Dueling Plans, Dozing VP and Spring Spheres?

Good Morning!

Jeriann says the weather is going to turn a little bit. Due respect to the perfect days we've been having...my yard could use some rain. I'm obsessed with growing grass on my front lawn. I don't know why but a well manicured lawn is important to me. It says something about you...I get an unreasonable amount of satisfaction looking at my lawn after it's mowed.

To the News

Deuling Plans

So the Prez made a speech yesterday that's rightly being called the opening salvo in his 2012 election campaign. Someone has convinced him that arguing over the debt is going to make a good campaign issue so like other Politicians we discussed yesterday, they'll throw road blocks up to actually working together and doing something difficult in favor of keeping their jobs.

The guy I feel for is Rep Paul Ryan. He put out a plan that a lot of people in his own party don't like... It's political suicide, and he believes in it! He was invited to the President's Speech Wednesday and according to NBC's Political team, he was thinking the President was going to meet him halfway so they could get something big done on Medicare. Instead The President trashed Ryan's ideas and signaled it's "game on".

As for the President's proposals...imagine, if you will,l that you're a 12 year-old...you get an allowance from your parents. When you've spent all the money and go back to your parents for more...do you think your parents would buy the argument that it's not your spending that's the problem...it's that you don't have enough money?

I don't think that would have worked for me. It's a simple analogy but the people who are saying this is a spending problem are at least partially right. We've got to spend less. A tax increase may be appropriate but it might seem a lot more credible if MAJOR spending overhauls were in place first. Ryan's ideas may be too draconian...he may not be right, but for now he's the only one taking a serious stab at the actual problem.

Dozing VP

We made the VP's catnap into our Facebook question this morning and you guys came up with some funny responses. I've never head of someone falling asleep at their own wedding...then again he did clarify it was his 1st wedding!

No criticism of Joe Biden...we've all been there.

Taxes

Before we get off politics altogether, A new poll shows Americans think the amount they pay in taxes is fair. We debated this during our breaks and the consensus seemed to be that if we all had to write a check to the government every quarter for our taxes...that number would be lower.

When it comes right out of your check most of us don't even think about it.

It's actually a great way to save money too...if you never see it, you never feel it.

Dog Abuse

An Ottumwa woman is charged with animal neglect after police went into her Urbandale motel room and found two adults and a littler of puppies, underfed and living in their own feces. I understand being an animal lover...I understand the connection...I love our cat. Here's my problem...you come first, and if you can't afford food for yourself, how are you going to afford food for your pet. How is that fair to the animal? The thing that bothered me most is the police report that the animals were eating cigarette butts. You have money to buy cigarettes but not take care of the dogs? Heck, you could practically pay rent with the money you have to fork over for cigarettes.

We have choices, and we shouldn't act as if someone backed us into a corner when we make them.

Spring Spheres

So a former boss of mine sent me the link to a story out of Seattle. Some school told a girl volunteering there that from now on they were going to refer to Easter Eggs as "Spring Spheres". I'll say I don't know if this story is true...

Really? We can't learn anything as a society from the lessons of Easter? Understanding a religion's central and most important day isn't a good way of forging understanding with other religious traditions?

Stop the world, I wanna get off.

I hope you have a good day.

PWD