The Way I See ItBy cj pollickHarborview Center Gets Short Reprieve -Though Stein Mart will be gone by September 30, Clearwater City Council extended the contract of the Harborview's management company. The 5-month extension until February 28 will allow scheduled bookings such as the Festival of Tree to take place as planned. No decisions as to the fate of the Harborview Center have been decided. Rep. Joe Wilson Said, "You Lie" - Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) yelled during one quiet moment of Obama's nearly one-hour speech to Congress "You Lie!" All listeners heard the loud noise, but could not hear the words with clarity. Thus, it was just some more hot air vented by another elected official for most listeners. However, the media made the outburst something of national news on Thursday. The liberal media made it seem that the pomp and decorum of the US Congress was denigrated by Rep. Wilson's outburst. Not true, simply not true. In 2005, during President Bush's speech to Congress, Democrats literally booed and heckled the President throughout the speech. No decorum was present by some members of Congress in 2005 and the behavior of many of the same elected folks criticizing Rep. Wilson were guilty of worse outbursts. Fair reporting of outbursts during a presidential speech to Congress? Wilson should have grunted-out the many suspect comments made by the President and not spontaneously bellowed-out something like boo's (such as many Democrats did in 2005 to President Bush.) Call it respect for the office. Wilson was wrong for his recent comment as well as other elected folks in Congress who did the same in 2005. There is a time for debating substantive disagreements after a presidential speech, such as now. What The Heck Are "Czars" Doing In Washington - Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina has called for Congressional support in having all 44 "Czars" hand-picked by President Obama to testify before Congress so people might know more about them. The issue, of course, is whether these so-called appointed "czars," who personally advise the President on various government issues, should have some form of official screening before discussing government issues with the President and other top government officials. According to Rep. McHenry, the answer is yes, some form of official screening should be in place before government clearance is given to people who are advisors to the President. Citizens across America seem to support a screening process to help eliminate what recently happened to one Obama "czar" named Van Jones (who resigned due to public comments he once made that boldly denigrated the US government.) Citizens responded to this matter by stating the following on one online report,"I agree, all should be vetted properly," "Why the duplication of efforts (czars and government cabinet heads)" and finally, "Is this high level cronyism?" Why shouldn't Americans know exactly who is advising President Obama about top level social and government issues? Why do the 44 "czars" not have top level government screening? Why the secrecy? Cost Of Reform - According to the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal, the individual mandates in Obamacare will force middle-class families and young adults to bear the brunt of healthcare reform. Frightening Statistic - President Obama will spend more on welfare in a single year (FY2010) than Bush spent on the Iraq war during this entire presidency. Our words may hide our thoughts, but our actions will reveal them." |