Afghanistan Troop Withdrawal

Well President Obama made a key decision today in determining the size and scope of the planned troop withdrawal starting this year in Afghanistan.  I believe that when you put politics aside then all involved will agree that we have to ensure that the Afghan government can protect their citizens as well as meet their needs economically before we leave them on their own.  but since politics seemingly cannot be put aside the Republicans who have clearly made their stand that we should get out of Afghanistan because of the money comes out in response to Obama's decision saying that it is irresponsible and we run the risk of losing the ground that we have gained since the insurgency.  What the Republicans have been doing for the past 2+ years really has shown their true colors.  No matter the issue they will disagree with Obama and the Democrats even when they publicly agreed with them days or weeks prior.  All I have seen is a blatant disregard for the safety, well being and needs of the country for their own selfish desire for self preservation of wealth and power as well as their thirst to take back over the White House.  If they truly cared about this country they would work with the Democrats and Obama instead of waiting and hoping that 2012 will come and they will gain more power.  Unbelievable!

Education Reform

Trying to provide the best education for our children has been a mission of this country for at least 50 years maybe longer.  Before President Johnson funding for schooling was a local issue.  But with the Great Society legislation signed into law by Johnson federal funding for education had begun.  Since then there have been many changes to the federal education laws including the most recent NCLB or "No Child Left Behind" act.  The whole issue in a nut shell is that the public wants to be able to see there money working and politicians decide to use standardized test to be able to show student and teacher performance.  The problem with this system is that is waters down the content of the subjects because the teacher now have to teach students how to pass a multiple choice test rather than some broad concept that will serve them much better in college and thereafter.  Another problem is that this approach rewards some students and punishes others unjustly.  Some students are very good test takers that do not really know the content while others have mastered the content but are unable to show it in a multiple choice format.  I understand the need to be able to show performance in schools but this format is unfair and unjust.  In my opinion we need to have end of year tests but the teacher should be in charge of how much the test counts towards the final grade.  The EOG could really be used for students to show their mastery in the subject even though they may not have done as well through out the year.  Now to make sure students maintain an acceptable level of work ethic this test could only help them if they could show that they did their work during the school year by turning in a portfolio.  And in determining teacher performance I believe that should be  handled by the administration as well as their attendance in workshops that focus on improving education through many different aspects to ensure the students are getting the most benefit from the teaching.  In terms of funding I believe that we should make sure that every school has the technological tools of the 21st century and that students are in smaller classrooms and feel safe.  This I know would be a big investment but it is a worthwhile investment that will not only save us money but make it as well.  this will save us money because fewer students will drop out and/or commit crimes and end up in the prison systems as well as welfare.  This will make money because with better education comes better jobs because of innovations and new technologies by our bright educated citizenry.

The Rankings

What needs reformed/fixed the most?  Rank 1-5(1 most in need of reform and 5 least)

1.  Entitlements(Social Security)
2.  Education
3.  Welfare
4.  Immigration
5.  Taxes (closing loopholes for rich)

What do you rank?

A Womans Right to Choose

Abortion has always been a hotly debated issue in America.  Well at least since the mid 20th century.  Questions persist on whether abortion is murder, or if the fetus is alive or a person, etc.  As a democrat I am a supporter of pro choice.  But don't get me wrong I do not like the idea of abortion because you never know what that being could have grown up to accomplish.  After saying that you may wonder why I support a woman's right to an abortion.  Well I support it because there are instances when abortion may be the best choice.  Among them are rape and life threatening birth defects, etc.  I am writing this post because the N.C Senate and General Assembly just passed a bill that now goes the governor that puts more restrictions on abortions.  The problem I have with this is that i feel that it is starting us on a path similar to the Jim Crow laws after the Civil War.  The N.C Republicans are repeating history.  After the Civil War the Southern states began passing "Jim Crow" laws that slowly took away the rights and freedoms that blacks have been given under the constitution.  Now they are passing laws to slowly take away the rights of women that has been given to them in the Constitution.  What do you think?

Budget Cuts: Democrats and Republicans

As a Democrat I believe that we should reform entitlements to ensure that these programs are sustainable and that they don't go away.  I believe that we should continue the Obama health care plan and to make changes to it in order to make it better than what it currently is.  I also believe that it is essential to reform education and to make sure the money that is being spent is going to pay educators better and to insure that the schools have the technology and supplies to be successful.  Welfare could use some more reforms as well because we need programs that force people to either get a job or to enter college or some vocational or trade school to further their education in order to get a better job.  And finally I believe that the Defense budget could be slashed but we would need to figure out what we need to protect ourselves and our interests in the 21st century.  R&D is important but it shouldn't be a blank check.  What do you think?  Agree?  Disagree?  Let me know?  Click on comment below to post!

What is responsible spending?

If you ask a republican and a democrat that question you will most certainly get two very different answers.  So who is right, who is wrong?  I think actually if we could get past our politics we can actually agree on cuts across the board.  The problem is that each party wants/needs to make there base happy for election time that this is a near impossible task.  I believe that we do need to reform entitlement programs like social security, medicaid/medicare, welfare,  etc.  I think that we should reform education and the money that is given to that.  Cuts should go for the DOD as well.  I don't think we should cut to where we put our self at risk but we do need to do something.  What are your thoughts?

GOP holding U.S Economy Hostage

The government is facing another deadline to come to a deal before tragedy strikes.  The difference this time is that if they fail to raise the debt ceiling then they will essentially throw us into a depression if not worse.  I doubt that they will not come to some agreement to raise the debt but I must ask "Why didn't they pull this trick when Bush was in office and he was spending money faster than it could be printed?"  A part of me would like to see them not raise the ceiling because of failure to agree on cuts so that America will finally see that the GOP only cares about there personal wallets.  Everything they stand for has to deal with protecting the wealthy individuals bank accounts.  The GOP actually reminds me of the aristocrats in Europe when they were basically losing there wealth and power the aristocrats turned to force and any other means in order to protect the status quo.  Also the southern plantation and slave owner leading up to and after the Civil War.  In all seriousness I believe a deal will be reached the only question is what will be cut and who will suffer?