Summertime is here

Grab your hot dogs and cold beers because it’s grilling time, which can only me one thing. It’s summer. It a time which every American prides themselves in time where the worries of snow fall are put away until the every last leaf falls off the trees. And every person would trade mosquito’s bites for frost bites. It is a time where families can reflect over a fire and melt s’mores. Baseball is put in place to slow down the quick days. Summer can never last long enough and before you know it is all gone.

Freedom of Infromation Act

Since President Barack Obama decided that the pictures of Osama Bin Laden were “too gruesome to make public, lest they inflame violence or be used as anti-U.S. propaganda,” it will be up to journalists to force the U.S. Government under the Freedom of Information Act, an Act which many of us Media Studies majors are familiar with. The Associated Press has already taken it upon themselves to file a Freedom of Information Act for a pile of Bin Laden dead body-related media being held by the government, which, if granted by the courts, could require the info to be made public.

It won't work against the White House is exempt from FOIA, so the law wouldn’t apply if the images are controlled there. The CIA, which had operational control of the mission, and Defense Department can use a series of exemptions from the act to block the release of the images.

The government has 20 days to responds to FOIA request to the release of the images.

May Day!!!!

Today I should be writing about the Royal Wedding or the high gas prices, but this is a huge day for me as a former Armed Services member. We have killed the largest enemy against the United States. He has been hiding in Pakistan a mansion which we will all have question about in the upcoming days. Osama Bin Laden has been killed by U.S. forces in Pakistan.
President Barack Obama confirmed the death of the Al Qaida terrorist leader in a nationally-televised address Sunday night.
Obama said the killing of Obama was the top priority of the U.S. intelligence community.
“Last week, I determind that we had enough intelligence to take action and authorized an operation to get Osama Bin Laden,” the president said. “A small team of Americans carried out the operation…no Americans were harmed…after a firefight, they killed Osama Bin Laden and took custody of his body.”
So all I have to say is:

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

Pain at the pump

With my upcoming trip to San Diego I should be excited to see nicer weather, but I get sick to my stomach as I think about the price I will be paying for a gallon of gasoline. You can’t go anywhere without hearing some talk about the gas prices. San Diego is among the highest in the country when it comes to gas prices. The national average is about $3.90, in San Diego they are paying $4.61. I get so upset to think that oil companies raise the price of gas over holidays because they can make a huge profit and prosper. Prices have been spiraling upward for weeks and show no signs of stopping.

Funny enough, if there is pain at the pump in the U.S., our neighbors to the south may just have a remedy. Just 10 miles south of San Diego, is Tijuana, where an average gallon cost about $2.54, even less if you pay in pesos.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/apr/15/pain-pump/

http://m.reporternews.com/news/2011/apr/06/pain-at-the-pump/

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/the-scene/cars/Gas-Prices-to-Skyrocket-in-2011-112676279.html

How a Government shut down effects tax returns

Sorry. Might as well uncross those fingers now… No matter what happens with the budget, Tax Day is still April 18, 2011. In case you missed the earlier announcement, Tax Day traditionally falls on April 15 unless that day happens to be on a Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday. This year, April 15 falls on a Friday – not a Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday – but also falls on Emancipation Day, an official public holiday, in D.C. Because of that, this year, Tax Day jumps ahead one business day to Monday, April 18, 2011.
Also happening in D.C. this time of year? Budget talks. April 18 just happens to fall a few days after a potential shuttering of the government on this Friday, April 8, if no deal can be reached on the budget. The April 18 deadline holds firm nonetheless. IRS Commish Doug Shulman has announced that any government shutdown will not affect the due date of federal income tax returns.
But those IRS folks aren’t working for free, right? Of course not. If the government does shut down, there will be a delay in processing paper returns (those hand delivered or submitted via USPS or private delivery service). That could mean a lag in your refund if you submit a paper return this year. However, the processing of e-filed returns will not be affected.

A government shut down could cause consumer spending to drop by just over $30 billion. It's a lot of money. And certainly meaningful to the people who count on those checks.

The spending hit has to do with tax refunds, which many Americans still expect to get in the next month or so. The Internal Revenue Service has said that if the government shuts down, Americans would still need to send in their taxes by the deadline, which this year is April 18. If you owe money, checks would still be cashed. But for the many people who are expecting to get a refund, a government shutdown could mean a much longer wait than usual. Worse, at a time when American consumers seem to be wavering between spending again and keeping their wallets shut, the lack of refunds could put a large dent in the economy.

America's Pastime

Get the grills going and the hot dog cooking, baseball season is right around the corner. For many of us the thought of the snow melting is enough to make the spring time look good, but for me it is a reminder of a time where athletes come out of the woodwork to play the oldest sport of our great nation. A time where little leaguers wear the gloves of their fondest players in hopes of following in their footsteps, and a time where landscapers spent hours of preparations just to give a field the prestige look it deserves.
For me hero’s like Don Mattingly, Cal Ripken Jr., and Mike Piazza were just a few players I liked to follow and have since retired, but have not left the game for good. Mattingly has gone on to become the manager for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He will face a home opener against the World Series Champions, the San Francisco Giants, Thursday March 31. Cal Ripken Jr. has started a little league to return the favor that he was once blessed with. Mike Piazza is spending more time teaching his children the love for the game.
Soon stadiums around the nation will be filled with spectators, “Root root rooting,” for their home team, and even if they don’t win, well that’s a shame. But it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out of the old ballgame.

Operation Odyssey Dawn

The Libyan Revolution has reached a critical point after Western coalition began military attacks that exceeded the goal of a no-fly zone over Libyan airspace. As a veteran who severed two tour in the Persian Gulf it seem to be remarkable timing that comes around the same time as the with the anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.

United States, France, the U.K., and other nations began striking the regime’s military assets on Saturday as part of an effort to enforce UN resolution aimed at protecting Libyan civilians.

The Arab League is soon expected to reiterate support for a no-fly zone over Libya, the countries involved in enforcing the zone had linked their participation to regional backing.

Three days after an international military coalition intervened in Libya, the cost to U.S. taxpayers has reached the hundreds of millions of dollars and continues to climb. U.S. and U.K. ships and submarines in the Mediterranean have unleashed at least 161 Tomahawk cruise missiles from their arsenals to the tune of $225 million, the Pentagon said.

U.S. warplanes have dropped dozens of bombs with price-tags of tens of thousands of dollars apiece. Now taxes payers have a $30 million F-15 to replace and cost are predicted to be in the billions by the end of the month.
The UN and the U.S are calling this a humanitarian crisis, but why was nothing done in Darfur years earlier when hundreds of thousands of people where being killed and strive to death? And why was nothing being do when Egypt was in it turmoil? It is nothing more than the price of gas that controls our military interest and this is yet another reason why we need to step away from our depends on fossil fuels.

http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2011/03/rhetoric_intervention
http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/02/whats-happening-libya-explained
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/23/world/africa/23libya.html?_r=1&hp

From Japan to Iowa

Authorities have tried frantically since the earthquake and tsunami to avert an environmental catastrophe at the Fukushima complex in northeastern Japan. The nuclear crisis has triggered international alarm and due to the human tragedy caused by Friday's double disaster. But should Iowans be worried about nuclear power plants or future plans about new developments?
Iowa already has one nuclear power station in Palo Iowa, and legislators are considering a bill which deals with the state permits for nuclear power plants in Iowa and developing new ones.
Nuclear power plants provide about a fifth of the power used in the U.S. each year, but since 1979 accident at the Three Mile Island nuclear power station in Pennsylvania stirred up debt over construction of new nuclear power plants in the United States.
I for one can say I’ve lived several I’ve lived aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier which contained two nuclear reactors and I survived. We trained hard and practiced thoroughly just in case a situation was ever to arise. So with proper training and attention to detail nuclear power is still a good energy alterative.

http://bluestarchronicles.com/2011/03/12/nuclear-reactor-meltdown-in-japan-fall-out-map-where-will-the-nuclear-fall-out-go/

Mardi Gras

Fat Tuesday is also known by another nickname, Pancake Day. That's a reference to clearning out the cupboards of goodies like sugar and eggs before the fasting begins. And what do you make with sugar and eggs? Pancakes and cakes. Why does all this high spirits come to a crashing halt at midnight Tuesday? 'Cause that's when Lent, and the traditional fasting, begins.
But after today, everything slows down, and the fun dies down in preparation for Ash Wednesday.
What’s the big deal about Fat Tuesday? Well, Fat Tuesday is always the day before Ash Wednesday, and the day is celebrated to welcome in the period of the year known as Lent to Catholics around the world.
Lent is the time between Ash Wednesday and Easter, and known as a time to repent. Lent is the period pertaining to the last forty days of Christ’s life on earth.

http://www.chevroncars.com/learn/holidays-seasons/pancake-day

http://news.travel.aol.com/best-of/what-is-mardi-gras/

“And the Oscar goes to…Trent Reznor?”

“And the Oscar goes to…Trent Reznor?”
During the Oscars, there were plenty of moments which confused many people. Most people were puzzled by the weird behavior of James Franco, but nothing was stranger for me than the winner of Best Original Score, Trent Reznor. As a kid, I was like most teenagers, rebelling against my parent’s wishes, and listening to the soundtrack of the hard hitting, distorted, industrial sounds of Trent Reznor’s Nine Inch Nails.

Trent Reznor was a hero to dysfunctional youth around the world and, for many years, was viewed as the dark and dangerous hard core rock star type. But on Sunday night, Trent showed a side of him I never thought I would see. A clean cut, suit wearing, married man, and, among many things, an Oscar winner. I wonder if this is how my father felt when Ozzy Osborne sobered up. For God’s sakes, this is the same man who wrote the song “Closer.” It was also a coming of age moment for me. It made me feel like I should strive to do more, go beyond the limits, which I was expected to adhere to, and make a name for myself. If Trent continued his life as a rock star, there is a good chance he would have gone out like a ‘rock star.’ Now his life appears to be doing him better than before.

Why the US needs to worry about Bahrain

There is much unrest in the Middle East and the US needs not to turn a blind eye to what is going on in Bahrain. An average US citizen can be overwhelmed by the news today as they keeping hearing about protest in the Middle East and asking themselves “why does this matter to me?” But it is of the utmost importance especially as we are seeing a rise in violence and protest.

If protest in Bahrain continues we could see Saudi Arabia getting involved. A key grievance is Sunnis against Shias. The reason Saudi Arabia would get involved with Bahrain’s protest is because much like Bahrain it is ruled by a Sunni family and have been discriminating against Shias for decades.

If we allow Saudi Arabia gets involved we are in trouble and the Middle East will be in all out protest. We will see a split of Sunnis vs. Shias. In places like Iraq and Iran we will see an upraise of the Kurd people all trying to gain power to and have their fair representation.

By next week I would predict that we will see several other countries joining in protest against their government.

Should we really celebrate Valentine’s Day?

On Monday I noticed a lot of anti-Valentine’s Day comments. I made me wonder if we should even celebrate the day at all. For people who are single this is a day of hell and a constant reminder to that person they are alone. A pure 24 hour of torture.

Then the people who are in committed relationships are expected to go out and buy each other cards and candy, living up to the hype we have created in the last hundred or so years. If a guy was to do this any other day of the week he it would be unexpected, but if he forgets than he better be buying his significant other flowers for the rest of the year. All because our society has told us that is what this holiday is all about.

We should be telling our loved one that we care about them every day. Love goes deeper than just a nice dinner, flowers, candy and cards. It should be celebrated daily and not yearly.

So I pose the question should we really celebrate Valentine’s Day?

GOP Proposed Budget Cuts 2012

This happens every year, two parties disagree were there needs to be budget cuts, but unlike in years tey were never dealing with the tide wave of debt that these officials face. The House Republicans are suggesting 70 proposed cut worth $74 miliion which include EPA, Community Health Centers and high speed rail systems.

It is not a job I would want to be in. Just think these are tough decisions to be made and any decisions made are going to have dire consequents. Sure we can blame our elected officials for making cuts in area which may deem important later on, but we need to be reminded of the $14 trillion deficit we are facing. If we don't start cuttig our debt we could very easily trade with other countries. Becoming a even bigger problem then we face. Many would argue that we should cut from defense, but at a times like this where the world is hostile and palce like China are up and coming super powers. Do you think China is cuting back on there defense?