Illegal Immigration

Although it hasn’t been discussed much during the presidential campaign, I’m still concerned with securing our borders and monitoring the number of illegals that cross our border everyday. To me it just doesn’t make sense, we have politicians that give this issue lip service but do nothing. Some talk about building a 10 foot concrete wall. Well, forgive me, but that simply won’t do the job. Their behavior continues to be a problem with issues of "bacteria, noise, and confrontational behavior". Even in the face of this information our elected representatives have done nothing to stop the daily border runs that are made by the Canada Goose.

A Wink and a Smile...

So, last night The Office was not on and instead the network aired the Vice Presidential Debate between Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Joseph Biden. I was disappointed but took comfort in the fact that presidential politics are almost as funny or funnier that most sitcoms on TV today. When the debate was over, I thought both did well. Biden avoided any major gaffes and Palin didn’t repeat the embarrassing performance she put on in the Katie Couric interview. I think Palin helped her ticket and those that were supporting her before the debate, were pleased to see her hold her own.

For me what was most interesting about the debate was Palin herself. My favorites came down to three observations:

First, I thought it was interesting that she started out by making it clear that she wasn’t all that interested in answering the questions posed by the moderator. Maybe that’s part of being a maverick…showing up for a debate, but deciding not to debate and just go over the standard stump speech, mixed with prepared comments that have been drilled into her head by the campaign leading up to the debate. Her direct quote was…"I may not answer the questions that either the moderator or you want to hear, but I'm going to talk straight to the American people and let them know my track record". When she said this…I literally laughed out loud. Why even come to the debate then?

Second, I tried to keep track of the number of times she said “maverick”. I lost track. This might be a new pattern…just repeat the same word over and over. For Obama, it’s the word “change”. For Palin, it’s “maverick”. And John McCain, it’s “General David Petraus”. In the first presidential debate, I thought maybe Petraus had replaced Palin as McCain’s running mate.

Third, I was curious to see Palin use such down home language throughout the debate and when addressing such serious national issues. A few examples:
Regarding Tax cuts: "Darn right, we need tax relief"
A barometer for the strength of our economy: "I'll betcha go to a kids' soccer game on Saturday and turn to any parent there on the sideline."
On the cause of the mortgage crisis: "Darn right, it was the predator lenders."

I mean, between the “bless their hearts”, “say it ain’t so”, “I’m gonna”, “I’ll betcha”, “darn right” and “dog gone” quips, there were plenty of winks to the camera. It was endearing in a way, but almost felt like she was playing a part or character rather than showcasing to the country that she is prepared if called to step in and serve as the leader of the free world.

But who knows. John McCain says that out of the entire Republican Party, she is best prepared and equipped to be a heartbeat away from the Presidency…I guess we as a people will determine if we agree.

Back from the dead...

Take heart you three persons who still check to see if this site is updated from time to time…Phil Osepher is not dead. However, I have been away for a while and have been unable to update my blog as often as some would like. I suppose the reasons for my posting hiatus are three in number.

First, I took a blogging sabbatical. During this sabbatical, I did some research and some writing (not online of course) and just took some time for personal reflection so as to come back to with a fervor and blogging vigor that had began to wane in the months leading to my break.

Second, I got sucked into facebook. Being a little late to this online party, I had a significant learning curve and found that if I had a few minutes, I’d checkout my facebook…rather than posting the random and often incoherent thoughts that were rolling around in my head.

Third, I kind of got bored with the whole blogging thing…and just didn’t feel like posting.

But for now…we’re back in business and I hope to post on a weekly basis.

Hugs and Kisses,

Phil O.

3.7 Billion Dollars

That is what one man earned in 2007 according to the Boston Globe. 3,700,000,000.
No, not a company, one man earned that much money. Yep, a far cry from minimum wage... John Paulson, a hedge fund manager who predicted the subprime lending crisis would happen and thus resulted in massive foreclosures on home mortgages, led as the top earner among hedge fund managers. The top five managers all earned over a billion dollars in income. There’s just no getting around it…that’s a lot of money. Just for fun let’s consider how much that is…

$ 308,333,333. a month
$ 71,153,846. a week
$ 10,136,986. a day
$ 422,374. an hour
$ 7,039. a min

Now, some might feel that Mr. Paulson was overpaid…so let me pose a question: What do you suppose would justify earning that kind of salary in a calendar year?

I love SNL...

A Random Thought…

If I had a pet llama…I’m pretty sure I’d name her Dolly.

I’ve sold my soul…

Tonight at approximately 8:29pm eastern standard time, on April 7, in the year of our Lord 2008…I created a facebook account. While the rational for such a decision is obviously multifaceted, the end result is that I have joined the collective. Resistance, it appears, is indeed futile.

I feel dirty.