It's nice to see all of the Presidents together for an occasion that isn't a sad one.  One that isn't a funeral or a memorial service of some kind.  I think it is a wonderful sight. And a great sight for the rest of the world to see.

"One message that I have and I think we all share is that we want you to succeed. Whether we're Democrat or Republican we care deeply about this country," Bush said. "All of us who have served in this office understand that the office itself transcends the individual."

Click for article

Audio of President Bush Welcoming President-Elect Obama, Former President Clinton, Former President Bush and Former President Carter to the White House

Will it be in Milwaukee?

Could it be in your city?

Will it be a street? 

A school?  

Will it be while he is President? 

Or after?

Some cities across the country have already begun the process.

"DELMAR BOULEVARD is an arterial road running through some of the poorest and richest, and most racially divided, neighbourhoods of St Louis, Missouri. Some city aldermen are now trying to rename the street after Barack Obama before he takes office.

St Louis is not alone in its efforts to stick Mr Obama’s name on public property. Opa-locka, in Miami-Dade County, Florida (one of the most dangerous cities in America), plans to rename one of its avenues after the next president. A Long Island elementary school in Hampstead, New York, recently changed its name from Ludlum to Barack Obama after students organised a campaign. Another Long Island school thought of doing the same until parents intervened. One in Portland, Oregon, is still considering it."

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Do you see problems when Hollywood celebrities, or even former politicians, get involved with causes?  From AIDS to world hunger, you'll find celebrities there helping to raise money.  Sometimes some of them seem to make a certain cause their life's cause.  Now some recipients of their help are complaining. 

Who's really at fault here?  Is it the Hollywood stars for donating and running?  Is it the people who donated the land and the other volunteers?  Or is it the actual home owners who possibly haven't taken on the responsibility of owning a home?  We're talking about Habitat for Humanity.

RESIDENTS of a model housing estate bankrolled by Hollywood celebrities and hand-built by Jimmy Carter, the former US president, are complaining that it is falling apart.

Fairway Oaks was built on northern Florida wasteland by 10,000 volunteers, including Carter, in a record 17-day “blitz” organised by the charity Habitat for Humanity.

Eight years later it is better known for cockroaches, mildew and mysterious skin rashes.

A forthcoming legal battle over Fairway Oaks threatens the reputation of a charity envied for the calibre of its celebrity supporters, who range from Johnny Depp and Brad Pitt to Colin Firth, Christian Bale and Helena Bonham Carter.

Click to continue

I missed the New Year's celebration in Times Square. Did you see it?

Nice to hear Hillary and Bill got to share in the celebration. Does anyone know if Bill will be moving to Washington again to join Hillary? Or, will they keep their New York home and Hillary drop in back home on weekends?

"Clintons, Revelers Ring in 2009 in Times Square.

The wind chill made it feel like 1 degree in the area, but that didn't stop the throngs bundled in fur hats, heavy coats and sleeping bags from attending the event.

Former President Bill Clinton and Sen. Hillary Clinton helped Mayor Michael Bloomberg lower the ball atop 1 Times Square for the 60-second countdown to midnight. Last year, Hillary Clinton was in Iowa campaigning for the presidency, and now she's expecting to be secretary of state in President-elect Barack Obama's administration.

Five minutes before midnight, 1,000 balloons with the words "Joy," "Hope" and "2009" were released from rooftops in the area. The Waterford crystal ball — 12 feet in diameter and weighing nearly 12,000 pounds — dropped as the crowd erupted in cheers.

Bill and Hillary just seem So Happy Together!   ; )

Looks like Wisconsin and Minnesota are once again in the news together. 

A Wisconsin man, Mike Raymond, who works in Minnesota at a job he has held for almost 28 years, decided to clear a path to his ice fishing house on the Red Lake River rather than plow the parking lots.  Oops!  the $200,000 "payloader" fell through the ice. 

Gee, it only weighed 15 tons.  Can't see why it wouldn't stay on top of the ice on the river.

Let's hope it's a wimper.

But something is rumbling and grumbling  in Yellowstone National Park, and it's not the bear's stomachs.  There were dozens of tremors on Monday.  There have been tremors before, but not so many at once.  Is an eruption in the future?

"Yellowstone National Park was jostled by a host of small earthquakes for a third straight day Monday, and scientists watched closely to see whether the more than 250 tremors were a sign of something bigger to come.

Swarms of small earthquakes happen frequently in Yellowstone, but it's very unusual for so many earthquakes to happen over several days, said Robert Smith, a professor of geophysics at the University of Utah.

"They're certainly not normal," Smith said. "We haven't had earthquakes in this energy or extent in many years."

 

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What's the real motivation for the owner of the  273-acres of land in Shanksville, PA to still be holding out on the sale of his land for the memorial to the 9-11 victims on Flight 93?  Is it greed?  It is his property, after all.  Should we allow the government to seize the land in order to meet a deadline in time to have a memorial completed? 

"Most of the remains from the tragedy on Sept. 11, 2001, were never recovered, making the bowl-shaped crash site in the western Pennsylvania countryside an unofficial cemetery and, for surviving relatives, sacred ground.

But efforts to buy property for a national Flight 93 memorial have bogged down in federal red tape and a protracted land dispute, angering family members and risking plans to hold a dedication ceremony on the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. The delays have prompted an advocacy group, Families of Flight 93, to ask President Bush to personally intervene during his final weeks in office to allow the federal government to seize the land needed for the memorial and to allocate part of the money for the project.

[...]

Landowner Mike Svonavec of Svonavec Inc. of Somerset, Pa., said the National Park Service and Flight 93 groups are "trying to make my company and myself look like the bad guy in this."

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Who even thinks about chemical weapons in our own country?  Of course we don't, but we have them.  Stored from many years ago.  But the army has been working over the years to destroy them, and it's a dangerous job.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Army destroyed the last chemical weapon filled with deadly nerve agent at the Anniston Army Depot on Wednesday, a milestone the military said virtually eliminated a Cold War-era threat to the region.

The depot’s chemical weapons incinerator burned the final land mine loaded with VX nerve agent less than 5½ years after it began destroying a total of about 293,000 gallons of deadly VX and another nerve agent, sarin.

The last of the sarin was destroyed in 2006.

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President Bush and Vice President Cheney have been on a mission these past years.  One of duty to honor those soldiers who have fallen.  They owe it to them and to their families.

"Mr. Bush sees his job as providing comfort to those who have sacrificed so much. "The definition of comfort is very interesting. Comfort means hug, comfort means cry, comfort means smile, comfort means listen. Comfort also means, in many cases, assure the parent or the spouse that any decision made about troops in combat will be made with victory in mind, not made about my personal standing in the polls or partisan politics."

Asked where he gets the strength to meet with the families of soldiers whom he - as commander in chief - sent to their deaths, he turned stern.

"You have to believe in the cause. You have to understand that - and believe we'll be successful. If I didn't believe in the cause, it would be unbelievably terrible. I believe strongly in what we're doing. I believe it's necessary for our security. And I believe history will justify the actions. ...

"The interesting thing is, most of our troops fully understand this. They know we must defeat the enemy there so we don't have to face them here. And in a place like Iraq, they fully understood that Iraq was a front for al Qaeda. And they saw their mission as one of defending America by defeating al Qaeda," he told The Times. "

Click to read Article

I hope you'll read the entire article as it is very informative, no matter what your views are.



 

They all have something in common.  But let's make something clear.  DUMBO isn't the elephant with big ears.  No, DUMBO stands for Down Under The Manhattan Bridge Overpass.  It's near the Brooklyn Bridge; an area of old manufacturing, businesses, artists and lofts.

So what does this have to do with Neenah and the inauguration?

Well a shop in DUMBO has been asked to make 1 million invitations for the inauguration...and the paper came from Neenah.  That's good news.

This past couple weeks, like many other people, I've been pondering the talk of appointing Caroline Kennedy to the Senate seat of Hillary Clinton.  As I've said, I believe whether she likes it or not, she's been targeted as the chosen Kennedy to continue the legacy.  She's the best choice to put the next Kennedy in the White House.

The more you find out about Caroline Kennedy though, you have to wonder what's driving her.  I just don't see it.  Now we find out she isn't the most regular voter in elections.  Here she comes from a politically driven family, and she has a spotty voting record. 

Caroline Kennedy may become a Senator.  She may be re-elected.  She may go much further up the political ladder.  But Caroline Kennedy will always be a puppet...she will always have another member of her family pulling her strings.  I have no doubt about that. 

Caroline Kennedy, who is seeking to fill Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's Senate seat, has not voted in a number of elections, including at least one race for the very job she is seeking.

According to city Board of Elections records, she missed several Democratic mayoral primaries -- typically important contests in left-leaning New York City -- in 1989, 1993, 1997 and 2005. Republicans went on to win three out of four of those races in the general election.

She also missed the 2002 gubernatorial primary and general election, when Democrat H. Carl McCall faced Republican incumbent George Pataki and lost.

And she skipped the 1994 general election, when Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan was running for re-election. It is the same seat she hopes to take over if Clinton is confirmed as secretary of state in President-elect Barack Obama's administration.

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I reported a couple days ago that New York Governor Paterson has a huge mess on his hands in the State of New York.  He needs to find some money.  His answer to finding his pot of gold? Invent new taxes...all sorts of them.  Like the obesity tax on non-diet soda.  That's a good one.

I've got a better tax.  How about taxing state politicians who are adulterers?  Now that's a good one.  Or how about taxing state politicians who are fat on government spending.  Paterson can't seem to control spending, so he has to fix his problem by going crazy on taxing...$4 billion in new taxes.

"Governor Paterson, as part of a $121 billion budget to be unveiled Tuesday, will propose an "obesity tax" of about 15% on non-diet drinks.

This means a Diet Coke might sell for a $1 - even as the same size bottle of its calorie-rich alter ego would go for $1.15.

Paterson's budget also calls for a 3% cut in education spending, a $620-a-year tuition hike at SUNY and a $600 increase at CUNY  - and about $3.5 billion in health care cuts, a source said.

The Democratic governor will not call for a broad-based income tax boost, but he will push to restore the sales tax on clothing and footwear.

The drastic belt-tightening comes as lawmakers struggle to close a $15 billion deficit this year and next."

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My son and daughter-in-law live in Boulder, Co.  They hike, bike, ski and snowshoe.  They are very healthy people.

They have great bikes.  Boulder's streets are lined with bike paths and bikes have the right-of way everywhere.  Most of the busses have bike racks on them.  People bike to work.  People bike for fun.  People bike to bars.  People bike all winter.   People are healthy in Boulder.

BOULDER, Co. – As real estate agent Matt Kolb recently toured several properties he wore a helmet. It wasn’t a hard-hat fit for a construction site but a bicycle helmet.  Kolb sells homes from the back of a two-wheeler.

"Boulder is in the top-five bicycle-friendly cities in the world," said Kolb. "On a bike, you can get anywhere in town in 20 minutes or less."

Real estate firm Pedal to Properties has teamed up with a non-profit called Community Cycles, which supplies low-cost bikes and maintenance to local businesses as a way to encourage emission-free transportation. 

‘Outdoor deficit disorder’
Community Cycles, which was founded by a handful of Boulder bike-riders two years ago, has become a driving force in getting people out of cars and onto bikes. "We started out with a plan to distribute bikes," said Rich Points, Community Cycles’ executive director. "But now we want to address larger issues."

For Points, getting out of the office and onto a bike "combats ‘outdoor deficit disorder.’ You are more involved in the changes in the environment. You are more involved with your own community."  Even with the onset of winter, Points is not willing to give up the bicycling. He just shifts over to studded bike tires on snowy days.

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In Wisconsin our teachers are protected by a very strong teacher's union.  Governor Doyle supports that union.

What might happen if things were different?  If our unions weren't supported?  Would our schools fall apart?  Or would they become stronger? 

It's a legitimate question.  One we most likely will never have to deal with in Wisconsin.  But one Washington D.C. is dealing with.  Interesting though...they have a union.

"Michelle Rhee has fired 270 "underperforming" teachers since she took over the D.C. public school system, but she's also suggested rewarding the good teachers with huge salaries, and her tough tactics have won the approval of local parents and national politicians alike."

Watch the Msnbc video segment

HERE

Well, actually NY Gov. David Paterson's Budget plan shows he does have brains as far as how to screw over his constituents with another tax.

An "obesity tax" on non-diet soda to raise $404 million?  See where it goes, people?  I mean, not even talking about the tax, who's to say who is obese and who isn't by which type of soda they decide to choose in the first place?  Some people just prefer the flavor of a non-diet soda for crying out loud.

That aside, what next?   Watch out for something like a baby formula tax.  You know, you should all be breast feeding.  That's what God gave you those breasts for in the first place.

Wisconsin will be next, I'm sure, for some type of a zero-brain tax.

"New taxes, deep cuts to education and health care, and a restructuring of the state's economic development programs will be hallmarks of Gov. David Paterson's first budget plan to be released in two days, according to interviews of people briefed on components.

The plan will come with a host of revenue raisers — increased taxes on hospitals and insurance policies, for instance — and at least one new assessment, a so-called obesity tax on non-diet soda to raise $404 million. The governor also is contemplating requiring new license plates to raise cash, reviving sales tax on clothing purchases, removing the tax cap on gasoline and threatening to require Indian retailers to collect taxes on sales to non-Indians by signing into law a bill passed earlier this year by the Legislature.

Paterson will unveil the spending plan, aimed at closing a $12.5 billion deficit for next year, on Tuesday. The total size of the Paterson budget is unknown."

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Some people just have too much time on their hands.  Others are making a statement.  Even if you aren't a Christian, or just don't celebrate Christmas, it doesn't mean you might not be interested in viewing a nativity scene.  It's just hard to believe that people, young or old, deface or even steal parts of nativity scenes. 

"Giving up on old-fashioned padlocks and trust, a number of churches, synagogues, governments and ordinary citizens are turning to technology to protect holiday displays from pranks or prejudice.

About 70 churches and synagogues eager to avoid the December police blotter jumped at a security company's offer of free use of GPS systems and hidden cameras this month to guard their mangers and menorahs."

Click to Continue

 

 

 

Looks like President-elect Obama knows who to seek advice from on important matters. Nobel Peace Prize winners are always good bets aren't they?  People like former President Jimmy Carter...He's a Nobel Peace Prize winner.  And then there is Al Gore. 

So which "winner" did Obama turn to for advice?  Al Gore, of course.  Obama and Joe Biden had a nice chat for several hours.

"All three of us are in agreement that the time for delay is over, the time for denial is over," Obama said.

He said he would work with Democrats and Republicans, businesses, consumers and others with a stake in the issue to try to reach a consensus on a bold, aggressive approach to tackling the problem.

"This is a matter of urgency and of national security and it has to be dealt with in a serious way. That's what I intend my administration to do," Obama said.

Obama had a willing accomplice in Gore, whose won a Nobel in 2007 for his years-long effort to educate people about the gradual warming of the planet and to argue against those scientists who believe a warming trend is a naturally occurring event."


Click to go to article

Well, I can certainly understand Obama's concern for climate change.  And we need to work on our energy problem.  I know the American people will just love to be educated.  A matter of national security, huh?  I hope the other matters of national security that are more scary than global warming get a little more urgency.  Just incase they should come up.  Just incase there are any willing accomplices who might try to contact Obama...


I'm sure Al Gore has informed Barack Obama that he must now visit

his temple

on a regular basis.

For two years 63-year old Simon Belsky has been fighting a parking ticket.

He has spent $7,500 fighting the $115 ticket.

He says he has "nothing else to do."

I guess I see it two ways.  If Belsky did not deserve the ticket, he has every right to fight it.  I wouldn't want to pay a ticket I didn't deserve either.  But $7,500? 

His reasoning because he has nothing else to do is what bothers me.  If his reason was because, "I didn't do it," I'd feel better.  A retired man with nothing else to do?  Give me a break.  You live in New York City for crying out loud!  Go volunteer somewhere if you have nothing better to do.  There are plenty of people who could use a helping hand.  He's a retired VP of an electrical hardware firm...I'm sure he has some expertise he could offer somewhere.

Hey, Belsky?  Wake up!

"Former electrical hardware firm vice president Simon Belsky told the New York Post that he was erroneously ticketed two years ago.

The 63-year-old said the ticket cited his van for blocking a Brooklyn fire hydrant even though the only hydrant on the street was down the block."

Read entire article HERE

President George W. Bush smiles after signing the Presidential proclamation designating the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument and the Presidential proclamation in honor of National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day 2008 in the Oval Office of the White House. With him for the signing Friday, Dec. 5, 2008, are from left: Pearl Harbor Survivor Jay Groff; George Sullivan, Chairman, Arizona Memorial Museum Association; Secretary Donald Winter, U.S. Department of the Navy; Gen. James "Hoss" Cartwright, Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff; Secretary James Peake, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, U.S. Department of the Interior. White House photo by Eric Draper

President Bush Signs the President Proclamation Designating the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument and the Presidential Proclamation in Honor of National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day 2008

10:25 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all for coming. I am going to sign two documents -- one a Pearl Harbor Day proclamation, and the other creating the World War II Valor in Pacific National Monument. The National Monument will include nine sites -- five in Hawaii, three in Alaska, and one in California at the Tule Lake Segregation Center, which was where Japanese Americans were detained during World War II. 

 The purpose of the monument is to remind generations of Americans of the sacrifices that Americans made to protect our country. But there's a broader purpose, as well, and that is to remind generations of Americans about the transformative effect of freedom.

One of the great stories during World War II was that people fought bitterly to defend our country and way of life, and then worked to help our enemies develop democracies according to their own cultures and their own history. And today, I am so pleased to report that Japan is a strong ally of the United States of America -- an ally in defending our liberties and an ally in spreading liberty as the great ideological alternative to an enemy that still wants to do us harm.

And so this monument will help people realize the breadth and the history of World War II and its aftermath.

So I'm pleased to sign both documents, and I want to thank our distinguished visitors for joining me.

(The proclamations are signed.)

Thank you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Click on Links to Read Proclamations:


Establishment of the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument


National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, 2008

Why should we bail out failing auto plants?

Ford proves their is such a thing as an efficient auto plant:



Ford's most advanced assembly plant - Camacari, Brazil


Let the greedy auto plants file bankruptcy.

Let them restructure.

Let them fix their own mess.

H/T Pensamientos