Monday, November 26, 2007
Friday, November 16, 2007
Breaking down Obama's speech...
Barack Obama gave this speech at the Jefferson-Jackson Day Dinner in Iowa the other night:
This party - the party of Jefferson and Jackson; of Roosevelt and Kennedy - has always made the biggest difference in the lives of the American people when we led, not by polls, but by principle; not by calculation, but by conviction; when we summoned the entire nation to a common purpose - a higher purpose. And I run for the Presidency of the United States of America because that's the party America needs us to be right now.
A party that offers not just a difference in policies, but a difference in leadership.
A party that doesn't just focus on how to win but why we should.
A party that doesn't just offer change as a slogan, but real, meaningful change - change that America can believe in.
That's why I'm in this race. That's why I am running for the Presidency of the United States of America - to offer change that we can believe in.
I am in this race to tell the corporate lobbyists that their days of setting the agenda in Washington are over. I have done more than any other candidate in this race to take on lobbyists - and won. They have not funded my campaign, they will not get a job in my White House, and they will not drown out the voices of the American people when I am President.
I'm in this race to take those tax breaks away from companies that are moving jobs overseas and put them in the pockets of hard working Americans who deserve it. And I won't raise the minimum wage every ten years -I will raise it to keep pace so that workers don't' fall behind.
That is why I am in it. To protect the American worker. To fight for the American worker.
I'm in this race because I want to stop talking about the outrage of 47 million Americans without health care and start actually doing something about it. I expanded health care in Illinois by bringing Democrats and Republicans together. By taking on the insurance industry. And that is how I will make certain that every single American in this country has health care they can count on and I won't do it twenty years from now, I won't do it ten years from now, I will do it by the end of my first term as President of the United States of America.
I run for president to make sure that every American child has the best education that we have to offer- from the day they are born to the day they graduate from college. And I won't just talk about how great teachers are - as President I will reward them for their greatness - by raising salaries and giving them more support. That's why I'm in this race.
I am running for President because I am sick and tired of democrats thinking that the only way to look tough on national security is by talking, and acting, and voting like George Bush Republicans.
When I am this party's nominee, my opponent will not be able to say that I voted for the war in Iraq; or that I gave George Bush the benefit of the doubt on Iran; or that I supported Bush-Cheney policies of not talking to leaders that we don't like. And he will not be able to say that I wavered on something as fundamental as whether or not it is ok for America to torture - because it is never ok. That's why I am in it.
As President, I will end the war in Iraq. We will have our troops home in sixteen months. I will close Guantanamo. I will restore habeas corpus. I will finish the fight against Al Qaeda. And I will lead the world to combat the common threats of the 21st century - nuclear weapons and terrorism; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease. And I will send once more a message to those yearning faces beyond our shores that says, "You matter to us. Your future is our future. And our
moment is now."
America, our moment is now.
Our moment is now.
Let me break this down:
I'm in this race to take those tax breaks away from companies that are moving jobs overseas and put them in the pockets of hard working Americans who deserve it. And I won't raise the minimum wage every ten years -I will raise it to keep pace so that workers don't' fall behind.
So Mr. Obama, you will dip into corporate pockets not once, not twice but possibly on an annual basis in order to keep jobs? Sorry but the math on that doesn't work. I'm not saying that corporate fat cats can't stand to make less of a profit but to assert that you are both going to get rid of tax breaks and make minimum wage a "living wage" and not affect the economies of doing business in America? I call shenanigans on that.
I'm in this race because I want to stop talking about the outrage of 47 million Americans without health care and start actually doing something about it. I expanded health care in Illinois by bringing Democrats and Republicans together. By taking on the insurance industry. And that is how I will make certain that every single American in this country has health care they can count on and I won't do it twenty years from now, I won't do it ten years from now, I will do it by the end of my first term as President of the United States of America.
First of all, insurance for everyone is a laudable goal, however, to promise to have a national health care system in place in four years? With this congress? Please, that is just campaign "feel goods", not real actionable goals. Second, now that you've cut corporate tax breaks, made a "living wage" standard, now you are going to make every company offer health care? Or every company/individual pays a 30% increase taxes in order to fund government run health care? Bye Bye Business!!!
I run for president to make sure that every American child has the best education that we have to offer- from the day they are born to the day they graduate from college. And I won't just talk about how great teachers are - as President I will reward them for their greatness - by raising salaries and giving them more support. That's why I'm in this race.
This one is my favorite. Really. So Obama, you are going to make sure every child has the best education from k-to college? How are you going to pay for that? Is the government going to promise that every child can go to college? What about the fact that not all of our students are eligible for college? Are you going to subsidize grades along with tuition? Fundamentally if we tell every student that he/she should go to college...what happens to trade schools? What about the fact that the majority of jobs in America depend on trade skill type training? Is that sub-par?
As President, I will end the war in Iraq. We will have our troops home in sixteen months. I will close Guantanamo. I will restore habeas corpus. I will finish the fight against Al Qaeda. And I will lead the world to combat the common threats of the 21st century - nuclear weapons and terrorism; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease. And I will send once more a message to those yearning faces beyond our shores that says, "You matter to us. Your future is our future. And our moment is now."
This one begs the question - How? Finish the fight against Al Qaeda? How? Not the GWB and his lot have done the best job, or even the right job but smart people are trying to figure out how to end this war and rid the world of Al Qaeda so unless you have a new idea that pencils out - no more false promises, the American people have had enough of that the last few years.
So in summary, Obama's speech is a good one...it is inspirational but it lacks the substance needed to bring this country back from war and into a new period of prosperity. Obama is a visionary and says the right things, but much like all of the other GWB/Republican detractors they are only good at saying that things are bad, not offering real solutions to turn the ship around.
This party - the party of Jefferson and Jackson; of Roosevelt and Kennedy - has always made the biggest difference in the lives of the American people when we led, not by polls, but by principle; not by calculation, but by conviction; when we summoned the entire nation to a common purpose - a higher purpose. And I run for the Presidency of the United States of America because that's the party America needs us to be right now.
A party that offers not just a difference in policies, but a difference in leadership.
A party that doesn't just focus on how to win but why we should.
A party that doesn't just offer change as a slogan, but real, meaningful change - change that America can believe in.
That's why I'm in this race. That's why I am running for the Presidency of the United States of America - to offer change that we can believe in.
I am in this race to tell the corporate lobbyists that their days of setting the agenda in Washington are over. I have done more than any other candidate in this race to take on lobbyists - and won. They have not funded my campaign, they will not get a job in my White House, and they will not drown out the voices of the American people when I am President.
I'm in this race to take those tax breaks away from companies that are moving jobs overseas and put them in the pockets of hard working Americans who deserve it. And I won't raise the minimum wage every ten years -I will raise it to keep pace so that workers don't' fall behind.
That is why I am in it. To protect the American worker. To fight for the American worker.
I'm in this race because I want to stop talking about the outrage of 47 million Americans without health care and start actually doing something about it. I expanded health care in Illinois by bringing Democrats and Republicans together. By taking on the insurance industry. And that is how I will make certain that every single American in this country has health care they can count on and I won't do it twenty years from now, I won't do it ten years from now, I will do it by the end of my first term as President of the United States of America.
I run for president to make sure that every American child has the best education that we have to offer- from the day they are born to the day they graduate from college. And I won't just talk about how great teachers are - as President I will reward them for their greatness - by raising salaries and giving them more support. That's why I'm in this race.
I am running for President because I am sick and tired of democrats thinking that the only way to look tough on national security is by talking, and acting, and voting like George Bush Republicans.
When I am this party's nominee, my opponent will not be able to say that I voted for the war in Iraq; or that I gave George Bush the benefit of the doubt on Iran; or that I supported Bush-Cheney policies of not talking to leaders that we don't like. And he will not be able to say that I wavered on something as fundamental as whether or not it is ok for America to torture - because it is never ok. That's why I am in it.
As President, I will end the war in Iraq. We will have our troops home in sixteen months. I will close Guantanamo. I will restore habeas corpus. I will finish the fight against Al Qaeda. And I will lead the world to combat the common threats of the 21st century - nuclear weapons and terrorism; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease. And I will send once more a message to those yearning faces beyond our shores that says, "You matter to us. Your future is our future. And our
moment is now."
America, our moment is now.
Our moment is now.
Let me break this down:
I'm in this race to take those tax breaks away from companies that are moving jobs overseas and put them in the pockets of hard working Americans who deserve it. And I won't raise the minimum wage every ten years -I will raise it to keep pace so that workers don't' fall behind.
So Mr. Obama, you will dip into corporate pockets not once, not twice but possibly on an annual basis in order to keep jobs? Sorry but the math on that doesn't work. I'm not saying that corporate fat cats can't stand to make less of a profit but to assert that you are both going to get rid of tax breaks and make minimum wage a "living wage" and not affect the economies of doing business in America? I call shenanigans on that.
I'm in this race because I want to stop talking about the outrage of 47 million Americans without health care and start actually doing something about it. I expanded health care in Illinois by bringing Democrats and Republicans together. By taking on the insurance industry. And that is how I will make certain that every single American in this country has health care they can count on and I won't do it twenty years from now, I won't do it ten years from now, I will do it by the end of my first term as President of the United States of America.
First of all, insurance for everyone is a laudable goal, however, to promise to have a national health care system in place in four years? With this congress? Please, that is just campaign "feel goods", not real actionable goals. Second, now that you've cut corporate tax breaks, made a "living wage" standard, now you are going to make every company offer health care? Or every company/individual pays a 30% increase taxes in order to fund government run health care? Bye Bye Business!!!
I run for president to make sure that every American child has the best education that we have to offer- from the day they are born to the day they graduate from college. And I won't just talk about how great teachers are - as President I will reward them for their greatness - by raising salaries and giving them more support. That's why I'm in this race.
This one is my favorite. Really. So Obama, you are going to make sure every child has the best education from k-to college? How are you going to pay for that? Is the government going to promise that every child can go to college? What about the fact that not all of our students are eligible for college? Are you going to subsidize grades along with tuition? Fundamentally if we tell every student that he/she should go to college...what happens to trade schools? What about the fact that the majority of jobs in America depend on trade skill type training? Is that sub-par?
As President, I will end the war in Iraq. We will have our troops home in sixteen months. I will close Guantanamo. I will restore habeas corpus. I will finish the fight against Al Qaeda. And I will lead the world to combat the common threats of the 21st century - nuclear weapons and terrorism; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease. And I will send once more a message to those yearning faces beyond our shores that says, "You matter to us. Your future is our future. And our moment is now."
This one begs the question - How? Finish the fight against Al Qaeda? How? Not the GWB and his lot have done the best job, or even the right job but smart people are trying to figure out how to end this war and rid the world of Al Qaeda so unless you have a new idea that pencils out - no more false promises, the American people have had enough of that the last few years.
So in summary, Obama's speech is a good one...it is inspirational but it lacks the substance needed to bring this country back from war and into a new period of prosperity. Obama is a visionary and says the right things, but much like all of the other GWB/Republican detractors they are only good at saying that things are bad, not offering real solutions to turn the ship around.
I'm a winner!!
This afternoon, after enjoying a lovely sushi lunch with my husband, we walked over to the nearest Safeway in search of a little afternoon caffiene. (Don't tell my friend Coffee but I totally drank a large Red Bull and... it was good. )
Anyway, I had an old lottery ticket to turn in (I won $2) so I went ahead and walked up to the customer service desk to collect my meager winnings. I then, like every other poor lottery fool, walked over to the Scratcher machine and deposited my winnings into the machine. Out came my $2 Scratcher and I went on my way, Red Bull in hand.
When I got back to work, I scratched off the ticket and to my surprise..... I won!!!! Not $2, not a FREE TICKET, but $100!!!
Read it and weep sucka's....
Anyway, I had an old lottery ticket to turn in (I won $2) so I went ahead and walked up to the customer service desk to collect my meager winnings. I then, like every other poor lottery fool, walked over to the Scratcher machine and deposited my winnings into the machine. Out came my $2 Scratcher and I went on my way, Red Bull in hand.
When I got back to work, I scratched off the ticket and to my surprise..... I won!!!! Not $2, not a FREE TICKET, but $100!!!
Read it and weep sucka's....
................
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
B-A-N-A-N-A-S.....
I went to go see Gwen Stefani with two of my sisters and a our friend Mo. These guys dressed as bananas. Gwen pointed them out at the concert and said, "Obviously you guys are really cool."
I couldn't have said it better myself.
Yes I named them...
When you get old, stupid things excite you. Like diapers being on sale at Costco, sleeping in until 7:30 am, gas being below $3 a gallon, and the fact that they made a movie about Transformers.
What really gets me going though? What really turns a no good very bad day into a day worth celebrating?
Appliances. Big ones. Fancy ones, ones with lots of options. Like "extra fast spin" and "antibacterial wash" and the ever amusing "steam cycle."
Seriously people I do a lot of laundry. Like more than 7 loads a week. So you can imagine my dismay when my 18 year old washing machine decided to go to washing machine heaven. Well, not really heaven because it wasn't totally dead - just dead enough. It would overflow into the hallway periodically and it would stop mid-cycle just for fun.
I have been begging the hubby for a new washer and dryer for some time now. After we had Joshua, the washload in this house went from reasonable to just plain ridiculous (this takes place in a short stretch of time for me, I am not very patient - shock.ing. I know.) So the first time the old washer overflowed into the hallway, I was like "sweet!" I can get a new one. My husband, the mule (read: stubborn) said, let's wait and see if it happens again. And it didn't. Not for like 3 weeks. Then it started this fun new thing where it would stop midcycle and not start again until you move the dial ever so slightly one click to the right, no left, then right, hold your breathe and wait...wait, crap. Anyway, as I complained ever so gently about the laundry situation, I felt as though my loving requests for new machinery were going unheard. Turns out, Hubby was all over buying new appliances, he just wanted it to be a surprise. Like, SUPRISE!!!! a new blender! Surprise!!!! A new weed whacker!!!! Do you see where I'm going here kids? When you get old - it will make you sad what constitutes a cool surprise.
However silly this may sound, it was a great present. He had the old ones hauled away and the shiny new ones put in place, all without me knowing a thing. Sad part is, it might be the first surprise he has ever pulled off in 10 years of us being together.
So the new washer and dryer - RAD and RAW (Ridiculously Awesome Dryer and Washer respectively) are in place and I feel like a giddy school girl. You would think I had won the lottery when I saw them for the first time. We actually sat there and watched the full spin cycle for the first load. We watched it people. Like it was going to do something entirely different than WASH CLOTHES. I think maybe just for a second we thought they might send the clothes to space, have them laundered there and then return them to our laundry room (folded of course).
When it was all said and done - RAD and RAW just simply washed and dried the clothes. But they washed and dried them in style. And this is why my husband, he hard rocks it.
I took some pics of RAD and RAW for your viewing pleasure. For those of you mom's out there - be careful, what you are about to see might spark jealously and malcontent with your current washer and dryer....don't say I didn't warn you.
Wait for it...
Wait for it.....
Ahhhhh yeah.
What really gets me going though? What really turns a no good very bad day into a day worth celebrating?
Appliances. Big ones. Fancy ones, ones with lots of options. Like "extra fast spin" and "antibacterial wash" and the ever amusing "steam cycle."
Seriously people I do a lot of laundry. Like more than 7 loads a week. So you can imagine my dismay when my 18 year old washing machine decided to go to washing machine heaven. Well, not really heaven because it wasn't totally dead - just dead enough. It would overflow into the hallway periodically and it would stop mid-cycle just for fun.
I have been begging the hubby for a new washer and dryer for some time now. After we had Joshua, the washload in this house went from reasonable to just plain ridiculous (this takes place in a short stretch of time for me, I am not very patient - shock.ing. I know.) So the first time the old washer overflowed into the hallway, I was like "sweet!" I can get a new one. My husband, the mule (read: stubborn) said, let's wait and see if it happens again. And it didn't. Not for like 3 weeks. Then it started this fun new thing where it would stop midcycle and not start again until you move the dial ever so slightly one click to the right, no left, then right, hold your breathe and wait...wait, crap. Anyway, as I complained ever so gently about the laundry situation, I felt as though my loving requests for new machinery were going unheard. Turns out, Hubby was all over buying new appliances, he just wanted it to be a surprise. Like, SUPRISE!!!! a new blender! Surprise!!!! A new weed whacker!!!! Do you see where I'm going here kids? When you get old - it will make you sad what constitutes a cool surprise.
However silly this may sound, it was a great present. He had the old ones hauled away and the shiny new ones put in place, all without me knowing a thing. Sad part is, it might be the first surprise he has ever pulled off in 10 years of us being together.
So the new washer and dryer - RAD and RAW (Ridiculously Awesome Dryer and Washer respectively) are in place and I feel like a giddy school girl. You would think I had won the lottery when I saw them for the first time. We actually sat there and watched the full spin cycle for the first load. We watched it people. Like it was going to do something entirely different than WASH CLOTHES. I think maybe just for a second we thought they might send the clothes to space, have them laundered there and then return them to our laundry room (folded of course).
When it was all said and done - RAD and RAW just simply washed and dried the clothes. But they washed and dried them in style. And this is why my husband, he hard rocks it.
I took some pics of RAD and RAW for your viewing pleasure. For those of you mom's out there - be careful, what you are about to see might spark jealously and malcontent with your current washer and dryer....don't say I didn't warn you.
Wait for it...
Wait for it.....
Ahhhhh yeah.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
