A step in the right direction: Obama calls on world to combat nuclear weapons, climate change and economic crisis

Supporters of President Barack Obama, who feel as though change was just a mantra associated more with the ambitious president's campaign than his presidency, should begin to rest easy after the newly anointed president laid out a list of objectives intended at changing not only America, but the world, during his first address to the United Nations General Assembly.

While New York and the rest of the world has bare witness to some circus like antics from the world's most powerful dictators, terrorists and leaders since their arrival in the United States, which was highlighted earlier this week when Lybian dictator Mommar Gaddafi tried pitching a tent in Donald Trumps backyard (and more importantly the backyard of the victims of the 1989 UTA Flight 772 bombings, which Gaddafi funded), Obama has shinned on the world's stage, insisting that the interests of the world’s peoples are shared, more than at any point in human history, and the international community must embrace “a new era of engagement” to confront pressing challenges such as nuclear proliferation, climate change and economic crisis.

“The time has come for the world to move in a new direction. We must embrace a new era of engagement based on mutual interests and mutual respect, and our work must begin now,” Obama said.

In his speech to world leaders, Obama laid out "four pillars" that he expects will lead to a better future for the rest of the world. These new benchmarks include "nonproliferation and disarmament; the promotion of peace and security; the preservation of our planet; and a global economy that advances opportunity for all people.”

Obama said if we are to achieve these objectives then democracy and human rights are the key elements to success.

"Just as no country should be forced to accept the tyranny of another, no individual should have to accept the tyranny of their own government," Obama said.

Aside from the promotion of security, Obama's "four pillars" can be viewed as a new beginning for American foreign policy that was dominated over the past eight years by a unilateral effort to ensure the United States' security and prosperity, while leaving the rest of the world in the dark. Obama stood firm on his ideology which promotes a united front worldwide in order to work towards peace, ridding the world of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD's) and combating climate change - a drastic change from the views of the Bush Administration that included former U.S. Ambassador John Bolton, who didn't even believe the United Nations existed.

Obama's two biggest stands signaling America's new outlook on the world could most strongly be seen in his reassertion of his campaign promise to create a world free of nuclear weapons and his, and with it Americas, recognition that the world cannot "drag its feet" on the issue of climate change anymore.

“There will be no peace unless we take responsibility for the preservation of our planet,” Obama said. “Our efforts to end conflicts will be eclipsed by wars over refugees and resources. Development will be devastated by drought and famine. The world also faces the judgment of future generations by failing to act."

Obama called on foreign leaders, whose countries were most responsible for climate change during the 20th century, to be leaders on the issue, to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and educate third-world countries on the threats of global warming - a theory the Bush Administration dismissed as phony, even with the studies confirming climate change by the world's leading scientists and the EPA.

Obama also championed his mission to rid the world of nuclear weapons during the summit and achieved a major step in his fight for a world free of WMD's, while acting as chairman of the U.N. Security Council - making him only the second U.S. president to do so since the council was formed in 1946. In his inaugural day as chairman, Obama received a unanimous vote of 15-0 in favor of an initiative to end nuclear proliferation worldwide. He promised that the U.N. would uphold their end of the bargain by working with Russia to substantially reduce strategic warheads and launchers, and ratifying the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty that would permanently prohibit nuclear testing.

Obama also reaffirmed his interest in reaching peaceful agreements with Iran and North Korea over their pursuit of nuclear weapons, but stressed the two nation's must be held accountable for their pursuit of nuclear weapons if they failed to comply.

"The world must stand together to demonstrate that international law is not an empty promise, and that treaties will be enforced. We must insist that the future does not belong to fear,” Obama said.

Obama's first major showing in front of the world seems to have brought about a resounding shift in how America looks at the world in terms of foreign policy, and hopefully how the world looks at America. While Obama called for world leaders to step up to the plate to combat such issues as peace, WMD's and climate change, he also stood against the notion that America will continue to act alone in this world as it did during the Bush Administration.

"Those who used to chastise America for acting alone in the world cannot now stand by and wait for America to solve the world's problems alone," Obama said. "Now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges."

While many president's have touted the idea of world leaders working together over the years, Obama was able to do it in a way that said, "If we are going to fix the world, we need to work together once and for all or face the consequences." While in some ways he did sound like President Bush by not apologizing for America's unilateral actions to protect itself in the face of endangering the rest of the world, in many ways he did what all Americans should expect of him by showing strong leadership which we has often failed to show on such domestic issues as health care reform. While he failed to apologize for any of America's actions, Obama's message did have this humble appeal to it that more or less said, "if you don't act, America will fail too, because we alone cannot solve the problems of the world. "

The biggest difference between Bush and Obama's foreign policy that can most be seen, aside from his ambition to fight climate change and rid the world of WMD's, has to be his understanding that while he believes America to be supreme in the world, people in other countries also feel their nation's to be supreme. This type of respect, and ideology, is a drastic change from that of the Bush Administration, who for years acted alone and without any regard for the concerns of the rest of the world and its people when addressing its foreign policy.

While some might be quick to chastise the president over his failure to withdraw troops from Iraq earlier, or the additional troops he recently deployed to Afghanistan, we must realize that it took eight years to get into this mess, and it will take sometime to untangle the doings of the previous administration, while not losing sight of the fact that many innocent Iraqi's and Afgani's have now come to rely on America for security in this increasingly dangerous world. But one thing is for sure, we finally have a president that is willing to act like a leader on the world's stage instead of a bully - and that has to be a refreshing proposition to both Americans and the people of the world.

Obamania hits Capital Region - Local supporters tear gased amidst riot

It was a beautiful day outside for President Barack Obama's visit to Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, NY, on Monday. That was until an angry mob of the president's blood sucking supporters ruined what was supposed to be one of the most patriotic days in the history of a city known as the birthplace of Uncle Sam, all so a handful of Obamaniacs could get a glimpse of the man, who is more popular than Taylor Swift to his supporters and more despised than Kanye West to his opponents.

The scene outside was ugly as a group of crazed, left-wing nuts convened in front of William's Hall on the HVCC campus - the location where the president was scheduled to speak at 11:30 a.m - about an hour before the president's speech that was to cover technology, education and future job growth in the Capital Region.

Preparations for the president's visit had been in place since the weekend, when it was made known that there would be no tickets available to the public. I even failed to muster up a press pass from those filthy swine's over at HVCC, who failed to return my emails or calls. While what ensued is hard to blame event organizers for, it is also impossible to neglect giving the bastards who put this poorly crafted event together none of the blame at all, especially when they were well aware of what has happened in other towns and cities that barred the public from seeing the president.

Yes it was a sketchy scene from the beginning, and I should have known better than to head to the battlefield, but this journalist refused to allow such an event to transpire without any coverage - especially when it was taking place in my own backyard and knowing what type of hacks would be covering the event.

I arrived around 10:30 a.m. after walking 10 blocks to the front lines, where police had blocked off the only road into the college. It had been impossible to find a place to park and I eventually left my car in a traffic jam about two miles from the college along with other supporters who had done the same. As I approached the college I found police had blocked off the road leading to campus.

"So what's the score here?" I asked one officer who stood in front of the barricade. "Do you think it will be safe to even go near where the president is speaking?"

(No response)

"Don't worry man, I am not one of them," I whispered, pulling a cigarette out of my coat pocket and lighting it. "I am just journalist here on assignment to finally uncover the truth about what really happens at these events."

He continues to stare straight ahead - expressionless - but I can see the fear in his eyes and feel the nerves gripping his body to the point of paralysis. Just as I started to walk away I heard him say quietly, "Be careful in there. If things get to out of control I hear they are just going to start shooting people. The same thing happened at one of the president's speeches in California about a month back. The public was denied entry and people just went baserk. Police and secret service were forced to kill 12 people before the crowd finally dispersed. The public doesn’t know about any of this though, because the president's office is attempting to keep it a secret. They feel if people have to subdue their enthusiasm over him it might stop their momentum going into the next election. But those bastards deserved it. I saw the videos of what they did that day. Those people are mad, mad tell you."

I knew all too well the horrors of what the officer was speaking of. I was at Obama's inauguration, or the Chicago Riots times two as most of us who were in attendance have come to call it. The media had the event pinned as a peaceful affair, and were able to back up their stance by using images from one of Ronald Reagan's inaugurations to fool those at home watching the historical event unravel on TV. But I was there, I saw the horrors of the Obamaniacs with my own two eyes, and if I knew those images wouldn't haunt my dreams for the rest of my life I would relive that day for you, but I promised myself, and my psychiatrist, that I would never allow myself to conjure up the horrors of that day again.

I made my way through campus where I could feel the energy jolting through people as they frolicked to William's Hall hoping to catch a glimpse of the president. They seemed overjoyed to be in the same place as the president, but I knew that feeling would only last until they reached the Hall and were denied entry.

I had originally received word of the Obamaniacs presence at the event through an email that said they intended on meeting at a local grocery store across the street from the college about two hours prior to the event. They were asking people to design signs supporting the president and his policies. But don't let them fool you. For these are no ordinary signs, but rather decoys. You see the supporters bring the signs hoping not to draw attention to the shank-like weapon they have designed out of the wooden poles used to hold the signs up. They use their hands to shield the bladed shaft that they will use to fight off anyone attempting to stop them from entering and seeing the president speak.

I eventually arrived at the Hall to find hundreds, possibly even thousands of frantic Obamaniacs convened outside, holding their death signs high in the air, ready to attack anyone attempting to stop them from getting a glimpse of the president. Secret Service and local police in riot gear have created a barricade where some of the 450 special guests invited to attend the event were to enter through. As I approached the savage mob, I could tell they have become enraged by the sight of the lucky few who gained access to the event. I watched as attendees nervously filtered into the Hall, keeping their eyes keenly on the crowd that would love to stab anyone of them in the back with one of their wooden shanks to acquire their credentials.

While the attendees were well shielded from the Obamaniacs, they did not hesitate to scream obscenities and threats at the attendees. Some even offered up sexual favors from their wives in exchange for their right of entry. It is horrifying to think that these fiends would sell their own family for a glimpse of Obama.

There were a small number of anti-Obama supporters outside, but the few brave souls who had arrived were now realizing the inclinations of their visit as a group of Obamaniacs circled the demonstrators, yelling death threats and prodding them with their pro-Obama signs.

"You better hope I am not your bitch mothers, fucking doctor once universal health care is passed," One man screams in anger. "Cause if I am I will leave her to die, while I make sure you and your whole family is whisked away to some concentration camp where you will be sodomized for months on end until they decide to burn you alive!"

It was horrifying and words cannot even begin to describe the sinister look on the faces of these lunatics. I can't believe my own eyes or ears, for it seemed the hate in these people had grown even greater than what it had been in January. Worse yet there is nothing anyone can do to stop these fiends from harassing and possibly killing these men and women as they become more enraged and violent as fellow supporters passing by egg on the quivering demonstrators attackers.

Inside the president had taken the podium. His speech, which I would later see, was filled with hope for a region that was once a leader in manufacturing before companies began relocating from the area over the past two decades. He spoke about not only the importance of the United States becoming a leader in education, but more importantly, reinforced to the citizens of the Capital Region that there are talented workers living here. It was a broad ranging speech that touched upon the history and future growth of the region, and how it can be an example of what the U.S. will need to do in the future if it intends to create new jobs and continue to be a world leader in manufacturing.

"Troy, NY has bore the brunt of a changing economy," Obama eloquently said.

While the message inside was positive not only for our area, but our nation, outside the Obamaniacs had turned what should have been a joyful affair for the region into one of anger, fear and violence. All sorts of objects from cell phones to shoes filled the air as men, women and children of all races grew in anger just knowing the president was well into his speech inside. A man next to me even collapsed to the ground after a falling battery crushed his skull. I witnessed a group of children attack a elderly man holding an anti-Obamacare sign and an old woman get beat with her purse by a group of teenage girls, who did not appreciate her comparison of Obama to Hitler, Stalin, Hussein, Mussolini, bin Laden or King George III. I hurried to escape the area, trying to blend in with the Obamaniacs by shouting things like "Kill the pigs!" and "If I can't see him no one will!" as I nervously shuffled my way to the edge of the mob.

Gun shots rang out and a cloud of tear gas filled the air just before I reached the mob's edge. I hit the ground, quickly struggling to my feet to fight my way to safety in the midst of the frantic crowd that at this point was being met by the batons of the SWAT team, who had been called as back up in case of such a situation. I am bounced around the mob like a female porn star in a gang bang, punching one of the Obamaniacs in the head and knocking him to the ground after he had tried to throw me in front of one of the officers to shield him from his baton. The officer sees I am not one of them and spares bashing my head in with his baton, which I am grateful for. I finally reached the edge of the crowd and ran across campus to safety as Obamaniacs fled the scene all around me.

I later found out that the president was quickly rushed out after the speech, and attendees were secured inside the Hall while police dispersed the rest of the crowd. They told them that there had been a security breach by some gun-touting Republican, but not to be afraid.

After the dust settled I bravely made my way back to the war zone to find bodies strewn about the ground like rotting dead elephants after an attack by ivory poachers. The carnage is horrific as I vomited just at the sight of the brain matter that s the walkways leading up to the Hall. Although the violence was nothing like what I had witnessed in Washington on that cold day in January, it was equally as horrifying in nature. As quickly as I arrived back at the scene, I am shuffled away by secret service personnel just as I see a large black truck with government plates pull up and law enforcement officers begin loading bodies into the back of it.

Later that night when I turned on the news I can't say I was surprised to find that none of the local news stations or the national news stations like MSNBC, CNN or FOX for that matter had covered the horrific events that unfolded on the college campus during the president's speech. But I cannot in good conciseness, not even if it means my life, continue to neglect what is happening at these events. That is why I voted for John McCain, not because I agreed with any of his visions for America or his policies, but because if he had won you could be certain no one would have shown up to have seen him speak, much less an angry mob of star struck fans.

Let's just hope someone can talk some sense into these maniacs before it turns into a national catastrophe, which was narrowly avoided at President Obama's inauguration. If only the president, or other Democrats, who have influence over these blood sucking lunatics, would stand up and tell these bastards to stop their heinous actions before innocent people, or possibly even are president, gets killed!

Obama to visit Capital Region

Local news organizations throughout the Capital Region have confirmed that President Barack Obama will be stopping at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, NY, on Monday to discuss growing technology in the area and the new Global Foundries computer chip plant that is currently under construction at the Luther Forest Technology Campus in Malta.

Rumors had been swirling over the past week about a possible visit by President Obama to the Malta campus in order to discuss one of the few feel good stories concerning future job growth in an area of the country where unemployment rates threaten working families.

The project was green lighted earlier this year after three years of speculation and doubt over whether or not the company, Advanced Micro Devices, would actually build at the site - even after they were promised billions of dollars in tax incentives by State officials. But even with the incentives, Advanced Micro Devices, which was originally supposed to build at the site before it merged with an Adubi company, The Foundry, to form Global Foundries, was looking as though they would be lucky to stay in business for the next year let alone commit to building a multi-billion dollar computer chip plant in Malta. But alas company officials formed Global Foundries and committed to the region by purchasing 220-acres of land at the technology campus in order to build the $4.2 billion dollar facility.

The project is expected to create approximately 1,400 new manufacturing jobs, with an estimated payroll of more than $88 million. It is also expected that the project will create an additional 5,000 new, indirect jobs in the region, with an estimated payroll of $290 million per year.

Construction of the facility is expected to create approximately 1,600 new construction jobs, plus an additional 2,700 jobs that will be created due to future growth, so it is no wonder why with unemployment numbers continuing to rise, Obama is taking the time to visit the region to highlight this type of future growth to the rest of the nation.

Obama will arrive at Albany International Airport on Monday before heading to a global conference at the United Nations in New York City. The visit was originally intended to be held at the Luther Forest Campus, but has been moved to HVCC due to its close proximity to Albany Airport. Obama is expected to arrive at HVCC around 11 a.m. on Monday. If all goes well I should be there in person with a full report on what the President had to say later that day.

Kanye West, Joe Wilson, Serena Williams and Mad Tea Parties: Why is America so Angry?

It was supposed to be a new era of hope and change in America, but it seems less than a year after President Barack Obama's historic election all of that promise has faded and anger, hate and fear has been left standing in its place.

Not that we haven't seen this coming for sometime. Americans have been filled with hate and fear for years now, and with good reason, for over the past eight years we have been tricked into two unpopular wars, lived in fear over threats from terrorists, watched as our government failed our fellow countrymen during Hurricane Katrina and stood by and watched while our economy collapsed and politicians spent record amounts of tax payer dollars attempting to fix it. Yes all of this would be enough to bring any country to the brink of insanity, but Americans are starting to take it to new levels, both politically and socially.

The signs of this new found anger, which appears to be even more intense than that seen at any time during George W. Bush's presidency, seemed to show signs of hitting its tipping point this summer when outbursts at Town Hall meetings left America possibly even more divided than ever, not only on the issue of health care, but the issue of civility.

Before and since President Obama took office, conservatives and anti-Obama proponents have been lashing out at our leader in an alarming manner. At one event, 12 angry men even felt the need to brandish guns on their hips in broad day light at a rally in which Obama was speaking. Whether you are a Republican or a Democrat or even a gun owner you have to be pretty sick in the head to think that a group of guys openly displaying guns and carrying signs reading, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants," is a great representation of constitutional rights or that the men actually did so with good intentions - people don't feel the need to carry guns unless they feel the need to use them. I understand the "excuses" of why these people are so infuriated with Obama and his so called socialistic tendencies, but when will one of these nuts present an honest and sane reason for acting so enraged. I just don't understand protesting the second amendment at a health care debate that has nothing to do with gun laws - although this is not uncommon when Democrats are in office. It is also not uncommon for Democrats to get shot at as history shows.

It's hard to argue that a lot of this anger isn't a direct cause of racism towards our nation's first African American president. I think when the history of the era is written it will go down as one of the most racist periods in America since segregation. But what else could we expect as the Republicans continue to become more out of touch with today's voters, and with it, control of America's government. We knew they wouldn't just go down without a fight.

And Democrats can also rest easy knowing that Harry Truman was widely considered a socialist by his opponents when he tried to introduce universal health care to the country some 50 years ago. Today the word socialist being associated with Truman's name is like associating compassion with Osama bin Laden. I am also confident that in time this will hold true for Obama in time. And instead of being a socialist he will be a hero for having the strength and conviction to stand up to his opponents and pass a bill that makes health care a right instead of a privilege once and for all. Although I believe the reaction to his race will be the bigger story 50 years from now.

What might be even more alarming than the horrifying actions displayed by some on the right as of late, is the host of lies and misinformation that has been directly connected to this movement, its supporters and their actions. Most of what these people have been putting out there are blatant lies in an attempt to sabotage policies that most Americans want to see put in place. And don't get me wrong, most of these extremists are not real Republicans, they are the ones that have held their party and its ideas hostage since Bush took office. The party that used to stand for small government and high moral principals, is now responsible for expanding the federal government to its largest point in history and has its elected officials trying to blow other guys in airport bathroom stalls. These nuts on the far right are misleading weaker minded Americans into a bottom less pit of lies, hate and fear, just like they did for eight years during the Bush administration and will continue to do so until people and the media stop paying attention to them.

And don't get me wrong, Bush faced great anger and conspiracy theories from crazed liberals and other left-wing groups throughout his presidency as well - although even the average American was fed up with him by the end of his second term. He too was compared to Hitler, which is so not original on the liberals end and even less original on the Republicans end, but I don't recall guns being openly displayed at his rallies and in fact if I do recall Bush would not even allow people to ware anti-Bush t-shirts to his events. I also tend to believe Bush was given more of a chance by liberals and conservatives at the beginning of his first term, even in the wake of his controversial election victory.

But these dumb, inbred bastards on the right have taken lying and insanity to a whole new level since Obama took office. Another great example of how desperate these people are to stop anything liberal from being passed, is the rumors they are currently spreading to convince honest Americans that the Obama administration is planning death panels, internment camps run by the national guard and guillotines to behead sick Americans in order to harvest their organs and body parts. And the sick part is there are people that will actually believe this shit. I remember during last year's election I met a few people, who were actually Democrats, and they had been convinced that Obama was in fact a Muslim terrorist. But as Homer Simpson so famously said, "If TV said it, it must be true." The sad part is aside from these accusations being obvious, blatant lies, they are also fueling a new culture of anger and hate in America, both on the left and the right, in a time when we are trying to heal our country after eight years of devastating policy, adjust to a changing world and get used to seeing a new face in the White House.

At the heart of these lies that are threatening the American way of life, and the safety of our President, is the changing communications over the last decade that are driving these views and making Americans believe that fiction is indeed fact. The 24-hour news station (most notably FOX news), talk radio, bloggers (yes that includes myself) and the internet has destroyed print journalism and the accountability that accompanied it.

What scares me even more about this new movement is the total disregard for the truth, and instead more of an intrigue in conspiracy, which has spawned such radical groups as the "Birthers" and brought back the militia movement.

Radio talk show hosts like Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage, who you would think should be held to some level of accountability for what they say, if not by their listeners by their advertisers, just add more fuel to the fire. Savage, who obviously cares more about lining his pockets with money than doing what's best for America, recently compared Obama's health care plan to Adolf Hitler's extermination of the mentally incompetent and the disabled in Nazi Germany during the 1930s.

"But of course this can not happen here in America (speaking of Hitler's internment camps)...If your grandmother has Parkinsons or a child has Sarapalsy you can definitely understand that there will be discrimination against them. Of course it will not be discrimination in the sense that you know it to be discrimination, because it will be framed as social justice. Of course if you go and try to appeal to the government while they are euthanizing your child by not giving them the care that they need, you will be considered un-American by Nancy Pelosi and perhaps will be rounded up, and put in an internment camp for an interminable period of time. You see there are internment camps being planned. You may not understand it cause you didn't see it on CBS News, but I direct you to an article that came out on World Net Daily...now you say they are making it up, they are just scaring you, but it is an ad for national guardsmen to run internment camps!"

Of course this type of insanity is not unprecedented in American history. There has long been these movements of anger and fear driven by those trying to change the landscape of American politics. Most notably during the 1950s when junior Senator Joseph McCarthy started accusing President Truman and other honest Americans of being communists or communist sympathizers during a period that's now known as McCarthyism. These type of lies and paranoia that resulted as direct result of the Second Red Scare in America led to investigations and questioning of the accused before government and private panels.

I remember when I learned about McCarthyism in high school and then college, and how crazy, not only how my fellow classmates and I thought it was, but how even the presentation of the period was supposed to reflect this insane paranoia that was to be a lesson to all of us living in America at the time - even though one could understand the cause for concern over communism after World War II. It was something as teenagers and young adults that we chuckled at as the naivety of the era, and what we perceived to be a less-developed society than we felt existed in our time. But today McCarthyism is starting to look tame in the wake of suspicions over death panels and concentration camps that will turn us into socialists or communists or Nazi's or whatever the popular word of the day may be for the nuts who are promoting it.

We should of saw all of this coming though. During last year's presidential election, the nutty-Congresswoman from Minnesota, Michelle Buchman, told MSNBC news anchor, Chris Matthews, that she suspected President Obama and other Congressman of having anti-American tendencies.

"I think the American people should take a great look at the views of the people in Congress to see if they are pro-America or anti-America. I think the people would love to see an expose like that." Bachmann said at the time. A statement that almost cost her reelection and with good reason.

It is one thing for some right-wing radio talk show host who is playing to his audience to accuse a Democratic candidate/U.S. Senator of being un-American, but it is another thing when it comes from a U.S. Congresswoman. Even worse yet the delusional Bachmann tried to claim that she never said such a thing even after they played the remarks back for her. How about we do an expose on whether or not Michelle Bachmann is anti-American or not. Or would that be just crossing the line?

Of course Bachmann is not the only one who has used the anti-American card as of late. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi used the term "un-American" to describe some of the protesters at Town Hall meetings. While I don't agree with calling anyone that loves their country no-matter what their political views un-American, there is a difference between what Pelosi and Bachmann said and meant. Bachmann was trying to characterize a political candidate and possibly a whole political party as being un-American for not agreeing with her views. Pelosi on the other hand was referring to the actions of extreme right protesters to obstruct meaningful conversation and the threatening manner they used to treat their fellow Americans who had differing views at the Town Hall meetings.

Liberals are also not completely innocent in this conspiracy non-sense though. During the Bush administration many extreme liberals accused the government of all types of conspiracies, including their own involvement in the attacks of 9/11 that allowed them to create the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to help oil companies take over the world's oil supply. While President Bush's intentions, which we now know included using weapons of mass destruction to create the war in Iraq, were not always necessarily out of good at least he was given the opportunity to follow through with his vision of America, good or bad.

During those years America was angry and fearful on both sides, but what always intrigued me the most was that it appeared conservatives, or supporters of Bush's policies, who had gotten what they wanted, were always more angry, fearful and hateful on the outside than the average liberal was. Not that liberals weren't fearful, and they did in fact spread some haneous lies that could have lead to an equal amount of fear and paranoia among Americans over President Bush, but at least liberals were for the most part willing to give Bush the opportunity to screw up, these people won't even give President Obama the RESPECT he deserves to dig his own political grave - if that is to be the case.

This fear is not uncommon though and it usually spawns from periods when our government has attempted to expand its power. Most notably we saw this during the Bush administration when it instituted such bills as the Patriot Act, which gave them the right to spy on Americans and wiretap peoples phones without a warrant. Obama has also been reluctant to do away with some of the Bush era policies, including the allowance of government officials to search laptops and cell phones of Americans returning from overseas.

But aside from all of the opposition what I think we have started to lose most in America is our sense of RESPECT and DECENCY for our fellow man. From Kanye West interrupting teenage country phenom Taylor Swift on stage at the VMA's to Serena Williams losing her cool on a line judge at the U.S. Open to Joe Wilson thinking he has some historical right to disrespect, not only President Obama, but the office of the President of the United States, during a joint session of Congress, are just a few examples of the lack of respect we have for each other and our beliefs in today's America.

It's great that we have differing views on all of these issues to make sure that no one party's agenda displaces other Americans views. Hell I even believe there should be more than two major parties pressuring one another, but that is just not the reality of the political system we live in. However, I have a major problem when protests turn into violent mobs, and I am not necessarily talking about physical assaults, but verbal assaults on other Americans trying to exercise their First Amendment right in a peaceful manner. And I have an even bigger problem with people who feel they can intentionally lie to fool other people into believing they are right.

During the 1960s America faced a social uprising that ended in shaping our society into what it is today. While there was more violence at that time than hopefully we can even begin to imagine today, at least our country was stable economically. Whereas today we face many of the same problems the depression of the 1930s brought on, coupled with the social angst of the 1960s. And if we intend to get out of this era with no one hurt, with a better America, we will need to stop the angry bickering and sit down to work together to ensure all of our visions can melt into one. But I believe this starts with the truth and ends with conservatives realizing that they had their time, they had their moment to live in an America that served their ideology and they failed. Not that they need to roll over for every policy President Obama tries to pass, but it also means you don't boycott every law either. It is also time to give President Obama and the Democrats the RESPECT, yes I am talking to you Joe Wilson, they deserve to make sure America prospers not only during his term(s), but for future generations of Americans. Otherwise our children's children will be looking back at this era in American history with the same disdain as today's generations now look at McCarthyism.

Still searching for bin Laden after all these years

It has been eight years since Osama bin Laden's band of terrorists executed the largest and most deadly attack ever assembled on American soil. While our government has taken significant strides in making sure such an attack will never happen again, the face of bin Laden continues to haunt the families of the victims and citizens of this country while he strolls free somewhere in the world.

Although our intelligence agencies failed us on Sept. 11. 2001, the bigger failure, aside from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, has been our government's inability to bring bin Laden and his partner, Ayman al-Zawahri, to justice.

In many ways our government has been successful at weakening the al-Qaeda network since 9/11, not to mention it has avoided another attack. Also a recent PEW Global Attitudes poll in Pakistan showed that support for the terrorist group has fallen to 9 percent, which boggles my mind, not necessarily as an American, but as a human being.

While we have shown progress in the war on terror, we have unfortunately failed to find its poster boy, bin Laden, who changed the way all Americans look at the world and our country on that tragic day. Since then he has stood as a symbol for many policy and social issues in America, including an excuse for why we should occupy such nations as Iraq and Afghanistan and political gain by politicians who used his image and ideology to strike fear in voters.

Today, bin Laden has become this sort of cultural villain in America much like Hitler did before him. His name and face grace merchandise and appear in comedy skits, and once a year when a "new" video of the mass murderer surfaces, many of us shudder in fear over the fact that he still lurks out there somewhere in the deep, dark depths of our planet.

9/11 is probably the one day, the one moment, the one event in my generation's short existence on this earth that we can say, "I remember where I was when..." Every generation has that day, maybe numerous days, where a tragic event holds a significant impact on not only the people involved, but a nation as a whole - that day for my generation and many others is 9/11.

While we will never forget 9/11 or the lives lost in our minds or our hearts, justice will never truly be served until we hunt down bin Laden and make him an example to terrorists, and our citizens, that if you attack us we will search for you, we will find you and we will kill you. Let's hope by next year's anniversary we are doing just that.

"You lie!" Mr. President

It has been a long time since President Barack Obama looked like the inspirational candidate that stole America's hearts and eventually their vote during last year's presidential election, but in the mouth of a storm that could have put an end to health care reform and potentially his presidency, the young president rose up Wednesday to give one of his best and most empowering speeches since taking office.

And no the speech I am talking about is not the cutesy little, "School is cool!" speech that he delivered to children across the country earlier in the week, but a clear, passionate and forceful speech that turned the president into a leader instead of a cheerleader on the issue of health care for the first time since the heated debate began three months ago.

Not only did he move us emotionally with anecdotes of people losing their battles with diseases like cancer and leukemia due to being dropped by their insurance companies in the midst of the fight to save their lives, but he was also able to make it clear, to the average American, what this whole health care reform thingy actually means for all of us. Heck he even promised to make sure all rich people get adequate health care without it costing them a dime! Now if that doesn't arouse Republicans I don't know what will.

Obama's tone and presence even felt presidential, possibly for the first time since he took office. Not that this stopped South Carolina Congressman Joe Wilson from forgetting his Southern manners when he blurted out, "You lie!" while the President was attempting to debunk some of the pigeon brain lies that Republicans have been trying to sell week minded Americans on since the debate began. The remark was luckily not made over the supposed death panels, which would have made this disposable congressman look like even more of an idiot, but rather it was over Obama's assertion that illegal immigrants, Mexicans to the Republicans, will not be provided with free health care.

Oh no! I don't want to pay for Pedro, who already took my job, to get health care. How in the heavens will we stop Pedro from getting health care and then taking over our country if we intend to provide all hard working Americans, young or old, rich or poor, regardless of color, health care.

Well it is really quite simple Senor Wilson, you force people, just like in Medicare and Medicaid, to prove they are American citizens. Of course if you are a "Birther" I guess you already believe this will be easy, since your president, who according to Birthers was born in Kenya, was able to falsify documents to fool the federal government into letting him run for president, so how hard could it be for any other illegal immigrant to fool insurance companies into providing them with health care. If you are a sane American, like I believe most of us to be, you realize that since you have been asked to show proof of citizenship your whole life for jobs, school and heck even activities like little league, why would this be any different when it comes to health care.

Of course, Joe "You lie" Wilson was not the only idiot in the crowd. A number of other Republicans, or should we just start referring to them as idiots or pig f#%kers, what ever you prefer, held up stacks of paper that "supposedly" represented ideas they had for the bill. I know, I know, I thought it was funny too that Republicans actually thought they had an original idea, but it is nice to let them fantasize about such things - it makes them feel all grown up.

Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas also made a little protest of his own by holding up a sign that read "What Bill?" Luckily Gohmert and the rest of Texas will not have to worry about affordable health care once Texas secedes from the Union. Yee haw!

But getting away from the childish finger pointing and back to the real issue of health care reform, Obama did not give up on the public option, which is intended to create a government run insurance program for those who cannot afford to buy insurance from a private company. In my mind if we are going to force people to have health care, without the single-payer option, which would provide all of us with government run health care like in Canada, then we need to provide people with an affordable option. Because while President Obama talked about lowering health care costs, I still think he missed the point in terms of how we are going to convince these companies to actually lower their prices. The reason for all of our health care problems is not just the care itself, but the cost of the care. Obama argues it will create competition, but I argue, like most Democrats, that this will not be enough, because, in my opinion, they will just lobby one another, like every other industry, to make sure no one gets priced out of the market and to ensure they all maximize their profits. Then people like me, who can't afford health care on top of school loans and other bills, will be forced to pay out-our-asses for health care.

Since the speech, conservative Democrats, who met with Obama yesterday, said the president seemed as if he would be willing to bend on the public option. Well I hate to say it but without the public option, President Obama, you will be a failure! I know, I know, things like making it illegal to deny someone health care because of a pre-existing condition and not providing operations because your insurance doesn’t cover it will be eliminated from the debate. But affordable health care will be lost. And in the end isn't that what this is all about, money! I mean how can we expect to save the money we intend to save through a government run health care system if there is no government run health care in the bill.

There are to many Americans, and surely we all know at least one, who have been denied health care or denied an operation because their insurance company dropped them or wouldn't cover their surgery. There are to many Americans who go bankrupt and lose their homes everyday just to keep their parents, children, or their significant other alive because of the ruthless insurance companies, who have decided they are just not rich enough.

My friends, lack of affordable health care is not only costing Americans to lose their lives and live in fear of waking up one morning to find they have a disease like cancer with no way to treat it, but it is also costing them to lose their homes, jobs and everything else they worked so hard for in their lives. These Americans are not illegal immigrants, they are people who work as hard or harder than most average Americans do. So to morally deny health care to millions of Americans because you fear illegal immigrants from obtaining it or insurance companies going under due to their own sadistic business practices that have cost million of lives, is not only inhumane, it is in my mind un-American.

For we are the nation who has always been there for one another when we needed it most. Now if only are government could return the favor, not for political gain, but because it is morally the right thing to do.

Obamaducation and the brainwashing of our children's minds

If President Barack Obama's insistence on turning America into a socialistic state hasn't been horrifying enough for American adults, now the president is trying to push his Hitler-esque political agenda on future generations of Americans after he delivered a left-wing, communist speech to students across the nation on Tuesday.

Luckily, Republicans have been the one lone voice at trying to stop this crazed president from ruining America with his leftist political views once and for all. The newest outrage that came out of the Republican camp this week was over President Obama's speech he presented to students across the nation, or at least most of the students across the nation. I know, I know, how dare the President of the United States speak to our children about staying in school and achieving their dreams. I was as appalled by it as you were when I first heard the news concerning the speech. I mean Ronald Regan, George H. W. Bush or George W. Bush would never think of doing such a thing. Oh wait, they did? But they couldn't have talked policy like Obama had planned to do before a few good Americans, or should I say Republicans, swooped in to stop him. Oh wait, they did?

How could this be. I could have sworn that the Republicans were some of the most honest, forthright people in America today. I just felt terrible when that nice, shriveled up old man, Sen. John McCain, lost to that scary looking black fella with the name that sounds like a terrorist. I mean they have always done and supported what is right for Americans, rich or poor, black or white. I mean how could we forget the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that have liberated us from the clutches of terrorism and made great men like Dick Cheney even richer through no-bid contracts. Or the passing of the Patriot Act, which gave our government the right to wiretap every Americans phone and subsequently led to some of the most important arrests in the war on terror, including Martha Stewart.

Oh if these people weren't delivered to us by the graces of God than I just don't know who was. It certainly wasn't that Jesus fella because he believed in things like trust, love and forgiveness. I bet when Jesus said, "You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too," he had never met the likes of Osama Bin Laden or any other Muslim Terrorist for that matter. Thank god Jesus was never president or we would all be dead!

But we are not hear to discuss that hippie, tree-hugging Jesus fella. We are hear to talk about why we cannot let this African, I mean Democratic president ruin our children's minds like he has done to all those sick freaks that voted for him.

I mean can you believe the things that Osama, I mean Obama, told our children the other day. He said, and I quote, "Now I know it’s not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork. I get it. I know what that’s like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn't always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn’t fit in."

"So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I’m not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse. But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country."

I mean what does this have to do with inspiring America's youth? They don't want to hear about how you, Mr. President, sucked in school. How you had crappy parents and your wife did too. Once again, what does any of this have to do with inspiring school children?

After some digging I did find it to be true that President Bush had spoken to kids about doing good in school. Here is what a real president with no political agenda had to say, "Any attempt to roll back the accountability in Washington D.C. (Speaking on No Child Left Behind). I'll fight any attempt to do that, I am just not going to let it happen."

Now that is how you speak to children. Clear, articulate and without any agenda. You don't go and say things like, "We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country."

This kind of talk does not inspire children. Instead it is just a bunch of subliminal, liberal bull-shit aimed at fooling us adults into believing he is not talking about policy, while turning our children into a bunch of little left-wing brainwashed freaks. We cannot stand for this. We must stand against such speech, if not as parents, as good, honest, conservative, gun touting Americans.

Now if you want to fight back against such speech by swines like Obama then I advise all of you parents out there to do what the good people in the Arlington, Texas School District did and just ban the speech, and take the children on a field trip to see George W. Bush speak at Dallas Stadium on Sept. 21. That is the only way we can assure what happened to our generation will not happen to future generations.

America is dead! Long live America!