Very clever... two thumbs up!

I will just tell my 8 year old who dreams of being an astronaut that NASA is no longer going to be at the forefront of exploration of space and instead it will be a full fledged patsy of this administration's lack of imagination. Doesn't Obama have any idea what leadership means in any way? I try not to give into the idea that he is trying to destroy the United States. But this is yet another emasculation in my opinion. And quite frankly the money spent at NASA actually creates and or saves (lol) jobs unlike the bulk of the stimulus spending. This is yet another way Obama can bow to Russians and the Chinese as the United States drops to second or third place in another arena.

If you have never seen this, it is quite a humorous and accurate review of Episode I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxKtZmQgxrI

At last!

I could listen to Thomas Sowell for hours (and have). In one of his videos he told a wonderful story about when he first starting teaching and that as one of the first blacks to have a professorship at a prestigious university, the students treated him with instant respect, knowing that he must know his stuff to get that position. Several years later, after affirmative hiring practices came into place, students treated him with less respect figuring that he had been given his position rather than having earned it even though by that time he had become a renowned, well-published expert in his field.

David Bowie has a knack for always seeing the next thing in music. Forever a chameleon because he understood that music evolved. Incredibly talented to be able to spot the trend early enough to then be part of its development. I have seen Bowie live four times in my life and there are only a handful of acts that command the stage the way he does (Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones and Elvis come to mind off hand). To relate this to politics, he is not a finger-to-the-wind performer seeing what is already popular and then jumping on the band wagon like Bill Clinton became to survive his presidency. He is not like George W. Bush becoming a legacy tool of the record label (read special interests). He is not like Obama and stuck in one ideology because it is the only thing he knows because it was what he has been groomed for. Instead he is a student of music, understanding the fundamentals of what works and does not. On that framework, he assembles something based in solid theory but with contemporary flare. Who will be the next President that has these qualities to lead the Tea Party/Libertarian movement forward, built on the fundamental values of the founding fathers but addressing the needs of a modern society. While we need to return to basics, it is imperative in today's 24 hour news microscope that the next President be media savvy -- but he/she must be more than just an entertainer.

This Bing and Bowie duet demonstrates to me an important concept. Rather than creating something entirely new, they built on the foundation of a classic. They did not strive to fundamentally change Christmas songs. They did not throw out the old in deference to the new. Instead they took what worked and added new components that harmonized with what was already there. It brought together two generations so that they could both appreciate and revel in the masterpiece that was created through finding the common ground and building on that. Perhaps there is a lesson here for all of us?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! My two favorite holidays are Thanksgiving and Independence Day... I think because they both are still about the same thing that they were intended to be about. Not really commercialized in a way that detracts from their true significance.

We have a traditional Thanksgiving here just like my parents and grand parents did it. Over the last 25 years I have mastered my Great Grandmother's stuffing recipe and just got the turkey in the Nesco roaster. House smells wonderful! Kids are watching the parade and coming in over and over asking if it is time to baste the turkey yet. It just doesn't get any better than this!

I am truly thankful for living in the United States of America. Hope you all have a bountiful holiday surrounded by family and friends.

If you notice in the address, Lincoln does not use the word "I" anywhere in the speech. The address went so far as to say that the dedication was not as important as the act of the soldiers who fought and for those who died there. This is a stark contrast to how this event would be played out today... that is if Obama would even show up for such an occasion.

But if he did, the speech would go more like this:

Title: President Barrack Obama at Gettysburg

"I was not yet born when this nation was founded so many years ago by a group of white men that stated "all men are created equal" but did not really believe that.

Now I have to mop up the mess of the previous administration who divided our country to the point where certain states, filled with mobs of angry teabaggers, felt that they must secede from the union to keep up their ways of taking advantage of those not able to fend for themselves. When I came into office I gave a speech where I said I was strongly committed to making sure that the union stayed intact. General Grant has asked for more troops to ensure this but my advisors and I are stalling rather than increasing troops as requested to hopefully get the healthcare legislation through Congress before I dissappoint those in my base on the far left. But today we are here to celebrate this ground that I walk on, or as the media says (make quote gesture with hands) "I hover over" (wait for laughs to die down). I think this ground right under my feet, is where a battle took place. So in order to demonstrate my committment to the soldiers and to my loyal subjects... er... the public, I have asked you, the media... except Fox News, to meet me here for a few photos showing how I am truly 100% behind our military.

Besides my giving a speech here today, this ground is important because it is here, and at battlefields thoughout the country, where soldiers and their families made the ultimate sacrifice so that a black man like me could be here today reading from these teleprompters as your President. That pretty much says it all doesn't it? Now comes the time that we need to provide compensatory redistribution to make up for the two hundred plus years of economic disparity to America's poor and minorities. All men and women must now be made to be equal. My administration is fully dedicated and appropriately staffed to fundimentally transform this country to this principle.

Thank you."

Growing up my father, a WWII navigator and fiscal conservative, taught me three main lessons.

1) Personal responsibility -- People will trust you if you take responsibility for your actions. Over time, they will even begin to follow you because a true leader will admit and learn from their mistakes. Part of responsibility is taking a stand even though it is not popular especially when principle is at stake. A leader has the responsibility to defend what is right and just. Responsibility, leadership and justice all go hand in hand.

2) Anything worth having is worth working for -- In an age when so many in my upscale community buy their children cars in high school, my 17 year old son knows that he will not be given a car. Does he resent me for it... not at all. He holds down a job while being in several extracurricular activities and had his best report card ever. Why? Because he now understands intrinsically what it is to earn the accolades and to work hard for something he desires. He doesn't need or want a hand out. He knows what value is. He is armed with the knowledge that "Yes HE can."

3) Look for the good in all people -- My father told me to always look first to what you like about someone. Form your opinion on where you have common ground or where you share similar values not on what divides you. He said that those that first look to what they don't like miss vital opportunities and end up turning people away and never get to share ideas to improve the overall situation.

Reagan was a man much like my father. He was a leader and made the hard decisions based on principle over popularity. He re-instilled the idea of our founders that hard work should be rewarded with the fruits of its labor. That government was only a hindrance to the goal of citizens being intrinsically motivated to achieve. He was also the kind of a man that found common ground and used that as the basis to build something more. Like my father, he was a man that I trusted and that is something I have not been able to say about a President since.

The last decade and a half we have let the political parties force a wedge between people based on their differences. I am thrilled to see that people are starting to re-unite based on their similarities again. My father and President Reagan both would join me in having real "hope" because things are about to "change" back to how it was when I was growing up. People are waking up to what the real problems are and the movement to take back our Republic is growing bigger everyday.

Who is the next Ronald Reagan?