Same-sex marriage issue has endured a long fight in Hawaii In Hawaii, it started with a 1991 lawsuit — and a high court’s hist

People in Hawaii wants to pass a bill for same-sex marriage. The civil union bill are waiting to see if the measure will pass the House with a veto-proof margin, allowing gay couples to enter into civil unions. the bill was approved on Friday, The court decision, which said denying same-sex partners the right to marry violated their equal protection rights under the state Constitution. A lot of people don't want this to happen bur it is. Everywhere is changing and people are just going to have to accept the fact that the world is changing and everybody is not going to be the same anymore.

http://akamine2525.wordpress.com/2010/01/25/same-sex-marriage-issue-has-endured-a-long-fight-in-hawaii-in-hawaii-it-started-with-a-1991-lawsuit-%E2%80%94-and-a-high-courts-historic-ruling-for-gays/

passing the healthcare bill

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-begala/pass-the-senate-bill-plea_b_434700.html

-democrats are now pressured to pass the heqlthcare bill.the bill is supossed to have universal healthcare.it is said that passing the bill will make history.however,as all politicians are at some point,the democrats are not being highly supportedb by the people of massassachutsettes,and loss to a republican.however,this is becouse i MA,most people in that state are actually covered by healthcare so the democrat healthcare plan campaign did not grab their attention.

Hutchison gets presidential support

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/01/22/hutchison-gets-presidential-support/

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's bid for Texas governor gets the support of a former commander-in-chief Friday. The 4-term senator is challenging fellow Republican and incumbent Texas Gov. Rick Perry in the March 2 Republican primary. Perry was elected lieutenant governor in 1998 and assumed the governorship after incumbent George W. Bush stepped down following the 2000 presidential election. Perry won full terms in 2002 and 2006.

Huge Republican Win in MA

Scott Brown has picked up a huge upset of Martha Coakley in the Massachusetts special election for Ted Kennedy's seat. A Republican has not held the senate seat since 1952!

We will be discussing and analyzing this much more:

1) How will this impact the health care legislation in Congress? Remember.. there is a filibuster. What will they do?

2) What will this mean in the upcoming election for Democrats?

3) Why did Scott Brown win? What does party identification mean? Why did voters in an overwhelmingly democratic state, vote for a Republican? Was it Obama? Was it because Coakley was such a horrible candidate?

We will discuss this in detail.

Grades are updated. With few exceptions will any more makeup work be accepted.

We will discuss in class how we will proceed with next marking period. The test was shockingly bad for most. A few students I would like to commend on their performance: Sherese, Daisha, Khalif, Brittney, Jonay, and Shantee. A few others also did well.

Unfortunately, even though you had 1/2 the test questions beforehand, most performed so poorly we are going to change how the class works. There will be two options: Option 1: recommit to taking the AP exam and work hard in class and outside of class to prepare for the exam and pass it, and Option 2: still take the exam, but don't worry as much about preparing for it. Complete projects on your own in class that you will give to students in Option 1 related to the unit we are studying.

I will go over each with you tomorrow, as well as the exam.

http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2010/01/17/bush,_clinton_haiti_response_not_about_politics

Mr. George W. Bush is trying to make a come back and get on America's good side. He and Bill Clinton are doing what they can to lead a private fundraiser for Haiti. President Barack Obama asked them to lead the bipartisan effort. I think it is great that Bush is doing what he can to become the guy and helping out Haiti is a good start. I wonder what he's willing to do next and would it make a change.

http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2010/01/18/key_events_during_obamas_first_year_in_office

Obama has did a lot for his forst year in office. From signing his first bill into law on January 29, 2009 to He pledging to abide by agreements to pull all U.S. forces out of Iraq by the end of 2011, on July 22, 2009 plus much more. If thats the case imagine what he may do for the rest of his term. I think if everyone be patient and stop doubting Mr. Obama he would do everything he needs to do to make America happy.

clinton and bush post presidency

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/01/17/clinton-george-w-bush-reflect-on-life-after-the-white-house/

-former presidents george bush and bill clinton are discussing life after presidency.clinton says do not offer advice if not aslked for it,and show up when asked to . bush thogh says ,that he does not miss all the attention that comes with being a world leader. it is obviouse that both bush and clinton support president obama as a president and his relief efforts in haiti

backup for healthcare reform

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/01/17/democrats-consider-backup-plan-for-health-care-reform/

-democrats are discussing a back up plan for healthcare reform in case of losing the spot.top white house aides though,deny this.they ar confident martha coakly will win the senate seat.if the democrats lose the seat however,the plan is to pass the bill before the rpublican's seating

who will take after ted?

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/

-afater senator ted kennedy's passing,there needs to be someone to fiil his place.democrats are pushing for their candidate martha coakly to get the spot.president obama will be going to massachussettes to represent her.ted kennedy had alot of influence and the democrats need this spot,but republicans are after it as well.if republican,however earns the spot,they can run a sucessful filibuster against the democratic health care bill.

wallstreet and what they did wrong

http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=a_teachable_collapse
-since the downfall of the economy,people have decide to write books about it.the books are either,one common style is insider reporting written almst like that of a novel.another is the books that thoroughly analyze the situation from a non-personal perspective.three books recommended are;
"in fed we trust" by david wessel, "freefall" by joseph stiglitz ,and last "how markets fail" by john cassidy.these books discuss different perspectives on how the economy of america (and the world) went awry.

filibuster!

http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=lets_make_a_filibuster_deal

-the filibuster was designed to be a a tool in government.unfortunately right now it is causing difficulty in the passage of laws,especialy with the health care bill.there were more than a few disagreements over it.
-the article also presents the idea of possibly altering the filibuster,and the old system of bdget reconcilation.in budget reconcilation, bills dealing with finances cannot be filibuster,and about how lessoning the usage of the filibuster wuld improve the government.

damage to haiti was preventable?

http://www.newsweek.com/id/231132
-as early as two years ago seismologists (people nwho study eathquake,tectonic plates,ect)said that there was apossibility of haiti being in danger of having an earthquake.
-also,at some point,the USA ( saddly it was for selfish reasons) attempted to help haiti.unfortionately though,becouse of weak governance,lack of organization and mass illiteracy and lack of education,attempts to help were unsucessful.

congress never reads bills

-the congress doesn't always look over all bills.one was the banning of lead products made for children.by banning the products,there are many companies being put ut of buisness which the government didn't take into consideration.this is becouse bproducts can't be sold and lead testing is expensive.the problem is that several millions of items that are used in every day life were recalled,even products containing leaded ink.becouse of the congress not knowing the full affects of the bill several small buisnesses and thousands of workers are out of jobs.

bad economy and how it happens

http://www.infowars.com/11-clear-signs-that-the-u-s-economy-is-headed-into-the-toilet/
-appearantly ,the economy has been going wrong for decades.the government has been playing a hand in this,with the lack of organization.unemployment is worse than ever,even in indian reservations.even wages are lower than they were forty years ago.the economy may not be recovering anytime soon,and its not the fault of the president.these were underlying problems that finaly gave way.

DeVore says LEAVE HAITI ASAP!

The communications director for California Republican Senate candidate Chuck DeVore tweeted on Thursday that America, the world and even charity organizations should immediately leave the island once immediate and limited recovery is done. "The best thing the int'l community can do is tend the wounded, bury the dead, and then LEAVE. That includes all UN and charity,"This seems a bit blunt, even for the most non-interventionist of Republican candidates (DeVore is a Tea Party favorite). But it also is a reflection of Americans' widespread skepticism about the prospects of building a functioning and stable Haitian society. I must say what happened in Haiti is very sad, if you read my other blog about Haiti, but this man is right. Get in, fix it and get out! I think (my opion) that Haiti is so poor because they defeated the whites and they didnt like that, so when Haiti needed anything like money or to trade they didnt get it.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/14/gop-candidate-chuck-devor_n_423460.html

Tylenol Recall?

Johnson & Johnson issued a massive recall Friday of over-the-counter drugs including Tylenol, Motrin and St. Joseph's aspirin because of a moldy smell that has made people sick. It was the second such recall in less than a month because of the smell.. Federal regulators criticized the company, saying it didn't respond to the complaints quickly enough, wasn't thorough in how it handled the problem and didn't inform the Food and Drug Administration quickly. Like what the heck! People use tylenol very often. People are getting sick because some worker at the tylenol factor was too lazy to tell the FDA that something was up. Be careful you guys, don't use Tylenol or Motrin!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/16/tylenol-recall-johnson-jo_n_425754.html

The Disaster in Haiti

on Jan 13, 2010 the city of Port-Au-Prince in Haiti experienced a horrible 7.0 earthquake. The earthquake has said to killed over 50,000 people. Haiti was known to be one of thee poorest countries in the world and this disaster has more than likely put them at the bottom of the list. this was surely a tragic disaster. the president has sent the military over to Haiti to help with the rescue f victims and to help rebuild. many Americans have started foundations to give money to Haiti to help with its rebuild and getting food there. i myself gave some money when i was at work. this is really sad, it was an unstoppable force of nature, but very sad.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/15/haiti-earthquake-aid-slow_n_425576.html

Haiti On Edge as World Sends Help After Quake

In Haiti, A magnitude-4.5 aftershock shook the capital of Port-au-Prince shortly before noon Saturday, raising new fears of damage. Rescue crews continued to work to free people believed trapped under rubble, while others carried out the grim task of disposing of the countless dead. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton landed Saturday in Haiti to meet with President Rene Preval, and the U.S. is sending more food, water and relief supplies. But it wasn't clear when that and other aid will reach all those in need. There has been little sign of any aid in much of the city four days after the quake. A water delivery truck driver said he was attacked in one of the city's slums. There were reports of isolated looting as young men walked through downtown with machetes, and robbers reportedly shot one man, whose body was left on the streets.

Officials Evacuate Terminal at JFK Airport Due to Security Breach

The security breach apparently involved someone who left a first class American Airlines lounge at Kennedy's Terminal 8, opened a door that was supposed to be used only by airport workers and walked through. The security breach apparently involved someone getting off a flight from Florida who opened a door that was supposed to be used only by airport workers and walked through.The Transportation SecurityAdministration said its agents and Port Authority police were searching for the person who opened the door.All travelers at Kennedy's Terminal 8 had to leave the terminal so they could be re-screened.

F.D.A. Concerned About Substance in Food Packaging

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/16/health/16plastic.html?em


The food and drug administration is concerened about the health risks that americans are taking. the agency had some concerns about the effects of BPA on the brain. now what bpa stand for is behavior and prosatate gland of fetuses. it effects the infants and children as well. health agencys is studying the chemical in both animals and humans.

Taxing Banks for the Bailout

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/15/us/15tax.html?bl


Obama is trying to create this proposal for a new tax on the nation's largest financial institutions. Obama say's that he wanted to recover every single dime the american people are owed for bailing out the economy. The proposal tax will apply to bank companies,insurance companies with more than 50 billions assets.The white house said that collecting 117 billion dollars would take about 12 years.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2010/01/first-lady-on-balancing-work-and-family-a-whole-lotta-guilt.html

Mrs. Obama noted that as First Lady, she is afforded more support than most but told the crowd that just a few years ago, she was part of that same family balancing act.  She said she experienced “a whole lotta guilt” as she tried to figure out be both the employee and the mother that she wanted to be.The First Lady said the country needs to change those perceptions, arguing that workers who are given flexibility are more productive.The First Lady made her first “listening tour” stop of 2010 at the Department of Labor today, where focused on the familiar theme of work/family balance. 

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Politics/obama-bank-tax-money-back/story?id=9563452

After days of speculation, the president today confirmed reports that the government will seek to recoup losses from its massive financial system bailout by proposing a new tax on major banks.The announcement comes as politicians and critics wring their hands over news that the country's top five financial institutions Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley  have allocated roughly $90 billion for overall compensation, with bonuses comprising more than half that figure.But Obama showed little sympathy for the argument that taxing the banks is unfair.

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/HealthCare/democrats-health-care-finish-line-senate-house-bills/story?id=9500328

Democrats are near the finish line on health care legislation but they have yet to overcome one of the biggest hurdles -merging the Senate and House bills together.Although Congress is officially still in recession, key lawmakers are actively involved in intense negotiations to merge the two different bills that, while similar, have some important differences between them.

Haiti

Relief has begun trickling into quake ravaged Haiti but impassable roads and a heavily damaged airport have left eager aid workers largely unable to get food, water and rescue workers into Port-au-Prince.President Obama spoke directly to Haitians today and tried to give them hope, saying he could understand why they would "look up and ask have we somehow been forsaken."

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/HaitiEarthquake/haiti-earthquake-obama-tells-haitians-help-arriving/story?id=9559182

President Obama spoke directly to Haitians today and tried to give them hope, saying he could understand why they would "look up and ask have we somehow been forsaken."Obama said the U.S. is launching "one of the largest relief efforts in our recent history," but he acknowledged it may be an excruciating few days before it can arrive where it's needed because "roads are impassable, the main port is badly damaged and communication is just coming on line."Once open spaces in Port-au-Prince are now crammed with victims. Many have no homes to go back to and those who do are terrified to go inside for fear that aftershocks will collapse the walls and entomb them.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2010/01/obama-to-speak-with-haitian-president-today.html

President Obama will speak with Haitian President René Préval today, several days after a major earthquake flattened much of the country’s capital including Preval’s own presidential palace. The call is scheduled for 10:00 am via satellite phone.After Tuesday evening’s 7.0 earthquake Haiti’s cell and landline phone connections have been largely cut off throughout the country, already the poorest in the western hemisphere.President Obama has been trying to reach Preval unsuccessfully for several days. One source tells ABC News that for that reason an official from the US Embassy is currently with Preval to make sure President Obama gets through this time.

Alan Grayson Introduces Bill To Fight Corporate Money in Politics

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/14/alan-grayson-introduces-b_n_423658.html

Anticipating a supreme court decision that could free corporations from spending unlimited amounts of money on political campaigns, Representative Alan Grayson introduced five bills to stop corporate cash. I think that this bill is in the way because if corporations don't give politicians money for their campaigns then they may not be able to get their name out there as far as having commercials, signs and things of that nature.

Obama to Haitians ' You will not be forsaken'

President Barack Obama promised the people of Haiti that "you will not be forsaken" or "forgotten." I feel that Obama is will help Haiti out the best way he can. I think he will go about this better than Bush could and would anyday.

Palin's favorite founding father

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/01/14/palins-favorite-founding-father/

Sarah Palin isn't as constitional as she appears. A fox news anchor asked her who was her favorite founding father and she picked everyone. Like what is it, is it the fact that she like them all or she knows nothing about none of them. Sarah Palin in my opinion is a LOONEY TOON!

Democrats release a new video

Senate Democrats criticized Republican Scott Brown with a new video over his policy positions and accused him of lying about his voting record.The Democratic Web video follows a Massachusetts Republican Party Web video that questions Democrat Martha Coakley's claims of independence from the health care industry.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/01/14/democrats-release-new-web-video-on-brown/

http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2010/01/13/obama_concedes_he_hasnt_brought_country_together

Obama has stated that he has not succeeded in bringing this country back together. I cant blame him for trying. Our previous president, Bush, has messed our country up so bad that it left a lot of pressure on Obama. It has not even been a whole year since Obama president and yet he did a lot. I do not expect Obama to perform a miracle and make this counntry a better place because I know it'll take some time. People should just be patient and let Obama do what he could without being rushed.

http://abcnews.go.com/WN/HaitiEarthquake/earthquake-haiti-abc-news-george-stephanopoulos-interviews-bill/story?id=9554909

The disaster in Haiti, affecting more than 3 million people, may be one of the most devastating tragedies ever to hit the United Nations, former President Bill Clinton told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an interview for "World News."At least 16 U.N. employees, including chief of the U.N. mission in Haiti, Hedi Annabi, have died, with at least 56 more injured, a U.N. spokesman told ABC News.One day after the 7.0-magnitude quake struck the Latin American island, Clinton said officials there can still only speculate on the death toll in what is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.

http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2010/01/13/obama_wants_record_$708_billion_for_wars_next_year

I've read an article about how President Obama is asking Congress for an additional $33 billion to fight wars in Afghanistan and Iraq plus the $708 billion he needs for the Defense Department next year. I really don't think this is necessary for the simple fact these wars are not even important; they are not even popular. We are already in a recession and we need all the money we can get and using all of that money to fight an unknown war is pointless.
 

Why Obama

In this article "Why Obama Must Take On Wall Street they talk about how the president of the united states Barak Obama is the reason for bankers still devising new derivatives and still pilling on debt. Not only that they also say that he was the cause of and that he called the top bankers "Fat Cats", and the bankers insisted that they were very shocked to learn how intransigent their their lobbyist and has been in on opposing finacial reform. then the bankers claimed that a dissconnect between their intentions and their lobbyist actions also.

http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2010/01/13/obama_wants_record_$708_billion_for_wars_next_year

I've read an article about how President Obama is asking Congress for an additional $33 billion to fight wars in Afghanistan and Iraq plus the $708 billion he needs for the Defense Department next year. I really don't think this is necessary for the simple fact these wars are not even important; they are not even popular. We are already in a recession and we need all the money we can get and using all of that money to fight an unknown war is pointless.

DUI Arrest Of Congressman's Daughter Renews Ethics Violation Charges

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/12/dui-arrest-of-congressman_n_420386.html

The daughter of U.S. representative John Mica, a republican from Florida, was arrested for drinking under the influence. Her blood alchol content was more than twice the legal limit. Mias oponents think that there is a connection between his legislation and her costruction company. I think that politians always have some type of specualtion about other politians for no reason. They always start something so that the other representative looks bad in the eyes of the public as well as the media.

Dod Says Health Bill "Hanging by a Thread", but He's Bullish on Regulatory Reform

ABC News' Z. Byron Wolf reports: Sen. Chris Dodd used stark language to describe the state of health care reform negotiations between the House and Senate.

“It is hanging by a thread, obviously. One or two votes could determine the outcome of this bill despite all the efforts over the last number of years,” Dodd said in an appearance this morning on CNBC.

While this language is a bit more alarmist than what Democratic leaders have said recently, Dodd, who met last week with President Obama for two hours on the negotiations, did not describe a situation materially different than other Democratic leaders.

“You’d have to have been living on the moon not to follow  over the last month or so in terms of those are kind of hanging on the balance,” he said of Democrats in the Senate who are squeamish about the bill. He referred to his Connecticut colleague Sen. Joe Lieberman, Nebraska Democrat Ben Nelson, and Arkansas Democrat Blanche Lincoln by name. And he said progressive Democrats remain frustrated that there is no public option in version passed by Senators on Christmas Eve.

Does 'No-drama Obama' soothe nation's fears?

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/01/05/obama.tone/index.html

This blog was about how people criticize that Barack Obama is too cool and too weak.they were mad because he was too too late in response ; he was vacationing. Former Vice President Dick Cheney even said that the President was "trying to pretend we are not at war". People were getting concerned, the lack of organization among Obama's team caused that.i think that obama is doing all that he can .

Light Skin Bright Future

Harry Reid made a comment about President Barrak Obama being negro.  He said that the reason why he is president is because he do not talk like black people.  He is saying that if he was to talk like blacks, he wouldn't be the president of the United States.

Although we don't know much about style-behind-bars, we were aware of the body piercing and the tattooing that goes on in the cells...but two prisoners have opened our eyes to the newest self-mutilating trend: eye tattoos that change the sclera to be blue or even red.

When asked why he would do this to himself, David Boltjes (whose eyes are red) poetically remarked, "You can't ask why...the real question is why not," and his fellow inmate, blue-eyed Paul Inman explained that now, no one in the world would have the same color peepers as he has. Neither man would say how they managed to color their eyeballs, but both concurred it was extremely painful. Who would do a crazy thing like this?

Gay Marriage On the Road to the Supreme Court

The two lawyers who faced each other in the infamous Bush v. Gore case have teamed up to fight against the constitutionality of Proposition 8.

Ted Olson in this article makes what he calls the conservative case for gay marriage. If you are or think you are against gay marriage, you should read this piece. Olson clearly lays out how it is unconstitutional for a majority vote to take away the rights of a minority or to deny a minority important rights.

We will see over the next few years if this is the gay marriage equivalent of Loving. v. Virginia.

Interestingly, even though the case names Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, both he and the states Attorney General Jerry Brown have refused to defend Prop 8 because they also view it as unconstitutional.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/229957

Senator Harry Reid: Obama Can Talk like a Negro at Will

Reid had said some meanly comments about Obama. he said that Barack Obama had a good chance to become the nation’s first black president because he was “light-skinned” and spoke with “no Negro dialect unless he wanted to have one.” he is basically saying that Black's are not electable unless they are light-skinned like Barack Obama . It is said that people think like that. its said because they put black people down when they are trying to get higher. Just because our skin color is different doesn't means that we are not human. I thought that this was a free country, free of raciest but the country is full of raciest.

http://www.israpundit.com/2008/?p=19647

the language of our government

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gary-hart/orwell-and-language_b_418466.html

-the people in the government sometimes focus on words ,and use words to their advantage when talking to the people of the country.often people hear about policies and like them becouse they sound good,and go with ideas tha sound good.however ,people do not always no exactly what a policy means and what it does spcificaly.the words in laws in policies,depend on how a person interprets it.

http://abcnews.go.com/PollingUnit/views-improve-sharply-afghanistan-criticisms-us-stay-high/story?id=9511961

Hopes for a brighter future have soared in Afghanistan, bolstered by a broad rally in support for the country's re-elected president, improved development efforts and economic gains. Blame on the United States and NATO for violence has eased – but their overall ratings remain weak.In one key shift, the latest poll by ABC News, the BBC and ARD German TV finds that sharply more Afghans now see the Taliban as the main source of their country's strife, while many fewer blame the United States or its allies – significant progress in a central aim of the new commander of U.S. and NATO forces, Gen. Stanley McChrystal.Many challenges remain. Complaints about official corruption are higher than ever. Views of the United States and NATO's performance remain poor, with six in 10 rating their work negatively. And accounts of local violence have held steady, with many Afghans still blaming allied forces for civilian casualties. All these raise the question of whether the overall improvements can hold as Hamid Karzai's honeymoon fades and the fighting continues.Critical from the U.S. perspective is that, despite poor views of its performance, 68 percent of Afghans continue to support the presence of U.S. forces in their country – and nearly as many, 61 percent, favor the coming surge of Western troops initiated by President Obama. But support for the surge drops to 42 percent in the South and East; support for the presence of U.S. forces also drops in these regions, and support for attacks on U.S. and NATO forces, while sharply down overall, remains much higher in the restive South.

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/harry-reid-senate-majority-leader-resign-race-comment/story?id=9528631

News that Reid praised Obama's electability as a "light skinned african american "with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one" could weaken the political influence of the Nevada Democrat. Reid is a key Obama ally who already faces a tough re-election battle in his home state.Obama, who has accepted Reid's apology for the comment, needs a strong Harry Reid to help him pass health care legislation, a jobs bill, energy legislation and funding for the war in Afghanistan, among other legislative priorities.

In Hasan Case, Superiors Ignored Their Worries

Hasan, 39, is accused of murdering 13 people on Nov. 5 at Fort Hood, the worst killing spree on a U.S. military base.What remains unclear is why Hasan would be advanced in spite of all the worries over his competence. That is likely to be the subject of a more detailed accounting by the department. Recent statistics show the Army rarely blocks junior officers from promotion, especially in the medical corps.  Hasan showed no signs of being violent or a threat. But parallels have been drawn between the missed signals in his case and those preceding the thwarted Christmas attempt to blow up a Detroit-bound U.S. airliner. President Barack Obama and his top national security aides have acknowledged they had intelligence about the alleged bomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, but failed to connect the dots.

David Permut is a film and television producer that's trying to generate some buzz about his latest film, so he gave $100 to Ronald, a homeless veteran at the comrner of San Vicente and Wilshire. He asked Ronald to hold up a poster that had "Youth In Revolt". He was questioned about the tactic he chose and said "It's been very good for us and for him. So I started thinking: why don't the movie studios go to all the homeless people and pay them to hold up one-sheets?"  Some think it's a good idea to pay the homeless for advertisement, and some find it offensive.

Cornyn, Steele Call on Reid to Resign as Senate Leader After Obama 'Negro' Comment

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, has joined Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele in calling on Harry Reid to resign his Senate majority leadership role after news broke over the weekend that Reid described then-candidate Barack Obama in 2008 "light-skinned" with "no Negro dialect" unless he wants one. Cornyn, head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said Sunday that Reid should follow the example set by Trent Lott in 2002, who resigned his leadership post after making unfortunate remarks at the centennial birthday party for Sen. Strom Thurmond, who had been a segregationist in the 1940s.

the Newark Guy and security

After a week long manhunt for the fellow in the light-colored coat who hopped the security line at Newark Airport to kiss his girlfriend goodbye one last time, causing mayhem, evacuation, and massive delays, police believe they've found their man.

WHAT?

Anyway in the AP piece there was this: “Vice presidential nominee Joe Biden was direct. “Who’s Sarah Palin?” the book quotes the then-senator as asking as they left the nominating convention in Denver.” To any of the political elite and those not from fly over country see this as, ‘astute observation as to the validity of Sarah Palin’s existence’. Now contrast the fact that Joe Biden being a member of an elite club of 100 would not know the name of one from a club of 50 which has more constitutional authority than any member of the Senate.

Rudy Giuliani said 'We had no domestic attacks under Bush; we've had one under Obama.'

I’m still in shock over former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s comment that “we had no domestic attacks under Bush.” Is it possible that he meant to add “after 9/11″ and slipped up? I don’t know — forgetting to mention 9/11 is not a problem he’s had in the past.
I think Jake Tapper, on Twitter, is on to something when he suggests that Giuliani is one of many conservative who start the clock on the Bush presidency on 9/11. A smart conservative demand from President Obama right now might be that he “start the clock” on his anti-terror policy with the failed Christmas bombing. But that’s not what Giuliani’s doing here — he implies (as many Bush apologists do) that an attack that occurred nine months into the Bush presidency was Bill Clinton’s fault, while an attack that occurred 12 months into the Obama presidency was all Obama’s fault.

obama should rethink

It was also the question that seemed to be on President Barack Obama mind early last year, as he canceled funding for the nuclear repository and shuttered the site indefinitely. "Yucca Mountain," said Senator Harry Reid of Nevada commented with a grin, " it is gone."

Obama's decision to close Yucca Mountain seemed like a victory for the environment, it was the opposite. Although the issues at Yucca are serious and several including those cinder cones, a nearby seismic fault, and the gradual creep of water through the mountain the decision to cancel the repository may be even riskier still.

passing health care reform was easy, it would've happened decades ago. It's not. It requires tough choices. And it's worth it.

there are a lot of claims made and exaggerations leveled in the last days about a provision in the Senate-passed health reform bill that places an excise tax on the insurance companies that offer high cost health insurance plans. A lot of it comes from the right wing that wants to kill health care reform. But a lot of it also comes from friends who share my convictions about health care passing it to reform easliy, it happened decades ago. It's not requires tough choices. And it's worth it.

A man from nigeria by the name of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was charged for trying to blow up a detriot bound northwest airlines on christmas day. he was also charged for having weapons of mass destruction and attempting to kill about 300 people. that's very sad. President obama suspects that the threat came from Al-Qaida. Umar told police officals that he was trained by Al-Qaida. and so obama plans are to boost the security rate and lead the america people to safer nation around the world.

HAPPY NEW YEAR AND WELCOME BACK!

I hope everyone had a relaxing break. We have less than four months left of this class to go before you take the AP exam and then have May and June to celebrate being a senior.

Let's get focused for this period of time and earn some college credits!

1) My Christmas gift to myself and to you was not to grade the tests we took before break. I started to, and couldn't take it anymore. Not good. So, on THURSDAY AND FRIDAY: JANUARY 14th and 15th, you will have an exam on the branches of government. All the questions on the Congress exam will be on the test. I will give it back to you, but I will not give you the correct answers. That's for you to do on your own.

2) Since I am guessing most of you did not spend the holiday or the last two days before break working on the Executive Branch packet, in class the next two days you will have the time to complete it. We will also watch a film as a review on the procedures of Congress as you work.

3) You have two more blogs to finish for this marking period. You can always make up missed ones. Please read the blog as it will keep you on top of issues going on in what is going to be an interesting year in politics.

4) You also must complete the Sotomayor and the Cash for Clunkers articles on TeenBiz3000.com

5) Make sure you have completed all college applications, called schools, and made sure everything is sent in. You should begin the process of registering for a FAFSA pin number and completing this. If you need help on this, I am available 8th period most days.

See you in class,

-Malone

http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2010/01/03/2010_situation_grows_more_difficult_for_democrats

I’ve read about how the 2010 situation grows more difficult for Democrats. Some people are starting to give up on this party because they lost all hope. For example, Parker Griffith doesn’t want to be apart of something that is bad for our country. This party is in so much trouble that it could also lose its grip on seats Obama held in Illinois and Vice President Joe Biden long occupied in Delaware. Although the Democrats are trying there hardest to fix these problems, they need to try a little harder before they lose everything.

http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2010/01/01/law_enforcement_deaths_for_2009_reach_125

It is ridiculous that so many law enforcements died this year. It’s a tragedy. 125 law enforcements died on the job trying to make our country a better place for others. But the weirdest thing is that 125 is the lowest of the law enforcements deaths since 108 a half-century ago. You would think that would be the highest. The violence of America needs to stop; it’s giving our country a bad name.