Sorry all - I have had to modify the comments section (again) to only allow registered users to make comments. I am just being bombarded with spam again and it takes too much time to weed through all of the junk messages. I will leave it like this for a while and then change it back - I just need a break!
To all of those who have served this country both at home and abroad, THANK YOU! We can never offer enough recognition, support, and thanks for your devotion to protecting this country and our freedoms. You are all heroes! And a ‘thank you’ to your families and friends who often wait anxiously for word of your safety!
The citizens of this nation are indebted to you for putting the well-being of our families in front of your own aspirations! Nothing can be said or done to express how grateful the people of this country are to you for your sacrifice. To all who have served and continue to serve in every branch and for those who have fought in battles past and current, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart! And my family thanks you too! We sleep better at night knowing that you are guarding our safety and freedom! God Bless You!
As the wind blows and the few remaining leaves cling to the trees, I am looking forward to the holiday season. This is probably our last day of nice weather - we have been so fortunate lately with unbelievable warm and beautiful days! Although spring is my favorite time of year, I love the cool, crisp, clear blue sky days of autumn. Hearing the leaves crunch under our feet and feeling the cool air does something to clear my head of the clutter and craziness of summer. It is easy to lose sight of the important things in life when you are running from here to there making the most of long, hot days. The fall and winter months force us all of slow down and appreciate the things that we have - and we are extremely blessed compared to many people in this world.
So what are my plans for the coming holidays? Well, before I completely skip over the Halloween adventures of the year, DD and I spent several days making fun Halloween crafts including a ghost from her footprint and a bat using her hand-prints (I love these simple and fun crafts that I put the date on and store to reflect on in future years). We hung our creations from the light in our dining room and enjoyed them everyday though DD got into some trouble for constantly climbing into a chair in an effort to reach her artwork and swing it! We also carved pumpkins and put up some old Halloween decorations (courtesy of my mom). It was a wonderful experience! And then on Halloween night, we went to a friends house for a cookout and trick-or-treating in her neighborhood. DD REALLY likes her son - they are the same age. We had a great time and then had to confiscate the bucket of goodies to prevent total sugar overload. Left to her own will, DD would have eaten all of the candy in one sitting! But we only gave her 1 or 2 pieces a day for a few days and then it was ‘all-gone’! Of course, DH and I had a few treats as well! We took some great pictures of our little Cat and then, after putting up an enormous fight in an effort to ‘play’ with her loot, she passed out from exhaustion!
For Thanksgiving, we will be doing more fun crafts and DD will get to watch Charlie Brown’s Thanksgiving. She likes Charlie Brown and Snoopy and this is a pretty educational movie - something lacking from most of the holiday movies that are available. We have also ordered a turkey from Mandy at Schacht Farm and are planning on spending Thanksgiving at home. We are planning to head to NC for Christmas if my doctor doesn’t give me any travel restrictions for the pregnancy - not sure how favorably she will feel about a 9 hour (one way) car ride so close to 8 months pregnant! We will see. We will have to order a Christmas tree from my family (we usually just go pick it out at Thanksgiving but since we won’t be there…) and have it mailed to us (to support my family in their business). As these precious holidays draw closer, I will try to provide more details including our plans for presents without spending a lot of money (we will see), menu and recipes for the big meals, and extra activities that we will participate in with friends and community (Bloomington has live reindeer at the Holiday Market - that should be a hoot)!
One thing that I wish I had done more of - preserving local foods - but I was just so miserable with morning sickness during harvest time that my plans went in the toilet (seriously)! Hopefully I will be able to do a better job next season! It would be so nice to have Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner from my own garden or from preserved local produce! Something to look forward to next year!
Regardless of which candidate you wanted to win this presidential election, you have to admit that it is a historical event for our country! Although I did not support Barack Obama based on many of his policies and plans, I am excited that our country has finally made a decision in this long election season! And now, it is time for all of us to put aside political differences and pray for the wisdom, strength, and leadership that is necessary for our new president to guide and protect this country. And Barack Obama faces many challenges when he takes office in January - it will be hard to get our country back on it’s feet and moving in the right direction. He is fortunate that he will have complete and total support of both the congress and senate since they are controlled by his political party. This will help in passing and implementing many of his plans and policies (although this structure concerns me a little since there will be very little checks and balances within our government system - but it may make things happen faster).
Anyway, my sincere congratulations to Senator Obama and his family! What a wonderful time in our history!
Taxes – This one has me really upset. Obama keeps talking about cutting taxes for the middle class (he says those making less that 250,000 but that is not middle class – at least not in my neck of the woods and it keeps changing - 200K, 150K, 120K). Although he says he will give a tax cut to 95% of the people in this country, over 40% of people don’t even pay federal income tax! How can they get a ‘tax cut’? What it really amounts to is a check sent to those folks - isn’t that welfare? And Obama has no plan to prevent current middle class tax cuts from expiring in 2010 so when those expire, the middle class, including those making less than 40K will start paying taxes! So much for Obama cutting taxes for 95% of Americans. I also don’t think Obama has thought of the overall impact his tax plan will have – and neither have many people. He wants to increase taxes on the ‘wealthy’ and use those tax dollars to fund more government programs for lower income individuals and families or use those dollars to give tax refunds to those with lower incomes. Now this sounds great – I don’t know that I mind getting some free money from those making more than me. BUT that is just WRONG! Those people (at least a lot of them) have worked hard to get to where they are – most of them haven’t gotten a free ride. And then to have half of their income taken away and given to folks who haven’t worked hard is crazy. Yes, there are people who work hard and who are struggling (I mentioned a friend in an earlier post). But let me be clear on this – I do not think my friend deserves money from someone who makes more than her even if they are making more than 250K a year or even 1M a year! You see, my friend dropped out of high school when she was a senior. She has been ‘trying’ to get her GED so that she can get a better job but she has been working on that for a long time – She does work hard, as do many, many people in this country. But, she has never gone above and beyond to get ahead. She just does what she has to and that is it. Now, there are single mothers in this country (and dads too I am sure) working 2 and 3 jobs to feed their kids and provide a good education for them) and they should get SOME help and I am sure that some of them do. But I do not think it is right or appropriate to take money from those who have already been down in the gutter, worked non-stop, and went above and beyond, to get to where they are as successful members of society. I know that many will disagree with me on this. I also want to make it clear that my family income is NO WHERE near 250K – we are much closer to true middle-class (and it would be nice to get a check in the mail from some rich guy but that would be stealing in my opinion – I didn’t work for and I didn’t earn it)! And, for the sake of time and space, I won’t even go into Obama’s plans for capital gains, windfall profits, death, and other taxes. Just do your research. On this note, I want to bring up the great quote of Democratic President John F. Kennedy ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country’! I think there is too much government as is and I also think that the Democratic party that my grandparents so strongly supported has changed so much that it no longer resembles former leaders like JFK. Again, just my opinion. For a good article that details the differences in the candidates tax policies visit this link: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122488938501868507.html
Our economy is a disaster. Some of that I blame on government and corporate executives but mostly, I blame individuals. People who have applied for loans knowing that they really can’t afford them, people who have invested in shady deals, people spending recklessly without thinking about the future consequences. We, the great American consumer, have created this disaster! We can’t help ourselves – we spend like mad and try to keep up with the Jones’s in every way. Latest car, biggest house, nicest clothes! When are WE going to take responsibility? And the fact that taxpayers are going to have to fit the bill drives me crazy. I didn’t make a poor financial decision to buy a home that I truly couldn’t afford. Another dear friend lives in a huge house that I will be helping to pay for because they could not afford it! Granted, there are people who have lost their jobs and have no other choice – those are not the people I blame. And for these CEO’s who have done horrible jobs and driven their companies into the ground and are getting huge severance packages - give me a break! If I did a poor job, I would just be fired as would most employees! And honestly, I am not sure if this bailout business is going to work anyway. Yes, something needed to be done to open up credit but I truly think the government took it TOO far! And I blame both parties for this plan and the fact that both of the presidential candidates supported the plan just shows that neither have a great grip on the economy (honestly, I don’t even think the so-called economic experts have a clue). It has taken a long time for any of the money to start flowing from this plan so why couldn’t that time be used to work out something that would work for the credit crisis without including all of the other stuff? Now I do feel bad for many people who have invested in the stock market especially those who have a lot of retirement funds tied up in stocks. However, we ALL know that stocks are risky - it is no different than gambling just a little more high-tech. People who are close to retirement should NOT have a lot of their funds going into stocks - they should be putting their money in stable investments. It is up to us as individuals to be good stewards of our money and to invest wisely. Relying on an individual or a group to make all financial decisions for us is not smart - we have to do our own research. The same goes for the presidential election this year - sound bites and media coverage are not good sources for the details that we all need to know and understand to make an informed decision. We all must look deeper at our candidates and decide if their overall policies, judgment, and experience will serve us well. Then, and only then, can we cast our vote with confidence that we are selecting the individual that is closest in alignment with our values.
On the job topic, we need more jobs in this country in a really bad way and I think that newer forms of energy and other industries (organics, etc.) could help create new jobs (though the unemployment rate under President Carter was 17% - we are so much better now than we were back then even though it may not seem like it). Others are better on this than I am – just my thoughts. But, I come from a family that owns small businesses and Obama’s tax plan will cause a loss of jobs for many small businesses. They just can’t afford to pay higher taxes and keep their employees or even keep their businesses open in many cases. And Obama’s plan of taxing corporations that already pay the 2nd highest tax for businesses in the world will not help create jobs or lower costs for consumers. Big corporations will still manage to secure their profits - either by passing on the high taxes in the cost of goods and services to customers or by eliminating jobs. If that doesn’t work, they will find countries that will make it worthwhile to move their operations to - I am talking about countries where businesses are allowed to operate TAX FREE! That is huge and the so-called penalty that Obama has in store for businesses that want to move out of the country could not make the tax free operations less appealing. And these countries are often much less developed and employees will work for far less than Americans and, often, can operate without much of the regulatory controls that are in place in the US. We need to make business easier and less costly in this country so that organizations have an incentive to stay and grow!
I don’t agree with all of McCain’s economic policies either but he is more in line with my values and knowledge of the economy. I am certainly not an expert but I do have a bachelors degree as well as a MBA so I am not completely clueless. And, more importantly, I am a wife and mother and I am responsible for keeping our budget on track and paying our bills, so, like most moms in this country, I have a great deal of experience on the economics of our family.
Regardless of who wins this election, the US economy needs some serious work. But I don’t think it is completely the governments responsibility. I, again, prefer little government involvement and more responsibility from individuals. Companies need to hold CEO’s accountable for their poor leadership and fire them with no additional compensation and individuals need to take responsibility for their own poor financial decisions. But this is still a great country and people from all over the world want to live here. We should all be proud to be Americans and work to maintain our freedoms. You certainly don’t hear too many US residents trying to give up their citizenship and move to another country (no concern of US citizens crossing the border illegally into Mexico or Canada) - very much the contrary. Yes, times are hard but we are still a strong nation with wonderful people who care for each other and those in other countries. We are the most giving country in the world and we should be - we truly are affluent. We have been living high on the hog for many years now and it is just time for an adjustment. Reality is sometimes hard and painful but I know that we will prevail.
Whoever wins this presidential election will have to have the support of the entire country. Currently, my choice isn’t leading and may not win (though I am hoping for a surprise victory) but I will pray for whoever wins this office. It is an enormous responsibility and the most difficult job in the world and Americans tend to be very hard on our leaders and blame them for everything. We must come together and work to move our country in a positive direction. I still believe the USA is the world’s greatest country. We have loving, caring, and thoughtful people who are extremely giving. Yes, we have problems but there are so many more in this world who have nothing but problems.
When the election is over, I hope we can all put aside our political differences and work for the good of our neighbors, our country and our world. We really don’t have a choice.
I have been wanting to write numerous posts on the issues that we are all facing in this election but I have just ran out of time! So, I have found some articles in the Wall Street Journal that provide some basic information that may help you choose the candidate that will best meet your needs. I hope you will take a few minutes to review the articles, especially if you are undecided. I do have a draft post on the economy that I DH is reviewing for me (grammar, etc.). In the meantime, these links should help give you some specifics. Although not all of the issues are covered, these articles are informative. And don’t forget to vote Tuesday - for whoever candidate you decide will best lead our country!
Education - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122533182650582899.html
Trade - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122523957339378291.html
Energy - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122515084360974157.html
Unions - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122506674992670591.html
Taxes - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122488938501868507.html
Healthcare - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122480836492564419.html
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Bloomington, Indiana
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