From the comedian…

Art,

Thanks, I think, for the post on your website about my new skill, pundit/comedian.  We need some levity around here.  However, if you read my post, I said it appears the Kochs would like Christie to get the GOP presidential nomination. And if Christie goes all the way to the Oval Office, then Lonegan, part of the Koch team as head of AFP in NJ, would probably get their backing for the gubernatorial nomination in 2013.  One thing we know about politics is that there are no certainties.  I did not predict Christie would win nor that Lonegan would be the next governor.  I just wrote about what apparently is in the offing, Christie’s entry into the presidential race.  

Four years ago, the pundits predicted a Giuliani/Clinton presidential contest.  So much for the experts.  There is a “lifetime” between now and the first caucuses and primaries.  Yesterday, the FL straw poll results add fuel to the Christie for President bandwagon.  Bachmann is toast, Perry is toast, and the others are marking time.  Santorum and Gingrich had their egos stroked from yesterday’s results but they are going nowhere.  

Cain is the latest “flavor” of the week.  But he in not going anywhere either.  He wants even bigger government than Obama as DiLorenzo points out today on the LRC blog.  Ron Paul benefited enormously from the results yesterday.  He was right there with the other candidates.  In short, he is not a fringe candidate as much as the MSM would like to portray him as such.

One more thing; The title of my post: Is the fix in?  Not, The Fix is In as in your post.  Big difference.

Regards,

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Casagrande’s Cowardice

By Olivia Nuzzi

As noted here, six of LD11’s seven legislative candidates have come out in support of gay marriage. They include Democratic Senate candidate Ray Santiago, Democratic Assembly candidates Vin Gopal and Kathy Horgan, and independent Assembly candidate Dan Jacobson. 

Also on the list are Republicans Senator Jennifer “Romney” Beck and Assemblywoman Mary Pat Angelini, both of whom pledged – Angelini after significant hesitation – on September 18th during an interview with Garden State Equality at Monmouth University, to override Governor Christie’s veto of a same sex marriage bill should the opportunity arise in the next legislature. 

Conveniently, Caroline Casagrande, Beck and Angelini’s running mate, could not attend the event at Monmouth because she was busy with a “family commitment.” I suspect her family committed to travel far, far away from anyone asking her about gay marriage, an issue she has refused to take a stance on.

One of the many jobs of a public figure is to know a thing or two about public relations. Everybody, public figure or otherwise, knows that “no comment” is, more or less, always a confirmation. Evidently, no one forwarded that memo to Caroline Casagrande who has adopted a strict policy of “Don’t Ask me about gay marriage and I won’t Tell You a bunch of evasive nonsense.” 

Her refusal – while inexcusable – is understandable, given that without question, there are a significant number of voters in newly formed LD11 who are not going to agree with, accept or respect a politician who opposes gay marriage. However, no one can respect a coward. A coward, as it stands now, is precisely what Caroline Casagrande is.

If you want to be a social conservative, go ahead and be one – your base will revere you for it, and your ideological enemies will have no choice but to respectfully disagree. 

Instead of taking a stand, Ms. Casagrande has skirted around the issue of gay marriage, going as far as to employ Senator Sweeney’s regrettable history as a cop-out. 

By asking the “tough” questions that anybody who knows anything about the fight for marriage equality already knows the answer to, she is doing the best she can to make this seem complicated. “What about protections for religious institutions?” she challenged, as if the Big Bad Gays are planning to storm into Sunday mass to force the congregation to Vogue in unison. 

Ms. Casagrande is attempting to slide under the radar. She is hoping that this massive insult to the intelligence of those that she hopes to represent goes unnoticed. In adopting dishonesty as her policy, she has succeeded in fooling no one, she has merely made a fool of herself. 

You could call her running mate, Senator Jennifer “Romney” Beck, many things (a lobbyist or a liar, for instance), but a cowardly ideologue she is not. Ms. Beck at least had the guts to flip-flop as soon as LGBT-supportive Asbury Park and Ocean Grove became her problem. Maybe it’s just me, but I prefer the audacious displays of dishonesty to the panicked whispers… I’m a romantic, what can I say? 

Beyond embarrassing herself with her stunning lack of bravery and admission (however fabricated) that she cannot comprehend a simple issue, Ms. Ummmmm? also managed to miss an opportunity to follow the wide path of Declare and Defend set by her Messiah, Governor Christie. Aw shucks, what a shame.

We elect people who we believe possess the skills necessary to handle the many issues that NJ faces at once. If Ms. Casagrande can only handle one issue at a time, perhaps it is time for us to reevaluate her competence to serve. I say this only because I care about her well-being. After all, it would be cruel to continue to overwhelm her with the many complex legislative responsibilities that rest on her shoulders in Trenton. 

Olivia Nuzzi is a student from Middletown and an intern for the District 11 Democratic campaign.  MMM welcomes her fair and biased contributions. 

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Beck, O’Scanlon & Casagrande Praise Contributions of Ft. Monmouth

Legislators Say Fort’s Closure is Great Loss to the Community

Senator Jennifer Beck, Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon and Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande (all R-12) said that the closure of Fort Monmouth represents a great loss to the community, but also a great opportunity for new economic growth. The base will be officially closed in a formal retreat ceremony this afternoon.

            “Fort Monmouth served our nation for nearly a century developing innovative new technologies that people around the world depend on today,” said Beck. “The great concentration of knowledge and technical ability that surrounded Fort Monmouth helped New Jersey become an economic powerhouse. We are certainly saddened that the Fort is closing, but we are also determined to ensure that redevelopment efforts fill the void to keep Monmouth County a leader in technological innovation.”

            Fort Monmouth, which opened in 1917, was a global leader in the development of communications technologies, including FM radio and radar. During its decades of operation, the base served as a foundation for the local economy and local communities.

            “The jobs of more than 20,000 people were directly or indirectly tied to Fort Monmouth,” said O’Scanlon. “An entire community of businesses supported the operation of the base, and local residents provided much of the talent and brainpower that fueled cutting edge research and development within the Fort’s walls. While a void has been created by the closing of Fort Monmouth, any successors will have a first-rate infrastructure, both physical and intellectual, ready to assume.”

             “It certainly is sad to watch a pillar of the community be pulled out from under us,” added Casagrande. “In change, however, there is also opportunity. Looking to the past, we praise the many people who served at Fort Monmouth for their invaluable contributions to our nation. Looking to the future, we must seize this once in a lifetime opportunity to transform this central element of our community into something greater.”

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Henry Vaccaro Responds To The Neptune Nudniks’ Editorial

By Henry Vaccaro, Sr

I just saw an OP Ed story in the Press entitled “The Deadly sins of the Tea Party.

I take strong exception to that story.  In fact I resent it.

Had it not  been for the Tea Party Obama would have had a ” Clean” bill to raise the debt limit, without any spending cuts .

The Press has a very short memory.  Obama’s last budget called for Trillions in new debt. It was voted down in the Senate 94 to 0. We the United States of America are working without a budget. That budget proves that he had no intention of reducing the debt. Just more spending as usual.

The Press said “compromise.” I say “BULLS SHIT”. It’s about time that someone stood up for their principles. The Tea Party stood up to be counted.

At the Alamo, Col. Travis drew a line in the sand with his sword and challenged 180 men to cross the line if they were willing to fight and die for their freedom. They showed the world what Patriot’s stood for.

You the former Asbury Park Press have shown the world how bias the news media really is. You mention the Koch brothers “Oil barons and billionaires who have supported the Tea Party”. I did not see any mention of George Soros and the billions he has spent to further his and Obama’s agenda.

I am a proud member of the Tea Party; you have called us rowdy, rude and disruptive at town hall meetings. Maybe we didn’t like Obamacare being rammed down our throats, with all the backroom deals going on just for votes. There was NO open debate. Where were you the Asbury Park Press defending our freedom?

You say that it is time for the Tea Party to learn a lesson. We have learned a good lesson.

See you in 2012.

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Governor Christie Affirms Commitment to Strengthening Cities With Proper Oversight and Accountability

Trenton, NJ – Continuing his commitment to strengthening New Jersey’s urban cities and distressed municipalities through oversight, guidance and accountability, Governor Christie today committed himself to signing legislation proposed by his Administration that restores Transitional Aid funding and provides permanent, necessary accountability and oversight of the program. Under the Governor’s proposal, changes would be codified in statute to provide the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) with the resources and staff needed to properly oversee the Transitional Aid program.

“When I took office, I pledged to change the culture of Trenton and end the practice of unchecked waste of taxpayer dollars. Legislative Democrats’ efforts to eliminate oversight and accountability for Transitional Aid through the Department of Community Affairs was a misguided effort that would have returned us to the days of Trenton as a free-flowing spigot for taxpayer dollars where no one asked questions,” said Governor Christie. “I stand ready to work with the leadership in the Legislature on Transitional Aid funds, but only under the oversight of a properly resourced DCA. I will sign into law the bill I am proposing today that restores funding in the Transitional Aid program and that provides the resources for DCA to continue its vital work overseeing and enforcing accountability in the program, and serving as a partner with urban cities and distressed municipalities.”

Governor Christie is calling on the Legislature to codify oversight language in statute to ensure it is a permanent, foundational aspect of the Transitional Aid to Localities program, while also restoring funding in the program. Proper levels of oversight and accountability are critical to ensuring that Transitional Aid is indeed temporary as the State government works with recipient municipalities to implement needed reforms and efficiencies. The expenditure of state taxpayer dollars in the program must go hand in hand with proper accountability of those funds. By putting this oversight in statute, oversight and accountability of the aid program will be ongoing and no longer dependent on the whims and product of the annual budget debate and appropriations act.

For twenty-five years, the State’s distressed municipalities have received ever-increasing levels of state taxpayer support, above and beyond that provided by State municipal aid. These programs were provided with little to no State oversight, accountability or guidance. The general result was that distressed municipalities came to rely on these funds in their budgets as an annual appropriation and had no incentive to improve their fiscal management or regain their financial footing.

Upon taking office, Governor Christie has acted on a commitment to aggressively work as a partner with distressed municipalities and to implement responsible management practices, increase accountability and transition toward self-reliance and away from the need for additional state taxpayer funds.

The Christie Administration has aggressively overseen the Transitional Aid to Localities Program through efforts such as:

• Setting and enforcing conditions for the receipt of aid through Memorandums of Understanding;

• Implementing a meaningful, rigorous application process for aid awards where none existed before;

• Requiring regular oversight meetings with DCA and municipal officials to monitor the use of funds and efforts to control costs;

• Utilizing staff to consult with municipalities and assist with professional reviews of municipal operations;

• Advising and consulting with municipal cost-saving initiatives, including police and fire department restructuring to reduce overhead and ensure public safety programs are both efficient and effective;

• Requiring DCA approval for employee hiring;

• Denying non-essential hires, raises, contracts and expenditures and unnecessary travel.

In order for the Transitional Aid program to remain successful, the State must continue to maintain oversight of these transitional funds, and work cooperatively with municipalities in order to guide municipalities in their transition off of state taxpayer subsidies.

A copy of the Governor’s proposed legislation to restore oversight to Transitional Aid can be found here.

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On The Debt Ceiling Debate

“A Republic, if you can keep it”  ~ Benjamin Franklin

By Bill Spadea

The debt ceiling crisis is an economic and political crossroads for America. We stand on the precipice of losing our economic and personal freedom as Democrats and Republicans in Congress consider raising the nation’s debt ceiling.

Americans are clearly entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness – although the interpretation of that seems to be a bit broader outside of the libertarian movement, any system designed to help those who cannot help themselves still has to be affordable and sustainable. Remember that the wealth used has to be created by someone else. Through the raging debate in Washington it seems that the truth about our economic system is being ignored by politicians and pundits – that no system on Earth has provided so much to so many as capitalism.

That said, providing for those who can’t provide for themselves is as worthy goal – and one that should be mostly encouraged on the private side (yes this was on the increase during the Bush years due to tax cuts for wealthier Americans who do most of the charitable giving). Following private charity is the help afforded people at the local level, churches and shelters helping the destitute and the abandoned get back to a stable life. Only in the worst case scenarios should the federal government get involved. It’s simply not the appropriate role and as we’ve seen from the results, when you subsidize it, you get more than you bargained for in the first place.

I don’t know about you but when six figure government workers are afforded a lifetime pension and health care in the name of a social compact and entitlement we’ve got a serious problem. The Democrats have continued to move the bar higher to apply these government handouts at the expense of hard working Americans to dramatically increase standards of living – not to provide sustenance to the destitute.

The Democratic philosophy is to provide service and tangible items for people – give the starving man a fish…the conservative/classical liberal position is to teach him to fish. Not to oversimplify but one reason that the vitriol is so palpable recently is because we’re facing our fundamental philosophical differences and it’s scaring many of the folks in DC. I’m sure you heard that the President lost him temper at the congressional leaders yesterday. This is further evidence of the panic engulfing the political elite as the reality that the power they are so desperately clinging to is only sustainable if the American people continue to allow them to spend us into oblivion.
Sensible-minded leaders are finally standing up and saying enough. Thankfully, Congressional leaders like Ron Paul, Michelle Bachmann and Scott Garrett possess the courage and fortitude to stand up to the weak-minded Republicans ready to collapse on our core principles and the Democrats who are fighting to preserve an ever-expanding and intrusive government. They, along with many of their courageous colleagues in the House and Senate, and millions of working Americans, are finally saying enough of the endless borrowing, enough of the bloated spending, enough of the waste, the abuse and the fraud that has become our federal government.

The change is coming whether we like it or not, the unsustainable welfare state is coming to a close. If we redirect our efforts now to job creation and empowering folks that can be productive to make a better life for themselves and their families we’ll surely reduce the number of recipients for the various entitlement programs. As far as social security – without an ‘opt out’ for younger workers it is essentially a theft of their hard earned money which serves to deny free working people the right to protect their own future. We all know that the system will be broke in a decade or so based on the rising number of recipients compared to the number of earners. It’s a simple math problem. ‘Privatizing’ is a political buzz word intended to create a level of fear among voters. Those voters in turn keep sending the same thieves back to Washington to make the situation worse. Either we face the reality of the dire situation now or later but we’ll face it for sure. If we deal with it now – specifically adopt a plan like the one proposed by Pat Toomey on the Senate side we have a shot at a balanced budget, without shirking our responsibility to debt service, military pay and social security payments. The President is being disingenuous at best when he threatens to skip social security payments. His extreme partisan ideology has given us trillions in new debt and layers of regulation and bureaucracy that are choking the private sector.

The longer we wait to deal with the debt as adults the better the chance we’ll have passed a point of no return when more Americans are living off the work of others – and just as the communist system collapsed in on itself, the American experiment will surely come to a close when the production stops. Congressman Paul Ryan had a very strong message in front of a group in Chicago a few weeks back – essentially saying we shouldn’t be talking about ‘shared scarcity’ – we should be talking about creating a new prosperity – creating jobs and fostering economic growth. The government cannot create wealth – only redistribute what is created in the private sector. We’re at a back-to-basics moment – time to act and force a course correction before we’re all living in shared poverty.

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BECK FLIPS POSITION ON MARRIAGE EQUALITY DUE TO POLITICS

The ultimate hypocrisy – voters in the 11th District are tired of professional politicians who play the public

The following is a statement issued by 11th District Democratic Senate Candidate Ray Santiago in response to a July 3rd Courier Post news report that incumbent Senator Jennifer Beck will flip her position on marriage equality:

“News this weekend that Senator Beck will now support marriage equality after voting against it when all of New Jersey was watching is not shocking to anyone who has followed Beck’s career as a professional politician. She now faces a district which includes Asbury Park, Ocean Grove & other LGBT friendly areas – a new district which has 10,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans – therefore, it should come as no surprise that Senator Beck is flipping her position only due to politics.

The reality is that New Jersey taxpayers are tired of hypocritical, professional politicians who change their positions based on the political climate. Republicans, Democrats and all New Jerseyians should be tired of politicians who play the public. It is not like the Senator opposed marriage equality because it is in her belief system, it was simply due to the politics of a new district.This is an issue of human rights and Senator Beck plays politics – She voted against marriage equality not once, but twice – once in the judiciary committee and a second time on the floor of the senate and now because of a new district, she claims she supports it.

When it mattered most and the world was watching, Senator Beck decided to appease Chris Christie and her Tea Party base. All New Jerseyians who support human rights and full marriage equality for all of our brothers and sisters in the LGBT community will see through Beck’s incredible hypocrisy.

I have and always will support full marriage equality for all New Jerseyians and 11th district residents can be assured that I will not change my position based on politics. Marriage equality is a human rights issue which I will fight day and night for until it becomes law. It is a sad day to see a New Jersey state senator play politics on an issue of human rights.”

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In Congress, July 4, 1776

The Unanimous Declaration
of the Thirteen United States of America

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

Read the rest of this entry »

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A Day In The Life Of America

By Ralph Avalone, President, National Green Energy Council

May 2, 2011 5:00A.M.

I woke up today from the alarm set on my blackberry. A mobile office that uses 300 watts of energy per day. Did you know that? I just learned it recently. Now multiply that energy use by all the Blackberrys in the World and boy are we using more energy than we ever did before.

I jumped in the shower and used more water in ten minutes than most third World families use all year. I brushed my teeth and made sure I shut the water off while I brushed. Every American uses 29 gallons of fresh water per year just brushing their teeth, let alone shaving.

I shaved with a razor that uses a battery to vibrate it to give me a closer shave..oops battery ran out. I replaced it. What do I do with the old battery? Oh that’s right…. don’t throw it in the garbage because 84,000 tons of batteries go to landfills here in America each year. Plus I shut off the water in between strokes. More water saved. Doing my part…..Hope everyone else is.

I walked in to the kitchen to thumb through yesterdays mail. Bills and junk mail. What do I do with all the junk mail? Hmm. Garbage? Oops.. nope. Every American throws away 40 pounds of junk mail in landfills each year. Put it in a pile to bring out to the recycle bin.

Time to go to work….First stop 7-11 for coffee… $1.67 for a cup of Joe?  I remember when my dad gave me 35 cents to get him a cup at the local donut shop. You know the one about 5 blocks from my house growing up that I never had a problem going for my dad because I didn’t have ninteno ds, video games or a phone at 9 years old to text my friends I was gonna see later on in the day.

My dad didn’t worry about asking me to go for him because back then we didn’t have to worry about people grabbing kids and doing evil things to them. When did it get to be so much to get a cup of coffee? Oh yeah Starbucks trained people to spend five bucks on a cup of crappy joe and everyone else raised prices or is it just that there are so many more people on the Planet that there is not enough crops to supply the coffee? Oh well , gotta spend the money because I cant start a day without my joe!

Oh no.. I forgot a water! I gotta run in and get a bottle of water. I have a lot of phone time today and I’m gonna get dry mouth…. need that water bottle!…. $1.60 for a bottle of water. So that’s about $10.00 per gallon right? And I’m complaining about $4.00 per gallon gasoline. What’s the real heist here? Gas or Water? Mental note: Research population increase and availability of water for a growing World population.

Looked at my watch… only 7:00am to early to start making calls. Bottle of water in place. One of over 350 million that will be bought this year in America. And most tossed into a land fill.

 Stopped a light I see a young woman who is at the corner holding a sign that says. Lost my job  11 months ago, lost my husband 8 months ago, lost my house 4 months ago. Please help I need an apartment for me and my unborn baby. I gave her $20. She was 7 months pregnant…Why am I so angry that I just experienced that? That’s right I know why. Because this is America and its supposed to be the greatest country on Earth and the only change I see is the balance of power shifted in the Congress. I see 24 million Americans without jobs, one out of every 10 houses in America has either been lost to foreclosure or is in foreclosure. Change! Give me a break. Still victims of OPEC, big oil and coal.

Speaking of Big Oil…….I should get gas. I have to get to the airport to get on a plane to go to another Tornado zone and see what can be done to use new green technologies to help in the disaster relief areas and I’m going to be too tired to get gas when I get back from the trip, better get it know.          $4.01 per gallon. I remember waiting in the odd and even gas lines in the 70’s with my dad. He had two license plates you see, he was in the car business and he could get gas whenever he wanted just not when the pumps ran dry. I remember helping him push the car toward home sometimes with my brother until some neighbors felt bad and helped the rest of the way. We lived three blocks from the gas station. Now hold on a minute!… the sign from the street said $4.01 per gallon and the pump says $4.10 per gallon. What gives? I squint at the road side sign….a little message under the $4.01 per gallon. Cash price only  Who carries cash? I carry a card made out of petroleum materials and so does everyone else. Another great plan by big oil…weave the product into everything so that we can never get off it!

Well I’m off. Now I’m going to be late!

Ok in the parking garage. Scrambling to get to the ticket counter…Ok slide my credit card so it can find me…WHAT! I have to pay for a carry on bag now? $25??? Oh well, I need the laptop. Gotta pay! Now the checked luggage $28 Waiting… processing….Ok chosoe a seat. Dear God now I have to pay for a seat? What the hell did I pay for a plane ticket for? How much is it gonna be to fly when the oil runs out? How are we gonna get around. Too deep.. Gotta concentrate. Get this done cause the line in security is gonna make you miss the flight. OK done.. Let’s go.

License..check. no water bottle.check. ( just wasted $1.60) a little bags of my liquids. Check. Did I forget shaving cream? Ok here we go!  Im gonna make it! Shoes off, hat off, belt off, laptop out. Scanning bags…good…. walk through new contraption……..Ok, gotta get to my stuff. Why is my heart beating so hard. ” This your bag” says the TSA guard. “Yup” come with me. ” I have to remove all the items of your bags ok sir?” “yup” gotta love what the terrorists did to our travel experience!  I’m not complaining. Israels been dealing with it since some numskull decided to set them up surrounded by Muslims that hate their very existence. Would have liked to been in that room to hear how that plan unfolded…

Finally, on the plane. It took me an extra $100 for this flight with the bags, the seat and now my magazine and snack. Not even 8:00am and I just burned $100 on nothing. Unbelievable.

Oops gotta turn the phone off. It will make the plane crash somehow. OK stewardess message. No smoking! Really??? Remember when there was a smoking section on every flight? Now you cant even smoke outside in Disnelyland. What a different World….. Ok one last scan of the plane to try to see if I can identify a potential terrorist.. scanning….Is there an air marshal on this flight? Who might he be?

Why is my heart racing again. Wait a minute. That guy looks strange. Is he? Maybe? Wait a minute I can take him. Let me plan my reaction if he decides to take over the plane. Oh yeah got it. I just run up to him take as many bullets as I can to give another guy the chance to take him down? Really that’s the plan? I need a better one. I know, if my phone being on can make the plane crash somehow then maybe while its off I can crush him in the temple and take the plane back. Yeah that’s it! plan handled.

Uh oh! Too much coffee. Gotta go. Wow tiny in here. Wheres the button? Here we go? Wait a minute where does that blue water I just flushed go? Oh yeah it just falls out of the bottom of the plane. Another room I would have liked to be in when the government said ok you can do that!

Gotta get some sleep. Its gonna be a long day in the trenches. Why is this seat that cost me $15 so small? Am I getting fat? That’s it no more peanuts!

Landed in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Time to get in the trenches…….

It’s a war zone… Houses gone. Porches left behind. Debris in trees..Wait a minute… I have been here before….9-14-01 New York City?   No………..People running around.. No one knows who’s in charge.. The gulf coast .. Deep Horizon spill???? No…….Why does this all feel so familiar? Hurricane Gustav? No… people crying.. sorting through what’s left of their belongings…posted signs of the missing..radio playing  “this is the worst tornado season in the last 50 years”………. Worst season…..worst hurricane in 100 years. I’ve got it! HURRICANE KATRINA! Leaders who can’t lead, no one knows who’s in charge…people crying…. Americans without power, food, water and shelter. Again!!!!!!!!!!!!!! God damn it! Nothings changed! Its all the same.

The politicians fight over partisan garbage and my America bleeds….

Soldiers die on foreign lands for oil that doesn’t come back here or lower the price or lower our dependence.

Unemployed families who were already suffering now have lost everything…..

Green companies that could have deployed life saving technologies to this disaster zone still haven’t been funded…. Still haven’t scraped the money together to be a registered government contractor. Regulatory crap! Political red tape! Bureaucratic horseshit!

People in lines to get permits to go see if any of their belonging are salvageable. Dead loved ones in morgues that won’t let people in because they made a mistake in false identifying a body and now these people who lost everything including a loved one can’t get closure. I AM ANGRY!!!!

And where is our beloved catalyst for change. Oh that’s right he’s in Ireland speaking about the strong partnership between our countries. REALLY? Get back here president Obama! Come back and give us the CHANGE you promised! Because all I’m seeing is the same old heartache I saw in 2005 under another president. You know the one who you bashed for his administration! Well you got the job, now do the work or I can guarantee you that come next November every American will show you what change really means, when you change your address to someplace other than 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

And by the way, my offer to walk across the street so I can give you a few tips on how to help America get back on the path of prosperity and greatness again still stands. Only call me ahead of time because the price of coffee is ridiculous!

You’ll have to make an appointment though, because while you’re sitting in your shiny white house that the sweat of our forefathers built and was built brick by brick by the best workforce in the World, I’ll be the one in the trenches helping any way I can to make America great again. I’ve gotta go. There is an American crying and I need to give them a shoulder to cry on!

I may not be able to go in the battlefield in Iraq, Afghanistan or Libya, but I can make sure that someday soon our soldiers won’t be sent to foreign lands to fight for God Damn oil!

Nothings changed… Just the talking head.

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A Drop Of Water In A Bucket Of Hope: My Trip To The South Sudan

By Diane Gooch

The elegant lobby of the Jefferson Hotel in Washington D.C. is about as far from the South Sudan as you can get, literally and figuratively. Yet this is exactly where my journey to one of the world’s poorest and newest countries began.    

Having been in Washington this past January to celebrate the success of fellow Republicans in the 2010 elections, it was actually my encounter with liberal political commentator Ellen Ratner at The Jefferson that would shortly lead to one of the most meaningful experiences of my life.  After being introduced by a mutual friend, we sat for hours talking about a range of issues, most of which we naturally disagreed on.  Our opinions intersected when it came to delivering humanitarian aide to the South Sudan, which was on the verge of voting for its independence from the rest of Africa’s largest country later in the month. 

This independence came at great expense, after more than two decades of civil war led to the slaughter of millions and the enslavement of hundreds of thousands of Christian and traditionalist South Sudanese by the ruling Arab-Muslims in the North. The fighting was described to me as so intense and brutal, that even the animals fled the country. The war also institutionalized poverty to such tragic proportion that according to a recent World Bank report, approximately 85 percent of the people there live under a poverty line drawn at slightly more than $1 a day.

The referendum on secession prevailed by a 99 percent margin marking a significant political victory for the South Sudan and its international supporters, The United States most prominent among them. It was now time to address the human rights crisis, especially the unfinished business of returning an estimated 50,000 slaves back from the North.

Ellen has spent years working with the organization Christian Solidarity International (CSI), which has focused on the South Sudan well before the rest of the world took interest.  Through their efforts, more than 100,000 slaves have been liberated. Now, with a new nation secured, repatriation to their proper homeland has begun. 

I experienced two slave liberations on my trip with Ellen and CSI. Our delegation included several leaders in business and philanthropy, film-makers, a rabbi, a musician, a registered nurse and political commentators from the Democratic and Republican parties. 

Together, we witnessed the most deplorable human living conditions and at the same time the most uplifting testimony to hope and the human spirit. What the South Sudanese lacked in material comforts, they compensated for with kindness, openness and affection. We didn’t speak the same language, so our contact was often limited to a handshake, hug or understanding glance. But their embrace of us was real, and with hardly a word exchanged, they knew we were there to help.  

We visited a village that housed a polio clinic. We watched ladies without legs craft crosses that CSI would then sell to raise money to rebuild a school that burned down. I saw children who could not have been older than six years of age caring for infants and toddlers from the village.  Their sense of community and reliance on each other for support was awe-inspiring. The simplest act of recognition from our group elicited squeals of delight from the kids, especially when we would take their picture and show them the digital image.

Days felt as if they had no end, and every person and place began to blend together. Everyone we met needed the same basic things: clean water, proper nutrition, access to health care, etc. But there seemed to be this unexplainable abundance of hope everywhere we went. When we talked to villagers and slaves alike, all were so proud to have their own country and eager to restart their new lives.  

The emotional and spiritual climax came when we attended our first slave liberation. Hundreds of freed slaves walked for weeks in the dark of night and deep into the brush to avoid recapture. This has been a regular occurrence for two decades thanks to CSI, and it was clear that they had this process down.

What made this liberation ceremony unique was that Ellen had arranged for Rabbi Joseph Polak, of Boston University’s Hillel House, to celebrate the Passover story with the slaves. Having grown up on Long Island, I enjoyed the privilege of attending many seders with friends, but never did it occur to me that people in this century would endure a similar struggle.

Until the United States involved itself with the Sudan issue in 2005, the entire world seemed content to allow the first genocide of our century to remain unconfronted. It is impossible to fathom that slavery can continue to exist in the modern world.   

As I sit to write this column, weeks after our trip, I find it hard to transport myself back. Human nature helps us build walls to cope with what we can’t handle or understand, and my defense mechanism has kicked into to high gear.  I think about the slaves still in captivity and the kids we saw who had illnesses that will never be addressed.  “Will they live until their next birthday?” I would ask.  “Probably not” the region’s only doctor casually replied. I wonder if our being there really made a difference, or was it just a little drop of water in an ocean? 

Then I think of a boy named Kier. He was freed last year and now joins CSI at the liberations to reassure the slaves that they are safe.  His mother is still in captivity, and before his own release, his slave-master blinded him in both eyes.  Ellen has arranged for him to receive potentially life changing eye surgery in the United States, but he will need to be approved for a health visa first. 

Ellen was telling me the story when I suggested that I speak with Congressman Chris Smith who represents the Fourth Congressional District here in New Jersey, and is a good friend.  A true humanitarian, he serves as Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa. My liberal friend turned to me and said, “Diane, he is exactly the one we need to help Kier.” 

I still think of our being there as representing only a little drop of water in the effort to help the people of Southern Sudan, but instead of being a drop into the ocean, I like to think of it as being one small drop into a great bucket of hope.

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