Reasoned Reflections

My New Rules To Save The Country

2009-07-19T11:38:00.003-04:00

It's become clear to me that we need a few new rules to save our country from becoming a second rate player. This is all common sense which seems to be in short supply today. These rules can apply to State and Federal bodies.
1. No bill can be voted on before being put on public display for at least 5 business days prior to the vote. This must be the final version of the bill with all the sneaky additions that get stuck in at the last minute. Add an amendment, another 5 days. This alone will save us billions because the politicians will have to justify all the pork and the people will have time to get mad. Although the current administration promised to put everything on a website, that hasn't happened yet. In fact they want to spend 1.8 million dollars to build the site. Any web designers out there think you could do that cheaper?
More to come....

News Flash....The President's Teleprompter Dies!

2009-07-13T17:13:00.000-04:00

Today, the presidential teleprompter fell over and died.
Not surprisingly, Obama had no comment. :)

Al Franken... Minnesota's Shame

2009-07-06T22:33:00.002-04:00

The citizens of the People's Republic of Minnesota should be hanging their heads in shame. The fact that they would send that hate monger, Al Franken, to the United States Senate is an embarrassment to their state and to the entire nation. With all the furor about Sarah Palin's lack of experience, we are served up this poor excuse for a human being whose claim to fame is frothing at the mouth about anyone who doesn't agree with him. And now he's a Senator. You know I repeatedly hear politicians and pundits say "the American people aren't stupid" and then we see something like this that proves some of them surely are.

News Flash.......Michael Jackson Still Dead!

2009-07-01T09:26:00.002-04:00

Yes, in case you haven't heard, reports continue to come in concerning the persistent condition of the death of the "King of Pop". If this condition changes, we will break in with updates.

Connecticut Firefighters

2009-06-29T21:14:00.002-04:00

Finally the Connecticut firefighters get justice. The Supreme Court finally restored some sanity to this situation. The idea that the white and Hispanic firefighters who pass the test should be punished because no black applicants past is ridiculous. What's the purpose of the test? Hopefully to find the best qualified people. Obviously everybody didn't pass it or it would have been a very good measure of competence. So the ones that did pass should reap the rewards of their achievements.

The Energy Bill

2009-06-27T18:00:00.003-04:00

Are you kidding me?

Governor Sanford and Michael Jackson

2009-06-26T08:03:00.003-04:00

Governor Mark Sanford has to be one of the happiest people in the world today. Not that anyone should take joy in the death of Michael Jackson, but come on, the timing was perfect. The opposite is true for the people of Iran. We live in a strange world.

Farrah and Michael Jackson

2009-06-26T00:57:00.003-04:00

Poor Farrah Fawcett. She has the misfortune to pass on the same day as Michael Jackson. She was upstaged in her final performance. I was never a big fan of either, but their lives seemed rather pitiful here at the end. Maybe they will both find peace now.

Jon and Kate

2009-06-23T00:40:00.003-04:00

Oh boy.
So Jon and Kate are getting divorced. Who didn't see that coming? I'll admit to having watched the show a few times. Not a fan by any means, but the kids were cute. I really thought that Kate was pretty cold towards Jon, and pretty much a prima donna on the show. It always had to be about her. She could suck the fun out of any situation. I saw part of an episode where Steve Thomas was helping install solar panels on the roof and she was downright rude to him and the crew the whole time they were there. Maybe she thought that was funny, but I just thought it was rude. I think after the first year or so it was time to put the cameras away and try to lead a normal life. When the kids were old enough to walk and talk, they deserved some privacy. I'm sure they made a lot of money doing the show and that could cloud your judgment. At some point you have to say "this isn't good for my kids". How many famous TV kids grow up to have normal lives?

I'm always amazed by how many reality shows there are. People tune in to watch other people's lives instead living their own. From Cops to Ice Road Truckers to Survivor, we can sit on the couch and virtually participate in someone else's real-life. I'm guilty of it too. I can't necessarily explain it.

Well, best of luck to Jon and Kate and the poor kids who are the real victims here.
How much is child support for eight kids?

Cake

2009-06-22T22:26:00.001-04:00

I just had a piece of German chocolate cake. It doesn't get much better than that. Life is good.

Raison D'Etre

2009-06-22T09:27:00.004-04:00

In the next few days, weeks, months I will be sharing my thoughts and observations on many of the political and social issues of our time. Taxes, energy, environment, religion, government, and culture will all be fair game. You are invited to join in the conversation. Just keep it civil. We have the right to disagree. We don't need to be insulting. Now, where did I put my notes?
Let the games begin!

Salary Caps

2009-06-21T14:32:00.001-04:00

There's been a lot of talk about salary caps lately. A lot of people, especially in government think some corporate executives make too much money. While I do have a problem with people asking for government help and then going off to party at some fancy resort, or some big shot taking a multi-million-dollar bonus after running his company into bankruptcy, in the end the marketplace through the shareholders or board of directors should be able to handle these problems. I must admit however that I would be in favor of some pay equals performance formula. I think the first place to start should be the government. Congress especially gets to vote themselves a pay raise whenever they want and they been doing a lousy job for years. So I propose we pay Congress,the President, and federal judges based on their performance. The people can vote once a year, say on April 16, and decide the salary for the coming year based on last year's performance. Think of the money we could save. Make a bad call as a judge, get your salary cut. Write a bad law that you don't read, get your salary cut. Tell the press about the Vice President's secret hideout, get your salary cut. And so on. Of course there would be rewards for good practices, but those are few and far between. Before you start feeling too sorry for these people, remember they can all raise millions of dollars to get elected so they really don't need the money. Think of it as spreading the wealth around.

Iran

2009-06-20T15:19:00.002-04:00

I've been watching the situation in Iran. I hope those people can find some freedom, but I don't think it will happen.

World Peace

2009-06-20T13:58:00.001-04:00

There is a big difference between what we want, what we need, and what we can get. Everybody wants world peace. The majority of the people don't need world peace. Their day-to-day lives aren't really affected by the troubles around the globe. Obviously, some of the people living in the conflict zones need peace so they can survive. Others in those areas are doing quite well and prospering from the situation. Can we ever achieve world peace? I'm not so sure. History has shown us that there's always going to be somebody who thinks somebody else has something they need. They are always willing to march over there and take it by force. I don't think we will ever reach a stage where everyone will feel equal with everyone else. As long as there are even perceived inequities, a rallying point for conflict will exist. The philosophy of peace and love is a great concept but it falls apart in the face of 10,000 years of human history. We've always had people who would rather steal than work. People who seek to solve every problem with violence. Giving them a hug won't really change anything. I am hopeful we can avoid large wars in the future, but I fear we will have regional conflicts for many generations to come.

2009-06-20T12:13:00.000-04:00

Here we go. This should be fun.