I'm Not a Witch. (I swear!)

Shall we vote?

Haiti & Pat Robertson

I saw this open letter from Satan to Pat Robertson on a website and thought I would share.

Good stuff!

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Dear Pat Robertson,

I know that you know that all press is good press, so I appreciate the shout-out. And you make God look like a big mean bully who kicks people when they are down, so I'm all over that action. But when you say that Haiti has made a pact with me, it is totally humiliating. I may be evil incarnate, but I'm no welcher.

The way you put it, making a deal with me leaves folks desperate and impoverished. Sure, in the afterlife, but when I strike bargains with people, they first get something here on earth -- glamour, beauty, talent, wealth, fame, glory, a golden fiddle. Those Haitians have nothing, and I mean nothing. And that was before the earthquake.

Haven't you seen "Crossroads"? Or "Damn Yankees"? If I had a thing going with Haiti, there'd be lots of banks, skyscrapers, SUVs, exclusive night clubs, Botox -- that kind of thing. An 80 percent poverty rate is so not my style. Nothing against it -- I'm just saying: Not how I roll.

You're doing great work, Pat, and I don't want to clip your wings -- just, come on, you're making me look bad. And not the good kind of bad. Keep blaming God. That's working. But leave me out of it, please. Or we may need to renegotiate your own contract.

Best, Satan

LILY COYLE, MINNEAPOLIS

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Mr. Robertson should remember that it's the POOR (meek) that inherit the earth. That is all.

Universal Healthcare

So, is anyone else tired of the crap argumentative finger pointing in congress?
These are the real questions (they do show my ignorance in this topic):
Does the current healthcare system work?
What are the problems with its current state?
How many people need healthcare that can't afford it?
How many people can afford it but would be better off with something else?
Is the uninsured number being overstated?
What percent of the population is uninsured?
Is healthcare something that should be guaranteed?
Can we require that doctors take the Hippocratic oath to treat everyone to the best of their ability even if they can't expect payment?
Is the insurance industry over/under regulated?
Feel free to answer any relevent questions that I haven't asked, too.
Thank you

Another Republican Caught!

Yet another Republicans' cheating heart has made them weak. While the Democrats are doing everything in their power to NOT come together on health care, the Republicans keep shooting themselves in the foot when it comes to moral values.

With the President's approval ratings slipping, the Republicans continue to prove they cannot be trusted with their own wives, much less the government.

John Ensign (R-Nevada) admitted to an extramarital affair last month, but it has now come to light that he even had his own parents pay the family of his mistress nearly $100,000.

Perhaps the continuous Republican bumbling in the ethics and trustworthy department will allow us to finally get something done about our health care system and begin reducing the effects of global warming.

Hypocrisy here, Hypocrisy there, Hypocrisy everywhere!

Not everyone loves the sound of a beating drum as much as I do. The constant "thump, thump, thump" can be both soothing and exciting depending on context. The sound of the drums I hear lately have been to disagree with anything and everything President Obama does, says or has someone do. While the constant vitriol spewed from the Right may sound like a beating drum to some, it actually convinces others. Should that scare us? Yes it should.

When you have the likes of Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity saying that OTHER PEOPLE are spewing forth hate speech and venomous lies, you know things have gotten bad.

But, even through all of this the Democrats manage to push forward and, for the most part, stay true to their roots. Not only have they done that, but they have continued to keep poll numbers to manageable levels and, once again, continue to let the Republicans shoot themselves in the foot.

Hypocrisy

Back in the Mark Foley days when you had scandal after scandal with the likes of Ted Haggard, Larry Craig, Bob Allen and Glenn Murphy Jr., you saw the Republican Party falter and lose favor amongst average Americans. This cost them the congress in 2006 and likely had a lot to do with the Obama victory in 2008. You would think that after all of the scandals that broke, you'd have someone over at the RNC send something out to all Republicans saying "CEASE AND DESIST ALL IMMORAL AND/OR SCANDALOUS ACTIVITY." I mean it would have been for the sake of the party, right? Alas, if a memo like that did go out, not everyone got it.

The Dems had themselves a hard time with John Edwards doing the really sh*tty thing he did to his wife, who happens to be a great person. The sense of morality began to lean in the Republicans favor again (how this happened is BEYOND me) and people were actually starting to forget all of the Republican sex scandals of the past (many involving man on man action).

Now enter Mark Sanford and John Ensign.

Will the hypocrisy ever end?

How I would save America

With Obama still with good approval numbers after an incredible speech to the Muslim world, yet another right wing lunatic decides to cash in on all the lunatic fringe comments from the lunatic wing of the right wing party by shooting a security guard in the name of white supremacy.

You also have the Right in a CANNOT WIN battle against Obama's new Chief Justice nominee, Sonia Sotomayer. Calling her a racist, while simultaneously inferring that she was only picked because she's Hispanic (a subtle racist comment in itself).

Either way, there is a lot for Progressives to be happy about. With a new health care plan being debated, the rightwing being led by Rush Limbaugh, Fox News being led by Glenn Beck (interesting fact: Glenn Beck converted TO Mormonism...a religion that, let's face it, is full of good intentions, but base their entire stance on an absolute false prophet - Joseph Smith) and Obama getting high marks in all areas of the country, we all have a reason to smile and be glad to be Progressive. Okay enough with the run-on sentences...down to business.

How I Would Save America:

I think 2 things can easily and quickly save this countries economy. I know many of you will cry socialism or that this is unfair economic practices, but let's be clear...these dire times require a dire solution.

#1 Thing: 3.9% APR Home Mortgage rate backed by the federal government. The government needs to offer a low percentage rate to all Americans with decent credit. This will not only allow most families to re-finance their homes...but will allow families who may be on the brink of foreclosure make their monthly payments lower. This is not a system to reward bad decisions. This rate will only apply to those with good enough credit and those who have been in their homes and paying on time for years. This one change can save the entire mortgage industry and bring back construction of new homes at a record pace. This rate would NOT apply to a second home or investment property.

#2 Thing: 3.9% APR Auto Loan rate for all American cars that get over 30mpg, once again, backed by the federal government. Allowing a guaranteed low percentage rate to those with decent credit is not only smart, it will get the auto industry booming again and all of them making cars/trucks that get over 30mpg. This can not only help save the environment...but also to save working families on a budget with gas prices.

Now I'm not pretending to know the ins and outs of the mortgage industry or the auto industry. But I do know simple math. I also know my current situation. My home mortgage is at 5.9% and my auto loan is at 4.99%. In both instances this would help me.

I thought about a "#3 Thing" being a government backed credit card at 3.9% interest but then realized that's what got us into this mess to begin with. Instead we need a credit class in all of the high schools across the country.

Anyway...that's my tirade for the day...back to work!

Broken Promises, are you kidding me?

I grow weary of hearing about how Barack Obama is breaking his campaign promises.

I hear about how he isn't ending the income tax for seniors making less than $50,000 a year. I hear about how Mr. Obama promised a five day "public comment" time period before signing a bill into law. I hear about Mr. Obama already breaking his promise on Lobbyists. I even hear about President Obama breaking his promise on the $3,000 tax credit for companies that create jobs.

You know what I have to say about all of these supposed "broken promises" that Obama has been a part of? I say BAH. Forget the fact that Obama has done more to keep his promises in his first 100 days than many other presidents do in their entire terms, but we've barely given him enough time to keep promises, much less break them! Throw in the fact that some of these promises have to be approved by Congress and you're left with him TRYING to fulfill promises but getting blocked by Congress.

OBAMA NEVER CAMPAIGNED THAT ALL OF HIS PROMISES WOULD BE COMPLETE IN THE FIRST 100 DAYS.

The latest round of "promises broken" propaganda is coming from the ACLU regarding "PictureGate" (releasing pictures that depict deplorable acts by the U.S. military towards middle east POWs). First of all, last time we released pictures (Abu Ghraib) there was a 200% surge in violence in Iraq. Now this was under the Bush Administration and the pictures were LEAKED not willingly put forth. However, this should be irrelevant since when it comes to the troops we should ALWAYS err on the side of caution.

NEVER FORGET and LEARN FROM PAST MISTAKES: 99.9% of ALL Americans think the picture on the left is HORRIFIC and DID NOT APPROVE of the circumstances. However, now is not the time to, once again, lower our status with the middle east, not to mention the entire world. Wait till our troops get out of Iraq & Afghanistan...do not release damaging pictures until that is complete. Let's hope it's soon.

Does anyone agree with me on this or am I barking up yet another oil-slicked tree?