Success?

Defense Spending During 2001 - $316 billion
Defense Spending During 2010 - $693 billion
Percent Increase - 119%

Number of Terrorist Attacks Worldwide in 2000 - 423
Number of Terrorist Attacks Worldwide in 2009 - 10,999
Percent Increase - 2,500%

We are in the midst of a "war on terror." While we have claimed victories throughout the war, the fact of the matter is that we have exacerbated the terrorist problem. We tried to further control a rebellious teenager, only to see them rebel with even more fury. The imposition of our will is the very act that generates anti-American sentiment. We have succeeded in increasing anti-American sentiment, the number of potential terrorists, and the number of terrorist attacks. The decisions to get involved in the "wars on terror" are largely the result of the macho, "nobody messes with America" mentality following 9/11.

The "war on terror" has been a significant contributor to the increase in defense spending. Not including the war expenditures, the defense budget is absurdly high. The United States ranks number one in defense spending coming in at $693 billion. If you sum the defense budgets of the countries that rank #2-21, the total would be less than US alone. Even pre-war defense spending was more than triple the next highest country. We unquestionably have the strongest, most advanced military in the has ever seen, but at what point are we going to say enough? We continue to build our military power through the development of multi-billion dollar weapons systems. Are we to believe that we are so much further at risk than any other country in the world?

It is time to slash the defense budget. If we cut the defense budget by a third, our budget will still be more than four times higher than the next country. This is a task that will meet considerable opposition. For years, politicians and lobbyists pushing a pro defense spending agenda have portrayed votes against defense spending as votes against the troops. A republican can consider a "vote against the troops" as career suicide. In our current fiscal predicament, nothing is off limits, in fact, the "scared cows" of government spending(Social Security, Medicare, and Defense Spending)should be the first to see cuts. We need to set a serious tone of responsible spending by starting with the most untouchable programs. The current US debt is pushing $13.9 trillion.

The American people showed their collective displeasure by voting out many incumbents in the fall 2010 elections. One of the major reasons was over continual spending despite the growing deficit. Unfortunately, the likelihood of responsible spending is unlikely. After news of a Republican takeover in the House of Representatives broke, the immediate talk out of both parties was political strategies on how to win the 2012 elections rather than strategies addressing the concerns of the American people. Right now, Washington is too concerned with winning, winning the "war on terrorism" and winning elections. The only thing we need to win is our fight against debt.

We need to raise taxes. If you think that raising taxes will negatively affect your ability to live a good life, refer to my previous blog on happiness.

Hard Work

We are in another election year. 36 senate seats are up for election and 435 house seats up for reelection in November of this year. So there will be much campaigning, fundraising, appearance making, etc. So at some point this year these election related activities are going to more or less be their full-time jobs. There will probably be some superficial changes made this year so the politicians can say "look what I did" in campaign commercials, but job commitment is not always their priority.

Maybe President Obama should have concluded his State of the Union Address by saying that he is not going to attend a gala. He is not going to attend fundraisers. He is not making speaking appearances at campaign functions. He is not making publicity appearances. He is going to work. And when he is not at work he is spending time with his family. And he will continue to do so until satisfied with the changes to legislation. And suggest that his Washington colleagues do the same.

Then maybe the focus of Washington would be on issues and not on how issues effect elections. Then maybe politicians would quit the campaigning and start working. Then maybe a politician would get reelected based on hard work and merit. A politican being evaluated the same way the people of America get evaluated for their jobs? That might be too radical.

Standing Ovation

Maybe politicians would actually get something done if they would sit down and just let President Obama finish his speach. We all know that democrats are going to like what they hear and support their president. We all know that republicans are going to sit in discontent for most of the speach and occasionally stand so the TV audience knows they are still listening. They also want to show us that there is some hope of bipartisanship left. Please just sit down and stop clapping until the end. Mainly speaking to Nancy.

The fight against childhood obesity is an important issue that is not going away anytime soon. Michelle Obama was praised during the State of the Union for her work on this issue. She was given a standing ovation by all in attendence. She has previously been critisized for spending so much time fighting childhood obesity and not tackling a more important issue. Yet some of these same people gave her a standing ovation. Thanks for standing up for what you believe in.

Are you Happy?

Believe it or not, the United States is not the happiest country on Earth. Despite being hailed as the land where dreams come true, the USA finished 23rd in a happiness pole. In case you were wondering, this pole was taken before the recession. So what is the happiest place on Earth? Denmark.

Denmark is the happiest country in the world despite going against three things that Americans correlate to their happiness. Firstly, Denmark is a country that claims the highest taxes in the world. Tax is directly correlated to income and can be as high as 63%. This results in a much smaller gap between the wealthy and the poor.

The second thing involves religion. Denmark is not very religious. Denmark has the third highest percentage of atheists within its population. The Danes believe in humanity.

The third thing involves marriage. The Danish believe that the relationship is the most important thing, not simply being married. Most Danes finish work around 4pm, allowing for ample time with loved ones. The relationships are more important than the legality of the relationships. In 2004, 60% of first-borns were born out of wedlock.

If these things make the Danes so happy, then I understand why the Republicans are always so angry.

Pronounciation

Forte - One's strong point. Derived from the French descriptor fort, meaning strong. English words fort and forte are both derived from this French descriptor. Both are pronounced [fort]. Forte is often pronounced [for-ta]. This pronounciation is acceptable in the English language, but is not the original pronounciation.

Many times pronounciations and word usages evolve over time due to the fact that they simply sound better. This seems to be the case with forte.

A Beginning..... the End

As we turn our thoughts to a new beginning, I can't help but think of the end. Death is inevitable. After each death, the question that follows is what is next? Do we have a wake, have a funeral, have a burial, cremate, donate the body, etc. The options are numerous.

The one that I do not understand is the burial. There is the thought that you are laying the body to rest for eternity. If you believe that the person has a spirit and a soul that lives on for eternity, then the body is just a shell that personifies the soul and spirit. If the soul and spirit do indeed exsist, I doubt that they would stay in the casket for the rest of eternity. The spirit would do things such as watch over it's loved ones or live peacefully with god. Once again, not in the casket.

Some would argue that the burial ground and tombstone create a memorial where the deceased can be remembered. I contend that family and friends would be much better served by creating a memorial at a place that actually meant something to the deceased. Chances are, the deceased never went to the burial site and has no attachment to it. Remember those passed where memories were created.

If I wish to remember and pay tribute to someone passed, I need only to consult my mind. A place where memories live vividly, and I can visit anytime. Some recognize cemetaries as hallowed ground. I recognize the memories as hallowed. The cemetary is just a place that consumes money and is a waste of good land.

Its Yours..... Own It

Many of the ills that affect us as a nation we consider societal problems. We approach these ills as such. These ills include smoking, obesity, drugs, teen pregnancy, crime, etc. This is the wrong way to look at these ills. These behaviors need to be recognized as self-inflicted. Portraying these behaviors as societal allows the participants to deflect blame. Blame is put onto the product of society excuse and others. Fortunately for us, behavior is a product of free will. We choose to make decisions and we live with the consequences. If participants of these behaviors own there actions and keep the consequences to themselves, then people would be more prone to accept the behavior. So often people don't own the behavior and make excuses pawning off the blame on society, genetics, and so on. If you want to smoke in the privacy of your own home or car, fantastic. If you want to earn money by legitimate means, lock yourself in the house, and do drugs, fine. If you want to get pregnant as a teen, raise your child, and not use government assistance, great. There are very few ways to keep crime's effects to yourself. You get the idea. If you accept the responsibility of your actions and the actions don't adversely effect others, then most people won't care what you do. Choose your behavior, own it, and leave me out of it.