Do Democrats Really Believe Their Own Bunkum?

Some articles that really shine light on the hypocrisy of the national Democratic machine.

For those who think capitalists are dirty, profit seeking junkies that are detrimental to those who don't have look where public employees are putting their pension money to create wealth.


Public Pensions Increase Private-Equity Investments

Large public pension plans are pouring more money into private-equity funds, deepening ties between government workers and an industry currently under the harsh glare of U.S. presidential politics.

Big public-employee pensions had about $220 billion invested in private equity in September, or 11% of their assets, according to Wilshire Trust Universe Comparison Service, which tracks the holdings of pensions, foundations and endowments.


AFSCME blasts Romney About Bain Past

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, or Afscme, one of the nation’s biggest public-workers unions, has members with billions of dollars invested in about 150 pension funds, some of which is invested in private-equity funds, WSJ reports Thursday.

That wouldn’t be that surprising, given the union’s pension fund is meant to make its members money, and PE firms can do pretty well in that whole money making job.

But, the WSJ story is about the fact that Afscme and other pension funds for public workers have made quite a lot of noise about Mitt Romney’s work at private-equity giant Bain Capital.



They emulate what they blast Romney for.  Romney shouldn't duck questions about his wealth.  He should remind the American people how successful he is and that is what we need as a President.  Last election the majority put an amateur in there and look what we got.

Look at unemployment during the Bush years and Obama's term.

You will see this chart chopped for those who want to skew the data. 

Putting the Numbers into Perspective

President Bush’s overall record continues to look far better than President Obama’s to date. Over President Bush’s presidency, the private sector created a net 141,000 jobs. Surprisingly, this number includes the 3.78 million private sector jobs lost in 2008.  In contrast, under President Obama’s administration, the private sector has still lost a net 2.91 million private sector jobs. If I blame Bush and Clinton for the January 2009 and January 2001 numbers, respectively, the private sector would still have lost 2.07 million private sector jobs under the Obama administration.

Sending Jobs Overseas To Cure Our Recession?

If you have been following Fisker Automotive and Vice President Joe Biden you would know this is his "darling" he enveloped with open arms. Fisker secured a $529 million dollar loan guarantee for its startup electric car company from the Department of Energy.

A venture capital firm financing Fisker includes former Vice President Al Gore. Oh, the price of the car, $97,000.00.for its luxury version and $57,000.00 for the mass produced vehicle. Now that's a price we all can afford. Remember, Barack Obama put a Car Czar in charge of Government Motors and the electric car,Volt, will only set us back $41,000.00. Yet, the Democrats call the Republicans "rich". What a laugh.

ABC news is reporting that Fisker created 500 manufacturing jobs in Finland to produce the car. You can read the story here.

Henrik Fisker said the U.S. money has been spent on engineering and design work that stayed in the U.S., not on the 500 manufacturing jobs that went to a rural Finnish firm, Valmet Automotive.

An investigation by ABC News and the Center for Public Integrity's iWatch News found that the DOE's bet carries risks for taxpayers, has raised concern among industry observers and government auditors, and adds to questions about the way billions of dollars in loans for smart cars and green energy companies have been awarded. Fisker is more than a year behind rolling out its $97,000 luxury vehicle bankrolled in part with DOE money. While more are promised soon, just 40 of its Karma cars (below) have been manufactured and only two delivered to customers' driveways, including one to movie star Leonardo DiCaprio. Tesla's SEC filings reveal the start-up has lost money every quarter. And while its federal funding is intended to help it mass produce a new $57,400 Model S sedan, the company has no experience in a project so vast.

What's that Democrats..ahhh...it's George Bush's fault, right. Leonardo DiCaprio??

Obama Doesn't Understand Debt Period

The debt crisis held the country's attention. Republicans in Washington worked on the underlying problem of too much government spending(yes, Gort too much spending, not spending alone) during the negotiations while Obamacrats wanted tax increases aka MORE government spending.

This spendthrift President threw billions at the economy and look where it is today. But that action wasn't enough to ruin the United States.

On Tuesday last week he continued the train wreck by catapulting our debt to new heights. In one day we went from $14.294 trillion to $14.532 trillion adding $239 billion. (and I guess that was George Bush's fault again). Obama, in one day, used up 60% of the debt ceiling increase You can read all about it in this Washington Times article.

The previous one-day record debt increase was $186 billion, set on June 30, 2009. Imagine that, another Obama record.

Standard and Poors for the first time in history announced a downgrade of our credit according to this ABC NEWS article.

For the first time ever, the United States lost its perfect credit rating as Standard & Poor's reduced its U.S. long-term debt assessment from AAA to AA+ with a negative outlook.

In announcing the move late Friday, the ratings agency said a deal this week to reduce the nation's debt did not go far enough and exposed paralyzing political dysfunction.

The downgrade could cost the government and ordinary consumers billions of dollars by jacking up interest rates the U.S. must pay on its $14.4 trillion debt and a host of rates consumers pay for items such as mortgages, car loans and credit cards.

The move by S&P follows decisions by two other major ratings agencies, Moody's Investor Service and Fitch Ratings, to maintain the United States' AAA rating, though Moody's assigned a negative outlook.

When will this President and the Democrats get it. Enough is enough. Excessive government spending is not a Tea Party issue. It is a crisis for all Americans.

Barack Obama was ill prepared for this job but more importantly so are those who surround him it seems.

A New Direction For Our Educational System

Last Wednesday Angela Couloumbis of the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote an article about Governor-elect Tom Corbett's transition team. It is comprised of 17 committees charged to examine every state department, help formulate policy, choose key personnel, and recommend ways to cut costs.

"It's a wide spectrum of people," he added, including many who helped or worked for former Govs. Tom Ridge and Dick Thornburgh, as well as people who worked with Corbett years ago when he was in private practice as a lawyer.

Among them: Alan Novak, former chairman of the Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania, who is a member of the committee advising on agricultural issues; John Hohenwarter, Pennsylvania's lobbyist for the National Rifle Association, who is a member of the group advising on energy and the environment; and David Hess and Brad Mallory, both former cabinet members in the Ridge administration.

In choosing the group that will advise him on education, Corbett included several staunch charter school advocates. They include Vahan Gureghian, a Gladwyne lawyer who operates the state's largest charter school, Chester Community Charter School in Chester.

Gureghian contributed $250,000 to Corbett's campaign and donated heavily to other Republican campaign funds as well, state records show. Gureghian was also named to cochair Corbett's working group on transportation and infrastructure.

Also on Corbett's education committee: State Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams, the Philadelphia Democrat who is one of the most vocal proponents in the legislature for charter schools and school choice, and David Pollard and Joel Greenberg, both with Susquehanna International Group.

Susquehanna International's executives - Greenberg among them - gave an astonishing $5 million to Williams' unsuccessful campaign for governor in this year's primary because they liked his stance on school choice, particularly his support for the use of publicly funded vouchers to enable more families to pay for private education.

"When I look at the list of people he's chosen for education, no one jumps out who is an advocate for traditional K-12 education," said Lawrence A. Feinberg, a Haverford Township school board member and cochair of the Keystone State Education Coalition, which advocates for public education.

It looks like Corbett is going the path of Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey. Look at this report from CBS of New York- Christie Announces Sweeping N.J. Education Reform.

Determined to turn New Jersey’s education system on its head, Gov. Chris Christie on Tuesday unveiled a tough-love reform package that will make classroom achievement — not seniority or tenure — the basis for pay hikes and career advancement in Garden State public schools.

Christie is turning his take-no-prisoner’s style to the classroom, demanding a top to bottom overhaul of how New Jersey students learn and teachers teach. And that means undoing tenure, seniority and other union work rules.

“We cannot wait. Your children are sitting in these classrooms today. We cannot wait to make it better,” Christie told CBS 2’s Marcia Kramer.

The Pennsylvania State Education Association has this statement on its website.

Each year, federal and state legislation and policy, and our elections process directly impact the work and lives of PSEA members. Year after year the PSEA advocates more money for education, not to impact outcomes to students, but to increase the pay and benefit package for its members. The current pension crisis facing Pennsylvania is in part due to a 25% increase to teachers that accompanied the 50% increase to legislators.

The PSEA lobbies intensively for its own position and benefit.

PSEA's Political Action Committee for Education (PSEA-PACE) supports pro-public education candidates in state and local elections. No PSEA member dues dollars support PACE.

PACE is a nonpartisan organization, funded by voluntary member contributions. PACE-recommended candidates are chosen by PSEA/PACE members, based on their positions and records on education, labor, and health care issues. Countless decisions made by elected officials affect your career. Contributions to PACE will make sure your voice is heard and help you to deliver the power of a great education in Pennsylvania.

Governor-elect Tom Corbett appears he has chosen the track to put students first.

In the Mounds View School District half days were eliminated from the calendar this year. In the Hazleton Area School District when AYP has been dismall half days were promoted as a way to improve educational objectives according to Superintendent Sam Marolo.

Students shouldn't have to take remedial classes when they enter college or need to change their major three or four times because they don't have a focused goal leaving high school, he said.

And teachers need more professional development, an area that has been lacking, Marolo said. Two half-day in-service sessions, which some parents may see as inconvenient, will allow the district to bring administrators and teachers onto the same page.

This issue demonstrates the validity of this article by David Kaplan of Fortune Magazine- One Size Can't Teach All. He opines on the merits of "No Child Left Behind"(NCLB) and Race to the Top, two initiatives on a federal level designed to improve education. It is no secret No Child Left Behind has failed miserably as a national policy.

If U.S. students were doing fundamentally better, we could dispense with a debate over Washington's proper place in education. But overall performance isn't improving, and "reform" has yielded unintended consequences. Some boosts in superficial "competence" are merely the product of lowered bars. "NCLB encourages cheating and gaming the system," says education historian Diane Ravitch. There's also much evidence that teachers "teach to the test" and thereby discount wide swaths of other curriculum like literature and history and music. Even if schools were confident enough to ignore test preparation and to assume good scores would take care of themselves, tests still take time to administer, correct, and report. Moreover, the obsession with quantifiable standards of both proficiency and progress fails to distinguish the different needs of schools in, say, poor urban areas from those in affluent suburbs.

Why, then, do we mindlessly continue to buy into a centralized approach? It makes sense that we have, for example, OSHA and FDA standards -- workplace safety and pharmaceutical efficacy are susceptible to easy measurement. Citizens of Maine and Montana ought to get identical protections. The same goes for national regulation of airspace, railroads, securities, mail, weather reports, and hamburgers. But public policy on education seems a classic instance in which local control is best. Apart from constitutional issues like desegregation, that means allowing states and communities to experiment with curriculum, assessment, and tenure. Indeed, the charter-school movement -- deified in Waiting for "Superman" -- is a splendid illustration of decentralization and experimentation.

Bureaucrats in Washington aren't stupid and they mean well, but they'd really have to be superheroes to design one-size-fits-all standards. After a decade of time lost and billions spent, the better course would be to pull back from the top-down. That would be the real revolution.

This Newsweek article says it all- Why We Must Fire Bad Teachers.
We, as parents, have to insist on a stoppage to the assembly line mentality of pushing children through school to graduation. It is incumbent upon our federal legislators to get out of the way and allow local strategies develop the game plan needed to put our students back on track with quality education eliminating the tolerance for low expectations.

When the PSEA gets behind a mission to improve education rather than benefits for its members Pennsylvania will see real progress in educational objectives. Why do teachers need tenure when they are unionized and have a grievance procedure? Why do parents feel helpless in suing a teacher because the union protects teachers with legal representation that many parents can't afford to fight?

The union must embrace teacher accountability by insisting on measuring teacher performance. If the union helps toward eliminating weak teachers from the system leading to better educational outcomes the hard working professionals insisting on strong academic records will be rewarded with more social prestige and higher salaries.

Obamanation Spending

So much for blaming Bush for the money spent on the Iraq War. It gets tiring to hear the same old whining. Bush is gone. Obama is in the present. Here is a story from the New York Post.


It was an $800 billion misadventure that will be wreaking havoc on the economy for years to come.

No, not the war in Iraq, where an American combat-troop presence officially comes to an end tomorrow.

We're talking about President Obama's economic-stimulus program.

Remember the stimulus? The miracle cure Obama said would boost the economy and save millions of jobs?

Well, the president's panacea turned out to be an $862 billion bottle of snake oil -- and it cost $100 billion more than the entire Iraq campaign to date.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the total Iraq tab comes to $709 billion this month, a costly engagement in terms of treasure.

But as Randall Hoven points out on the American Thinker Web site and in the nearby chart, the war made up just 3.2 percent of federal spending while the fight raged. Leave it to the feds to make $700 billion look like a drop in the ocean.

And it accounts for less than 15 percent of the overall deficit since it began in 2003.

In fact, the war is to blame for a majority of the deficit only in 2007, when the US launched its surge, a brilliant success that changed the war. (If only all federal spending were as effective.)

Meanwhile, despite assurances that the stimulus would be "timely, targeted and temporary," Americans will be paying for some of it well into 2019.

Even with that vast, taxpayer-funded infusion, the economy remains stagnant, with unemployment pushing hard against 10 percent.

As Bush adviser Lawrence Lindsey wrote, "the actual performance of the economy is almost exactly what [Obama White House advisers] said would happen if we had done nothing."

But the beat goes on, and some of the more popular stimulus programs look likely to be made permanent -- in which case, the "temporary" fix could end up costing more than $3.2 trillion.

That's big bucks.

We want to know: Where's the bang?

Mitchell Wrong On Barletta Position Regading Social Security

In the 2008 race between Lou Barletta and Paul Kanjorski I wrote a post covering the misleading information that was coming from the Kanjorski camp about social security and privatization.

In today's Times Leader Bill O'Boyle's article points out that Mitchell and Kanjorski are bringing up that dead horse again.

The Lou Barletta campaign says U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski is once again lying about Barletta’s stance on Social Security, despite being caught doing so by an independent fact-checking organization two years ago.

Ed Mitchell, spokesman for the Kanjorski campaign, said the FactCheck report dealt with the 2008 campaign and not 2002.

“The real fact is in 2002 Lou Barletta came out for personal savings accounts, which is a privatization of Social Security,” Mitchell said. “He endorsed George Bush and ran on the GOP platform that supported privatization of Social Security. He held this position for six years until on May 27, 2008, he flip-flopped because he was getting so much political heat.

Here is the Lou Barletta For Congress political commercial from 2002 on the subject. It is found on the Libary of Congress website and now on Youtube. If you click on the Library of Congress link, click on Otober 28 then click on "Click to Enter Site" then click on "Have you seen the Barletta television commericals Click Here. Click on the one "I signed a pledge in a roomful of senior citizens that said I would not privatize Social Security."

This is the REAL FACT Mr. Mitchell.

Kanjorski's Pothole

In a sign that incumbents like Paul Kanjorski face a daunting challenge to retain their seats in Congress a new ABCNews/Wahsington Post poll out more than suggests the frustration Americans have with their elected officials.

A year and a half into his presidency, 51 percent in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll would rather have the Republicans run Congress "to act as a check on Obama's policies," vs. 43 percent who want the Democrats in charge to help support those policies. That's accompanied by a 7-point, one-month drop in approval of Obama's handling of the economy, to a career low.

While Democrats are most at risk, the danger's not theirs alone. Registered voters by 62-26 percent are inclined to look around for someone new for Congress rather than to re-elect their current representative – the broadest anti-incumbency on record in ABC/Post polls since 1989. Backing for incumbents has lost 11 points since February, an unusually steep decline. There are other signs of raging discontent: ABC's Frustration Index remains well in the red zone, at 67 on its scale of 0 to 100, right where it's been all year. It's reached higher just twice, likewise in times of deep economic trouble – in fall 2008, 80; and in 1992, 73.

If the question has been when Obama owns the economy , it looks to be now – not at a happy time, given 9.5 percent unemployment. He'd made slight progress on this key issue, inching ahead from 45 percent approval on the economy in March to 50 percent in June. That's now gone, down 7 points in this poll to 43 percent, with 54 percent disapproving, a new high. And "strong" disapprovers outnumber strong approvers by a record 41 percent vs. 20 percent.

Saying the economy's getting better, moreover, may not help Obama and the Democrats, and indeed could hurt. Just 27 percent in this poll see it improving, not significantly different from 30 percent last month, and surely not on the way up. Claiming the economy was advancing when most Americans didn't see it was the precisely the pothole that swallowed George H.W. Bush in his unsuccessful re-election bid in 1992.

"We are helluva alot better off as a country and as an economy than we have ever been in the history of mankind"- Congressman Paul Kanjorski

So What Is Barack Obama's Excuse For BP Oil Spill?

Kanye West said "George Bush doesn't about black people" in response to Hurricane Katrina and Louisiana. Where is the outrage for Barack Obama's lack of attention in the BP Oil Spill?

Bush's response.



It's easy to go to the basement and call someone a racist or bigot. Rarely does someone truly earn that title in the manner George Wallace did.

I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny . . . and I say . . . segregation today . . . segregation tomorrow . . . segregation forever.

Is there something lost in today's immigration battle where people call it racism and bigotry when people in office want to enforce the immigration rules? Nowhere in today's debate is the topic of segregation even mentioned.

Nancy Pelosi And Paul Kanjorski- Where Are The Jobs?

Back in August, 2003 Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi wrote this press release about the jobless rate which remains on her site.

Washington, D.C. -- House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on the Bureau of Labor Statistics' announcement that 470,000 people abandoned their job searches in July and that 3.2 million private sector jobs have been lost since President Bush took office:

“The fact is that President Bush’s misguided economic policies have failed to create jobs. Since President Bush took office, the country has lost 3.2 million jobs, the worst record since President Hoover. And today we learned that in July nearly half a million people gave up looking for a job.

“Job losses are taking a real toll on the financial security of American families. While Democrats are fighting for opportunity, jobs, and economic security for working families, Republicans continue to focus on helping those who need help the least.

“According to today’s survey, while the national unemployment rate dropped slightly, it still stands at a near record high. In addition, the unemployment rate for African Americans was still over 11 percent in July, and the unemployment rate for Hispanics was 8.2 percent in July.

“It is time for President Bush and the Republicans to get to work for all Americans, not just the elite few.”

Here are the statistics for April, 2010 from the United States Department of Labor.

In April, the number of unemployed persons was 15.3 million, and the unemployment rate edged up to 9.9 percent. The rate had been 9.7 percent for the first 3 months of this year.

Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for whites (9.0 percent) edged up in April, while the rates for adult men (10.1 percent), adult women (8.2 percent), teenagers (25.4 percent), blacks (16.5 percent), and Hispanics (12.5 percent) showed little or no change.

Where is the public outcry from Nancy Pelosi and Paul Kanjorski for THEIR President to take action? Hypocrisy is not the word for Nancy and Paul. Obama's failed policies have failed to create jobs.  More information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) continued to trend up over the month, reaching 6.7 million. In April, 45.9 percent of unemployed persons had been jobless for 27 weeks or more.

Long term jobless is over double the jobs claimed to have been lost by Bush in 2003 yet the Pelosi/Kanjorski team, and particularly Paul wants to make the claim the Democrats saved the economy from collapse. Please stop, we can't take much more of your saving! Our college graduates will be the next great big default if job creation doesn't occur soon. Maybe that is the real reason Obama took over the federal student loan system.

Carney In The 10th- Marino Is A Huge Challenge

In a district that is pro-Republican Chris Carney has enjoyed the incumbency of his office in a surreptitious way. He is flying under the radar hoping not to be noticed that he is out of place in the grand scheme of voter sentiment.

Here's how his bio starts in Wikipedia. Christopher P. "Chris" Carney (born March 2, 1959) is an American politician and member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Pennsylvania's 10th congressional district. One would think that his military career would supercede the words "American politician". Carney is also an associate professor of political science at Penn State Worthington Scranton, where he has taught since 1992. Again, secondary to "American politician" first.

In today's political climate marked by the ouster of Arlen Specter one would believe the last thing you would want to promote is being a "politician". Even Congressman sounds better than politician.

In this Times Leader article by Andrew Seder political observers explore whether Chris Carney will have a rough fall campaign against Republilcan Tom Marino.

“Marino has a record of public service, he has name recognition, he has big name Republican support, and he will take better advantage of this targeted district in this tough atmosphere for Democratic incumbents.”

Listening to Tom Marino on WILK he sounds like a very respectable and likeable candidate. His association with Louis DeNaples has been a terse topic but in the end, knowing Northeastern Pennsylvania, it is more about jealousy than substance. How many people associated with Michael Conahan and Mark Ciavarella? How many people associated with Michael Veon? Ask Tom Leighton about his association with Bill Brace.

The "D-sucking at the nipple-triple CCC" took no time in launching salvos at Marino. Lest they forget that Carney as the author of that famous Feith-Carney memo George Bush used as information, well he was provided misinformation, to get us into Iraq. It is rarely talked about and I believe the biased media wants it that way.

Carney's ability to raise money will be a nemesis for Marino. However, no amount of money and support can divide voter sentiment otherwise Arlen Specter would have been a victor.

Obama and the Wars

August was the deadliest month in Afghanistan for our U.S. military people since the start of the invasion. Where are the George Bush haters today? Soldiers are dying in Iraq and Afghanistan but you don't hear the daily bashing of Obama that occured during Bush's term. Kevin Lynn, where are you today. Afraid to speak out for fear you might seem right? (pun intended)

Obama's First 100 Days!!

According to ABCnews.go.com Barack Obama has the best job approval ratings in 20 years. He has half the country thinking he is headed in the right direction. The problem is that the other half, that by the way didn't vote for him, don't believe in his direction.

If you have hope I don't want to be the grim reaper but sit back and think about it. The government has throw BILLIONS at a problem with more money needed. Althought the residential real estate debacle has surfaced the commercial real estate catastrophe has yet to make it to night time news in a significant way. Folks, it is coming. We are seeing a false economy propped up by government money. No wonder everyone thinks Obama is doing well. I will give you billions. See how your economy fairs out.

I spent this evening with a member of the Blackwater Group. He has been a friend for about five years. May 7th they are done in Iraq. We talked about the media and its reporting of the interrogation techniques used by the United States. ABCnews also has a piece about a former Bush administration official who was against the techniques used on Gitmo detainees. Does anyone remember Nick Berg or U.S. reporter Daniel Pearl?? Nick Berg was an American citizen not associated with any military contract unlike my friend. He was murdered while it was being videotaped. He was executed by decapitation while fully alive. I posted his picture to remind everyone about the atroicity a live killing must feel everytime the media talks about Gitmo detainees who are still alive.

If you want to see torture read this article by ABCnews about the involvement of Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al Nahyan, brother of the United Arab Emirates crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed.

The government statement said its review found "all rules, policies and procedures were followed correctly by the Police Department."

When you deal with animals you must treat them according to the rules they live by. Lions show no mercy. Alligators show no mercy. Sharks show no mercy. Getting beaten with a board with exposed nails, having sand shoved in your mouth while a police officer holds you down, having salt poured into your wounds, having an electric cattle prod used against your testicles. And the liberals are worried about waterboarding.. Pleeaasseee...

Read Tony Phyrilla's column about Obama's 100 mistakes in 100 Days..

Bill Clinton- Videotapes Refute Your Statements

Typical Democratic BiPositionionship from Bill "I didn't have sex with that woman" Clinton.

Former President Bill Clinton gives President Barack Obama an "A" grade for his first month in office, but tells ABC News that Obama needs to put on a more positive face when speaking to the American people about the economy and must keep pressure on Republicans who try to obstruct his plans.

Regarding Obama's bleak warnings that "the economy could get worse before it gets better," and that the economic stimulus program is only the beginning of the end of the economic crisis, Clinton said, "I like the fact that he didn't come in and give us a bunch of happy talk. I'm glad he shot straight with us."

Clinton gives former President George W. Bush a harsh review on the economy, however, blaming the Republican for the current fiscal crisis by not moving sooner to help struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure.

"I personally believe, based on my experience over the years with the economy, that if we moved aggressively on this home problem a year and a half ago, even a year ago, as much as 90 percent of the current crisis could have been avoided," he said.

On really Bill. Sit back and watch the video. News reports detailing the actions by both former president Clinton and current president Obama, and how they lead to the current financial collapse America is facing. The second half of the video is especially interesting, as it contains footage of interviews with Obama in which he details how important it is to force banks into making bad loans.

"But aggresively to take a great risk on these mortgages, yes...They would have not qualified but for this affirmitive action on the part of the bank, yes."

Tea Party Part III- To Pay Or Not To Pay by Sitafa Harden

Here is a paraphrase on an original article that appeared on OpEdNews.com.

To Pay or Not To Pay (My Mortgage): An "Untroubled" Homeowner's Hardship Letter

by Sitafa Harden


Dear Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner:

I understand that you’ve been busy coming up with proposals to help borrowers facing foreclosure save their homes. But what about me?

I’ve never missed a mortgage payment, but I am certainly a troubled homeowner. I’m troubled because, like most of my neighbors, I currently owe much more on my house than it is worth.

It seems almost irresponsible to me to continue paying on a home that is losing value faster than former President Bush‘s approval ratings. And the 7-year hit to my credit for a mortgage default would be like a gift compared the 10-15 years of payments I’d have to make just to get back the equity I had on the first day I purchased my home.

Basically, there is virtually no reason for me not to simply mail my house keys back to the bank, pack up my cat, and flee to the solace of the nearest luxury apartment community.

In fact, a part of me wants to do just that, but I’m hanging in there for a couple of reasons.

First, because I believe that stable homeowners are one of the last strongholds of this economy preventing us from slipping into a downturn much worse than the Great Depression.

And, secondly, because I have faith that the new administration will come up with an equitable solution to this crises…eventually.

Let me repeat. I have faith in the administration. So please don’t let me down.

My cat and I are depending on you.

George Bush You Aren't Done Until January 20th

As I watch television or read reports both on the net and in print I am stymied by the ineffective path George Bush is choosing to define his lameduck period. On this point I will agree with PEOB, Mr. President we have a crisis of historic proportions. It cannot wait until January 20,2009. It needs action and it needs it now. The thought processes to construct an effective plan need to be in place. If it means letting the PEBO team assume office before you leave then sobeit.

Please don't misconstrue this post to me I favor blind bailouts. I was calling the original plan a failout and still do. Everyone including Paul Kanjorski acted in haste to make the money available. Now it sits there like an able and willing player occupying the bench dying for the coach to put him in.

The auto industry was sent a strong message. Come back with a plan. Labor and management should be burning the midnight oils to author that document.

In 1990 and 1991 the Congress and the Senate took a $27,000 pay raise representing a 29.5% increase. Their raise was $4,100.00 this year. I believe the House and Senate can set an example by forgoing their raises this coming year as a symbolic joining with any union and management givebacks that will be necessary. With a shrinking economy there are going to be sacrifices all around, not just in the industries who are seeking help from the government. It is time to lead by example.

PEBO Back Peddling On Bush's Tax Cuts

PEBO(President-elect Barack Obama) and Company have sent signals that the Bush tax cuts which were part of his election theme will expire in 2011, the exact time George Bush said they would. In a previous piece I talked about the wealth among the Democrats in the House and the Senate. I knew he would never be able to deliver on that promise.

It is reported on ABCNews.go.com. "But, the adviser says, the overall debate is NOT about whether President-elect Obama will "restore fairness in our tax code" -- just about "whether it happens in the year after next or the year after that."

Mr. President-Elect, the tax code if printed and stacked would be the height of seven bibles laid one on top of each other. Restore fairness?? You have got to be kidding me. If you truly want to restore fairness repeal every law that was enacted as a special tax treatment for every individual and corporation. If you want to sell the public that taxing the wealthy is restoring fairness you are earning the reputation of being a socialist as discussed in the humanevents.com article.

Let's hear from Michelle on the topic of pie.

George Bush vs. Barack Obama Elections Update

As an update to my post on the slight differences between the Obama election and George Bush's re-election of 2004 I wanted to list the population estimates for each year. In 2004 the population of the U.S. is estimatedto be 293,655,404 . In 2008 the population estimated increase rose to 305,645,134. Almost 12 million people were added to our nation in just 4 years. If you look at George Bush's popular vote figures vs. Barack Obama's most of the difference can be accounted for due to population growth, not a shift in philosophy.

Mark my words. The Democrats are going to push for amnesty as a way to increase their voting base, not because it is right for America. Our increase in healthcare costs, educational costs, etc. can be directly linked to increases in utilization as a result of the 1986 amnesty.

Overstating Barack Obama's Win

2004 Election Results

George W. Bush Republican Home State Texas
Running Mate Dick Cheney
Electoral Vote 286 States Carried 31
Popular vote 62,040,610
Percentage 50.7%

John Kerry Democrat Home State Massachusetts
Running Mate John Edwards
Electoral Vote 251 States Carried 19+DC
Popular Vote 59,028,444
Percentage 48.3%

2008 Election Results

John McCain Republican Home State Arizona
Running Mare Sarah Palin
Electoral Vote 162 States Carried 21
Popluar Vote 58,018,321
Percentage 46.2%

Barack Obama Democrat Home State Illinois
Running Mate Joseph Biden
Electoral Vote 365(Projected) States Carried 28+DC+NE-02
Popluar Vote 66,354,771
Percentage 52.7%

The country is so gleeful over Barack's win but where is the big mandate. Just seems like a flip flop to me. You can view more results on the CNN website or Wikipedia. George Bush carried more states in his win of 2004 than Barack Obama did in 2008. Can't wait for the Euphoria dust to settle.