It’s Not Your Money!

There’s a lot of talk about stimulus using Government money to bail out the economy. But will this really work. And who’s actually paying for this. When do we get a say?

Barack Obama claims that the House of Representatives’ new stimulus plan is needed to save the economy. Democrats promise to be “creating or saving of four million jobs.” News media report in all seriousness: “The democrats vow no earmarks or special projects will be attached to the bill. The focus is on jobs.” Also “more than 90 percent of the jobs created are likely to be in the private sector.”

Obama has reached the 323 electoral vote total, which easily gives him the Presidency assuming the polls reflect the actual vote.  To win, a candidate needs to get more than 270 electoral votes, which Obama will clearly will, should the polls hold.  These numbers are based on recent state polls as of Oct. 24.

Comment: Good article by Pegala and Carville on Republican missteps and who will get the blame.  There is a lot of blame to go around: the candidate, his vp pick, his advisors, the republican message.  Our guess is that Limbaugh and Hannity will blame the candidate and his lack of a coherent “conservative” message.  But it goes much deeper than that.  The world (and the US) are changing and if the Republican message doesn’t change with it, they won’t do much better in 2012.

As Barack Obama and the Democrats appear poised for an historic sweep, we have a message for our Republican friends: It is time to point fingers.

Continue reading ‘Let the Blame Game Begin’

The latest polls for the presidential race show Obama continuing his lead.  The 3 big tracking polls still show an average leade of 9 pts: Gallup – Obama by 9 pts,  Zogby – Obama by 12 pts and Rasmussen by 7 pts.

Intro:  The RNC reports that Sarah Palin and her family have spent $150,000 in clothes, including $49,000 from Saks Fifth Avenue, and $4,900 for hair and make-up.  That’s a lot of lipstick.

The Republican National Committee has spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family since her surprise pick by John McCain in late August.

According to financial disclosure records, the accessorizing began in early September and included bills from Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis and New York for a combined $49,425.74.

The records also document a couple of big-time shopping trips to Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis, including one $75,062.63 spree in early September.

The RNC also spent $4,716.49 on hair and makeup through September after reporting no such costs in August.

The cash expenditures immediately raised questions among campaign finance experts about their legality under the Federal Election Commission’s long-standing advisory opinions on using campaign cash to purchase items for personal use.

Politico asked the McCain campaign for comment, explicitly noting the $150,000 in expenses for department store shopping and makeup consultation that were incurred immediately after Palin’s announcement. Pre-September reports do not include similar costs.

Intro: Good article on staying happy. Readers will find useful tips on staying mentally healthy like: Connect with people, Stay active, Be curious, Keep learning, Give to others.

Simple activities such as gardening or mending a bicycle can protect mental health and help people to lead more fulfilled and productive lives, a panel of scientists has found.

A “five-a-day” programme of social and personal activities can improve mental wellbeing, much as eating fruit and vegetables enhances physical health, according to Foresight, the government think-tank. Its Mental Capital and Wellbeing report, which was compiled by more than 400 scientists, proposes a campaign modelled on the nutrition initiative, to encourage behaviour that will make people feel better about themselves.

Do you have suggestions to add?  Please send them on.

Continue reading ‘Do five simple things a day to stay sane, say scientists’