So I’m back for another installment of my video blog. This time around, I’m reviewing the new Tuskegee Airmen film, Red Tails. Check it:
Overall, I’d say the film was a bit on the formulaic side. But since I never grow tired of the Tuskegee Airmen story, this flick passed my litmus test with flying colors. It comes highly recommended.
- ACL
Any doubts about Obama being a brotha should be laid to rest right about now:
I see you, Mr. President. And I’m sure Rev. Al was feeling it, too!
Happy Friday, everybody!
- ACL
As a little experiment, I’ve decided to try my hand at video blogging. For my first vblog, I’m focusing on the recent racially controversial positions of GOP candidates Rick Santorum and Newt Ginginch:
Delivery aside (yes, I know I know I need some work), what do you think? Am I off base in my assessment or has the GOP been doing a lot of race-baiting as of late? What say you?
- ACL
From guest columnist, The Hippie Conservative:
If you’re a confirmed democrat, you’ve probably been hearing a lot about the weak Republican field of candidates. You’ve also most likely heard that the front runner Mitt (Williard) Romney, is not enjoying the full throated support of the Christian right that makes up a large part of the Republican Party. Assuming that you believe that Fox News is populated by xenophobes, the odds are you really haven’t heard much to make you believe that Barack Obama is in any trouble at all in this fall’s 2012 election.
You would be dead wrong.
In fact, it’s hard to find a single constituency that President Obama is doing as well with as he was in 2008. Liberals are disenchanted with his non confrontational style, moderates are disappointed with his hard left turn on social issues, fiscally conservative Dems and independents are shocked by his spending habits, Jews are down-right scared of his Mid-East foreign policy, blacks expectations were set far too high, whites are leaving in droves and Hispanics are still waiting in the wings struggling with immigration issues vs. their other beliefs and concerns.
In this piece, I’ll try to set the stage for what you should expect this fall. Keep in mind though; fall is an eternity away in the political world. Gaffes can be made, situations can and will change. What I’m going to give you is a snapshot in time as I see it.
Of all the problems that President Obama is facing in this reelection, none is as troublesome for him as the economy and gas prices. I tell people ad nauseam that Barack has two numbers he had better fear-8 and 3. By that I mean 8% unemployment (no president since FDR has won with unemployment over 7.2%) and $3.00 a gallon gas. When President Obama took office, he made the mistake of soothsaying that the unemployment rate would not go over 8% if he were granted his $787 billion dollar stimulus program. (It’s been above 8% for more months than any other presidency since Roosevelt) It’s not so much his prediction that’s going to get him in trouble, as the reality that things have gotten worse, not better under his watch. (Unemployment was at 7.3% when he took office.) The blame game is easy to play (and certainly he will,) however, not everyone buys into excuse making, especially those who have lost their jobs. When people are suffering, they want results, not excuses. Gas prices are another major problem. Older people remember when an appeasement policy in the Middle East along with market meddling under Jimmy Carter lead to higher gas prices. Younger people only know that these prices are killing their pocketbook. Gas prices were at $1.85 when Barack took office and will certainly be over $3.00 and maybe over $4.00 by November. Again the Dems will try to pass the blame, but the Obama foreign policy of supporting the Arab Spring and his anti hydrogen rhetoric will certainly be pointed out as a cause by the Reps.
On a recent trip to a friend’s Jewish wedding, I found myself sitting at a table with 10 Jews of mixed gender and age. I was under strict orders from my wife to not discuss politics (This is a standing order for me at functions since the “Open House Incident”). However, without any prodding by me, the conversation turned to Israel and The Obama Administration’s policy on the Arab Spring. One elder man commented that “If Obama gets 4 more years, there will be no more Israel.” The entire table nodded in agreement. President Obama has been losing the Jewish vote steadily since his election. It’s no secret that Barack and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have had some friction over Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, borders, and the handling of Iran’s nuclear ambitions. The lost votes are bad enough, but add to that the influence that the Jewish community has both in the media and the Democratic Party and a real problem immerges.
On white folks, it gets complicated.
Candidate Obama saw a surprising amount of support from the white community in 2008. White males, like myself, voted for Barack at about 41%. Before Obama, no Democrat since Jimmy Carter had earned more than 38 percent of the white male vote. , white females went even higher. The most recent poll numbers I’ve seen has President Obama at a mere 36% for white voters. Clearly the shine has come off the apple. The reasons vary but here are some of the ones I’ve been hearing; White people love to show how far they’ve come in conquering their past racial failings. Obama gave them the perfect chance to demonstrate that at a time when their frustration with Bush and the Republicans was at the peak. Now, they view it as a job done and no longer feel the need. Also, they once viewed Candidate Obama as a man who shared his white and black heritage equally. From the “Beer Summit” on, they have come to the opinion (fairly or not) that President Obama is far more concerned with how he’s viewed by the black community than the white. Articles like this are reaffirming this belief.
Now, by the poll numbers. In a head to head against Mitt Romney, (his most likely foe), Barack comes out within the margin of error with some polls showing either Mitt with a slight lead or Barack. The ominous number for the Obama reelection effort however is the undecided (about 10%). These people historically do not go with the incumbent. Think of it like this; we’re already in a relationship with President Obama and the question is whether or not you want to continue this relationship. If your spouse or boss responded to that question with “undecided”, would you consider that a good thing? Certainly not. I generally view Republicans as having a disadvantage in the Main Stream Media, therefore, when elections come around they stand to gain ground when their message reaches people who have only heard the MSM opinion. Media outlets have to run their ads by law. This can’t bode well for the Dems who have had a lock on most messaging outside of Fox News.
The situation is still fluid and many things can happen. A split vote due to an independent run by either Donald Trump or Ron Paul could throw a wrench in the works for the Reps and all but guarantee a win for President Obama. War, economics or a terrorist attack can change things as well as scandals. But as of now, I would have to bet heavily on a Republican win. Perhaps a good tactic for the Dems would be to point out that with the Senate race leaning towards the Republicans taking control (23 of the 33 seats up for grabs are Democrat seats), winning the presidency would mean absolute power for Republicans. The American people historically do not like absolute power and embrace divided government. I wouldn’t count on them using that tact though, since absolute power is always the goal of either side. It’s still 9 months until the election, so hold on people…its’ going to get nasty.
- H.C.
The Hippie Conservative blogs at http://thehippieconservative.blogspot.com/
No social commentary today, I’m sorry to announce. No important life lessons. Nothing prophetic. Just rants.
So I was on my way home from church last night. On the way, I decided to get stop by a local gas station to pick up a little something to snack on. No big deal, right? Oh, if it were only that simple. I picked up a package of beef jerky and a Gatorade. Grand total: $3.29. So far so good, right? Well, watch this…
I hand a $5 bill to the cashier. She looks at it. She looks at me. She looks at it again. She looks at me again. She then holds the bill up to the light. Then she starts rubbing the bill between her middle finger and thumb. After all this, she puts it under some ultraviolet thingy near the register (as I later found out is a machine used to identify counterfeit bills). She then grabs a co-worker to show her the bill. This co-worker starts to perform all the same “tests.”
Now, before I go any further, please allow me to remind you that this was a five dollar bill.
Anyway, I guess the results of their investigation were satisfactory because they eventually wound up accepting it. Incredulously, I asked “So, what exactly was that about?” (though, I admit the question floating around in my head wasn’t nearly as civil and Christ-like). She replied saying that they had been receiving counterfeit $100 bills lately, so she’s just playing it safe. My response was simple: “I get that. But this is a five dollar bill.” She then went on to explain that many people pay with counterfeit bills, buy small items, and keep all the change.
Got that? The sinister evildoers against whom she was being so vigilant participate in nefarious acts of using fake bills to purchase insignificant items (say, Gatorade and beef jerky) and keep all the change.
I suppose I understand her logic. But, come on. Seriously, people. It’s a frickin’ five dollar bill! I mean, who in their right mind would go through all the trouble — while risking serious jail time in the process — for some beef jerk, Gatorade, and $1.71?! The logic is escaping me at the moment.
Looking back in retrospect, I’m glad that I didn’t have to give her any coins. How embarrassing would it have been to sit through the long and painstaking process of her weighing my nickles to see if they actually measured out to be five grams? Or how about sitting around patiently while they tested the metallic composition of my pennies? Sheesh.
As a side note: there were two customers ahead of me who, incidentally, didn’t receive the same treatment. They weren’t checking anybody else’s money. Just mine. Just my frickin’ five dollar bill.
OK, I’m done. Thanks for listening. :-/
- ACL
