Critique: Tax Cuts Again???

            Obama: U.S. must extend tax cuts for middle class, can't do same for wealthy
In Tax Cuts Again, I would have to agree with Mrs. Dickerson on the matter of tax cuts. This may be a crock, it may not. For the most part though, I feel that it valid to give tax cuts to the middle class, and exclude the upper class. If both classes are to be taxed, then maybe have the taxes considerably higher, or just eliminate certain tax breaks and loop holes that some wealthy people use to avoid taxes. Another proposal is maybe to keep taxes, but people who make over $250,000, do not get any tax breaks for one year. Every person who makes over that will have to pay 20-25% of their income or net worth. Final. That will not solve the debt issue, but just some ideas on generating revenue.

I also agree with Mrs. Dickerson that if the middle class gets a tax increase, consequently, people are way less likely to go out and spend money. We need more money in the circulation to get the economy jump started. The rich will have to budge as well as the middle class. Give in and make some sacrifices as well. I am sure a lot of wealthy people have made them, but more need to. Just making little adjustments to the tax pendulum will not solve the national debt crisis. I am sure that if I was to be a self-made millionaire or billionaire, I would feel that my money is hard earned and that I do not need to get increased on taxes. On the other hand, I think that with a good chunk of a billion dollars left, the wealthy will survive. I think the average american would be happy to even have a million dollars, let alone knowing most wealthy would come out of being taxed and still have hundreds of millions floating around out there.

The tax issue and national debt is a tough issue. It is a topic that will be heavily debated on for years to come. I can know for sure that tax cuts and increases are just a fraction of the problem. It will be a multiple combinations of programs, sacrifices, and developments that will eventually get America back on track.

North Korea Attacks South

In this article, Obama Vows to Defend South Korea, Calls for Joint Military Exercises, the associated press have informed the public on President Obama's viewpoints about the unprovoked attack on South Korea. Obama states that joint military exercises will take place if need be to further curtail North Korea from continued attacks. The associated press also states that Obama has said "South Korea is our ally." The U.S. currently has 29,000 troops in South Korea and has not done any further adjustments yet. This is a touchy subject due to the fact that many Americans do not think we should be involved with South Korea. The Korean War had left around 35,000 Americans dead. President Obama said that he would stand by South Korea and that North Korea must stop all provocative actions.

I agree with President Obama. I think that it is in our best interest to protect South Korea and be a world leader. We have been an ally with South Korea for some time now. As a big nation, the United States is not the only country that is fearing North Korea's possibilities. China is fearing them as well. I feel that with the increase in nuclear interests, North Korea must be watched very closely. I fear that an attack may be possible and a nuclear one will be devastating. North Korea has proven that they are unstable and a lot of the world leaders are looking with uncertainty. Only time will tell what North Korea will do next and hopefully it is nothing that harms many innocent people.

Colleague's Critique

In the article “Doctor Sues Obama Over Health-Care Law,” Ms. Woodruff discusses the issue of how individual doctors are getting into trouble for owning their own hospitals. This rule went into effect with the new Health-Care plan that went through with the Obama administration. It is stated that 260 hospitals are doctor owned and many of these hospitals are very warm and welcoming. They provide good service and great customer service. Dr. Michael Russell of Tyler, Texas is suing Obama and is very displeased with this new law that denies doctors from owning hospitals.

Ms. Woodruff states that 30% of these doctor owned hospitals, rarely have a doctor on site at all times and some do not even have an emergency room. Officials argue that with not meeting these requirements, these “hospitals” are not hospitals, but better called a “quick care” facility.

I agree with Ms. Woodruff for the most part because I do believe these warm inviting “hospitals” are nice and help with setting a good mood. The nice care and charity service that make sure the customer is taken care of is what most hospitals should do in my opinion. It is expensive to do for each customer, but myself personally, having been to the hospital a few times, know that for what I paid for my medical bills, I should be getting good service. I also agree that these hospitals need to have emergency rooms. That is a big part of being a hospital and without it, I think the facility does not deserve to get the title of being a hospital. If these provisions can be made, I believe that these private doctors will be able to operate very well and be able to compete with everyday hospitals and possibly drive the prices down for hospital services due to the competition. 

Solar Power Pass

More alternative energy is on its way according to the Obama administration. This last Monday, the Obama administration approved the world's largest concentrated power plant to be built in the Mojave Desert of California. This mega plant is said to cost an estimate of six billion dollars, but will generate roughly a thousand construction jobs and provide about three hundred steady jobs that will coincide with running the plant.

"Developer Solar Millennium," a company that is based out of Germany, will be overseeing the production of this solar plant. The Interior Department is not thrilled with this construction of the plant because the plant will take a vast chunk of wildlife habitat and remove them from the area. The Interior Department states that "Developer Solar Millennium" will have to provide funding for roughly eight-thousand acres of land for lizards, owls, tortoises, and bighorn sheep.

The way the plant will work is by using big "mirrors" that will reflect the sun and direct the focused energy into tubes that contain H2O. The heat from the concentrated sun energy will cause the water to boil and produce steam. A turbine then will use the steam to further produce electricity. This project at its peak, has the ability to provide enough energy to run 2 million homes.

I believe this to be a good investment. Even though it has a ridiculously high cost to build, people who might not have jobs, which is a growing number, will have an opportunity to get one. The plant will also add 300 jobs to run the facility, which will help out a little bit. This will also cut down (slimly) the need for products like coal, to produce electricity. The sun will be around longer than coal and other nonrenewable recourses, so why not use it a little more? I still think there is still a need for production and refining nonrenewable recourses, but I think we can do a few smaller things, like solar plants, to cut down the rate of consumption.

Views On Foreclosure Moratorium

This article, "Cantor Opposes Foreclosure Moratorium: 'People Have To Take Responsibility For Themselves'," George Zornik states how Mr. Cantor (Republican) feels that there should be no relief for people and that people need to take responsibility for themselves. Zornik obviously is writing this for the homeowner audience as well as the general public. The evidence for this claim by Mr. Zornik is supported by statiststics that show that Bank of America was doing 7,000-8,000 forclosure documents a month without reading them with the excuse that the documents were "lenghthy." Zornik also points out that Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott is asking thirty lenders to stop doing foreclosure documents until they can prove they are doing it legally. Congresswomen Wasserman-Shultz states that "we need to keep people in their homes," as a supporting cause for the Moratorium. Nina Easton of Fortune Magazine stated in oppose to Congresswomen Wasserman-Shultz's statement said "What she should have said is keep people in houses they can't afford." I believe that in some instances, yes people are probably in houses that they can't afford, but I think a lot of people are hit hard with being laid off, slower economy, or personal tragedy. This can cause a person to lose enough income so that they can no longer pay their mortgages. It is Zornik's opinion as well that a lot of people may have been foreclosed on improperly and that the rule of law should be held in place. It doesn't matter if people want to protect financial institutions, the law is the law and foreclosures need to be done in a correct manor because a foreclosure can easily turn a family upside down and ruin them. I would have to agree with Zornik, like I said, for the most part.

Don't Ask, Don't tell

In this article, Our view on gays in the military: 'Don't ask, don't tell' repeal is only a matter of time, the author tells the American public that the 'Don't ask, don't tell' policy will repeal "only in a matter of time." It is aimed at not only the supporters of repealing the 'Don't ask, don't tell' policy, but to the opposing side as well. The author believes the policy will be repealed because a large amount of the American public supports gays and lesbians in the army due to a Gallup poll in May that stated: "70 percent of the public (that took the poll) are in favor of allowing openly gay and lesbian people to serve. The author also believes to both parties suffer from partisanship and not enough bipartisanship. It was in this ignorance that the 'Don't ask, don't tell' policy did not get a chance to be debated and repealed. The author also states that Britain, Canada, and Australia have let gays and lesbians serve in the military with no problem at all. Lastly, the author hints at the fact that the policy could be dismissed through a legal case that sprung up from a district judge in California stating "the policy on gay troops violates due process and First Amendment guarantees of individual freedom while having a "direct and deleterious" effect on the military." It is clear this author feels that is unfair to use sexual orientation as a determining factor of whether a person can serve in the military or not. I do agree that eventually, the 'Don't ask, don't tell' policy will get the boot. I agree with 70 percent of Americans on the issue that gays and lesbians should be able to serve in the military. Although, with that being said, I do think people who go into the military should worry more about their duty than flaunting their sexuality. I am not saying that people who serve our country do not do their duty; I just believe a person can do this without having to omit their sexuality, gay or straight.

Grab Your Chainsaws..

Midterm debacle: The blame game begins

This amusing article informs the public on all of the finger pointing, they did this, they did that, circle of blame that comes with bitter taste of defeat in losing or failing to control seats in the House and Senate. The midterm election will be held on November 2 of this year and all 435 seats of the House are up for grabs as well as 37 seats in the Senate.

Both "scenarios" of whether the Democrats will control or lose the House are depicted in this article. If the Democrats lose, the article demonstrates a step by step listing of who will blame who for numerous things. These things include Obama's so called lack of attempt on reversing the economy and the mosque controversy. Then on to Emanuel Rahm, who criticized the "professional left" by believing that they are ridiculous for criticizing Obama and they were to pushy for a fast and a large government retaliation. The Democratic House and Senate will point the finger at the White House political operations on accusations that the White House political organizations were to worried about building the "Obama legacy." On the flip side, regardless if the Democrats hold the majority, the "professional left" will criticize the Obama administration for not being up to "par."