The Hagel conundrum

Form what I can make of the news, former Senator Chuck Hagel is apparently being grilled by every Republican ever up on Capitol Hill, despite being a well-respected Republican, and a veteran with that oh-so-important badge of honor called service in the Vietnam War. It seems to me that what republicans reek of isn't petty revenge, but desperation. What they see is a white, war veteran, who has been ostracized from their supposedly perfect party. And so they fight, till the bitter end. They continue to knife their former friend in the back, all because he thinks it's wrong to send innocent men and women off to die on some god-forsaken pile of sand and bombs, just for lower oil prices? It's nothing more than a smear campaign, and a haunting warning to any elephants watching this go down. Your party is eating itself alive, and unless you want to go down with the ship, come to your senses. Realize that you haven't left the party, it just left you.

Sincerely,
K

Inauguration Day

Congratulations to Barack Obama, who will be sworn in today as the president of the United States. President Obama defeated challenger Mitt Romney by winning the U.S. Presidential Election in November of 2012. Obama will be the 3rd consecutive president to win a 2nd term. Romney eventually ended up with 47% of the popular vote, and proved that the universe has a great sense of humor. Obama has already been officially sworn in as of yesterday, but today is the larger ceremony. Once again, this blog would like to congratulate President Obama for winning reelection in 2012. Have a safe and happy new year, and stay informed, because they can never take knowledge away from you.

Sincerely,
K

Al-Assad must go.

Bashar Al-Assad is a menace to the plan of middle east peace. Since the arab spring came to his country, it has stalled, leaving behind an empty shell of a country, and over 60,000 dead since 2011. It is a mystery to this blogger how he has managed to hang on to power, but I say that it should stop here. The US has failed time and time again to stop mass civilian deaths in the past. What ever happened to all our concern for Darfur and Sudan?

This is not a fair fight. Assad has planes, tanks, and high-grade rockets, while the people he mows down have nothing more than trucks, and AK 47's. We can do more, and we should do more. Sanctions do nothing, and it's time for real action. Work with the rebel government, and help to foster in a new government in Syria. One that will appreciate us for helping them.

These opinions may be taken lightly by some. But mark my words, humanity is a powerful thing. If we all come together, and let congress know that now is the time, more than ever, to act, then we can get the full support of our country. And then, we will be the change that we wish to see in the world.

Sincerely,
K

Ooh, look. Shiny things!

Here are some articles for you to read in the last few weeks of 2012.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/20/opinion/avlon-post-office/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/12/mass-shootings-victims-2012

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/12/20/booker-wont-challenge-christie-will-explore-u-s-senate-run-instead/?hpt=hp_bn3

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/12/20/nra-power-and-money-goes-a-long-way-in-states/

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/12/21/1359231/voter-id-3-states/?mobile=nc

Who's got the over/under on the Mayans

In order to distract from the usual political doom and gloom around this blog, I've created some Mayan Apocalypse Betting Scenarios to liven the mood:

This is all a big fuss over nothing 1:1
Pakistan and India just couldn't get their shit together for another year 4:1
Somebody falls asleep on the button at an army base 6:1
Riots. Always with the riots 7:1
Polar shifts. Haven't you been watching doomsday peppers? 10:1
The south finally rises again. But this time, they have nukes 20:1
The Qur'an burning pastor from Florida takes a tour of the middle east 50:1
Same thing as above, but he also has Pamela Geller with him 100:1
Y2K, but 12 years late 1000:1
Felix Bumgartner's sonic boom finally reaches earth. Can you say new grand canyon? 9,001:1
Aliens 10,000:1
Honey Boo Boo, Snooki, and Kim Kardashian All go to collect their nobel prizes. The combined intelligence in the room causes the earth to explode 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000:1

Have a great new year, and be sure to pick up the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, in case you really do need to flee earth. Happy holidays!

Fiscal Cliff, Shmiscal Cliff: To compromise, or not...

SEQUESTRATION. Oh, okay. I see you aren't scared by that word. What if I told you that it was another name for the FISCAL CLIFF? Yep, your all terrified now. Peeing your pants, I bet. But why is this all so scary for the common American. I'll let you know. Not only will this raise the taxes of average americans by a couple thousand dollars each year, it will also signify a watershed change in the attitude of congress. We are truly a nation divided. Civil Wars and Civil Rights aside, you basically have a country that, instead of sitting down to talk politics, puts its hands over its ears, and goes "LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU!" at the first sign of political discourse that borders on reasonable or moderate. I have many republican friends. I use them to help me hone my discussion points, because if I were to stay within an ideological bubble, it would weaken my debating and discussion skills to the point that I would sound like an ignorant youtube commentor, throwing slurs around with the greatest of ease. Unfortunately, one could almost see today's congress as a discussion board online. And that is why we need action, not reaction. Sit down, open your computer, contact your representatives in the house and senate, and let them know that compromise is actually a good thing, not a sign of surrender. That going across the aisle to work with a different party shouldn't mean the end of their political career. And that you pledge to support them in their reelection bid, but only as long as they can find a way to work together. Use the hash tag #CongressCompromise on twitter to let others know. And please, for the love of (God/Yahweh/Allah/Buddha/Zeus/Jupiter/Cthulhu/Satan/Undecided/Atheism) just don't let congress gridlock on our future. It's too important.

K

Right in the childhood

Lobby, Lobby, Lobby, Get your access here.
(Sung to the tune of Lolly, Lolly, Lolly. My deepest apologies to School House Rock)

CHORUS:
Lobby lobby lobby
get your access here.

got right left and center
giving access here.

pay us lots of money
and will make it absolutely clear
you'll be a good guy on Capitol hill

VERSE:
Pair it with a contract
it's how much you bid.

Several small tax loopholes
it's how much you hid

dont forget the latin
there's Pro Quo and Quid

but wait there's more...

How, where or when
Conditions and reason

these questions are answered
when you use a law firm.

CHORUS:

Lobby lobby lobby

get your access here.

got right left and center

giving access here.

pay us lots of money

and will make it absolutely clear

you'll be a good guy on Capitol hill.

ANNOUNCER:

Come on down to lobby's

where the senators go dirt cheap

(Lobby, Lobby, Lobby)

representatives too...

(Lobby, Lobby, Lobby)

Great bargains here for you...

Indubitably