The SUPERCOMMITTEE--results

After Congress came to a standstill on the Debt Limit discussion, they appointed a SUPER COMMITTEE,  to work on solving the problems, over an additional month.  Built into the outcome, 1) Congress would accept whatever they resolved, 2) if they did not resolve matters, there would be drop dead decisions that would apply anyhow.  The three most obvious were: 1) there would be an increase in the Payroll tax--for ALL , 2) there would be VERY  large cuts into the defense budget, such as the funds that would be saved by pulling out of Afganistan by our troops and3) expiration of the Bush tax cut for the wealthy.
The Congressmen did not solve the problem, so they are looking at something that has already been agreed to and is starting to be put in place, but the GOP doesn't want them to be put in place, so they are trying to figure out ways of stopping it.
It appears that the Empty Exercise that was attempted by the ruling power of the House is backfiring.  The Super committee has truly become an EMPTY EXERCISE, because the time they thought they were going to gain, really didn't amount to a hill of beans.

Travel Loophole!

In the September 12, 2011, issue of Roll Call Washington, they exposed a loophole in travel for House members to take long trips.  This past summer, dozens of lawmakers travelled to Israel this summer with staffers and family members for a seven-day tours paid for the non-profit arm of a pro-Israel lobbying group.
The August trips cost about $10,000 per person.  The non-profit organization is closely affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee that the groups are almost indistinguishable.  The American Israel Education Foundation, a charity arm of AIPAC.  The two groups share leaders, employees and money.
The Watchdog  group Public Citizen call it the AIPAC loophole.
     "Most of these trips tend to be nothing but an extension of lobbying."
They spend about $1.2 million sending lawmakers.  A non-profit think tank called the ASpen Institute is also a top sponsor of Congressional travel, spending more than $600,000 the past few years, but their group doesn't lobby.  Other top spenders include: the Turkish Coalition of America, Fu Jen Catholic University, the German Marshall Fund of the United States and the Center for American Progress.
There is much more to the article, visit Common Dreams, September 12, 2011, "US House Members Flock to Israel with travel loopholes.
Congress has made a valid attempt to stop or at least slowdown lobbying, however, the lobbyists make what was a fine law into an Empty Exercise.

Free Trade Kool-Aid

Free Trade Kool-Aid, a new term.  This has to do with employers that are creating a MYTH of job creator and receiving government money for helping the U.S. Economy by doing so, but in reality, they are laying off people and outsourcing them overseas and receiving the funds they save in paying less wages.  A DOUBLE DIP!!
Currently, most Major Corporations are hoarding billions of dollars in their accounts, for fear of another recession.  They are not hiring people, even though they could.
Our legislators realize this, yet still allow it to continue, their word for this is "Free Trade Kool-Aid".  If you would like to check this out further go to the following sites:  http://www.commondreams.org/video/2011/8-24-0
and workingAmerica.org.jobtracker.com (on this site you can put in your zip code and find out all about the jobs that have been taken away and outsourced for a 50 mile radius).
This is an example of an Empty Exercise that is perpetrated by legislators, lobbyists, major corporations and plenty of governmental officials that are turning their heads.  No wonder our citizens can't get jobs, the jobs are all being sent away for the bottom line.
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Disingenuous--an interesting word.

Disingenuous--according to New Webster's Dictionary--is a word meaning,
"Not ingenuous; not open, frank, or candid, insincere; falsely attempting to appear ingenuous. 
You can't have the above word without "Ingenuous", which means; Possessed of cleverness, resourcefulness, or inventiveness; clever or original in conception or design.
Why, you might ask am I starting out this edition of the blog with these two words? 
Perhaps you have heard your politicans use at least "Disingenuous" in a conversation before and wondered what the heck is that big word?  If you did not look it up after you heard it, you probably missed the Empty Exercise the politician just ran right by you.

Usually disingenuous is used when a politician does not like who he is addressing about a speech, bill, etc. and wants to roughly call him a "liar" in whatever he is representing.  Politicians do not like to use common words that you and I would understand, they want to keep everything appearing nice and peaceful.   

When a politician uses big words that you do not understand, please write it down of use a yellow marker over the writing and look it up.  You need to go this deep in your search for the candidate you want to represent you. 

We are heading into the political year of 2012 as of the Iowa Caucus.  You need to start searching for a candidate that you can support. 

You need to make up your own list of what you want in a candidate, write it down, why do you want items, write down your own explaination so you understand it, start searching for a candidate that fulfills those items on your list.

Beware of Some polarizing issues (what is a polarizing issue?)  A polarizing issue is an issue that has two opposite solutions to the problem at hand, and usually no compromise can be reached.  The best example is Abortion.  There two Major groups involved and many sub-groups.

The Pro-Life Group is the group that is not for abortion.  I am not going to jump off that bridge in an explanation, but the sub-groups would be the Roman Catholic Church and most Evangelical Churches.  They support the rights of the fetus, not the rights of the mother.

The Pro-Choice group is the group that is for abortion.  This group supports Planned Parenthood, and the rights of the woman over the fetus.

This could be a book, but I am only using this an example of a polarization, because you are either for one of these groups or the other, there is no compromise.  Usually you are for the candidate that supports one of the polarized sides and go along with his/her visions.  I could give you statistics about these groups, but that is for you to decide and research.  You really need to find out where you stand on this issue as it is a paramount issue in most major campaigns.

As you do your research on any political matter, check my reference section in my other Blog--http:www/educatedcitizenry.blogspot/ .  I have tried to present unbiased, or if a bias then the alternative to it, so you may select which resources you value.  (Example: Fox News  and MSNBC)

Debt Ceiling EMPTY EXERCISE

The attempt at compromise over the debt ceiling between the House of Representatives and the President failed this evening.  House Speaker Boehner informed everyone that he is no longer working with the President to arrive at settlement to the ceiling for the government's debt ceiling, he is going to work with the Senate and try to reach an agreement with them.  The President asked him to call him this afternoon, however the Speaker did not return the call.

This past two-three weeks of negotiating between these two entities has been for naught.  The Republicans have signed a Taxpayer Protection Pledge, initiated by power broker Grover Norquist in 1986, and they are not going to back down.  The two main sentences from the document are:

      "ONE, oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax

        rates for individuals and/or businesses; and

        TWO, oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits,

         unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates."

The Republicans have 236 Representatives and 41 Senators who have signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge.  Because the House of Representatives has the only power to initiate all money "bills", winning the majority of seats in the past election gives them the power to initiate the bills and carry the House of Representative.  However, the President and the majority of the Senate are Democrats and are in power in their areas (Presidency and Senate).  The ability to pass a "bill" takes all three entities, the House, the Senate and the Executive branch or Presidency.  So, even though the Republicans are walking around like a bull in a china shop, everything they do is an EMPTY EXERCISE without the other two entities voting with them.  The Republicans did similar exercises during the Clinton years and even during the Bush years.  They want to seem larger than life.  This latest EXERCISE is going to cost them big time, it will cost them the Presidency in 2012 and the Tea Party seats in the House, as well as leadership positions in the House.  Boehner is too worried about what he thinks the Tea Party members are going to do.  Grover Norquist Tax Payer Protection Pledge

Mitt Romney's Comical Flip-flop

Romney's New Pledge Highlights Reversals on Abortion, Planned Parenthood, Crooks and liars, Monday June 20, 2011
Here is a prime example of a candidate that is using Empty Exercises to gain political position.  As of this date, Mr. Romney is considered the top Republican Presidential Candidate.
When Mr. Romney was in his 1994 Massachusetts Senate run, Mr. and Mrs. Romney contributed $150 at a Planned Parenthood Event.  By doing so, they gave their support to Planned Parenthood, the group that is Pro-choice, giving the right to the Mother to make the decision what to do with her body.
"Eight years later during his race for governor, Romney assured Planned Parenthood he supported Roe v.Wade, state Medicaid funding for abortion services and access to emergency contraception."
Now, in the role of Republican Presidential candidate, he is under pressure to sign a pledge promising draconian new restrictions on American's reproductive rights.  He has joined the right-wing crusade against Planned Parenthood
He is making an empty exercise.  In gathering your data on him, as a possible candidate, you thought you knew what he believed.  He is going back on his belief on this issue.  If you did not keep up with the issues, you might have voted for him because you thought he was Pro-Choice, based upon his earlier beliefs, when in reality he is Pro-life.  The pledge commits signers to:"nominate judges and appoint executive branch officials who are opposed to abortion.  The pledge continues, signers must push legislation to end all taxpayer funding of abortion and to sign a law to "protect unborn children who are capable of feeling pain from abortion."  The pledge requires ending funding not just for Planned Parenthood, but for"all other contractors and recipients of federal funds with affiliates that perform or fund abortions, which would mean eliminating "federal funding for thousands of hospitals across America." 
Mr. Romney responded in the National Review with "My Pro-life Pledge", which included more: 
   1.  Reversal of Roe v. Wade
   2   He supports the Hyde Amendment, which broadly bars the use of federal
         funds for abortions, and as President he will support efforts to prohibit
         federal funding for any organization that primarily performs abortions
         or offers abortion related services.
  
There is more to the article, but what this is about is an empty exercise, it shows his character and asks the question--What can you believe about him?  Would you want him to be your President if he makes decisions like this?

Response to Empty Exercises Blog

Empty Exercises seems to be on everyone's mind.  Thank you for the response to the initial blog.  People of every description practice empty exercises to forward their agenda.  People of the churches that oppose abortion say they love all living beings, however, where are the rights of the woman carrying the child.  If we do away with abortion as they suggest, women will be forced to find the illegal abortionist in a non-hygenic situation.  If you get a chance watch the video "If these walls could talk". Anti- Abortion helps those churches keep control of their parishoners with their antiquated methods of "birth control". It is also an easy way to add to that particular church without having to recruit new, older members.  Children are so much easier to "train" in their existing religion.  Remember what Goebbel's said to Hitler?  "You give me the children until the age of 6 and they will be ours forever."
Empty Exercises are appearing everywhere now.  If you have one specific "exercise" you would like to "discuss", please go the bottom of this blog, find the comment area and discuss your empty exercise.  Everyone could jump in and discuss it as you see it and the way they see it.