Passing your piece of the American Dream puzzle

So what is the American Dream, anyway? Well, for everyone it's a little bit different - the substance of the dream, that is. The premise, and the only thing that is guaranteed, is simply the opportunity to pursue whatever it is that you want for your life. That is all the Dream really is. It's not a nice car, house, family, white picket fence, medium-sized short-haired dog, good health care, or good job. It's simply the opportunity to pursue any of the above, or whatever you may have your heart set on. So if the only thing guaranteed is the opportunity, is it then the responsibility of the government to provide the individual pieces of the American Dream puzzle to all? I would say not.

One candidate for President believes to the contrary, however. Not only does Barack Obama believe that the government should hold a person's hand their entire life, but he also is trying to provide for some by taking from others. If you have missed the whole "Joe the Plumber" issue, let me fill you in. Obama's plan is to give tax breaks to the lower and middle class while increasing taxes on those that make over $250,000 a year. For those that are having trouble doing the math, that simply means he's going to take money from those who have, for the most part, worked really hard to get where they are in life and give it away to the lower and middle classes, many of whom don't pay any taxes in the first place. Let me say straight off - I certainly don't want a tax cut, rebate, credit, or whatever, if the money is simply being taken from people who have worked hard and achieved success. Any middle-class person who accepts such a tax cut should be ashamed of themselves. I someday hope to be among those making more than $250,000, and if I do, I'll pay my fair share of taxes, as do most Americans. However, there is no reason that those who make more should pay a higher percentage. A flat percentage of $250,000 is already significantly more than the same percentage of $50,000. The wealthy already pay the majority of the taxes in this country, but apparently not enough in the opinion of Barack Obama.

On a separate note, Jack Hoogendyk completely owned Carl Levin in the U.S. Senatorial debate. Jack was well prepared and used the short amount of time he had to provide pointed and direct answers. Levin once again resorted to the blame game and directed all failures to the Bush administration, while even admitting that he secures a great deal of earmarks (reads wasteful spending) in the U.S. Senate. Levin has been a part of the problem and is certainly not part of any solution. He offered middle-of-the-road answers and failed to deliver any real proposals on how exactly he can make the life of Michiganders better. Jack made some common-sense proposals, such as making English the official language of government, educating people on health care rather than providing it for them, and redistributing education authority to those who actually know something about education. Levin is a joke, and should have been laughed out of the Senate a long time ago. Vote Hoogendyk for U.S. Senate on November 4.

A Couple of Beefs

So there are a couple of things I need to rant about tonight. First, why do people feel the need to be so economically illiterate all the time? Here's a simple little econ lesson for the likes of the average American who just doesn't get it: OPEC recently announced a slight drop in production of oil. OPEC, who is responsible for pumping 40% of the earth's oil, usually has a great deal of influence over oil prices because of their ability to regulate supply. So, you'd think that after their recent announcement oil prices would have risen at least a little bit. Not so. The good 'ole Saudis promised to drill more if necessary just to keep up the current supply. This turmoil from within OPEC and the Saudi's promise, along with the strengthening U.S. dollar actually caused oil prices to drop. It's been dropping steadily ever since it's all time high of just over $147/ bbl and now is right around $100/ bbl. So, even though there's about a two week lag to get oil refined into gasoline and actually to the consumer, you would think that all of this news, along with dropping oil prices would lower gas prices. Again, not so. Gas prices shot up dramatically today because of the speculation that Hurricane Ike will significantly impact our domestic oil production. Radio commentators and the news media are the ones instigating this fear. Consumers see or hear that "gas prices are bound to go up!" so they rush out to buy gas before the price goes skyrocketing to $6 a gallon (as I heard on the radio today - no joke). There were lines at gas stations all across town, backing up traffic and causing all sorts of problems. Here's the problem I have with this - these idiots are giving into the speculators and actually creating their own bed to lay in. What's that mean? It means that all of the people who rushed out to buy gas real quick before prices went "skyrocketing" are the ones who in fact caused the prices to rise. A substantial and furious rise in demand is always followed quickly by a sharp rise in price. It's econ 101. I got more and more mad every time I passed a gas station and saw a line. If people would do a little research rather than listening to the speculators, they would find that oil prices are indeed holding steady. The United States derives such a minuscule percentage of our domestic oil production from the Gulf of Mexico that even every single platform shutting down really doesn't affect our supply that much. Much of our oil (domestic that is) comes from the Black Hills and Alaska. Stop creating our own nightmare people!

Ok, next - Matt Damon, please shut your overpaid mouth. You're an actor, and one that I actually used to admire...that is, until I heard your pathetic excuse for political commentary today on CNN headline news. Some people in life are born to be professional athletes. Some are born to be construction workers and even some to be ditch-diggers. You, my friend, were born to be an actor. You've got a flair for the dramatic and pulled off being Jason Bourne better than I think anyone else could have. So please stick to what you're good at. Speaking about Sarah Palin's alleged "book banning" is not only out of your league, it's also completely false. Check your facts before you go on a big network and embarrass yourself. I almost felt bad for you. Almost.

That's it for now. Well, one more plug before I go - remember to vote November 4 for Jack Hoogendyk and McCain-Palin. Our rights, wallets, and sanity depend on it.

Carl Levin Doesn't Get It

So Carl's done it again...he's put out another YouTube video stating exactly why he should not be re-elected. For some reason, though, he continues trying to project his own personal failures onto President Bush and John McCain. He frames it in a way that I'm sure he thinks is pretty clever. He says that John McCain, President Bush, and the Republicans do have a lot of experience just as they say. However, the hypocrite fails to mention that the attacks he makes on the fore mentioned also apply to him.

First, he says that McCain and Bush are experienced in running up the national debt. So, Carl, you're saying that you're not partly responsible for this? What about the millions in earmarks you've secured? Are earmarks not a wasteful form of spending that increases the deficit? In the 2007 defense authorization bill, you secured $210 million in earmarks - the most of any senator in the country. Hillary Clinton was 2nd, securing $148 million in earmarks. And you're trying to call out McCain and Bush? The DEMOCRATIC controlled congress approved the budget resolution for 2008 which increased deficit spending to all time highs, and you're saying it's Bush and McCain's fault? I don't even know what to say to this...

Next, you talk about Bush and the Republicans being responsible for the loss of millions of manufacturing jobs. Did you forget that the largest number of manufacturing jobs were lost in YOUR state, in counties from which you receive your largest campaign contributions? Did you also forget that your state, from which all these manufacturing jobs are leaving has been controlled by democrats for about 6 years now (governor and both senators) and that Detroit is also controlled by democrats? It's the changing economy and the business environment YOU'VE helped create that is killing manufacturing, not President Bush and the Republicans.

Then, you referred to the privatization of social security as a "slot machine." Are you so afraid of educating people on how to save their own money because you think the government will be losing power or because the more educated people are the more they tend to vote Republican? Either way, your lack of faith in the American people makes me sick.

You say that the Republicans have championed NAFTA and cost the United States in terms of valuable trade and created a towering trade deficit. Has it been so long that you've forgotten who really championed NAFTA? Oh, I'll gladly remind you - it was Bill Clinton, and if you are still fuzzy on the facts, Clinton was a DEMOCRAT.

You finally go on to talk about how our country and billions of individuals abroad are aching for change. Well, you finally got something right - it's time for a change, and that includes electing someone to the senate who hasn't been there for the last 30 years and become so indebted to special interests and his own party that he's forgotten the true job description of a United States Senator. I know you're a little slow, so I'll help you out - that's YOU I'm talking about.

Carl, I'm sick of your hypocrisy, and I'm sick of you lying to the people of our great state. Our state may be down and out at the moment, but contrary to the lies you've been spewing, the fault lies on your shoulders. I hope you're proud of yourself, because I certainly am not.