A Party In Search Of A Leader

With the primary season about over and the general elections peeking over the horizon, the political landscape is in chaos. The Democrats are in disarray with even the left attacking the President. Unless Obama sees the fallacy of his policies and his ways, he will have a wasted presidency. But then that's another post

Now the Republicans. What can I say? They are a party without an identity nor a leader - unless you consider the party of "no" an identity. It's not one I would want. While the Democrats are dropping in the polls like a rock, so are the Republicans. It's general anger at Congress because of the economy and jobs. No matter the bright spots that are touted there are far too many who can't see them because they can't pay their electric bill to turn on the TV if they even still have one. Oh, come on. It's not that bad. Isn't it?

So where are the answers? I hear time and time again what's wrong, but I never, ever hear solutions. That isn't all bad, because there are no easy ones, but the Republicans have a selling point right under their noses if they'd see it. Increments. Like Health Care Reform. Take it in increments. Immigration reform. Take it in increments. Yet no one is giving voice to this. Nor saying what and how those increments could work.

Those running either have ascribed to rather bazaar ideas and are using the Tea Party as their entree through the political fringe or are relying on the tired generalities of blaming the Democrats with no ideas of their own. Let's face it, unless they coalesce as the Blue Dogs do on occasion, they will be a freshman with no voice except one alone among many.

Who is to lead them? No one has as yet come forward. No one to take seriously anyway. Palin? Who knows. At the moment I think she sees herself as a King maker though many of her endorsed candidates are losing. Huckabee again? Too far right. Romney? While it shouldn't, his being Mormon may still be the sticking point. Gingrich? He knows politics inside out. That may be his biggest problem. I'm not sure what I think about Newt other than if I'm going to consider him at all I'll have to get over my personal hang ups about his personal character!

So why worry about 2012 now? Because if the Republicans do well in the midterms they will be held responsible for all that happens between the election and 2012.

There is much to concern us. What will the Democrats ram through if they indeed have a lame duck session for the remainder of the year? Without knowing who will lead the Republicans and how much sway the right will hold is of vital importance. We could see a pendulum out of control.

I swear I'm going to put up a Facebook page to gather independent thinkers! If there are to be King makers, let it be the people willing to weigh all sides, not just the ideological few!

Maybe Joe Had It Right

As I shake my head reading about billions being poured into public service jobs, you know, the ones with salaries higher than the private sector with far more generous benefits. The ones where it's nearly impossible to be fired because the unions will bail you out ~ police, firemen, teachers ~ at the sacrifice of food stamp recipients. Those like your an my neighbors who have lost their jobs and perhaps even their homes. Mostly private sector employees. Oh well, the money had to come from some place.

I find myself wondering if anyone in the administration can do more than blame Bush for all our ills. They certainly seem not to be able to fix anything. Then I started thinking about Joe Biden and the war in Afghanistan.

What's the connection? Remember when Obama was taking an agonizingly long time to come up with a new strategy for the war? While some were pushing for a surge such as we had in Iraq, Biden was espousing a more lean and mean approach. Remove the troops. Let the drones to their work, guided from ships off shore. Take out the enemy the drones find with the special forces. It's what they're trained to do!

With Karzai's constant yammering about civilian deaths and now his slamming foreign advisers and proclaiming that they have the ability to rule and govern their own country and they have their sovereignty, perhaps it's time to let them have it full stop. Really. Full stop.

This man who threatened to cozy up with the Taliban when we wouldn't do things his way can have them. He's worried about civilian deaths? How about the ten aid workers who were just slaughtered by the Taliban? Do they not count because they were not Afghan? Doesn't it matter that many of them had devoted a life time to helping the Afghan people?

When they lack education and the other necessary means to escape their lot in life, I am sorry. It has been asked how can we leave them to the Taliban and in turn al Qaeda? It's not a choice we should have to make. After all, they have their sovereingty. Ask Karzai. One way we might be able to help, however, could be Biden's way. Let us do what we came to do and just get out of our way. When we're done you can do what you will with your country.

When a stronghold is found within their borders tell Karzai to get his civilians out within 24 hours. After that it's Katie bar the door.

I know I rant on this topic often, but I'm just plain tired of politics. I'm tired of our military having to play footsies with a petty dictator pretending to be a duly elected official while our kids get killed. I'm tired of the President playing footsies with the unions for those all important campaign contributions that are soon to be needed.

The world politic. We can't live with it. We sure as heck can't seem to escape it. Who wins?

There's Only One Kind Of Bud A Seven Year Old Should Have ~ But Alas!

When my two grand nieces visited a few years ago they were nine and eleven. There was no doubt they were girls but who thought anything about it? I certainly didn't. It goes to show how far out of the loop of present day reality one can get!

Back in June there was a meeting of
parents in Helena, MT to consider a proposal that sex education be extended to those of kindergarten age. My eyebrows shot up with my decimal level, "What?Sex ed for five year olds? Ridiculous!" Five year olds aren't interested in sex any more than they are in the slogan the pictured child wears across her chest! And who's looking at her chest? No one!

But wait, it's not the five year old! It's the same little girl two years on down the road when she's beginning to develop. Yep. The onset of puberty. At seven years of age! When I was growing up girls were usually in their near or early teens. Not seven or eight. Heck, at seven we were just settling into school and if one had a boyfriend one was subject to derisive teasing! I know because I had one. He even carved his and my initials into his bicep. I often wondered how he felt about that years later for we didn't see one another again until Junior High. By that time neither of us had any interest what so ever!

The story is a prelude to the second half of the issue not discussed. I'd be interested in knowing if boys are developing at an earlier rate also. The study pointed to childhood obesity as a probable cause. Boys suffer from the same malady. The possible diseases such as increased risks of breast cancer and diabetes also apply to boys. Should they not receive equal study?

It's a sticky situation to be sure. I can remember the treatment those who budded early received. Some took it in stride, others were humiliated by it. When I was a kid we didn't have sexual predators to worry about. At least in my world. Had we been subjected to such a threat, however, as a teen we would have been better equipped to handle it than at seven or eight. That would hold true today I'm sure. What's a mere child to do? Be taught the basics at an earlier age.

It really changes the dynamic of how boys and girls will be looking at one another, won't it? Today's reality versus what mine had been. What with wars raging around us, parents losing jobs and then homes, the diminishing levels of education and career opportunities, kids are losing a lot of what my generation knew to be childhood. Now this. They're even looking less and less like "children".

How sad. How frightening.

American Muslims Deserve Their Places Of Worship Too

Are we letting our fear of jihadists get out of hand? We have shared this country with Muslims far longer than the time that has elapsed since 9/11. How much did we think about them? Not much I'd wager. Especially those who freely adopted western dress and U.S. law.

Then everything changed, exacerbated by the incidents at Fort Hood, the shoe sole bomber, the "underwear" bomber and the scare in Times Square. These are all valid reasons to be cautious, but to lump all Muslims residing on U.S. soil as no more than terrorists is no more right than lumping all blacks as violent gang members.

There are passionate opinions about plans to build a mosque a couple of blocks from "ground zero". "Why not," say some. "No way," say others. I ask why not some place else? Let's presume it is to be no more than a place of worship and set aside questions about funding and the Imam. Is it not, plain and simple, distasteful to build a multi-million dollar 13 story tall building? Photos of the architectural rendering are a bit flashy to say the least. A mosque is one thing; an in-your-face reminder that Muslims were in fact those who brought down the World Trade Center because they hate us is quite another. If the Muslims want to show they are sympathetic to what happened there, why should it not be them instead of us making the concession on the location? Not to mention the design!

On the other hand, in other parts of the country, from Nashville to Temecula, Muslims have been meeting ugly resistance to both new mosques and the expansion of existing ones. Once more a minority in our country is living in fear. Fear of us.

Yes, the Muslim population is growing and much of it is from immigrants that have been coming in since 1990. Legal immigrants I might add. Are they jihadists bent on our annihilation? Or could they possibly be Muslims looking for a better life than what they had in their countries of origin? Certainly there will be bad apples. But not necessarily barrels full.

These actions do no more than encourage the very thing we want to discourage. Radicalization!

I agree there should be no consideration of a parallel legal system bringing in Sharia law for the Muslim community. While some if it's dictates, like dressing modestly and forbidding adultery are of merit, their methods of punishment are not. If they, like everyone else, want the privilege of living in our country then they must obey our laws. Not those they left behind.

It's sad that we have become so suspicious of one another based on nationality, race and religion. It will take a special discipline on our part, collectively, not to let it destroy the very things for which we we stand. Prudence. Vigilance. And maybe the glimmer of an idea that man is a basically decent being.

I may be expecting too much.

Guest Hosts Do It Better

I did something last night that is quite unusual for me. I watched Hannity. Last week I found myself watching another show that rarely crosses my television screen ~ Greta Van Susteren. What made me stop? Guest hosts! Hannity had Liz Cheney and Greta had Dana Perino.

Both ladies did something that must have shocked their guests. They actually stopped talking after having asked a question and gave the guests time to answer. I found it so refreshing I had to listen.

I've given up listening to the MSNBC line up because of their mean spirited negativity. On Fox you have a choice ranging from pomposity to just plain stupidity. Hannity, especially, seems to get on a kick and it will last a week or better. His current kick is about some small town that allegedly used Google Earth to spy on it's citizenry to see if there were changes on their property that would warrant either an increase in taxes or a fine.

His question is whether or not Google has the right to spy and perhaps catch him in a Speedo in his back yard. Obviously he has never used Google Earth. To catch him in his Speedo would have been strictly by chance. Just to be sure I looked up our house. It even has a street view, which I understand, I could have removed if it was an issue to me. It's not.

More than that, the views are several years old. I could tell by the landscaping. The trees were much younger and the season was late fall. No one was in the yard nor on the street.

Yet evening after evening, before we'd switch to some other nonsense, there he'd be harping on Google's invasion of his privacy. This is but one example of what these talk shows, no matter the political slant, have to offer. Not much.

Hub tells me a large screen high def TV is out of the question. Why bother watching something where the picture has more clarity than the subject matter!

That's his take and I can't disagree. Mine is why the heck can't I get such a gig? I can harp on stupidity as well as any of them!