Great Expectations-The Presidency Of The United States

      Now that the historic 2008 election for the President of the United States is over and Barack Obama has won…there will be great expectations.  Obama really ran on the platform of “change”.  As the agent of change…he will be watched and judged in a way like no other before him.  Everyone is expecting miracles; and miracles, is what this nation needs.  Families are looking for stability in their lives.

       As we have demonstrated to the world over the last few months…we have to get our finances as a country and as a world under control.  We must heal the breakdown of credit and the housing industry…the buying, selling and foreclosure of homes.  We must address the nations dependency on oil from foreign countries.  We must investigate and explore alternative forms of energy.  We must address the dwindling funding that forms the foundation of education in both lower and higher education.  We must find a way to insure those who have no medical insurance.  We need to apply some solutions to the social security flux which will drain the funds because of the aging population.  We must repair relationships with countries around the world that have been badly damaged over the last 8 years.  We must continue to protect ourselves and others who are under siege from terrorists around the world.  We must insure that our children have opportunities before them that children from other countries have. 

        I say we meaning, African Americans and all Americans, Democrats and Republics, conservatives and liberals, men and women…it doesn’t matter who you are…we are in this thing called life together…and that is how we have to approach solutions to the problems that we face as a country.

        With an unprecedented stacked deck of Democrats in the House & Senate, as well as a Democratic President, we will have great expectations from Barack Obama as leader of the United States. Republicans have taken the heat for the condition of the United States for quite some time…now it is time for Democrats to prove their worth as they lead our citizens.  

         Is President elect Obama up to the task?  He had better be…because it is unacceptable to think about the alternative; and, the impact it will have on this country if he fails at any one of the aforemented issues; as well as many, many more issues which are in need of major renovation to become healthy once again.

         Hopefully, we will not, in our zeal to affect change in this country, continue to attack the basic values of conservative America.  We are seeing escalating legal attacks on the defination of traditional views of marriage and family.  We have people who are determined to stretch the defination to include gay marriages as a legally recognized state of marriage.  There are those who seek to further liberal ideas such as legalizing marijuana and prostitution; or expanding the limits of abortion.  It seems that traditional values in this country are being turning upside down…what has been considered to be right is now viewed as wrong and is prone to challenge.

        There is some real resistance against such change, from those who consider themselves conservative; to fight and stand up to those challenges; by those who not only believe in a liberal view of rights and responsibilities but, those who seek to change how we govern ourselves regarding those issues.  So is Barack Obama up to the task of effective leadership of such diverse approaches to life?  Time will be the judge! In the meantime, citizens of the United States have a right to great expectations.

       

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Gone But Not Forgotten-Princess Diana

          She is gone but not forgotten, the fair princess; Lady Diana Spencer.  It has been 11 years since her death in a car accident in Paris. Her youth, her beauty, her energy has been frozen in time through the photos we view.  So much has happened since that time.  Her beloved boys have grown up, her ex-husband Prince Charles has remarried Diana’s nemesis, the world has continued to move onward. 

           Still, no one has ever been able to take Diana’s place of purchase in the hearts of the public who loved her so.  She who was able to accomplish so much in so little time here on the Earth.  Can you imagine how much more she would have been able to do in a world full of hurts because of her ability to leverage her legacy?  She set a great role model with the work that she did for charities…that does not have to end.  People can follow her example and achieve much in the world, through donating time and money to those in need.  So we remember her today…full of smiles, and a heart that bent towards those in need, those who suffered, and those who were meant to overcome.  How can you be a light in the world?

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National Drive 55 Speed Limit?

        Senator John Warner has asked Samuel Bodman the Energy Secretary to review information that would reveal what the ideal speed limit would be that would allow the most efficient use of gasoline in our vehicles today.  With gasoline prices topping $4.15 cents a gallon around the country the timing couldn’t be better to encourage changes in the way that we drive.

         Many Americans have already started to alter aimless driving habits.  I see nothing wrong with that…we all could do better in planning where we go and what we do while we are out and about.  Some people are in denial about the severity of the situation regarding supply and demand as well as all of the damage to our planet that our carelessness has brought.  

         Would the general population get behind a national drive 55 speed limit?  I think it is going to take some convincing as it will be viewed by many as an inconvience after being legally allowed to drive up to 70 mph on some highways.  After all, it will take longer to get where they are going.  I think more people would be willing to do it if they felt that the automakers were doing more to ensure that we were getting more miles to the gallon by the way that they factory set the computers on our vehicles to use the gasoline we spend our hard earned dollars on.

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Green Group Of Eight

         Green Group of Eight sounds like a new alternative rock band; but in fact, it is a group of energy ministers from 8 countries (really 11 since India, South Korea and China have jumped on the bandwagon) who have committed themselves to cutting down on the carbon emissions that everyone agrees has been adding to the climate warming around the globe.  They have begun meeting looking for ways to cut down the carbon footprints we leave behind.  As they make recommendations and guidelines, it will be up to individuals in each country to make a positive impact by making sacrifices as well as more green choices in their every day lives.  It is for our own good.

         As the world has grown in population, the demand for oil and energy keeps growing as well.  The energy ministers are looking for positive ways to meet the need, while at the same time, finding greener ways to meet that demand but also use the energy in the most efficient ways possible.  It is a huge responsibility; but, one that most of us agree is necessary to preserve the world that we live in.

        With the options available for renewable energy there is great interest…however, it is costly for start ups.  If each nation becomes aggressive about pursuing less destructive means of providing energy needed in the world; then, the costs of renewable energy systems will become affordable for the average person.  We all owe it to ourselves and to our children and grandchildren to be good stewards of the earth and it’s resources.   Most people are willing to do their part if it is affordable, once they are educated on the options.   If incentives are put in place to encourage people to reduce their energy usage or to commit to alternative energy sources you might make headway sooner in these goals.  Why couldn’t these energy issues be taken more seriously sooner?   

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Life Flying By

        I remember as a teenager being told by my “elders” that the older  I would get, the faster it would seem like “Life was Flying By”.  Well, i hate to admit it but they were right.

        It seems like things are just moving so fast and there is so little time that it is a little bit creepy.  Things that are big news items one day, are not even remembered the next day because there are so many other items that are bigger, better, splashier and more exploitable each and every, new day.

         The other day i wrote here about the spy satellite with the poisionous gas that is about to enter the earth’s atmophere.  The US military plans to shoot it down this week.  They were waiting for the space shuttle to land before attempting to eliminate the threat that the satellite poses to the earth’s population. 

          The shuttle is scheduled to land tomorrow.  This is good, they will not be in firing range.  What i can’t believe is that no one is hyping the threats posed from the satellite.  No, no…the news is covered in things like Lindsey Lohan’s re-creation of a photo shoot that Marilyn Monroe shot way back in the 60’s.  Who could get through the day without having that little morsel pasted into their memory banks?

          Scandal is the name of the game.  Lord knows, if the people of earth could be in danger from the satellite….well…they must be up-to-date on the latest and greatest scandal in the news such as which particular baseball hero of the day used steriods or not, or whether Britney Spear’s dad is out on the partying circuit with Britney’s hangers on crowd, or perhaps, if a famous boxer really does dress up in fish net stockings in his private time!  These are important issues of today are they not?

          I mean who needs to know if there is some unknown government official who could be passing inspections of meat that goes into our school children’s school lunch programs, or the whole reason Fidel Castro is giving up his historical rein of power in Cuba, or how to put an end to all of these public, mass shootings, or why the economy in the US is on the verge of collapse between the mortgage nightmares…the high cost of gas and oil…the bondage of individuals and families who are ensared in a credit card debt web that they will never get out of without filing for bankruptsy…or, how to stop the exporting of jobs to other countries who can afford to pay their workers much less than US employees? 

           We each are “gifted” with such a short time here on earth that we really have to make the most of each and every day.  There is a constant demand for our attention with radio, television, newspapers and cell phones and computers…there isn’t a moment to just stop and realize how much time is wasted on things that really have no major importance.

           For each scandal that comes and goes…yes, the consequences are important.  To the people that it directly involves. 

          We have become a nation of observers of other people’s pain and misery.  When did it become a spectator sport?  If we invest time and energy to watch it…are we not morally challenged to do something about those very situations?  At the very least to pray or send good thoughts and wishes in those directions?

          Every moment of everyday…there are tragedies happening around us both in big and small ways.  There are wars, there are diseases, there are accidents, there are injustices, there are crimes of violence passed among our communities, deaths, and the list goes on.  Let us challenge ourselves not to get caught up in things that we can do nothing about. 

         If we were to focus our time and attention on reaching out to those around us and make a choice to improve our little corners of the world and make it a better place for those we meet everyday maybe “life wouldn’t fly by” so fast. 

          Helping those struggling around us often doesn’t take boat loads of money…sometimes it just takes a listening ear, or a sacrifice of a little of our time, or energy. 

           If we can wrap our minds around the concept of “spending time”/ in other words, using up what time we have alloted to us in our lives; maybe there would be a whole lot less people willing to “waste time” doing things that are un-important; or worse, damaging to ourselves and to the others around us. 

           We each have valuable talents and skills.  It is easy to get caught up in feeling depressed,sad, lost, lonely, or angry.  All of those emotions are negative and they snowball into negative actions.  Refocus and dig deep to find one positive thing to put your energy into. 

            Today it is easier than ever to get involved in positive things.  We can connect to others easily.  Find a group or organization to use what talents or skills you have.   Find a need and fill it, look for opportunities.   Be a role model to those around you.  Get involved in positive things and you will be amazed at how much happier you are.

          

          

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