Politics

  Maryland became the eighth U.S. state to allow same-sex marriage Thursday as Gov. Martin O'Malley signed legislation he said secures the "human dignity" of all residents, including gay and lesbian couples. A standing-room crowd in the Maryland State House cheered O'Malley as he emerged from his office to sign the legislation, flanked by state Senate President Mike Miller and House Speaker Michael Busch. "The way forward is always found through greater respect for the equal rights of all," the governor said. Six states and the District of Columbia already issue same-sex marriage licenses -- Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont. Five states -- Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, New Jersey and Rhode Island -- allow civil unions that provide rights similar to marriage. The Maryland House of Delegates approved the measure O'Malley signed Thursday less than two weeks after Washington state legislators voted to leg...

  To remain a plausible alternative to Mitt Romney in the Republican presidential primaries, Rick Santorum needs a win next Tuesday in Ohio, where he is not only up in the polls but could benefit from small but potentially significant demographic advantages. Ohio and Michigan, where Mr. Santorum lost to Mr. Romney this Tuesday by three percentage points, are Rust Belt neighbors, but a look at the demographics of voters in the 2008 Republican primaries points to differences in the electorate in the two states. GOP voters who cast ballots in Ohio were less affluent, less educated and more likely to live in rural areas and to be evangelical Christians than GOP voters in Michigan, according to 2008 primary exit polls from CNN.com. Those are all demographic groups where former Pennsylvania Sen. Santorum soundly beat former Massachusetts Gov. Romney in Michigan. While the differences were slight and some other factors weigh in Mr. Romney's favor in what's expec...

North Korea's decision to suspend its testing of nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles is being cautiously welcomed in Asia, where many residents remember a history of broken promises. U.S. and North Korean officials simultaneously announced the breakthrough Wednesday, saying Pyongyang will also halt other nuclear activities, including uranium enrichment. The United States, meanwhile, says it will push ahead on a plan to provide 240,000 metric tons of U.S. food assistance to the North. Japan's Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba said Thursday in Tokyo that the deal also provides for the return to North Korea of inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency. "They [North Korea] have said they agree to let the IAEA surveillance team return. They have also promised to take steps toward denuclearization and stopped the launch of short range missiles - these are significant accomplishments being made," he said. The Japanese foreign minister desc...

Patrick Joseph Buchanan was born on November 2nd 1938 in Washington D.C. His father, William Baldwin Buchanan was a partner in an accounting firm and his mother, Katherine Elizabeth was a nurse. Pat went to private Catholic elementary and high school. After graduating Gonzaga College High School that was run by Jesuit priests he entered Georgetown University. After graduating from the Georgetown he enter Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism where he received his masters degree in 1962. Pat Buchanan's professional career began with his job as a writer for the St. Louis Globe -Democrat in 1961 at the age of 23. It was 3 years later in 1964 that he was promoted to assistant editorial page editor. He stayed in this position for a short time and in 1965 joined the law firm of Nixon, Mudge, Rose, Guthrie, Alexander, and Mitchell in New York City as an executive assistant. This would turn out to be his introduction to his own political future. As a speechwriter for Richard Ni...

Two observations can be made about the U.S. Congress, which many voters will agree with. First, the approval rating of our Legislative Branch is abysmally low. Second, the legislative process is out of control. The Republican dominance under President Bush made such a mess of things that the 2006 and 2008 elections produced that rare occurrence, a veto-proof Congress with both chambers controlled by one party. One could have hoped that this new arrangement would have produced decisive, effective legislation addressing the country's numerous problems. Instead the Democrats produced two gargantuan bills vastly expanding the federal bureaucracy; a number of slush funds or bailout funds; and unheard of budget deficits. The very size and complexity of the "reform bills" amply demonstrated that the current members of Congress are no longer capable of performing their main function, which is to produce meaningful and coherent legislation. During the process of assembling the ...

President Obama is treading on a very frail foreign policy which seeks to make America like Europe and weaken the last superpower in the world. Does this portend the decline of America and the rise of a European type socialistic state for America? Obama speaking in Strasbourg stated, "In America there is a failure to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world. Instead of celebrating your dynamic union and seeking to partner with you to meet common challenges, there have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive." Going on, he states, "America is changing." And he calls for unprecedented coordination in our policies with those of Europe. He concludes with two outrageous statements: "We got sidetracked by Iraq." "The social safety net that exists in almost all of Europe doesn't exist in America." Needless to say, his budget seeks to rectify that particular problem. Obama has sent a video "outrea...

The Iranian unrest is going to affect world oil barrel prices due to the strikes of workers in that sector over the recent "questionable elections" there, and the aftermath of government crack downs and violence against the protesters. How much could this effect oil prices; well it will not be totally devastating to us in the US, but it could be significant if commodity traders find momentum in this crisis, as they love to create opportunity for themselves out of the chaos of the world media. Imagine however the effect on the oil markets if in Saudi Arabia, all the people decided to riot and rebel, and overthrow their government? Wow, now that could be rather significant, and depending on the civil unrest and conflict, if it got out of hand oil infrastructure could be damaged, and many of the more hostile groups would launch terrorist like attacks. Even if the threat was there, that would be significant enough to cause huge oil-price-spikes. Now imagine, the Pakistani People ...

Before 1965 it appears that the United States public trust in the government was quite a bit higher than it is today. As time has gone on the government has been less and less trusted for some reason. Many Democrats blame the Republicans. Further, they charge that it was the Ronald Reagan era that publicized the ineptness of government that started this downward spiral. But is that really the case? Did Radical Ronald Reagan Republics Destroy Trust in Government? Or did they merely point out the facts, call the emperor naked, and wake everyone up? And could it be said that the generation of the 1960s and all the antiwar protests did more to destroy the trust in government? This came well before Ronald Reagan. In the book, "In Defense of Government; The Rise and Fall of Public Trust" by Jacob Weisberg, the author claims that it was the Ronald Reagan era that started the mistrust of government and he noted some facts about the public perception of the time noting that some 75% o...

In less than 200 years, America grew from a handful of colonies to become the greatest nation in history. In a few hundred years, we surpassed nations that were many times older. What makes America great? The two main elements that make America great are our people and our freedoms. Our people have a can do, nothing is impossible, spirit. Starting with the American Revolution, we have always conquered adversity, often in the face of overwhelming odds. We have more rights and freedoms than anywhere else in the world. Our freedoms are considered inalienable rights, not privileges granted by government. Our freedoms are the envy of the world. Every item in the bill of rights is a precious jewel designed to ensure the immortality of our liberty. Our founders came from societies where government controlled its citizens. They had a solid understanding of the consequences of unchecked power. Our constitution was crafted specifically to limit the scope of government to prevent its infringing o...

John Lennon once described the scene inside the Beatles during the heyday of the fan frenzy of Beatlemania in the 1960s as similar to being inside the eye of a hurricane. "We always called it the eye of the hurricane - it was calmer right in the middle," Lennon said. This might be the case inside the White House these days as President Barrack Obama sends the country into a tizzy with weekly announcements of new domestic and foreign policy initiatives that are drastically changing the political landscape. These policies are so different that critics are arguing he's ruining the country while the President's supporters say his programs are just the right ones to get the country back on track. With so many pundits and politicians commenting on President Obama's every move, it's reminiscent of the crazy chaos that surrounded the Fab Four in the early days of the British invasion. "Everybody got into the mania," Beatle George Harrison once said. As an ex...

Americans elected a liberal president in 2008 to take the country forward in an era when challenges equaled those of the industrial revolution 150 years before and the Roosevelt era some 60 years later. Globalization was a fact. The information highway spread enlightenment and distortions with equal rapidity. With the election, America embraced the challenges while the losing conservatives rallied to preserve the old ways. The Oxford dictionary defines conservatives as averse to rapid change while liberals favored individual rights and moderate reform. "Rapid" and "moderate" are relative terms but two associated terms are not. Those are political hawks, who advocate an aggressive or warlike policy, especially in foreign affairs, and political doves, who advocate a peaceful policy. The term "hawk," by that source, also refers to a rapacious person. The hallmark of the 2008 US election was the choice to make radical changes to meet an unprecedented global ec...

Maybe these words won't be so well liked, as a tradition of approving something that may be wrong gives it the fake appearance of being right. Most people actually think that society or economy and government are the same. In fact, they are fundamentally opposites. Economy is produced by our desires, and government by wickedness. Economy promotes our happiness by uniting our desires, and government negatively influences it by restraining our vices. One is a patron and the other a punisher. Economy in any state is a blessing, however, even in its best state government is but a necessary evil. In its worst state an intolerable one. When we suffer the same things from our government that we might suffer in a state without government the misery is far worsened because we are required to provide the means (money) that funds such and pain causing government. We're paying for a disservice. But because we cannot all abide by our conscience to God, we find it necessary to give up part o...

Let's see what we find in the Obama box today. Turkey, he says is a much needed friend, one we can trust, and Christian and Muslim, works together. Perhaps there is some truth to this, but it stops at a very narrow corner I do believe. Our values are different, the Western World hasn't figured this out since the 11th Century, and how long does it take. Whatever friendship we build, and I have Muslim friends, the center is hollow. I know this and they know this, but for coexistence we also know, not to carry guns on our person when we say hello. Foolishness comes at a price. On another note, related to the above slightly, is the only thing President Chavez of Venezuela had to say that was correct, that I ever heard come out of his mouth was Obama doesn't know what he's doing, and he is so right. On North Korea: We stood by and watched North Korea send a rocket into the sky, soon it will be a nuke, we all know this, and we all scream to the high moon as if North Korea cou...

During last year's presidential election, a phenomenon was born -Barack Obama bumper stickers. The popularity of Democratic candidate Barack Obama stirred the imagination of even those amongst us who rarely get so involved in politics. Perhaps it was simply the 'perfect storm'? A widely unpopular incumbent President. A failing economy, a disastrous foreign policy and an unpalatable war. So when a man named Obama came along who, let's be honest, seemed the polar opposite to President Bush, it gave hope to many that finally a national nightmare would soon be over. The one great thing about bumper stickers is that they reflect the nations zeitgeist at the time. The are a running commentary on the way we feel and wish others to feel also. For many bumper sticker manufacturers, being in the center of such an exciting election as this, was a memorable time. We have been through elections before, but nothing quite like this. There was immediately something different and iconic...

Secretary Clinton has been as busy girl. Not even six weeks into the job and she has visited major allies and potential partners and is on deck to visit more within the next two weeks. Already she has earned criticism and courted controversy in her handling of issues and her style. In her most important trip to date, meeting with Chinese officials and leaders in Beijing, she has displayed great candor and pragmatism in her public comments. When pressed to comment about how she proposed to address human rights with Chinese officials, she acknowledged that, while she would stress the need for respect of the human rights of Chinese citizens by its government, it was unlikely that the situation would change. She was immediately attacked for her comment by those who took it as a sign of a lack of commitment by Secretary Clinton to rectify human rights abuses by the Chinese government against its people. She has spent the bulk of her trip dealing with the more practical issues that face our ...

For so long, the United States lived with the idea that they were completely safe in their country in the New World. We weren't going to be attacked and we were able to do whatever it was that we wanted. We could run any business we wanted and believe in anything. Religiously, economically, and politically, we were free people. What if I told you that while you were living with the belief that you were free, in actuality, you were lining yourself up to live under a tyranny? I can imagine the people replying to me saying that this is absolutely ridiculous. We live in a great, free Democracy that protects her people no matter what. Even if some liberties are taken, the United States is free! Compared to a lot of totalitarian governments, our nation is tremendously free. However, times have changed and through acts of fear, the government of the United States has, in part, taken some liberties from the American people and, in turn, this has created a situation where we are potentially...

When Jimmy Carter was elected in 1976, he promised that he would see the public learned the truth about UFOs. He was convinced he had seen an unidentified flying object, but never confirmed whether he thought it was an alien spacecraft. UFOlogists call the particular sighting "The Jimmy Carter UFO incident." It happened one evening in 1969, two years before he became the governor of Georgia. He was giving a speech at the Lion's club when a guest called his attention to an object in the sky. The object was reported to be 30 degrees above the horizon and Carter described it as being "bright white" and being as bright as the moon. It was said to have appeared to have closed in on where he was standing but to have stopped beyond a stand of pine trees some distance from him. The object is then said to have changed color, first to blue, then to red, then back to white, before appearing to recede into the distance. One of the things President Obama did on Day One is op...

It seems that our politicians in Washington are a bit confused. They say things, repeat them a thousand times, and then they start all over again and say the same thing over and over. Republicans such as John Boehner from Ohio, John McCain, and Mr. McConnell from Kentucky can't seem to get past "earmarks" and "Oh My God" when it comes to the staggering amount of the budget. Maybe, just maybe, they just couldn't find the words to express themselves when Mr. Bush was President for eight years, and just now, with Mr. Bush hiding in the hills because of all the chaos, the disaster of the economy, and the two wars that were never included in the budget, their voices are coming back, but only in mono-syllables. There is something very strange in Washington and seasoned lawmakers just can't put their finger on it. This strange cloud over Washington is known to the citizens of the U.S. and to the world as "Truth." Truth has not been around very much in...