"These state visits and dinners are a really important part of our nation's diplomacy. Throughout history, they've given U.S. presidents -- and the American people -- the opportunity to make important milestones in foreign relations. So these dinners and events are really critical to what we do internationally. And they've helped build stronger ties with nations as well as people around the world." --- First Lady Michelle Obama, Indian State Dinner Press Preview, November 24, 2009
"These state visits and dinners are a really important part of our nation's diplomacy. Throughout history, they've given U.S. presidents -- and the American people -- the opportunity to make important milestones in foreign relations. So these dinners and events are really critical to what we do internationally. And they've helped build stronger ties with nations as well as people around the world."
--- First Lady Michelle Obama, Indian State Dinner Press Preview, November 24, 2009
Throughout history partaking (eating) food has been associated with sharing experiences; in addition to obtaining intimacy and understanding i.e. psychological bonding. It is evident through the customs and practices of soceity many people believe this process still has merit today. For example, it is becoming more common for businesspersons to hold meetings with food available for consumption, there's even the new trend of conducting interviews during breakfast, lunch, dinner. An invitation to eat is considered an honor within many cultures, specifically the Asian cultures. African-American culture is rich in the tradition of food preparation for Sunday dinners. In general, Americans have deep-rooted tradition of food preparation for holiday, funeral, and wedding dinners.
In today's soceity more individuals and organizations are emphasizing the 'family table' i.e. encouraging people to eat their meals together as a family unit. Furthermore, the association between eating and the process of obtaining understanding is eveident through the scripture, "O' taste and see that the Lord, He is good." As a final point, the origin and celebratory nature of the concept of reunions, formerly called 'homecomings', focuses on the 'bonding' effect from eating together. It is not surprising then that food is an important part of any reunion celebration.
The partaking of food is an outward expression of learning about individuals and/or organizations. The partaking of food provides an opportunity to experience and learn about individuals and/or organizations. Personally, there's an opportunity to actually live the heartwarming message in the movie, 'Soul Food' i.e. learning and caring about the soul of people, individually and collectively.
State Dinners provide an opportunity to actually learn and care about the soul of a nation.
Enjoy! The photos of President Obama's first 100 Days are awesome.
Photo's taken by Callie Shell.http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1893255,00.html
From Govloop: Social Network for Government 2.0
Fact-Checking Obama on That Job Count
In President Barack Obama’s news conference on Wednesday night, he said the $787 billion economic stimulus bill has already created or saved over 150,000 jobs. We decided to find out how the president arrived at that figure. The simple answer: guesswork. It turns out the feds don’t have a way to measure exactly how many jobs have been created or saved, so they use projections instead, and it’s all rather academic. Read the full article.
HEADLINE: "Source: Liberal-leaning Justice Souter to Retire"
AP – FILE - In this Dec. 5, 2003 file photo, U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice David Souter By MARK SHERMAN and JENNIFER LOVEN, Associated Press Writers Mark Sherman And Jennifer Loven, Associated Press Writers
WASHINGTON – Justice David Souter is planning to retire after nearly two decades on the Supreme Court, but his departure is unlikely to change its conservative-liberal split.
President Barack Obama's first pick for the high court is likely to be a liberal-leaning nominee, much like Souter.
The White House has been told that Souter will retire in June, when the court finishes its work for the summer, a source familiar with his plans said Thursday night. The retirement is likely to take effect only once a successor is confirmed.
The source spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak for Souter.
Souter had no comment Thursday night, a Supreme Court spokeswoman said.
The vacancy could lead to another woman on the bench to join Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, currently the court's only female justice.
At 69, Souter is much younger than either Ginsburg, 76, or Justice John Paul Stevens, 89, the other two liberal justices whose names have been mentioned as possible retirees. Yet those justices have given no indication they intend to retire soon and Ginsburg said she plans to serve into her 80s, despite her recent surgery for pancreatic cancer.
Souter, a regular jogger, is thought to be in excellent health.
Interest groups immediately began gearing up.
"We're looking for President Obama to choose an eminently qualified candidate who is committed to the core constitutional values, who is committed to justice for all and not just a few," said Nan Aron, president of the liberal Alliance for Justice.
Some of the names that have been circulating include recently confirmed Solicitor General Elena Kagan; U.S. Appeals Court Judges Sonya Sotomayor, Kim McLane Wardlaw, Sandra Lea Lynch and Diane Pamela Wood; and Leah Ward Sears, chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court. Men who have been mentioned as potential nominees include Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, Harvard Law professor Cass Sunstein and U.S. District Judge Ruben Castillo of Chicago.
The Obama White House began from almost its first days in office preparing for the possibility of a retirement by thinking about and vetting potential high court nominees. Those efforts only accelerated with Ginsburg's cancer surgery.
The timing may have been unexpected, but Souter has long yearned for a life outside Washington.
He has never made any secret of his dislike for the capital, once telling acquaintances he had "the world's best job in the world's worst city." When the court finishes its work for the summer, he quickly departs for his beloved New Hampshire.
He has been on the court since 1990, when he was an obscure federal appeals court judge until President George H.W. Bush tapped him for the Supreme Court.
Bush White House aide John Sununu, the former conservative governor of New Hampshire, hailed his choice as a "home run." And early in his time in Washington, Souter was called a moderate conservative.
But he soon joined in a ruling reaffirming woman's right to an abortion, a decision from 1992 that remains still perhaps his most noted work on the court.
Souter became a reliable liberal vote on the court and was one of the four dissenters in the 2000 decision in Bush v. Gore that sealed the presidential election for George W. Bush.
Yet as Souter biographer Tinsley Yarbrough noted, "he doesn't take extreme positions." Indeed, in June, Souter sided with Exxon Mobil Corp. and broke with his liberal colleagues in slashing the punitive damages the company owed Alaskan victims of the Exxon Valdez oil spill.
Souter is the court's 105th justice, only its sixth bachelor. He works seven days a week through most of the court's October-to-July terms, a pace that he says leaves time for little else. He told an audience this year that he undergoes "an annual intellectual lobotomy" each fall.
Souter earned his bachelor's and law degrees from Harvard sandwiched around a stay at Oxford University as a Rhodes scholar.
He became New Hampshire's attorney general in 1976 and a state court judge two years later. By 1990, he was on the federal appeals court in Boston for only a few months when Bush picked him to replace Justice William Brennan on the Supreme Court.
National Public Radio first reported Souter's plans Thursday night.
From recent Blog entry....
MUST READ!!!
Are you tired of our site being attacked?By sduncan - Apr 29th, 2009 at 6:17 pm EDT
This is a crime THESE LINKS CONTAIN COMPUTER BUGS
REPORT THIS CRIME TO IC3 I did and you should also
http://www.ic3.gov/about/default.aspx
Welcome to IC3 The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C),and the Bureau of Justice Assistance(BJA). IC3's mission is to serve as a vehicle to receive, develop, and refer criminal complaintsregarding the rapidly expanding arena of cyber crime. The IC3 gives the victimsof cyber crime a convenient and easy-to-use reporting mechanism that alerts authoritiesof suspected criminal or civil violations. For law enforcement and regulatory agenciesat the federal, state, local and international level, IC3 provides a central referralmechanism for complaints involving Internet related crimes. read more >> Filing a Complaint with IC3 IC3 accepts online Internet crime complaints from either the person who believesthey were defrauded or from a third party to the complainant. We can best processyour complaint if we receive accurate and complete information from you. Therefore,we request that you provide the following information when filing a complaint: * Your name * Your mailing address * Your telephone number * The name, address, telephone number, and Web address, if available, of the individual or organization you believe defrauded you. * Specific details on how, why, and when you believe you were defrauded. * Any other relevant information you believe is necessary to support your complaint. File a Complaint >>
Spam With improved technology and world-wide Internet access, spam, or unsolicited bulk email, is now a widely used medium for committing traditional white collar crimes including financial institution fraud, credit card fraud, and identity theft, among others. It is usually considered unsolicited because the recipients have not opted to receive the email. Generally, this bulk email refers to multiple identical messages sent simultaneously. Those sending this spam are violating the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act, Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 1037. Spam can also act as the vehicle for accessing computers and servers without authorization and transmitting viruses and botnets. The subjects masterminding this Spam often provide hosting services and sell open proxy information, credit card information, and email lists illegally. If you believe you may have fallen victim to this type of scam and wish to report it, please file a complaint with us.
IC3 Mission Statement IC3's mission is to serve as a vehicle to receive, develop, and refer criminal complaintsregarding the rapidly expanding arena of cyber crime. The IC3 gives the victimsof cyber crime a convenient and easy-to-use reporting mechanism that alerts authoritiesof suspected criminal or civil violations. For law enforcement and regulatory agenciesat the federal, state, local, and international level, IC3 provides a central referralmechanism for complaints involving Internet related crimes.Significant and supplemental to partnering with law enforcement and regulatory agencies,it will remain a priority objective of the IC3 to establish effective allianceswith industry. Such alliances will enable the IC3 to leverage both intelligenceand subject matter expert resources, pivotal in identifying and in crafting an aggressive,proactive approach to combating cyber crime.
In the past I considered him to be a principled politician. His advocacy, along with Sen. Kennedy, for the Comprehensive Immigration Bill caught my attention and earned my support. Unlike Lieberman, it seems as though Specter's party-switch is not principled, but political and personal. The Democrats in general and President Obama in particular shouldn't boast too loudly.
Remember....
President Obama:
Beware of short-term thinking, mere tactical planning. Thus far, the problems your Adminstration have encountered have been the result of hyper-partisans in the Democrat party seeking short-term results. The short term results often were to debase the Republicans. Caveat: "The difference between a rut and a grave is the depth." In other words, the ditch that is dug for others may become the grave in which may bury oneself.
Thus far, I have not agreed with all your decisions (and didn't expect to) nor am I willing to rubber-stamp your ideas. ( I will not be part of the demagogue-like hysteria that characterized some media outlets & grassroots individuals/organizations) This was not the reason you receive my vote.
************
The 'Proverbial Report Card' (Overall: B+)
Message Discipline: C+ --- At times tend to be reactive, disjointed, and unclear/confusing.
Grassroots Network (Organizing for America): D --- Increase presence of spam on site, vitriol language as well. Corruption of your concept in community organizing and its purpose. Some people may be discouraged to even visit the site. already it has been expressed that emails from Democrat Party are not welcome specifically when soliciting donations due to increased spam. It shows lack of leadership of the site administrators. It undermines grassroot effectiveness.
Accessibility/Exposure: C- --- Need to guard against 'over-exposure'. The words and appearance of the President should command attention, not be 'too familar' or mundane. Need to guard against the appearance of campaigning instead of governing.
Style: C --- Need to balance between being 'natural', conversational and formal, authoritative. For the most part, the problem arises situationally. Introducing novelty while maintaining dignity of office has been good; should continue to exercise balance in this regard. See <Accessibility/Exposure>
Politics: C --- Need to guard against shift towards far-left idealogy/trying to please those who ascribed to the far-left idealogy. Danger of being tagged as knee-jerk liberal as well as encouraging a more polarizing political environment. (This is mistake of your predecessor) Remember: Balance and Process Matters.
Policy Formulation: A+ --- Great comprehensive approach to Nation's issues and concerns. See <Message Discipline>
Personnel: B --- Highly qualified individuals; Execution of their duties adequate --- often with lingering perception of incompetance.
Promises: B --- Given the complexity of the issues, this isn't so bad.
Transparency: A- --- Given the complexity of the issues, this isn't so bad.
Since President Obama launched his stimulus plan here in February, Elkhart has become a proving ground for his promise of economic recovery. But two months later, the unemployment rate remains at 20 percent, having tripled in less than a year. The first infrastructure project has yet to begin. And many residents doubt the stimulus will help. Signs of the crisis are everywhere. The line to file unemployment claims at the library stands 50 deep before it opens. The grocery store advertises Manwich on sale, 10 cans for $10. A new church has a Web site for the times: www.myspiritualstimulus.com. Read the full story at ProPublica. (Help ProPublica track the stimulus in your state. Making sense of our new - and ever changing - landscape requires piecing together your stories and observations neighborhood-by-neighborhood and state-by-state. Sign up, and we'll notify you of timely ways to contribute to our coverage.
In recognition of the Tea Parties that took place, I present the following...
The Tea Parties was so-o-o sophomoric and showcased the inadequacy --- the political correctedness and the lack of real critical thinking skills that permeates U.S. Educational System.
AIG Versus Greenberg: The War Intensifies
Posted: 02 Apr 2009 09:23 AM PDT
"Let me be clear: AIG's business model did not fail -- its management did."
Thus did Maurice "Hank" Greenberg end his written testimony (PDF) before today's congressional hearing into the AIG rescue.
There is now a full-blown public relations war between the ailing insurance giant and its founder and former CEO, Greenberg.
Greenberg was ousted in 2005, following investigations by then-New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. Since the first AIG bailout in September 2008, Greenberg has tried to cast himself as a potential sage and savior when it comes to the increasingly expensive question of what the federal government should do about the company.
Read more...
The following is the philosophy of Charles Schultz, the creator of the 'Peanuts' comic strip. You don't have to actually answer the questions. Just read straight through, and you'll get the point. 1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world. 2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners. 3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America. 4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize. 5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress. 6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners. How did you do? The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners . Here's another quiz. See how you do on this one: 1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school. 2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time. 3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile. 4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special. 5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.with . Easier? The lesson: The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.Pass this on to those people who have made a difference in your life. 'Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia.' (Charles Schultz) Aren't Friends and Family Great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!HAVE A GREEEAAAT WEEKEND!!!
The following is the philosophy of Charles Schultz, the creator of the 'Peanuts' comic strip. You don't have to actually answer the questions. Just read straight through, and you'll get the point.
1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.
2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.
3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America.
4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners.
How did you do? The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners .
Here's another quiz. See how you do on this one:
1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.
2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.
with .
Easier? The lesson: The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.
Pass this on to those people who have made a difference in your life. 'Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia.'
(Charles Schultz) Aren't Friends and Family Great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAVE A GREEEAAAT WEEKEND!!!
When you're out of work, volunteering isn't just about giving back to the community. It's also a way to keep your professional skills sharp, beef up your résumé and make new connections. AP Photo/Dinesh Ramde
By Tara Weiss
updated 1:27 p.m. ET, Sun., March. 1, 2009
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29434725/
Becky Groom always wanted to volunteer, but she had little time for it during her 19 years in business operations at Washington Mutual. Then she got laid off last year, and she started helping out at Habitat for Humanity's outlet store in Seattle.
The experience might have felt more fulfilling while she was still employed and eager to get away from her computer. Instead, it frustrated her, because it did nothing to forward her career and gave her no networking opportunities.
Now, she is in a new volunteer position, working pro bono as a project manager for a team of five professionals developing marketing materials for ElderHealth Northwest. She finds it an ideal situation: She's using her professional skills, making new contacts and learning about health care, one of the few fields where there's growth and hiring right now.
When you're out of work, volunteering isn't just about giving back to the community. It's also a way to keep your professional skills sharp, beef up your résumé and make new connections. The right volunteer job can help you get back in the workforce.
Groom found hers through the Taproot Foundation, which places people in assignments based on their professional experience. It operates in seven U.S. cities in a variety of fields, including finance, marketing and information technology. Its volunteers work in teams of five (they can do so remotely) for at least five hours a week, for periods of five months.
Groom wanted to parlay her finance background into a new career in health care, so she asked to work with a nonprofit in that sector. She has gotten to know the members of the board of ElderHealth Northwest and a number of health care executives. Her new colleagues have reviewed her resume and helped her tailor it for health care jobs, removing finance terms that aren't relevant. They've also gotten to see what a diligent worker she is and can recommend her for open positions.
That sort of thing is happening a lot, says Aaron Hurst, president of Taproot. "We've heard in the past that people were finding work from volunteering," says Hurst. "If someone has experience working with a colleague on a project, they'll be more likely to hire them because they already know them. It's like interning at a company."
Many unemployed Americans have already caught on. The Ronald McDonald House of New York has had a 10 percent increase in volunteers since this time last year; many say they were recently laid off. Applications to Taproot have increased a remarkable 171 percent, Hurst says. He attributes this partly to President Barack Obama's national call to service, but he knows it's also because of layoffs, since all applicants are asked why they're signing up.
The Ronald McDonald House of New York, which provides lodging for the families of hospitalized children, recently started making a computer lab available to its volunteers so they can network and look for paying jobs. They're also encouraged to volunteer at Wall Street Pink Slip Parties, which bring together recruiters and job seekers. When they do check-in or other work at the parties, Ronald McDonald House pays for their admission, which normally costs $20.
One way to find a volunteer job is through volunteermatch.org, a national organization that finds gigs based on your interests and geographical location. Another is Boardnetusa.org, which places people on the boards of nonprofits. You fill out a profile of your interests and professional skills; nonprofits then choose whether to interview you for their board positions.
"It's an excellent opportunity, as long as you're not doing it just to meet people," says Lynda Zakrzewski, national director of Boardnet. "The skills developed in being on a nonprofit board overlap the skills of leaders in corporate America —negotiation techniques, strategic formulation, recruiting talent, influencing."
As for Becky Groom, she's feeling a lot better about herself, even though she has been out of a job for a year. "This has really helped me feel more professional again," she says. "Having been out of work so long, I was starting to feel down and worried that I'd lose some of my skills. It's been a really good way to reengage and feel good about myself."
Yes, it is happening again. Reactionary responses to the public outrage at the malfeasances of Wall Street. The result is misplaced anger at hard-working Americans while little or no accountability for Wall Street.
Remember, Congress (members of both parties) were obsessed with ensuring that the Big 3 automakers would be held accountable for the bailout funds they received, but Congress actually provided legislative loopholes for Wall Street companies/executives. Hyper scrutiny for one group of bailout recipients and a 'wink-wink' at another group of bailout recipients? Umm...explaination is required by A.I.G (All the Idiots in Government).
Now, a GM executive is forced out of his leadership position. This is troubling on so-o-o many levels. Deal with the problem and stop directing outrage at scapegoats!
The Big 3 is just as important as A.I.G. whether a person wants to admit it or not. Furthermore, what about the hard-earned pensions and health benefits of millions of the retirees of the Big 3? Ah, it seems as though class warfare has resulted in the assasination of a key principle of American soceity...reaping due benefits for hard-work and service.
Ok, some young people may not care about the Big 3's fate or their present and past employees, but i admonished them to consider the precedents set today, a person lives according to them tomorrow. In other words, a person reaps what he/she sows.
It's time to really consider bringing change to Congress. It's time to vote out the hyper-partisans in BOTH PARTIES and strengthen the reasonable center/moderates. enough of the ego trips in BOTH PARTIES. It's time to vote for individuals who really have the interests of all Americans at heart, not individuals who are like the fox guarding the henhouse.
In this economy, a deal like this would be like investing in junk bonds.
Unlikely Team Pushes Line Item Veto Bill
Democratic Senator, GOP Representative Want To Give President Power To Strike Individual Items From Budgets
WASHINGTON, March 4, 2009
This Jan. 30, 2007 photo show Sen. Russ Feingold listening to congressional testimony. Feingold is joining Republican Rep, Paul Ryan in supporting new line item veto legislation. (AP Photo)
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/04/politics/100days/main4842840.shtml
(CBS/AP) Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold and Republican Rep. Paul Ryan are forming an unlikely partnership to push Congress to pass line item veto legislation. That would give President Barack Obama the power to strike individual items from budget bills. The lawmakers from Janesville, Wis., joined Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona on Wednesday to reintroduce the legislation. The Supreme Court struck down previous line item veto legislation in 1998, and subsequent efforts to pass it did not gain traction. Feingold, Ryan and McCain say their bill was tweaked to make it constitutional. They also say that a line item veto is an important way to cut wasteful spending as the country deals with a slumping economy and the president makes tough budget decisions. Feingold is one of a few Senate Democrats voicing opposition to a pending $410 billion catchall spending bill, unhappy with its cost and changes to U.S. policy toward Cuba. Most importantly, Democrats Evan Bayh and Feingold announced Wednesday that they are voting against the bill, and each urged President Barack Obama to veto it if it passes later this week. The White House has signaled that Mr. Obama will sign the bill - even though it contains almost 8,000 pet projects sought by lawmakers - calling the measure last year's business. "The omnibus debate is not merely a battle over last year's unfinished business, but the first indication of how we will shape our fiscal future," Bayh wrote in an opinion column in Wednesday's Wall Street Journal. "I'm going to vote against it," Feingold said. "The president should veto it." The measure contains budget increases, on average, of 8 percent for the domestic agencies it covers, far more than they received under the Bush administration. But moderate Democrats are unhappy with the additional spending, especially after many agencies received huge infusions of money under the just-enacted economic recovery bill. "It's become increasingly clear that most of our Democrat colleagues here in Congress - Senator Bayh notwithstanding - are perfectly comfortable with the breathtaking rate of spending we've been on since the beginning of the year," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, az Republican. "They want it to continue, without restraint and without any end in sight." At the same time, Democratic Sens. Robert Menendez and Bill Nelson are weighing whether to oppose the legislation over a provision buried in it that would moderate rules on travel to Cuba and would make it easier for Cuba to pay for imports of food and medicine. It is not clear whether the pockets of opposition are enough to sink the measure, which would fund 12 Cabinet departments and other agencies for the ongoing budget year. Democratic leaders hope to clear the bill - which passed the House last week - to meet a Friday deadline. That is when a stopgap funding law that keeps the government going, mostly at 2008 levels, runs out. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, is also trying to keep the bill free of floor amendments that would force the measure into negotiations with the House that would delay enactment.
Related
In-Depth
Budget Breakdown
A closer look at President Barack Obama's budget plan for 2010.
The following is from www.opencongress.org/blog
OpenCongress and the Fifty States
Posted: 27 Feb 2009 02:27 AM PST
A few months after the initial launch of OpenCongress, a crafty web developed, totally independent of PPF and Sunlight, made use our open source code to build a parallel site for the Massachusetts State Legislature. OpenMass, which was built by James Caralis, gave us hope that more sites like that would start popping up to help bring transparency to state governments across the country. But alas, none have been created since then, and a big reason is that, in most states, it is just too difficult to get legislative data that in accessible, machine processable formats from the legislatures.
Today, Sunlight Labs is launching the Fifty State Project, a crowd-sourcing initiative to create accessible databases of legislative information in every state. From the Sunlight Labs blog:
While no single developer has the time to volunteer writing a custom scraper for each state, the goal of having data for all fifty states is entirely attainable if we come together and share the workload. This is where you come in. We need your help databasing state legislation. To coordinate, we’ve set up project pages on the Sunlight Labs Wiki and github to share scraping utilities, data, and ideas. We also will be promoting the Fifty State Project at a series of “hackathons” that we’re hosting at various events around the country. The hope is that soon, we’ll have a standardized database and APIs to work from, putting the goal of “an Open Congress for all fifty states” within reach.
It's been a while since I posted an entry. Is it because of lack of opinion on recent events? No. Is it because I agreed with everything... our leaders' words or deeds? No. The reason for my silence is hopefully it would be an example for others that would encourage President Obama to continually govern...from principled position not public opinion position. Too often presidents may become too focus on receiving feedback from public (which is a good thing, for sure) and neglect decision-making based on personal principles. It's about Balance.
Pat Buchanan has said that Barack Obama is the most assured politician than has been previously known. Tis true. I don't want to be a part of the din (incessant public opinion) that only works to create a co-dependent leader.
Furthermore, President Obama is being treated like a commodity, a name brand not a person (Kudos to First Lady Michelle for speaking out against attempts to de-humanize Malia and 'Sasha) This is isn't anything new with first families or even public figures. Americans must realize that whether we may admire or detest our leaders, they are people. The President of the United States is more than a figurehead. Now, I know that no president can make these statements without people perceiving it as being arrogance or unreasonable. Some individuals may even see that such treatment goes with the territory of public service. It's not completely true.
Obama-mania must cease and reason must prevail. Contrary to public intentions, continuing such undisciplined expressions of admiration and support may result in long term adverse consequences. These are caveats.
So, I am speaking out in support of President Obama and his family with recognition that he and his family are just regular human beings. They will make mistakes and have similar foibles and desires as the rest of us.
Yes, I will continue to express my thoughts and opinions regarding his performance as leader and important issues that are being (needs to be) addressed. Often, the comments may seem very incisive and harsh, however there is absolutely no intent at disrespecting the man or the office in which he holds currently.
It's time for Balance...on the part of the public, including the media. It's part of becoming mature, more perfect. It's part of responsibility.
As I reflect on Abraham Lincoln and how he is revered by leaders of both political parties, I ask myself, "Why so much reverence? What is it about Lincoln that draws inspiration for our leaders?
In this blog entry, I would like to ask readers, 'What do you admire about Abraham Lincoln?"
I'll go first..."I admire his love of learning, not just for the sake of necessity but for just the sake of learning"
"With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds.... " ---Abraham Lincoln
