Tag: vice president

The Hammering of Palin

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Is there anyone out there paying attention to the constant hammering of attacks on Governor and Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin?

It seems to me that, besides McCain & Palin, everyone (who does that leave?) in this election has been getting a pass.  It doesn’t matter how many gaffes that Biden pulls out of his ears, or how many flaws we find out about Obama’s character/past/associations, we only hear negativity about McCain and especially Palin.  It’s absolutely stunning.

Don’t get me wrong… there are plenty of stories that paint Obama and Biden in a bleak picture… it’s just that the liberal media never covers it.  We have to rely on News Talk Radio and Fox News for this information.  The libs don’t want anything to do with it and pretty much just brush it off as unimportant or a “distraction” to the “real” issues.  Please… get over yourselves.  And when someone sources a Fox News or News Talk Radio report, what happens?  We get smeared, because they’re “ultra conservative/right-wing.”  Which is bullsh*t, but whatever…  We accept it, do our best to spread the news our own way and move on.

We’ve encountered negative campaigning before… in every election really, but this season, it’s no-holds barred action.  I’ve never seen the media as unfair as they are this time around and I’ve never ever seen so many sheepeople in my life.  They’re coming out of the wood work and no matter how many sources you give them on facts, and how many truths you disclose, it doesn’t matter… they’ve already drunk the Obamalade and believe that he’s the second coming.

I digress… we’re supposed to be talking about Palin’s negative coverage.  Ok, show of hands:  How many of you have actually watched a fair interview with her (or heard)?  How many of you have actually watched one of her speeches or actually seen her debate?  Two, three?  How many of you liberals are just regurgitating what’s been said in your media?  Yeah, that’s what I thought.  For if you actually did see any of the aforementioned venues with Palin, then you’d understand why there’s a “Team Sarah” and why conservatives love her.

The liberals have picked her apart, based on cuts of interviews run on ABC, NBC and CNN… they’ve given her unfair interviews to boot.  They use gotcha’ questions and they distort facts to get favorable reactions… favorable to the media, that is.  What I’ve seen is absolutely amazing.

She’s been accused of not understanding the role of Vice President, because she said “…the Vice President is in charge of the Senate.”  People are jumping all over her, because it’s “incorrect.”  However, that’s not altogether true…  Her role will actually be “President” of the US Senate.  Might want to check your sources.  While she doesn’t dictate what they decide on (this is a democracy, after all… otherwise there would be no need for a senate), and she does not vote, she does have final vote if the Senate is split down the middle 50/50.  That one vote shall determine the win.  They also have the duty of collecting electoral college votes and opening the ticket of the next elected President of the United States (and making the announcement).

It’s interesting, as well, because the duties of the Vice President are left pretty open to the VP in question.  Depending on their personality, they can control the meetings of the Senate, keeping order and moving them along, or allowing them to move on as they will.  It all depends on the character of the VP.  The position has also evolved into a more executive position, where most Vice Presidents really don’t spend much time with the Senate, unless it’s to cast a deciding vote or if there’s a ceremonial occasion.

In actuality, Palin was very correct.  The Vice President truly does control the senate, but does not control the votes of the Senators.  Anyone can look this information up; the fact that they all jumped to conclusions and assumed she didn’t know what she was talking about is ignorant.

In fact, Biden was actually wrong in his definition.  He defined the role of Vice President as, and I quote “Article I of the Constitution defines the role of the vice president of the United States, that’s the Executive Branch.”  Yeeeaaahh, no.  He then goes on to say, “The Constitution is explicit.  The only authority the vice president has from the legislative standpoint is the vote, only when there is a tie vote.”

Well, if you head to the link I provided (or actually read the Constitution), you’ll notice that in the Constitution, the role of the Vice President is defined as the “President of the US Senate,” and not of the Executive Branch at all, but of the Legislative Branch.  It’s true that the Vice President role has moved toward a more executive position, but it still remains part of the Legislative and is executive only by nature, not by law.  So, with that, and Biden’s many years as a Senator, he has formally been shamed by Governor Palin’s knowledge of the Constitution and the many roles of government.  Have at thee!  Of course, the liberal media has ignored, yet again, Biden’s gaffe.

Sarah Palin has also been accused of being stupid…  I ask you… why?  She supposedly attended 4-5 different colleges in 5-6 years.  No one really knows the extent to why she moved around so frequently.  It could be because she wanted to find the right fit.  It could be that she was studying abroad in a few places.  She’s apparently been to Hawaii for one school, so that’s not really reaching.  Maybe the schools she went to didn’t offer the degree she wanted.  Could be anything, but that’s reason number one for her being so “stupid.”

I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve been to two different colleges in five years.  It wasn’t extremely difficult to transfer from one to the other, and I transferred for several reasons.  I didn’t like the people there, my girlfriend was going to a different school, the school she was going to was actually my first choice and I didn’t get in the first time, etc.  I personally don’t think that I’m an uneducated and stupid person.  I don’t think I’m a genius, but I can think on my feet and I’ve been pretty successful at life, so I suppose that’s what I’m going on.  I’ve also met a multitude of people on the 5-year plan. Some longer than that.  It’s actually very common.

You can’t truly judge a person based on their high-school/college education.  There could be several reasons for bad grades or ending up at the end of your class, like McCain supposedly did.  I never took college seriously, until I was about 3 years in.  I always procrastinated on writing papers until the night before they were due, and sometimes the day of.  I didn’t study very hard, I stayed up until 2-4am playing Counter-Strike.  I was running a business on the side for 2 years of my college career, which really deterred me from caring about school, and I changed my major about 4 different times.

I’ve met people that have attended and graduated from Harvard, Holy Cross, Rutgers, Berkley, Tufts, and other prestigious and well-known Universities.  I’m friends with some of them.  Let me tell you… while most of them are good people and have a good head on their shoulders, not all of them are extremely intelligent.  Some are book smart and some have common sense.  Both are great, but when you get into the real world, it really comes down to common sense and street smarts.  If you don’t have that, the world will eat you alive.

So, really?  I have no concern about the candidate’s educational background.  It’s great if you’ve gotten your Masters or Doctorate, but that just means you studied a lot harder than some.  What really matters for running a Presidential office?  Common sense and street smarts, being able to lead and make difficult choices, having morals and running the office based on those morals and integrity.  These and many other qualities make for a good President/Vice President.  Your college experience and educational background means diddly squat in the end.  What’s Barack going to do, when he’s having an argument with Kim John Il?  Spout his Harvard credentials?

Let’s talk a little bit about the course of her life, as well (the start of her journey towards Vice President).  She joined the PTA at her daughter’s school, because she was a concerned mother in regards to the education that her daughter was receiving.  Upon realizing that the education wasn’t sufficient, she wanted to take steps forward in reforming the system, so she served on the Wasilla City Council for two terms.

She then ran for the office of Mayor of Wasilla, AK and served for two more terms in the local government.  She wanted to do more for her state, so she ran for Governor of Alaska, running against another Republican.  It was a tough race, but she won and she’s served since 2006.  It’s 2008 now, and McCain, having realized how far she’s come by herself, knew she was a perfect pick for a Vice Presidential candidate.  Which leads us into another negative story…

So, after serving for 6+ years in an executive position for the government of Alaska, she’s been viewed as an up-and-comer and someone with drive; someone who knows what she wants and has worked extremely hard to get to where she is, while having a family life, as well.  In all aspects, she’s been successful, but the liberal media would have you think differently.  They would have you believe that John McCain chose her, merely because she’s female, and that this election would be based on sex and/or race.  Hillary Clinton ran and lost to Obama, but she was “cracking the glass ceiling,” so why not finish the job with another woman, but from the Republican side?

To think she wasn’t qualified to serve as Vice President is absurd.  She’s proven herself time and time again, and she’s shown that she has what it takes to fend off the press and take the negative slandering that the liberals have to offer.  She’s been in the spotlight far more than Biden, a man who’s been dealing with this for 30+ years and she’s done a perfectly fine job at speaking to the people, rallying conservatives and straight-talking (a phrase that McCain and Palin have adopted for their campaign).  Sure, it’s a campaign slogan of sorts… but it’s true.

Sarah has also been touted as being too “corny” or ridiculous sounding.  Why?  Because she has an accent?  She has a simple and common way of speaking to people?  Because she doesn’t feel like she needs to use enormous words found in the back of a dictionary to sound condescending?  I admire that about her.  I, too, speak the language of the common people.  It’s the non-elitist language that anyone can understand, and I dig it.

There are many more things that Palin’s been accused of, starting with her pursuance to becoming Vice President, while having a family and a new baby with down syndrome.  Why would this even come into question?  Especially in this generation of voters.

She’s been accused of carelessly killing wolves and being apathetic toward the wildlife of Alaska.  Okay, well… the next time you live in Alaska and understand the frustration of having limited wildlife, like Moose to feed upon, maybe you’ll think twice about the very healthy population of wolves in the area, that’s killing your means to food.  Yes, I hate the idea of killing wolves, because they really are one of my favorite animals; they’re quite majestic.

Alaskans live a different life than we do in the lower 48.  They hunt where it’s pretty much winter 24/7/365.  They rely on Moose and fish for their food stock, and they have to contend with the predators of the north, like these beautiful wolves.  While they are beautiful, they’re still eating the same food as the people in that region.  We’re predators too, and it’s a harsh world we live in, where it’s survival of the fittest.  While they do hunt these animals and it may seem inhumane, it’s merely a necessity to control the population.  They still have a very healthy population of wolves.  I dare say, more healthy than we have down here in the lower states.

There are more issues, but the last one I want to talk bout is this recent front page of the New York Times (what a credible newspaper).  Apparently they’ve run out of stories to tell, so they’re attacking Palin for her wardrobe.  They’re accusing the McCain campaign of buying $150,000 worth of new clothes to wear, while they’re campaigning.  Well, in actuality, the Republican National Committee purchased the clothes and donated them to Sarah.  After having worn them, she then donates them to charities.

I find it funny that she’s been attacked for this, but it’s ok for Obama to wear custom-made suits and it’s fine for him to stay in downtown Manhattan at the Waldorf-Astoria, where the cheapest rooms are roughly $400-600/night.  Guaranteed he didn’t stay in a cheap room.  While he was there, he was kind enough to dine on lobster and Iranian caviar.

I’ve also heard that Hillary Clinton received her pant suits for free from designers.  Apparently it’s illegal for corporations (read: designers) to donate suits or otherwise in the amount they did, which was about $6,000 per suit, but everyone pretty much looks the other way.

What do I think about this?  Meaningless.  So the RNC wants Sarah to look good during the campaign… so what?  I would think that would be in their best interest.  She typically doesn’t dress this way, anyway, being from Alaska… it’s a bit more simple up there.  Just take a look at her usual garb from some old pictures on the net of her as Mayor or Governor.  She still pulls it off, of course.

Regardless… this story was not worthy of a front page slot.  The NY Times needs to get real and they need new ownership.  They’ve gotten out of hand with their liberal banter and their constant attacks.  Not only them, but most of the media on television and several national papers/magazines.  It’s all very sad.

Let’s hammer someone else for a change, eh?

The Palin/Biden Debate: Deception vs Inexperience

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Anyone that has seen the Palin/Biden debate can tell you how entertaining it was.  It had many more emotions and feelings invested from the two candidates than the first McCain/Obama debate.  Well, anyone that’s not a liberal or liar can tell you that (and has eyes or ears, of course).

I honestly walked away from the TV/interview thinking that again, nobody won, that the debate was run fairly and that both Vice Presidential candidates came out of that looking moral, friendly, and with integrity intact.  While this debate didn’t really have any gleaming moments for either candidate, it did have the feel of a successful and competitive one.

Many times, it’s difficult to follow everything that happens or that’s said during a debate, especially when it lasts for about an hour and a half to two hours.  Anything that long, can typically turn into a lecture-like experience, leaving the crowd/viewers dozing off or at least lose interest.

Leading up to the debate, Sarah Palin had been scrutinized and made to look a buffoon by the liberal media and the several interviews from those that would attempt to blind-side her with gotcha’ questions.  If not for Fox News and her several fair interviews with reputable commentators and hosts, the world would never see the true Governor of Alaska.  Unfortunately, liberal media rules the television sets with an iron fist, so the majority of people around the world will often only see the negative portions/aspects of each interview from ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, etc for examples.

Charles Gibson and Katie Couric are two interviewees that come to mind, who felt it necessary to attempt to belittle Governor Palin during their interviews.  With one question concerning the Bush Doctrine, questions pertaining to the War on Terrorism (in Iraq and Afghanistan), another question concerning the newspapers/magazines she reads, etc… they were trying to get her to foul up.  In some circumstances, she handled herself quite well with poise, but at times she seemed frustrated and unable to answer the questions.  Of course, you can’t really trust these interviews, as the networks cut/chop them up into bits, so that they can make the interviewee seem like an idiot and unwilling or unable to answer certain questions.  Palin addressed this on numerous occasions and called out the liberal networks for what they were and what they were known for.

The debate, if there was no clear winner, certainly served a greater purpose, which was to show that Palin can and will handle her own, and will do so coherently and intelligently.  She didn’t fluster, she didn’t back down and she answered the questions for the people in the way that she wanted to address the questions.  Sure, she directed some questions down alternative routes, but she did so by announcing it.  She said she was going to answer it the way she wanted, or she said she was going to back track and answering a different question that she felt was more important.  She played to her strengths and did so flawlessly.  America saw the true Governor Palin that night and those that were unsure about her or who weren’t supportive of her, saw her in a different light.  She gained a lot of respect and support that night.

Biden, on the other hand portrayed himself in a respectful manner, while maintaining a relaxed and informal demeanor throughout the debate.  Both Gov. Palin and Sen. Biden remained on a comfort level that allowed them to call each other by their first names.  Something that lacked in the first debate with Sen. McCain and Sen. Obama.

Seemingly, he made little to no gaffs during the interview and really portrayed himself to be a humanitarian and relatable, while still being quite knowledgeable, due to his experience as a Senator.  Of course, Biden has been a Senator for over 30 years and has had the experience with media and debates on a Federal level, while Palin admittedly only had about five weeks of experience dealing with the same venues.

There were some moments, of course, where Biden would dig himself a hole, by lying about his past stance on Obama and issues that he previously disagreed with Obama about, as well as lying about experiences with the American people from his hometown.  What was interesting, was that Palin continuously called him out on it.  She constantly asked him to be honest with his past record, which clearly opposed Obama.  Did he?  No, he ignored her request/challenge.

Regardless, their tact was admirable and I didn’t come away from this disliking either one.  In fact, I respect Biden a bit more now than I had before.  He seems like a genuinely good man.  That, and Palin proved herself to the American people and liberal media, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  She seems like a very strong candidate and one that won’t bow down to the greed and corruption that has infiltrated the American government.

From the reports I had seen, the polls were mixed.  Some said Palin won, some said Biden won.  Typically, liberal media said that Biden won.  What I saw from Fox News was that it was pretty much a tie.  The Republican party claimed Palin won, and vice versa for Biden and the Democratic Party.  Who really won?  I really think it was a tie, but I think it served a greater purpose for Palin to have proven herself to the media and American people.

My next post will be about the more recent debate between McCain and Obama, which marks their second debate (of three).  It’s been at the forefront of debate amongst commentators on several news networks for several reasons, but I’ll get to that later. ;]

Abortion… From an Adoptee Point of View

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Ever since Governor Sarah Palin was announced as Republican Presidential Nominee John McCain’s running mate, the argument of Pro-Life vs. Pro-Choice has resurfaced with a life that nearly dwarfed the importance of the fight against terrorism and the recent 9-11 anniversary. Governor Palin’s views on adoption vs. abortion have evoked an extreme reaction from the liberal left, merely because she doesn’t agree with the decision/outcome of Roe v. Wade.

How dare she have her own opinion?! How dare she, a woman, be responsible enough to rear a child with down syndrome? How dare she allow her daughter to be responsible enough to follow through with child birth and… ready for this?… get married?! Who does that!? Especially in this day and age.

Ahh… you know the world is coming to an end, when a 17yr old woman actually takes responsibility for her actions. The world, my friends… is in peril. We also know we’re in trouble, when a working woman also wants to have children…

At least, that’s what traditional (aka extremist) feminists would have you believe…

Sheer poppycock! Poppycock, I say! Liberals are jumping all over the Palin family, based on ridiculous claims and actually utilizing a moral compass. Amazing! Still, it amazes me even further to know that women of the feminist movement are jumping on the bandwagon. Whose side are they really on?

From one adopted person to everyone else… allow me to give you my thoughts on the subject of Pro-Life/Pro-Choice, (Roe v Wade) and adoption/abortion.

But first, a few facts to acknowledge (borrowed from Guttmacher.org)…

1. Approximately half of all pregnancies in America are unintended. Four out of ten of these are terminated in abortion. 22% of all pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion.

2. Forty percent of pregnancies among white women, 69% among blacks and 54% among Hispanics are unintended.

3. In 2005, 1.21 million abortions were performed, down from 1.31 million in 2000. From 1973 through 2005, more than 45 million legal abortions occurred.

4. Each year, about two percent of women aged 15-44 have an abortion; 47% of them have had at least one previous abortion.

Yeah… 1.21 million abortions in one year, in one country… OUR country. 47% of which, were irresponsible women who didn’t think twice about doing it again – making the same mistake again. If you ask me, there’s something very wrong with that.

This country’s moral compass has been critically going down the tubes over the last 10-15 years. When the country decided that it was “ok” for Bill Clinton to have sexual relations in the White House with someone other than his wife, and then it was “ok” that he lied on the stand and whilst impeached… I knew something was certainly wrong with the way things were going. Amongst liberals, he’s touted as being one of the best presidents we’ve had. That’s laughable. There are definitely more reasons than just this instance of betrayal to dislike the ex-president of the United States, but that’s a subject for a different day.

I digress… Back to the subject at hand. Abortion. What a touchy subject. Pro-choice vs. Pro-life. Typical Conservative vs Typical Liberal. Is there a right decision? Is there a wrong one? Maybe there is no answer to this perplexing question, but at least you an get the perspective of someone that’s been adopted right here… right now.

I used to be pro-choice. In fact, I was all for abortion or adoption up until I actually grew up. Once I matured, I started thinking about politics and life in a different way, from a different point of view. I started to see moral injustices from both sides of the aisle; liberal and conservative. I started seeing inconsistencies in arguments and a widdling down of everything that makes America great.

Now, I’m pro-life with some provisions, of course. Here’s the reason why I’m pro-life, and to me, it really is just common sense…

The legalizing of abortion has really only made an additional excuse for women to behave irresponsibly. I’m not saying they’re irresponsible or responsible all the time, nor does this apply to everyone, but I’ll explain.

By looking at the numbers I cited above, you can see that many women, usually teens to young adults, are unintentionally becoming pregnant. Why would you think that is? Most are probably having unprotected sex, either because they’re partying too hard and forget or just have enough faith that becoming pregnant will never happen to them. Still, there’s another percentage of those women that just don’t seem to care. They see pregnancies as another chance “thing” that occurs sometimes on behalf of having a good time… having sex.

Now, I’m all for a good time and I do enjoy sex, but even married I still have protected sex and I always have. Why? Because I’m not ready for a child. That’s called being responsible in my book. Having made abortions legal has given women an easy out. They’ll have unprotected sex, because it “feels better” (and it does) or for whatever other reason that they think of. Women, in this day and age, literally have no fear of commitment or being held responsible for something, because they no longer have to.

What would happen if we kept abortion legalized, but added some stipulations to it? For one, victims of rape would be one exception to the rule. And two, if a woman’s life/health were to be placed in danger due to the pregnancy. The only reasonable time, I would think (and according to most medical professionals that I’ve heard from), to perform the abortion would be within the first trimester.

Ok, so why victims of rape?

I think it’s important to note that rape is a horrible offense and anyone that’s been raped will have to live with the memory of that attrocity for the rest of their lives. In the instance that a rape victim is impregnated, she has no control of the situation and couldn’t have stopped it from happening. As horrible as it is to think about, I do believe that a woman that would potentially keep this child would live to regret it for the rest of her life. Any time she would look at her baby, adolescent, teen, college student, adult… she would always be reminded of her assaillant… her rapist. The person who took her freedom away and violated her. Who knows how this would affect someone? Maybe she would neglect the child? Maybe she would treat the child as if it were no different. I don’t know and I’ll never pretend to know, but I do believe the woman should have a choice in this instance.

Why should the health of the mother supercede that of a the unborn baby? This should be completely up to the woman, as it’s her health and her life. She should have the final say, since it has everything in the world to do with her livelihood. Even in the case where a woman did not know until the third trimester, that the birth of her baby might kill her, she should still have that choice. This, I believe is the only moral exception to the 1st trimester rule.

Won’t women still have unprotected sex and still try to have abortions underground? Isn’t this what lead to Roe vs Wade? Well, if abortion were still made legal with these exceptions/stipulations, doctors could still practice legally. They would have no reason to go underground and the medical organizations and government responsible for upholding the medical ethics code and standards could regulate these doctors. Doctors operating under the radar would obviously be prosecuted and could stand to lose their license.

The American people need to wisen up. They need to create and utilize a new moral compass that everyone can agree to. Morality needs to be brought back into the United States. In order to do this, however… a passing of a law is not enough. Parents, teachers and children need to be educated, as that’s where this starts. The government cannot legislate morality or even responsibility, they can only provide the means to lead a moral and responsible life.

Thus, sex education should incorporate various protective and preventative measures: condoms, abstinence, birth control pills/shots, etc. Schools should teach children about the benefits and importance of adoption and it’s effect on society. They should teach and deglorify abortion and show that it’s not all it’s made out to be. It has repercussions, both physically and mentally, scarring people for the rest of their lives. Adoption should be taught and seen as a responsible action for someone that can’t care for a child themselves.

It starts in the class room, but it doesn’t stop there. Parents need to become involved. There’s been so much neglect and ignorance in the United States over the past several years and it certainly shows. You can see the results, publically, in any school, at any mall and pretty blatantly in Hollywood. Kids are looking up to Britney Spears, Madonna, and Paris Hilton, when they should be using their parents as role models. Parents must also be responsible and they need to teach their children a moral code to live by; they need to be strong role models.

You may think I’m being a little too harsh. However, I do believe that responsibility is a non-issue for young adults and even older adults. I think that most teenagers are apathetic towards pregnancy and will continue to have unprotected sex and continue to be irresponsible until certain actions are taken. Reform the abortion laws, increase sex education in the homes and in the schools, get teachers and parents involved with the children, and hopefully we can turn this country around.

Would I pass a law to ban abortion completely? No. Would I pass a law to reform abortion laws? Probably.

What would you do? Why am I right or wrong? You tell me. =]