According to Census and State Department data, 21.4 million passports were issued in 2016, which is the most ever. That means 42 percent of Americans hold a passport, a growth of 15 percent since 2007. In 1990, only four percent of Americans had one. Although the number of Americans with passports is reaching record highs and still growing, foreigners still tend to look at Americans as selfish, close-minded individuals who don't care to learn about the rest of the world. It may seem this way but the lack of U.S. citizens with passports compared to the rest of the world is completely explainable. The utility of obtaining a passport is very low, most Americans will never need a passport in their lifetime. You can, with exception to some rules, travel the entire continent of North America with just your driver's license. One major concept that most inhabitants of the other side of the world can't fathom is the vast reach of America's borders. Many don't realize how large the U.S. is as a country and even when realized the proportion is unimaginable when compared. Of those well traveled countries in the European Union, voyagers don't need to drive or fly far to reach their neighbor country. This gives more utility to have a passport for citizens of those countries. The true size of the US when compared to the EU:
Despite the myth that Americans don't travel, Americans are actually well traveled individuals. Alongside International travel, Americans also have this concept of traveling Nationally. Yes, Americans do travel internationally as well but it's usually by a long flight. It's not a bus ride or a train ride away. Not all Americans can afford a 10 hour flight to Germany in addition to a return flight back. Just to give an example of how different the travel is let's say you're in Amsterdam; if you drive Southwest for just 6 hours you have passed through 2 countries and you should be in Paris, France by now. Compare that to the US. From Jasper, Texas, if you drive 6 hours West, you haven't even made it to the other side of Texas yet. It isn't possible to see New York, The Grand Canyon, and California all in one day. There are Large States in the US, every State is different with different tourist attractions and different ways of life. A traveler can experience a -12°C winter day in New York or a 21°C winter day in California, there's plenty diversity in the US to explore for a lifetime. For this reason the U.S. has the largest domestic travel market in the world. Americans travel just as much as anyone else. It's not close-mindedness that keeps most Americans from getting a passport. It's the vast diversity and size of the country that does.
This may come as a surprise to some Americans but the most
popular sport in the world is football, or as Americans call it soccer. Soccer
comes in with an estimated total of 3.5 Billion fans while American Football
and Basketball is estimated at only 800 million fans combined. The two don’t
even add up to 30% of soccer’s popularity. In most world sports such as the
Winter Olympics Games or the Summer Olympics Games the USA has long asserted its
athletic dominance. However, when it comes to soccer the USA has been the
laughing stock of the rest of the world.
Why? First of all, America has its own favorite sports.
Americans would much rather watch the Super Bowl or the NBA Finals over the
World Cup. Many Americans don't find the possibility of a 0-0 tie game to be
entertaining to the least bit. A non-scoring game does in no way fill a sports
bar with excitement, at least not in the US.
For reasons above, soccer has not been a widely played sport
in neighborhoods and schools across America. Beside the typical middle class
soccer mom's family, soccer is not a household sport. Soccer is only practiced
and played by the vast minority of American citizens. America has never focused
sufficient resources into the sport of soccer to establish a team that could
challenge the best in the world because of its low participation rates. For the
US to even qualify and compete exceptionally in recent World Cups has been a
major accomplishment within itself with such miniscule participation.
Other than commonly stated arguments against soccer, what is
soccer’s biggest failure in the US? Soccer's target demographic plays the
biggest role in its lack of success. Soccer is often looked at as America's
middle class sport. The parents of our soccer youth are often the middle class
soccer moms or the middle class hard working fathers who want their kids to
learn the values of hard work through sport. Often for these kids, playing soccer
is not their own choice. Some of these children are forced to pick a sport by
their parents at a young age. With the brutality of football as a deterrent and
a plethora of highly skilled youth in the sport of basketball, it's no question
why baseball and soccer are often the sport of choice for middle class youth.
Nevertheless, there are also many kids that choose soccer for their love of the
sport. Soccer is undoubtedly an enjoyable sport to play. Even so, it is not
enough to simply be a sport that is fun to play. For the widespread success of
any sport in a country there has to be more draw to the sport than being a fun
game to play. This is where soccer fails to succeed in America and until soccer
meets a few other criteria its potential will remain unrealized.
Many don't see the potential of USA Soccer as it comes off a
bit blurry. Once the fog is cleared though the potential can be seen very
clearly. Think about it... America arguably has the best athletes in all of the
world. The only reason this is even arguable is for the reason that the US
stinks so terribly in soccer which many consider to be the World's sport. In
the World's sport, the US has always been a notch below mediocrity. This casts
a great big shadow over the true athleticism of the USA. In most other sports
it would be a sin to even question America's athletic dominance. With such
athletic talent present, the potential of USA Soccer is very clear. America has
the potential to be the most dominant soccer country in the world.
How does America go about realizing its potential? The
answer is very complex but to sum it up into a short statement, USA soccer
needs to target a different demographic. One can look at any sport in the world
and it will be found that in every sport the best athletes of that sport are
the athletes who needed that sport to survive. For example, most kids stricken
by poverty in Latin American countries see soccer as their only way out of
poverty. As opposed to a middle class child with little financial struggles,
soccer is not just a fun game to play, it is the only way their families will
eat. These young Latino boys will out-train, out-practice, out-sweat, out-bleed
anyone else in the world to ensure that they take their families out of the
ghettos in which they survived as a child. The same goes for popular American
sports. These athletes have the hunger to make it before everyone else and that
hunger drives them to be the best. In a capitalist society such as the USA that
drive for gold becomes even greater. Sure you have your typical Stephen Curry's
who grew up wealthy and simply had access to the best training possible but the
dedication of Steph Curry to athletics is something that is very rare among the
peers Steph grew up with. Regardless, most of America's great athletes come
from a poverty stricken past. The same could be said about baseball. There is a
new wave of baseball talent coming from the Dominican Republic and Cuba who see
Major League Baseball as their only way out. No matter what sport or where you
look in the world, the best athletes are the kids who grow up with nothing else
to lose.
The establishment and growth of MLS has done much for
tapping into the minds of our future athletes. Still, soccer is a long ways
away from being a main sport played by poor kids from the ghetto. There is
still only limited opportunity for fame, brandability, endorsement deals, shoe
deals, high paying contracts, or becoming an American household name through
soccer. Kids in America don't see the profitability in soccer and to be frank
soccer's profitability in the US is higher than it's ever been but still very
limited. There is no reason for a kid to want to make a few million dollars
playing soccer when he can invest all of his time and practice and make
hundreds of millions playing basketball. USA Soccer's potential athletes are on
display right now in more profitable sports. Imagine an athlete with the
capabilities of Kyrie Irving instead of wanting to learn how to dribble a
basketball as a kid wanting to learn how to dribble a soccer ball. Imagine an
athlete like Odell Beckham Jr using his amazing ability to catch as a goalie instead
of as a wide receiver. For other countries to even try and compete against the
US wouldn't be fair. USA would be a lock to
win the World Cup every four years.
It’s amazing to imagine but right now it is only just a
dream. Until soccer is seen as viable means for these little poor boys and
girls to move their families out of the ghetto, until then America will never
reach its soccer potential.
Thursday night at Story Nightclub, rapper The Game went on a
verbal assault against rapper Meek Mill. Game stated that this was all stemming
from an incident between his entourage and Meek Mill's entourage some time
earlier. Allegedly this incident led to
police showing up at The Game's home unannounced. The Game strongly believes
that cops were at his door due to information Meek Mill had given to them. In a
nutshell, Game is calling Meek Mill a snitch. The Game went on to challenge
Meek Mill to a fight where he claimed he just wanted to beat Meek Mill’s ass “no
guns,” and it would be over with.
The Game at Story Nightclub, video courtesy of TMZ:
According to TMZ, as The Game went on his tirade at Story
Nightclub Thursday night, his entourage was targeted in a Miami Beach shooting just a few miles down the road. At the moment, it is unclear if the two
incidents are related.
Friday the next morning, Meek Mill seemed to have sent a cryptic message of his own on Instagram:
Also Friday morning, on American syndicated radio show The Breakfast Club, The Game escalated
the beef releasing a diss record titled "92 Bars". On the diss
record, Game went on to say that he wants to have sex with Meek Mill's girlfriend,
Nicki Minaj, and that he would be at Meek's door at 4 am with his crew loaded
with guns. "All Lives Matter except this nigga."
“92 Bars” on The Breakfast Club:
Neither Meek Mill nor The Game are new to rap beef. However, The Game's approaching album release date, October 7th, leaves
some to believe that this is nothing more than a publicity stunt.
Meek Mill goes on to reiterate the thoughts of others that The Game is an industry cat looking for attention:
Real Beef or Not? Well that's still to see. We will keep you updated on the issue.
For those of you who do not know, September 16th represents
Independence Day for Mexicans. On this day 206 years ago, there was a Great Cry
uttered from the small town of Dolores Hidalgo, Mexico. Mexican Independence
Day is known as Dia de la Independencia
and is a major Mexican holiday to commemorate the great "Cry of Independence" that
took place on September 16th, 1810 when the Mexicans revolted against the
Spaniards. This event is considered the beginning of the Mexican War of
Independence. Since October 1825, the anniversary of the event is celebrated as
Mexican Independence Day.
Twitter comes together to celebrate Mexico’s Independence
Day:
As 21st century citizens of the Americas do we
honestly see slavery as more than just a story? Do we realize that it was
something that happened to real people? When reflecting on the past it becomes
easy to take a tragedy lightly. There are so many of tragedies in our world’s
history and many we can no longer relate to. Times change and owning or being a
slave is something many can’t imagine in the 21st century. The only
way to truly understand the severity of 250+ years of slavery is to take a step
in our ancestors’ shoes.
Imagine if your mother came and told you that she was a
slave as a child. She told you her father was sold away as she was young and
she never saw him again. She was raped repeatedly and you are the child of the
rapist, her slave master. To the common man or woman this would both enrage you
and break your heart. So why then does it not break our hearts to hear the same
truths of our ancestors or others’ ancestors? Do we take it seriously?
Imagine foreigners coming into your neighborhood with
weapons you have never seen before. They proceed to kill your mother and they
kidnap your brother FOREVER!! In a quick second your family is split and taken
to different worlds and you never get to hear joy in their voices, feel their
love, or see them smile again.
Imagine being thought of as less than a human being. You're
nothing but a Nigger now. You have the same status as a pet dog. Being imprisoned,
beaten, chained, starved, tortured, are constant activities and this goes on
for the rest of your life. There is no escape. Your innocence is irrelevant.
To hear your sister raped by your master every day or to watch
your father be killed for trying to do something about it, it’s unimaginable.
Working 10-15 hours a day, Hard Labor, Every day, for the rest of your life and
not being paid a penny. While trying to survive on the insalubrious scraps of
meat from the filthiest animals. You routinely watch your friends try and
escape to a better life and they are chased by hounds then amputated for their
disobedience to Master. All of these things and more were real life situations
of the time.
To read about slavery in our history books and never dive
into the callousness of it would be a mistake. Slavery had to be a real Hell on
Earth and real people were forced to suffer through it in the Americas for over
300 years.
Should a baseball player who used performance enhancing drugs to increase production in his career be admitted into the Baseball Hall of Fame? This includes Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, and any other player caught using PEDs. Do these players deserve Hall of Fame status even though they had an unfair advantage? Many say "No!" seeing that their stats were padded. Critics against the idea of these players making the hall of fame argue that cheaters of any sport should be penalized harshly and the Baseball Hall of Fame will be more honorable without them.
When a baseball player uses performance enhancing drugs he seizes an unfair advantage over other players in his time as well as players from previous eras. As a result, these players are capable of accomplishing feats never before imagined in the history of Major League Baseball. Many players in recent history have chosen to take the PED route and they have tarnished legitimate hard-earned records because of it. It's a disgrace to Major League Baseball, plain and simple. PED cheaters should never be mentioned among Hall of Fame electors like Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron who accomplished everything in their career through pure talent, skills, and a hard work ethic.
One must realize that these drug cheats were only so incredible because they used steroids and performance enhancing drugs. PED cheaters would not be as incredible as their padded stat sheets show them to be had it not been for the shortcuts they chose to take. What about the true players of the game who played the game fair and square? Honorable men who took the high road were given a role in the shadows. They were never given the opportunity to shine. MLBs clean players of the modern era were never truly given the spotlight in MLB games, practice, recruiting, endorsements, or the media. It is unfair to continue to keep that spotlight away from baseball's honorable mentions.
Let us examine baseball's steroid policy, it's a joke. Baseball's conviction for use of prohibited substances, first offense: 15 to 30 day suspension and/or a fine of up to $10,000. In other sports there are much harsher penalties for athletes who are caught using steroids. Not long ago, Lance Armstrong was stripped of his 7 tour titles, his bronze medal from the 2000 Olympics, and all his other titles, money, and awards from 1998 onward all for being accused of using steroids. Pretty harsh don't you think? Marion Jones gave back the five medals she won at the Sydney Olympics and agreed to forfeit all other results dating back to Sept. 1, 2000, admitting that she was a drug cheat. Is a 30 day suspension really that ghastly when compared to other International sports? No. Prohibition from the Hall of Fame would be an equal and fair punishment for Major League Baseball players.
Some baseball fans may contend that so many players used steroids in baseball's recent era that there are too many players the Hall of Fame will have to overlook. However, being overlooked only applies for players who have been caught using PEDs. Other players who had only been accused would continue to be eligible. To expand on the issue, it does not matter if every player did it. Every drug cheat should be penalized to the highest extent by their respective sports. Any candidate to be inducted to the Hall of Fame should be judged by their dedication to the game and their hard work against all odds. No one who took a shortcut should be honored among the greats.
At the end of the day, whether you like them or not they went against the rules of baseball. Some of these players have great stories and are very likable but this should not bypass their accordance to the rules of the game that made them who they are. The only way baseball will deter future cheats is by being strict with their discipline and sticking to it.
September 15th marks the anniversary of a terrible tragedy in our history. On this day fifty-three years ago, during a service at the 16th Street Baptist Church titled, "The Love That Forgives," members of the KKK set off explosives that killed four little girls: Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson and Denise McNair.
In honor of their memory, the NAACP asks that you, people of all color, pledge to register 16 new voters on Friday, September 16.
Click the link below:
Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with the NAACP. Any views or opinions presented on this website are solely mine and do not necessarily represent those of the NAACP.
Manifest Destiny, What is it? Manifest Destiny was the
19th-century belief of the colonists that the expansion of the US throughout
the American continents was both justified and inevitable. Colonists believed
that it was God’s ordained wish that all of North America from ocean to ocean,
including Mexico and Canada, soon belong to them. This was used as
justification for US Domestic Policy towards the Natives while moving west. It
was used as justification for violently seizing control of California and Texas
from Mexico. It was also used as justification for invading and attacking
Canada after 1812, which many Americans were never taught about. It would seem
a tad bit harsh to compare this to gentrification you think?
Many see gentrification as the revitalization of poor inner city
areas into thriving middle class urban communities. However, when it’s examined
with a closer lens one can see that gentrification and revitalization are not
quite the same. Gentrification comes with a price. Gentrification is the
process in which high income investors buy into low income urban neighborhoods
in an attempt to capitalize on low property values. This process results in an
inflation of property values which displaces the low income inhabitants who all
in entirety can no longer afford to live there. It also displaces the culture
and character that bonded the community together. Displacing the people and
erasing the culture of entire communities is the price of gentrification.
It would be a mistake to look at gentrification as a racial issue.
Those who mention gentrification as the reversal of 20th century “White
flight” do not quite have a complete understanding of the issue. However, due
to fact that the low-income urban neighborhoods being gentrified are most often
filled with Black and/or Hispanic inhabitants and replaced with middle class
White inhabitants, race does make its way into the issue. Race removal is a
result of gentrification but not a cause or reason for its initiation. Racism
is not a heavy factor when it comes to the issue. Blacks are often on the opposition
of gentrification for the reason that their neighborhoods & cultures are
being erased and dispersed through it. Neighborhoods like Harlem, Washington
D.C, Brooklyn, and Atlanta are losing their Black population as we speak. As
well as so many other inner cities.
I’m an Atlanta native myself and I can recall around 2008
when the city forced thousands of Black families to move out without providing
an alternative option for low income housing. They were simply kicked out and
told to find somewhere else to live. Housing projects like Bowen Homes,
Bankhead Courts, etc. were emptied and bulldozed down to the ground. Their plan
was to turn the ghetto of Atlanta, Bankhead (a long highway in which these
housing projects were located), into a middle class neighborhood by the near
future. The city even changed the street name from Bankhead Hwy to Donald Lee
Hollowell Pkwy to make it unrecognizable to those who knew it as the rough an unsuitable side of town. Instead
of building up poor communities for the less fortunate who live there public
and private investors are building neighborhoods up and forcing the poor who
live there to find another home somewhere far away.
How does this change the culture of Atlanta? Simple, Atlanta
for the last 20 years has been known as the “Black mecca” of America, much like
Harlem was known during the Harlem Renaissance of culture. Atlanta has also
been known as the international headquarters of this new music called Rap and
Hip Hop, also much like Harlem with Jazz during the Harlem Renaissance. With
the current gentrification trends it’s sad to say that this will not be the
case 10 years from now. Atlanta's Black population in 2000 was 61.4% and
dropped all the way down to 54.0% by 2010 and is still dropping. In 2009,
Atlanta was 714 votes short of electing its first non-black mayor since 1974. Intown
Atlanta neighborhoods are being gentrified, such as East Atlanta and the Old
Fourth Ward, ghettos are replaced with upscale homes. Whites are moving into
these upscale homes & this causes a movement of displaced blacks into rural cities
and adjacent suburbs. Atlanta’s Black hip hop culture will be unrecognizable
maybe even non-existent in the coming future.
What’s even more devastating than losing a culture is the
disinvestment that is soon to come as a result of gentrification. We can take a
quick view at history and it will give us insight on our near and far future to
come. In the mid-20th century Blacks began to move away from the
south and into inner cities looking for jobs and better opportunities at the
American dream. This was the cause of “White flight” which was a migration of
Whites out of racially mixed urban areas. As a result, disinvestment began in
the racially mixed inner city communities. This was the time, as Spike Lee
says, where the trash wasn’t picked up every day and the police didn’t make
sure the communities were protected.
Now, through gentrification these
neighborhoods are being reinvested in and they are protected and have daily
trash pickups but the poor no longer live there. The poor now are either
homeless or are being moved to suburbs and back to the south. As a result of
such focus on inner city communities suburban and rural areas are being
disinvested in and this will be the trend for decades to come. The suburbs will
now become the ghettos with high crime and poor schools who get no investment
from public or private sectors. The same maltreatment of the poor continues
simply in a new location. It’s important to understand this. Gentrification is
doing no good for the low income inner city families it claims to be helping.
What about the few households who don’t rent, the urban
homeowners? Does not the property value increase benefit them? Before investors
can rebuild a neighborhood there has to be a plan in place years ahead of time.
These years before the matter is usually the time investors spend buying out
the property in planned area. The majority of the property owned by the natives
of the area is bought out before the gentrification even begins. The stubborn last
minority are the ones aware of the property value increase soon to come. However,
what also comes with the higher property values is higher prices on everything
else. Gas, clothes, groceries, property tax, bills, even daily lunch becomes
more expensive while income stays the same. They find themselves in a situation
where they can no longer afford to live in the area and the property is sold
before the full potential of the property value increase is met. Not even the
minority of inner city homeowners benefit from gentrification.
What does all of this mean and how does it tie in with
manifest destiny? As I stated before gentrification is not a racial issue
although it may seem that way to many in America. It’s more of a western ideology
problem. Gentrification is happening all across western civilization. San Francisco,
East London, Berlin, Soho, Barcelona, Rio, Portland are just a few other cities
to name. Many call this problem an effect of the “Columbus syndrome”. When you
so-called discover something that the natives there already knew about you have
Columbus syndrome. Symptoms of the Columbus syndrome include infiltrating the land
in which the natives of that area live, forcing them out, making it
your new home, taking things from their culture and calling it your own. If you
experience any of these symptoms call your doctor. In all seriousness, it
sounds a lot like what happened to the Natives of our country. At the same
time, it sounds a lot like what’s happening via gentrification. Manifest
destiny was the coherently evil and violent removal of inhabitants of newly found
land. Gentrification is the incoherent economic removal of inhabitants of reinvested
land. In this way the two don’t compare but the similarities are striking. I’ll
leave you with this question. Do the benefits of gentrification outweigh the
consequences? If not, let us fight to regulate the gentrification process.
A video, not affiliated with this blog, explaining gentrification in NYC:
Critics may argue that if college athletes are paid, all the other members of other extra curricular activities would find it unjust if they weren't paid as well. That includes, but is not limited to, debate teams, cheer squads, and other various clubs but the purpose of secondary education is not to pad the pockets of students who wish to excel, but to further education.
Regardless of what anyone says student athlete's across the nation are generating more and more in revenue for top-tier Division 1 colleges. Student athletes of major Division 1 programs in some cases are bringing in more revenue for their universities than all other university sports and student organizations put together. If a debate team or a cheer squad took in $87 million in revenue and $65 million in profits like the University of Texas football team did in 2008, then they too should be paid. Student athletes are literally being pimped for hundreds of millions of dollars. These athletes devote so much time to the teams that they are apart of and if that team wins a National Title or gets any public notoriety the colleges reap the benefits of all the athletes hard work. Being a student athlete is basically a job in itself and college athletes deserve to be paid for it.
If students were paid to play Division 1 sports then student athletes would have more incentive to stay in school. It could be argued that more student-athletes would choose to stay in school and earn degrees if they were receiving some form of payment. Not many college athletes have a chance in pro sports and staying in school they could earn some type of money while earning a degree at the same time.
Just to mention one misconception, if college athletes were to be paid these kids would not be getting checks and salaries bigger than their parents. The money that they earn would most likely be going to some type of pension, trust fund, or retirement fund. Also, surely certain requirements will have to be met for the athletes to receive any type of funds for sports at all. Such as minimum GPA's, team requirements, etc. College athletes would still have to work hard not only as athletes but as students as well.
Recently the Supreme Court took up
a case on affirmative action and the outcome could cause changes in the policy
nationwide.
Abigail Fisher claims that she was
not admitted into the University of Texas at Austin in 2008 because less
qualified minority students were chosen over her.
Obviously it is wrong to select
someone for a job or admission purely on the basis of their skin color.
However, if two candidates of different races have the same qualifications the
edge should be given to the minority. We have to show special attention to
minorities or minorities will receive no attention at all.
Let's talk about what affirmative
action is because most have a casuistic concept of what it is. Affirmative
action is not a quota system, it is NOT A REQUIREMENT and it is not unfair. It
simply allows publicly funded organizations to use race as a small factor in
the selection process. This was ruled by the Supreme Court on several
occasions. According to affirmative action, race can only be one factor among
many.
Affirmative action gives
opportunity where there would otherwise be none. If society took a look at the
narrative of a minority family people would understand this. A typical black
family consists of a single mother and a few kids. Seeing that this family has
only one parent present the family receives only one paycheck to survive on.
The mother is faced with a tough decision; either choose to keep one job and be
able to teach her kids but with little money or work 2 or 3 jobs and not have any time to spend with
her kids. This results in the children having problems at home. They are forced
to go days without lights or water or food, or are subjected to raise
themselves because their mother is always working. When these children go to
school we cannot expect them to be interested in whether 2x + 3x is congruent
to 3x + 2x, their mind is focused on their problems at home. Their mind is thinking of how their family will have supper tonight. These children
wind up not learning very much in school and make low test scores and consequently aren't able to go to college for financial and scholastic reasons. These
children grow up to be adults and settle for minimum wage jobs for a source of
income. These adults start families and realize that minimum wage is not enough
to survive. The dad has no qualifications for a well-paying job and he resorts
to crime attempting to support his family. The dad is put into prison or leaves
his family ashamed that he cannot support them leaving the single mother alone
and the cycle repeats itself. If the next generation grew up and made decent SAT/ACT test scores equal to someone from more privileged backgrounds why not give them a chance? Success is not guaranteed but
why not give someone an opportunity? Their lives are setup for failure all they
can ask for is an opportunity.
We hear a number of whites say
affirmative action is discrimination against whites. Well it is, but it is
necessary to compensate for the discrimination already taking place against
minorities. If whites made up less than 15% of the population, as most
minorities do, they would be begging for an equal opportunity while trying to
coexist in a country full of others. If these whites being discriminated
against were equally qualified what is the big fuss about? Is it life threatening
that he/she has to settle for Yale instead of Harvard because a minority
student was admitted over him/her? Is it so serious that he/she has to settle
for $109k a year instead of $110k a year? If someone is qualified chances are
that person will get what they earned. It is utterly ridiculous that whites,
who make up 72% of America's population, are playing the race card.
There will come a time when
affirmative action is no longer needed for Blacks, Hispanics, and other racial
minority groups to have an equal opportunity. However, even after, affirmative action
will continue to be necessary. Affirmative action is needed for all disadvantaged
individuals. Individuals such as, women in the workplace, such as males who are becoming a minority in colleges and universities, even poor white families. Whether it be
race based, sex based, age based, need based, affirmative action will be
necessary until the day all Americans receive a fair chance at the American
Dream.
Whether the President has been
Democrat or Republican the result has been the same: more government, more
looting of Americans, more inflation, more police-state measures, more
unnecessary war, and more centralization of power. Ron Paul wrote in his book,The Revolution: A Manifesto, "With national bankruptcy
looming, politicians from both parties continue to make multi-trillion dollar
promises of 'free' goods from the government, and hardly a soul wonders if we
can still afford to have troops in - this is not a misprint - 130 countries
around the world." Every 4 years we face an election between only 2
candidates who hardly differ but pretend to represent dramatically different
philosophies of government. There will be a revolution needed to make a change.
Ron Paul on Civil Liberties:
When asked if he would legalize drugs and gay marriage, he
replied:
"My defense of liberty is the defense of their right to
practice their religion and say their prayers where they want and practice
their life. If you do not protect liberty across the board it's a 1st Amendment
type issue. We don't have a 1st Amendment so that we can talk about the
weather. We have the 1st Amendment so we can say very controversial things. So,
for people to say that yes we have our religious beliefs protected but people
who want to follow something else or a controversial religion you can’t do
this. If you have the inconsistency then you're really not defending liberty
but there are strict rules on freedom of choice of this sort because you can’t
hurt other people, you can’t defame other people. But, yes you have the right
to do things that are very controversial."
Ron Paul on Monetary
Policy:
"You can't have a government like this without an income
tax but we don't want a government like this. This was not the kind of government
found by our founders of the country. It's not what was written in the
Constitution. We've only had an income tax since 1913. But, if you want a
welfare state and if you want to police the world and pay for the defense of
Japan and Germany, send foreign aid to the Soviet Union you not only need the
income tax you need the Federal Reserve to print up the money when the deficit
is accumulated. So, we think the government should be much smaller. If the
government is small then you don't need an Income tax."
Ron Paul on Foreign Policy:
"Going into Iraq and Afghanistan and threatening Iran is
the worst thing we could do for our national security. I am less safe, the
American people are less safe for this; it's the policy that is wrong. Tactical
movements and shifting troops around and taking in 30 more and reducing by 5,
totally irrelevant! We need a new foreign policy that says we ought to mind our
own business, bring our troops home, defend this country, defend our borders...
"
Ron Paul on Welfare:
"I don't have the right to steal from you because
somebody out in the street needs your help. You have an obligation personally
to help them but I don't have the right to interfere with your right to take
something from you and deliver it to somebody out on the street."
Ron Paul's Revolutionary aims have influenced masses of
people including 2012 Libertarian Presidential Candidate Gary Johnson.
"His efforts have changed America; they've changed me," says Gov.
Johnson. I don't agree with all of Ron Paul's policies but I do agree that we
need to change the way America operates and it may take a Revolution to do so.
Does the NFL care about anything other than profitability? Their little experiment with
the replacement refs shows that they do not. Fortunately, their experiment came
to an end Wednesday as they reached an agreement with the professional refs.
Still, going through the preseason and 3 regular season weeks with replacement referees
shows that the NFL doesn’t care about anyone but its owners and they do not
care because all the fans will continue to watch no matter what.
Integrity is firm adherence to a code of moral values. The
NFL did not adhere to any moral values while allowing college D-3 and high
school refs to officiate NFL regular season games for 3 weeks. Roger Goodell
states “my most important responsibility is maintaining the integrity of professional
football,” but it looks as if his most important responsibility maintaining the
wealth of the owners. He does this with no regards to the players, coaches,
officials, the fans or anyone else. This whole experience has led many to
question whether the league is as moral as it says it is.
In the past few years the NFL has been preaching player
safety. They have been doing everything from handing out huge fines to
suspensions all for the health and safety of the players. They have been taking
so many steps forward when it comes to player safety but with the ref lockout
they took a huge step backwards. NFL players were in danger of serious injury. The
NFL replacement refs did not have the experience to make the calls to prevent
player injuries. They were not accustomed to the speed of the game so they
could not make the crucial calls needed to protect the players. Now, it appears
to some that the only reason the NFL was implementing player safety rules were
to quiet the critics who said the sport was too gruesome and to attract more
fans. Whether the NFL really cares about player safety is questionable.
Some would ask why wouldn’t the NFL care? The answer is
simple, through player strikes and lockouts, through ref lockouts, through all
the NFL has been through fans continue to watch. With such an inelastic demand,
the NFL can do just about anything they want, including replace their officials
with D-3 and high school refs. The NFL knows that they can make major changes
to the game without changing the demand of the game. That is why they take unnecessary
risks and make huge mistakes because it won’t hurt their profit. No matter
what, people will buy jerseys, tickets, watch the games, and spend money on the
NFL.
The NFL has been exposed for what it truly is: A “duly adjudicated illegal monopoly”, as declared by a jury in an antitrust lawsuit
against them, who only care about their owners and their money. It’s much like
the times of John Rockefeller and the monopoly he had on oil. He could raise
prices as high as he wanted because his customers had no choice but to buy from
him, there was little competition. If we had another choice, perhaps a
different Football League to watch in America, we wouldn't put up with their
nonsense. If you like the sport of professional American Football you have no
choice but to be a prospect of the NFL and that is why they don’t care.
Penn State did not deserve the NCAA sanctions set against them. The penalties did not punish those who were at fault, it harms more than the athletics program, and it was unfair to those not involved. There was no reason to punish an entire school for what essentially 4 people did a decade ago.
Who was at fault for Sandusky's crimes? You can put the blame on 4 people: Sandusky, Paterno, and 2 others previously involved with the athletics program. These 4 individuals won't be punished as a result of the NCAA sanctions. Sandusky is no longer involved with the program in any way. Sandusky will be locked away for a long time, the sanctions will not affect him at all. Neither will the sanctions affect Paterno. He was let go first of all and sadly he has passed away. The other 2 individuals involved will be serving jail time leaving them unaffected by the penalties as well.
There was a 60 million dollar fine as a part of the NCAA sanctions against Penn State. Penn State is facing several lawsuits from Sandusky victims which may cost them hundreds of millions of dollars. The Big Ten Conference will donate Penn State's portion of conference bowl revenue for the next 4 years, projected at $13 million. The school looks to lose close to $15 million each year over the periods laid out by the Big Ten and NCAA. With the $60 million tacked on from the NCAA it could mean cutting scholarships for athletic and non-athletic students. It could also mean cutting professor salaries and things in other educational areas.
It is the Penn State students, fans, and players truly hurt by the NCAA sanctions. None of them had anything to do with what Sandusky did. Penn State will not be a major bowl contender for a long time to come and it is because of the penalties from the NCAA. That hurts no one but the fans, students, players, current coaches, etc. People who had nothing to do with Sandusky's crimes.
The Sandusky case was a criminal case and had nothing to do with football. This was only a reaction from the NCAA who felt like they had to do something and that something had to be big. The NCAA should have left Penn State alone and let the judicial system punish those who were involved.
Recently there was a video released where Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney stated that about half of Americans do not pay taxes and are dependent on government. Here is what Romney said: "There are 47% of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47% who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. But that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. ... These are people who pay no income tax."
Well Romney was right that about 47% of Americans do not pay federal income tax. However, he was not being totally honest about those 47% of Americans who do not pay income tax.
Here is the truth about the 47%:
More than 60% of those who don't pay income tax are working Americans. All Americans who work must pay a payroll tax. The payroll tax helps support Social Security and Medicare and is automatically taken out of every working American's paycheck. There are very few Americans paying no federal tax at all.
As far as those who do not pay any income taxes, sometimes they have a valid reason not to. The majority of these people are the elderly who have no jobs and are most likely retired, individuals below the poverty line, and students who more often don't have an income besides loans, grants and scholarships. These individuals should not be forced to pay income taxes seeing that if they were they would not be able to support their families and lifestyles. Also, a few of those who are not paying federal income taxes are the top earners who have found various ways to avoid paying them. More than 20,000 high earners did not pay federal taxes through a combination of credits and deductions.
The truth is the 47 percent are people who do pay some form of federal tax or are not capable, at the time, of doing so. With a few who are rich who avoid paying income taxes. The truth is these people do not believe that they are victims. These people do not believe the government has a responsibility to care for them. These Americans do not believe they are entitled to anything but fair treatment and an equal opportunity.
The least popular thing Congress does is voting to raise the debt ceiling. However, Congress is required by law to authorize the government to borrow money to pay for programs that Congress has passed.
In the 2010 elections the Republicans took control of the house, while the Democrats maintained control of the Senate. In 2011 the main disagreement between the House Republicans and President Obama and Senate Democrats was over the debt ceiling. This was all because in May of 2011 America's debt limit had been reached and the government could only keep functioning until August 2 without borrowing. In Bipartisan negotiations progress was made toward outlining 1-2 trillion dollars in possible savings. The talks fell apart in June due to a lack of compromise by both the Republicans and Democrats.
By late July the Federal Reserve was preparing for a Federal government default as the August 2 deadline approached. If no deal was reached by August 2 it would essentially mean the world's biggest economy would run out of money. With 3 days left the White House and Congressional Leaders came to an agreement to raise the debt ceiling. As a result of all the turmoil, S. &P. downgraded the credit rating of the U.S. for the first time.
In January of 2013, they will have to do it all over again. That's right, a 2nd Round of the National Debt Fight. Another credit rating downgrade can and most likely will be avoided but if there is more of the same it could raise all kind of consumer fears which could be bad for the economy.
This Saturday both SEC newbie’s, Texas A&M and Missouri, got
to play their 1st game in the SEC. Both teams went into their games with
confidence and played a hard fought 3 quarter game, the only problem was the games
were 4 quarters long.
The Florida Gators
were 0-5 under Will Muschamp coming into the game against Texas A&M and the
Aggies came out strong trying to make it 0-6. The Aggies led at halftime 17 to
10, Florida needed to make a statement in the second half if they wanted to win
this game. The Florida defense stepped up and held the Aggies scoreless in the
second half while the offense put 10 points on the board. Muschamp said
"In the second half we just played more disciplined football." Due to
the disciplined 2nd half play of Florida, Texas A&M loss their
SEC opener 20-17.
With a sellout
crowd in Columbia, Mizzou challenged the Bulldogs. Missouri took the lead 17-9
early in the 3rd quarter and for a while it looked like Missouri would come out
with a win in its SEC opener. Coach Mark Richt. Said "There were times
when I was just starting to wonder what was going to happen." Then Aaron
Murray threw a 7-yard Touchdown pass and a 2-point conversion to tie the game
at 17. From then on it was all uphill for Georgia as they won the game 41-20.
These were history
making games for both Texas A&M and Missouri. However both teams will need
to play harder in the 2nd half if they want to be a force to reckon with in the
SEC.
