httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-kjM1asH-8

What’s really hillarious to me is how ignorant she really is.  The media is playing her while the crackpot behind her is playing with my turkey dinner before stuffing it into some weird contraption.  All the while she’s rambling on about business, how the campaign trail was, and what she’s going to do for Alaska.  Heck, the only reason I like seeing Sarah Palin in the news is that I know Saturday Night Live is going to feature Tina Fey re-enacting the stupidity with an audiance laughing all the way.  Do you think John McCain is watching this thinking to himself… “thank God, it’s over.”

Ranter

Bernanke Tries to Decide What Next

The stock market volatile – imagine my surprise – but a recently headlined article on Marketwatch.com reminds us that consumers think it’s going to get worse.  Of course consumers think it’s going to get worse – the media keeps telling us it is going to get worse.  Even good news is buffered by some footnote as to why this is an exception to the bad that’s yet to come.  And if the media tells enough people, and talks about it long enough, eventually the American public begins to believe.  After all, if it can work for presidential candidates like John McCain…

So is the economy bad?  Yes, it’s terrible.  This is the worst thing that could have happened to America at the worst time.  It’s caused market upheaval around the world and some analysts think that it would be worse right now if we knew what to look for.  Fortunately, or not, depending on your view, the Wall Street shenanigans are as difficult to unravel as they were successful in their profiteering during the good times.  But, the media is missing something very important – we, as people and as a country, will recover.  And if history serves as a measuring stick, we will recover relatively quickly.

The good news is everywhere, too.  Gas prices are falling.  Homes are selling.  Interest rates, for those people that can qualify to get them, are historically low and overall it’s a great time to invest in real estate. If you don’t listen to the media.  If you listen to media you may as well put your head in the sand and call it done.

The media is talking about doom and gloom in the credit markets, extensive foreclosures and saying that home prices have dropped to the point where Americans can no longer afford to sell.  But, depending on how you look at things, the numbers might tell a different story.

Average home prices (based on sales) have fallen in the past few years, but not necessarily because the average American is selling their home for less.  It’s all tied together – home prices are falling because there have been more foreclosures and the banks need to sell these homes.  They need to get the properties off their books and into the hands of a homeowner.  They don’t have pride of ownership.  They don’t have a bottom price.  They don’t have any reason to try and maintain the market.  They are a business with an asset that they want to turn into a liquid asset – it’s that simple.  Banks need cash – not a place to live.

Now, is this bad?  Yes, it’s terrible, but it’s also consistent with curves that we’ve seen in the past and home values will return.  Adjusted for inflation it’s still a significantly better investment (looking at today’s market position) then the same investment in something like the S&P 500, not to mention that for most Americans it’s a leveraged investment that returns dividend in the form of a tax savings and a place to live.  No other investment out there can touch real estate over a long period of time – so I say it’s a great time to buy, and I think the media needs to start looking at the real pictures.  Present the facts, not the glorified grief that you’ve been handing out.

Ranter

The son of a black father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas, Barack Obama has, to date, had a very short political career as the junior senator from Illinois. But, today, he has defeated the more experienced John McCain in what many are calling a landslide victory, including wins in the battleground states of Ohio, Florida, Virginia, and Iowa, offering proof that Amerca is ready for change.  This alone is a great victory for the United States.

In my eyes, though, the bigger win is what I saw over the last ten days everywhere I looked.  I saw people articulately voicing arguments for both sides.  I saw people young and old extolling their right to vote and claiming that they had or would vote in this election – many for the first time.  Democracy and the American flag were held proudly as what would make America strong in the years to come.  This, for me, was the bigger victory and the one that I am most proud of today.

Today is the first day of the rest of Obama’s career, and I am hopeful that he will prove himself worthy of the trust Americans have put in him.  Regardless, though, I can rest easy knowing that Americans are prepared to rally and speak for what they believe in.  This is a great country and I am proud to be a citizen.

Ranter

Jack Cafferty questions Palin’s qualifications to be vice president.  Not a positive spin on what to most hasn’t been an overly positive outcome for John McCain since selecting Sarah Palin as his running mate.  See his secondary response after the jump…

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCRKl6ZvorE

What do you think?  Is Cafferty on the mark; should Sarah Palin step away from the Microphone now and save her and the party future embarassment?  Or, will she be the great white hope for 2012?  My response – if that’s the case – be afraid, be very afraid.

Ranter

In addition to the hotly contested presidental election, every state has a set of laws that they are looking to pass or repeal and this is also your chance to help decide the fate of those policies.  In California the big one this year is Proposition 8, which is written to repeal the right of same sex couples to marry.  You can tell my opinions from the other articles here, but my opinions are my own – whatever yours are you need to get out there and vote or they will never be heard.

This is your public service announcement for today!

Ranter

Heidi Klum and Seal

Following some of the dumber ideas that I’ve seen in recent years, Heidi Klum and Seal are following the bandwagon started by Susan Sarandon, Stephen Baldwin, and Michael Stipe saying that they’re going to leave the country if John McCain wins the Presidency.  Hearing that I wish that they’d follow Tina Fey who says she’s leaving the planet.

Of course, I think it’s important to note that Seal can’t even vote in the election.  If he’s not willing to take the steps necessary then I think he should just shut his pie hole keep his opinions to himself.  As for Heidi, I wonder if she is even going to vote, although after hearing her reasons for wanting to meet/get to know her husband I have to wonder to myself – is this really the person that I want trying to decide who should be our next president?  Do you?

As for the rest of you threatening to leave if McCain is elected, and I don’t want McCain in office, either, the only thing I would take time out to say is this – America isn’t great because of our President or the people we put in charge.  America is great because of the citizens and what they bring to the table.  The government only goes so far and then it is our responsibility to make this country great.  We provider the work, the workforce, the financial freedom, the passion, and the commitment to make the country great.  Don’t give up on that because the person you want isn’t on top – do you share, live your life, and make this country what you want it to be.  Because, no matter who is elected, this is the greatest country on earth.

Ranter

If McCain is going to use this as his next attack against Obama, he really should take a long, hard look at Sarah Palin and make sure he’s not opening doors that he doesn’t want visited.

Ranter

Their article, and other like it, go on to suggest that perhaps McCain is using the electoral college and campaigning to win in the places that would matter enough to allow him a chance of taking the 270 electoral votes necessary.  Fortunately, the mathematical experts are suggesting that it’s very unlikely that a split vote could happen, while at the same time admitting that the polls are only so accurate.

The National Journal’s Mark Blumenthal, a former Democratic consultant and founder of Pollster.com, said:

“The idea that somehow you can focus on six states and only move them while the rest of the nation stays frozen – that’s not very realistic,” he said. “All of this is sort of interesting, and we talk about it like it is moving pieces on a chessboard, but the reality is, and this is my main point, if the national margin doesn’t close, none of that is going to happen.”

That this thought, in this day and age, is even something that the people of this country have to question is somewhat indicative of why there are problems in government today.  We urge people to come out to vote only to inject at the end – well, your vote really doesn’t matter.  At least not four times in the past – and possibly not this time either.  That’s rediculous and the people need to rally behind their vote.

Every November over 90 million Americans exercise their right to vote.  They think they’re voting for President, but what they’re really voting for is to instruct the electors on how they want them to vote.  For example, if you vote for a Republican candidate you’re really voting for an elector who will be “pledged” to vote for the Republican candidate.  This system was established in Article II of the Constitution and amended by the 12th Amendment in 1804.  What’s important to know is this – while the state electors are “pledged” to vote for the candidate of the party that chose them, nothing in the constitution requires them to do so.

Using a little math, it’s possible to see that the Electoral College system makes it possible for a candidate ti actually lose the popular vote and be elected president.  In fact, using the numbers, it is possible for a candidate to be off the ballot in 39 states and still be elected president by winning the vote in just 11 of these 12 states: New York, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Georgia or Virginia.

Obviously, this is difficult for Americans to swallow, and without raising the cause flag, this author would suggest that it’s time to look more closely at a system that allows the popular vote to fall behind the opinions of a few.  Our Founding Fathers, when creating this system, were looking at a different time, different communication tools, and different voters.  It’s time to look again, with a modern eye, and give the people a chance to be heard without allowing unjust mathematics to potentially take away the wishes of the majority.

Ranter

]]> http://www.uncensoredrants.com/2008/10/28/could-obama-lose-even-with-the-popular-vote/feed/ 0 http://www.uncensoredrants.com/2008/10/23/mccain-screwed-up/ http://www.uncensoredrants.com/2008/10/23/mccain-screwed-up/#comments Fri, 24 Oct 2008 03:31:22 +0000 ranter http://www.uncensoredrants.com/?p=39

Presidential Candidate John McCain

Presidential candidate John McCain made a very big mistake, in my opinion, when asked to explain the scandal reasoning behind the Republican Party buying $150,000 in clothes, hair styling, and accessories for his running mate, Sarah Palin.

John McCain’s response to the mutltiple questions about the spending?  Pretty much the same each time he was asked: “She needed clothes at the time.  They’ll be donated at the end of the campaign.  They’ll be donated to charity.”  He didn’t have a good answer to “how” they will be donated, but frankly I’d be more upset if he had.  They’ll be donated – that’s good enough for me.  Well, almost.  So, if they do win, what’s she going to wear then?  And what about the clothes that were purchased for her family?

What’s most interesting to me is that the current laws prohibit a candidate for federal office from converting campaign funds to personal use.  The regulations make clear the prohibition applies to clothing but also provide that donations by candidates to charity are not for personal use.  This exception might apply to Palin, but what about her family?

Of course, the American people seem to have their own opinions on this and the current questioning is primarily about why a “down home, American hockey mom” needs clothing from Neiman Marks and Saks?  Shouldn’t someone that’s trying to win the hearts of “Joe six-pack” be shopping with their welfare check at Wal-Mart on a Tuesday?  I bet she could take McCain with her for some of this and scare a senior discount.

Ranter

This is totally legal – but according to some of the articles that I’ve read it’s not normal.  The good news for some lucky bum is that the McCain camp is now saying that all this clothing will be donated to charity when the campaign is over – I guess they’re saying that they plan on losing or it doesn’t matter what you wear once the election is over.  Of course, if you listen to Tracey Scmitt of John McCain’s campaign, who is quoted as saying, “”With all of the important issues facing the country right now, it’s remarkable that we’re spending time talking about pantsuits and blouses.”  Then you probably don’t care how they waste their money on Sarah Palin – you’d rather focus on your $200,000 home that was worth $500,000 two years ago or the $1,800 you spent all of last year on clothing.

Perception versus reality – the issues never change.  People like attractive people and if the Republican National Convention can spiff her up, maybe the American public can overlook the fact that she’s not the brightest bulb on the tree.  But, for my money, it’s like putting lipstick on a pig.

Ranter