Sometimes, Youtube can be the greatest relief from politics.

 

 

HT: Steve Mccoy

Incase you haven't heard, the government is actually going to give you money to spend in hopes of boosting the economy.  Personally, I am kinda excited to get the check, but I cannot say I am sure about whether or not saving it is...well....ethical.  The government is giving me this check to spend, and while I do have things I don't mind spending money on, I could also just as easily save it and pad my retirement savings.  But I have to ask, is that really the best thing to do for the country?  The government is giving me money, and technically it is mine to do whatever I want with it, but wouldn't spending it be better than saving it for the sake of the country?  Did I really just say that?  Is the government really saying that we are giving you money because we want/expect you to spend it?  There is something really backwards about that philosophy.  If anything, shouldn't we all just save the money since we know times are getting tough for our country?  Shouldn't we pay a late bill or perhaps an extra mortgage payment?  I guess I just don't think the government really wants us to do that.  While those are good things in the long run, the stimulus package is for the short-term.  Spend money on goods and services so they economy can right itself and bring costs down and jobs up.  But can we actually sustain that given the current situation?  Isn't the market going to continually go south for a while?  Wouldn't we be better served letting it go down more so that we can implement the stimulus package with greater effect?  Suffice-to-say, I really believe our country is taking a fundamental turn in the way it views money.  

Consumerism makes all of these issues with money exacerbated to the point that there are no more right answers.  Our country relies so heavily on the business of making money on people borrowing money that we cannot imagine fixing the problem by questioning this assumption.  Capitalism, at least in America, relies so heavily on this method of economics that now we are seeing some of the long term effects.  What do we do when it is actually damaging the entire country to allow people to exact insane amounts of interest from borrowers?  Should we cancel their debt?  Well isn't the right of the lender to follow the contract to the letter?  Who can tell the lender "you must forgive some of this person's debt,"?  No one.  Why not?  Because anyone who had that authority, would have to ask themselves if they would be willing to do the same thing?  In America, we don't say that, but perhaps we know it so deeply that we cannot imagine questioning it.  Pray for our nation as we are navigating these waters of forgiveness and grace.  There will be no easy fix for our financial problems, and their will not be equality for all.  

If you really cannot wait to see what Bush is going to give you.  There is an Economic Stimulus Package Calculator online.

Cnn.com has a great little video explaining the breakdown of the cost of a gallon of gasoline.  Click the link below to watch.

Who Gets Your Gas Money?

Cnn.com recently posted a great video that is a microcosm of what is happening in Northeast Ohio.  A Johnson Rubber Factory recently closed in Middlefield, OH leaving 500 people on the street.  In one worker's words, "Northeast Ohio is a tough place to work, its a tough place to get a job right now."  Certainly, blue-collar jobs are not as prevalent as they used to be all across the country.  But Northeast Ohio is a region that was founded on those jobs.  Nicknamed, "The Rust Belt" cities all along the great lakes are no where near recovering from the jobs lost to cheaper labor over seas.  Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton won the state of Ohio without winning Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati.  How can she win a state primary without winning its three largest cities!?  Simply because many people believe that she is the answer to the job crisis and will fight the hardest for poor working class families.  Throughout Ohio, many factory jobs are the main draw to live in their cities.  Cleveland has an industrial wasteland of factories that housed thousands of blue-collar jobs which have now vanished pushing many people further away from Cleveland and other major cities to look for factory jobs in smaller more rural areas.  Note to John McCain and Barack Obama, if you want to win Ohio, figure out a plan to bring blue-collar jobs back to Ohio.  Good luck.

In you really don't think people's view on the Bible affects their candidacy, obviously you have missed the last two elections. Each time, the Bush campaign defeated two candidates who did not hold his view on the Bible. Clearly, in many voters many voters minds at least, this beliefs affects many other policy decisions as well, for better or worse. Here is a great example of how different candidates answer this question, "What do you believe about the Bible." P.S. In my opinion, 1) The guy who sent in the question scares me and I probably don't believe the bible like he does 2) At least Rudy was honest 3) Romney will have to answer this question again many times for his lack of answer

Commander: Citizens, extra troops help 'crush' al Qaeda in Iraq -- via CNN.com Though this topic is not often addressed, cnn.com finally followed up with it - What ever happened with that troop surge? It seemed that the press could not get enough of it when it was being debated in congress, but once it became put in place the follow up has been minimal. Army Col. Don Farris, commander of 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, told the Pentagon reporters via video link that the surge is one of the factors actually contributing to the improvement in the situation in Iraq.

Farris' Monday remarks echo a string of similar assertions made by U.S. and Iraqi military officials over recent weeks. The military officials say they are seeing signs of Sunni-Shiite reconciliation. At a press conference earlier Monday in Baghdad, Brig. Gen. Ed Cardon, deputy commander for support of Multi-National Division-Center, discussed a "definite period of progress" in his region on the southern Baghdad outskirts.

It should be painfully obvious by now that the troop surge is not the sole reason things are improving, but you have to admit, in an administration that never seems to have anything go the way it intended, for the most part, the surge has done what it intended; diminish violence allowing for the political, social, and economic reconciliation to occur. Who knew?

Cleveland Foreclosure Factors This article highlights some of the factors that contribute to the state of the housing market in Cleveland. Foreclosures=Crime This article highlights how the rising foreclosure rate has created a heaven for crime in Slavic Village.

MTV in the Middle East from cnn.com You have to wonder what this channel looks like. A less scandalous MTV for conservative middle eastern countries? Are you serious? This is going to seem over simplistic, but this is a big reason why the US is not appreciated in the middle east. Its not just that we TRY bring our form of government and its values, but we always drag along our capitalism as well. MTV just can't imagine the prospect of someone not wanting their kids to be mindlessly entertained and over-sexualized. Especially when there is money that can be made by all? Unfortunately, the middle eastern bottom line is not always the American dollar. Consider that the American dollar is increasing losing its value among some countries, and you can see why MTV is up against a brick wall. To top is off, if sex and money isn't enough...we will bring over our "real" American artists that are born another nationality to show we aren't the only country that likes this stuff. Right. While they may be well known in other countries, it is ultimately the West that pays them to be the stars they are.

The station launched at midnight Saturday, airing a pre-taped show featuring Grammy award-winning rapper and actor Ludacris, Senegalese-born soul superstar Akon, Lebanese rapper Karl Wolf and the Emirates underground hip-hop band Desert Heat.

In case you cannot tell, this makes me sick. What little respect I pretended to have for MTV is now gone.

Huckabee: He could be the "real deal"

I have highlighted this guy elsewhere on my blog. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee is making some buzz. According to this article by enfamous conservative Michael Medved, he took 18% of the straw vote at the Iowa Straw Poll and seems to be on the upswing. Particularly, he seems to be the first step in the right direction for the Republican Party which so desparately needs to return more to the middle from the far right position they currently portray. This quote is very helpful in understanding Huckabee's strengths in the upcoming elections. Its the bulk of the argument.

Social Justice, Environmentalism, and Your Local Church This post from the The Resurgence Website has links to two documents that I plan to study extensively. One is Oxford Declaration on Christian Faith and Economics and the other is Cornwall Declaration on Environmental Stewardship. By their titles, you can see they are tackling the issues related to the church's role in areas such as environmentalism and social justice. Obviously, these are areas the conservative Christian church has not particularly stood out in the last ten years (roughly the onset of "the religious right" or "moral majority") due to false expectations placed on the political system to accomplish the mission God gave to the church. These documents should serve as a starting point to continue fighting for these just causes, but give more of a biblical foundation and practice less aligned (at least in appearance) to the political system of the West.