It’s hard to imagine this guy winning anything other than ”Dog Catcher” for the city of San Francisco, but washed-up actor Alec Baldwin has opined that public office is very attractive at the moment. The story is here.
Why are pundits, commentators and spectators alike so entranced by likely Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama? What has this man done that warrants this enthusiastic support?
To my knowledge, he has done nothing worthwhile in the Senate. In fact, in his short two-year stint in the U.S. Senate, he has earned the most liberal voting record out of any Senator. Yet, the media and spectators alike seem to be in a trance-like state of affection for this man.
Can someone please explain this fascination?
The recent cyclone in Myanmar, responsible for over 15,000 deaths, has been attributable to man-made global warming, according to global warming alarmist Al Gore.
The story is here.
Is it just me, or do these global warming alarmists, Al Gore & Company, cherry-pick natural disasters and attribute them to something that, at this time, cannot be proven?
The following is an e-mail I received from John McCain’s campaign. The content of this e-mail makes me feel very pleased to be supporting McCain’s candidacy for president; therefore, I have posted it below.
My Friends,
We have a lot at stake in this presidential election. As a nation, we face many challenges that will require real leadership from our next president. I have said before that this election will be about the big things, not the small things, and I write to you today about one big issue in particular - the future of the U.S. Supreme Court.
If one of my Democratic opponents is elected in November, you can rest assured that given the opportunity to appoint judges, they will appoint those who make law with disregard for the will of the people.
There may be at least two vacancies on the United States Supreme Court during the next presidential term. As president, I will ensure that only those judges who strictly interpret the Constitution of the United States are appointed.
I will nominate judges who understand that their role is to faithfully apply the law as written, not impose their will through judicial fiat.
If you want judges who will clearly and completely adhere to the Constitution of the United States and who do not legislate from the bench to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, then I ask that you join my campaign for president today by making a financial contribution.
I am proud to have played a role in the appointment and confirmation of two great Supreme Court justices - Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito I need your support now so that as your president I can nominate judges like Justices Roberts and Alito. Judges who have proven themselves worthy of our trust. Judges who take as their sole responsibility the enforcement of laws made by the people’s elected representatives. Judges who can be relied upon to respect the values of the people whose rights, laws and property they are sworn to defend.
My friends, the future of our country and of the Supreme Court is at stake in this election. If either Senator Clinton or Senator Obama is elected - both voted against confirming Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito - they will appoint activist judges. They will appoint judges who legislate from the bench.
I’m sure I don’t have to remind you how important even one vote on the Supreme Court can be. Issues concerning states’ rights, abortion, affirmative action, the Second Amendment and religious freedom have all been decided by a very slim 5-4 margin.America needs a leader who recognizes that the people and the states should decide what’s best, not the courts. In order to be that leader, I need your financial support immediately.
Sincerely,
John McCain
Here is a great story about the celebrity mantra: “Do as I say and not as I do” approach to being good stewards of the earth.
A recent surge in fatal shark attacks is being blamed on man-made global warming. The story is here.
Next thing you know, Al Gore & company will be blaming rising food, gasoline and designer jean prices on global warming. Give me a break.
A good friend of mine asked me a question regarding how I handled expressing my political opinions at college; a place generally known to be a liberal haven. I’ve posted my reply because I’m curious to get other people’s take on the subject. Here is my response:
I can remember one particular instance when I was delivering a talk on my senior thesis. The subject was on constitutional interpretation at the Supreme Court, and I argued for an originalist interpretation; much like how Justice Scalia and Thomas interpret the Constitution.
In case you’re unfamiliar with what originalism is, it is interpreting the Constitution narrowly and adhering to its text. That is, one who is an originalist doesn’t find a “right to an abortion, gay marriage, privacy” in our federal Constitution. If one wants any of those rights, an originalist, like Scalia or Thomas, will argue that it has to be adopted via a state or federal legislature. Basically, judges should not legislate from the bench and invent rights that our founders didn’t place in the Constitution.
I found out, during my presentation, that I was one of the very few to hold this view. During the question and answer part, I was bombarded with questions questioning if I believed that the government should monitor people’s bedrooms, and so on and so forth. I tried to emphasize that personally, if I was a legislator, I would not favor government regulation in the confines of a bedroom for most purposes. However, if I were a Justice on the Supreme Court, I would argue that it is up to the legislature to define their laws, and that as a Justice, I cannot create laws or infiltrate my own bias on any particular case. Basically, I, along with most conservatives, don’t believe that the Constitution affords rights not expressly mentioned, like that of abortion, gay marriage or privacy unto the public. If the public wants those rights, they need to vote in legislators who will pass laws that will provide for those rights.
Suffice it to say, I was attacked with many half-mockingly, half-serious, questions and statements insinuating that my view was prevalent with ignorant, homophobic anti-woman beliefs.
I would love to have had a sincere and amicable debate on the subject, but from what I remember, the audience, my fellow students, did not want to debate the subject. Instead, they would posit half-statements and half-questions regarding my tolerance.
Other than that, I don’t have any other stories where I was ganged up by people on the Left. Instead, on numerous occasions, I would have people who read my columns at school who wanted to ask sincere questions and try and understand my point of view better, even though they may have disagreed.
My entire family, except for my grandpa and an uncle, vote Republican. My immediate family, my Mom, Dad and sister, are not too political, but tell me that they are Republican; although I think my Dad is very centrist and may vote sometimes for a Democrat. My Dad has said that he would not vote for Bush again.
Of all my professors at Chapman, I have only run across a couple who were Republican. The rest, were all Democrats. The positive thing about Chapman was that these professors, for the most part, did not flaunt their ideology. Granted, I had a few who would make snide remarks about Bush, but the majority didn’t overtly try and express their opinions. I did have a few professors, however, write letters to the editor voicing opposition to a few of my columns.
I feel that colleges and universities all have a very unbalanced composition of political views. I’ve read and heard many reports on the subject, and I would estimate that about 9 out of 10 college professors are on the Left. I’m not quite sure why there is such an uneven representation of political views on campuses. If I had to speculate, it would stem more from an economic reason. For example, if you took people on Wall Street and on executive boards of major corporations, I would posit that the majority lean to the Right politically. I think this is the case because of the profit incentive behind their jobs. Whereas at the university level, there really is no profit incentive, so it attracts individuals who are not as interested in making a great profit, but instead, are more interested in acquiring knowledge and taking a job where they can devote more time to teaching, writing and reading.
Also, college campuses, for many, are the first place where they got politically involved; usually about causes on the Left. Perhaps many people go on to become professors because it brings back feeling of nostalgia when they were young and working to make a difference during their younger years.
Senator Barack Obama, probable Democratic presidential nominee, has come up with a fantastic way of fighting elevated gas prices; raise the tax on the oil companies. What a noble and fresh idea to combat high gas prices! Tax oil companies so that they can pass the increased costs off to the consumers, thus making gas prices go higher.
CNN reports:
A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey released Thursday indicates that 71 percent of the American public disapprove of how Bush is handling his job as president.
“No president has ever had a higher disapproval rating in any CNN or Gallup Poll; in fact, this is the first time that any president’s disapproval rating has cracked the 70 percent mark,” said Keating Holland, CNN’s polling director.
If 71 percent of the American public disapproves of Bush’s job performance, I would infer roughly 29 percent approve of his performance. Count me in on the approve list.
I watched Senator Hillary Clinton on The O’Reilly Factor tonight. It was her first appearance ever on the most popular cable news program, which averages approximately 2.5 million viewers a night.
After watching this interview, and reflecting on past interviews with other politicians including Barack Obama, I feel like just tuning out of all of the hoopla. Seasoned politicians are nothing more than polished lawyers and public relations gurus who spin the truth and do everything in their power to make themselves, and their intentions, nobler than they really are.
Instead of bickering with pundits, commentators and other politicians, it would be so refreshing to observe a politician who sets the following goals:
1. Lowering taxes for all and opposing the implementation of higher taxes on the wealthy simply because they can afford it. Government takes in far too much as it is; it is time to give back people’s own money.
2. Support any provision that would increase our military might. This includes new technologies and weaponry which would strengthen our ability to defend our liberties here at home.
3. In all public policy proposals, excluding the military and police forces, someone who would favor allowing the private sector, and not the government, to come up with a solution to an existing problem (rising health care and energy costs come to mind).
4. Supportive of strong anti-crime legislation, including long sentences for violent offenders.
5. Ending dependence on the welfare state. The welfare system in this nation is one of the most depressing government-run programs to date. Instead of helping individuals, like so many profess it does, the welfare state creates permanent wardens of the state. Instead of making people self-reliant, it creates dependence on the government to provide for them, and many never get off of welfare for their entire life.
6. Abolish the U.S. Department of Education. Support school vouchers, via a tax rebate, so children in failing schools can have an opportunity to attend thriving and academically stimulating ones.
7. Ending all pork-barrel projects from the federal budget.
8. Reducing the amount of regulation so that more innovators and entrepreneurs can have the freedom to enhance our society.
9. And lastly, and certainly the most important, pledge an unwavering commitment to hunt down and kill any terrorist, and dismantle any organization set on harming our fellow citizens.
I realize this is a bit of a rant, but bare with me; it is 2:00 A.M. and I’m a bit tired. I just wanted to write this to get it off my chest. If no individual runs on these policy goals in the future, then I will be the first to do so one day.