An Apology

Dear Mr. Stroud,

I apologize for falling so far behind on this blog. The enormous backlog has been dealt with, and I will try not to let it happen again.

Best regards,

Peter

The USPS

This cartoon by Mike Keefe of the Denver Post is the perfect explanation of why the postal service is running into financial trouble.  The key objects here are the mailman, and the fact that he is emailing about how post offices are closing.  The satire is that email is killing much of the postal services business, and here's a mailman writing a bewildered email about how the postal service could be shutting down 3100 post offices. Keefe's message is explaining why the postal service is having so much difficulty, and he doesn't show any point of view on it, and is simply pointing out the problem.

GOP: Defenders of the Wealthy

In a nation of endless opportunity, injustice has been allowed to prevail.  What sort of society are we that so heavily taxes it's wealthiest and most successful citizens, effectively taking away their rewards for all of their hard work, and hands it down to the most needy and impoverished, allowing them to be lazy and feed off of the teat of the government?  Who will defend these great Americans who embody the spirit of capitalism?  Why, the Republican Party of course!

That was sarcasm, in case that wasn't blatantly obvious.  This is one of the better cartoons I've seen lately.  Matson is clearly a liberal, who thinks that the GOP's coddling off the super wealthy is simply ridiculous.  The key object in this cartoon is the boy in Santa's lap, Richie Rich, the main character from a cartoon series about an extremely wealthy boy and how he must defend his vast fortune from countless people who want to get their hands on it.  The secondary object are the Christmas list, which reads "tax cuts," and Santa himself, who is the GOP symbol, the elephant.  Matson uses a combination of ridicule and satire, driven home by the cultural reference to Richie Rich.  The caption at the bottom and the look of disgust on the elephant's face indicate the GOP's displeasure at not being able to offer any tax cuts to the wealthy this year.

Why No One Likes Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney is perceived as being out of touch with the typical American, and his bet comment only emphasizes that.  In a way, I almost feel bad for Romney because that wasn't his intention at all with that comment.  However, anything you say when you're running for president is going to be scrutinized, so I don't feel too badly for him.  It's well known that Romney is extremely wealthy, and in this economy, when so money people are struggling to make ends meet, he does not want to draw attention to that.  Jimmy Margulies, the cartoonist, is presumably a liberal who doesn't like Mitt Romney because he's a Republican, or a conservative who thinks that Romney is too liberal.  We can see that he is mocking Romney by looking at the third frame, where he makes his point that Romney is not only out of touch, but doesn't understand that he is out of touch.

Holiday Memory

I like this question of the week. My favorite holiday memory is probably Christmas Eve of 2002.  As you all know, we rarely have a white Christmas here in Northern Virginia.  In 2002, I still regularly attended the Catholic church.  Christmas Eve of 2002, my family went out to dinner at Clyde's at Reston Town Center, one of our longer standing holiday traditions.  Afterwards we went to church.  When we went into church, there was no snow, and only a small chance of it in the weather forecast.  When we came out of church about 90 minutes later, it was snowing fairly steadily, and by morning it had accumulated to the point that the grass was covered.  For some reason or another, I've always remembered this, and it's always stood out as one of my fonder childhood memories.  Strange how something as simple as a well timed snow storm can be a favorite holiday memory.

Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney might be the best man for the job.  That being said, I'm still voting for Obama.  If Romney were defnding his moderate record, I could support him, but his recent pandering to the Tea Party frightens me.  I realize he has to pander to the ultra-conservative Republican base in order to win the nomination, but in doing this, he has given people the impression that he is a flip-flopper and a weak leader.  This represents the biggest threat to Romney's candidacy, and is the main reason that Newt Gingrich is currently leading in the polls.  People have seen the effects of weak leadership the past 3 years, and are looking for a candidate who is willing to assert himself and defend his record.  Romney's biggest strengths are his backgtround as a successful businessman, and, perhaps most importantly, his experience as governor of Massachusetts, when he proved that he can be bipartisan and work with Democrats to effectively run a government.  If Obama isn't reelected this November, I hope it's Ron Paul.  If it's not Ron Paul, I hope it's Romney.  He scares me less than Gingrich.

Obama Update

Obama's approval rating is back up to 43%, a slight improvement over where he has been the past couple of months.  I think that despite the challenges Obama faces, and his evident lack of leadership ability (I'm pretty damn liberal and I still don't think he's a good leader) that he will win reelection in 2012.  This is not necessarily because of his own merits, but because the Republicans have yet to find a challenger who seems to have a real chance.  Gingrinch is probably there best shot, and many within the Republican party dislike Gingrich.  If you don't have the full backing of your own party, then whose backing do you have?  Although Gingrich has been doing well recently, I don't doubt that he'll eventually put his foot in his mouth.  Romney seemed a to have the nomination locked up for lack of a better option, and look at him now.  I'm willing to bet Gingrich implodes.  I'm looking forward to the Obama-Gingrich debates; I think that is where Obama's best chance at success lies.  Obama's ideas appeal more to the majority of Americans.  The Republican mantra of slash government services and slash taxes really only benefits the wealthy.  If Obama can find a way to reenergize the 20-something crowd that swept him into office in 2008, which I think he will win the election fairly easily.

Rick Perry

My opinion of the candidacy of Rick Perry for the GOP nomination: great SNL fodder. Seriously, if you haven't seen their spoof of Perry's "oops" moment, go watch it right now, it's hysterical.  That's about all I have to say.  I can't take this guy seriously anymore, and I don't think anyone else outside of Texas does either.  As for one specific reason why he could win the election: if Romney, Cain, and Gingrinch all die, drop out of the race, or are otherwise incapacitated, then I think Perry would have a decent chance.  Until that day, he's not even a factor in the GOP really.  One specific reason why he could lose: ummmmm. Forgot it. What was it? The EPA? Yes, that was it.  No, wait, no it wasn't.  Ummmm.  Oops.  Sorry, Stroud.  At least we know I'm qualified to be a Republican Presidential candidate now.

P.S.  Please tell me the next question of the week isn't about Libya (it's not my job to know about foreign policy - I leave that up to the generals).

Cartoon #1

Here we have a lovely cartoon by Mike Lukovich of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. We have Republican Presidential candidate Newt Gingrinch in balloon form holding a sack of cash from Freddie Mac.  Gingrinch landed a consultant contract with the troubled financial giant (which needed a tax payer bailout to stay afloat) worth millions of dollars.  Despite this, he came out swinging against the passage of TARP.  The cartoon implies (rather bluntly) that Newt is a hypocrite and is full of hot air.  Lukovich is clearly a liberal (as anyone who is familar with his work knows), and that's probably a lot of the reason that I enjoy his work so much.

Question of the Week #4

Seeing as we all go to Herndon High, illegal immigration seems like a good topic to choose for the biggest political issue currently facing Virginia.  A lot of kids at Herndon High, as many of you have probably noticed, are extremely bigoted against Hispanics.  They accuse them of coming here to take our jobs, and derisively refer to all Hispanics as Mexicans.  I would like to say that I think it's pretty sick.  The majority of Hispanic immigrants, legal or illegal, are honest hardworking people who want better lives for their families, and greater opportunities for their children.  Those are the same things that everyone wants.  Regarding legality, I can't say I really give a damn whether they're here legally or not.  They're here, so we may as well welcome them with open arms and work on assimilating them into our culture.  My Irish great-grandparents who came to the United States around the turn of the century were not particularly well liked at the time.  But, they learned the language, and gradually became a part of the American culture.  Within a generation, their daughter, my grandma, was as American as anyone of her generation.  You never would have guessed that she was part of the first generation of her family born in the United States.  The Hispanic immigrants here now will go through this same assimilation process, and within a generation, they will all be accepted into our culture.  Until then, how about we try to make it a little easier on em, huh?  Being an immigrant in a new country, with a different language and culture isn't easy.  Being nice to them wouldn't kill any of us.

Current Event #4: Cain and Planned Parenthood

Planned Parenthood recently rejected Herman Cain's accusation that their mission is a genocide of unborn black babies.  Cain claimed that 75% of Planned Parenthood facilities were located in black neighborhoods, in order to provide more abortions to black women.  In reality, only 9% are located in predominantly black neighborhoods, so his theory doesn't seem to hold much water.  Cain is against abortion in all cases, even rape and incest.

I'm frightened that this man is doing so well in the GOP primaries.  Why are we still fighting the battle over abortion?  It's been almost 40 years.  And even if it does get banned, women will find ways to have illegal abortions.  It seems like in 21st century America, we should be able to accept that a woman has a right to abort something that is growing inside her body, if she so chooses.  Besides her and the father of the child, it's really no one else's business.  Can we please focus on something that actually matters, like say, the economy?

Also, I would like to say that I think it is interesting that the GOP is against abortion, which prevents the birth of thousands of babies into poverty every year.  Know what happens when you have lots of babies born into poverty?  They end up of welfare.  And we all know how the Republicans feel about welfare.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/10/30/planned-parenthood-rejects-cain-claim-abortion-clinics-are-aimed-at-black/

(Yes, I used a Fox News article. I'm ashamed.)

Obama's Report Card

Health Care:  B-  It was a good idea, but it got watered down too much.  I want my public option, damnit!
Economy:  B+  This is gonna surprise a lot of people.  But the economy was going into the toilet when he came into office, and he kept it from going completely down the drain.  The situation was a lot worse than what most people realize, and he deserves credit for doing what he did, while still taking the heat for the recovery not progressing faster.
War on Terror:  A  He got Bin Laden.  It's been almost 3 years and no terror attacks.  Nuff said.
Reelection Bid:  A-  Would have been nice to see him get into the fighting spirit sooner, but he's there and I'm glad.  Also, have you seen how much money he's raised already?  Jesus it's a lot.  I think in the neighborhood of $70 million if I have my facts straight.  Also, he sent me a free Obama 2012 bumpersticker.

Current Event #3: Herman Cain Stands to Benefit From His 9-9-9 Plan

Herman Cain stands to benefit big time from his proposed 9-9-9 plan (9% income tax, 9% corporate tax, 9% national sales tax).  Under that plan, which does not tax capital gains (made made from the sale of stocks, etc.), a family of 4 with an annual income of $50,000 would pay roughly $5,000 more in taxes than under the current tax code.  Cain's taxes, along with those of the wealthiest Americans, would plummet under this proposal.  Cain is worth somewhere between $1.85 million and $4 million, according to the financial report he filed with the Federal Election Commission in August.

Being the raging liberal that I am, I'm of course against this proposal.  While I agree that the tax code needs a massive overhaul, this is not it.  The 9-9-9 plan places the biggest burden on those who can least afford it, while the wealthiest Americans get wealthier.  It's also worth noting, as a friend pointed out to me recently, Herman Cain more or less took this idea from the computer game SimCity 4.  In that computer game, the person playing the game has the power to levy taxes over their city.  The default tax rates are 9% income tax, 9% commercial taxes, and 9% taxes on industry.  And this man could be president.  Scary thoughts.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44916676/ns/politics-decision_2012/#.TptF9XK3Mjk

Question of the Week #2: A Rant About Gun Control

This week's current event seems like a good segway into this week's rant: gun control.  While I've never personally affected by gun control or lack thereof, it's an important issue to me because there's always the chance that it could affect me (god knows I've spent enough time in seedy DC neighborhoods).

My stance on gun control is that you should be able to have a shotgun, rifle or whatever for hunting, defending yourself against burglars or whoever, or whatever else you can do with a firearm.  You do not need a handgun.  You do not need an automatic weapon.  You can scare a burglar away just as easily with a shotgun.  What are you going to do with a handgun besides shoot someone?  Shoot a deer?  Probably not.  Same goes for an automatic weapon.  You don't need an AK-47 to kill a bear.  You need one to kill a lot of people in a very short amount of time (e.g. the Tuscon shooting).  I've heard gun rights advocates say, "Why don't you trust your fellow American citizens with guns?"  To them I say, "If you trust them so much, why do you feel like you need a gun?"

Their logic is idiotic, if you can even call it logic.  Here's an example: once Gaddafi was removed from power in Libya and the military was removed from the equation, there were two civilian armies fighting each other.  NATO was faced with a problem: which army do you arm?  By NRA "logic", you arm both armies because if they both have guns, then no one will get hurt because they will both be afraid of the other side's guns.  WRONG.  Both sides get hurt, and a helluva lot of people end up dead.  People may kill people, but they wouldn't do it nearly so much if they didn't have easily obtained, poorly regulated firearms to make it so easy.

Current Event #2: 8 Killed in Southern California Salon Shooting

A gunman went into a crowded hair salon in Seal Beach, California and opened fire.  6 people were killed at the scene, and two died later at the hospital of their injuries.  The gunman may have been targeting his ex-wife.  After the shooting, he got into a white truck and drove away, before being stopped by police and arrested.  Police haven't yet determined what kind of gun was used.  This is the largest mass killing in the history of Orange County, breaking the previous record of seven people killed in one shooting in 1976.

Source:  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44880955/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/#.TpY8A3K3Mjk

Political Party Alignment

No question, I'm a Democrat.  Sadly.  I don't like the Democrats.  They're pushovers, and can't get anything done.  For instance, they had the White House and both houses of Congress for two entire years, during which they accomplished almost nothing besides a watered down ineffective health care law.  Now, don't start thinking that I'm one of those "Obamacare is going to turn us into a socialist state, and we're all going to be unemployed and standing in breadlines soon!" types.  Because I'm not.  I like the idea of government healthcare.  I want a public option.  I'd like a system where I can have the option of paying more taxes, and in exchange, my health care plan is completely taken care of.  That sounds good to me.  Health care should not be left entirely to private industry.  The goal of health care should not be to make a profit - it should be to improve the quality of life for as many people as possible.

As for my thoughts on the Republicans:  I agree with them on a few things.  I'm not in favor of affirmative action.  Hiring minorities because they're minorities is no better than not hiring them because they're minorities.  Fair treatment means fair treatment.  If I, a white kid from Northern Virginia, can do a job better than a black guy who grew up in poverty in Northeast, D.C., I should get that job.  If he can do that job better than I can, he should get that job.  If we're equally capable, the guy hiring us should be able to find a tiebreaker that has nothing to do with race.

Other things I agree with Republicans on: well, I think taxes for small businesses should be slashed.  That being said, taxes for corporations like Exxon-Mobile need to be increased, and the ridiculous tax breaks that companies like Exxon-Mobile enjoy while there are Americans living in poverty need to end.

Regarding the social agenda, besides affirmative action (this is where I'm very liberal):  Republicans are completely backward.  It seems that Republicans would happily have homosexuals ostracized from society, and sent off to live in some sort of colony set aside specifically for them, where they can't corrupt anyone else with their sinful ways.  As far as I can tell, they'd like to have women barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen.  Unfortunately for them, that is an unrealistic goal in 21st century America, so they have to settle for using women as political pawns - trying to defund Planned Parenthood (a leading provider of health service for women) because it provides abortions is a perfect example of this.

Enough liberal ranting for one night (no worries, plenty more where that came from), there is playoff baseball to be watched.

Background Photo and Music

Background photo was taken by me.  Admire it.  I'll change it up every so often to keep things from getting boring.  Also, I'll work on adding some more music to the playlist.  Don't expect anything besides punk (well, maybe I'll slip an ABBA song in there).  Feedback is appreciated, always nice to know what people think.

Chris Christie's Conservative Record

Chris Christie is the Republican governor of New Jersey.  Although he denies it, many believe that he will join in the race for the GOP 2012 presidential nomination. So, how conservative can the governor of a Democratic state be, even if he is a Republican?  Here's an analysis:

Abortion:  Christie is pro-life and supports restricting abortion.  These restrictions include banning partial-birth abortions and mandating a 24 hour waiting period prior to receiving an abortion.   Christie initially referred to himself as being pro-life when he first ran for public office in 1993.

Immigration:  Christie opposes offering in-state tuition to the children of illegal immigrants.  He says we should not be subsidizing the education of people in this country illegally.  This was most a swipe at Texas Governor Rick Perry, who has recently come under harsh criticism for allowing this in Texas.

Gun rights:  Christie believes that states should have the authority in establishing their own gun control laws.  He does not oppose limitations on how many handguns a person can buy, but does oppose concealed weapons.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions:  Christie recently withdrew New Jersey from a 10 state pact call the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative which placed limits on greenhouse gas emissions.  He claimed that the regulations were not strict enough to change behavior and imposed taxes that were unnecessary given the lack of benefit. But Christie is strongly in favor of offshore wind power.  He offers large tax credits to companies that manufacture equipment for offshore wind power.

Gay Marriage:  Christie supports civil unions but opposes gay marriage.  He does not want to try to pass any legislation against gay marriage though.  He believe that any regulations about gay marriage should be placed on the ballot and voted on by the people, not the legislature.

Judiciary Power:  Christie believes that the judicial branch of government has overstepped it's bounds and has to much power.  However, his opponents say that he is just using that as an excuse to appoint more conservative justices to the court.

My thoughts on Chris Christie:  he's the only Republican I'd consider voting for.  If the GOP nominates Perry or Romney, my vote is going straight to Obama.  The Republicans would be wise to get someone rational like Christie involved in their primary.  Recently, with Republicans such as Palin and Bachmann receiving a lot of media attention, the GOP has gone from coming across as a party that looks out for the rich and powerful (Dick Cheney and his Haliburton oil cronies) and could care less about the other 98% of the country, to a party that is losing its grip on reality.  They need someone like Christie pronto if the want to stand a chance of taking the critical moderate vote away from Obama in 2012.

source:  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44719797/ns/politics/#.TokJRnK3Mjk

An Introduction

My name is Peter.  I am a high school senior in the suburban wasteland known as Northern Virginia.  I am very liberal and opinionated, so expect to see trashing of persons such as John Boehner, Eric Cantor and Fox News (News Corp.) frequently (corporations are people, because Mitt Romney says so, and he clearly knows best because he's a successful business man).  Bell just rang - off to English.