Happy Solstice!

Warning: The following is sarcasm from the mind of Mr. Perry.
Enjoy!

DRUIDS ROUTED IN SCHOOL BOARD ELECTION

In what could produce ripples through the national educational system, voters in Maine have ousted over 2,000 years of educational doctrine. In a vote of no-confidence, locals have voted out the Druid majority from local school boards. In an overwhelming vote, the communities of Samhain and Cuithe have decided that the time has come to end the Druidian stronghold over their communities.

These communities as well as others scattered across the northeastern seaboard have seen a rapid decrease in Druidian representation. Starting with the defeat of 237 time elected mayor Gaelen the Round of Bath, the Druidian influence has taken a dramatic downturn. "We were simply looking for a different, more enlightened approach to education" said Pierre DeMarco, head of the Samhain Parent Teacher Association.

Under the Druidian school system, students were forced to learn topics like metallurgy, herpetology, stonemasonry and astrology. Senior Douglas Young believed the Druid curriculum was a valuable addition to his core classes. "I don't see what the big deal is. It's not like we killed dogs or anything." The use of canines for incantations was replaced by felines in the late 1720's.

The news could not have come at a worse time for the Druid community. "We're all pretty tired from the Solstice Ceremony and concert and then we get this news. Everyone is a bit disoriented by these turn of events", said Nigel Tufnel, founder of the band Spinal Tap and Northern 35th Level Druid. When asked about the future for the Druids in Maine education, Tufnel added, "We'll just have to see how the bones fall but we are not ruling out litigation."

John Prine

I believe it is my duty to expose all of my readers to some "enlightened" material.
From time to time, that will include music.
Many have never heard of John Prine, but he is an American icon of modern folk music.
This is one of his finest.
Enjoy!

Crime and Coverup

So if the government believes that torture is wrong AND
If they believe that waterboarding isn't torture WHY
Would they destroy tapes of CIA agents waterboarding terror supects?
It apparently wasn't to safeguard the identity of CIA agents since one of them has come forward publicly to say how he believes that waterboarding is torture?

From the Nation:

By November 2005, three different federal judges had issued ironclad preservation-of-evidence orders in cases involving terror suspects and Guantánamo detainees. That was when the CIA elected to destroy tapes of the interrogations and waterboarding of two suspected Al Qaeda members. To the inherent criminality of torture, add contempt of court.

The revelation of those CIA videotapes and their destruction has inspired a leakfest in Washington and Langley, with fingers pointing everywhere and nowhere. "There are other people at the agency who know about this far better than I," says CIA director Michael Hayden. Meanwhile, "other people at the agency" keep shifting blame between the legal office and the Directorate of Operations. The White House and Justice Department claim they advised the CIA to keep the tapes. But given George W. Bush's passion for extralegal imprisonment and "extreme interrogation," the agency had every reason to see mixed signals from Pennsylvania Avenue. Democratic Representative Jane Harman, informed of waterboarding and other outlaw interrogation practices in 2003, says she filed a classified letter of protest but "was not free to disclose anything." But what secrecy oath requires public servants--not only Republicans but Harman, Nancy Pelosi, Bob Graham and Jay Rockefeller--to keep silent about systematic violations of US and international law?

As Emily Bazelon and Dahlia Lithwick write in a pertinent post on Slate, the destroyed videotapes would have had a profound impact on the Moussaoui and Padilla trials, the Guantánamo detainee lawsuits and the September 11 commission report. If that is true, then destruction of the tapes amounts to subversion of vital American institutions and is no sideshow but a central episode in the history of post-9/11 policy. Senator Joe Biden got it right: the CIA tapes' destruction, and the violations of anti-torture statutes they recorded, require a special prosecutor. Only such an independent investigation will be free of the Bush Justice Department's long entanglement with interrogation and torture policy, and the broader culture of complicity that ensnares everyone from anonymous CIA operatives to Congressional leaders of both parties.

Imagine

One of my favorites singing one of my favorites best.
I remember the morning of his death.
Such a tragic day.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

No Post needed...this just makes me smile!

What Do You Want To Hear?

From Mitt Romney about his Mormon faith?

In 1960, the south was very concerned about John F. Kennedy's Catholic faith so much that it prompted him to address the potential voters about it. It was enough to put to rest the issues that the Protestant south had about him.

So what will have to be said from Romney in order to put to rest the conservative Christian base of the Republican party?

Romney to take on issue of his Mormon faith
Wed Dec 5, 2007 7:04pm EST
By Steve Holland
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Trying to save his presidential campaign from an Iowa swoon, Republican Mitt Romney on Thursday will take on the issue of his Mormon faith by stressing America's tradition of religious tolerance.

Romney is to make remarks at the presidential library of former President George H.W. Bush in College Station, Texas, not far up the road from Houston, where Democratic candidate John Kennedy in 1960 used a speech to ease concerns about his Catholic faith and went on to win the presidency.

Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, would be the United States' first Mormon president, although a number of followers of the religion hold elected U.S. positions, several of them in the Senate, such as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has an estimated 6 million members in the United States and is based on the belief that the religion's founder, Joseph Smith, found golden tablets in upstate New York left behind by ancient Israelites.

Some Americans view the Mormon faith with skepticism and the church has spent decades trying to counter criticism that it is a cult and a threat to Christianity.

A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that a majority of Americans view the Mormon faith as a Christian religion, but one in four respondents said they would be less likely to vote for a Mormon president.

Romney's most immediate challenge is in Iowa, where the wide lead he once held has now faded, with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee winning support from Christian evangelicals to catch Romney in the polls.

Iowa on January 3 holds the first of the state-by-state contests to determine which Republican and Democrat will face off in the November 2008 election. A win there can generate momentum, while a loss can deflate presidential hopes.

"The timing of this speech is a direct result of Huckabee's surge in Iowa and Romney's softening numbers," said a veteran Republican strategist in Washington. "The target is social conservatives in Iowa and South Carolina and being 'acceptable' to them."

'FAITH IN AMERICA'

Romney decided on his own to give a speech with the title of "Faith in America."
"This speech is an opportunity for Governor Romney to share his views on religious liberty, the grand tradition religious tolerance has played in the progress of our nation and how the governor's own faith would inform his presidency if he were elected," said Romney spokesman Kevin Madden.

Or, as Romney told CBS News: "I'm not running for pastor-in-chief. I'm running for commander-in-chief."

Experts doubt Romney will talk much about the specifics of his religion.
"The question about Governor Romney's candidacy is not a question about what it means to be a Mormon. The question is about what it means to be president of the United States and respect religion without allowing religion to dictate decisions in the Oval Office," said Welton Gaddy, a Baptist preacher who heads the Interfaith Alliance.

Nancy Ammerman, a professor of the sociology of religion at Boston University, said it is a speech Romney had to give.

Americans need to be reassured that "he really does believe in the separation of church and state and that he does come into the political arena as someone who should be judged on his policies and his record," she said.

Barry Lynn, executive director of the Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, said Romney's speech is another chapter in a U.S. presidential campaign where religion has played a big role.

Huckabee has talked about being a Baptist preacher, Republican Fred Thompson was quizzed on how often he goes to church, and Democrat John Edwards was asked about his biggest sin.
"Frankly this whole election cycle is turning into some kind of theological beauty pageant instead of an electoral campaign for the presidency," he said.

(To read more about the U.S. political campaign, visit Reuters "Tales from the Trail: 2008" online at blogs.reuters.com/category/events/trail08/)

What Would You Trade?

Most at NYU say their vote has a price

By: Lily Quateman - Washington Square News November 14, 2007 07:29 PM EST

Two-thirds say they'll do it for a year's tuition. And for a few, even an iPod touch will do. That's what NYU students said they'd take in exchange for their right to vote in the next presidential election, a recent survey by an NYU journalism class found.

Only 20 percent said they'd exchange their vote for an iPod touch.But 66 percent said they'd forfeit their vote for a free ride to NYU. And half said they'd give up the right to vote forever for $1 million. But they also overwhelmingly lauded the importance of voting.

Ninety percent of the students who said they'd give up their vote for the money also said they consider voting "very important" or "somewhat important"; only 10 percent said it was "not important."Also, 70.5 percent said they believe that one vote can make a difference — including 70 percent of the students who said they'd give up their vote for free tuition.

The class — "Foundations of Journalism," taught by journalism department chairwoman Brooke Kroeger — polled more than 3,000 undergraduates between Oct. 24 and 26 to assess student attitudes toward voting. "The part that I find amazing is that so many folks think one vote can make a difference," Sociology Department Chairman Dalton Conley said. He added, "If we take them at their word, then perhaps they really think votes matter, and that's why someone might pay a year's tuition to buy theirs."

Sixty percent of the students who said they'd give up their vote for tuition also described their families' income as upper-middle or high. Their reasons for giving up their votes varied. "At the moment, no candidate who truly represents my political beliefs has a chance of winning a presidential election," one male junior studying film and television at the Tisch School of the Arts wrote on the survey.

"It is very easy to convince myself that my vote is not essential," wrote a female CAS sophomore. "After all, I'm from New York, which will always be a blue state." Other students wrote that they were disgusted by the thought. " I would be reversing history — a lot of people fought so that every citizen could be enfranchised," said a female in her second year at the Stern School of Business.

One CAS junior went even further, writing that "anyone who'd sell his lifelong right to vote should be deported."Lily Quateman reports for New York University's Washington Square News. Washington Square News is partnering with Campus Politico for the 2008 elections.

Would you give up your vote for anything? If so, what would it take?

Sandra Day O'Connor Extra Credit

I have tickets to the event that is scheduled for Friday afternoon at 5:00 p.m.

If you want to attend, please see me starting tomorrow morning. Tickets are limited so come early. First come first serve.

If you are just not sure if you can make it, please let someone else have the ticket!

Who Picks You?

Thought this little quiz would be interesting to take. Just follow the instructions then respond as to which candidate was your best fit and what you thought about it.

God's Politics

So how far do you think a candidate should go with their faith? Is it okay for candidates to wear their religion on their sleeves?

In S.C., Obama Seeks a Spiritual Reawakening
By Sridhar PappuWashington Post Staff WriterMonday, October 29, 2007; C01
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- As a man not only of God but of politics, the Rev. Joe Darby is an outspoken observer of the campaign scene. Reclining in his cluttered office at Morris Brown AME Church here, he witnesses the union between the pulpit and the polls.

"Politics does come down to some degree of emotion . . . ," says Darby, one of this state's most prominent African American preachers, whose church is a magnet for Democratic presidential hopefuls. "The Democratic Party is just catching up to that. It's been nauseatingly safe in recent years."

As if from Darby's mouth to Sen. Barack Obama's ears, the Democratic presidential candidate from Illinois -- hoping his campaign can recapture some of that old-time religious fervor -- launched a three-city gospel concert series over the weekend across the state, in North Charleston, Greenwood and Columbia. Although Obama did not attend the "Embrace the Change" series in person (instead campaigning in Iowa), he was here in spirit, appearing by video screen and sending out his surrogates, such as pastor Hezekiah Walker and singer Beverly Crawford.

Obama's campaign could certainly use reenergizing. Since he announced his intention to run for the presidency, Obama -- and the powerful ebb that surrounded him wherever he woke, spoke, ate and sat -- seems to have withered beneath the supernova that is the Clinton campaign. Today, the senator from New York carries with her a fortified sense of inevitability, laughing off controversies while appearing on Sunday morning shows, showing no wounds from questions about fundraising, absorbing Obama's criticism over the weekend regarding Social Security. A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll shows Clinton leading Obama by more than 20 percent, with a lead of 13 percent among African American voters.

Those numbers mirror polling results in South Carolina, where any candidate hoping to capture this early primary state needs much of the African American vote. But Obama cannot presume such support as he tries to catch Clinton, who has been embraced by many black voters.
As Obama races after the Clinton juggernaut, trying to go on the offensive, some of the state's more prominent Democrats see him as "dinking-and-dunking" instead.

"What needs to be done, what we need to do now, is get these young folks re-fired up," says former state senator Herbert Fielding, an Obama supporter who works at the funeral home that his family has run since 1912. "And in the process of getting the youngsters re-fired up, it will dispel doubts in the older community."

But the first two concerts, in North Charleston and Greenwood, certainly are not testament to young people being reinvigorated by Obama. Yes, there are young folk who'll pose outside the events with the navy-blue Obama 'o8 shirts they've just bought from a makeshift Obama store, alongside tables with voter registration forms and volunteer sign-up sheets. But more often than not, the gospel concerts are populated with the retired and nearly retired, people who learned long ago not to take their right to vote for granted and so are perennially drawn to the polls.

"I support him," says Blondell Smalls, a 67-year-old retired home-care worker from John's Island, at the North Charleston event. "I like looking at him, and it's time for a change."
And Matthew Rivers, 70, says, "He's knows what to do. He's not going in there fumbling."
The events themselves seem to straddle a strange line between political pep rally and old-school revival. At the first two concerts, Obama appears by video offering his regrets for his non-attendance and thanking those who've come. At the Greenwood event, a video is shown that begins with Obama's convention speech in 2004 and then retells his life story. In North Charleston, a video display of a speech given by Michelle Obama in Iowa gives rise to calls of "You go, girl!"
(The gospel series also draws attention because of the inclusion of the Grammy-winning gospel singer Donnie McClurkin, who has publicly said he overcame his homosexual thoughts and desires through prayer.)

Each concert stirs some of the fervor that typified the Obama campaign in its early days. As the gospel acts perform, people rise to their feet, mothers hug daughters, old friends reach out to one another and then embrace strangers. Couples hold each other tight. Some close their eyes and sway in their seats. In Greenwood, most of the room is drawn to the stage, leaping up and down as if it were a mosh pit. The concerts' playbook was open to innovation. In North Charleston, the sister combo of Mary Mary recalled Beverly Crawford to the stage after her set, asking her to sing a few lines of her song "Praise Jehovah." The following night, with the show running long, Byron Cage did an impromptu set with a group of young liturgical dancers before he jumped from the stage to jam with the believers who had surrounded the stage.
"We've got the faith," Obama senior adviser Rick Wade tells those assembled on the first evening. "But now it's time to go to work."

Repulicans or Democrats....Does It Matter?

Do Political Parties Matter?
By Stephen J. Dubner
That’s the question asked by the Wharton economists Fernando Ferreira and Joseph Gyourko. But they are not talking about national political parties. In that realm, party affiliation has indeed been shown to have a strong effect on legislation and policy.

No, Ferreira and Gyourko are interested in whether party affiliation matters on the local level — and their answer, essentially, is no. Using data from more than 4,500 U.S. mayoral elections between 1950 and 2005 in more than 400 cities with populations of at least 25,000, here is what they learned:

[W]e find that party labels do not affect the size of government, the allocation of spending or crime rates, even though there is a large political advantage to incumbency in terms of the probability of winning the next election … In particular, there is a relatively high degree of household homogeneity at the local level that appears to provide the proper incentives for local politicians to be able to credibly commit to moderation and discourages strategic extremism.

While few people would accuse Rudy Giuliani of having “commit[ted] to moderation” or avoiding “strategic extremism” when he was mayor of New York City, the fact remains that he was the rare Republican elected by an extraordinarily Democratic town, and he was generally well regarded until close to the end of his second term. By then, it was mainly his temperament and personal affairs that had turned off many swing voters.

It is true that the mayor of New York City has a larger budget and set of responsibilities than the governors of some states; still, he is the lone mayor running in this year’s presidential election, and is leading the way at that. It will be interesting to see if and how Giuliani, running against a pack of men and a woman who have long been faithful to their national party, assumes the true stripes of his Republican affiliation.

Generation Q

So what do you think are the most pressing issues of today that no one "politicians" is talking about?

Generation Q

I Love the Smell of Surge in the Summertime

I was reading this on a friends blog.

By Steven D. Levitt

One of the most important political questions of the day is whether the troop surge in Baghdad is working. If you ask politicians, the answer you get to that question is very predictable. Republicans say yes, Democrats say no.What do the data have to say about this question?Michael Greenstone, an M.I.T. professor, good friend, and one of the best young economists in the world, has just released an incredibly thorough and thoughtful analysis of the impact of the surge.He finds the answer is mixed.

On at least one dimension, there is strong evidence of progress. The data clearly suggest that deaths of civilians in Baghdad have fallen, and there is no evidence that the crackdown in Baghdad has shifted violence to the rest of the country. Coalition troop fatalities have been stable since the surge, which in some ways signifies progress since they were on a steady upward trend prior to the surge.

The surge does not seem to have helped in other dimensions such as the amount of oil produced or hours of electricity in Baghdad.The most interesting part of Greenstone’s paper is his analysis of the pricing of Iraqi government debt. The Iraq government has issued bonds in the past. These entitle the owner of the bond to a stream of payments over a set period of time, but only if the government does not default on the loan. If Iraq completely implodes, it is highly unlikely that these bonds will be paid off.

How much someone would pay for the rights to that stream of payments depends on their estimate of the probability that Iraq will implode.The bond data, unlike the other sources he examines, tell a clear story: the financial markets say the surge is not working. Since the surge started, the market’s estimate of the likelihood of default by the Iraqi government has increased by 40 percent.

I have a few thoughts after reading Greenstone’s work:

1. This paper shows how good economic analysis can contribute in a fundamental way to public policy. Anyone who reads Greenstone’s article will recognize that it is careful and thorough. It is even-handed and apolitical. It combines state-of-the-art data analysis techniques with economic logic (e.g., using market prices to draw conclusions about how things are going).

2. Top economists like Greenstone virtually never write papers like this. The simple reason is that this sort of work is not rewarded in our profession. Academic economists are judged by the papers they publish in peer-reviewed journals. The lag time between submission to these journals and publication is often two or more years. By that time, no one will be interested in the surge, so editors won’t want to publish the paper. Consequently, good economists don’t think it is worth their while to do topical work like this.

3. Instead, this sort of analysis tends to be done by bad economists, or economists on the payroll of special interests. These reports might appear informative, but instead are often pure propaganda. To outsiders, it is difficult to determine what is careful analysis like Greenstone has produced versus the usual junk.

4. The internet can potentially solve both problems (2) and (3) above, leading to an increased supply of good, timely analysis. If people like Greenstone can immediately get their findings into the public debate through the internet, it gives a real purpose (not just an academic one) to doing the work. In addition, there are now online peer-reviewed academic journals that have greatly sped the time from submission to publication, potentially increasing the academic payoff to someone like Greenstone. With many respected economists now blogging, there is also a vehicle for these folks to weigh in on the quality of policy-related economic writings — like I am doing in this blog post.

Bush's New AG

Just too funny. I wish I would have come up with this one!

Washington, DC (Rotters) - In a surprise announcement early this morning at the White House, President Bush announced that he would be putting forward the nomination of former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick as the new US Attorney General to replace disgraced former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Belichick was recently found guilty of covertly videotaping opposing team's signals after an NFL investigation, and fined $500,000. Belichick resigned his duties as head coach earlier this morning, and the White House announced that he had received a full presidential pardon. Under pressure from the White House the NFL had agreed to forgive the fine after the head coach's resignation.


"I seem to have inherited a fairly demoralized group," stated Belichick after the president's introduction, "but this team of attorneys has some real talent and I think we can turn them into contenders in pretty short order."

The White House refused to disclose terms of Belichick's contract, but it is rumored to be in the millions and with a taxpayer-funded signing bonus as well.

"This man understands the need for security and vigilance." stated President Bush. "He's got some great ideas on both offense and defense in our ongoing struggle to push our necessary domestic wiretapping policy past the new FISA rules. What's more, Bill is a true Patriot."
The White House downplayed concerns over Belichick's lack of legal experience stating that this should be viewed as more of an asset.

"We've got a whole team of young, eager Regent Law School graduates ready to assist Mr. Belichick in any way," stated White House spokesperson Dana Perino."The goal will be to not have him bogged down in the mundane, day-to-day legalese and management concerns, but to focus on ways to increase homeland security through covert monitoring in all forms."

Senate Democrats immediately decried the president's appointment vowing to oppose and overthrow it during confirmation hearings. The White House has reportedly offered a counter proposal of three first round primary election picks for the 2008 season, if the Democrats will allow confirmation.

Fantasy Congress

Okay Government students. Here is your chance to prove just how good you are. Do you think you have what it takes to beat your peers and your teacher when it comes to picking the dream political team? Where here is your chance.

I mentioned in one class that sometimes I play fantasy congress. Well, here is your chance to play along with me and the rest of the classes at LHS. Click on the link above and then register (Upper left hand corner). The items that you will need to have are the class ID: 164

and the class code: lockbox (of course)

Then follow the instructions for picking your team. I already have my team up and running so sign up quick if you want to compete with the master!

Ed Meese

Those interested in joining me for this lecture on Thursday night, please message me or see me in class. I have room for a total of 5 students. The lecture will start around 6:30 and end around 9:30. If I have more than 5 that are interested, I will draw the names out of a hat!
This really is an awesome opprotunity to hear from someone who was in the White House and served as the Attorney General of the United States.
Here is a wiki link about Mr. Meese.

Would You Do Any Better?

So apparently during the last Teen America Pagent, all of the finalist were asked a geography based question. The response of Ms. South Carolina was less than inspired. I'm sure the pressure of the moment got to this upstanding young lady. Could you have done better?

So That's How Diamonds Are Made!

So exactly how bad would it have to be before you did this? On a side note...this has been all the buzz. That's alot of AK-47's waiting to be bought for sure!

Politics in the Toilet

A couple of items to note. Once you begin to dig into the story, you will find that the Sen. from Idaho, like others in the past, turns to bashing the media for dragging his good name through the mud. Second, where was this story for 3 months? Wouldn't a rabid, LIBERAL media have jumped all over this when it happened?

Who's Behind Will Get Powdered?

The world in which we live. If your not with the runners...you're with the terrorists?
So how much of a chance do you give this case in a court of law?

Welcome Westerners!

Welcome to the 3rd Floor! Now that you are here...a bit of bureaucracy. When you comment to a blog, you must sign your first and last name and the period you have my class. This will allow me to give you credit for your participation grade.

When you comment, it will not show up until I approve it.

Remember, this is a forum for us to communicate on topics of the day. We do not have to agree with each others comments...but your comments must be in line with the student code of conduct that you all signed.

Have fun and welcome!