We Choose to Go to The Moon, The President Kennedy Speech. Watch it.

With the final Shuttle launch today, I believe that Americans have lost their role as leaders and ending the shuttle without a clear direction for our space program is an example. Watch the Kennedy speech and listen to our President, as he defines the leadership role of the United States. He could have been talking about health care, manufacturing, new technology or new, efficient energy programs. The core point of John Kennedy's speech was the United States should be the leader in all areas, and the challenge in his time was space exploration. We should continue an energetic space program, not because it is easy, but because it is hard. He challenged his generation to grab the mantle of leadership, and I challenge my generation and future generations to move us forward in the same manner. Today we shy away from the most daunting obstacles, because they are difficult. We use the excuse that there is not enough money. There is not enough time. We don't have the expertise to overcome the problems. We have an excuse for everything. The truth is we lack the drive and commitment to tackle these challenges head on. We lack the political leadership from both parties. We lack the corporate community backing the drive forward. Mr. Kennedy inspired people around this country and around the world with his words at Rice University. Today I want to use those words to inspire a new group of Americans to lead America forward. To move us to the next difficult task to solve. Not because it is easy, but because it is hard.

President John F. Kennedy Space Race Moon Speech 1962

Exxon's Profits Are A Paultry $5 Million Dollars An Hour

Yes, that is right. Poor Exxon Oil is bearly making ends meet because they are only making five million dollars an hour in PROFITS! For those of us that are in the lap of luxury and making eight to ten dollars an hour (before taxes), we need to keep this in a proper perspective. The Democrats that are calling for the tax loop-holes to be closed, must understand that if we do this what will happen to the CEO of Exxon. He might have to consider bankruptcy just to make ends meet. The Republicans have it right. Exxon needs more tax credits, so they can keep this small business afloat. Let's think about some other examples of how greedy the American public has become. We are crying about the fact that after paying Social Security taxes and Medicaid and Medicare taxes for forty or fifty years, we have a right to see some of that money back in the form of benefits. What a bunch of whiners. We have to be willing to make the sacrifices instead of looking to close tax loop-holes. Yeah Eric Cantor, you go guy.  Get those corporations and elite. Wait what was that you said. You then want us to cut their tax rate, for a zero increase in revenue? I see your point Mr. Cantor. How can they give you a share of their profits if they have to pay taxes. That will seriously cut their $5 million dollars an hour in profit to maybe 4.95 million dollars an hour in profit. Listen to the average person complaining about the losses they have suffered in their 401K's and the values of their homes. How can we compare that to the sacrifices the poor corporations have faced? What's that you say. The corporations are sitting on trillions of dollars. Yeah that may well be, but if we make them pay more in taxes, they will suffer. Yesterday I saw an article about a hedge fund trader, that makes only $520 thousand dollars an hour. How can we sleep at night knowing that we asked that poor person to pay a little of that in taxes. He works hard. He takes other people's money and gambles with it. How is this any different then you taking your neighbor's money to Vegas with you and hoping to turn a profit. If you lose your friend's money so what. This guy has no skin of his own in the game and makes a tidy little amount of money to offset his problems. I also saw where some states are going to cut the school week from five to four days. Imagine the amount of money we will save on this. It makes more sense to do this then it would to charge General Electric (7.5% tax rate on billions of dollars in profit) more money. Now some naysayers will try and influence us, by stating that down the road we will have to pay more because our children will be less educated. They will say that we are falling further behind other countries in education and will struggle to compete with them in technology and industry because of the cuts. My response to them is simple. So what! It is all about today. How can we cut our budget and debt if we keep paying for useless items like education. How can the large corporations continue to hire more people if we make them pay more in taxes. Now some people will tell us that even though corporate welfare has been saving trillions of dollars for small businesses like Bank of America, they have been cutting jobs instead of creating more jobs. To this I say, give them time. They have only been getting these special tax breaks for fifty years. You cannot expect them to turn this around overnight. You see when you look at this issue, through unjaded eyes, it is quite clear I have been wrong and the Republicans have been right. The small businesses like CitiCorp are being used as a scapegoat. The job creators. The very businesses that can turn this economy around and give all of us good, high paying jobs. We need to get down on our hands and knees and thank God above for the companies like Exxon, that is generously, gouging us with higher gasoline prices. They are eking out profits and all we do is mock and complain. For my part I want to have my tax rate go up to 60% so we can protect the Exxon's of the world. God Bless the United States of America and God bless the United States of Corporations. As the great Governor of Florida would say, "Lets get to work". What do you mean there are no jobs. See, there you go being negative again.

Insanity has taken over the Republican Party

One of the definitions of insanity, is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Over the last forty plus years the Republican Party has fought to decrease taxes, especially for the wealthiest and corporations, while telling us, this would increase jobs and lead to a better economy and country. I have breaking news for the people that continue to support this B.S., it is NOT working the way they have said it would. The income for the top 1% has increased dramatically. The profits for the largest corporations have skyrocketed. CEO's make 400 times more then the average worker. The real tax rate , on average,  for corporations is not 36%, as the Republicans continue to tell us, it is closer to 18% after they get all of their corporate welfare write offs. Corporations ship jobs overseas and get tax breaks. They get to make profits in foreign countries and pay no taxes here. They pay workers incredibly low wages and bring the products back into the U.S. and charge us top dollar. Right now corporations are sitting on trillions of dollars and they are screaming for more tax breaks. Now let's look at the middle class Americans side. Our actual income has stagnated. We are making less and are told that our greed is creating the economic problems. They have asked or are asking us to pay more for our health care, Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, gasoline, energy use, groceries, utilities, electronics, automobiles, homes and every other product or service they can think of. WE ARE THE PROBLEM ACCORDING TO REPUBLICANS. Let me look at this once again. Forty years of the middle class having everything we pay for go up. Forty years of our wages going down. Forty years of the rich getting richer. Forty years of corporate profits going up. Forty years of complete B.S. and now they even want to blame us. I said in the beginning the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. What does that say about the sanity of the American people that keep electing Republicans and expecting a different result?

Casey Anthony, Not Guilty. We have to Accept this Fact.

I know what I am going to say is not going to be popular, but we have to face reality. Our system of jurisprudence may not be perfect, but it has served us for over two hundred years. If Ms. Anthony had been found guilty, the same people that are now beating up our legal system would be praising the way it works. Decisions by juries are not always popular and have been shown to be incorrect, however a trial by one's peers is essential to all of us. If you were accused of a crime, that you did not commit, would you want to be tried in the court of public opinion, or in the court of facts. This jury may have felt that Casey Anthony had some part in little Caylee's death, but the facts as presented by the prosecution, did not meet their level of,  beyond a shadow of doubt. We need to understand that to allow one criminal to slip through the system, though it is hard to swallow, is far better then to convict someone, that is innocent, with less then the full facts. I have my feeling and opinion on the case, but it is just that an opinion. The law states the process and we proceed through a case. Ms. Anthony has many undesirable qualities, but she has also been found innocent in this case. I am sure that over the next days and weeks, she will be subjected to intense scrutiny and probably threats on her well being. This is just as wrong as what happened to Caylee. As a parent and grandparent it is very hard to see this happen to a small child. We wish we could protect all children from experiencing what has happened to Caylee. Unfortunately we can't. The trial is over. Ms Anthony has been found innocent, and as much as we don't want to, we must accept the decision. God, does know the truth and if she did hurt that little girl, she will face that verdict at a later time. That will be his decision.

Happy Fourth Of July

To many today is a day off from work. A time to spend a day with friends and family, while we celebrate the beginning of America. It should also be a day to reflect and remember what this nation means to each American and to people all across the world. America, with all of its issues and problems is still the symbol of hope and freedom for everyone. We are a proud people. We are a believing people. We are a hopeful people. We are a forgiving people. We are a hard working people. We are a caring people. We have many special attributes, that may be shared by others, but what has made us special is that we would aways place America first. We need to get back to that. When we listen to the patriot music blaring across our nation today, as we watch the colorful explosions of fireworks today, as we get a lump in our throats and tears in our eyes, remember what it is to be American. Not Irish-American. Not African-American. Not Spanish-American. Just simply, American.  Yesterday I asked whether, America is worth saving. I asked what you were going to do, on your part to save America. Jon, from "The SOG City Oracle, blog", which I suggest you follow, (click on my profile and you will find it under blogs I follow) stated that he was going to vote in 2012. That is simply, the most important thing all of us can do. My suggestion is to take the time, like Jon does, and become informed about the politician and issues. I want to hear more. This is too important to let slip past us. Enjoy your day. Celebrate our freedom. Rejoice in the American Dream. Then tomorrow let us all pledge to becoming one people, under God, indivisible and lift America to the next summit in our history. God bless America.