While surfing the other day I came across the recent Quinnipiac national poll….there was much in there about Obama’s popularity, personal and policy, but the part that fascinated me was the question and answers on Afghanistan.

When asked if they, the people who answered, do you approve or disapprove of the Obama handling of Afghanistan…..38% approve, 49% disapprove…..then they were asked: do you think the US is doing the right thing in Afghanistan?…..45% is yes, 41% say no…..when asked if a democratic government in Afghanistan a worthwhile goal……34% yes, 56% no…..

But now the telling question that was asked:  do you think that the elimination of terrorists in operating in Afghanistan a worthwhile cause?……65% said yes and 29% said No…….

I will bet you are asking why is that a telling question, right?

To me it shows that the normal American is not paying attention to the situation in Afghanistan….why would I say that?

I believe that Al Qaeda, the terrorist organization that we originally went into Afghanistan, to get is now operating from the mountains of Pakistan…..the Taleban did not have anything to do with 9/11 other than letting AQ use some training facilities within their borders….the Taleban maybe a terrorist group, but it is against its own people and not an international one….

The original plan was to get terrorists but since the invasion of the country, we have been playing defense more than offense….why?…..the Taleban is fighting to rid their country of what they see as occupiers that threw them out of their position of power….they only want to return to the “ivory tower”….nothing else…..

Americans, with their answers show they do NOT have a grasp of the situation….only what they hear on FOX or MSNBC or CNN…..in other words, I return to one of my favorite things…..rational ignorance effect……(look it up…my page will help)

Inkwell Institute

Professor’s Classroom

Subject:  Political Theory/Government/American History

Now the question must be asked…..Why Federalism?

The Framers of the Constitution created a federal system with a national government strong enough to unify the states in their pursuit of common goals without completely robbing the states of their independence. If they had not done so, it is unlikely that the ratifying conventions in the several states would have approved the Constitution. Indeed, the inclusion of the federal principle in the Constitution was a critical factor in its ratification. The benefits of federalism, however, have reached far beyond the ratification debates.

Federalism contributes significantly to the protection of individual rights and liberties in this nation. While many of the opponents of the Constitution were fearful the national government would not respect the rights of the people, there have been several instances in which the national government has stepped in to stop the abuse of individual rights at the state level.

A noble sentiment, but unfortunately it has not done a very good job at protecting the people from abuses……..but that would depend on what we define as an abuse….it will be different in its meaning depending on what side of the political spectrum you stand….

But from the beginning it was more about property rights than the rights of the individual…..if it were all about protecting the people then the property would not have been slaves that they were concerned with…..that was a major problem because most of the people that favored federalism were slave owners and wanted the institution to continue.

Perhaps the most important contribution of federalism to this nation has been the experimentation and “policy borrowing” it has fostered. Because states are free to develop, among other things, their own educational, law enforcement and economic development policies, at any given time there are several different approaches being utilized in different states to address the same set of public policy problems. As the programs and policies implemented by states succeed or fail, other states can learn from them and adopt, or choose not to adopt, similar policies.

Given the ability of states to experiment with different approaches to the problems they face, former Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis called the states “laboratories of democracy.” In each of fifty “laboratories,” state policy makers can adopt “riskier” policies than a national policy maker would because when a program is implemented in only one state it can fail only in one state.

If only this was true….policy today is NOT made to help the people they are made to assure the continuance of the governing elite….

Another significant benefit of federalism is that it keeps many political leaders, the decisions they make and the implementation of public policy close to the people.  Federalism, with its multiple levels of government, keeps government much closer to the people than would otherwise be possible.

It is a real shame that above statement, while sounding like a good thing has been anything but good for the people of the different states.  What it has done is put the people second behind business interests and once that is done the premise of federalism being a concept that keeps the people close to government is nullified.

From time to time I try to lighten up the stuff to keep from going completely batshit….and in doing so I usually post of sex thingy…..oh well…today is NO different….

Do YOU need sex?

The short answer is you bet your ass you do…..but with that said….how can we tell if we are approaching critical mass?

First of all,  Times of India is reporting:

Practically, a non-existing sexual life causes a lot of reactions, more or less explicable, and in some extreme cases it can lead to severe physical and philological reactions: skin itches, irritations, anger etc. You could end up hurting the ones beside you, emotionally or even physically, because you did not “read” one of your body’s cries for help.

Once you fully and completely understand your body’s message: “I need sex!” it will be a lot easier for you to identify the time periods these unpleasant symptoms occur. If you manage to do this, you will also be able to prevent them. Of course, these intervals vary from person to person, and they are dependent to certain factors, such as age, sex, lifestyle, physical condition, pregnancy, menopause etc.

All in all, make sure you take some time and really analyze yourself and your body, your needs and your desires, and that way you will manage to understand the course of action you have to take so that everything returns on its’ right normal “path” again.

Oh crap!  But how can I know if there is a need?
Must-have-sex signals
- Excessive nervousness
- Long states of unjustified anxiety, migraines
- Permanent stress
- Lack of food appetite
- Lack of the need to sleep
- Contradictory feelings regarding certain persons
- Frequent sexual fantasies, especially during nighttime.

Check the list…check it twice……

Dammit!  I need to get laid!

There are some that see a conspiracy at every turn….fortunately I am not one of those pea brains….but there are some situations that beg to be defined as a conspiracy…….and this time it appears, at least to me, that there maybe a conspiracy developing…..The Tour du Palin…..The book tour…..the “Going Rogue” Express…..the continuing saga of one Sarah Palin…..

Then what would the conspiracy be?  The Mainstream Media has its reporters on the book signing route for “Going Rogue”……My question is……why are the networks devoting so much time and resource in covering a book signing?  It cannot be that it is subjective policy book…in fact there is little to no policy in the book, just opposition to everything Obama…..then why is it so damn important?

NBC has a well respected journalist, Andrea Mitchell, covering the first stop of the signing express……this is reporter that can get an interview from just about anyone in politics and yet she is covering some mindless book tour….and reporting that the Palin crowds are some sort of a phenom……crap they have gotten some local color to do that sort of thing…..but what do I know?

Okay Professor what is up?  Appears, at least to me, that the MSM is trying to install Palin as the face of the GOP….they are assisting Palin in keeping her face in the news…..she, Palin, has NO substance and has NO policy sense whatever….no where does she deserve the coverage she is getting……and she does not deserve the free PR for her book…….that is unless the MSM is attempting to make her the “voice” of the GOP and in doing so helping liberals in their campaigns in the future……

I told you that I see a conspiracy…….I maybe WRO……Wr……..W….. (heavy sigh)…….MISTAKEN……this maybe just that the media has nothing better to report but the person that gets her facts from a placement at IHOP……

I tried….I swear I try to avoid posting on the Palin Saga….since she has NO experience past sign checks in Wasilla….she should NOT have the air time or camera time that she is receiving……but every time I try to move on past the manure pile….something always drags me back into the toilet…..

OMG!  The circus that was the last presidential election was not enough…..now we have Ms. Palin is on her whirlwind book tour….and then there is this:

Sarah Palin has suggested Fox News firebrand Glenn Beck could be someone she’d consider as a running mate if she makes a bid for the White House in two years.

“I can envision a couple of different combinations, if ever I were to be in a position to really even seriously consider running for anything in the future, and I’m not there yet,” Palin told the conservative news agency Newsmax.

This is just too rich to ignore…..do you recall the Rev. Wright circus?  If so, can you imagine the field day people will have with the crap that Beck spreads?  If you think that Palin has NO experience at being an effective politician, then Beck should scare the crap out of you.

She carves the spotlight and will do what she can to remain in the glow of media scrutiny…..media bites on whatever she says and reports and such and then she gets even more air time…..but is there a solution to the Palin saga?  You betcha! (he said with a wink)……IGNORE HER!……she will go away…when you give her the air of respectability you keep the teabaggers (HA…cannot say that without the sexual snicker) in the forefront of the political battle…they are a fringe……and the media does everything they can to marginalize any fringe movement….that is except the Palin Theater…..

For the sake of America’s political future……IGNORE HER!

I decided that I had enough anal statements to have a good feild for the nominees and for my readers to pick the winner……but I was mistaken…..I have been given an early Christmas gift that I could not pass over for the anal statements….I just could not…as a matter of fact this one is semi-orgasmic……..

In any recent interview Bill was talking with Judge Andrew Napolitano about the decision to try the 9/11 dudes in New York City:

NAPOLITANO: ‘There was no declaration of war.’ O’REILLY: ‘All right, so, because there is no declaration of war, you say that any terror – and it fits the bill, right? Surely 9/11 fits the bill of a terrorist act…’ NAPOLITANO: ‘But it i not I who is saying it. It is the Constitution that is saying it.’ O’REILLY: ‘I don’t care about the Constitution.’ NAPOLITANO: ‘I do.’ O’REILLY: ‘The Constitution isn’t here. You’re here. Don’t be a pinhead.’

I find it amusing that O’Reilly actually called someone a “pinhead”…..that in itself would be a good anal-ocity nominee…..but that is NOT my Christmas gift!

After a year of calling everything that Obama and the admin is trying to do as unconstitutional….and after years of standing on the Constitution in opposition to anything Democratic…..he said…..wait for it!…….”I DO NOT CARE ABOUT THE CONSTITUTION”!

God, I love this stuff!

Thank you Bill O’Reilly!  You have made my holiday season…..the BEST gift ever!

Pres. Obama has had his hands full in the last month with the Afghan situation…..generals want more…they always want more…..the Repubs are all over him for not moving quickly…..and the media is out after a breaking story on the situation.  Will he send more troops?  Or what will be the mission?  Or what?

Pres. Obama said when interviewed in China about the possibility of leaks from his admin:

“For people to be releasing information during the course of deliberations, where we haven’t made final decisions yet, I think is not appropriate,” he said in Beijing during a nine-day trip to Asia.

Asked whether he was as angry about the matter as Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Obama replied: “I think I’m probably angrier.”

Asked whether he thought the leaks were a “firing offense,” he said: “Absolutely.”

We Americans have heard this type of bravado before…..it came from GW when asked about leaks in his admin…he said a similar statement……as usual it was false bravado….why?….when the name of a CIA operative was leaked to the press and it was proven to have come from his “inner” circle…..,NO one was fired because of that leak…the threat of a firing was BS…just a bit of political theater to impress the mindless few that thought he was being honest and assertive……gotcha!

The same will be true with Obama…it is all just political theater….false bravado…..and a lame promise that will most likely NOT happen……but say he does fire someone over a leak…that would be cool….but then I would ask:  where was that assertiveness when it was needed during health reform and the ensuing debate?  Maybe if he is going to thump his chest, he should have begun with the health debate…….Just a thought…..

This year is quickly coming to a close and the major battle has been the health reform issue…it is debatable that it will be solved before the end of the year….but for the sake of argument and this post….we will say that it is…..

But what will be the burning issues in the coming year?  In my opinion, it will be one of two, possibly both, immigration and energy…..most likely the biggest and loudest will be the energy issue…..and within the debate on energy the NEW evil will be the “cap and trade”……but what the Hell is “cap and trade”?

Good question, because there is probably NO one outside of the Washington debate that really knows what it isa….other than some BS about taxes and a rise in the power bills…..

Just thought I would give my readers a little heads up before they are bombarded with the crap being slung by both sides of the political spectrum….good luck…

The biggest sticking point on any energy bill will be “cap and trade”….thius from the EPA website:

The cap and automatic penalties for noncompliance ensure that the environmental goal is achieved and maintained.

• The cap provides market value and certainty.
• Trading and banking allow companies to choose compliance options.
• Trading and banking minimize costs through compliance flexibility.

The cap ensures that the reductions are achieved and maintained over time even as new power plants are built. The trading program gives power plants the flexibility to choose how they meet their target emission reductions, which minimizes compliance costs and lowers consumer electricity prices.

• EPA distributes allowances equal to the cap amount. (For example, in the Acid Rain Program each allowance authorizes one ton of emissions).
• Sources have flexibility to choose how to meet their limits – by reducing their own emissions or purchasing allowances from other sources.
• Sources measure and report emissions, and must have sufficient allowances to cover their emissions; significant automatic penalties apply for noncompliance.

• Near-perfect compliance – Compliance with the Acid Rain Program has been an unprecedented success (over 99%).
• Early reductions – Reductions in the early years of the program averaged 25% below allowable levels, resulting in early benefits to human health and the environment.
• Air quality improvement – Emission cuts resulted in air quality improvements over a broad area of the U.S. and significant reductions in acid rain.
• Cost savings – The Acid Rain Program cost 75% less than originally projected.
• Innovation – A monetary value for lower emissions creates the right incentives.
• Integrity – High accountability and transparency provide credibility.
• Support – The Acid Rain Program enjoys a high level of acceptance by environmental organizations and industry, and bipartisan Congressional support.

There you go sports fans….that is the official EPA stand on how cap and trade will work….now the Repubs will have a different point of view….

‘Cap-and-trade’ is code for increasing taxes, killing American jobs, and raising energy costs for consumers.  Middle-class families are struggling during this recession, and the last thing they need is even higher costs of living and weaker job security, which is exactly what ‘cap-and-trade’ would deliver.

The so-called “cap and trade” proposal amounts to a carbon tax, plain and simple.  The plan would cap emissions, such as carbon dioxide, and force companies to purchase “credits” from companies who use less energy to meet the governments’ emissions requirements.  House Republicans agree that we should work together to make real progress in promoting clean air, clean water, and a healthy environment, but “cap and trade” is not the answer.

What will it be tax or no tax?  Next year this debate should turn into yet another political circus of misinformation, lies and games…my question is what will be the vehicle for the silliness?

Daily Agitator

The right has been standing on the Constitution for decades especially where guns and abortion are concerned….they have used it to fight health reform….or to question the birth of a president….but these people,  and I use the term loosely…..only use the Constitution when it is for their case against an issue…otherwise they could care less about the document…..

For instance, the 2nd amendment freaks that are so concerned with gun ownership…anything that remotely sounds like gun control and the yells go out that the Constitution is being violated by those in favor of the control…..

Next, we come to the “tenthers”, those on the Right that use the 10th amendment to oppose anything from health care to ….well pick a topic…..the Constitution is the first thing that they point to and use it for all it is worth…

And then we have those MORONS that use the Constitution, Article 2, section 1, to oppose a duly elected president as Not being a natural born citizen….

All in all…the Right has used the document so many times that it loses some of its effect in any argument….

With all that said…you are wondering just what I am getting to as a conclusion to my bitch, right?

It all boils down to the moving and trials of the suspected “terrorists” in New York City.  There are many that are pissing and moaning about the move and the trials…most notably, America’s mayor, Guiliani.

“What the Obama administration is telling us loud and clear is that both in substance and reality, the War on Terror from their point of view is over,” Giuliani said. “(Mohammad) should be tried in a military tribunal. He is a war criminal. This is an act of war.”

His statement is nothing but a political game….he just wants his face kept in front of the cameras….this type of game playing should be a crime……no matter who plays it!

Just about everybody has an opinion on this story….mostly it is in opposition of these people standing trial in the US.  Most notable is FOX News, whose “news” people are jumping up and down in opposition….some even look like they are having a stroke….but there is a precedent for these trials!

REALLY!  I bet you are on the edge of your chairs to see what that precedent will be, right?

I am looking at this as a pure legal matter…we all know what we, individually,  believe about these people….so what is my precedent?

So simple!  The same document that is used to oppose issues…THE CONSTITUTION!

Amendment 6 – Right to Speedy Trial, Confrontation of Witnesses. Ratified 12/15/1791.

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.

See!  How tough was that?  A lot simpler than you thought, eh?  If all reps have a pocket copy of the US Constitution, then maybe they should read it…..before they open their mouths.  The scary part for me is that the American people buy into the BS of the Constitutionality of an issue…..why?  They have not read it either.

If you read the amendment….it does not stipulate that it applies to natural born citizens….it says ALL CRIMINAL PROSECUTIONS……..if the 2nd amendment should be followed as written, then so should the 6th.

I have said this on numerous posts….if you want to stand on the Constitution, then go all in or all out……either the Constitution applies to every issue or none…..there is no in between…..ALL IN OR ALL OUT!

I get email from people all over the country and this one came from a friend in New Mexico…..once I read it I knew I had to post it because a loyal reader of Info Ink…Quin of Quintessential Havoc (great thoughtful site….go to blogroll to visit) is from the UK and I wanted to hear his opinion on the idea…..since he and I have a difference of opinion on Afghanistan…his thoughts are always appreciated.

My emailer says that this piece is written by Jason Ditz:

The British Army’s new counter-insurgency field manual, the guidelines for the 9,000+ British soldiers fighting in Afghanistan, sets sights on a new strategy to fight the Taliban: overt bribery.

The guide advises British troops to buy off Taliban with “bags of gold” instead of fighting them. The commanders are also advised to negotiate with Taliban leaders, including those with “blood on their hands.” The guide advises that the Taliban pays its employees about $10 a day, a staggering amount compared to what Afghan security forces make. It doesn’t set out exactly how much British forces should bribe them, but says it should be enough that it will dissuade them from working for the Taliban

With Afghanistan one of the most corrupt nations on the planet, bribery is hardly a foreign concept that needs to be imported. Still, British forces are unlikely to have enough gold to throw at the insurgency to make it simply disappear into Afghanistan’s seedy background.

Personally, I think it would be cheaper in money and blood to do it this way….I understanbd that the US Military is doing this on a small scale right now….but it still only protects conveys to and from a certain area….and that it does not stop attacks on positions…just on the conveys….

Is this an answer or just a way to waste money?