Decision 2008 placed us in front of the annals of history. For the first time, Americans elect a man of color to lead this country. Yet, 150 years ago, the bonds of slavery were the norms. The U.S.S renewed hope in most people all over the world. Nowhere can this story be possible! We are proud to be Americans on this day!
John McCain rose above the long months of his failed presidential campaign to reclaim his statesman status by acknowledging what has been happening in this country. He recognize it is time to lead and he has offered the 44th president elect his help to govern this great country.
Voters are going to the polls to select a new president. They are going to voice their opinions against some propositions. The biggest and well-funded one is proposition 8. Both sides have received lots of funding from all over the country and the world. Proponents of Prop8 want to exclude same-sex marriages in California. They receive funding from the Mormon church and various other organizations in the country and the Catholic church. Well, the protestant churches also join the fray. For the first time, all these organizations rally to support one major issue. On the other side, you have all the proponents of Prop8 that want gays, lesbians and bisexuals to have the right to marry in California. They have their own organization that receives all kinds of funding too.
Today, we select a president and various propositions. We will find out what happens to Prop8 tonight.
As the days are numbered, the attacks by John McCain increased. His campain comes up new rounds of attacks while Obama is traveling to red territories that John McCain does not want to cede. The fight is tight in these last hours. In the meantime, voters are heading to the voting booths ahead of time all over the country. Young and adults want to let their voice get heard. They want change. They want change in the economy and financial sectors.
These are major elections. In the meantime, proposition 8 is getting lots of money from various sources. Its opponents are running ads on all TV stations. The fight is on. Who is going to win in the end? The elections may be over, but some issues will not be over soon.
Will the younger brother of Barack Obama come to his inauguration as president of the United States if he ends up being elected in January 2009? At least, the young, 26-year man is alive and doing as well as can be in Kenya according to some reports from the Italian version of Vanity Fair.
"Obama’s brother lives in a Kenyan shack U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama’s lost brother has been tracked down in Kenya. George Hussein Onyango Obama, aged 26, was found by journalists from the Italian edition of Vanity Fair. He reportedly lives in poverty in a shack on the outskirts of Nairobi. He has the same father as the U.S. senator, Barack Hussein Obama, but a different mother. Her name has been given as Jael.
The youngest of Obama’s half-brothers says he lives on less than a dollar per month in a 2m x 3m shack. Its walls are decorated with posters of famous footballers and a calendar featuring exotic beaches. The magazine also noted George has a newspaper picture of his brother.
He has only met his famous brother twice. Once when he was five and then in 2006 when Senator Obama visited Nairobi. George admits their meeting was very brief and cool.
Already, the pundits are predicting that there will be a major rift in the Republican party whether John McCain wins or loses these elections. It will be a break from the past. The party will have to adopt new ways of remaining consistent with its core values. No matter what, observers and party affiliates are saying that the bloodletting will be necessary for the party.
Some late night TV guys such as Jay Leno and David Letterman have been making fun of the campaign. Sarah Palin and John McCain have been the butts of jokes.
For sure, many Republicans are not happy with the way things are going. The conservatives are furious over the state of things or the way John McCain drives the party down to the ground. Maybe there is a future for Sarah after this debacle. After all, she was just shot out of a cannon. She is in the limelight right.
Tina Brown is ready to spend other people's money. In article by The New York Times, the Grand Lady of Talk has enough time to create a good niche for this new blog. The Daily Beast will toe to toe and head to head against the Huffington Post, Politico, Daily Kos and others. It appears that not everyone is in agreement with the way things are going. So far, there is a high amount of dollars that is being spent on The Daily Beast.
At least one person is on records, "Michael Jackson, the head of online programming at IAC and a longtime lieutenant of the company’s chairman, Barry Diller, distanced himself from The Daily Beast. After being involved in its early formation, he raised questions about the cost, according to three people briefed on the matter who were willing to speak freely on the condition that they remain anonymous. Ms. Brown now reports directly to Mr. Diller."
"the cost of the starting The Daily Beast — reports have placed the figure at $18 million, but Ms. Brown says that number is high — has caused tension within IAC/InterActiveCorp, which is financing the site and which also collaborates with The Huffington Post on the humor site 23/6.
Michael Jackson, the head of online programming at IAC and a longtime lieutenant of the company’s chairman, Barry Diller, distanced himself from The Daily Beast. After being involved in its early formation, he raised questions about the cost, according to three people briefed on the matter who were willing to speak freely on the condition that they remain anonymous. Ms. Brown now reports directly to Mr. Diller."
It seems that Tina Brown has her work cut out for her. She will have to get out making money for the IAC. The question is whether there is another success story similar to the Huffington Post by Ariana.
If Politico.com has been able to make it in so short a time, maybe The Daily Beast will beat the odds too.
"Saturday Night Live" just won't be the same without Amy Poehler — who gave birth to a son hours before the "Baby Mama" star was to appear on the NBC show.
The live show's parody news anchor was missing from her spot alongside Seth Myers on "Weekend Update" because she gave birth earlier Saturday.
On behalf of Poehler and her husband, Will Arnett, "I can confirm that Amy gave birth to Archie Arnett on Saturday," read a statement from Poehler's spokesman, Lewis Kay.
The baby was born early Saturday evening in New York, weighing 8 pounds, 1 ounce.
Mother and child were "healthy and resting comfortably," according to the statement.
Poehler, who performed on Thursday night's special edition of "SNL" and is known for playing Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, was rehearsing the show until Friday. She also starred opposite Tina Fey in this year's "Baby Mama" as a working class girl who agrees to be a surrogate mother for a single businesswoman.
What was wrong with Sarah Palin's old clothes? What was wrong with her Alaska fashion sense? Do not ask me. Ask John McCain, his wife and the Republican Party. Apparently, they wanted her to have a personal wardrobe reform. She needed new clothes as the Senator has been answering questions about the $150,000 shopping spree. "Palin needed clothes. They will be donated to charity after the elections," answered John McCain. The Republican Party found it necessary to change her clothes and make her more like chic so the guys, married men can come to the rallies. They wanted her to become a MAGNET BABE for the Vote on November 4. And come, the guys have come to the political gatherings. I read about a guy who got up at 2 A.M. to do his work in order to be able to finish on time and take time off. That is what new looks can give you, a strong following that will bring out the vote.
In the Mayberry segment, "Opie" asks "Sheriff Taylor" "why more people aren't voting for change. "Well, Ope, people are funny." "Sometimes change scares them and they'd rather keep doing the same ol' thing that's been messing them up than change to the thing that can help them."
Opie then said, "He hopes to vote for somebody as good as Mr. Obama when he grows up.."
Mr. Powell, a retired Army general who was a chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under President George Bush and President Bill Clinton, seemed intent on making the most out of his endorsement by saving it until the end of the race and by not informing either candidate before disclosing it on “Meet the Press.”
Mr. Powell said he was dismayed by the tenor of the campaign, declared that Mr. McCain’s running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin, was not fit to be vice president, expressed displeasure with the direction of the Republican Party and called Mr. McCain scattered on his approach to the economy. “Every day there was a different approach,” he said.
“As gifted as he is,” Mr. Powell said of Mr. McCain, a friend for 25 years, “he is essentially going to execute the Republican agenda
Who would have thought that a plumber would get the center stage at the recent presidential debate? In the past, a Wall Street financier would have made the headlines. But not this year. Wall Street is no more or it is no longer what it used to be. This is the triumph of the little guys, the ordinary guys who do real jobs and who are not to make a few bucks from the American taxpayer. It makes sense that Barack Obama and John McCain want to align themselves with the ordinary, hard-working guy, Joe the Plumber.
The third and final presidential debate wasn't about Barack the Senator. And it wasn't about John the maverick, either. Instead it was all about Joe the plumber.
The debate was fairly unremarkable, save for repeated references to a plumber from Toledo, Ohio named Joe Wurzelbacher. Sen. McCain made the first reference when he chided his democratic rival for wanting to raise taxes on people like ol' Joe. That's standard—politicians often make allusions to "regular folks" to prove that they understand real problems.
But then it got weird. Sen. Obama mentioned the suddenly famous plumber, too. And then Sen. McCain talked about Joe some more. It was almost as if both candidates thought the entire election rode on Joe's vote. By the end of the debate, "Joe the plumber" had been mentioned a grand total of 20 times. That's more than "change" and "reform" combined.
The bizarre exchange inspired both the searchers and the bloggers. Queries on "who is joe the plumber" and "joe wurzelbacher" both skyrocketed. Meanwhile, blogs and papers from the Buzz attempted to shed some light on the man behind the socket wrench. The New York Times explains how Joe and Sen. Obama met and discussed Obama's tax plan for small businesses (like, ahem, plumbers).
Politico reports that Joe isn't about to surrender his 15 minutes. He's already talked to Katie Couric and he'll be ruminating on his sudden fame during morning news programs. Tune in, but don't expect to hear who he's voting for. Media Bistro writes that Joe plans to keep that between himself and the lever (well, assuming he's registered).
What will happen to Joetheplumber.com?
Joe the Plumber, after he went ‘toe-to-toe’ with Obama, then got his video plastered on YouTube, I could almost see the dollar signs light up. The dollar signs got even bigger after Joe The Plumber was mentioned 15 times during the presidential debate last night. Political rhetoric and opinion aside, let’s look at the aftermath of ‘Joe the Plumber’ in the internet world.
Joetheplumber.com is as of now a site about ‘plumbing’. It is owned by a plumber living in Amarillo, Texas. The site has places to procure an estimate, list of services available, and means to contact Joe. Pretty standard fare for a services site. After the past two days we can expect that the site, and Joe the Plumber of Amarillo will never be the same.
A parody of Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live two weeks ago was well-received by the Republican vice presidential nominee, according to her press secretary. It would be hard to imagine she felt the same about last night’s treatment.
Alaska’s proximity to Russia and why that emboldens Palin’s foreign policy credentials happened in the real Palin and Couric interview as we discussed earlier. The SNL writers thought that was pretty good material.
Russians hanging around
So they took Amy Poehler, who impersonated Hillary Clinton in the earlier skit, but this time had Poehler imitate Couric in what they called the “fourth installment” of the interview series.
“You got Alaska here, this right here is water, and this is Russia,” Palin (Fey) explained using her hands to assist. “So, we keep an eye on them. Every morning, when Alaskans wake up, one of the first things they do, is look outside to see if there are any Russians hanging around. And if there are, you gotta go up to them and ask, ‘What are you doing here?’ and if they can’t give you a good reason, it’s our responsibility to say, you know, ‘Shoo! Get back over there!”’
Lifeline please?
It would have been a missed opportunity had the writers not lampooned the “I’ll get back to ya’” gaffe that the real-life Palin used when Couric stumped her. They played that line when discussing foreign policy.
COURIC: “What lessons have you learned from Iraq and how specifically, would you spread democracy abroad?”
PALIN: “Specifically, we would make every effort possible to spread democracy abroad to those who want it.”
COURIC: “Yes, but specifically what would you do?”
PALIN: “We’re gonna promote freedom. Usher in democratic values and ideals. And fight terror-loving terrorists.”
COURIC: “But again, and not to belabor the point. One specific thing.”
PALIN: “Katie, I’d like to use one of my lifelines.”
COURIC: “I’m sorry?”
PALIN: “I want to phone a friend.”
COURIC: “You don’t have any lifelines.”
PALIN: “Well in that case I’m gonna just have to get back to ya’”
Wondering if Palin might call for a suspension of her campaign next week to work on a legislastive issue? If so, she should make sure she’s not scheduled for the David Letterman show. He’s already got enough material.
Sen. Joe Biden nails Rudy Giuliani during Tuesday's MSNBC debate: "And the irony is, Rudy Giuliani, probably the most underqualified man since George Bush to seek the presidency, is here talking about any of the people here. Rudy Giuliani... I mean, think about it! Rudy Giuliani. There's only three things he mentions in a sentence -- a noun, a verb, and 9/11. There's nothing else! There's nothing else! And I mean this sincerely. He's genuinely not qualified to be president."
Watch Biden speak about Giuliani in this video from MSNBC:
Wall Street's Casino Attitude, Questions and Answers: Wall Street's Business Model Incites Greed, Cowboy Investing, Lack of Risks, Push for more Profits and More Borrowing (Leverage)
Wall Street is not what it used to be. Some of the buildings are still there. However, everybody from company directors to ground crew, traders, brokers and customers is running scared. Wall Street as we knew it is having huge problems. Consisting of giant investment houses, brokerage firms, hedge funds and "private equity" firms, Wall Street business model has come under huge assaults from greedy traders and management directors who thought that risks were to be handled differently in their quest for more and more profits.
Bear Stearns is no more. Venerable Merrill Lynch had to find a purchaser in Bank of America. The Feds could not rescue investment bank Lehman Brothers which had to file for bankruptcy. Insurance giant AIG received an $85 billion bailout from the Federal Reserve. That's after the government took over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the largest mortgage lenders in an effort to shore up the economy and the housing market. Investors have just found out that their funds could be lost if it was not for this late-hour lifeline. Foreign investors also had to be reassured. Anything that happens to our economy ends up having great repercussion in other countries' stock markets.
In the past few years, Wall Street has gone away from its business model. They have long lost their role as advisers and intermediaries. In the past, these investment banks used to work for their clients. They traded stocks and bonds for major institutional investors such as insurance companies, pension funds, and mutual funds. They raised capital for companies by underwriting, selling new pension funds, mutual funds. They provided advice to corporate clients on mergers, acquisitions and spinoffs. That's how they made their money by charging fees.
Wall Street's financial institutions changed their focus. They were in business for themselves. They were investing for themselves by using partners' or shareholders' money to place bets on stocks, bonds and other securities which they called "principal transactions.
If anybody wants to do something about Wall Street's compensation system, he/she will have to lay the groundwork to avoid future chaos. It is not a secret that Wall Street's compensation system is heavily skewed toward annual bonuses which reflect the profits traders and management directors earned in the year. Even when these traders and directors were making base salaries of $200,000 to $300,000, bonuses were their gravy. They used to receive bonuses five to 10 times their base salaries.
Unlike commercial banks, investment banks rely too much on borrowed money which they call "leverage." There were too many windfalls caused by too much borrowing. For a long time, traders and money managers were focusing too much on their own short-term profits. That is why the crash was just around the corner. Wall Street was being severely damaged by these acts. Short-term goals were met, but investors, shareholders and the rest of the country were going to get hurt. Everyone involved had huge incentives to increase borrowing.
Sarah Palin vows to break the glass ceiling. She wants to give a fresh voice to women. She gives homage to Geraldine Ferraro, Walter Mondale's candidacy for president on the democratic side.
Sarah also tipped her hat to acknowledge Hillary Clinton. At the same time, she wants to tell her supporters, "I want your votes. Put a woman in the White House no matter what."
John McCain may have a chance. No matter what, the first black person and the first woman have a chance to be in the White House.
John McCain rolled the dice. He picked Sarah Palin as his runningmate. But wait, Who is Sarah Palin?
She is the governor of Alaska who has been in office for a year and a half. Nobody knows much about her. 98 % of the country does not know her. How can they vote for her? What has John McCain been thinking?
This must be a calculated risk by the camp of John McCain to get those disatisfied by the loss of Hillary Clinton. John wants to go after the voters who would have voted for Hillary Clinton.
Any way, Sarah Palin is the new face on the Republican ticket.
Thus far, Hillary undecided may have a new shot at supporting a woman. That is what John McCain wants to see. But Sarah Palin does not have a lot of experience in office. Before being governor, she was serving in a small town where she raised taxes. How can she stand up to argue with veteran foreign policy maker, Joe Biden? Sarah has a lot to crunch in order to be ready for the task.
Sen. Hillary Clinton motioned to cut the roll call short saying, “With eyes firmly fixed on the future, and in the spirit of unity with the goal of victory, with faith in our party and our country, let’s declare together with one voice right here, right now that Barack Obama is our candidate and he will be our president.
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