Author : Jan MichaelsAt this time in American Society, the Republican Party has become ineffective and obsolete They have refused to change what they consider time honored values that mostly concern social issues Unfortunately for the Republicans and right wing conservatives, most Americans have taken a more moderate view on things such as abortion, gays, religion and issues that favor big business rather than the middle class and poor

At this time in American Society, the Republican Party has become ineffective and obsolete They have refused to change what they consider time honored values that mostly concern social issues Unfortunately for the Republicans and right wing conservatives, most Americans have taken a more moderate view on things such as abortion, gays, religion and issues that favor big business rather than the middle class and poor

Of course, the Grand Old party has also the problem of an extremely popular Democratic President and major infighting of it’s members to take control of whats left

Lets look at how the defunct Whigs party has so much in common with the currently struggling GOP

Around 1833, the Whig party was formed by such notable National Republicans as John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay, who formed to oppose the policies of President Andrew Jackson To the Whigs credit, they helped improve manufacturing and supported improvements to roads, railroads and other public use properties such as public schools

What brought the Whigs down was it’s refusal to change according to the public’s view on a social issue of the time Slavery and expanding it The will of the American people no longer supported Slavery as a normal way of life, and the Whig party members could not agree on moving with the view of society as a whole and into a new age, or continue on with the old, and unpopular values of the party Most southern members wanted to expand slavery while the northern Whigs fought against the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854

By 1860, most Whigs had moved either to the Democratic or newly formed Republican party, became conservatives or created a new group (now defunct also) called the Constitutional Union Party But no matter where the Whig members moved to, their members and issues were absorbed into new and existing parties

In the past election of Barack Obama, the majority of American voters soundly let the Republicans know that their old values are out of date and no longer acceptable So what do the Republicans do? They decide to push their out of date ideas on social issues and tax breaks for big business even harder This means they are not only fighting the President of the United States, but the will of the majority of Americans

Like the Whigs, the GOP refuses to change with the times, and doesn’t seem to realize that if they have no support from the majority of Americans, they will soon be ‘going the way of the Whigs’ They also refuse to discuss the social issues important to most voters, and instead have decided to focus on tax breaks for big business, and on the whole, have become the obstructionist party

At this point, the Republican and conservatives need to focus on listening to the American people and move towards helping people, rather than their own image There are more important issues for everyone that far exceed the GOP’s desire to gain power again, and people simply don’t want the same old ‘Southern good ole boys’ values controlling their lives anymore That was the message of the last election by the voters in America

I’d like to say that some people may not agree with this article, but to repeat a well known, and wise saying, ‘Those that forget the past are doomed to repeat it’

Jan Michaels is the creator of the Article Friendly Article Publishing Script for php & mysql, and can be found at: Article Friendly or Political Viewer Blog
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Author : Ann KnappChange: now that’s a word we’ve all gotten used to hearing

From its use (ubiquitous, sometimes annoying, and ultimately very successful) in a–well, a world-changing presidential campaign to its sudden prominence in our economic lives–how many finance titans have pronounced the words “the rules have changed” in the last several months?–we’ve all heard a lot about change in 2008 And we’re going to hear more With Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress and a President with fewer Washington-insider connections than anyone since the 1970s, it’s safe to say that a lot of old laws and policies are going to be up for renegotiation

So cigar aficionados may be wondering whether, given the general spirit of revision, the United States’ long-term boycott of Cuba may be on the way to the chopping block as well The incoming administration has already signaled its willingness to meet with regimes generally considered anti-US–including that of Cuba–and the Cuba embargo seems like just the sort of policy that the new President may reconsider It’s old, it hasn’t achieved its objective, and some policy and foreign affairs experts–as well as any number of United States cigar aficionados–would like to see it gone

Let’s consider the charges one by one “Old”: The trade embargo has been active, in one form or another, since 1962, with a couple of brief respites After all, US-Cuba relations weren’t exactly friendly even before that The trade embargo was enacted on President John F Kennedy’s watch, and the Camelot president was a well-known cigar aficionado himself

According to his own press secretary, Pierre Salinger, JFK himself ordered Salinger to stock up on H Upmann’s the night before the embargo went into effect, and didn’t sign the order until Salinger brought the boxes of cigars to the president himself With a couple of brief exceptions under Jimmy Carter and others–the embargo has remained in place ever since It has even been strengthened on a number of occasions, as during the early George W Bush presidency

“May not have achieved its objective”: whatever anyone’s opinion on the embargo, no one can claim that it has appreciably loosened Fidel Castro’s grip on power Only recent bouts with ill health seems to have phased a dictator who survived even the death of the Soviet Union, an event which left his island communist republic standing alone, with no powerful trading partner buying its exports and no military superpower watching its back Even in severe international isolation, with terrible poverty and unemployment, Castro’s regime has held itself more or less together

Likewise, Cuba’s dominance in the cigar industry has faced a number of challenges, especially from the Dominican Republic Some of Cuba’s best cigar makers left the island, either immediately after Castro’s rise to power or during the course of a Cuba-initiated exchange program in which cigar makers went to teach their trade to interested parties in other Latin American countries (Often, after getting out of Cuba, these folks stayed out, creating what has sometimes been called the “cigar diaspora “) But even with these challenges, and with United States cigar fans unable to buy its wares, Cuba remains a cigar powerhouse, rivaled only by (as stated above) the DR, Nicaragua and Honduras So the embargo’s justification will have, and has had for some time, to rest on something other than its efficacy in achieving its stated goal

“Controversial”: A number of former and current diplomats and experts on Central American politics have argued that the embargo only strengthens Fidel Castro by giving him an external enemy he can blame his country’s problems on Others argue that it may be keeping Cubans in unnecessary poverty And cigar aficionados, of course, argue that it keeps them from enjoying some of the most famous cigars on earth! (There are, of course, two sides to this story; the embargo’s supporters are quick to point out that it prevents the United States from acquiescing to a regime with a less-than-savory human rights record )

So with all these factors against it, and a liberal, change-oriented president in charge, surely the embargo is on its way out and we can all look forward to lighting up some Habanos S A , right? Don’t hold your breath Any change that does go forward will do so only after considerable congressional review–given the economic situation, opening up trade with Cuba is probably not high on the new President’s to-do list, and the new President himself is known for his cautious, plodding personal style–his refusal to make snap decisions And the Cuban embargo is beloved by several population groups with whom the bridge-building, fence-mending Obama is probably looking for ways to make nice–hardline conservatives and Cuban refugees chief among them So it may happen, but probably not within the first, or even second, hundred days CigarFox provides you the opportunity to build your own sampler of the finest cigars that include cigar brands like Montecristo, Romeo & Julieta, H Upmann, Macanudo, Cohiba, Partagas, Gurkha and many more. Choose from more than 1200 different cigars! Other cigar products include cigar humidors, cigar boxes, and cigar accessories like Zippo Lighters.

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Author : Derek DashwoodFrom his youth Alexander was tutored by an elderly Plato in the ways of people and the wisdom of the ages As a youth Plato had listened at the feet of Socrates Alexander learned to look at all aspects of a situation This is reflected when his father, King Phillip of Macedonia, and his followers all failed to mount and ride a mighty horse brought to sell to Phillip as a sales opportunity to own the most powerful horse in the land Alexander was the last to try, after pleading with his father, who was afraid the horse would hurt the boy

Alexander may be the first on record of the fabled horse whisperers Alexander turned Bucephalus around as he had noticed the horse was afraid of his own shadow, which he no longer saw, facing the other way now After a period of Alexander relating to Bucephalus, whispering and stroking the huge beast, then mounting him and riding around pleasantly, Bucephalus was purchased for Alexander King Philip exclaimed that Alexander should look for a kingdom larger than Macedonia as it was not large enough to hold him

As history shows this was a prophetic statement Yet Alexander was more than a brilliant tactician and fierce warrior who could inspire confidence in his men, he held loyalty for service on a high level of understanding When his beloved horse Bucephalus died in India years later, Alexander mourned as if he had lost a blood brother, and had a town built in his beloved steeds memory To beging with however, Alexander was always the best at everything In the private school reserved for princes of Greece, where Plato taught The school was built specially by King Philip in the place of Platos birth

So this was a chance to later impress and pursuade all Greece if he could dominate these boys, and he did Alexanders school mates were the other princes of Greece and nearby kingdoms As they all grew and took power over their own kingdoms, they were easily convinced by Alexander to join in what all else seemed to think was an impossible dream: to attack and conquer Persia All else in history had been the reverse Mighty Persia controlled vast portions of the near and middle east They controlled all of Turkey which had them always it seemed at the Gates to Greece, Athens and Sparta in particular

Always the attacks with superior forces came from Persia whether by land or sea Persia was determined and the Greeks and Macedonians were in a state of constant siege When the time came Alexander had his men ferried across into Persian territory on the west coast of present day Turkey His ten thousand Greek and Macedonian soldiers faced the army of Persia King Darius was at the back of them, and they faced off against each other

The Greeks turned their columns of sixteen foot poles sharpened to a tip which then created massacre, slaughter, Persian soldiers fleeing, as did King Darius when he saw and realized that these were ten thousand warriors of a class he had never before seen
It seemed an impossibility than ten thousand could defeat one hundred thousand Persian soldiers But with the innovation of his front line weapon Alexander had the men equipped with a sixteen foot sharpened pole, which they attacked first The Persians, equipped only with bows, arrows and short swords, parted like the sea in front of this new force The Greeks were skewering Persians soldiers before they had a chance to use their swords, their arrows did little harm as the Greeks moved into a wedge shape and attacked directly into the midst of the Persians

Darius tried to escape but was killed by his own men who fell to their knees in homage to Alexander and his men Alexander ordered gentle treatment of the women and fair discipline only when need for the soldiers All Persia soon became his and he burned the old capital Persepolis Wishing to place a permanent imprint into modern day Turkey and Iran, Alexander married Roxanne, a beautiful daughter of the defeated King Darius, and had ten thousand of his men also take a Persian bride Today in old Persia there are apparently quite a few lads named Alexander, with blue eyes, in what had been Persia Derek Dashwood finds history fascinating and how enemies at one time are friends another time
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Author : Ki GrayThe much anticipated speech was given; it was the details that were missing Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was expected in his speech this week to give the nitty gitty particulars about how the Obama administration will spend the rest of the money from the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, commonly called the “bailout ” But it seems lawmakers and investors walked away scratching their heads, unsure of how exactly Geithner plans to stabilize the shaky banking industry

The original bill passed last October under then Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, called for $700 billion to be used to purchase distressed assets in a Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) The idea was the government would relieve banks of their mortgage-backed securities in particular, and then banks would be able to start lending again $350 billion was quickly pumped into the banking system, but that did little to get the economy moving again

The basic principles outlined Tuesday by Geithner include:

-The continued government purchase of bank stocks, but with greater government oversight The Treasury Department says they plan to make sure the money is being used by the banks to increase lending and help the economy, making banks undergo a stress test of sorts to see if they deserve government funds

-A large component of Geithner’s plan is a partnership between the government and private sector to encourage private investors to buy bad bank assets This is an area of the plan where the details were sorely lacking It is possible this will be accomplished with government guarantees or reduced costs for investors willing to take on the bad bank debt

-There is also a part of the plan that is intended to help struggling homeowners with at least $50 billion of the original TARP funds Again, exactly how the Treasure plans to use the money to stem the rising rates of foreclosures across the country was unclear

The promises of aggressive efforts earlier from President Obama seemed hollow as Geithner gave a Paulson-like “you’ve just got to trust us” speech Simon Johnson, an economics professor at MIT and former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, told the Associated Press that the lack of details could be counter productive Geithner “didn’t tell us exactly” what he’s going to do, Johnson said, adding, “When they tell you their basic principles, you’re really in trouble ”

Perhaps Geithner was reluctant to give more details because the cost of his plan goes far beyond the remaining $350 bailout funds The total could come to trillions of dollars, which is a point he may have wanted to keep quiet while congress is still wrangling with the details of an $800 billion stimulus package A version of the stimulus bill has been passed by both houses of Congress, unfortunately it is not the same version

Stock markets from Asia to England reacted to the U S Treasury’s sketchy plan with sell offs, including a steep fall on Wall Street Tuesday The world is watching and Americans are waiting, hoping that real help is on the way Ki’s website encourages searches of Austin homes in the Austin MLS by user selected criteria. He created it to distribute information on Austin real estate to future buyers. He also provides a free mortgage widget.

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Author : Dominic DonaldsonThe spotlight has never been more firmly focused on the care home industry As a consequence of recent reports that have flagged up problems and suggested ways in which things can be improved a new complaints system is to be introduced and all of Britain’s 13,900 registered care home are to face much tougher inspections and penalties if those inspections find failings in the running of care homes East Anglia, Cornwall, Cumbria and Pembrokeshire, in fact countrywide the new focus is bound to have repercussions

Recently The Times newspaper launched a campaign and a survey to gain feedback on the state of the nation’s care homes East Anglia residents and people from across the United Kingdom have been invited to take part in the survey and send in reports of their own experiences, be they good or bad It is hoped that the findings will be able to go some way to highlighting concerns and issues that many people have but are often too afraid to speak about

So what are the major concerns that are know already and what are the things that someone looking for a care home for themselves or a relative or friend should be looking out for? Here are a few pointers in the right direction aimed at reducing the anxiety in what can be a difficult and worrying time, but unfortunately one that many of us will have to face one day

Government policy - For anything that is recommended to be put into practice and make a beneficial and long lasting difference it is essential that the government of the day gets behind the findings and includes them as an integral part of policy making With over a third of the population over the age of 50 it therefore is not just morally right that government take notice but it makes political sense as well

Planning permission, the needs of older people in local communities and maintaining a person’s respect and dignity should all be in the minds of politicians when they are making decisions that have an impact on care homes East Anglia, Devon, The Midlands and the north of England all have large a large number of elderly people who are still able to vote, something that politicians often overlook

Show me the money - At the later stages of a person’s life the last thing they should have to even think about is money and financial security Many elderly people worry about not having enough money to ensure they have adequate and relevant care Minimum care standards should be significantly raised so that people’s negative views are changed concerning care home East Anglia should be caring for the people who have paid taxes their whole life just as much as the Home Counties or the North West

My home is my castle - Is it fair that a person should sell their home if they don’t want to? The whole debate about an elderly person selling their home to pay for care is a minefield and one that no politician has yet adequately addressed What is unquestionable is that the process of selling a home is traumatic at the best of times and so an elder person having to sell to pay for their care must be unbearable Hell needs to be given to these people moving into care homes East Anglia, West Country and all local councils need to adopt a fresh approach to this area

Without any of these issues being addressed the elderly will continue to be neglected and the problems that are being experienced will only get worse Politicians need to treat the elderly with the same respect they so readily demand back Dominic Donaldson is an expert in the care industry.
Find out more about Care Homes in East Anglia and the rest of the UK.

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Author : Dominic DonaldsonThe media have been having a corporate entertainment frenzy over the perks of Whitehall politicians It seems that our MPs have been enjoying the likes of Wimbledon, light lunches and football matches for free thanks to having the odd meeting or two with bank bosses and petrol suppliers I have always been under the impression that this kind of thing went on anyway, so is it really news? Every job has its perks, and the higher up your job is, then surely the perks improve If MPs are going to have to declare each free lunch in a bid for transparency, should the guy who works in the pub declare that he gets the occasional free pint? And who is this affecting anyway, it is the companies that are providing the entertainment, not the tax payer; surely we should be glad that someone else is footing the bill

The perks of any job vary; I have in my time worked in hotels, restaurants, bars and cafes and with each it brought a different set of complimentary goodies The hotel gave me a heavily discounted rate if I wanted to stay in any of its hotels; the restaurant gave me free food cooked by one of the top chefs in the country; bar and cafe work saw a mixture of free drinks and cakes for me and my family Working in these circles also got me VIP treatment at other establishments thanks to meeting others in the business At one point, I didn’t have to queue or pay to get into some of the top clubs in London, just because I knew the right people This harmed no-one and it was out of the generosity of whoever was offering me the hospitality

In light of this, isn’t it just a case that being an MP gets you freebees that involve corporate entertainment? Free tickets to the circus are not paid for by the tax payer; a centre court seat at Wimbledon is not a gift from Joe Public either The offer of tickets for such things are from a company that has paid for them If Shell wanted to have a meeting with the Prime Minister and decided that inviting him along to the Grand National might be a nice idea, who are we to moan If it were the other way round, then fair enough; if tax payers money was providing a place for MPs to impress oil company owners with corporate entertainment then there would be every reason to complain

Maybe the furore is over whether this type of specialist treatment is being used to butter up the people that make the decisions about our economy If so, that means that the big guys providing the corporate entertainment are in fact oiling the system in a way that smaller companies cannot, which is obviously a heavily biased situation It’s not like the bloke who owns the local coffee shop can afford to wine and dine his local MP when he wants to extend his entertainment licence for example Corporate entertainment is for the corporations, and its very function is to entertain large companies in a bid to network effectively

The fact that the FA paid for an MP to go to a football game is irrelevant, what would have been the outcome if the MP in question turned the ticket down? It would have either been an empty seat or another person with good connections sitting there Dom Donaldson is a hospitality expert.
Find out more about Corporate Entertainment and the packages that are available for prestigious sporting events, concerts and theatre at Keith Prowse.

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