class="archive category category-the-education-crisis category-105">
The Education Crisis
October 8, 2012 | 
Author Well if there was any doubt in the first place concerning the intelligence of some Obama supporters this should serve nicely to dispel that…
Obama should be allowed to use a Teleprompter to debate
Really? After watching that I could only think of one thing….
“Tis better to remain silent and be thought a fool, then to speak out and remove all doubt”.
Abe Lincoln 16th President of the United States.
Posted in A Nation at Risk, America, Democrats, Duh, Elections, Idiots, Liberals, Obama, Politics, progressives, Retard, The Education Crisis | 
3 Comments »
I had to take some time to digest some of the President’s remarks from his State of the Union address before I wrote this, hence it being almost a week after the fact, but I have to ask….Did President Obama get one right in his State of the Union Address?
Wow; did I actually type that on the BoBoFiles!!? The Clown should be yanking my author rights in 5,4,3,2….
His comments about cutting Federal Aid for college funding pricked my interest, and the reason for that is simply that I’ve long said college tuition and higher education costs are completely out of control.
College tuition has out-paced the rate of inflation by margins that simply make no sense at all. I don’t have the exact figures for it at my finger tips, but one article on Fox news stated tuition had risen 8%…In one year. You can read that here: Fox News / Associated Press Article Reports in one year, a 8% raise in tuition for a public school.
Now as you read on keep in mind that 8% rise in one year is in the middle of a economy that by any measurement is growing far slower that normal and some almost 30 million Americans are out of work.
I have my own theories of why this out of control tuition situation has happened and I will get to those shortly, but before I do, does any one see the irony in Obama’s staking a position like this? Overwhelmingly the education industry in this country went for Obama. That’s simple fact. 3 of 4 College Employees, be they Professors, administrators or staff identify themselves as Democrats.
Talk about biting the hand that feeds you….As you can see in the referenced FoxNews / AP article College administrators ain’t real happy with the presidents rhetoric…
For Obama to stake out a position as he did took me by complete surprise, note here, I am not saying he is right on the subject, I tend to agree with him on the issue in part, however coma, for different reasons.
So why is the price of college rising at 8% in a single year in a faltering economy with a reported 8.5 % unemployment rate?
Two Words..First word, Oh wait, we can’t play charades on here…
Federal Student Loans.
Okay that was three. It’ Sunday morning …bear with me I’m still digesting my daily caffeine charge.
The institutions of higher learner have a golden goose, and they are loath to kill it. That Goose’s name is Federal Student “Stafford” Loans and Pell Grants , among a variety of other Federal government schemes to make college education “affordable”.
When Barak Obama took the helm in 2008, he immediately helped jack grants and Federal Loans by …go figure 8+ %.
Cause and Effect anyone?
The Universities know this, and they react accordingly, they know that Federal Goose is going to lay that golden egg every year, and they just keep on tacking on more and more costs and overhead to the price of a college education, cost of living and inflation be damned, it’ full speed ahead to belly up to the trough of Federal goodies.
A tenured professor’s average salary? In 2006, 81,491.00 According to this CNN Money article: CNN Money Article
That was 5 years ago. If you figure in a 5% raise every year, it goes to 100K with ease for 2012. The median average income for the “middle class” in 2006? 43,000 and change, and I’ll bet the average income the last 4 years has, if not stagnated to a stand still, it’s going slightly backwards because if inflation.
This Federal subsiding of the Higher Education industry has served to completely distort the market place in higher education.
Progressives are quick to scream loud and long about the “Military Industrial Complex” and the cost of the Defense budget, yet they remain strangely silent on the matter of out of control college costs. Curious don’t you think? When you look at it though, it’s not actually, it’s not curious at all, the progressives as I noted above, own the Eduction Industry.
Having said that, it becomes simply a matter of selective beliefs, ergo defense spending is a waste of money, but don’t dare cut into the ” higher education” budgets.
And we’re the ones fo0ting the bill for it, via higher taxes, and miring ourselves with 10′s of thousands of dollars in debt to obtain a degree for ourselves or our children.
Another distortion brought on by both the Federal Government and Higher Education Complex is the philosophy or conventional wisdom today that everyone needs or is “entitled” to a degree, and the simple matter of it is that mantra is nothing but hog wash. Not to be flip but the world needs ditch diggers too, just like it needs people that can build a home, build a car, fix a truck, drive a bus, weld a ship…you get the idea.
College is a privilege, not a right, and due to the education industries and Federal Government’s meddling in the market place, you now have a many headed hydra called College Tuition that outstrips the pace of inflation, is causing almost a TRILLION dollars in public debt and is churning out “graduates” that are nothing more than indebted slaves to the banks as they try to pay of staggering amounts of loans.
Some think tanks see the looming higher education debt we are amassing as the next “housing crisis”, the next house of looming debt cards that is going to collapse the economy into another deep and painful recession… and the Neros in DC fiddle while Rome burns.
So was Obama right on this one? Maybe, I don’t think he was right per say in his thought process, he seems to ignore his actions of early on and is now once again as he has so many times prior looking for a “bad guy” to pin the blame on.
His rhetoric was more of a threat to me if anything, and predictably the howls of outrage started right on cue.
I will agree though, he was right in the assessment that higher education costs are out of control and they need to be reined in, but rhetoric aside, unforgettably for Mr. Obama, he is part of the problem, not part of the cure, as evidenced by his actions early on in his Presidency which only helped to perpetuate the ongoing higher education crisis in this county.
And on that note, I’m off, I need to go wash my tree killing, diesel swilling, Prius crushing Dodge Ram… See Bobo, I’m still an evil Conservative!! 
TNM
Here’s the headline from the AP
Obama to bullying victims: I know what its like
What the hell is going on these days? I don’t get it. There seems to be a huge push in the schools now to implement “anti-bullying” campaigns and to continue to wussify our kids. You know why bullying is so pervasive? Because of the freakin’ zero-tolerance policies. When I was growing up – we were taught that if anyone tries to bully you – you beat the shit out of the kid – he/she won’t bully you any longer. Now – the bully gets away with it over and over again because if you defend yourself in this zero-tolerance atmosphere – the victim gets suspended too if he fights back. What the hell kind of justice is that? It’s liberalism. In the real world – you have the right to defend yourself. In the liberal public school system – there is no justification.
Now – moving on – this was thrown out there:
Some 13 million students, about a third of all those attending school, are bullied every year, the White House said.
I do research for a living – I couldn’t find a single study anywhere out there that came up with this number. What I found consistently in many reports – and most of them were longevity studies – only about 9 – 13% of the subject students were either bullied, victims, or both. That’s hardly 33%. Is there any wonder why the U.S. is falling further and further behind the rest of the world in academics? Rather than actually teaching the kids how to read, write, and do arithmetic – they’re focusing on silly shit like tolerance, anti-bullying, being eco-friendly, and all kinds of other peripheral shit that will not help our kids.
If I’m not mistaken – these liberals practically worship Darwin and do absolutely everything they can to keep God out of our schools. Again, if I’m not mistaken – it was Darwin’s observation that only the strong and fit survive. All this wussy shit they are teaching the kids in school is upsetting that balance. You beat the shit out of a bully and the bullying stops. They’re messing up the inherent social hierarchy by not allowing “victims” to defend themselves against these bullies. Bullies would NEVER be at the top of that hierarchy if it weren’t for zero tolerance. In my day – bullies got pushed to the bottom of the pile where they belonged. Not any longer -
Bullying in Schools Pervasive, Disruptive, and Serious UCLA Study Finds
Bullies, seven percent of the students, are psychologically strong.
“Bullies are popular and respected: they are considered the ‘cool’ kids,” said Jaana Juvonen, UCLA professor of psychology, and lead author of “Bullying Among Young Adolescents: The Strong, the Weak and the Troubled,” published in the December issue of the journal Pediatrics. “They don’t show signs of depression or social anxiety and they don’t feel lonely.
Like I said – they fucked up the social hierarchy and now the bullies reign supreme in our school systems – is there any real wonder how this happened? My dad taught me to never back down from a bully and to beat the snot out of them….I teach my kids the same thing. My older kids were suspended a couple times for defending themselves against bullies. My one son would come home pissed off because some kids at school kept messing with him. This is what I told him:
You give them and the school three chances. The next time it happens, you tell them if they don’t leave you alone you’re gonna beat the shit out of them – then you go tell the school administrator to keep them away from you or you will defend yourself and beat the shit out of them. You only have to do that three times (FYI – being the big baseball fan that I am – I believe in the “three strikes and your out” theory). If you gave them three warnings and you notified the school three times – when it happens the fourth time – defend yourself and don’t let up until they can’t get up.
Well – it happened a fourth time – he got jumped in the locker room by four kids – he beat the shit out of all of them. He got suspended right along with them. Needless to say – I was furious when I got called to the school to pick him up. I wasn’t mad at him – I was mad at the school – and they knew it. They actually had to bring in the School Resource Officer in the room when they tried to discuss the issue with me. When they explained the “zero tolerance” policy they had against violence – I point blank asked the officer – “If this happened off school grounds – would you arrest my son and punish him?” He said he couldn’t answer the question because he was there to enforce the school’s policy and not actually there to enforce the law. That answered my question. I also threw it back at the school for allowing it to escalate to that point because it had been reported to them three times before it actually happened.
The same thing happened to one of my other sons – I told him the same thing – three strikes and they’re out. He had a couple kids messing with him the same as my other one. They jumped him at the bus stop the fourth time – he beat the shit out both of them and got suspended right along with them. The school system isn’t about justice for the victims – it’s about giving the bullies the ability to push around whoever they want because they know the good kids won’t push back because they don’t want to get suspended.
So – Obambi – boo freakin’ hoo. You libs are the cause of the problem – and you think you can fix the problem now? Here’s how you fix it – stop punishing the victims, let the bullied defend themselves, and put God back in school again.
Posted in A Nation at Risk, Ass-whuppin, Education, Liberals, Religion, School, The Education Crisis | 
Tags: bullies, Education, Public Schools | 2 Comments »
Guest post from Vulcan’s Hammer
There is nothing worse than a monopoly. Liberals love to rail about so-called monopolies in all sorts of private industries. But when it comes to teaching and public schools? Well, then it’s O.K. while American children are being short-changed.
Posted in Education, Guest Bloggers, Liberals, Politics, progressives, Public School System, Socialism, The Education Crisis, unions | Tags: Education, Guest Blogger, Politics, unions, video, You Tube | 2 Comments »
Hi All – we’ve got a lot of great submissions this week! I hope you get a chance to get through them all. Before we get this thing started – I gotta say this – GO PENGUINS!!!!!! For you Red Wing fans – so sorry – too bad! Bwahahahaha! Also I wanted to point out there will not be a Carnival next Sunday – it’s Father’s Day and I plan on spending the whole day with the kids. However, you can still put in submissions for the following week – June 28, 2009 Edition!
Conservative
John Kaduk presents Chicago’s Summer Games: Murder posted at The Right Wing.
Great stats John. It’s very interesting that we don’t hear that in the MSM – 509 murders a year in Chicago compared to 314 soldiers killed in Iraq. I don’t think they’ll get the Olympics either.
lsm presents Russia Warns Us. posted at awaken the elephants blog.
Thanks LSM for breaking this down for us. I touched upon this briefly last week – but – you’ve done a great job of covering the entire report out of Pravda. Imagine – a formerly Communist nation telling America how to be Capitalist and warning us we’re on the path to Socialism. Well – I hope no one out there is surprised considering bloggers like myself and you tried to warn America BEFORE the election!
Eric Gargiulo presents Don’t Apologize For Me Mr. President! posted at CamelClutchBlog.com, saying, “President Obama has elevated the art of national self-loathing to new heights, and seems to delight in prostrating the most powerful nation on the face of the earth before its critics and rivals, especially on foreign soil. The Obama worldview revolves around the central premise that the United States must be humble and “engage” and work with its enemies through the application of “smart power”.”
Eric – my sentiments exactly! Nicely put.
Selkirk presents Shocker: The Left Distorts the Truth to Justify Health Care Bill posted at Political Castaway Blog: Broadcasting Conservatism to Rescue America.
Selkirk – thanks for submitting this and doing some background research. In addition to the lies perpetrated regarding bankruptcies – I also want to point out the myth behind the 47 Million without insurance. First – they never mentioned that as of 2007 the U.S. Census Bureau has actually adjusted it to 45 Million. Sure, that seems like a lot – but – you actually have to look at the real numbers.
17.8 Million make $50,000+ income/year. They can afford their own healthcare, they just choose not to buy it – which to me is irresponsible.
8.6 Million are under the age of 18 – they qualify for Medicaid, SCHIP, or what is called a Share of Cost coverage based on a sliding scale of parents’ total income. Their parents just have not applied for it – which is irresponsible.
550,000 are age 65+ and are eligible for Medicare – again – they just need to apply.
10 Million are not U.S. citizens – they aren’t eligible for any government insurance assistance anyway.
When you break it down – we really only have 35 Million Americans that are uninsured and out of that – 27 Million could really be covered – but, due to their own irresponsibility – are not insured. What this leaves is 8 million without coverage that would require assistance. Another interesting statistic is that out of the total 45 million uninsured – 35 Million are White. The government tries to say that there is a racial disparity and that it is mostly minorities that are uninsured and we need to help them. Bullshit! Here’s the source for all these numbers – straight from the U.S. Census Bureau – don’t take my word for it – you guys are smart enough to read through these numbers yourselves. This is a huge con job on America to push nationalized healthcare because they don’t think we’ll actually look at the real numbers:
http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/hlthins/hlthin06/p60no233_table6.pdf
Garrett Oden presents 10 Most Common Arguments for Abortion « Forever Christian posted at Forever Christian, saying, “My personal thoughts on abortion with some fact mixed in. The addition of my short article would be beneficial to your carnival! Thanks =D”
Garrett – thanks for this submission. I don’t buy their arguments either! You’ve done a great job of dispelling each one of them.
Michael Bass presents Is Haley Barbour running for President? posted at South Mississippi Campaign For Liberty, saying, “His recent veto of eminent domain abuse here in Mississippi should give Republicans a good reason to pause and examine his legislative record carefully.”
Well – if he is – he’s in good company with Barack Obama supporters then! Thanks for bringing this to the forefront. Hopefully, the RNC will be smart enough to know that real Republicans and Conservatives do not support lefty RINO’s.
Silicon Valley Blogger presents Stock Market Predictions From Bad News Bears posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “What are the economic pundits telling us now?”
Digerati – I like the varying “experts” you provided for detailing the various “opinions” out there. I have to agree with you – there is nothing better than doing your own research and data gathering before you make a decision. Additionally, the reasons why people invest are varying and personal. Some are risk-takers and others are conservative – and everyone in between. It still all boils down to what your investment goals are. The market has always been a risk-reward system. The greater the risk – the potential for great rewards – but – with that also comes the potential for great loss. You’re right – the truth is somewhere in between and we ultimately need to decide for ourselves what is right for us. You’ve provided some great information for helping to make those decisions.
The Smarter Wallet presents Can A Housing Assistance Program Prevent Foreclosure? posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Thanks!”
I don’t have anything to add to this – as I don’t have any personal knowledge or experience. What I can say is that you have once again provided some very valuable information to our readers. Hopefully, if we have anybody out there reading this that falls in this unfortunate situation – they will come to your blog and find the information they need to get out of the rut.
Liberal
Madeleine Begun Kane presents Liz Cheney’s Song posted at Mad Kane’s Political Madness.
Interesting – but – who really cares about Liz Cheney and what she is saying? NO real Conservative or political junky pays any attention to her anyway.
Fortuitous Observer presents Walking Contradictions posted at Soul Thumping, saying, “Seeing humor in politics”
While I can see why you find humor in what you think are contradictions – it just goes to show how out of touch Liberals are with Conservatives. The fact of the matter is that Conservatives are indeed great activists for personal liberty and freedom. It makes perfect sense that a conservative supporter of Palin would also be in support of free Tibetans. But – I will have to give you the one regarding the Greatful Dead. Never did like their music in the first place – very over rated.
The problem is that Liberals only tend to hang out with other Liberals and only read Liberal blogs and watch the Liberal news media. You guys are so boxed in you don’t see the real world for what it is. Before you decided to go off on me – this comes from a study straight out of Ohio State. Conservatives are actually more open-minded and greater supporters of Liberty and Freedom than Liberals. We believe the way to personal freedom is personal responsibility – not government interference.
And..I guess you have never heard of the term “South Park Conservatives.” There are those of us out here that are very Conservative – but – open minded enough to enjoy themselves and not take things too seriously.
Miscellaneous
C. E. Dowalt presents President Obama: Groveler in Chief, Dhimi Version posted at Money Confidential.
C.E. – it appears there is something wrong with your blog. I got an error message from your host stating it is unavailable and for you to contact them as soon as possible. There is a phone number there for you to call them. I hope you get this back up again soon. I’d really like to read your posts. Let me know when you’re back up and running again.
Mar Matthias Darin presents Obama Indicted by Two Hundred Member Grand Jury posted at The Matthias Chronicles, saying, “Forget the seat belt, we’re going to need battle armor soon… This is going to be one wicked roller coaster ride!”
Mar Matthias – I hope one of my commentors – Orchid – comes back again to see this. That commentor thinks this is all about racism. When 200 jurors from 8 Grand Juries hand down indictments around this country requesting the birth certificate be presented as he may be usurping power and became the President illegally – I would say that is significant evidence that this issue is gaining steam around the country. If he really were an American citizen – why is he spending so much money ($1 million) in legal fees to battle it? Thanks for posting this up!
Sarah Scrafford presents 100 Open Courses to Learn More About the Middle East posted at Rated Colleges.
Nice list Sarah. Given that the President recently called the U.S. a Muslim Nation – I think people should get to understand just what that means.
C. E. Dowalt presents Checkmate in Asia posted at Money Confidential.
See above.
J.D. Bell presents Barack Tells Congress To Get Off Their Pork-Filled Butts posted at It Takes Work, saying, “Mr. Obama is getting a little impatient with his Legislative backup singers.”
First – I see where you’re going with this J.D. – and I can support some of your points. However, you’ll see that I provided some statistics in this carnival regarding the so-called “uninsured.” That’s a scam. Regarding healthcare costs being way to high – that’s not entirely true either. You have to look at what is driving up healthcare costs – one of the largest portions of that being out of control lawsuits. If you want to bring the cost of healthcare down – there needs to be tort reform first. Hospitals and physicians have to carry multi-million dollar policies as a result – these costs are passed down to patients. Additionally, built in to these costs are technology. As technology becomes more widely used – the costs come down. But, overall – the greatest cost to our healthcare system are illegal immigrants. They are costing us billions of dollars each year. Their care falls under what is termed “indigent care.” They are uninsured and as a result of EMTALA – cannot be turned away because they are illegal. These costs to care for illegals are passed down to everyone else – which makes the cost of healthcare increase significantly.
As for quality of healthcare – not sure how you come to the conclusion it is “wayyy too low.” I have been involved in the healthcare industry in every aspect of it for over 18 years. I have seen the improvements in quality. The quality of our healthcare is superior compared to the rest of the world. We are number 1 in quality of care – it is for this reason that many foreignors come to this country for their health care needs. You didn’t provide any evidence.
We don’t need the kind of healthcare reform that Obama and the Dems are pushing. What we need is for our government to enforce the laws already in place to bring costs down and to implement tort reform. Great discussion though!
News
Archvillain presents Rumors of War posted at A Dark and Sinister Force for Good, saying, “War is bad for business. Let’s hope China thinks so, too.”
Thanks for the history lesson Archvillain. I always learn something new from your posts. As with you, I hope China truly understands the threat from N. Korea and will do something about it. Given the way we’re all tied in economically around this globe – a war could truly be devastating for us all.
James J. Gormley presents One flu over the cuckoo’s nest? Phony Swine Flu products are dangerous posted at The Gormley Files, saying, “Swine flu swindlers take consumers for a ride.”
James – thanks for bringing this up. At this time – there is not even an effective vaccination for the Swine Flu. They are still in the experimental stages. If there is no vaccination – there certainly are no “supplements” or dietary treatments or products out there either.
Politics
Phil B. presents The Fall of China « Phil for Humanity posted at Phil for Humanity, saying, “Some guesses on how China could collapse.”
Phil – this was a very interesting read. Personally, I see China coming out ahead for decades to come – they are becoming what the U.S. used to be because they have a very strong Capitalist economy. Not only that – but – they are buying up the world’s supply of gold, natural gas, oil, copper, silver, and other industrial metals. They are positioning themselves to be the next true superpower. I do agree with you that them doing a large portion of business in the U.S. at this time could be harmful to them. Overall – great article.
B. Forrest presents Let’s get stimulated! posted at Pay Attention Moron.
Excellent Econ 101 lesson. Unfortunately, it seems that only Conservatives really understand this. I keep coming across too many Obama sheeple that actually believe this idiotic stimulus plan will work despite the very real and apparent evidence that proves otherwise. They’re willing to buy the line that it’s all Bush’s fault. I’m just wondering at what point they will finally wake up and see that this was caused by liberal policies and Obama is just continuing the economic destruction of this great country with these foolish whims of his.
Isabel Rodríguez presents Please, pay more money to children who want to stay at school posted at Trying to keep an open mind and an open heart, saying, “I live in Mexico and in this country, it is not unusual to see children working, who do not attend school. In fact, you see them EVERYWHERE. You see them in street corners, cleaning windshields or selling candies. You see them cleaning houses. You see them in car repair shops. You see them in an unlimited number of places. What to do about it?”
Isabel – Thank you so much for this submission. I hope there are some readers out there that see this and understand what an education means for our children through the example you have provided us. The only labor that children should be engaged in IS school! Unfortunately, here in the U.S. – many parents are no longer teaching their children that education is the basis for success and we have a crisis of our own here – we have a national dropout rate of 4.7% with some states having as much as 10%.
I think the program in Mexico is a great start – but – considering the economic turmoil you guys are facing – I can see why many parents are forcing their children in to day labor instead of education. I don’t have an answer for you either – except – you guys have a lot of corruption in your government. Until your political elite stop catering to the drug cartels – I don’t see the economy ever turning around in Mexico to sustain a permanent education system that will keep kids in school there.
Terri Choate presents Here’s to Holes in Water posted at Plum Duff…not your ordinary gruel!.
“Holes in Water” – I like that analogy! This is a great post. The era of Calvin Cooledge is practically dead, unfortunately. It amazes me that too many people these days are looking to the government to solve their problems rather than doing the responsible thing and being independent. Being a Public Health scholar right now – I have learned that the vast majority of all of the illnesses in this country are the direct result of risky behavior (as you pointed out). While you named a few examples – risky behavior actually encompasses a very wide variety of activities. What it all boils down to is acting responsibly and taking responsibility for your actions – which seems a foreign concept today. Great article.
Bob Brooks presents Another Story of Possible Government Corruption That Goes Under-reported posted at Bob Brooks – Prudent Money Blog.
Hmmm…never even heard this story in the media anywhere. Obama just seems to surround himself with corrupt people doesn’t he? It doesn’t surprise me at all that Geithner is involved in this. More political payback! Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
Super Saver presents Next Generation Bailout Acronyms posted at My Wealth Builder.
Bwahahaha! Tackling a serious issue through humor. Love those acronyms! But, unfortunately, the detail you provided is probably spot on!
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of The BoBo Carnival of Politics using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
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Posted in A Nation at Risk, America, BoBo, Carnival, Children, China, communism, Congress, Conservative, Constitution, Democrats, Education, Elections, globalization, government, Hispanic-Americans, Humor, Illegal immigrants, Liberals, Mexicans, Obama, Olympics, Palin, Politics, pork, President, RINO, Russia, School, Socialism, The Education Crisis | Tags: 14th Amendment, behavior, birth certificate, BoBo Carnival, census bureau, Chicago, Children, China, communism, Congress, Conservative, corruption, crisis, economics, economy, Education, foreclosure, government, Haley Barbour, healthcare, Illegal immigrants, indicted, liberal, Liz Cheney, Mexico, Middle East, muslim, news, North Korea, Obama, Olympics, personal responsibility, Politics, Pravda, public health, RINO, Russia, scams, Socialism, spending bill, stimulus bill, stock market, swine flu, uninsured, vaccine, war | 8 Comments »
Again! I have the great pleasure of hosting some really great posts from this past week from some really great bloggers. Bet you can’t figure what a lot of them are about?
Conservative
ChristianPF presents McCain/Obama – Who is better for your money? posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, “A debate over which candidate is better for your wallet”
Actually – that’s the question posed over at this blog. It’s up to you as the commenters to debate the issue.
Hairy Swede presents Doing My Civic Duty in Sweden posted at A Swedish American in Sweden, saying, “An American abroad votes conservative. From a very non-conservative country.”
Having grown up in the military and serving myself – I found myself abroad on two occasions in which I had to vote absentee as well. I commend you for doing your civic duty – and from so far away at that! When I was reading your first paragraph – I had to chuckle – as that was NEVER my experience when I was in Europe! Then I got to your follow-up – good one!
Steve Parry presents Congratulations To Barack Obama posted at The Axis, saying, “Setting the record straight.”
Excellent post, Steve. While I am not predicting doom and gloom myself – I will agree that Obama will most definitely weaken the U.S. The Republicans lost this election because a.) McCain was a very poor choice of candidate, and b.) The Republicans forgot who they were and lost their way. They kinda forgot they were supposed to be AGAINST big government, didn’t they? This is an excellent call to conservatives and to D.C. Republicans to return to their roots.
Curry Kenworthy presents Conservatives don’t really understand elections posted at Curry Kenworthy, saying, “Conservatives are brilliant on the issues, but liberals know how to get out the vote–and change the culture.”
Eh! I sorta agree. There was a huge turnout during the Reagan years to get people involved. However, for the most part, I would agree with a lot of the rest of what you have to say. In fact, Obama used technology brilliantly as compared to the McCain campaign. You wouldn’t believe how many “MyObamaSpace” pages I came across. Apparently, they set up their own Obama campaign social network. Additionally, they collected millions of cell phone numbers and were sending out texts messages regularly on election day to get those young’ns out there to vote. The turnout was the same as in 2004 – but – they pulled the youth vote in that wasn’t there before. I think a lot of Republicans and Conservatives stayed home this year.
Democrats
The Hip Hop Democrat presents Jay-Z running for Mayor of New York City in 2009? posted at The Hip Hop DEMOCRAT.
Now that is funny! But, let me also remind you of a few other celebrity politicians – mostly from the past: Ronald Reagan, Sonny Bono, Al Franken, Fred Grandy, P.T. Barnum (yes, THAT P.T. Barnum), Bill Bradley (former basketball player), Clint Eastwood (I lived in Monterey when he was the Mayor of Carmel), and John Glenn (former astronaut) just to name a few. The most recent ones we have are Al Franken and Jerry Springer. But, you’re right – I can’t see Jay-Z being the Mayor of NYC either. I can’t see him filling the same shoes as Bloomberg, Giuliani, Koch, and LaGuardia, just to name a few of the great ones!
Miscellaneous
Sarah Scrafford presents Obama vs. McCain: What the Next President Will Mean for Day Traders posted at Currency Trading.net.
Well, I personally don’t know much about day trading. I’m in it for the long haul. But – if I have any day traders who read this blog – there is some good info over there. While this is initially a comparison of both candidates – now that Obama has been elected – this is a good primer to follow up and see how Obama fares in the economy and what happens with the market.
TheMoneyHawk presents Reality Check: The President Can’t Save Us, Nor Should He posted at The Money Hawk, saying, “Everyone in the country needs to read this article, period.”
Ahh, yes! A financial blogger after my own heart! I’m a firm believer in personal responsibility! Most excellent post – a good read for everyone!
Madeleine Begun Kane presents Celebratory Limerick posted at Mad Kane’s Political Madness.
We’ll see! This freakin’ two year election cycle put a world of hurt on this country!
News
Sam Douglas presents Mandatory Internet Censorship and our Right to Choose posted at Philosophy Hurts Your Head.
You know, I read about this and heard about this on the news. I sure as hell hope they don’t try to pull this kinda shit here in the U.S. I feel bad for you Aussies. You’d think your government was being led by the Chinese or something!
Hortois presents Pumpkin for President posted at The Compost Heap, saying, “light hearted”
Um – okay – we’ll let it slide by THIS time! If it weren’t for that little pun at the end there – I probably would have nixed this one. And..considering Thanksgiving is up next here in the U.S. – and – I just LOVE pumpkin pi – these are good tips for pumpkin growers and gardners.
Ron McKie presents Hide the children posted at Phuck Politics.
OMG! Too funny – and yet – at the same time – so sad! Is this the next generation to lead our country! Lord help us.
GrrlScientist presents Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted): Election Eve 2008 Celebration in NYC’s Times Square posted at Living the Scientific Life, saying, “One of the nice things about living in NYC is the fact that there are often fun things happening that are both spontaneous and free-of-charge. One of those events occurred last evening and continued through the wee hours of today, when I spent election eve in NYC’s Times Square, along with half a million other people.”
You know – when I first read this – the first thing that came to mind was the last South Park episode with half the town celebrating, getting drunk, tipping cars, and puking everywhere (especially after seeing the picture of the guy hanging on the streetlight – that’s EXACTLY what Stan’s dad did, LOL) – while the other half of the town were either hiding in bunkers or killing themselves.
Those are some great pix you have up there. My favorite is the close-up of the police officer. Excellent blend of pix to illustrate your content. I enjoyed your journey!
John Kaduk presents Russia Starts Taking Advantage Of Obama posted at The Right Wing.
THIS must be what Biden was talking about! We’ll see, John! I see the cold war starting all over again under an Obama Presidency. I’m sure his weak ass will back off. After all, he’d rather TALK – which won’t mean shit to Putin!
Ron McKie presents Fuck this day posted at Phuck Politics.
Had a bad day did we Ron? I wish I had done as you and watched some movies instead of torturing myself through the evening watching all of that. My sentiments exactly!
Politics
David Lamb presents Riding the Wave of Recession: A history of economic depression in presidential politics posted at Killer Buffalo, saying, “I didn’t realize you did the carnival so often. I’m glad I didn’t miss my chance!”
One of my fellow bloggers from Inside Government! But – oh, David – how dare you try to tell us that Clinton left Bush with a higher debt than he started with! Don’t you know that he left office with a surplus! Rubbish! I guess all those I.O.U.’s in the Social Security till didn’t count! But, with hindsight being 20/20 – I would say that you were spot on with regards to the economic downturn being blamed on Bush as the primary reason McCain lost. Personally, I see Obama doing the same thing as Carter. While he is surrounding himself with Clinton era staff – we already know how that turned out – I think he’s going to make even worse mistakes than Clinton did. I still don’t see how those libs are able to seriously say that we had prosperity during Clinton’s reign. I guess they will always re-write history to slant their way.
Joe Hayes presents Political Jokes posted at Restoring Your Finances and Your Faith, saying, “Some really funny politically oriented jokes, just in time for the Election! Includes Barack Obama and John McCain related humor, and quotes from famous people too.”
I‘ve seen some of these before – others are new! Good one!
PicktheBrain presents Obama, McCain Education Plans Compared posted at Ace Online Schools.
Well – since we don’t really have to worry about McCain’s plans – we’ll just have to see what kind of damage Obama can do to our education system. Personally, the first thing I would do is get rid of that No Child Left Behind crap! The fact of the matter is – that program is designed to leave kids behind. They force low performing kids to drop out of high school and encourage them to go for their G.E.D.s instead which gets those from bringing their scores down. Not only that – but rather than teach the kids the basics – the schools are teaching to the test instead.
I think his most dangerous plan is to force ALL student loans through the government – just growing Government again! We know what his unflinching support for Fannie & Freddie did.
Raymond presents My Vote Does Not Matter Because I Do Not Live In A Swing State posted at Money Blue Book.
Personally, I think every vote counts. However, I do agree with you that our Electoral College system of voting needs to either be changed or completely eradicated. But – while you might think your vote doesn’t matter nationally – it DOES matter locally – and – does have an impact nationally when voting for your Representatives and Senators!
GrrlScientist presents Sarah Palin: In her own words posted at Living the Scientific Life, saying, “Sarah Palin’s greatest hits: Proof that all a woman needs to succeed in America is a pretty face and a tight ass.”
I think you guys are being WAAY to hard on Sarah. She’s a lot more intelligent than you guys realize. The problem is that the McCain camp scripted her. I’ve seen her in action prior to her being selected as VEEP. When she’s not scripted – she comes off real classy. There’s a reason why she has a 90% approval rating in her state – and it’s not because she’s hot!
What you may not know is that during the entire election cycle – she held a security clearance higher than both Obama and McCain. She’s briefed daily on the National Security Intelligence because of Alaska’s proximity to Russia. She had inside knowledge that neither Obama or McCain had. Obama is just now getting those daily briefings that she receives every day as the Alaskan governor. The Alaskan National Guard and the U.S. Air Force in Alaska are on 24/7 alert because of Russia. She knows the compliment and capabilities of the entire military forces at her disposal. Russia is a real threat – and – she’s 100% correct when she was talking about Russia in American/Alaskan air space every time the take off. (I have inside knowledge on that as well).
Regarding her comments regarding the job of the VP – according to the U.S. Constitution – she’s 100% correct about that as well! You might want to go back and read that document.
Her biggest problem regarding all those other interviews was that she got caught up in the talking points that she was required to stay on. I hope one day you get an opportunity to see her in action without the cue cards. You might change your opinion about her.
Alli presents Rahm Emanuel Advocates Compulsory Civil Service posted at The Smoking Argus, saying, “As previously reported, then Democratic Presidential candidate, Barack Obama while speaking in Colorado this past July, stated:
“We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objective that we’ve set. We’ve gotta have a “Civilian National Security Force” that’s just as powerful, just as strong, just as well funded.””
Excellent post Alli. I’ve lived overseas where military service is compulsory. I would hate to see this happen in this country – even in a Civilian National Security Force. Sounds kinda like Hitler’s Brown Shirts to me. Also – wasn’t it JFK that instituted the draft? It seems to me those loony liberals who are supposed to be all about civil liberties and freedom are the first ones to push FORCED service to the country.
Steve Faber presents How Will President Barack Obama Change What You Drive? posted at super gas saver, saying, “One thing about Obama, he has ambition. He also has an agenda to go along with it. A part of that will definitely have an impact on your choice of vehicle in the future.”
Bwahahaha! That’s some pretty funny shit! Oh – wait – you were serious! Hey, I’m all for getting better mileage to the gallon and all – but – not at the expense of our economy. These are some pretty lofty plans that you have outlined over at your place. But, I don’t see it happening – especially the plug-in hybrids. We are sooooo far away from having an efficient fuel-cell battery that 2015 is not even foreseeable. We could have more oil and natural gas in production to fuel this country economically before that would ever happen.
Also – that use it or lose it lease program – in case you aren’t aware – the oil companies would LOVE to lose those leases they have. There’s no oil in them – but – the government forces them to continue to hold on to them and pay them for these bad leases. They’ve been explored and have been found to be empty. The problem is – the government won’t lease the areas that HAVE the oil in them because they don’t want the oil companies drilling. As a consumer – I would LOVE for those oil companies to lose those bad leases as well – it would help to bring down the price of gas.
Anyway – for those of you who don’t know Obama’s plans – this is a great place to find out! See if you agree with it.
DWSUWF presents President Barack Obama – Let the healing begin. posted at Divided We Stand United We Fall, saying, “Barack Obama will indeed unify the left with the far left, pull in the moderate left, and be the President that speaks clearly for the entire sweeping 52% mandate they represent. Congratulations to the moderate, centrist, libertarian, and conservative blogging brethren who embraced Obama’s rhetoric of change and hope. You got what you hoped for!”
Oh how correct you are! BTW – I watched that South Park episode the other night. If you haven’t seen the whole thing – it’s freakin hilarious! Now – back to the regularly schedule program. Don’t you just love the way the left is throwing out their olive branches and embracing EVERYONE in this country! You have some great examples there of just how much love the left has and how they will do what they need to do to help unify and bring everyone together for the good of this country! Oh, I sure HOPE when they realize the CHANGE Obama has in mind is not the CHANGE they HOPED for – they don’t start blaming it on we Conservatives – considering we’re the minority now and have absolutely no power in D.C.!
U.S. Common Sense presents Open letter to Barack Obama posted at U.S. Common Sense, saying, “This one has already been picked up by Reuters and Palm Beach Post. It is a letter welcoming and warning Obama on his entrance into the White House.”
Excellent letter! How the heck do you get picked up by Reuters? This is a great read for all.
Kevin presents How to Deal With Election Withdrawal posted at The Red Stapler Chronicles.
Funny stuff – I’d like to add lucky #13 here – Start off everyone one of your statements to your co-workers with “My friend,” and then make sure to reference all other co-workers as “that one.”
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of the bobo carnival of politics using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
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