strength? Actually this has been so stressful I think I better just reach back into the cabinet and grab one of my two blood pressure cuffs because I can just feel my blood pressure rising….

Messenger of Allah

My last article on how Random House bowed down to blackmail from Islamic groups must have hit a nerve with a lot of people so I thought that I might continue to explore this a little bit more. (I’ll get back to politics and the election once the conventions start.)

Have you heard of the “Messenger of Allah Unites Us”? Probably not, but it should hit the news in the not too distant future. As I was surfing the internet, I came across a lot of eye opening sites, but this campaign caught my attention because I think it is the most dangerous to us.

In a nutshell, everybody remembers how violent the Islams became over those cartoons of Mohammed printed in the Danish newspapers, right? Long story short, a group of Jordan Muslims started a new campaign to stop this from happening again.

The “Messenger of Allah Unites US” condemns the previous violent reaction. Instead of violence, they are now boycotting Dutch companies. They even have a poster showing all of the products on their boycott list. But how a company can avoid this boycott is the true heart of this campaign.

According to Fact International, a website by the Messenger of Allah Unites Us group, the purpose of this campaign is to “criminalize any act deemed to be insulting to Islam”. That’s right. This Jordan group now says they won’t be violent or boycott your product just as long as your country never insults Islam again and jails anyone who does. As to what act might be considered insulting… who knows. And yet some companies actually signed this statement so that they would no longer be boycotted. Those are the ones I want to boycott!

They also submitted a resolution against defamation of religions to the United Nations Human Rights Council. Although France, Germany and Britain voted against it, 21 countries approved the resolution, including Cuba, China and Russia. Oh right, those three are known for their protection of freedom of religion! What hypocrits!

But the sheer audacity of the Messenger of Allah group is in this next move. They filed charges against a number of Europeans including Dutch parliamentarian, Geer Wilders, who made an anti Islam film. They were accused of blasphemy and inciting hatred. The impact of this was analyzed by TheFrontPageMag.com:

"But what is most disturbing is that an Islamic country would dare subpoena citizens of another state for an action not committed within its borders but in a land where no laws were broken. Besides being meant as a weapon of intimidation, this tactic also represents a frightening extension of Islamic law into the heart of western countries.

But perhaps most ominously, this incredibly brazen measure shows that even a small Islamic country like Jordan has no fear of Europe. And, indeed, no retaliatory response met the Jordanian court’s action against European citizens."

Wow. Now they could try to silence anyone anywhere. Yet something like the above has no power unless you give it to them. However, just as some companies have given in to Islamic blackmail I am afraid that a democratic country will submit to this. Can’t you just see some bleeding heart liberal judge, who in the interest of respecting diversity, throws out the freedom of speech and turns over a citizen to Jordan? And once precedence is set then the game is over. So we must never give in.

Once again I’m not sure what everyday people like us can do about it. I guess the best we can do is to be aware of what is happening. I will try to help since I do have the time to research and look for things I think people should know about. And if we are ever faced with a decision ourselves, then we have to take a stand no matter the consequences. It may not be easy but we must protect our freedoms and our country.

And it is no accident that our national anthem ends with these words; the land of the free and the home of the brave. Because if we’re not brave when faced with these challenges and don’t do the right thing then we will no longer be free.

Islamic Blackmail Wins Again

Remember the date of August 7, 2008. It is when America had another major loss in the war on terrorism and continued this country’s long slide into becoming subjugated by Muslims and radical Islams. Perhaps I am being overly dramatic, yet I really don’t think so. But let me tell you what happened and you can decide for yourself.

A journalist, Sherry Jones had written her first novel, “The Jewel of Medina” which followed the life of one of Mohammed’s wives. In a Reuter’s interview Sherry is quoted as saying “I have deliberately and consciously written respectfully about Islam and Mohammed…. I envisioned that my book would be a bridge-builder.”

Random House picked up the novel with a publishing date of August 12 followed by an eight-city publicity tour. However, on August 7th Random House decided it was not going to publish this book nor would they release it thereby stopping anyone from publishing it. The Reuter’s article explains Randon House's decision:

Random House deputy publisher Thomas Perry said in a statement the company received "cautionary advice not only that the publication of this book might be offensive to some in the Muslim community, but also that it could incite acts of violence by a small, radical segment."

"In this instance we decided, after much deliberation, to postpone publication for the safety of the author, employees of Random House, booksellers and anyone else who would be involved in distribution and sale of the novel," Perry said.

If it weren’t so scary I would find it to be incredibly ironic. One of our most sacred freedoms is that of the free press. How often has the media berated conservatives for wanting to take out books from libraries that they deemed offensive? How many times has the ACLU defended schools that stocked books that most of the parents found inappropriate for children?

Yet when a major publishing company backs down on publishing a book there isn’t a single outcry. No one at ACLU is standing up for Sherry Jones’s. There isn’t even a whisper on how Random House was blackmailed by “the Muslim community” except by bloggers. There are a lot of heated exchanges on the internet but it still all goes back to a writer’s freedom to write whatever she likes, even if it might offend some Muslims. Boo hoo. Could you imagine the outcry if that best seller The Da Vinci Code treated Mohammed in the same way it treated Jesus? Or the uproar by the biased media if it had been a Christian group that threatened violence if Random House published an anti Christian book? It would be laughable if it weren’t so serious.

It almost makes me say why bother? The press is crucifying anyone who supports the war in Iraq and the war on terror. Why should our soldiers give their lives to protect freedoms that the press is willing to roll over on when there is the first hint of violence? It is simply unbelievable that a major company such as Random House is terrified of upsetting the Muslims and actually gave in to their blackmail. And yet it did happen.

I use to think the conservative talk radio and TV shows were getting pretty extreme at times. I don’t any more. And to go back to the start of this article, do you think I was exaggerating about the importance of what just happened? No, I don’t think so, either. Not sure what we can do other than keep a watch for other instances of how this country is bowing down to the radical Islams. If the liberal press won’t do their job then we must do it for them. And if you agree then please feel free to start emailing this article and any others like it to your friends and even to conservative radio and TV shows. We need to let the Muslims and the liberals know that once again it is the conservatives, the true patriots, who will save the far left from their own cowardice and will protect all of America’s freedoms, including the freedom of the press.

Let the Games Begin!

I love the Olympics. When done right, the opening and closing ceremonies leave me cheering, in awe, and even in tears. I have to admit, though, that in more recent years they have bordered on being bizarre. Sometimes that, too, can be entertaining but too often it is simply weird and ends up as boring. From the little I have heard about this year’s, I have high hopes that it will live up to what the Olympic Opening Ceremonies should be.

This year there is more than just the games happening at the Olympics. Having it in China ensures that it is filled with a lot of political intrigue, military crackdowns, smog and even threats of terrorist acts. Although the latter is almost ironic – due to China’s intolerance of religions, Islamic groups have issued warnings of possible attacks. And as I write this there is news of a possible war in Russia. Wow. War between Israel and Iran, or more demonstrations for democracy in China, yes, but I sure didn’t see a Russia – Georgia war happening now...

Anyway in all of this let’s not forget the games themselves. I end up watching far fewer games then I wanted to but I still have my favorite summer games. Yet as much as I love cheering the American teams, I honestly don’t care about the medal count. Although I gather China is almost maniacal in their desire for the gold. Hmmm. OK so I admit I hope we beat them!

As I so often do, I spent some time browsing left wing blogs. One of the most extreme far left web sites is the Daily Kos. In it I just happened to see a poll asking their readers how much Olympic coverage do they plan to watch. I suppose I should have expected this as liberals and sports don’t really go together yet I was still shocked by these results from nearly 10,000 people taking the poll:
· 37% said they planned to watch “none at all” of the Olympics
· 31% said they will watch “a little”
· 15% will watch “a moderate amount”
· 10% will actually watch “a lot”
· 2% will watch only the opening and closing ceremonies and another 2% don’t know

Wow. Two-thirds (68%) of these liberals will watch a little or none of the Olympic Games. I can understand when the left wing lift their noses at NASCAR and perhaps even football but to plan not to watch any Olympics? That’s just not right. It’s not as if they have to, God forbid, cheer on our country but you’d think they might want to watch soccer or maybe sailing. But I guess not.

I can’t help but think that Obama might have to change that infamous insight into how far left liberals view the rest of the world. Maybe in addition to guns and religion, Obama might also conclude that “bitter small town Americans” also cling to their sports. And not only do we watch the Olympics but we are, gasp, nationalistic and cheer on our fellow Americans to beat those other countries. How barbarian!

Short Retort

Did you hear that the first commercially cloned dogs were successfully completed? I am so against this idea. Sure I loved my childhood dog but there are too many dogs being put away each year who need homes. Plus the whole idea of cloning just doesn't feel right. Sounds like the start of one of those thriller books - you know, the ones where they clone Adolph Hitler or some other psycho. Sounds outrageous but considering how much money the Saudis have.... But back to the cloned dogs which really did happen. To add insult to injury about this whole idea - the dogs that were cloned were pit bulls! Great. Just what we need - more pit bulls!

Riddikulus!

In the Harry Potter books there is a monster (called a boggart) that turns into whatever the person is afraid of the most. For example, if you are afraid of spiders the boggart will turn into a giant spider. If the next person the boggart sees is afraid of snakes then the monster turns into a snake. Now try to reverse that idea. Imagine a being who instead of becoming what someone fears instead tries to personify the other person’s ideas and beliefs. That not only sounds like Barack Obama but it explains a lot about him.

Every child wants to please his parents but in Obama’s situation it would be almost impossible since their beliefs and backgrounds were so different. It is hard to imagine a more diverse group than his carefree hippie white mother, an ambitious, driven black father, his middle class, racist (his words), white grandparents and an African grandfather. The only way he could please all of them would be to turn into a mirror, reflecting the ideas of whomever he was with. Just as the boggart monster would change into whatever scared a person the most, Obama would change into whatever the person wanted to see in Obama.

Not only does this theory explain how Obama survived his childhood but it also explains so many irregularities that are starting to show up. When he moved back to Chicago after law school he soon adopted the extremely liberal views of Reverend Wright and the other radicals living in the area. Reflecting their beliefs enabled him to succeed in Chicago politics and shortly thereafter in Illinois politics. Now that he is on the national stage he found out that Reverend Wright’s beliefs are detrimental to his campaign. For Obama, discarding Rev. Wright and the old ideas was as easy as changing his clothes.

All politicians craft speeches to reflect their audiences. But Obama takes it to an extreme. When he was giving a speech in San Francisco he reflected their extreme liberal ideology when he talked about the “bitter small town Americans”. And his latest outrageous statement about his being “the symbol” makes sense in the context of his speaking in front of House Democrats who truly believe he can almost walk on water.

A major problem with reflecting what others want you to be eventually means contradicting yourself. Already journalists and bloggers are beginning to point out the more glaring contradictions. The Wall Street Journal has a good article on Obama’s flip flopping: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121633739458263831.html?mod=opinion_main_commentaries

In the Harry Potter books, Rowling came up with a clever and amusing way for the children to defeat the boggart. When the monster appeared in the form of whatever scared them the most, the children were told to come up with a way to make their monster look funny instead of threatening. So when a spider appeared to a boy who was terrified of them, he imagined the spider in roller skates at which point the spider was slipping and sliding all over the place. Now the spider was silly not scary. To make the spell work, the children had to yell out the magic word which, appropriately enough, was “Riddikulus!”.

We don’t have wands or magical spells but the same idea works in stopping Barack Obama. John McCain’s group has already figured out that ridiculing Obama is effective as shown by McCain’s recent humorous campaign ads. The first one has generated a lot of buzz as it jokingly tries to compare Obama’s fame and celebrity to that of Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. Then there is the ad comparing Obama to Moses. After numerous religious conotations the ad ended by stating that Obama is “The One” but then asks if he is a leader. Again, it ridiculed Obama by showing he is all style and no substance.

If my theory is correct then there is plenty of time to ensure that McCain wins in November. I must admit I am not a big McCain fan but at least he has the courage of his convictions whereas Obama’s convictions depend on who he is talking to. It should be easy to now exploit and even ridicule this character flaw. Just as the children defeated the boggart in the Potter novel we should have a town hall meeting where person after person, each with differing beliefs ask Obama questions. In the story the boggart became confused as it tried to rapidly change from one thing to the next, so would Obama if he tried to please numerous contradicting views in the same meeting.

Over the next few months I have no doubt that Obama will continue to contradict himself as he tries to please the whole nation. I also believe that McCain is on the right track by ridiculing Obama’s inflated view of himself. Republicans should also continue to point out the complete lack of substance and how little Obama has actually done on his own. As for the “bitter small town Americans”, perhaps whenever we see Obama contradict himself again or say something else that is over the top we should all start to laugh at the man and yell out “Riddikulus”!