The Man Has Flipped

Has Newt Gingrich flipped? The relentless beating that Gingrich has been taking from Romney in Florida has apparently caused the real Newt Gingrich to surface. This is especially true when it comes to religion. The man has been quoted as saying, “I will make religious liberty your right, to go with God with no government interference.” This in response to his church's position that religious freedom has been compromised because of the government's new regulation requiring employers to cover birth control in their health policies. The man is a professional Catholic and professional Catholics toe the line when their Bishop speaks.

Go with God with no government interference. Sounds like something an Ayatollah would say. Whose God shares in this freedom? Are honor killings in the name of God free from government interference? How about polygamy? If my God wills that I satiate my sexual appetite with multiple wives, am I free to do so.

Because the government requires that birth control be covered in employer's health care policies does not mean that a couple can't screw their heads off without a condom or birth control pills. If they intend to populate the world with cute Catholic babies it is still their privelege to do so. The position of the Catholic Church in opposing this regulation and attacking the administration is untenable.

As a converted Catholic, Gingrich has demonstrated that his church's support in his quest for the presidency warrants his publicly kowtowing to every decree it issues. If he had any guts he would bring his confessors to task for allowing pedophiles to sit in that confessional. The man has flipped. That's not surprising since he was a nut to begin with.

Its too bad that he has flipped. Obama would have made mince meat out of him. Obama will probably have to contend with Romney and his inexhaustible war chest. Lets hope that Romney continues to play the role of a stand up comedian thus making a vulnerable ass of himself.

Gun Control Was AWOL!

It has been almost a week since President Barack Obama's State of The Union (SOTU) address. Obama's speech has been reviewed, dissected, praised, vilified and whatever else political writers do. I can't avoid getting my two cents worth in, fully realizing that's about what my musing about the SOTU address would command on the open market.

First of all the evening of the address was remarkable for the ovation paid to one member of the House of Representatives - Gabrielle Giffords. To say that the tribute was deserved does not do enough tribute to this wonderful, brave public servant.

Second of all, I will not comment about the pros and cons of what the President proposed in his address. These are better left to others who are students of the political scene. I will comment about what was left out of the President's SOTU address.

With the ovation to Gifford's still resonating in the House Chambers, there was no mention of gun control. Here was a woman barely able to stand up and barely able to clap because of a gun shot wound to the head a year ago and not one mention of what is to be done about the lack of effective gun control in this country.

The lack of bipartisanship action in Washington has been duly chronicled. On the evening of SOTU, Congress and the President did demonstrate that bipartisanship is not dead. It did so in paying tribute to Gabrielle Giffords. It did so in completely ignoring the flaw on our society which brought down the public service of Gabrielle Giffords. It did so in deciding that the events in Tuscon, Arizona a year ago did not deserve their attention.

The National Rifle Association owns both the Republican and Democrat parties when it comes to giving us effective gun control legislation. It is a crime that our representatives have been bought. Gun Control is AWOL and the blood of victims of sloppy gun laws is on the hands of those who can do something about it but are scared stiff it will cost them votes.

There is not a vocal politician who does not support the Second Amendment. I also support the Second Amendment but my interpretation leaves a lot of room for effective gun control. Mankind and assassins have been joined at the hip for centuries. Gun control will not eliminate assassins but it will make their work more difficult.

Much Ado About Money

I could care less whether a presidential candidate is a zillionaire, a billionaire , a millionaire or none of the above. Too much ado is made of tax return disclosure, consulting fees and lobbying fees. As long as a candidate's income has been honestly earned, it is a non-issue when it comes to earning my vote. As difficult as it may be to ascertain, a candidate's character and intelligence far outweigh his tax rate or whether he is a consultant or lobbyist. Lets face it, more often not, we are going to be choosing among wealthy candidates.. A poor man's chance of running for president is next to nil unless he is beholden to a billionaire or was born in a log cabin.

The Role of Hypocrisy

Paul Krugman’s blog recently had an interesting post  about the role that hypocrisy plays in today’s politics, George Washington Was A Hypocrite . Krugman argues that “ somehow the notion has entered our politics that supporting a cause that isn’t in your personal financial interest makes you a hypocrite”. The post makes for interesting reading and in my case aroused some musing about the role of hypocrisy in our society.

If one accepts that hypocrisy is the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform, he can immediately envision the role of hypocrisy in our society. The freedoms that we cherish have long been battered by the hypocritical nature of man.

The hypocrisy of the Crusades, the Inquisition, the persecution of the Puritans, the Holocaust, the horror of 9/11, the questioning of the electability of an individual to the office of President of the United States based on his religion or lack thereof, all make the freedom of worship something to not only be treasured but also to be revered and defended.

If one accepts that the freedom of worship is a freedom to be cherished and defended, he finds himself putting the freedom of worship in conflict with the freedom from fear. To defend, more often than not , implies resorting to violent action, the very thing the freedom from fear seeks to protect us from. In the name of freedom we would retaliate with behavior which generates fear and a destruction of security.

 As if to allay an individual’s fears, the argument is made that the right to bear arms is a deterrent  against violence generated in society or more importantly on the world stage. The ultimate weapon to preserve freedom is WAR.  With God at our side, we  resort to killing one another. Hypocrisy takes us full circle.

Then there is the freedom from want which our hypocrisy has seen fit to apply to a limited few. How else can you explain famines and sub human living conditions in so many parts of the world. Hypocrisy screams out that charity begins at home. The problem is that the needs at home are insatiable and only crumbs are left to satiate the wants of others. Still our hypocritical nature would have us believe that half a loaf is better than none.

One can question if in an idealistic society where freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear reign untethered , should be the Utopia we are seeking. Would it be too stagnate? Is some hypocrisy necessary to spice it up? I submit that without the freedom of hypocrisy the other freedoms would wither away. Without a challenge to the norm we become overly complacent.

If the latter is incomprehensible, I must resort to the freedom which I have saved until last, the freedom of speech and expression. The freedom of speech gives me the right to express an opinion, view , belief or fantasy as the case may be. As long as I do not seek acceptance of my views there is no hypocrisy involved. If some prior views are in contradiction with those expressed here, hypocrisy is involved. As long as we think, there are plenty of opportunities for hypocrisy. Putting those thoughts to print is not hypocritical.

(Playing the role of philosopher is much more difficult than I anticipated but a lot more fun than I anticipated and I'm not being hypocritical.)
　

Newt Inching Towards Another Marriage

Newt Gingrich won the heart of South Carolina. Will Florida give him an open primary? Florida has not been heard from but it is widely accepted that its heart belongs to Romney. Still, all is fair in love and war and Newt has a habit of snatching victory from the jaws of defeat. They say that Florida is more typical of the rest of the country than South Carolina and whomever she goes to bed with will be the Republican candidate best suited to screw the country . Newt will continue to crucify the media, bad mouth Obama and demean Romney in between book signings. He may not  win the heart of Florida but he will  carry on a torrid campaign which will present Clandestine, I mean Callista, a real challenge to keep her coiffure from unraveling. More power to Newt, he is just what Obama needs to get fired up.

On January 20th

YES YOU CAN!

On January 20th, 2009, Barack H. Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America.

 On January 20th,2009, the Republican Party began Campaign 2012 with the express purpose of making Barack H. Obama a one term President.

On January 20th, 2009, the executive branch of government was taken hostage by Campaign 2012.

 On January 20th, 2009, the legislative branch of the United States government went AWOL.

 On January 20th, 2009, the judicial branch of the United States government  resolved to find a way to give "wealthy persons" (aka Corporations) the right to use  unlimited funds to buy elections.

On this day, January 20, 2012, we find ourselves 291 days from the end of Campaign 2012 and 366 days from the inauguration of the President of the United States.

On January 20, 2013, Barack H. Obama will again be sworn in as President of the United States.

Ed Note: The bold print is fact. The italics are strictly musings.

We Become What We Think

This morning like most mornings idle thoughts crawl through my mind. The problem with idle thoughts is that they rarely lead anywhere since turning a thought into  constructive action is laborious. Wasn't it Buddha who said, "What we think, we become". That in itself is scary but it does lead me to conclude that idle thoughts can only lead to idleness. Which brings to mind another saying of Buddha : To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.

Obviously my idle thoughts have betrayed my ego. Where once I was diligent, I must now conclude that I'm foolish. I may be foolish but I'm not a fool. A fool would not have learned anything from his idle thoughts. This morning I learned a little or as Buddha said, "Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful". For that I am thankful.

There is one more idle thought that I can't resist sharing. Was Buddha the original tweeter?

 How foolish can one get? Stay tuned.

About Assassination

A nuclear scientist is assassinated in Iran. Another nation is suspected of the dirty work. This is not the first time, nor will it be the last time, that assassination has been resorted to in international disputes.

 The Iranian leaders may be bastards but is murdering Iranian citizens like so many pigeons at a shooting gallery the way to punish them? Does any nation have the right to use assassination as a tool to right a wrong or to get their way in a dispute?



Assassination has been with us since Cain offed Abel. It is a tool of religious zealots, drug dealers, political hacks, racketeers, the mentally deranged and for that matter anyone who feels their honor has been besmirched . No matter whose hands wields the instrument of death it is done so in the belief that the end justifies the means.

Society frowns upon the taking of a life and has laws which make the offense of taking a life punishable by incarceration and even death. Justice unfortunately is not always evenly applied but at the very least assassination and its first cousin, murder is frowned upon, discouraged and condemned.

Not so when the perpetrator is the covert agent of a sovereign nation. Assassinating the citizen of another sovereign nation in order to right a perceived wrong appears to be tolerated by society. It only becomes of concern when the event takes on political consequences too great to be ignored. If the answer of the offended party is to unleash its instruments of war thenthe price of society’s initial indifference is thousands and thousands of lives lost.

Assassination is a dangerous game. Those who play the game may think the end justifies the means but in the long run the end may very well be their end and that of those allied with them.

 The moral of this story is, watch your ass if your partner is an advocate of assassination.

Pity The Republicans

If  I were a Republican trying to make up my mind about the best candidate to oppose Barack Obama, I would find myself between a rock and a hard place. All the candidates suck. I would be damned if I did and damned if I didn't in attempting to make a choice. I'm not a Republican but I would like to share this sage advice with the Grand Old Party.  The GOP should rally behind Barack Obama. Why? Better the Devil you know than the Devil you don't. Of course this will never happen. Republicans will elect to stew in their own juices which smell to high Heaven . They certainly are in a pickle.

Front Row Seat

The other night as I sat in my living room enjoying a glass of wine and watching TV, I couldn't help but muse about the miraculous ability of modern day communications to transport world events into our homes in a vivid and almost real time basis . Here I was in afront row seat watching footage of Syrian citizens being viciously abused by other Syrian citizens dressed in military apparel ( I hesitate to call the latter soldiers). Coming to grips with witnessing horror while relaxing in a comfortable living room provides much food for thought.

 As I sipped my wine, I had a pang of guilt. Fellow humans being brutalized while I casually watched -it was incongrous. For a minute I likened myself to a spectator in the Coliseum watching gladiators mangle each other. I don't mean to imply that witnessing news clips of protests, beatings and wars should be avoided. On the contrary, we should watch and absorb the full meaning of what is going on with the intent of  taking some kind of action to deal with man's inhumanity to man. I'm afraid, however, that there is more of a chance of becoming so used to having a war or revolution in our living rooms, that we liken the chronicling of the events to a Hollywood blockbuster - when the "movie" is over its time to go back to life as usual.

 Fortunately there are those who use their front row seats as an opportunity to get involved in the politics of our country to make sure some Syrian is not watching men in military apparel maiming American citizens. To those I raise my glass in thanks.

Try to behave yourself 2012

So it's 2012. All I can read in the papers and on the Internet are poetic words about what a new year brings to us. I welcome the new year like I welcome all years. I've been around long enough, however, to dismiss all those glowing words about the promises of a new year. 2012 is what we will make of it and that will hardly be any different than what we made of the past new years. We will clumsily battle our way through the year making all the mistakes we have learned to make. The one lesson that we may have  learned is to roll with the punches. The punches will certainly be there but there is hope that they will glance off our bodies as we muddle through the year. We will frustratingly challenge 2012 it to live up to its promises and at the same time look forward  to  2013 and all its hopes for wonderful things to happen.