Environmentally Speaking

Am I wrong to think that with our advanced technology and ingenuity that we could do something about this?  Tons of debris from the tsunami in Japan is adrift in the Pacific Ocean and heading for Hawaii (and elsewhere, one would assume since there is no exit route from the ocean).  Maybe I am a total idiot (it's possible), but couldn't we send some barges out there to at least try to gather some of it up?  I realize we're talking about tons of debris, but come on.  Can't Al Gore afford to charter a boat to go out there and do something?

And this is completely separate from the giant trash island that we also have in the Pacific.  What if all the money spent on the PR and advocacy side of various environmental groups was instead spent on actually solving problems?  I would gladly give money to clean up this trash, I will not give money to pay for Al Gore's speaking tour on a private jet to lecture us all on our energy consumption.

Occupy Wall Street

Watch this.  It's interesting -- frightening and hilarious at times, too -- but also very interesting.

Is It Just Me?

Or does something seem a little off about this?  Michelle Obama visited the Secret Service headquarters and talks about how much she appreciates the work that they do (and I'm sure she does), but this is what she says:

"Sasha will come in, it's like, 'You took Scott!'" Mrs. Obama said. "Malia's like, 'You took Scott? That's not fair!' And then I'll say the same thing to Barack. It's like, 'Why did you get Beth?' It's dinner table conversation." 

"Why did you get Beth?"  Maybe because Beth's boss at the Secret Service thought she'd be a better fit for the assignment with Barack.  She's talking about these highly-trained men and women as though they're the Obamas' house slaves (how's that for post-racial?).

This is a unique view into the First Lady's mindset.  She believes she's complimenting them and in her own way, she is.  But this is how the First Family thinks about all the perks that come with being in the White House.  The lavish trips abroad, the separate flights to Martha's Vineyard, the bartering over Secret Service agents, and on and on ... Marie Antoinette was more low-key than this.

Hmmm

Is this the War on Terror?

The 26-year-old Massachusetts man, Rezwan Ferdaus, was arrested as part of an FBI sting operation in which he was made to believe he was working with members of al Qaeda, who were actually undercover agents.

I think it's great to remove potential terrorists from our midst, but are we just luring young Middle Eastern men into thinking that they're living out their terrorist fantasies and then arresting them for it?  The FBI led this man to believe that he was working with Al Qaeda.  How about actually infiltrating Al Qaeda?  There are countless men (and women, I guess -- don't want to discriminate) out there like Rezwan Ferdaus.  It seems a rather inefficient use of resources to create sting operations like this to capture one dude at a time.

Newt for VP

I've given it about five minutes of thought and I think Newt should be the Vice President.  He knows the ins-and-outs of Congress and would work well with the almost inevitable Republican majorities in both houses (I think the as yet to be determined president should designate him as the man for that job) .  He's an idea man and could just churn out a bunch of good stuff for a seasoned executive to sift through and decide which to pursue.

Anyway, I'm still undecided (leaning Perry) on the presidential nominee (and haven't been able to watch many debates), but I think I'm on to something here.

Inside Baseball

What is the deal with Tim Pawlenty and Thaddeus McCotter dropping out and endorsing Mitt Romney?  Romney was the main nemesis for both during their primary runs.  (Excepting, of course, Pawlenty's whiny attacks on Michele Bachmann.)

I read that Pawlenty was getting his campaign's debt taken care of by Romney (in exchange for the endorsement?).  I'm not sure what McCotter's motivation is.  He had previously said of Romney, "our struggling families, entrepreneurs, and workers think Mr. Romney and Mr. Obama are not rivals, they’re running mates."  Very true, in my opinion.  So what gives?


Politics certainly does make strange bedfellows.  You just have to wonder what's going on behind the scenes that we are not privy to.  

The Road to Recovery Is Actually a U-turn

This is why the economy won't get back on track:  CEO fined for hiring too many workers.

At a certain point you have to wonder if Obama administration doesn't want the economy to improve.  They seem to do everything within their power to prevent a recovery.  The question is why.  Are they purposely creating an economic condition under which the only jobs available will be government jobs or jobs funded by the government?  I think our current debt situation shows that is not a viable plan.