another "just for fun"

Newsweek made some comparisons between current politicians and Star Wars/Trek characters, in which all of the good guys were Democrats, and the bad guys were made up of the previous administration. http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/cftoto/2009/04/29/newsweek/ Unfortunately, I cannot find the original Newsweek article.

Anyway, I find it ironic, because had I been doing the list, The Emperor would be played by Henry Paulson, and then the role would have been passed down to Tim Geithner. Dick Cheney? Because he's angry? The Emperor is never angry.

So...who do you think fits which parts?

The Emperor
Anakin/Darth Vader
Darth Maul
Jabba the Hut
Obi-Won Kenobi
Luke
Leia
Han Solo

Or from Star Trek:
Captain Kirk
Spock
Scotty

Or the Next Generation:
Captain Picard (my favorite!)
Data
the Clingon guy (you can tell I'm not really a treky)

Or Batman characters?...

I'm intrigued about the number of Hollywood hero comparisons there have been in my reading material lately.

Is it because we are looking for a hero? If one appears, will we recognize him or her? Or will they be squashed by the mainstream media the way Sarah Palin was? Not that I'm discounting her--I still have hope that she'll rise from the ashes.

teach for america program

Interesting article about Teach For America.

oh, and can I just say...

That the Miss USA "scandal" is absolutely ridiculous.

First of all, that anyone should take this degrading practice of parading women around a stage in bikinis seriously baffles me. In fact, from what I understand, this popularity contest has been losing popularity over the years, rarely getting the publicity it used to.

I wonder if the pageant officials who are so enraged by Miss California's "bigoted" answer are putting up a false front because they're getting a lot more publicity now, even more than when Miss Tara whatshername was discovered to be a binge-drinking party girl, or when nude photos turned up of Vanessa Williams.

Some snivel-y journalists are "defending" her by criticizing her grammar. (Because they've always expected perfectly well-turned phrases in this battle of brains--snort.) They are pretending to believe in free speech, but discrediting her all the same.

I've already given more space to this issue than it deserves. So has everyone else. But it demonstrates the extremes to which people will go to further the "cause" of gay marriage, and they undermine their own "quest" for tolerance.

WHAT?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/21/geithner-defends-bank-rescue-program-amid-warnings/

From the article: "Geithner, in prepared testimony, said the new plan 'strikes the right balance' by letting taxpayers share the risk with the private sector while at the same time letting private industry use competition to set market prices for the assets."

Someone please tell me how this is going to help taxpayers.

After the Ice Storm My Son Does Not Come Home

by Diane Lockward

Hours after he stormed out, wind knocks
ice off the roof, startles me awake.
2 AM—light under the door. Not home,
and I'd said no later than midnight.

I practice deep breathing, natural tranquilizer,
five counts in, hold it in the diaphragm,
let it out slowly, repeat five times, relax, and go back
to a sleep without dreams.

It's been so long since I've dreamed,
I'd be grateful now for even that old one
where I show up someplace important, take off my coat,
and I'm in panties and bra, or worse, naked.

And I'm still wondering if he'll be okay,
if he'll ever find his way home,
if maybe I'll be happy when I'm old,
and if I can wait that long.

Hours later I wake and see the first crocus
pushing purple through the sheen of ice.
A day of lifting towards the light,
the delicate petals unfolding.

I want it to be like that for him—
sunlight, the wind will stop blowing,
and he'll find his way home.

report on the Boise, Idaho Tea Party

According to some, I guess I took part in a Right-Wing Extremist activity when I took my three kids to the Boise Tax Day Tea Party, and protested big government spending.

This Idaho Statesman article gives a good summation.

Here's a little less informative one from KTVB.com. Maybe there will be more on the evening news, I did see Ysabel Bilbao there.

Here are some photos. I took some of them, but some of the best shots were by my son Jeff and his friend, Ethan. I used Kannie's idea for a protest sign for my kids.










Some took the opportunity to campaign. Rex Rammel spoke, accounting for his past work, and announcing his next candidacy. I saw Pro-Life there (if you don't know who he is, he ran for U.S. Senate against Risch, Rammel, and LaRocco) talking to people. There were a lot of Ron Paul signs. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I guess I'm not in the mood to listen to campaign promises, I want our leaders to listen to us.

Tea party update

A question from Kannie prompted more research, and I'm learning that the Tax Day Tea Party in Idaho has evolved from a single rally at the Capitol to a March from Ann Morrison Park to the Capitol, with different rally points along the way.

For a map and agenda, go to http://www.teapartyboise.com/page14.php

Tea PARTY!!!

April 15 is Dave's birthday, and he's actually looking forward to turning the big 4-0, because he will finally be DONE with another tax season. A lot of others will be celebrating Dave's birthday in the form of a National Protest! Tea parties are springing up in nearly every city, including the one in which I live. So, from noon to 2 p.m., I'm going to do something I've NEVER done before in my life--become a political activist! And I'm bringing my kids! Should I print off signs for them to carry?

Links about the Tea Party:

Rick Santelli's protest on you tube.

Move Over, Move On!

Freedom Works

Fox forum

Tax Day Tea Party

Tax Day Tea Party, Idaho

http://politicallogos.wordpress.com/national-tea-party/

Fox Forum

Lori Byrd

questions and thoughts

Someone I respect a lot (my mom) pointed out that I didn't get through college entirely without help, which is very true. I paid for college with the help of a special savings account with money contributed by me and my parents, free housing for one year from my grandparents, music and academic scholarships, private grants, student loans, several part-time jobs, honor quartet stipend money, and Pell grants.

Is it hypocritical of me to have accepted a Government grant, given to me for being poor, and then complain about funding for public education? I feel I need to explore this a bit more, to see if I can't find a way to reconcile my actions and my philosophy.

One question that arises is whether or not I would have finished school had I not been given financial assistance. I can't imagine that I wouldn't have, but I'm not sure. Maybe I would have stayed in state, to avoid paying out-of-state tuition at the University of Utah (which was reduced from being three times as expensive to only two times as expensive thanks to the Western University Exchange Program, or "WUE"). But had I stayed in state, I would not have received the quality of education I was looking for. I would have sailed through college as one of the brightest and best in my class--but I didn't want false accolades, I wanted to be challenged.

And challenged I was. I was barely admitted into the program, and in order to catch up with my peers, I woke up at 5:30 (sometimes 4:30) a.m. to practice until catching the 7:30 bus to school, then working from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m., to arrive home at 10 p.m. or later to do homework. I could barely afford to eat, and the lack of nutrition showed up in my eyes, hair and skin. I drank powdered milk, and I was the thermostat Nazi--which drove my roommates absolutely nuts!

As memories are starting to flood my mind, I'm getting off topic. Knowing that there are those out there who would not be able to afford any sort of education on their own, I want to figure out how they might obtain it without wasting taxpayer dollars, or being submerged in liberal ideology while they are at school.

One thing is for certain: in spite of liberal claims, Big Government does NOT make it easier for the under-privileged to better themselves through education as it bows to teacher unions, fights the surge of charter schools, and sets up ill-conceived certification procedures for a number of fields which make it impossible for students to work at their own pace, forcing them to stay in school longer, driving up the cost for everyone.

more on education

John Lott, author of "Freedonomics" which I enjoyed, wrote in the Fox Forum about Education. It's a touchy subject with people, as you can tell by the comments under the article.

Liberal rhetoric about education is always misleading. They know that Americans value education, the biggest factor in achieving the American Dream. So, they preach about education--though they do not value the American Dream. The idea that a person can rise above his or her circumstances by going to school, learning a trade, saving money, spending it wisely--through hard work, determination, smart decisions, and dare I say it, faith and trust in a loving Heavenly Father, is an old-fashioned one to the current administration. Hillary Clinton said "It takes a village to raise a child." While I am grateful for fellow villagers who helped me along the way: good teachers and good friends, it was my parents, and my own ambition which got me through college.

While I am concerned about the liberal doctrines being pushed on young minds, I am also concerned about the studies that show that our kids are not benefiting from the tax dollars continuously thrown at schools, and teacher unions. Liberals say, "We need more money to give our kids a chance!" and conservatives give them the money. And we keep giving more, and more, and more! Why is there not a correlation between money spent and the success rate of the students?

Because, we are looking for answers in the wrong places. Whether motivated by a (misguided) genuine desire to help our kids, or motivated by a desire to win votes from Union members and parents who want free Universal Daycare, adding preschool programs and lengthening the school day will not improve test scores. Who loves their child the most? A parent or a teacher? Who is that child's best advocate? Who wants to see that child succeed? I'm not suggesting that parents bully a teacher that tries to discipline a child--parent-teacher relationships are a subject for another day--but I am saying that we should trust parents with the education of the next generation, and not Government, teachers or anyone else.

letter to Walt Minnick

Dear Mr. Minnick,

As a member of your district who voted for Bill Sali, I wish to acknowledge the great work you have done in the U.S. House of Representatives. In spite of the “D” next to your name, you have listened to the people of Idaho, and haven't gone along with the crowd in Washington. I want to thank you for the good judgment you have exhibited in voting against Timothy Geithner, the Stimulus Bill, the Omnibus Bill, the Pay for Performance Bill, and the latest costly budget. You seem to be one of the very few who is actually interested in bipartisanship, and I wish you well in your efforts.

I was gratified to see the national press coverage you received on Fox News regarding your work with Representative Aaron Schock on a bill for a tax holiday for small businesses. A friend of mine who is a small business owner believes that it would free up some capitol and allow their business to hire one additional employee. We would like to see more of this type of legislation, urging you to keep things as simple and straightforward as possible.

While I applaud your efforts, I am gravely concerned about the future of the United States of America. Though we decry America's history of slavery, and rejoice in the triumph of civil rights, we are selling our children and grandchildren into a new kind of slavery, one in which they will be in bondage to U.S. Government, forced to pay for the mistakes of this generation. I watch with apprehension as our leaders use our tax dollars to bail out failing companies, buy bad mortgages, take over banks, increase spending on a failing public education system; while at the same time hurting the economy with proposed cap and trade laws, renewing the estate tax, enforcing expensive testing for children's products from books to bicycles, and reducing incentives for charitable giving.

What bothers me the most, is that in spite of poll numbers which indicate that most Americans are not in favor of increasing our national debt to fund liberal causes, the current administration headed by Obama, Pelosi and Reid either fails to acknowledge the will of the people, or attempts to suppress opposing opinions. Not only are they disregarding the will of the people, they are overriding the Constitution itself--confiscating bonuses, firing employees, taking over companies, etc. I have often heard people say that “Americans cannot sit back and watch our freedoms be sold to the highest bidder.” But I don't believe that Americans are sitting back—they are joining tea parties, writing or phoning their congressmen, signing petitions, blogging—but they are being ignored by those with the power to legislate—using “reconciliation” tactics to speed up the passing of a badly written bill; and by the those with power to veto bad legislation—evidenced by President Obama's signing of the Omnibus bill in spite of all of its earmarks, and in spite of many campaign promises. I feel that my individual opinion should count for something in this democracy. I hate to think that not only is my opinion not valued, my right to free speech is becoming devalued.

For the sake of my family, friends, and community, and for the future of the United States, I plead with you to do all you can to preserve our liberties, to stop oppressive spending, and to continue to listen to your constituents.