Tag Archives: Congress

Stupid Politician Tricks

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Just what are the minimum requirements to be fit to serve in public office?  I really have to wonder these days.  Aside from the blatantly criminal behavior evidenced by the boys and girls serving up in Albany, NY that is…..those jerks have really brought the bar down low, and it just seems politicians are getting less intelligent.  Governors leaving office because of sex scandals, jump immediately to mind.  Shouldn’t one have their personal life in order before they dare presume to order our public lives?

Consider the national Congress and Senate shenanigans, during speeches and on the Sunday shows, and you could make a case for the decline of American politics indeed. Some of the most stupid, harebrained, and racist comments are not made by some loopy blogger in an obscure location; they’ve been uttered by those already holding public office, and usually seeking a higher office.  I even wonder if politicians should be tested for mental illness. Continue reading →

Save The Postal Service, Save American Jobs

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The United States Postal Service is the finest, most reliable postal service in the world  Everyone knows this, and the fact that we can send a letter to any place in the United States to any other place for forty-six cents is frankly amazing.  I appreciate the ease with which I can ship packages all over the country with a minimum of fuss or trouble, and the certainty that my numerous internet purchases will make it to my door safely.  The USPS workers are our friends and neighbors; it is and always will be a large part of the fabric of American life and business.  So why all the fighting over the state of the USPS on the House floor?

It seems some in the Conservative crowd have a vendetta against the post office that we all know and love.  And they have manufactured a crisis designed to destroy the post office.  Check this link out:   Congressman Finally Takes Action To Remove Needless Requirement Bankrupting The Postal Service | ThinkProgress.

Correct me if I am way off base, but aren’t we guaranteed a Postal Service in our Constitution?  And aren’t most retirees unlikely to live seventy five years past retiring, let alone all?  Why was the United States Postal Service saddled with that stupid rule rather than businesses in the private sector?  You can imagine the furor if Fedex or UPS were federally mandated to pre-fund seventy five years of health benefits?  Continue reading →

The Arctic National Wildlife Reserve (ANWR) Under Threat

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So, now we have drilling on another piece of protected land on the table? 

I don’t understand why this should be.  There is no shortage, and in fact, loosening up access to new places to drill wells has not resulted in lower fuel costs for Americans.  New Mexicans and all Americans would be absolutely right to fight this tooth and nail, so check out the petition site.  I have posted the dispatch from Tom Udall below.

Dear Cecelia,

When my father, Stewart Udall, was the Secretary of the Interior, he fought to protect ANWR. My uncle Mo was a huge supporter of protecting ANWR in Congress, too. I guess you could say that, for the Udalls, preserving ANWR is a family tradition.

The Arctic National Wildlife Reserve (ANWR) is one of the world’s most diverse ecosystems. But some in Congress want to destroy it.
Continue reading →

An End to DOMA Now

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The passage of the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996 was a gimme from President Bill Clinton and Congress to an increasingly panicked religious right portion of the conservative bases of both parties.  In my opinion, it was also a thank you for looking the other way and/or for forgiving the indiscretions of many of the more prominent players of the day.  Depending on how you look at it, it served a purpose at the time for certain members of Congress, and President Bill Clinton.

It’s no secret that I support marriage equality, as do most Americans my age and younger. Now in 2013, to know that the Supreme Court is finally questioning the constitutionality of the DOMA seems shamefully overdue.  As someone who’s been married and divorced Continue reading →

Cancel The Stupid Sequester

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Ok, if you are like me, you’ve read the news, and watched your favorite round table discussions on the sequester.  You’ve heard everything from panicked predictions of hardship to complete indifference.  Well, I have had just about enough of this, since it is not necessary at all.  Most people don’t need a doomsday deadline to get them to do their jobs, so why should the legislature?

Congress should just repeal sequestration and get back to work.

If I could communicate with them I would say this: GROW UP!!  Stop blaming each other, stop yakking at the news outlet cameras, and posturing in preparation for primary season.  Continue reading →

Sandy Survivors Still Homeless

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It’s been four months since the super storm.  And folks are still at loose ends or living in unhealthy conditions.  The elderly living in mold infested homes.  Kids getting sick from living without proper heat.  The delay of aid is unthinkable, the suffering of Americans exacerbated by politics and bureaucracy.

If you could, you would probably want to tell whoever is in charge of housing them to get the job done, wouldn’t you?

Sandy wrecked Far Rockaway's boardwalk, as well as the homes along the shore.

Sandy wrecked Far Rockaway’s boardwalk, as well as the homes along the shore.

Please follow the links and sign the petition in the email I pasted below.

Dear Cecelia,

Unbelievable. Four months after Hurricane Sandy devastated so many neighborhoods across New York City, over 2,000 hurricane victims are still homeless (I heard many of their stories during my run for City Council last month). These families want to move into permanent housing, but are being told that they don’t make enough to afford the “affordable” housing available.

Please help us push for safe, permanent housing for our New York neighbors in need.  Sign our petition calling on U.S. Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan to immediately issue disaster housing assistance vouchers to those displaced by Sandy.   Continue reading →

NRA vs Robin Kelly

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In the days following the President’s big speech outlining his intentions to do something to curb gun related murders, and after taking some time to think about who really wins and loses if any kind of changes in law really occurs, and then marveling at how crazy some folks get on both sides of gun control, I had a few questions plaguing me.

I decided to throw a few questions out there for consideration.

Such as:

  • How many Senators and Congress persons are in the NRA’s pocket?
  • When will we get a full time ATF head, and in fact, a more robust ATF?
  • How the heck did we get to the point that it is standard practice to run all legislation past an industry’s lobbyists for approval and notes, prior to nomination?
  • Why is a right to own an object more precious and sacred than protecting American lives?
  • Is the NRA objection to Universal background checks more to prevent a slowing in the growth of gun sales, rather than a defense of the second amendment?
  • What can the voter do against the NRA’s indisputable sway over Congress and the Senate? Continue reading →

Comical Gun News

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I’m ashamed to say that quite a bit of the information Jon discloses in the preceding video was news to me…  I just don’t think about guns because I don’t own any.   I don’t hunt, sport shoot, and even though I live in the big bag metro area, I haven’t yet wanted a gun for protection.   However, I was very naive about the mess gun control laws really are in.  But then, as I look back at the way the country has treated guns and the way we use them, it all comes clear.
WATCH THIS.

Continue reading →