When the protests began in Egypt I wasn't sure why United States wasn't showing more support for Mubarak and his government. I looked at the situation like this; As far we know, Mubarak has been a loyal ally in the war on terror, provided support during the first Gulf War and did not impede us during the second war. Mubarak has made nice with Israel who is a major ally to the US even though that country isn't perfect either. In this case it appeared that the devil you know has to be better than the devil you don't. This is especially important in that area of the world because we are not exactly popular.
But looking at the recent developments such as pulling the police, allowing looters to roam the streets, allowing vigilantes to set up check points to fight back against the looters, and firing live ammo at the protesters has made me rethink about how that country is handling itself. Now Egypt has shut down all Internet activity which prevents it's people to get information about what is happening and let the outside world know what is happening inside the country.
Mubarak is not coming out well in the pr fight. I think it's time for him to call for democratic elections to allow the people to decide who they want to govern them. I don't know if a new leader will cure what ails the country but it appears to be time to find out. Let's just hope the next leader will allow Egypt to continue to be a faithful ally of the United States.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
More difficult than I thought
When I started this blog I fully intended to keep posting on a regular basis. I didn't expect that posting regularly would be as difficult as it has been. I appreciate those of you who have inquired about when my next posts will be. I have two other posts today and will make an effort to try and post on a more frequent basis.
Thanks again for having an interest on what I have to say and will try and keep posting on this blog on a more regular basis.
Thanks again for having an interest on what I have to say and will try and keep posting on this blog on a more regular basis.
2011 Cubs season
It's been a turbulent fall and winter for the Chicago Cubs. They took a lot of hits for they way they treated Ryne Sandberg during the managerial process which eventually went to Mike Quade. The Ricketts family bungled the PR on trying to get public funding to fix up Wrigley Field.
I was not happy with how the 2010 season ended and not looking forward to the 2011 season. I believed and still feel that Jim Hendry has dropped the ball on many deals such as Soriano, Fukudome, Bradley, etc.
During the off season, the Cubs traded for Matt Garza, resigned Kerry Wood and Todd Wellenmyer for the bullpen and signed Carlos Pena to play first base. On paper these are pretty good acquisitions but only time will tell whether these acquisitions will work out or bomb like so many others that Jim Hendry brought in.
Last year I was cautiously optimistic regarding the Cubs chances for the season. I was worried about the unproven bullpen which ended up to be correct because during the beginning of the season it was awful. Once it was stabilized it still had issues. No one would have predicted Carlos Zambrano would have completely lost his mind and Aramis Ramirez would have been as awful as he was.
If Zambrano can keep his head on straight and Ramirez can stay healthy and hit the way he normally does, they will help the team be competitive. If Pena can hit .250 instead of .196 and Kerry Wood can pitch like he did with the Yankees they will help the team be competitive.
Going into the 2011 season the Cubs have a lot of questions regarding their new and old players. If all of these players can play to their potential I am cautiously optimistic that they can compete for the wild card or even the division if the Cardinals, Reds and/or Brewers falter. It will be an interesting 2011 season that I fully expected to not have any interest in at the end of the '10 season. Once again with a new season almost here hope springs eternal.
GO CUBS!!!!
I was not happy with how the 2010 season ended and not looking forward to the 2011 season. I believed and still feel that Jim Hendry has dropped the ball on many deals such as Soriano, Fukudome, Bradley, etc.
During the off season, the Cubs traded for Matt Garza, resigned Kerry Wood and Todd Wellenmyer for the bullpen and signed Carlos Pena to play first base. On paper these are pretty good acquisitions but only time will tell whether these acquisitions will work out or bomb like so many others that Jim Hendry brought in.
Last year I was cautiously optimistic regarding the Cubs chances for the season. I was worried about the unproven bullpen which ended up to be correct because during the beginning of the season it was awful. Once it was stabilized it still had issues. No one would have predicted Carlos Zambrano would have completely lost his mind and Aramis Ramirez would have been as awful as he was.
If Zambrano can keep his head on straight and Ramirez can stay healthy and hit the way he normally does, they will help the team be competitive. If Pena can hit .250 instead of .196 and Kerry Wood can pitch like he did with the Yankees they will help the team be competitive.
Going into the 2011 season the Cubs have a lot of questions regarding their new and old players. If all of these players can play to their potential I am cautiously optimistic that they can compete for the wild card or even the division if the Cardinals, Reds and/or Brewers falter. It will be an interesting 2011 season that I fully expected to not have any interest in at the end of the '10 season. Once again with a new season almost here hope springs eternal.
GO CUBS!!!!
Decrease spending.
In this time of recovery from the worst recessions since the great depression, the United States has to make tough budgetary decisions in order for our government to not be overwhelmed in debt that we will never be able to get out of.
The United States government has gotten too large and expensive to continue on its current path. In order for the budget to be balanced and the national debt to start to be reduced, we Americans are going to have to make sacrifices. People are going to have to take personal responsibility for things they have come to expect the government to handle.
At this point nothing should be off limits with regards to spending cuts. This would include reductions to defense spending, foreign aid, social security etc. This country is drowning in debt and work needs to begin immediately to prevent our country from becoming a second class country.
The United States is a great country with great people. It's time to focus on ourselves to make sure we continue to be a great country otherwise we will end of like many European countries who used to be great but now rely on the United States to lead.
The United States government has gotten too large and expensive to continue on its current path. In order for the budget to be balanced and the national debt to start to be reduced, we Americans are going to have to make sacrifices. People are going to have to take personal responsibility for things they have come to expect the government to handle.
At this point nothing should be off limits with regards to spending cuts. This would include reductions to defense spending, foreign aid, social security etc. This country is drowning in debt and work needs to begin immediately to prevent our country from becoming a second class country.
The United States is a great country with great people. It's time to focus on ourselves to make sure we continue to be a great country otherwise we will end of like many European countries who used to be great but now rely on the United States to lead.
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