The Washington Post: Tyler Cowen: ‘Tears in America’s Social Safety Net?’

Posted on September 16, 2013 by Erik Schneider

The Washington Post: Tears in America's Social Safety Net_Source:The Washington Post with a look at the American safety net.

“Author and economist Tyler Cowen speaks with host Nia-Malika Henderson about his new book, “Average Is Over,” America’s economy five years after the financial crash, and how the U.S. social safety net stands to evolve in the coming years.Watch the full segment with Cowen: Columbine principal: Focus on mental health…

From The Washington Post

What Tyler Cohen is basically saying is that today’s economy in America is here. That we’re always going to have low growth and stagnant wages, high poverty, high deficits, etc, that the Great Recession was simply too big to overcome. He’s also saying that there are things that we could do to address this and change it, but our politics and political system won’t allow for those changes to come.

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ABC News: This Week’s Roundtable: ‘Americans, Russians Work on Syrian Chemical Weapons Deal’

Posted on September 15, 2013 by Erik Schneider

ABC News: Americans, Russians Work on Syrian Chemical Weapons Deal_ 'This Week' Powerhouse RoundtableSource:ABC News talking about Syria.

“Rep. Justin Amash, Rep. Donna Edwards, Cokie Roberts, Matthew Dowd, and Paul Gigot.”

From ABC News

John Kerry and Sergei Lavrov saved the day for President Obama whose been very sloppy and not able to get the Congress, let alone the American people and Europe behind him.

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The White House: ‘Pursuing a Diplomatic Solution in Syria’

Posted on September 14, 2013 by Erik Schneider

The White House: Weekly Address: Pursuing a Diplomatic Solution in SyriaSource:The White House– President Barack H. Obama (Democrat, Illinois)

“President Obama follows up on his speech to the nation on Tuesday and describes the possibility for a diplomatic solution in Syria, partially because of the credible threat of U.S. military force.”

Source:The White House

As sloppy as this process has been, we simply do not get here without a real threat of military force against the Assad Regime in Syria. And as badly as President Obama has sold his policy on Syria and how unpopular it has been, the fact is President Bashar Al-Assad is taken it serious enough to know that he had to reach a peaceful agreement here, that involved him giving up those weapons, or we was going to get it with military strikes.

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Lamar Matic: NBA 1986- Eastern Conference 1st Round Game 1- Washington Wizards @ Philadelphia 76ers: 4th Quarter

Posted on September 14, 2013 by Erik Schneider

Lamar Matic: Bullets Score 18 Consecutive, Come Back and Win (1986 Playoffs)Source:Lamar Matic– The Wizards and 76ers from 1986,

Source:The Daily Press

“One of the greatest NBA comebacks ever. The Washington Bullets are down by 17 with 4 minutes left and seems like have lost the first playoffs game of 1986. However, veteran Dan Roundfield scoring on one end and Charles Barkley with Julius Erving choking on the other lets the Bullets get back in the game and win it with an impossible game winning three by Dudley Bradley. 1986 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs Round 1 Game 1.”

From Lamar Matic

Definitely one of the most surprising comeback victories of all-time and perhaps the best comeback in Bullets playoff history.

You come back from eighteen points with four minutes left in the game especially in a playoff game, you are getting a lot of breaks with the team with the lead falling asleep and thinking they’ve already won the game. Which is what the 76ers did, as well as the Bullets never giving up and coming up with a lot of great plays. Especially on defense, but scoring every time they had the ball.

When you have a big lead like this, all you really have to do is work the clock, don’t turn the ball over and hit your foul shots. You do all of those things and even if the other team scores every time they have the ball, they won’t have enough time to come all the way back. The 76ers failed to even do these basic fundamental things late in this game.

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The Economist: ‘The Rise of The Low-RollersThe Economist’

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Erik Schneider

8872f88d5cf03277545bde6aa23ff4e9Source:The Economist with a look at gambling.

“THE Las Vegas of the Far East” is how Sheldon Adelson, an American gambling magnate and boss of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, has long described Macau. A decade ago, when Sin City was king and the tiny Chinese territory was still a backwater, such a claim would have been laughably implausible. Today, it is an insult to Macau. Its casinos’ turnover last year, of $38 billion, was more than six times the Las Vegas strip’s takings. With vast numbers of Chinese consumers now finding they have the money to indulge their passion for gambling, Macau’s baccarat tables are busier than ever.

Though gambling has been legal for a century and a half in this former Portuguese territory, its casinos were typically small and seedy. Many moons ago our correspondent remarked to Stanley Ho, a tycoon who held a monopoly on gambling in Macau till 2002, on the large number of prostitutes in his casino. He replied dryly that he was shocked, shocked to hear of their presence…

From The Economist

Here’s a way for states and other governments to cut their deficits and not have to cut so much in public services: By legalizing, regulating and taxing gambling, rather than having taxes so high on everything else. While you are cutting education, law enforcement, infrastructure and other public services that you need government to do. And you also save money on your law enforcement in another way by not having to arrest and prosecute people for gambling their own money.

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The Onion: Anthony Weiner: ‘Announces Bid For Whatever’s Left’

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Erik Schneider

The Onion_ Anthony Weiner- ‘Announces Bid For Whatever’s Left’Source:The Onion– unemployed New York City career politician Anthony Weiner, desperate for work at taxpayers expense.

Source:The Daily Press

“Apple unveils a panicked man with no ideas, Bashar Al-Assad tries a tiny bit of sarin gas on himself to see what it’s like, and a billboard alerts commuters to the existence of a situational comedy starring stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld. It’s the week of September 13, 2013. For more breaking news:The Onion”

From The Onion

Too bad for Anthony Weiner, or can we call him Tony now: I mean seriously, why is The Weiner the only man in America that can’t go by a nickname? Does his sexting scandal really make his so much more special than anyone else?

Too bad his first name isn’t Richard and he’s not short, because Little Dick would’ve been the perfect nickname for him. I hear there are real job openings for real jobs out there in New York City and perhaps Tony should apply for one of them. Unless the job requires him to keep his pants on the whole time he is working. Perhaps Tony should look for a real job and get out of politics.

Apparently Tony Weiner is the only career politician/workaholic who can’t find a job. So that would be something that would make him special. If you saw The Onion report about the guy with the 42,000 jobs back in 2012, maybe that is why Tony can’t find one, because that workaholic has every job that was still available in New York City.

Being a workaholic without a job must be tough. That would be like a fish with no water and trying to learn how to swim. Or being an institutionalized prison inmate who has spent most of your life in prison and learning that every prison and jail in America is about to be closed. And you’ll be released on the outside as a result.

With Tony Weiner’s professional background and that the fact that he’s a Weiner, he shouldn’t have any real trouble finding work in New York City. Wait, Rudy Giuliani and Mike Bloomberg closed down most of the strip clubs in New York. So maybe Tony will support the nanny state less now since it is now costing him work that he’s qualified for. But he’s a former U.S. Representative and sexter, so he would be perfect in Washington, if he wants to come back. And he could get himself involved in sexy scandals there, without worrying about it costing him his job.

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The Washington Post: ‘Six Presidents Make The Case For Foreign Intervention’

Posted on September 12, 2013 by Erik Schneider

Washington Post_ Six Presidents Make The Case For Foreign InterventionSource:The Washington Post– Ronald W. Reagan (Republican, California) 40th President of the United States (1981-89)

“On In Play, Karen Tumulty revisits the key moments in which U.S. presidents have addressed the nation making a case for war or selling intervention in a foreign country.”

From The Washington Post

America has a history of intervening on wars in other countries and making mistakes there. Like in Korea in the 1950s and Vietnam in the 1960s and the 2003 War in Iraq. Which makes it harder for American presidents to intervene in other countries even when innocent people are being murdered by their own government’s. Like we are seeing in Congress right now when it comes to Syria. But America also has a history of intervening in places to protect the innocent that went successfully.

Like Europe during World War II, Iraq in 1990-91, the Balkans in the mid and late 1990s and Libya two years ago. Which is why when we do things like this it has to be limited to where we have clear interests, where the case can be made and where we can make a realistic and positive difference, you know the situation going in, you know what you would need to do to make a positive difference, you know what your capabilities are going in and what it will take to accomplish that mission successfully, and if you answer all of those questions positively that you know exactly what you’re doing and have a good plan and know you can pull it off successfully, then you make that call.

America should never intervene in other countries conflicts simply, because we don’t like the government there. Which is essentially what we did in 2003 in Iraq. Iraq didn’t even have the military to defend itself let alone threaten America or anyone else in the Middle East. They became a third world country with a third world military. Thanks to the 1991 Gulf War, all the economic sanctions and the weapons inspectors taking out their weapons.

America should only intervene to defend our own interests like defending an ally and when we can play a positive role. And also when we’re not by ourselves and have others that can help us.

You can also see this post on Blogger.

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VOA News: ‘Commemorations Held in Washington, New York, Pennsylvania on 9/11 Anniversary’

Posted on September 11, 2013 by Erik Schneider

VOA News_ ‘Commemorations Held in Washington, New York, Pennsylvania on 9_11 Anniversary’ _ FRS FreeStateSource:VOA News– President Barack H. Obama (Democrat, Illinois) speaking at a 9/11 memorial.

“Memorials are being held in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania to honor the victims of the September 11 terror attacks. VOA’s Jeff Custer reports on the twelfth anniversary of the attacks on the Pentagon, New York’s Twin Towers and United Airlines Flight 93.”

From VOA News

You would have to have Alzheimer’s or in a coma on 9/11, vacationing in a cave in Mongolia, to not know where you were when the 9/11 attacks on that horrible day in 2001.

To ever forget about that day or forget about the people were lost or killed that day, as well as the people who went out of their way to save as many people as they possibly could, or simply lack a heart not to be able to remember these great Americans that day, shouldn’t be possible. We saw how much Americans love America and their fellow Americans, on 9/11, 2001.

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President Barack Obama: Addresses The Nation On Syria

Posted on September 11, 2013 by Erik Schneider

The White House: President Obama Addresses the Nation on SyriaSource:The White House– President Barack H. Obama (Democrat, Illinois)

“President Barack Obama delivers remarks from the White House on Syria.”

Source:The White House

President Obama to have any shot at getting a Congressional resolution passed either by the House or Senate let alone get Congress as a whole to approve it, he has to make the case for why he needs the authority from Congress. Whether he has it on his own under the War Powers Act, or not, Which will hopefully not be a debate that we’ll have, but to get Congress to approve a military resolution on Congress so the United States Government is united behind a military resolution against Syria.

The President  had to make the case tonight on why Congress must approve this based on allowing murderous dictators to have weapons of mass destruction and be able to use them at all. Especially against their own people. What Bashar Al-Assad has done and eventually have those weapons able to be used against Americans in the future. Because we know that the Assad Regime is a state-sponsor of terrorism, they back groups in the Middle East that have hit Americans before. But also why dictators murdering their own people can not be allowed by the United States and the free world as a whole.

I believe President Obama did what he needed to do to get enough Congressional Democrats to back him in Congress. That he has a bipartisan majority in the Senate right now and enough Democrats to pass it.

Now what the President needs to do is further to make the case with House Republicans and be as straight up as possible with the House Republican Leadership and their members. But also to have their help to get the House Republican votes that he needs to get the Congressional resolution passed in the House.

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Associated Press: Mark Smith: ‘President Obama Seeks Syria Support On Capitol Hill’

Posted on September 10, 2013 by Erik Schneider

Associated Press: Barack Obama Seeks Syria Support on Capitol HillSource:Associated Press– U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, I believe testifying in front of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

“Preparing for a prime-time speech on Syria, President Obama is lobbying lawmakers to back military strikes as a way of forcing Bashar Assad to give up his chemical stockpile.”

Source:Associated Press

The fact is without a real threat for force against the Assad Regime, a negotiated deal is not possible. Because the threat of force is what has brought the Assad Regime to the negotiating table and a chance for Russia to save both President Obama and President Bashar Al-Assad from looking worst than they do.

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