President Obama weighed in before he left for vaction with this video on his outlook for the future:

“This is always a hopeful time, as we celebrate the end of one year and the beginning of another,” Obama said. “And while 2009 was difficult for many Americans, we must also look back on this year with the knowledge that brighter days are ahead of us – that although our challenges are great, each of us has the courage and determination to rise up and meet them.”

I hope it is a good year for you and for us and for the world!

Personally, I am burned out on all of the spin on both sides of political events. It seems nearly impossible to just get simple straightforward information on any political events anywhere. Take health care. I don’t think I beleive what anyone has to say about it and I certainly don’t have the time to read thousands of pages of a bill, nor would I want to. While the idea of the government running health care does not sound good to me, I beleive we need to find a way to make sure everyone who wants coverage can get it, especially people with pre-existing conditions. My wife has breast cancer (fortunately it was detected early and surigally removed and radiated and she is now cancer free), and after the initial surgery and treatment our insurance was cancelled. We had to form a group which included our adult children to be able to get her pre-existing condition insured again. The cost of this doubled our already expensive insurance coverage. But, we have received excellent health care.

Anyway, back on track. I would like to see if we could use this blog to talk about the reality of political events from a common sense, common ground approach. I don’t want it to be Democrat or Republican, Liberal or Conservative, I would just like to be able to discuss the issues and hear where other common sense people are coming from. I am willing to publish articles from people who want to talk to the issues from a common sense perspective. I would also like to post your comments on what you read.

So, let’s start with discussions on health care and the economy. I look forward to hearing form you.

Specter’s Gone – A Time of Danger and of Opportunity
By Larry D Miller

Ever needing material to fill a twenty four hour news cycle, the talking heads were all atwitter about the defection of Arlen Specter to the dark side. The story fit their their template, something bad happening to the Republican is always worth reporting. Only, this isn’t anything particularly bad for the party. Sure it appears that the Dems are that much closer to the to a filibuster proof majority, but since when has Senator Specter been a reliable soldier in the battle against expanding government or a staunch defender to a baby’s right to be born?

The recent stimulus fiasco is only one of many where he threw his Republican colleagues under the bus simply because he was out of step with mainstream Republican thinking. His assertions that the party had moved to the far right away from him are some of the most humorous comments he’s made with a straight face. Anyone who has been paying any attention knows the alternate explanation is much more to the point. The Republicans of Pennsylvania are finally getting their act together and demanding someone with principles carry their banner.

This has been in the works for some time as there are various groups looking to run candidates in primaries against Republicans who have been collaborating with the enemy. This battle has been won without the anticipated fight. Will Specter be a viable candidate as a Democrat when he’s been portrayed for years as an evil Republican who wanted to steal childrens’ lunches and prevent the homeless from taking walkin’ around money and voting two, maybe three times? Time will tell.

Is Arlen Specter the first of many to fall under the threat of retribution by the own constituents? One can only hope so. Party organizations tend to support incumbents with little regard for their value in furthering common agendas. President Bush even helped Specter overcome a conservative primary challenge last time around. So it is up to the grassroots activists to find candidates, support them and get them elected.

Specters’ departure put Pennsylvania Republicans at a cross roads. Given the opportunity to select a candidate that represents traditional values, they have also been given a tremendous responsibility. Republicans in the mushy middle are always sharing their opinion to anyone who will listen that conservative candidates can’t win, particularly in a state like Pennsylvania. Many, I’m sure will be working behind the scenes to prove they are right.

This danger of embarrassing defeat should come as no surprise as with privileges come responsibilities. The responsibility in this case is to present these American values to the narcissistic culture in such a way that they will understand that freedom over slavery to an all encompassing government is better for them. They need to see that having the ability to build your own life is better than taking the one the bureaucrats decide to give them. They need to comprehend that we are safer by exhibiting strength than by depending on the good will of those who hate us.

This means we have to go beyond simply calling our leftist opponents names like “liberal” or “socialist” or, more accurately, “fascist”. We have to explain why they are wrong, and in doing so, we have to overcome the work of the government indoctrination centers, sometimes called the public schools, and most of the media who hang on every word the President reads off the teleprompter.

This will require more effort and a better understanding of the issues. We need to be more intellectually involved, as slogans will no longer do the job. But, it’s not as bad as it sounds. Traditional American values outline the path we should be taking and our support for them is based on proven logic, not convoluted theory promoting ideas that have never worked anywhere they have been tried.

For those who claim to be Christians, we need to be fighting the battle the way George Washington did… on our knees. We need to put forth all the effort we can, but in the end, the victory will come, as Zechariah 4:6 tells us: “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the LORD Almighty.

Larry D Miller is a web developer who has been involved in the political world for the past twenty some years. His company, Simple Webs, works with organizations and candidates and can be seen at http://www.simplewebs.biz and his current project, http://www.politicalchristian.org examines the relationship between Christians and the political sphere.

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Party Politics
By Doug Wilson

Recently I’ve spent a lot of time on politically active sites. I signed up for the free memberships so I could comment on the articles. In doing this I’ve been able to get a good idea of what “some” people are reacting and responding to. Granted the whole population isn’t reading and commenting on the New York Times and the Huffington Post but a lot of people visit the sites. I read that around a third of the nation gets it’s news from the internet. I get my news from the net. I can read and watch all the network news. Watch cable channels like Democracy Now or Link.TV. I can read Greenwalds articles on Salon.com. I can read what Larry Summers says. So I spend a good deal of time each day reading and listening to people. The people I’m most interested in aren’t the ones writing the articles and making the headlines. After all, I never know who’s lying or what any of these peoples secret motives or ambitions are. But the comments, that’s completely different, they leave no doubt as to what they think and feel. That’s what I want to write about today.

As far as our government goes, as far as they might make things better, I have no faith. I think the best thing for the government to do is – Stop. Whatever you’re doing, whatever you’re thinking – just Stop. But what about – No. But we need to – No. Stop, No, No, sit down, be quiet, No. That wraps up my opinion of “The State”. But what about the opinions of the whole? The nation of people? What I see repeatedly with way too many people is their loyalty to a political party. With every single party adherent I’ve run across, critical thinking is missing. This is, no where more blatantly, obvious than in the recent transition from the last elections. My reaction to the gathering in the park on the night of the presidential election was the same as my reaction to the coverage of the Iraq bombing. I sat their and thought – wow, this is weird. Here they were, shoulder to shoulder, thousands of people with tears in their eyes, overwhelmed by the appointment of a total stranger. The self generated intimacy was baffling. In the end I can only find one reason for this behavior. It has everything to do with an emotional attachment to a political party. A political party that, in all but name, doesn’t exist. Political parties are irrelevant. We have a huge problem in this country.

A problem so overwhelmingly huge that it seems insurmountable. It’s not that the problem is not solvable. It’s not complicated. What stands in the way of eliminating this problem are political parties. Not necessarily the elected officials, but the public party partisans. I’m convinced that no Democracy can function well when it’s people are attached to a certain party. Not that we have a real Democracy but we have the ability, for now, to exercise democratic power. We as a nation still have the ability to save ourselves. What will stop this, as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow, is public party advocacy. The party activist will bring the rest of us to ruin. Either it stops, or it’s over. We will be, a nation, no more. Here is the most fascinating part of the whole game. As a people, as a majority, we don’t disagree. Another thing I notice when I’m cruising these sites is the polls. More specifically, the poll questions. They are for the most part pointless, because they are unanswerable. They are at best, misleading in there results. There was a question on a particular article yesterday that read, “Do you think she should either apologize or resign?”…Yes or No? Huh? Most people, who think, can’t answer that. There are a few people who can answer it. They are the ones who agreed 100% with the author of the article. So the results will read Yes 95% – No 5%. So what? How many people couldn’t answer? Most? This is representative of most polls I’ve seen. Besides, I’ve never been ask to participate in any major polls.

I’ve read some and seen the numbers they poll. Not very many. You want a real poll? Put it on the internet and ask real questions and leave a box for writing in your answer. Here’s an example: When should Abortion be used: (Write your answer here). When should we go to war: (Write your answer here). Now if this poll was available we’d know something – about ourselves as a nation. But if you’re a political machine, this type of poll would be political suicide. Doesn’t matter what party you work for, it would still be suicide. As long as the government controls the people a poll of this type will never be officially recognized. As long as people belong to a political party – they will only follow what is approved by, what they believe to be, “their” government. I used to sell stuff. This is how I used to do it: Would you like to buy this…It will poison you…No? OK, how about something that will make you feel good?…Yes, great! The way that all good salesman get people to buy things is by getting people to say yes. They want the people to agree – on anything. Once we start to agree, we’re going to do something together. Something is going to get done. Government is not trying to do something with us. If they were they would let us see where we are in agreement. They would make it clear that the people from this party or that party didn’t – really – want different things.

What the “State” understands is this. You never ask real questions. You never, ever, allow the public to be united. You keep them fighting. Arguing. At each others philosophical, ideological throats. It’s not even important that there be a real ideology. No body needs to know what they want. They just need to be convinced that “those guys are different”, “They” are the opposition. It’s all their fault. It’s the exact same story from either party. We want to help you, but they are blocking us. This goes on constantly, year after year, decade after decade. That’s the part of the act they want you to see. Here’s the part that people don’t see. All of a sudden, out of no where, AT&T is getting tapped by the NSA. What? That’s not a .7% tax increase – that’s science fiction. If they can’t agree on the budget how did this happen? Here’s the deal, the majority of the people who have infested the government don’t disagree on anything. This is why the most meaningless drivel imaginable is screaming about, talked about on the news, discussed and argued and at last, with great pageantry accomplished. But historic sweeping constitutional changes are made overnight with barely a whisper. This is what I would like to say to all the people who get emotionally involved with parties, politicians, government: You don’t know them. For 95% of the population of this nation let me repeat: You don’t know them.

To think you know them is not rational. You cannot know them. It is an impossibility. In no other area in your life do you behave in this way. If you do – Stop. But you probably don’t. The places I see this are in politics and religion. The two places that it is the least possible to “know” anything, people have the most fervent “beliefs”. It has to be a belief because it is impossible to really know the people involved. But for now I am focused on the belief, the fixation with political parties. I’ll say this and wrap it up. This country has been heading towards bankruptcy since 1913. Google this: Graph of national debt. Since the 1950’s it climbed steadily till 1980 when it starts to race up the scale. What parties were responsible? From 1913 till now? Both, all, any and it has nothing to do with it. In 1913 “the government” agreed, on your behalf, to turn the country over to a private banking cartel. Don’t think that’s true? Why? What do you get to do without money? It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about fifty people or 5 million: whoever controls the money controls the people. Like a weed, it is the root of the problems we experience. The greatest detriment to the country today is the political activist. The person who has been “led to believe” that the problem lies with government.

That if they can change the government, sway the government, petition, plead, reason with or elect different people, it will solve the problem. When the idea that there are two parties in Washington, one fighting for you and one leading the country to ruin, is gone then the picture will start to become clear. That’s the first step on the road to reason. Because in order for this country to accomplish anything of worth we have to agree. We have to unite. Not on the small things. But on the most important things. The things that matter. At this moment there are a couple “issues” being discussed by government that matter. There are a few people in government working to get rid of the problem. The rest are working to fulfill promises to people who funded their campaigns and line their pockets. When there is no emotional involvement this is very easy to see. Like I said, this is the first step. It is a required step. It’s not an option. It’s not one of the ideas that could work. It is a step in a process. It can’t be left out, avoided, worked around, or made more palatable, because we hate to be wrong. It’s the pill we have to swallow if we want to live.

Bio: Doug Wilson is an avid student of concepts and has spent the last five years seeking out the structural aspect of unrest in human nature . The results of this study is being written out as a system for self discovery at Addiction: In the 21st Century

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Did Obama’s First 100 Days Meet Your Expectations?
By Joe DelCasino

It will be interesting to see how the media spins the president’s first 100 days in office, but will come as no surprise if Democrats are deemed to be more satisfied than Republicans with the “results” so far. Don’t be surprised if some Democrats are also deemed to be more disappointed than Republicans.

President Obama is presiding over the most emphatically liberal Democratic agenda in our nation’s modern history. He has taken steps to dramatically grow government and is proposing to spend money like it’s going out of style. He justifies his radical moves by claiming it’s the only way to undo the economic peril left by the previous administration. He has used that assessment to effectively exclude Republicans from important budgetary and other legislative matters so far. Democrats should be delighted, but are they getting what they bargained for from team Obama?

Most Democrats believed Obama was going to change the corrupt and special interests that have heretofore characterized national politics. They also expected him to rise above partisan politics for the greater good and involve people of integrity in his new and transparent administration. Instead, the president’s first 100 days has shown his willingness to set unilaterally (with his democratic and liberal congress) long term, financially irreversible and profound strategic directions for our nation. Transparency seems to have vanished as a general objective but has been used as a weapon for political expedience to embarrass his opposition, such as to punish the Bush administration for war crimes. His cabinet nominations have been drawn from the same pool of tainted politicians that his administration was supposed to eliminate. So much for cleaning up old-style Washington politics.

Furthermore, the fiscally-conservative Democrats and Independents that bought into the moderate, centrist persona that Obama conjured up to win the election are still recovering from the whiplash of him darting to the left soon after his inauguration.

Most Republicans saw that head fake coming and probably feel they got what they expected from an Obama presidency, even if they’re now horrified with how the nation is being managed. The good news for them is that so far Obama continues to be a talker and not a doer, and given his penchant for popularity he may change directions if the political tea leaves so dictate.

Obama’s inaction may also be bad news for the nation. If Obama doesn’t take definitive action soon to put us on a path to economic prosperity, our American goose may be cooked. We’ve gotten plenty of lip service about change, but only after the details are worked out and actually implemented will we know if it’s change for its own sake or change we can believe in.

More articles by this author are available at http://joedelcasino.blogspot.com Books are available at http://www.Xlibris.com

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The Testing of a President
By Gene Lalor

Macbeth: “Is this a dagger which I see before me…” Macbeth (II, i, 33)

I doubt President Obama sees any daggers, real or imagined, but he hopefully sees tests before him, tests which could serve the same purpose as daggers at America’s throat.

Vice President Biden, before he was VP Biden, had warned that tests would happen. Back in October, the prescient Joe said, “We’re about to elect a brilliant 47-year-old senator president of the United States of America. Remember, I said it standing here, if you don’t remember anything else I said: Watch, we’re gonna have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy.”

Pal Joey apparently was muzzled, squelched, told to shut up shortly thereafter and never again spoke publically of testing “the mettle [the character] of this guy,” the President- Presumptive at the time, Senator Barack Hussein Obama.

Well, that test or tests, international and domestic, in political-speak, have now been “generated,” in real-speak they have “hit the fan,” and we shall shortly see the depth of Obama’s brilliance and character.

The domestic testing has been ongoing and is a carryover from the administration of Bush II. Mainly, but not exclusively, it has consisted of the banking, mortgage, economic mess. Only time will tell whether history assigns Obama, and therefore America, a passing grade.

At this point, Wall Street has evidently decided to give a resounding “F” to the new president and for his wonder boy, tax-cheating Secretary of the Treasury, Timothy Geithner. Their mindless profligacy in tossing around a trillion here, a trillion there, of taxpayer dollars have been met with a clear vote of no confidence and a drop of thousands of points on the Dow.

After being clued in by Bill Clinton, Obama suspended his very peculiar gloom and doom, crisis here, crisis there, approach to inspiring Americans in favor of the pep-talky, “Hey, we can do it, folks!” But the damage had already been done.

Main Streeters and Wall Streeters seem to be thinking, Will the real president please stand up and do something constructive? Both should be cautioned not to expect much in that regard since Obama has admitted that he regards the stock market as nothing more than a “tracking poll” and neither he nor Michelle Obama own any stocks, according to their tax returns. So, who cares?

Obama’s other testing fields are overseas, in foreign nations and in international waters and so far he seems to have adopted a very diplomatic, hands-off, do nothing, wait and see approach.

North Korea’s Kim Jong-il, maniacal loose-cannon extraordinaire, thrives on war and rumors of war and gets his jollies by launching missiles and threats, recently including threats to shoot down civilian airliners near his airspace and warning of all-out war if we dare to shoot down his satellite.

The latest news out of Pyongyang is that the paranoid Kim Jong-il has cut his military hotline with South Korea and is in process of mobilizing his million man army. The reason? Fear of invasion by the United States and South Korea.

It’s as realistic to expect a U.S. invasion of North Korea as it is to expect us to invade Angolia but realism never enters the equation when it comes to Kim’s thinking.

Iran’s equally unstable nutcase, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad makes similar threats, threatens missile and nuclear strikes-when Iran’s nuke facilities are up and running-and now demands the United States apologize for 60 years of wrongs against Iran: http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/people/a/mahmoud_ahmadinejad/index.html

Mahmoud’s very selective memory must have “dis-remembered” when his Ayatollah Khomeini ordered the illegal storming and seizure of our Tehran embassy in 1979. I have to assume that he does not consider imprisoning 52 Americans for 444 days as something worthy of an Iranian apology.

There is, however, another explanation, namely that Mahmoud clearly recalls President Jimmy Carter’s feckless response to that grave offense and he seriously does expect an apology from President Obama.

He may get it if Obama fails this test.

Iran and North Korea are comparative pipsqueaks on the world stage and their incessant testing could be ended within weeks, or days, if Obama summons the nerve to advise both nations that, starting with their leaders, they will be reduced to molten puddles should they dare any funny business.

Fat chance, but hope springs eternal.

More ominous tests, one clearly and intentionally “generated” by a wannabe superpower, the other the result of an inept government allowing drug criminals to go berserk on their own soil, are on Obama’s horizon.

The inept government is that of Mexico’s Felipe Calderon and his ineptitude is a test for Obama mainly because of Mexico’s 2000 mile border with the United States and the four states immediately adjacent to Mexico. Exacerbating the danger is the fact that Mexico’s criminal element now is overflowing into those states, and further north. Houston is already feeling the effects of the infestation of Mexican drug cartels in town; there are at least five such cartels operating in Houston and the gangsters who run them are wreaking havoc.

Mexico, of course, is a tough test for Obama because of its proximity and because of long-term plans for the eventual establishment of a North American Union with Canada and Mexico.

That NAU has been in the works since the Bush I years and involves a virtual surrender of U.S. sovereignty and an “amero” to replace the dollar as our legal currency. Our leaders, of both parties, have already been implementing facets of the NAU. Absurd? The NAU is anything but absurd and Obama’s challenge right now is to repulse this most blatant invasion from Mexico without offending our NAU partner.

Last but hardly least of Obama’s tests and challenges is the People’s Republic of China. Having secured international recognition and esteem with its highly-scripted, manipulated, but very successful summer Olympic Games in 2008, China has no further need to act civilized with the Tibetans or the Taiwanese, or with the United States.

Prefatory to repressing the followers of the Dalai Lama in Tibet and attacking Taiwan, a little evaluation of Obama’s mettle was in order and China began that evalauation on the seas off its coast.

Five Chinese ships surrounded, “shadowed and aggressively maneuvered in dangerously close proximity” to the USNS Impeccable, an unarmed ocean surveillance vessel, on Sunday, March 8, with one ship coming within 25 feet, a U.S. Defense Department statement said:
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSPEK9458120090310?sp=true

Unprovoked, in a scene reminiscent of but far less bloody than Israel’s 1947 attack on the USS Liberty, the Chinese contended the Impeccable was conducting “illegal surveillance,” even though the American ship (like the Liberty) was in international waters and operating within the bounds of all laws governing military vessels on the high seas.

All reports suggest there will be no lasting effects on Chinese-American relations as a result of this maritime confrontation, which is probably true. However, the inscrutable Chinese had succeeded in one mission: They had successfully tested President Obama. His and America’s response? A stern reprimand, which China threw back in our faces, which rendered the reprimand a waste of effort on our part.

More testing is sure to come, especially since China now knows it has a weak and ineffectual American president more committed to words than to actions to deal with.

Meanwhile, waiting patiently in the wings, are Russia, Vladimir Putin, and the puppet Dmitry Medvedev, waiting patiently to see how well Obama fares with the easy tests before he and we are hit with the real toughies.

Gene Lalor is the author of An Immodest Proposal for Ending and Winning the War on Terror, available at Amazon.com

(http://genelalor.com/)

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The More Things Change
By Laura Bramble

They say that history repeats itself. This has certainly been the case in Washington the last two weeks. Senior members of the house are carrying around history books, trying to decide who to emulate. Reid is currently fond of FDR, McConnell and Cantor of Winston Churchill and Newt Gingrich. Each are looking for clues on how to best spin the stimulus bill fight and its potential political aftermath. Both Republicans and Democrats are pinning the future hopes of their parties on this legislation, with both knowing the outcome of the 2010 mid-term elections is riding on its success.

The House Democrats are using their majority control to set the agenda on a definitive liberal slant, hoping to pass programs and initiatives that were gridlocked during the Bush years. Significant health care reform, environmental protection, alternative fuel source development, and greater regulatory control of business and industry are all on the agenda. The stimulus bill was a way to get some immediate action on these issues by tacking them onto a much needed jump start. But will increasing the deficit to fund these programs provide the impetus the economy needs, or is the money being spent in areas that will be of no help to ending the recession?

The Republicans are still holding firm to the doctrine of trickle down economics through corporate and individual tax cuts and breaks, believing that money given to the upper strata and corporations will boost spending, and therefore production, which will reduce unemployment and kick start a flagging economy. However, history has not shown trickle down economics to be successful; corporations have tended to want to keep its wealth for itself and many people are saving their money instead of spending it and promoting business growth.

Only time will tell who is right, but the way this whole situation has played out goes to show one thing. No matter how strong the mandate for change is, old habits die hard. Bipartisanship, like world peace and a delicious non-fat cheesecake, is an idyllic vision we can dream of and hope for. It seems to be just as realistic too.

Laura Bramble
http://www.politicalsimpleton.com/RED_MENACE/THE_MORE_THINGS_CHANGE.html

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Reviving the Conservative Movement
By Patrick Britton

The state of the nation four or eight years from now is going to be dramatically different than what we see now. With a steady growth in government spending and taxes it’s going to be hard to bring us back down. Once certain programs are put into effect it is almost impossible to reverse or change them. Welfare and SSI are great examples. With this in mind how can a conservative expect to fix these problems? Will we have no choice but to vote in a moderate that can win the hearts and minds of a nation spoiled rotten with government benefits? I really think, due to the side effects of government debt, that we can win the country back.

I foresee a lot of people becoming disgruntled with Obama’s policies and tactics used to pass his plans into law. A little over 50% of America voted for Obama but I don’t see nearly that many being satisfied with his work. Being a typical Democrat Obama is going to prop up the minority at the expense of the majority. Obama is also ready to reward people who don’t pay their mortgages and people who are responsible and pay theirs will not be too happy about it. The nation will soon become one that rewards failure. We have already seen that with the bank and private industry bailouts and I expect to see much more in the near future.

We Need a Voice

For the movement to regain it’s respect around the country it must have honorable individuals speaking for us. Huckabee was my main choice because of his uncanny ability to speak to almost any demographic. Huckabee stands out as a politician, he’s a happy-go-lucky individual that prides himself on vertical politics as he calls it. Many people may be miffed to hear me say he is a respectable voice for the movement and I understand why. Huckabee has had issues with illegal immigration and taxes. He has made much ground with me by supporting the Fair Tax, a plan so conservative most Republicans don’t even support it.

Aside from Huckabee there has to be more leadership from individuals like Jindal, Palin and Romney. These three people are most likely to run in 2012 and most likely to be on top. These individuals need to be out front and center long before the presidential race begins. We can’t rely on them having only a few months to pitch their plan to America. This time around the GOP nominee needs to be clear and to the point about what they will do. No more dancing on pins and needles like McCain did. Speak to the core, forget the moderates, conservatism attracks everyone if it’s following precisely enough.

We Need a Plan

McCain’s problem was that he couldn’t stand still long enough to clearly explain his plan for America. While Obama stuck to his plan the entire time McCain couldn’t make up his mind. He suspended his campaign late in the game to support the bailout? At the last debate he brought up a sudden plan to buy bad mortgages? These were some of the reasons people couldn’t allow themselves to vote for McCain. Add that on top of his inability to energize his own party and you have the epic failure that was his campaign.

We can’t be vague this time around. People want answers and they want to know them in the clearest manner possible. Obama ran an almost Reaganesque campaign, constantly speaking about middle class tax cuts. Obama was talking about cutting taxes and McCain was talking about Obama raising taxes. No one had a clear idea what McCain was going to do with taxes or anything else. There has to be a clear message sent out about what we will do on issue A-Z. We can’t attack the Democrats and ramble on about their spending habits anymore. Talk about our spending cuts, talk about our tax cuts; if the person plans to actually do that.

We Need Integrity

This is very important. I don’t want to see any compassionate conservatives running for President in 2012. I’ll see it anyway, I just hope the majority decides to stick to the constitution and conservative principles before their need to act out of compassion. No more neoconservatives, we need presidential candidates that speak to the core of the conservative movement without liberal tenancies. I understand there are no perfect conservatives, some of the people I list as important don’t fit the bill that well. Please recognize the difference between influential politicians and presidential hopefuls. There are plenty of politicians that can help the movement by being around and being a leader. The individual that runs for president does need to be as conservative as possible, and in that mold, Huckabee would not work for me.

The American people fell for Obama because he is eloquent and speaks to those that have been struggling to find a way out of the rut. Now that Obama is in power it’s clear that he lacks integrity. I don’t want someone that is going to talk pretty and forget about his promises as soon as he’s elected. I don’t want another President Bush, someone that used to be conservative until something convinced him to throw away our personal freedoms and free market. We need integrous people who aren’t the typical politician. Someone that we all can really put our trust in. I guess that’s almost too much to ask for.

We Need Unity

The last important factor that will lead to a revival is also the most important; unity. We cannot expect to make a comeback if we do not bound together. I often find myself disagreeing with other conservatives, that’s just who I am, but I will always come together for the right cause. I understand that no politician is perfect. I will unite around anyone who is at least integrous and 80% conservative enough for me. You may read one article of mine and disagree only to read another and cheer me on. We’re all different, we really can’t expect each other to agree all of the time. Reagan said that a “person who agrees with you 80 percent of the time is a friend and an ally – not a 20 percent traitor” and I happen to abide by that premise.

We must all find a way to unite with those we sometimes disagree but typically agree with. If we can swallow our dislike for McCain and vote for the good of our country there is no reason we can’t all get behind a Sarah Palin or Bobby Jindal even if we have some key disagreements. We must have tough standards, we should never allow the RINOs to take over again, we should be able to find a middle ground with most conservatives though. I have good feelings about the movements future. So many people are debating what a real conservative is and that is a good thing. Once we all decide what we think a real conservative is lets do our best to unite for the cause. After all, we can’t win this with three separate groups of conservative movements. Only as one can we conquer liberalism.

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What the Election Taught Me
By Patrick Britton

Enough time has passed since the dust settled after the Presidential elections for me to ponder the crazy events that unfolded. It seems like it was just yesterday that the primary races were only getting started. The interesting note for me is that I started blogging around that same time. A lot has happened to me in that short period of time. I’ve become a better writer, a much more rounded conservative and someone who really has a handle on what he believes. If you were to ask me the one thing you could do to improve your ability to argue for your beliefs it would be to start a blog. It teaches you a lot about your beliefs and yourself all together.

This March will mark my 2nd year anniversary of blogging. It all started as a way for me to express my thoughts on politics and life. Two years is a long time when you are constantly analyzing the issues and questioning what you believe. Along the way I have learned my perception of conservatism was wrong and have changed my view on a couple issues. One thing did not change and that is my passion for politics. I can guarantee that I will always be 100% real, no one will ever speak for me and you can count on my honest to God opinion on everything I discuss. You are bound to find several articles that disagree with each another. That is not because I can’t make up my mind. You are literally witnessing my political ideology develop over time.

This last election helped develop my stance more than any other time in my life. Maybe it was the seriousness of the contest or my constant comparison of the politician’s stances on the issues to my own; whatever the case may be it taught me who I am. Most people turn on the news, maybe listen to a radio show but not me. I was on the ball at all times, analyzing, reading and watching what the candidates were saying. I burned myself out by writing so many articles and got to the point I was writing three articles everyday. That would take a toll on anyone and it also taught me to take a break once and awhile. Even a political news junkie like myself can have a little too much information.

The biggest realization that I have come to is that the conservative movement is off track. For the longest time I had it set in my mind what a conservative was supposed to be. Conservatism in popular culture has started to look a lot like liberalism. It’s about forcing others to abide by your beliefs. That’s not how I see conservatism. I hold my core beliefs dear to my heart, so does everyone else, conservatism says to let each of us have those ideals and to be free to live according to them. Life must always be protected, that is why abortion is a fundamental problem in this country and something our founding fathers would never approve of. Government shouldn’t be spending our money, we should. Taxes should not be overbearing and our pay checks should be ours; all of it.

The political game is a tough one. The politicians willing to stand firm on something no matter what their party says is bound to lose. Too conservative, not conservative enough, too liberal; no one is themselves enough. I want to hear more about the issues and less about your loyalty to your party. If none of the politicians had a party affiliation it would force people to actually pay attention to what they say and how they vote. Instead of picking up your parties platform and reading it verbatim why not try having some ideas of your own. The liberal and the conservative, that’s what we have to chose from. I want the lower-taxes, less-spending, more freedom guy. I’ve learned that neither party seems to offer that person anymore.

What I have learned this past election was what I really believe and how important my beliefs are to me. I don’t expect you to agree with me all of the time, hell, debate and productive conversations are the only reason my opinions have developed. We should have a healthy dose of uncertainty about how we feel. Some have called me close minded and I think they couldn’t be further from the truth. I take on topics head first and come to my conclusion as I learn all there is to be known. Once I have taken a stance I reexamine it and make any necessary changes. I do this all the time, I’m still young, I have plenty of time to figure out how I feel. I think that’s a trait we all should have; the willingness to realize we are more than likely wrong.

I’ve had a lot of fun complaining on my blog. It gives me something to look forward to everyday. I sit down and think until I figure out something to write about, blurt out the first thing that comes to my mind and come back to see what others think about it. It’s not about money, I don’t make much on here, I do it for the love of the game. The passion my fellow conservatives and liberals throw into their movement is inspiring. I may not agree with you but I sure do enjoy the conservations. Never write me off because you think I’m a stuffy old conservative. It’s no fun that way, it’s much better to have someone to disagree with. How much fun would it be if we all felt the same way? We’d all be friends but sometimes opposition is much more entertaining.

Maybe this is why the blog has continued to grow. Maybe there are other people out there fed up with the system. You may have been fooled by the talking heads about conservatism. You were told for the past eight years that more spending and more government is conservative. It’s not! Don’t get made at me because you’re idea of conservatism isn’t the same as mine. I admit that I carry some libertarian views but don’t go off thinking I am confused about what conservatism is. I don’t want to redefine conservatism, I just think your definition is wrong. You may find yourself agreeing with me half the time and the other half not. That’s ok, you’re allowed to be wrong we can still be friends. In all seriousness though I want you to disagree with me. Let’s go, discuss the issues, it’s what makes America great.

What have you learned during this past election? Has it changed your idea of what conservatism is? I’d love to hear from you.

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Why’d TARP Fail So Miserably?
By Jacob Cohen-Donnelly

When looking at the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), it was believed that this plan was going to save the banks and, simultaneously, pump a continuous flow of capital to try and boost lending. Without the money, it was suggested, companies were unable to run and were therefore forced to lay people off. When TARP was passed, up to $700 billion could be used to either insure or outright purchase dangerous assets from banks that had, for the lack of better words, gambled with their money. So, in other words, the government was going to take tax payer dollars and give it to banks because the banks were unable to manage their own money.

Where, though, did the government go wrong? When looking at where the money was allocated, people would think that the banks would be opening up their funds and starting to lend once again. The problem came with how the money was handed out.

When the money was dished out, it was given to bank holding companies. Rather than bailing out the actual bank and purchasing the assets, the government gave money to these holding companies and almost expected them to take that money and put it in the bank. In other words, rather than giving the money to the exact problem, they gave the money to a company and said, “finance your failing business.”

So, as people can imagine, instead of that money trickling down and hitting the banks, instead, that money went to other profitable things for the holding companies. Because they are holding companies, they own other assets as well and do other business. It’s common sense to any business man: take the money and put it where it is going to make the most money. If these banks are really not profitable for the bank holding company, why finance them?

One number stated that of the $90 billion that the four big holding companies – JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, and Bank of America – received, by the end of 2008, only $15 billion of that has been sent down to their banks. It’s no wonder that the banks have actually been forced to cut back on their lending rather than up the lending.

It’s suggested that the primary way to fix the economic problem is to unfreeze lending. This makes sense and might be the best route; however, for it to work, the banks need the money. If President Obama wants to give more money to the banks, stop giving it to the holding company, hoping they’ll give it to their banks, and instead, buy directly from the bank. Get their preferred stock and that way, they can start to lend again.

Who is to be held accountable for this issue? It’s tough to really decide. One thing is for certain, though, and that’s the fact that the money was thrown at the problem irresponsibly. To fix this, any future money that is given to the banks should be given to the banks and not their holding companies. The government figured that out when they wrote checks to the car industry. They gave it to the car companies and no one else. That’s the way to bail out a company. Give it to the problem, not to the overseer of the problem.

In a nation of lending and credit, the banks need to begin lending again for the economy to start going up again. With all the other economic moves happening, perhaps some economic security will come. The real question to ask, though, is: will it be actual security or just an illusion?

Jacob is co-founder of Political Commentary One topic he is interested in is how the bank bail out failed

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