SARAH PALIN TODAY

Palin adds a makeup artist (additionally to the $150,000 for her clothes) to the list of monies that people's hard-earned contributions were not likely to have been intended. She is now wearing her hair down, looking less professional, but 'hotter' to most of the drooling males who do not distinguish what is necessary to a President. In this picture in the car, there is a plastic look to that toothy smile...which the eyes do not seem to match. It might be that the 'recent' picture was related to the deposition she was called on to make for three hours in St. Louis, Missouri or not.

Somehow, the Vogue cover makes her look even less Presidential. I can't imagine what the Founding Fathers might think of this candidate today. Considering that women didn't even have the vote when the Constitution was written.

What would they have thought of so much flesh exposed and the pure wanton, hair flying, breasts tantalizingly exposed look. Why do these recent pictures disturb me? Primarily because the focus she has brought onto herself is on her body and physical attributes, not a woman with brains and training to be a good President. Because she capitalizes on her greatest asset, her genuine physical and sexy beauty and persona, and since she has failed to verbally confirm that she understands the role of the Vice President or the Constitution, I can only hope that she has not destroyed candidacy for future women who may be qualified to serve as good Presidents. She has certainly made clear the value that the Republicans place on women...as long as they look good, they do not have to have brains, integrity, or be as qualified as any man might have to be in the same position. There is something radically wrong with that picture to me.

As she gave her deposition, I wondered how much time she is getting to spend with her pregnant daughter who, if at all like other young pregnant girls, might be needing a bit of maternal advice and support. Her own infant, born only last April, and who has been seen carried around like a sack of potatoes at speeches in the past, has not appeared on camera at anything I have watched recently. How much contact is she having with him? How many hours can there be in her day to govern Alaska, be made up for so many appearances, campaign, and be an effective parent.

Lest you question that I think a woman cannot have a family and be President, you would be mistaken. My question is more related to just how thin a parent can be spread and do the job required to fill the needs of her family. It does make me question her judgment to have had that last child, from choice, with her political ambitions. Being able to balance one's wants, personal obligations, and time is critical. Being Governor of sparsely populated Alaska might have been easy. She seems to have been able to do it mostly from home or with her family tagging along wherever she had to go. As President of the United States, I do not see the same luxury of time.
However, happily, it seems that all this is moot. If we can all surive for the next few days, Sarah Palin will be a thing of our past. She can go back to Alaska and work her charm there where it leaves the rest of the lower 48 untouched by her naivety and grandiosity.

SOMETIMES YOU ARE THE PIGEON AND SOMETIMES YOU ARE THE STATUE

Al Franken Is Leading in the Nastiest, Most Expensive Senate Race in the Country

By Alexander Zaitchik, AlterNet. Posted October 23, 2008.

Minnesota GOP senator Norm Coleman has engaged in McCain-style smear efforts against Franken, and is paying the price in the polls.

Has the world finally gotten sick of lies and dirty campaigning? What a great thought that is...seemingly to be working in a few places. Al Franken is bright, open, and views the world in a most critically interesting way. Check out the YouTube in the highlight to your left. There is even a YouTube of a debate Franken has with Ann Coulter. I do not link it here because i wouldn't really wish that caustic, condescending woman on anyone. If there are masochicts reading this, you can search for it on YouTube and i have no doubt you will find it.

MEANINGS ARE IN THE EARS OF THE BEHOLDER

Apparently I deeply offended someone today for telling him: "Don't forget, that to vote for other than these two is a statement made that no one will hear...save yourself a trip to the voting booth...." He misinterpreted my message into suggesting that he HAS to vote for the status quo when what I truly meant is that the vote, effort and statement he wanted to make would fall flat. I suggested that, after profuse apologies for seeming to disrespect him, that he is correct that politics are terrible.

My message was: "I am saddened that you clearly misunderstood my intent. You DO get heard on the Forum and your views are respected by me here. However, I truly believe that efforts should be made to change the two-party system, but it isn't going to happen by a few independent votes that the media will dismiss.

In this world, if you want to be heard, don't shout into the wind or preach to the choir. Yell where you will be heard.

I do not disrespect you. If I did, I wouldn't read your long posts. The truth is, you CAN vote for whomever you choose...you can even be proud of it. What I have to say is my own disappointed opinion of our system. Few people need agree with me nor share the disappointment. I'm sorry that you disrespect me for MY opinion. I don't disrespect you for yours...I simply believe it is a vote wasted and I am entitled to that belief as you are entitled to vote as you please. I believe the way of choosing a President for this country is crap...you can chide me for that opinion too, but it hasn't been changed by this election at all."

We have talked of making the candidates start and play on a level playing field. I do not admire the two-party system in the least. I believe it should be changed but I believe it can be changed more easily with more active attempts than passive voting as we are currently doing. Maybe because I have watched people making the same lost statement for as long as I can remember, I am less patient with that method. We need to change the way money is funneled into campaigns which prohibits third parties from reaching any sort of significant goal. If we can succeed at that, so candidates will start with a level playing field, it might work to rid us of the two party gridlock we have now. When campaigns disallow funding from corporations, special interests, lobbyists and unions, we will be better off. I would rather have money added to my taxes so that each candidate has the same amount of money to spend on the campaign, then we might have other worthy candidates able to run.

REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGNING:ANOTHER BULLY PULPIT

Just when we think politics can not get any more dirty, unfair, untrue, and disgraceful to the electoral process, it all happens to sink to a newer, more sewer level, at an even speedier rate than the previousrtate. The display of the McCain/Palin deliberate lies and character assassinations is worthy of being an outline for a new book, HOW TO BE A BULLY: written by John McCain and Sarah Palin. If anyone reading this knows any middle schoolers, the worst possible example is being set for them. It is an age when children have to be socialized out of their natural tendencies to be bullies (if they can get away with it). Children in those grades would be thrown out of school for behavior such as we see by the Republican candidates in the current negative campaigning. Is it surprising that the most religious and moralistically preaching of the candidates are the ones who are being the most un-Chiristian? Not only does Palin not know the Constitution but has apparently no notion that the Bible she has such faith in applies to her, as well.

The 'Uniters' are the most divisive in this instance. While they claim patriotism over their personal selfish goals of office, they are behaving in a most destructive way to their country by being such purveyors of intolerance, hate, and least adherence to the American values and the road to the American dream. We can only hope that the weak ones who have taken up their messages of violence and hate will not successfully act on these feelings so that someone is physically hurt.

John Cleese has written a "Letter to America" Unfortunately, the UK is not faring better economically than the US is. They would probably have to raise the tax on tea again. It is said than when Americans get distressed over their country, they threaten to move to Canada. "When Canadian white people do, they threaten to move to Europe. Europeans are unable to threaten to move anywhere." It is much easier to wait for Christmas than to wait for this campaign to end!!!

THE COUNTY FAIR OF 1910 IN 2008

Listening today to McCain and Palin at a rally, I want to buy a bottle of what they are selling because it will cure all my ills, prevent cancer, wipe my brow and all for $1.00 a bottle! What I have not heard is where the money is to come from if they raise noone's taxes, since they do not share their plan for how they plan to make a silk purse out of the Bush sow's ear. Palin smilingly says it is not negative campaigning to point out what the opponent is and does, neglecting to say that she is, of course, lying about him most of the time.

It is disgusting , the low these two have reached in trying to gain entrance to the most powerful positions in the country. That there are people who hear only their promises and enthusiasm and lack the ability to ask the questions of them as to exactly how they plan to fund it all, saddens me. So many people are non-thinkers. I guess that is why Barnum is credited to have said there is a sucker born every minute. Apparently, even that is a misquote. That he trafficked in freaks only adds to the comparison.

It is further frightening that, somehow, everything that is said can be twisted so that all positives from the Democrats become negatives to the Republican candidates. What very evil people McCain and Palin really are; how lacking in veracity and integrity; how they will forsake the good of their country in every way to further their own stretch to the goal of running the country their way! Apparently our country once had the wisdom to head in a better direction. Watching the TV ads, we see that the snake oil salesman have never been outed for what they are, they simply have infiltrated the government as well.

TAX THE RICH IS NOT THE ONLY REVENUE SOLUTION

It is distressing that panels of 'experts' are media people and not the people who actually do the jobs. On George Stephanoloulos today, the panel was made up of David Gurgen,
Donna Brazile, George Will, Tom Friedman, and Newt Gingrich. Listening to them talk today made clear they seemed limited to thinking the only way to raise revenue was to tax people. They felt that additionally to taxing the rich, all people should be taxed and could not see that taxing the poor is not necessary. There are so many other ways to augment the monies coming into the national coffers. It is beyond my comprehension that these discussions are limited to funds coming, seemingly, only from taxing 'the rich' as they hear Obama's plan. While we have so many of our companies with 'offshore' offices, we are losing taxes from people who essentially have American businesses and are escaping tax payments while this Administration has been taking those monies from the lives of the poor and middle class.

If talk shows were really thinking of the information they share, why would they not think to have people already in government and working on economics, already in the salt mines, or economists like Krugman (recent Novel prize winner), Ben Bernanke, discussing those issues? We have sales tax, fuel tax, phone tax, utility tax, luxury tax, and the list is interminable. It is possible to reduce the needs for income by a more efficient government crew and workers. Let ALL government workers do their jobs after they have proven they are equipped for them.

There seems to have been a certain blindness in this administration for not seeing that revenue was lost with every business that failed in the US, while encouraging many companies to leave the US and move their tax responsibilities away from the USA. We need more creativity and fairness in government. We need appointments made for only qualified people, not by political favor, nor nepotism.

Lastly, the whole taxing system needs to be rewritten and rethought. The Apocalypse will get to us before that is done, I believe. though it would seem someone might see the necessity as if has been spoken of for years..

GETTING READY FOR THE APOCALYPSE

The prediction allows for a bit less than four more years before we all go to oblivion, if one believes that is what the Apocalypse, as predicted, will be. It should actually be a relief because we will none of us have to go through a long, painful illness and will likely not know what hit us. We do not have to plan for our heirs because there will be none.

The thought of it is not unpleasant to me as I have always refused to worry about things over which I have no control. However, the thought has offered me yet another opportunity to evaluate my life and lifestyle. Having always been aware of the necessity to plan for future needs, I have been relatively frugal in my expenditures (though there are those who might argue the point; they being those that spend on at least one expensive vacation a year while I prefer to take that large sum and spend it on what will make me happy 365 days of the year).

It is unfathomable how the thought of oblivion can be frightening to anyone. As I have written before, it is not the thought of death that has ever made me uneasy...it is the thought of a painful, helpless process of dying that is noxious. However, after hearing that the Bible predicted that we would be controlled by the Chinese by now (though we are currently dangerously close to that prediction) it has not happened through threat of war and conquer. Being of a similar mind with Bill Maher who refuses to regard the sayings of people who believe in talking snakes, I see no way to prepare for the ultimate.

If I could count on the Apocalypse, for sure, being 2012, I would spend everything I have and live in relative luxury for the next three years. However, since there is no guarantee, I have to be cognizant of the longevity in my family (my father lived to be 107 1/2). I need to spread out what I've got to hold me through the long depression facing us. Oblivion will not let me regret that I died with money in the bank. Nor will it allow me to be sad over all the 'stuff' I had accumulated through the years, sentimental, artistic and some made by my own hands ,things handed down over generations, and all else that we material-minded hang onto.

Someday, beings from another world may find that there had once been life on the planet earth. Their archeologists will dig us up with what ever shards are left of our belongings and cluck over the primitive race we had been. Is there a master plan? Is there really a God behind all this. We will likely never know. Perhaps there will be nothing to dig up and they will hunt as we hunt for the lost continent of Atlantis...forever a mystery. If there was ever anything to make one feel insignificant, this is it!