Don’t Count Your Chickens before They Hatch

We Americans always have that paranoia about competition from others countries.  In the middle of the 20^th century, it was the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics with Sputnik and the Red Army. In the 1980s, it was Japan with its high-technology cars, robots, and electronics. Today, Americans are now worried about the 1.3 billion communist strong nation that is China.  For many foreign policy analysts, China is the nation right now. Her economy is stupendously growing by 10% every year. She does not have the heavy debt that the U.S. has right now, and she has 1.3 billion people ready to work, consume, and become middle class.  China’s economy may grow larger than the U.S. in the first half of this century which many view as a lethargic lumbering path towards a lost decade of economic growth and activity.

However, it might sound frightful, but one should not be. America has strength that still makes her a very competitive nation. While China’s has a centralized form of innovation, which involves manufacturing of planes, trains, and automobiles, she still does have the openness of our markets, which provides innovation. We have open markets, which allow investments into small startups, such as Google and Face book to be major corporations. Furthermore, China is an authoritative regime, which does not allow dissent. As a result, the only way the citizens can express their displeasure is through violent protest or through nationalism, which can complicate matters of diplomacy for the regime. The U.S., on the other hand, view allows free speech and open protest in the country, allowing her citizens to vent their anger rather than bottle it up as China would. As a consequence, we generally accept our country’s government and democratic regime as legitimate, which can be hardly be said for the Chinese government, using economic legitimacy in order to stay in power. If this economy would to turn sour, it might make the nation unstable if not let foreign investors flee the market. America has held steady for the last two centuries whether through Civil War, Depression, and the Great recession.  We have gone through past crisis’s generally stronger than previously. This pattern should not change. Even though it seems bleak today, never expect the future to be certain. Recalling back in 1988, I was taught that the Cold War would likely last for decades if not continue into the 21^st century.  Two years later, the Cold War ended, and the Soviet Union dissolved. In others words, do not count your chickens before they hatch, who knows what the future might bring?

Vocabulary

Lethargic

Adjective

Of, pertaining to, or affected with lethargy; sluggish.

Stupendously

–adjective

causing amazement; astounding; marvelous: stupendous news.

amazingly large or great; immense: a stupendous mass of information

Free Press vs. National Security

I have been watching the News on the recent spat between the United States Government and the famous or infamous depending on your view point Wiki leaks which  the website has brought up the issue of secrecy and national security vs. free press and journalism. We always speak of free press and the basic goodness of a free press to provide the truth to the people. A good example of this would be the Pentagon Papers in which a military officer had given information to the public about the false Golf of Tokin incident pretentions for why Americans were fighting and dying in Vietnam. Furthermore, is the infamous Watergate scandal in which the two Washington Post reporters got a tip by a named informant who goes by the name Deep Throat. They used the tip to do an investigation which would eventually lead to President at the time Nixon trying, to get information on the Democratic Party. As a consequence, the Watergate Scandal led to Nixon’s resignation and failure as a president. As a result, some good journalistic skills and determination can lead to major embarrassment.

However, there are times in which information needs to be hidden or herd on to for a given period of time. While I do agree with Wiki leaks to try to reveal corruption, I do not think they should do it at the expense of lives and or national security.  Sometimes a lie can save lives and or prevent wars. In the instance of the Cuban Missile Crisis, a back room deal with Soviet Union and United States prevented a nuclear World War III in that the U.S. would pull out its nuclear missiles and a guarantee of not invading Cuba in exchange of USSR pulling its ballistic missiles. However, this was not told to the public to both sides in that it would escalate if not lead to war. It took several decades before the truth was known, but by that time the situation was already cool and calm. Needless to say, Freedom of the press should be supported and advocated, but there are times in certain situations where diplomatic transparency is of utmost importance in an emergency. It is best to leave the diplomats to make a deal or negotiate a peace.

Vocabulary

Transparency

Noun

Also, transparence. The quality or state of being transparent.

something transparent, design, or the like on glass or some translucent substance, made visible by light shining through from behind.

Informant

Noun

a person who informs or gives information; informer.

a person who supplies social or cultural data in answer to the questions of an investigator.

The Hungry Hermit kingdom

I have been watching the news lately about the sudden bombardment on a South Korean town by the last Stalinist State that is North Korea. The provocation is nothing new with North Korea such as the sinking of South Korean ship. However, the difference now is targeting civilian’s population center which has not happened since the last Korean War.  Many Television analysts have tried to explain away the reasons why North Korea attacked such as miscommunication between the  leadership and the military, or trying to get South Korea and the U.S. into concessions for economic and food aid.

 However in order to understand North Korea, we would have to go back to the 1940s when the Korean War was started. After the second World War, the Japanese Empire which was defeated by both United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) had to give up its former occupied territories such as Manchuria, Singapore, and of course the Korean Peninsula. The Korean territory was broken up to a Communist North capitalist south. The two Koreas did not live with each other peacefully. The South and the North both had intentions to reunify the country. However, North Korea got to act on it first. The North with the support of the USSR invaded in order to reunite. As a result, a war that lasted three years, cost three million lives, and involved the U.S., USSR, and China which happened to confront the U.S. on the side of the communist.  After the war, North Korea became more focused to outdo the South Koreans such as steel production while trying to trump the United States with such incidents as the U.S.S Pueblo take over. However, after the fall of the Soviet Union, North Korea has fallen to a destitute fascist regime in that people with its main benefactor gone its quality of life has fallen drastic over the past 20 years. The situation got so bad that it had to get aid from its former enemies such as the U.S. and South Korea to feed its starving citizens. However, North Korea still has a mighty military which is situated just 50 miles from the North Korean border As a result; it tries to black mail nations such as the United States for food aid and fuel in order to keep the country intact.

The latest black mail tool that North Korea is using is nuclear weapons. Ever since 1994 where the United States almost went to war to stop the North from developing nuclear weapons, the political game has followed a predictable pattern; North Korea does something rash such nuclear weapons testing or missile firing. The South and the U.S. react by giving the North Koreans aid in order for them to be calm. However, this can be a problem for North Korea’s allies and enemies in that North Korea has to get bolder and more obscene in order to be recognize in the international community. This tactic is leading to fatigue to both South Korea and the U.S. in that they are less willing to be blackmailed again and again. however, the U.S. has to deal with the issue in that they rather see a weaken North Korea then a second bloody Korean war that might involve it and China which would be a very messy affair. However, this also leaves the North with little options. A good example of this is what happened today.  North Korea has to get bolder and rasher just to get attention in the international community. First it was nuclear weapons testing. Second came the sinking of a South Korean ship. Now, it is involving an army artillery barrage against a South Korean civilian community. I hope the North Koreans know that there is a limit where you can poke annoyed giant for so long whether it is the massive economy and well manage military of the South Korean government or the massive military of the United States armed services.  I hope they realize this before it is too late, and we find ourselves in another horrific blood bath that would be a second Korean war

Vocabulary words

Barrage

-Noun

A heavy barrier of artillery fire to protect allies or destroy enemy targets

Provocation

–Noun

The act of provoking.

Instigates, angers, or irritates.

.

Wake up and Smell the Roses

The Internet and the telecommunications revolution have revolutionized our society.  Soldier’s can teleconference with their families in middle of a war zone.  A 6^th grader can research the entire history of United States’ Presidents on his or her desktop computer, and a wife can  do her entire Christmas shopping without leaving the house or window shopping to countless malls. However, there have been problems as a result of the Internet.  Some parents now have been spending more time over the Internet.  I often see a mother watching a T.V Soap Opera on some new smart phones rather taking care or playing with her child.  I have also seen friends who date online with people who have not shown pictures of themselves. They only experience heartbreak and misery. Furthermore, the recent craze of online bullying which is becoming an epidemic in the k-12 school system. In some extreme cases, students actually commit suicide because they are treated so badly.

 It seems that people have forgotten to look outside their laptops, smart phones, and televisions in order to experience life outside of the world of cyberspace. We have become too detached to the real world. We need to slip back into realty it is nice to go out and play games with your son or daughter. Go date a girl or a guy on campus rather than searching for one on Face book or on any dating sites. It is much more intimate and rewarding then talking on instant messenger from a person you have no clue on. In other words, people need to have a balance between the real world and the world of cyber space. It is nice once in a while to check email but to do it every day is excessive. Be polite do not read your emails in a middle of a lecture. All Professors hate it when they see a student who is texting rather than learning during one of his or her lectures. Finally, people should take a day off from being connected to the Internet. These electronic devices have off switch to turn off the machine, so use it. Go visit your friends or family. Travel the world, or at least step outside the house. There is an experience unlike anything you have witness over cyberspace. You can smell, you can touch it, and you can interface with it every day of the week. No, it is not a 3d television or the next Avatar movie. It is something called life, and for the people of the human race, you can live it every day with no computer or smart phones. All it requires from you is to simply turn off the machine and step out the door. Welcome to the human experience.

Vocabulary Words

Intimate

-Adjective

 Close in personal relations, very private, very personal

Engaged in sexual relations, privacy and intimacy

Detached

-Adjective

Separated, not attached, disinterested, unbiased

Aloof, not involved, not concerned

Overworked, Underpaid, Unionize

Over the past two years companies have cut jobs, slashed pays, and reduced benefits for employees.  As a result, employees have been overworked, stressed-out, and demoralized with the firings of their fellow coworkers.  They are treated by the apathy of companies as if they are a beaten horse. The companies try to squeeze every ounce of productivity out of their workers to the breaking point. As a consequence, workers are feeling burnt and are becoming less productive.  Companies should try to treat their workers with some respect, gratitude, and some time off to their workers in that they will be productive, efficient, and proud of their work. However, not many businesses treat their workers well. A lot of workers want to work to support their families and themselves. It is not like that every person is a slacker or slowpoke in doing their job, yet some companies try to take advantage of these for non-union employees by giving them little pay and little benefits. 

Workers are then left with little recourse other than to join a union of workers to protect their workers’ rights in that to a company an employee is an expendable asset ready to use and abuse. However, when a company faces a union, they have to deal with a workforce that could bring damage to their company in money and in reputational terms. Even though employees might be scared to lose their jobs in joining a union, it is a real benefit for them to join. They will have other fellow employees to back them up when it comes to the company trying to take an advantage of the workers. Furthermore, the employee will feel empowered in that he or she can do damage to the company over their abuses on their employees. For instance, when the workers for the hotels in San Francisco a few years back had a strike and protested their employers for not giving them a living wage in the most expensive city in California.  The hotels paid a big price in that it cost them money when they didn’t have workers to clean the rooms and assemble the beds.  As a consequence from the resulting hotel workers strike the big hotels relented and finally gave the workers a pay hike so the workers can live reasonably well in the city by the bay.  California workers should unite in order to show the companies that workers are not just some number on a paycheck but rather a living breathing human being.

Vocabulary Words

Apathy

-Noun

absence or suppression of passion, emotion, or excitement.

lack of interest in or concern for things that others find moving or exciting.

Assemble

-Verb

to come together; gather; meet

to put or fit together; put together the parts of

GO GIANTS?

        While I was doing studying in one of my classes, I heard shouting. Giants Win! Giants win! I along with my classmates was all excited to hear the news. The feeling was unbelievable. There was beeping from cars, shouting from fans, and elating strangers who heard the news that our San Francisco Giants won the World Series. Almost everyone was happy to hear the news that the Giants accept of course a few Dodgers Fans. I have never seen the Bay Area so happy and excited since when the last 49niners won the Super bowl back in the 1990s. I think the Bay Area needed this in that with the economy in shambles, most of our teams not doing so well, and the bitter pill of politics in the November 2 election, the region was in deep depression of confidence. I think this win awakened and released pent up emotion to be cheerful and breathe again after so many past disappointments with other teams such as the San Jose Sharks and Oakland Raiders.
        As for the Giants, Even though the Giants fans have repeatedly been disappointed for the last half century dating back to 1954, we have waited patiently to for our uniquely San Francisco Bay Area team to claim that title as the world’s best baseball team. I know because I was watching this team trying for a long time to win this title. I was there watching the television back in 1989 between the Oakland A’s and the San Francisco Giants when the World Serious earthquake struck the Bay Area. They lost to the A’s in a best of seven series. I was also there supporting the Giants in 2002 in the era of Barry Bonds with the bitter and disappointing lost against the Anaheim Angels, which was a very close series. To see our beloved Giants win this World Series to a true fan is like a surreal dream that you think you know what it would look like until you see it. As a true fan for the San Francisco Giants, I wanted to say congratulations to a hard earned World Series. You are now our World Series champions for the San Francisco Bay Area and in the world of baseball. You sweated for it, you fought for, and you earned it. Take it easy guys and enjoy the ride.

Vocabulary words
Verb

Elating
To feel joy, to be prideful

Verb

Awakened
To stop sleeping, to be aroused, to be excited, to be aware of something

I Respectfully Disagree

I have been watching the November election of 2010 for the Congressional and state Governor elections.  It is rather an interesting election cycle: a Delaware newcomer who claims that she is not a witch, a California candidate calling his opponent a whore, and a Nevada Senate candidate who thinks people should barter for health. However, I am concerned about that the level of civility in politics.  I know that politicians tend to demonize their opponents in order to win election. After the elections pass and the winners and losers lick their wounds, the politicians tend to go into normal governing procedure of talking to the other side and making compromises and deals. Unfortunately, I do not see that normal trend in this election. I keep on hearing the Tea Party advocating stopping the government no matter the cost to the country. They argue to shutdown government just as Newt Gingrich, who was a very conservative head of the house in the 1990s, did in 1994. For some of these people, they have been obstinate rather than pragmatic is the order of the day.  If obstruction means getting elected to stop whatever issues that need to be addressed, than they will obstruct which means that the pressing issues that need to be addressed such as the energy, debt, and economic crisis’s will not be solved.  As a consequence, this country will continue to muddle along until a real crisis forces which could cost the big and these political faction to make a deal that nobody wants.  On the contrary, those people who view that politics is mean and nasty should read the history of the Reagan Administration. Even though this Administration was in a period of relative chaotic state of ideologies in the governing policies, they have dealt with Congressional Senators and Representatives with respect and civility. Reagan who had to deal with the Democratic dominated Congress made a dealt on the Issue of Social Security. Even though the conservative Regan and the liberal Democrats were from two different points of the political spectrum, they viewed each other with respect and dignity. Reagan even treated some liberals as friends who argued very intensely during the day and treated each other kindly at night. I hope these future leaders of America can learn from Regan’s example in that they do not need to treat each other as traitors or back stabbers. They should try to focus on the issues and not on the character of his or her opponent. I think then we can finally regain our civilized political discourse that has been missing since the 90s.

Vocabulary Word

Civility

Noun

Plural; ties

courtesy; politeness.

a polite action or expression

Obstruction

Noun

Wall, blocks, barrier

an act or instance of obstructing

Stop Kicking the Can

 I was returning home from a friend’s house to go to work on 880 North, I had a bad run with a pothole which really messed up my front tires and lead to my delay checking in for work.  Every time I go on the San Francisco Bay Area roads there is broken asphalt, potholes, and cracks which happened to ruin my car’s tires.  I am tired to see roads that come from a third world country.  A lot of people complain on this issue, they should have themselves to blame along with the politicians. The United States Highway System was built for defense businesses in the Cold War in the 1950s as a way to provide fast evacuations in case of a nuclear strike.  The road system resulted in economic benefits and a change in life style for Americans.  It was well funded and provided a quality of infrastructure that made America an economic superpower. However, these roads have stopped being maintained in the last four decades with anti-tax revolts and a dogmatic unwillingness to support these massive highway structures form sea to shining sea. This mentality of kicking the can which is delaying maintenance for future generations to pay for it later has resulted in sub par roads.  As a consequence, roads are decaying to the point that it is costing American lives.  The incident in Minnesota in which a bridge collapsed led to the deaths of many people was no accident. Ironically another bridge that is in similar danger is the Brooklyn Bridge.  I wonder a bridge of that much fame might cause us Americans to recognize that kicking the can mentality will result in more deaths.  We have to acknowledge the can cannot be kicked anymore. If you want good roads, you have to pay for it. It will require higher taxes to pay for the roads and firmer commitment to establishing on the state and federal level to properly deal with the back log of roads that need fixing. However, if we do not change, people will have to pay for it in their car bills, and people will die in horrendous situations that should not have been happening.  I think this a solvable situation.

We just need to show people that spending a little money will do a world of good for their lives and their cars.

Dogmatic

–adjective

of, pertaining to, or of the nature of a dogma or dogmas; doctrinal.

asserting opinions in a doctrinaire or arrogant manner; opinionated.

Horrendous

–adjective

shockingly dreadful; horrible: a horrendous crime.

Amazing Race for the Governorship

I have been watching the race for the California governorship between Meg Whitman, a CEO and founder of EBay, and Jerry Moon Beam Brown who was former governor of California in booming and bustling days in the 1970s. It is turning out to be an interesting tenacious race with two distinct sides. Meg Whitman represents the outsider from Silicon Valley who has expertise to run a big corporation. Furthermore, she is also a tough leader who is renowned for her business reforms. On the other side of the political spectrum, Jerry Brown is symbolic of the old school of politics which is more about the state and governance than it is political points today. In addition, he is a great governing governor in his politics in that he helped balance the budget of California in the 1970s when Proposition 13 was voted in effect by Californians who were sick of high taxes at the time. However, the issue with California today is the deadlock in politics in the State capital of Sacramento, for California to have a budget; it needs to be passed by a two-thirds majority in both houses of State government. The law had good intentions at the time, but it is now a big obstacle in that it allows extremist on both sides to block the budget process. Furthermore, the State has made a lot of commitments over the last few decades such as health care, education, and law enforcement. As a result, most of the California’s budget goes to these commitments with no room on how to cut or adjust the budget. Add to this proposition 13 which severally limits the State to generate funding, it adds up to a State that has a lot of unfunded commitments and no way to generate new significant revenue for the State coffers.  Given the circumstances, I think Jerry Brown will be a better fit for the job.  Meg Whitman is a leader and a good reformer when it comes to business, but she does know a lot when it comes to politics in the State of California. We already had an outsider who is currently trying to get something done in the stubborn ideologues of the State Congress.  I think we need someone with experience who has dealt with such ideologues on the State level. Jerry Brown should be governor of California because his skills, experience, and connections I think to get the job done in fixing our state.

Vocabulary words

Tenacious

Adjective

holding fast; characterized by keeping a firm hold (often fol. by of): a tenacious grip on my arm; tenacious of old habits.

highly retentive; a tenacious memory.

pertinacious, persistent, stubborn, or obstinate.

  

holding together; cohesive; not easily pulled asunder; tough

Spectrum

Noun

A broad range of varied but related ideas or objects

The Grass is always Greener

     While I was doing  legal research for one of my classes, I managed to find an article on happiness which confirms that more money does not buy more happiness. It can buy some happiness, but for a lot of people they need more than just money in order to be happy. For many people who want happiness, it is not just money that makes a person content.  For people, it could be affectionate happiness, security happiness, and social status happiness. Affectionate happiness is when a person who receives love and care from others such as relatives, wives, and lovers.  For some people, their estimation is that they will likely give up the material or monetary wealth if they found a person who actually cares and loves them.  This gives a sort of satisfying feeling to the person. As for the security happiness, it is more on safety from being harmed or being abused from forces beyond their control. For people from the developed world such as the United States and Europe, it can be hard to understand. However, people from the war ravage zones or from third-world countries which have problems of rampant corruption and crime security is considered a luxury. They tend to get abused by soldiers in war zones or by criminals who are not deterred by the few corrupt cops who are meant to protect the people, so in a country where there is no war or little to no crime it can be considered happy for them from being harmed by anybody. Even though people might be happy with these two conditions, they might be still unhappy with their social status or social happiness. This is when a person feels happiness on their social order of life or lacking any happiness. A worker from a fast food chain provides a good example: they get paid low wages, they get disrespected by customers, and they are not valued by their boss who treats them as rather expendable pawns.  Compare this to doctors who are generally respected, are paid high wages and are very valued by society in general.  In sum of all these conditions for happiness, it is very rarely that people achieve all four categories. Even though a human being can be happy in all four categories, we are rarely content. We often push for more of everything wealth, love, security, and status.  It is in our very nature to want more and to push for greater happiness. In other words, the grass is always greener mentally in that your next door neighbor always has a nicer house than you, and the other guy always makes more money than you. However, I think people should try to relax and be glad on what they have whether it is wealth, love, money, or status in the context of their lives. Sometimes the greatest happiness is realizing how fortunate you really are with the gifts of your life.

Vocabulary Words

Ravage

verb (used with object)

1.

to work havoc upon; damage or mar by ravages: a face ravaged by grief.

–verb (used without object)

2.

to work havoc; do ruinous damage.

–noun

3.

havoc; ruinous damage: the ravages of war.

4.

devastating or destructive action.

Expendable

–adjective

1.

capable of being expended.

2.

(of an item of equipment or supply) consumed in use or not reusable.

3.

considered to be not worth keeping or maintaining.

4.

Military . (of personnel, equipment, or supplies) capable of being sacrificed in order to accomplish a military objective.

–noun

5.

Usually, expendables. an expendable person or thing.

Déjà Vu

    Ever since grade school, I have been taught that to, read history is to learn the lessons of our ancestors in the hopes of avoiding their mistakes. However, I see many of our leaders whether presidents or Congress seem to repeat the same failures of previous Administrations. The Two wars in the Middle East are a good example of this. The United States has two Armies on foreign soil in the hopes of spreading democracy while a raging insurgency is bent on getting the Americans off its soil. Most people would think this falls under the Vietnam War era, but I think it is more reminiscent of the U.S. occupation in the Philippines at the start of the 20^th century. After defeating the Spanish Empire in the Spanish American war, the U.S. had gain several territories such as Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the island chain of the Philippines. At first, The U.S. government was content letting the Philippines declare its independence. Afterwards, it shifted its focus from one of friendly democratic nation to one where the crusade of reforming the country on American terms and to protect American national and security interests. Therefore, the occupation, which was ultimately successful, cost much treasure and many American’s lives in order to subdue the insurgency to reform the Nation of the Philippines and to protect American interests. Another more relevant example is the forgotten panics of 1903, 1893,and 1873. Before the Great Depression, which forced the federal government to become more active to regulate the markets from such panics, the “Panics” or economic crisis that almost, happened on regular bases in the 19^thcentury. At the time, laissez-faire capitalism was universally popular, and government regulation on the markets was little or nothing at all. Because of the lack of restraints on market forces, the economy suffered a rather painful depression, which in today’s world would be considered a crisis that made many people poor. It was not until the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the Great Depression that followed which forced government to install economic protections in order to prevent another depression in the future. The President and the Congress in the 1930s recognized that this could not continue if the country is to be prosperous in the future. The current leadership seems to forget the mistakes and the lessons of their predecessors. The current struggle of trying to impose an American Style democratic state is at best implausible. As for the economy, the current leaders are advocating again getting rid of new laws that will protect the nation from the repeat of the Great Recession. I think a history lesson or two might help our leaders to become more astute on history in making decisions for this country. Maybe after this lesson on history, we may stop the costly and obscene mistakes of the past from destroying our future.
　
Vocabulary Words
Astute
adjective having or showing an ability to accurately assess situations or people and turn this to one's advantage:an astute businessman
Reminiscent
adjective
tending to remind one of something:the sights were reminiscent of my childhood suggesting something by resemblance:

Riding the Waves of Fortune

      For many people, the future looks bleak. Unemployment is sky high with no clear signs that it is going down.  Credit is tight so almost nobody can get a loan, and people who over leverage themselves are under a sea of red ink with their less than valuable homes.  The fear and despair has become so prevalent that many students and families are considering this a permanent malaise which is strangely reminiscent to the late 1970’s in which America was in a dramatic economic stagflation of high oil prices, little economic activity, and a lot of loss manufacturing jobs to Japan. Back then people thought that the American economy was in a depression. Even the President at the time, Jimmy Carter made his infamous “Malaise Speech” in which he described a “crisis of confidence”. However, after the malaise, the country experienced unprecedented growth in the 1980s and the 1990s.  This fear tends to blind a lot of people to put the economy in perspective.  Ever since World War II, the United States economy has gone through several major contractions or recessions from the relatively mild 2001 recession to the rather painful double-dip recessions of 81 and 82.  Even though people generally are fearful of recessions, they are necessary. Recessions’ help get rid of excesses in the market such as the housing market, and it also expedites changes in the market such as news papers moving from the printed word to the digital web. It also forces companies to become more efficient in their business operations. Try as we might, it will always happen, fortunes will go up and fortunes will go down. This is the case of the business cycle. One recession helps spark the next economic expansion, and no recession no matter how severe lasts forever. It is comparable to a passing storm; it creates havoc and leaves just as soon as it arrives while leaving a mess that result in a cleanup and reorganization.  As for the people who view their future as very bleak, they should take heart in that markets will recover, the credit markets will loosen, and jobs will slowly come back. It is just a matter of riding the waves of fortune.

Vocabulary Words

Havoc

–noun

1.

great destruction or devastation; ruinous damage.

–verb (used with object)

2.

to work havoc upon; devastate.

–verb (used without object)

3.

to work havoc: The fire havocked throughout the house.

—Idioms

4.

cry havoc, to warn of danger or disaster.

5.

play havoc with,

a.

to create confusion or disorder in: The wind played havoc with the papers on the desk.

b.

to destroy; ruin: The bad weather played havoc with our vacation plans.

Expedite

verb, -dit·ed, -dit·ing, adjective

–verb (used with object)

1.

to speed up the progress of; hasten: to expedite shipments.

2.

to accomplish promptly, as a piece of business; dispatch: to expedite one's duties.

3.

to issue or dispatch, as an official document or letter.

–adjective

4.

Obsolete . ready for action; alert.

No Such Thing as a Free Lunch

      The United States is in serious debt. The U.S government owes trillions and trillions of dollars to support its obligations to social security and Medicare. In this year alone, the U.S. Government debt is going to top 13 trillion dollars. However, this explosion of debt did not happen overnight. It started in the 1980s when the Regan administration slashed the taxes from the high taxes of the Carter era. It was at this time that the deficit and public debt was rising significantly because of higher defense spending and the lowering of taxes. However, Regan who was worried about the U.S. public debt toward the end of his term raised taxes in hopes of reducing the deficit. After the Regan Presidency, the U.S. public debt became a concern in the early 1990s in the post defense hangover, George Herbert Bush or Bush 41 tried to cut spending and raise taxes in order to reduce the growing gap of U.S. spending and its tax receipts. However, after the debacle of his “Read my lips” speech, along with his disconnect with the voters, Bill Clinton defeated him in the 1992 Presidential election. In mid to late 90s, Clinton along with the Republican Congress manage to strike a deal of keeping spending in check and using pay as you go rules which requires a Senator or Representative to either cut money out of a program or raise taxes to fund a new program or initiative. The pay as you go rules and a booming economy of the late 90s help created a surplus. However, by the start of the 2000’s, this surplus would end with a recession of in 2001, a massive trillion-dollar Bush tax, and two long expensive wars. The pay as you go rules also expired around the early 2000s, which leads the U.S. into its current problems with debt.
      Fortunately, this massive debt problem is solvable, but for some people it will require the dreaded word “sacrifice”. The system cannot sustain the Bush tax cuts while keeping current entitlements the way they were. This would require higher taxes and cutting entitlement spending. Many people think it cannot be done, but it can be done. In the early 1980s, the very conservative Ronald Regan and the very liberal, at the time, Congress were able to make a deal on adjusting Social Security benefits to keep it sufficient for decades. In addition, we also have to recognize that taxes have to come up in order to make up the rest of the deficit. It may require a reforming the tax system including raising taxes in order to raise a significant amount of income for the Federal Government. In addition, the Congress needs to go back to "Pay as you go" Even though in the media presents that the U.S. is drowning in a sea full of red ink, this massive debt problem can be solved. It is only a matter of time whether this will be solved in a crisis or bargaining between the President and the Congress. In order for the U.S. to continue its great prosperity, it must make adjustments on its entitlements, taxes, and pay down the debt that we so much to the world. As I said, there is no such thing as a free lunch.

Vocabulary Word
Initiative noun
1.
an introductory act or step; leading action: to take the initiative in making friends.
2.
readiness and ability in initiating action; enterprise: to lack initiative.
3.
one's personal, responsible decision: to act on one's own initiative.
4.
Government .
a.
a procedure by which a specified number of voters may propose a statute, constitutional amendment, or ordinance, and compel a popular vote on its adoption.
b.
the general right or ability to present a new bill or measure, as in a legislature.
　
Sufficientadjective
1.
adequate for the purpose; enough: sufficient proof; sufficient protection.
2.
Logic . (of a condition) such that its existence leads to the occurrence of a given event or the existence of a given thing.

The Fog of History

     The average person tends to view history in rather clear cut views. We generally accept the history when we are taught through our teachers from grade school through college. For example, most Americans know of the simplistic view of the American Revolution, in that the Founding Fathers such as George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, etc were the ones who started, fought, and won the Revolution. Furthermore, the general belief that the people who fought for the revolution where rich, white, Anglo-Saxon farmers. However, the American Revolution was fought by people of all classes, sexes, and races. For example, Margaret Corbin was a woman who fought in the American Revolution. She fought along side her husband in defending Fort Washington. Corbin went so far as to firing a cannon in the middle of a battle in order to defend the fort. After her death in 1800, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) made a mural to remember the Margaret Corbin for her heroics in the American Revolutionary War. Another example is the penniless Ezekiel Brown. In the book, The Unknown American Revolution by Gary Nash, Nash described Brown as “ ‘ With little or nothing to lose,’ as he (brown) later related, joined up. Landless before the Revolution, a foot soldier in the army of ‘Strolling Poor’. Half of the sixteen men who signed up from Concord in the first five years of the war were much like Ezekiel Brown.” ( Nash,  218). A lot of the minute men were not always rich, white men. Much of these men were of different nature stateless drifting from town to town with no real purpose until the Revolution came along. While the white colonist wanted to protect their independence from oppression from Great Britain, others wanted to gain their freedom by proving themselves in battle. Salem Poor is another example. Poor was a slave who joined the Continental Army Army with his master in the hopes of earning his freedom(Nash, 225). Poor earned an impressive record of battle. He fought in such battles as Bunker Hill and White Plains. After the war, his comrades fought to grant Poor his freedom which he received. He savored his last days as a free farming man(Nash, 225). We often admire the people who do such great things in life and in history, but some of the greatest stories and tales are the ones that are not told. The American Revolution did not just involve the white or the rich . It was a Revolution that consisted of many a people of varied backgrounds who wanted a dream of freedom from oppression, freedom from fear, and the freedom to decide their own fate in this New World.

Work Cited

Nash, B Gary. The Unknown American Revolution. New York: Penguin Books, 2005.

     Profile of Margaret Corbin. Find a Grave. 7 Sept. 2010

         <http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=231>

Vocabulary Words

Heroics

–adjective



suitable to the character of a hero in size or concept; daring; noble: a heroic ambition.



having or displaying the character or attributes of a hero; extraordinarily bold, altruistic, determined, etc.: a heroic explorer.



having or involving recourse to boldness, daring, or extreme measures: Heroic measures were taken to save his life.



Simplistic

–adjective

characterized by extreme simplism; oversimplified: a simplistic notion of good and bad.

Introduction

      My Name is Jaime Medeiros. I am a first generation Portuguese American. My parents immigrated from the Portuguese Azores, a chain of volcanic islands in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, to San Jose, California, in the 1960’s which was Farm country at the time. They have since raised a family of five of which I was born the fourth child. I was an honor student in Mission for several semesters. I managed to get my AA Degree last year in 2009 from mission college. Afterwards, I transferred to San Jose State University in order to get a BA degree in Political Science, although there are obstacles that are in my way such as my supporting my parents, paying the school tuition, and keeping my car running. I am confident that I will succeed in getting my degree. I grew up with a passion for sports mainly tennis, bowling, baseball. In addition, I love to read lots of books and magazines Anything from Encounters: With the Middle East to magazines such as Popular Mechanics and Time Magazine that involves critical discussion and science. However, my main interest is political science which is the analysis study of the workings of Government and why things are structure the way they are. I feel that one person through hard work and tenacity can make a difference within government to make life better for people. Whether it is paving roads, providing healthcare, or reforming the system of government. For instance, Bill Clinton helped balance the budget and Barrack Obama reformed the banking system and healthcare system that needed reform. I will hopefully get my BA in Political Science in the fall of 2011. However, I need to get better in my writing, so that is why I am taking this writing class for political science majors, for it will help me to write better so I can convey my message to the people. Afterwards, I will try to apply to a number of law schools in the Bay Area to become an attorney. In the far future, when I mature and become a successful man, I will be campaigning for an assembly seat in the California State Assembly. At that time, I will probably look back at my life of struggles and reflect how I went from a shy little Portuguese boy to a state assembly men serving the people of California.


Vocabulary words



Analysis

The separation of an intellectual or material whole into its constituent parts for individual study. The study of such constituent parts and their interrelationships in making up a whole. A spoken or written presentation of such study: published an analysis of poetic meter.




Convey

To take or carry from one place to another; transport. To serve as a medium of transmission for; transmit: wires that convey electricity. To communicate or make known; impart: "a look intended to convey sympathetic comprehension" (Saki). Law. To transfer ownership of or title to. Archaic. To steal.



Source

http://www.answers.com/topic/analysis