...Americans

I was not going to say anything about this but then I changed my mind. Today is 9/11, the day America was attacked by terrorist. I will not talk about the attacks, I already did that last year, instead I will talk about Americans. After the attacks we were united and we put aside petty differences to mourn together and try to understand the magnitude of what had just occurred. The President at that time, George W. Bush, told us to continue with our lives and not to let the terrorist win by abandoning our way of life. Eventually things returned to normal or as normal as they can be in this post 9/11 world. We played sports, we debated, we challenged each other and we argued and fought against each other. Many wondered what happened to this unity, this solidarity that w had right after 9/11. Well it faded. It is not as if we forgot about it, but we decided to do exactly what the President said and carry on with our lives. Were we faking our love for each other? No, but we felt okay enough to revert back to our previous selves. I am sure some of us changed forever in a good or bad way and that is something that many still struggle with daily. We are a strong and resilient group of people and we showed this. I myself understand what 9/11 means and will mean but I also choose not to dwell on it. It is easier for me than some because I did not lose anyone close to me or quasi close to me in the events that occurred on that day. Though we vow to never forget eventually we will. There will be new towers there and life will continue, business will continue and 9/11 will become as important as December 7, 1941, which was the day Pearl Harbor was attacked. It may take 2 or 3 generations before this happens but it will happen. For now I am going to decide not to write anything else about 9/11. After 10 years I have not forgotten, but I have decided to carry on with my life, as have millions of Americans. I am giving us Americans a Digit Up.

...Jobs

Where are the jobs? The jobs report for August showed that there were NO new jobs created. Also, the job creation totals for July were cut to 85,000 from 117,000, and for June to just 20,000 from last month’s estimate of 46,000. We will all be watching the President's speech this Thursday about his plan for creating jobs, but it will be a lot of talk and just talk, nothing he can do. His administrations said they expect the unemployment rate of 9.1% to stay that way until the end of 2012... Black or white, educated or not, man or women unemployment seems to be affecting everyone. I keep hearing about companies looking for people who are "qualified" for the positions the need filled. They claim that they just cannot find them. That may be true, but why not train them? In 2011 most people are trained to do tech jobs over labor and skill jobs, but if trained anyone could get the job done. Of course everyone want sot blame Washington now and they may be able to, but for how much of it? Taxing companies may or may not work. For sure that will give the government more money but it will not change the unemployment situations. Basically this is becoming the new norm. If you have a job keep it and if you do not... I am giving this news a Digit Down. I am also preparing for another recession.

...America

Rocks. Unless you have been living under one for the past 28 hours then you already know that America's credit rating has been dropped by Standard & Poor's from AAA to AA+ for the 1st time in U.S. history. Though no one knows what this means for sure for America's short term future, because the markets have yet to dictate that, so far I have heard nothing too good. I find it horrible that we must wait for the markets around the world and here in NYC to dictate the nation's future. I understand how it works, 75% anyway, and I do not like it. Most say that eventually this will impact all of us who need to take out a loan for a home, car, business, etc. In normal times, in another country, a downgrade in a country's sovereign debt rating probably would force its government to pay higher interest rates to convince investors to keep buying its debt. Standard & Poor's reasoning for doing this is because they feel that the bill that was passed by congress to cut $2 trillion worth of spending over 10 years is not enough. They were looking for a minimum of $4 trillion, and they warned the government about that. Also they feel as if the political climate in D.C. is too unstable to be a safe enough bet right now. Still U.S. debt is special. Treasury debt is considered the safest investment in the world. Even after the downgrade. Investors don't doubt the U.S. government's ability to repay the $9.8 trillion it owes. So what does China think? Well they said, "The U.S. government has to come to terms with the painful fact that the good old days when it could just borrow its way out of messes of its own making are finally gone." Other nations are also concerned about what this will mean for their economic situations as well. There will most likely be a special meeting among the G8 nations to talk about how to fix this issue. Honestly there is nothing that can be done int he near future. There needs to be massive cuts across the board and people will just have to be pissed off about it. New leaders will need to be selected to run certain departments in our nation before it is too late, though the S&P has already warned that we can be further downgraded in6-24 months. The "bright side" of this is that they are the only agency to downgrade us and they also gave AAA ratings to a lot of home loan agencies, and we all saw what that did to the economy. Still things need to change. Politics need to be put aside and major moves nee to be made. I doubt this will happen so I plan on converting all of my assets into cash, because eventually even gold will fall. And if you are wondering, it takes about 9-18 years for most countries to regain a AAA rating after dropping to an AA+ rating, and it has only happened 4 times. I am giving America 2 Digits Down for letting things get this bad.

...London

When you think of a fun, hip, beautiful, classy, trendy city outside of America, London is usually a top 3 answer. I love London, a lot of people do, it is like a smaller older New York City. However I have a bone to pick with London. London Mayor Boris Johnson is upset over unpaid Congestion Charges, also known as C-Charges, that he and the city claims America owes them. Johnson has fined the United States 120 pounds (nearly $200 U.S. dollars) in congestion levies 10 pounds per vehicle for the presidential motorcade used during Obama's state visit in May. Apparently they did not close any roads when the President was in town and that subjects him tot he charges. Obama's personal armored Cadillac, nicknamed "The Beast", first escaped a fine because congestion charge cameras were unable to record its license plate number. London officials say that the American Embassy owes 5.3 million pounds ($8.7 million dollars) in unpaid congestion fines, which were first established in 2003. The Embassy defended its refusal to pay, citing the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which prohibits "this sort of tax on diplomatic missions." I do not fully understand this at all. I know that the roads in London, most of Europe period, are narrow, but there are exceptions you should always make when heads of states are in town. Whenever someone of Obama's caliber comes to Washington D.C. or New York City, they are treated with the utmost respect. This seems very silly on London's part and I do hope that this is all taken care of. I do not think we should have to pay at all, and I hope that we do not shell out a dime for these ridiculous charges. I am giving London a Digit Down for these absurd fines.

...Betty Ford

Betty Ford died Friday at the age of 93. I am sure many of you...most of you did not know she was still alive. We all know her for her courageous admission of substance abuse and dependency. She later founded the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif., a substance abuse facility. When her husband, former President Gerald Ford, died in 2006, it was the 1st time in over a decade we saw her in public. She will be missed by many and remembered by all who were healed at the center she founded. I am giving this news a Digit Down.

...Presidnet Barack Obama

Today is was reported that The International Energy Agency announced it would release 60 million barrels of oil into the global market. Of the 60 million barrels 30 million will come from the U.S. If our Strategic Petroleum Reserve is full, which I doubt it is, it can hold a reported maximum of 727 million barrels. This is a joint effort between the oil producing nations to further drive down oil prices and somewhat make up for Libya's oil shortage which has taken place since the "disturbance" began. They will be releasing 2 million barrels a day over the next 30 days and some expect gas prices to fall in about a month and prices for Brent crude could go down by $10 to $12 a barrel. Though gas is 91 cents higher now than it was a year ago, oil has been slowly falling for the last 6 weeks, though with Summer in full swing it usually goes up. The 2 million a day is going to be ore than the 1.25 million a day Libya produces, but many questions are being raised about this. A few weeks ago the President said this about releasing oil, "I won't make any news on that today. I will say that my general view is that the SPR is to be used where you don't have just short-term fluctuations in the market, but a significant disruption event. Libya has taken 1.25 m barrels per day off the market. We're examining broadly what that means in terms of the oil market." It seems as if the administration knows that dealing with Libya is not going to be a simple thing. Well if that is the case, why did you start something with them in the 1st place? Also can we say politics? The economy is horrible, and no matter how you try to sugarcoat it or play with words, it is horrible. By releasing oil the President believes this will slightly help the economy? Wrong. This is a desperation attempt in my eyes. Just the night before the President announced an initial draw down of 10,000 troops in two phases, with 5,000 troops coming home this summer and 5,000 more by the end of the year. An additional 20,000-plus are to follow by September 2012. That is very close to November, re-election time... If you cannot get the economy back in track and lower the unemployment rate, why not lead with the fact that you brought back troops...yay? This is politics as usual, the thing Obama claimed he was against, obviously he is just as much apart of it as any other politician, which I already knew. I am giving President Obama 2 Digits Down for 2 days of less than stellar news.

...Limo One

love cars and I love private limos. The President of the United States has one of the most secure and advanced limos in the world. Unfortunately that did not stop it from breaking down in front of the U.S. Embassy in Ireland. A loud clang was heard and the limo stalled. They believe the low underbelly caught on to a piece of metal used to hold the gate cosed. Here are some reported facts about the limo:

"Limo One is believed to weigh between seven and eight tons, and spy shots suggest it rides on a GM medium-duty truck chassis propelled by a diesel engine. The body is sheathed in military-grade armor as much as 8 inches thick on the doors (each of which weighs as much as the cabin door on a Boeing 747, Motor Authority says). The armor reportedly is a mix of dual-hardness steel, aluminum, titanium, and ceramic. The windows are ballistic glass said to be 5 inches thick, and Dan Neil of the Los Angeles Times says there's probably a woven Kevlar mat covering the floorboard to protect the car from blasts. The cabin is believed to feature a sealed air recirculation system to protect its occupants from chemical attacks."

I must say they really need to get this issue fixed. Though this was just an incident, imagine if it the situation were more serious and the President needed to be somewhere in a hurry, makes you wonder eh? I am giving Limo One a Digit Down.

...Newt Gingrich

This week Newt Gingrich has been getting hammed by Dems and Repubs over his words and so on. He disagreed with Paul Ryan, his on party turned on him. He was almost threatened by a guy at a fundraiser, which he handled very well I must say. It was revealed that at one point he owed Tiffany & Company $250,000, which will come back to bite him in some way, shape or form of an attack ad if he gets nominated by the Republicans. His latest attacks comes via a gay rights activist who dumped glitter on he and his wife during a book signing at a conservative fundraiser.




If you did not catch what the man said it was, "Feel the rainbow, Newt," the protester said, as he poured a box of glitter over the former speaker's head. "Stop the hate. Stop anti-gay politics. It's dividing our country, and it's not fixing our economy." This I do not understand at all. Many gay rights groups feel as if Republicans are the only ones not allowing gays to get married. If my history is correct, Bill Clinton signed "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" into law, and our current President, a Democrat, has not done anything to allow gays to get married. Why blame Newt? Newt has not had any real political power in YEARS! Almost 2 decades even. So while this guy might have thought he was making Newt look like a fool, it is him who really looks like he fool. I am giving Newt Gingrich a Digit Up for handling this incident very very well.

...DREAM Act

Have you heard of the DREAM Act? It has been around since 2001, but now it is back in the hands of Congress. The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act is meant to would give certain undocumented students a pathway to citizenship through college attendance or military service. The President made a speech yesterday in El Paso, Texas on his immigration reform and whatnot. Today this bills is back in the House of Representatives going through the motions again. While this all sounds nice on the surface, what does it really mean? There are an estimated 12 million illegal/undocumented immigrants in America. If this bill wee to pass about 1.2 million would automatically be granted the path towards citizenship. Obviously the President made his speech in part to blame the Republicans when the bills does not pass...again. But this should not be an issue. Along with pretty much all of the Republicans even some Democrats agree that this bill seems like it would grant amnesty to illegals. Some even think it would encourage more illegal immigrants to enter the U.S. That may be so, but hopefully we will not have to see if that is true. People think that if you do not agree with a bill like this then you are probably a racist. While I o not agree with this bill I am not a racist. You do not know my race, so do not assume I am an overweight middle aged Texas mom of 3 with a few handguns, a loud sports loving husband and a street full of women just like me. I am an American who understand that illegal immigrants should be deported. Why? Mainly because it is, and this is the kicker, THE LAW! Sadly we are way too sensitive and political. If you really want something, fight for it, do not let someone hand you something for "free". If you want to become a citizen, take the test! It really is not that hard. Marry an American, most likely you will anyway. Yes I understand that Hispanics/Latinos will become a major majority that politicians are large corporations are trying to tap into, but the law is the law. Senator Harry Reid said he would support mandatory E-Verify, a program that requires employers check the legality of potential workers, to garner Republican support for the DREAM Act. I think that should be 2 different issues, but since we are attaching things onto the bill why not add this, why not make English the official language of America? Other countries have done it, but we have not. If we did you would have merit when you asked someone to speak English or say it in English. At this moment they are just words, words that legally illegal immigrants do not have to abide by. I am giving the DREAM Act a Digit Down. It is just not the time to try to make political gains with poor bills like this.

...The Morning After

The morning after the morning after actually. Osama Bin Laden is dead or "dead" some would say. How do we know this is true? It is an awkward time to come out with this news. I just want o see a couple of pictures and then I will believe it is so. A lot of people think he died 8 years ago, if that is true then I guess the picture would be obviously dated. I was okay with the thought of him being dead until I heard he was dumped in the sea... Does that not raise a flag with anyone else? They said they did it because they did not want his grave to become a tribute or a shrine. That is okay, but you could have burned him or water. They said they did right by Islamic tradition, but several Muslim authorities said today that the sea burial in fact violated Muslim tradition and warned that it could help trigger calls for revenge from militant Muslims. Mohammed al-Qubaisi, Dubai's grand mufti, echoed that view. "If the family does not want him, it's really simple in Islam: You dig up a grave anywhere, even on a remote island, you say the prayers and that's it." So now I go back to my original thoughts moments after I heard the news he was killed, was this a ploy to distract us from the harsh economic realities? Think about it; our dollar is weak, inflation is going to happen at a grander rate than we thought, oil prices are sending gas prices close to $5 this Summer, and there is nothing we can d about it at this moment. This news made us happy and celebrate for a moment, but when happens when you go to the gas station this week or buy groceries? Osama's death came and went but this economy will last much longer. This is easily year 4 and there will be a year 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and beyond. So honestly I do not care if he were dead or alive, he has done what he wanted to do and he got what he wanted, though not through his actions. He killed a lot of Americans, and our economy is falling. Show me proof that he is dead and fix my economy, not necessarily in that order. If this is what the President had to do to get re-elected then that is sad. If this united us the way 9011 did and we get some actually bills passed and this budget figured out properly, then this would have been worth it. but as soon as we celebrated we were ready to debate so for now nothing has changed, nothing has gotten better and I do not feel safer. I am giving this all a Digit Down.

...News

Today was an eventful day in news. Not really. President Obama had a press conference to show us his full birth certificate. Thank you. People say that it is a little racist that he had to do this, I beg to differ. A man named Barack Obama wants to run for President, that sounds strange even to black people. I promise you if his name were Leroy Johnson from Ohio no one would think that he was not American. So all of you out there trying to make this a race thing, STFU. John McCain had the same problem but he solved it within 2 months. If Obama would have done the same, this issue would be dead, alive to only the most back wooded Americans in the mountains of West Virginia.

Next Ben Bernanke had a press conference to tell us things that we already knew. Blah blah blah no more bond. Blah blah blah QE3. Blah blah blah I have no control over commodities. Blah blah blah the economy is bag. Etc etc etc the end.

Basically today was a bunch of news that did nothing to change our minds about anything but it did take up TV time, though nothing else was on anyway so no one cared.

I am giving News a Digit Down. Though any news that is not bad is good.

...President Barack Obama

Did you see the speech? I did. I was crass. It did not answer the main question all Americans had on their mind, what are we doing there? Answer... No answer. There was a lot of beating around the bush and when the bush was beat, it was more of a gentle rub. I do not want to talk much about this but I would like to point out a couple of things I noticed. The main things would be how much this reminds me of George W. Bush. Obama went above and beyond to paint McCain as a Bush backer and man who would do things just like him and now he is the one following in his footsteps. He went over Congress to NATO to get this resolution approved and to start this things with Libya. He wanted to protect the people of Libya from Gadhafi and so on. We are helping aide them, but we are not getting too involved. What are we doing!?!?! We are doing the hard work while they walk in and take over a city a day it seems. Obama claims that he will not send in ground troops, which is odd because the Libyan rebels may not have the power to oust Gadhafi without our help sense no other country wants to take the wheel, which is why NATO is in command...per se. America has gone into their oil rich country to get rid of this "mad man" and give this country something that they want. If this is true then let them fight for it. I am over this American Exceptionalism and out imperialistic ways. This is as much a war as the recession was a depression. Words have power and both war and depression cause panic in America and the world. The stock market would go crazy and things would fall and oil would go up, too late there. I will end this by saying when Bush decided to go to war with Iraq he pretty much did whatever it took to get America on his side, and for the most part it worked. Obama did not agree with what he said or did and he rode that into the White House. I wonder if he were still in the Senate if he would agree with what he has just done? I believe he would not. Think about it, Bush went into a country with controlled by a "brutal dictator", got rid of him and gave democracy to the people of Iraq... Libya is next I guess. He said, in so many words, he thought that Libya was more important than other countries because Gadhafi would slaughter many of his own people and that was not something he was willing to let happen. When it happens in Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Iran and Syria we shall see what he does to stop that. I have yet to get any answer, an actual definite answer, as to why we are over there, and I doubt I ever will. No amount of propaganda or rally cries will get me to agree with this war, yes I am calling it a war. You do not spend $600 million in the 1st week of something launching missiles and dropping bombs and not call it a war. I am giving President Barack Obama 2 Digits Down.

...Hollywood

Hollywood is upset with someone... Who? President Barack Obama. Why? A few weeks ago the Obama administration announced it would no longer legally defend the Defense of Marriage act, and now some of his Hollywood supporters are upset and even pissed with him. They wrote even wrote him a letter, that I am 115% sure he will read, and here it is:

The President
The White House
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

In February, you made a powerful statement about the law.

Invoking guarantees enshrined in the Constitution, you and the Attorney General determined that federal discrimination against gay and lesbian couples in marriage is unconstitutional. Thank you for taking a principled stance and an important step toward equal protection under the law for all Americans.

Today we ask you to take the next step and join the majority of Americans who support allowing loving and committed gay and lesbian couples to legally marry.

Mr. President, marriage matters. In law, in love, in life, marriage says "we are family" in a way that nothing else does. Marriage is the coming together of two lives, marked by a public promise of love and responsibility in front of friends and family. And marriage brings not only public respect and personal significance, but also a safety net of legal protections, rights, and responsibilities for which there is no substitute.

Like so many Americans, you have spoken of your personal journey toward support for the freedom to marry. You have talked about the gay and lesbian people in your life, their commitment to each other and care for their kids, and their families that aren't so different from any other family.

We ask you now for your leadership on ending the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage, an exclusion that harms millions of Americans each day. Whether to end discrimination in marriage is a question America has faced before, and faces again today. With so many Americans talking it through in heartfelt conversations, it is a question that calls for clarity from the President.

You can offer hope to millions of young gay and lesbian Americans who are facing discrimination. You can tell them that their future is bright, that they, too, will be able to grow up and marry the person that they love, that the pursuit of happiness truly belongs to all of us. You can put government on the side of those seeking to care for their loved ones, instead of those standing in their way. You can affirm that for all of us, gay or non-gay, love is love and commitment counts— and that we Americans should treat others as we all want to be treated.

Mr. President, the time to end exclusion from marriage is now. We ask you to complete your journey and join us and the majority of Americans who support the freedom to marry.

Sincerely,

Brendon Ayanbadejo
Julian Bond
Helen Fabela Chavez
Ellen & Portia DeGeneres
Jack Dorsey
Melissa Etheridge
Scott Fujita
David Geffen
Anne Hathaway
Chris Hughes & Sean Eldridge
Tony Kushner & Mark Harris
Jane Lynch & Lara Embry
Eric McCormack
Rev. Peter Morales
Mya
Sean Parker
Mark Pincus
Frank Selvaggi & Bill Shea
Martin Sheen
Rev. William Sinkford
Lily Tomlin & Jane Wagner
Zach Wahls
Rufus Wainwright
Evan Wolfson
Bob Wright & Suzanne Wright

Some of these names are pretty powerful people and HUGE donors. David Geffen is a billionaire. Sean Parker helped Obama reach the youth via Facebook, as former President of Facebook that was not so hard for him to do. Chris Hughs is openly gay and co-founded Facebook. He and his partner/husband are very upset with the president, especially since Chris not only campaigned for Obama, he worked for the administration as well. Last month Matt Damon and Jane Lynch expressed their disappointment with the president on the issue as well. While the president said he supports civil unions, that is not good enough for a lot of gay Americans. He also said his views on same-sex marriage were "evolving". Whatever the case may be he is about to launch his 2012 re-election campaign and tour and this is an issue that will hound him and could cost him some votes with the hardcore liberals, although I doubt it. Still the 2012 election is not too far away for Hollywood to start making films that bash Obama. I am giving Hollywood a Digit Up for speaking up and out against something they actually truly thought would change...they are so gullible.

...Egypt

So Egypt is "free". Today Hosni Mubarak surprised us all and resigned from power as President of Egypt after 29 years. Yesterday he refused to step down and the people of Egypt were on the verge of rioting some thought, maybe even marching to the Presidential Palace and forcing him out themselves. This all seems well and a lot of people are excited but what does this really mean? Democracy does not happen over night, Iraq anybody? The only "political party" able to set anything up at this moment would be the Muslim Brotherhood. Depending on who you talk to these guys are either saints or the beginning of the end. i myself think that they are not the answer, especially if they decide to close the Suez Canal. I think Egyptians should have waited for Mubarak to resign in September. During that time they could have prepared for a new political system, this "democracy" they claim they want. Now they are under military control and no one really knows how these next few days, months, weeks or years will play out. I do not see a happy ending to this all. I am giving Egypt a Digit Down.

...Congress

Wow Congress, House and Senate, actually passed something that did not fully directly benefit them for the first time in a long time. Don't Ask, Don't Tell was repealed and it will be singed into law by President Obama soon, very soon. It is a win for the Democrats mainly, since this is something that Obama wanted removed and a lot of Republicans did not want to talk about it. I really do not care really, it is gone and that is all that really matters. After 17 years and thousands, 13,500 to be exact, of gay and lesbian service members discharged the ban has been lifted. I do wonder now if those discharged members will be pardoned or be allowed to receive benefits that their other service members receive, it is not totally fair that they were dismissed. Actually after reading that I thin they are just out of luck, like when an old law gets dismissed, it may have been unfair at the time, but it was the law and you just have to live with it. Maybe if they ask for a pardon... That is too much to think about now. Everyone willing to serve should be allowed, gay, straight, bi, other. Now America will join the other 25 countries that allow gays to openly serve in their armed services. I must say though that just because gays are now allowed to be open,that does not mean their has to be a parade to show your ride, just celebrate and carry on :-) The President now has to deal with gay marriage, the gays will be after him on that one pretty hard. He has 2 years to dodge it, 6 if he is lucky.

Congress is getting a Digit Up tonight for doing something right, finally.

...House Democrats

Somehow Nancy Pelosi is still in power, this time as Minority Leader for the Democrats in the House with a 150-46 vote. I know she has some sort of power and control over those around her, but this was just a bad move. I do believe that when the Republicans gained control of the House it was a good move, sort of, and that they would be able to sit down with the President and force him to compromise and they would be able to argue but eventually work out deals. Now with Nancy back no one is going to do anything. This is what Nancy wanted. It will get Obama re-elected because they will be able to blame the Republicans for blocking everything the President wanted to pass, but the real culprit will be Nancy. Just look at this remark she gave reporters after she was elected Let me put that in perspective. How would your ratings be if $75 million were spent against you?" she said, referring to the television ad campaigns of Republican candidates and allied groups. "Because I'm an effective leader, because we got the job done on healthcare and Wall Street reform and consumer protections, the list goes on. Because they know that I’m the person who can attract the resources, both intellectual and otherwise, to take us to victory because I have done it before." For some reason I have just never been a fan of hers. She seems to have some sort of alteior motive that no one but Nancy knows. I am not ready to see what sort of mayhem lies ahead for the new Congress next year. I must give this move 2 Digits Down.

...Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton is in a movie filmed in Bangkok, Thailand! It is not a porn though. If you have not heard well here you go. Former President Bill Clinton will be in the new movie, "The Hangover 2", yes this is true. He filmed his scene Saturday and I can only imagine what he did. Not much is reported about the scene or anything. We do know that he will be playing himself, what a stretch, and that is basically it. I think that if there were to add Monica Lewinsky into this movie and then I am sure they will have a hit, trust me I know movies. This movie already had a lot of press about it from the time they announced that it was going to be mode and even more after they added and then dropped Mel Gibson from the movie in a cameo. Bill has nothing to gain or lose, this will just add to his legacy of cool in America and around the world. I am giving Bill a Digit Up of course. Why? Because he gave me one first.

...Elections

So I am watching these elections tonight and it seems as if the Republicans gain control of the House, by Nancy, and the Democrats retain a slight control over the Senate, oh boy. Who really wins? I thought that if the Republicans were to gain control of the House and Senate that the President would really win. The economy is not expected to get better until around 2014, so he could place all of the blame on the Republicans because they would be in control off the laws that would get passed and whomever ran against him would come from the Senate most likely, maybe a Governor. So Now I am here watching closely and wondering did America lose? We are going to have a Senate that will be stalled on all things minus patriotic anti terrorist, pro self raises, pro armed forces anything. We are about to have 6 years of nothingness, at least 2. What will happen? Nothing will change except the majority and their ideology. Can they actually come together and work with one another to solve our nation's problems? Not at all! It just will not work! It needs to work here and now more than ever but it just will not. I do not know how to feel at all about this. I will wish for the best, expect the worst, and hope that it does not happen. I can not give this a Digit Up or Down for now, I will put it on hold until I see results, real results, not just results on paper.

...MTV Town Hall

I applaud the President for his willingness to include young Americans in the political process and for listening to their voices with real concern. However I do not understand the purpose of the MTV Town Hall that took place. It could have been pretty good, but it was only an hour long. It was full of your typical rhetoric and whatnot, but some of the questions were good and made you think. A lot of questions were Tweeted in, but few were read. Bullying, bipartisanship, the economy, education and gay rights were all talked about. This event took over 3 channels, MTV, BET and CMT. I think it hit every teen demographic possible, minus those who may be into C-Span or the Biography channel. Yet while there were good talking points, it did feel a tad like an election rally, although he did not mention anything of the sort, which brings me back to why. Why was this held now, on this date, at that time. Okay the time makes sense, but still why? I have yet to hear why or figure out why, it does not frustrate me but it makes me wonder...why hahaha. I am going to give this a Digit Up just this once because I think it probably made those young Americans there feel as if they were being listened too...important even, and that is always a plus.