Putin to wed Olympic gymnast half his age

On April 17, 2008 By Rick McIn governmentLeave a comment

Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Telegraph – UK

Is there any difference between Putin and the old Russian Tsars?

He’s as bad as that megalomaniac Pierre Trudeau.

Hillary Rebounds – WHAT?!

On March 5, 2008 By Rick McIn governmentLeave a comment

My perfect record of predicting the US Presidential election is finished.

source

It’s as if I’ve been talking out my butt about American politics the whole time.

The good news is that any of the 3 leading candidates will make a much better President than George W.

too long away from Canada?

On March 4, 2008 By Rick McIn government, humourLeave a comment

Seems there is some sort of election in my home Province of Alberta.

Who knew?

Still, an expat in the developing world (USA), I honour my Canadian roots.

by Sherry Roberts, Great West Gym Fest, Idaho

Jack endorses Hillary

On March 3, 2008 By Rick McIn government, moviesLeave a comment

Jack Nicholson, in Variety of Roles, Endorses Hillary.

Click PLAY or watch the video on YouTube
.

I’m still calling for Obama to become the undisputed Democratic frontrunner this week.

Barack Obama – Black Eyed Peas remix

On February 7, 2008 By Rick McIn government, musicLeave a comment

Bill Wallace sent me a link to this excellent music video called Barack Obama – Yes We Can.

We’ve been asked to pause for a reality check. We’ve been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.

But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope. …

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

It’s nice to see so many people get excited about government. Not many politicians ever have been this inspirational.

Obama’s original speech is here.

Thanks Bill.

Hillary vs Obama

On February 6, 2008 By Rick McIn governmentLeave a comment

Last night I sat up late watching the painfully slow and dull Super Tuesday results rolling in on CNN. It was a Minneapolis hostel party hosted by Obama supporters.

Early results looked good for Hillary. Very late it became clear it was more of a “draw”.

As New York Times says: Hillary vs. Obama: It Ain’t Over

source

It’s obvious to any outsider that the two camps should run together, say Clinton for President, Obama for Vice.

It would be a landslide win for the Democrats.

The American system, however, is so combative that this won’t happen. Cooler, cooler heads will get nowhere proposing that strategy.

Therefore, as I’ve said all along, Obama will win the Presidency, his party much divided. Democrats always seem to find a way to shoot themselves in the foot.

After yesterday, increasingly the electorate will have “election fatigue”. A continuous 24yrs of Bush / Clinton will seem less interesting than trying the “new guy”. He really is a brilliant orator.

I realized only recently that the USA is doomed. Doomed economically.

Despite having the right idea — Capitalism and a Free Market — America is doomed to ever increasing debt. A nation with only two political parties, will never have one that is fiscally conservative. The Republicans have proved over and over again they can rack up more debt than the Democrats.

new George Bush coinage

On January 18, 2008 By Rick McIn government, humour, miscellaneousLeave a comment

Thanks George.

suffer Bush for another YEAR?

On January 4, 2008 By Rick McIn government, humourLeave a comment

Why do American elections run for so long?

The Weekly Radio Address

The Official Parody of President Bush’s Weekly Radio Address: It’s a Wonderful Presidency

The next Inauguration Day will occur on January 20, 2009 – Wikipedia

War on Pot: $42 Billion Annual USA Boondoggle

On January 2, 2008 By Rick McIn bad news, economics, government, health & fitnessLeave a comment

This is likely somewhat hyperbolic.

Still, the USA is nuttier than any other civilized country when it comes to soft drugs.

What would you buy if you had an extra $42 billion to spend every year? What might our government buy if it suddenly had that much money dropped onto its lap every year?

For one thing, it might pay for the entire $7 billion annual increase in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program that President Bush is threatening to veto because of its cost — and there’d still be $35 billion left over.

Or perhaps you’d hire 880,000 schoolteachers at the average U.S. teacher salary of $47,602 per year.

Or give every one of our current teachers a 30 percent raise (at a cost of $15 billion, according to the American Federation of Teachers) and use what’s left to take a $27 billion whack out of the federal deficit.

Or use all $42 billion for a massive tax cut that would put an extra $140 in the pockets of every person in the country — $560 for a family of four.

The mind reels at the ways such a massive sum of money could be put to use.

Why $42 billion? Because that’s what our current marijuana laws cost American taxpayers each year, according to a new study by researcher Jon Gettman, Ph.D. — $10.7 billion in direct law enforcement costs, and $31.1 billion in lost tax revenues. And that may be an underestimate, at least on the law enforcement side, since Gettman made his calculations before the FBI released its latest arrest statistics in late September. The new FBI stats show an all-time record 829,627 marijuana arrests in 2006, 43,000 more than in 2005.

AlterNet: DrugReporter: The War on Pot: America’s $42 Billion Annual Boondoggle