Continuing Incoherence?

(ONNpolitics) -- On Wednesday, President Bush revealed a four-point strategy to combat rising gas prices. In his message, Bush took aim at congressional Democrats in his advocacy of "boosting domestic oil production" and decreasing America's dependence on foreign oil.

In a plan that is urged to be passed by Congress, the Bush Administration lays out calls for lifting the 27-year ban on off-shore oil exploration, and drilling in the protected Arctic National Wildlife refuge. Acknowledging that the immediate effects will be minimum, Bush stands by his position to allow drilling in these protected areas.

The President says that Dems have ignored his repeated calls to reduce America's pain at the pump. However, the problem with the Bush energy plan is that it continues to ignore the American people, even though it is being marketed to benefit the average citizen.

It remains unknown, if by the time oil is retrieved from the protected areas, which ranges from 5-10 years , that the benefits out weigh damage to the environment. Furthermore, in the amount of time it takes to retrieve the oil from the outlined areas, gas is being projected to have risen to more than $10-per-gallon, giving room for the gains to do little.

Untold in the Bush outline is that the government has already given the "thumbs-up" for oil companies to drill on federally leased land that contains more than 100 billion barrels of oil, that no one is drilling for.

So why call for a lift on bans to allow drilling for only 18 billion barrels, when 100 billion barrels are untapped?

In my opinion, this is yet another special interest policy proposal, by the Bush Administration, that takes advantage of public misfortune (the plea of Americans to the government to reduce high energy costs), while seeking to line the pockets of "Big Business".

Any rational economist will attest to the fact that domestic drilling will do little for Americans who are hurting now. Why the Administration would outline such a plan becomes amazingly obvious when we look to whose the beneficiary in this proposal. Truth is that the immediate effects of the proposed plan will further boost the profitability of oil companies by allowing them to expand resources.

With all respect to the President, in his office, his plan is enormously flawed and heavily vested in the interest of oil companies, not the American citizens. We don't need anymore incoherent leadership coupled with flawed policy proposals. America is in a tragic state, and the traditional Bush policy is digging us into a deeper hole.

"Highway Robbery"

(ONNsociety) -- In today's fight against crime, law enforcement agents are cashing in on civil forfeiter laws -- statutes allowing government officials to seize a citizens money based on a suspicion of illegal connection to a crime. In such cases of civil forfeiter, a citizen never has to be convicted of a crime in order to have his money seized by the government, only that the law enforcement agent establish "preponderance of the evidence," which is easier to prove than a criminal case that establishes "beyond reasonable doubt."

The intent of the laws are to stop the flow of "drug money" in order to slow the power of drug cartels. But, in many instances where citizens are shaken down without being convicted of a crime, it amounts to "highway robbery."

In fact, robbery is what is taking place on the highways of America everyday. Although, the culprits are not the usual suspects -- they are our trusted law enforcement agents.

Scenario: A man [Person A] is carrying $6,500 to purchase a vehicle from a friend [Person B] across town, who only will accept cash. The man [Person A] is a store owner who handles cash from the public on a daily basis. While in route, the man [Person A ] is pulled over for speeding by an officer [Person C]. The officer [Person C] asks: "Sir, do you have any weapons; illegal drugs; or large amounts of cash in the car that I should know about?" The man [Person A] answers: "Yes. I have $6,500 that I am intending to use to purchase a vehicle from a friend."

At this point the officer [Person C] calls in a K9, who is specially trained to detect the presence of drug residue. The animal arrives and detects the presence of drug residue on the man's [Person A] assets, thus establishing enough probable cause for the man [Person A] to have his assets seized by the State and turned over to the agents departmental budget. The man [Person A] will never be charged with a crime and probably won't see his money again, as the cost of litigation will far exceed the value of his assets. Furthermore, even if he had the assets to challenge the state, there is no guarantee he [Person A] will win his case.

The problem with civil forfeiter laws is that citizens are automatically assumed guilty until proven innocent -- they are assumed to be drug dealers. But, in all reality their civil rights have been violated.

Based on "eminent domain" and "due process" rights in the U.S. Constitution, the government cannot take personal property without due process. In this case the state has taken property without establishing guilt, and is protecting itself by the inability of the citizen to litigate the matter due to the lack of personal fortune.

In 2000, Congress passed the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act , or CAFRA, to combat the corruption that took place in the 1990's as a result of civil forfeiture laws. The government maintains that the reform worked, and that it raised the burden of proof before agents could seize property. However, I would argue that there remains a serious access issue, when normal citizens are unable to litigate such cases because of the high cost of securing sufficient legal counsel. This further violates a citizens right to due process, thus making the case to all-out ban civil forfeiture laws.

The issue amounts to an abuse of power, that is shielded by the labyrinth of the justice system. Civil forfeiter laws have allowed local law enforcement agents to run a legal criminal enterprise that needs to be heard by the high court to decide the constitutionality of these cases. I can only hope that the court decide what is right, and not punish honest citizens in the process of trying to deflate the power of drug cartels.

For more information on this subject, check out NPR >>>

"What can I say, its Monday..."

Today is a rather sobering day... Its Monday. Oil hit $140 today. The midwest is still flooded. The USDollar continues its weak showing against European currencies, and we're off the back of loosing one of our nation's most prestegious journalist -- Tim Russert.

So, with all this gloom, I am pleased to announce the unveiling of Honda's next generation automobile... This should mark the beginning of a new trend. Read>>>

Study: Republicans 'demoralized' After The Bush Years

(ONNpolitics) -- A new poll released today shows an uphill battle for GOP Presidential nominee, John McCain. The study reported that only 37% of GOP voters are enthusiastic about voting this year. CNN political analyst, Bill Schneider says that Republicans are "demoralized" by eight years of the Bush presidency.

GOP demoralized???

"Let the smearing begin..."

(ONNpolitics) -- We all know that you can't have campaign season without mudslinging and desperate attempts at destroying a candidates image. Its a staple of the American political system, and truth is -- it wouldn't seem right without it. But, this round of presidential bidding has to be the worst ever, as it has taken on vicious rumors that voters will cling to when they go to the polls in the Fall.

The problem with campaign rumors is that most blue-collard Americans get their news via word of mouth; local news; or local news paper. Within these media forms there is little effort to put down rumors. Although, at times it is easier to pick them up.

With blue-collard Americans being an important swing vote in this election, the rumors matter, and this is why we've seen a steady stream of rumors coming from the right, to attack, Democratic presidential nominee, Barack Obama.

Senetor Obama has to take these rumors seriously, as he stands to loose valuable votes, due to ignorance and the fact that people are getting these rumors from people they trust. Its like the old adage "if a lie is told often, it becomes truth..." This is the mind state we are dealing with here.

Since Barack Obama launched his presidential campaign back in 2007, there has been numerous attempts to paint him into a corner with one rumor after another. He's been a Muslim, an atheist, a flag hater, the anti-Christ, and many others. Now the latest edition of right-winged rumors is aimed at his wife, Michelle Obama.

Rush Limbaugh, a popular conservative morning radio talk show host, made mention of a secret tape showing Michelle Obama using the term "whitey". This news sparked a media frenzy on Conservative television, sending the "shouting heads" into a panic.

The problem, however, was that the taped never surfaced, and I doubt it ever will. As in any genre of media, sleazy or not, if the source isn't quoted, then, there's a "dead cat on the line". But, the average listener or viewer of "sleazy" programming won't pick up on this fact. All they know is that "it was on T.V." or "It was on Limbaugh", so its true.

In reaction to the vicious rumor mill, that seems to crank out this stuff every couple weeks, Obama has launched fightthesmears.com, a new age way of dealing with one of politics oldest tricks.

Fightthesmear.com attacks some of the most damaging rumors floating around about the candidate including, the Muslim rumor, and the most recent aimed at his wife. It's an innovative approach, to say the least, but I doubt it will reach the demographic that is influenced the most by these rumors.

Taking this step is a serious effort to combat the situation. Obama needs to put the rumors on "front street", to expose the manner of ignorance that threatens to cause him votes in November.

In the end, I don't think any candidate has immunity to rumors or smearing, but the ones aimed at Obama have been some of the lowest, because they deal with one of America's trickiest subjects - "race". I believe he'll get past them, but as he has started to do, he has to take them seriously.

Israel to Iran: "[We] will attack"

(ONNpolitics) -- Israel, in its recent statements, is poised to launch a military strike against Iran, unless the country halts its nuclear enrichment program.

For months now, the international community has been up-in-arms over the ambiguity of Iran's nuclear enrichment program, which its officials say is "not" intended to produce nuclear warheads.

The U.S and Israel, alike, are positioning to act beyond international sanctions, coordinating, as released by Israel's recent statement, to put down Iran's nuclear intention, rather they be energy centered or not.

The implications of an Iranian strike is understood, by the Israeli government to antagonize retaliation, and thus is said to lead to the "destruction of the Iranian nation". Nuclear Attack?

Historic Event - He did it pt. 1

(ONNpolitics) -- May 3, 2008, marked the dawn of a new era in American history. Sen. Barack Obama has finally crossed the threshold of delegates to be named the Democratic Presidential nominee. For many, they said it was impossible, but he defied odds by defeating the Clinton political machine.

Tuesday was a historical night - standing before a cheering crowd in St. Paul, Minnesota, Obama was officially the first black man to secure any major partisan nomination for President in the United States.

News came after a long wait on last night, as a slow stream of delegates came rolling in to tip the scales in his favor around 9:00 pm est.

Obama has no doubt silenced the critics with his win and now looks forward to facing Sen. John McCain, presumptive Republican nominee, in the Fall elections.