Day744 Tuesday 09/11/12

ran 3.1 miles

Here we are eleven years later in the video below hearing from delegates at the Democratic National Convention.

2,080 miles from Lafayette, LA to Washington D.C. and back + 251.5

Here is what happened one year ago on Day379.

Here is what happened two years ago on Day13.

Day675 Wednesday 07/04/12

ran 3.4 miles

Happy Fourth of July!

This is the same post I did last year for Independence Day. I thought it would be worth mentioning once more just how much was risked for America to gain its independence and how much we have to be thankful for through the sacrifices of the men and women of that time who dared to challenge the severe consequences awaiting them should they have failed. I am doubtful that the men who drafted and signed the Declaration of Independence would be proud of their nation over two hundred years later considering how much our current president disapproves of their ideas.

Here is some history about Independence Day:

Today is the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. In 1776, our founding fathers came together, despite numerous fears and differences, and forged the document that has guided our nation to the freedoms and opportunities we all experience 236 years later.

There are many interesting details and stories surrounding the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but these are a couple of lesser known facts you may not realize. For one thing, when those men decided to sign that document they made a decision that would have had them shot or hung if they were unable to win the Revolutionary War they were currently fighting. It was a gamble and, while the odds were not on their side, providence and destiny were.

Ask yourself if you would have done it. Would you have signed a document that utterly defied the King of what was arguably the world power at the time? Could you have placed such a wager on your own head, on your family, on your fellow men and women, to risk everything for an idea you passionately believed in?

The men who signed the Declaration of Independence figuratively signed their names in blood, and if America had not won the Revolutionary War then the signers of that monumental document would have been hunted down and made examples of.

But we did win, with all odds against us, and I firmly believe it was providence and not chance.

One other interesting piece of history surrounding the Declaration of Independence is the final days surrounding the lives of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. It was on this day in 1826, the fourth of July, the anniversary of the day both of these men had signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776, that they both died within five hours of one another.

Jefferson and Adams were the final surviving members of the original American revolutionaries who signed the Declaration of Independence. They shared a common cause in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; however, as time went on they differed more and more on how to achieve the American vision. Both men having served as presidents, Adams believed in a strong centralized government and Jefferson believed in a weaker federal government with more rights deferred to individual states.

Through years of heated arguments and differences, an animosity that had led to years of silence between the two ex-presidents, John Adams made the decision to contact Thomas Jefferson in 1812, wishing him many happy years to come. Thomas Jefferson responded with kind words and the two founding fathers looked past their differences and rekindled the friendship they had once had.

On July 4, 1826, at the age of 90, John Adams died. His last words were “Thomas Jefferson still survives”. But he was mistaken. Jefferson had died five hours before in Monticello at the age of 82.

2,080 miles from Lafayette, LA to Washington D.C. and back + 23.8

Here is what happened one year ago on Day310.

Day599 Thursday 04/19/12

ran 3.3 miles

On this day in 1775, 700 British troops marched into Lexington on a mission to capture Patriot leaders and to seize their arsenal.  What they found was 77 armed minutemen led by Captain John Parker awaiting them in the city.  British Major John Pitcairn ordered the highly outnumbered Patriots to fall back.  After a brief hesitation, the minutemen began falling back until one unknown soldier took it upon himself to fire his gun toward the British.  This became known in history books as the “shot heard around the world”.  Within seconds, musket smoke blotted the battlefield.  By the end of the battle 8 minutemen were dead and 10 were wounded.  One British soldier was injured.

Then came Concord.  The British aimed to capture Samuel Adams and John Hancock.  Warned by Paul Revere and William Dawes that the British were coming Adams and Hancock fled and were able to escape. 

When the British troops reached Concord they were encircled by hundreds of armed Patriots.  A battle ensued forcing Lieutenant Colonel Frances Smith to pull his British troops away and to retreat back to Boston.  Retracing a 16-mile journey, the British were constantly fired upon by Patriots waiting for them in hiding along the path of retreat.  Finally reaching Boston, the British had nearly 300 casualties and the Patriots had less than 100.

The battles of Lexington and Concord were the first battles of the American Revolution, which ultimately gave birth to the United States of America.

I wonder what these brave, rugged individuals who fought and died for the opportunity to embrace freedom and to escape the tyranny of overbearing government would think of America today.

230.9 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day234.

Day550 Thursday 03/01/12

ran 3.8 miles
On this day, in 1781, the Articles of Confederation were ratified. These Articles were signed by Congress and issued to each state on November 15, 1777, after sixteen months of deliberation and argument. Due to land claims between Virginia and Maryland the final ratification by all states took nearly four years. The Articles of Confederation are something you don’t hear about often but they were the first attempt at what is currently our United States Constitution.

Our current United States Constitution became law mere years later in 1789. The difference between the Articles and the Constitution are defined most easily by their opening statements.

Articles of Confederation:

“To all to whom these Present shall come, we the undersigned Delegates of the States…”

U.S. Constitution:

“We the people of the United States do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

The Articles of Confederation had clearly set out to give states sovereignty, or the undisputed executive ability to make their own decisions regardless of what directions fellow states took.

Articles of Confederation, Article II:

"Each state retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is not by this Confederation expressly delegated to the United States, in Congress assembled."

America had overthrown its own government for a second time in a little over twenty years. What had began as a confederation of sovereign states had quickly turned into a federal government of sovereign people.

In that brief period of time, America went from serving a sovereign king, to freely living in sovereign states, to freely living as a united sovereign people under a federal government.

It is interesting to note how history tends to repeat itself. Here in 2012, under President Barack Obama, many states are independently seeking to utilize what sovereignty they have left to avoid some of his more controversial legislation. The health care act has more than half of the states in America seeking an interstate compact to avoid Obama’s one-size-fits-all plan. The contraception mandate has an equal amount of states scrambling to define their own sovereign positions on the issue.

King George enraged the American colonies to seek independence and Americans formed a new government model on the foundation of states making their own decisions. Soon after, American leaders found more virtue in an equally united people under a federal government. And here we are now, divided as can be, with one handful of states doing everything they can to avoid some of the decisions the federal government is mandating and the others fully supporting the key legislation of the last three years.

Under President Obama, the Articles of Confederation look like a great idea to a great many, just as independence did from King George.

393.1 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day185.

Day494 Thursday 01/05/12

ran 3.5 miles
On this day in history, President Harry Truman gave his “Fair Deal” speech in the form of his State of the Union address. The year was 1949 and Truman declared that every American deserves a fair deal from their government.

Sound like a familiar idea here in 2012? I agree every American, every legal American, deserves a fair deal, in which they have every opportunity any other individual has, but that “fair deal” or opportunity has nothing to do with the federal government granting it.

President Harry Truman laid out a plan for domestic policy reforms including nationalized health insurance, public housing, civil rights legislation, federal aid to education, increased minimum wage, government assistance to farmers, extension of Social Security, and immediate anti-discrimination policies regarding employment.

I’m not suggesting these are bad ideas but the ruthless haste most presidents use in implementing their ideas far too often leaves a wake of unexpected disaster elsewhere. Barack Obama’s use of stimulus packages and introducing his health care bill in the first half of his term amidst a full blown recession are two examples of cramming futility down the throat of logic. Many would argue things would be worse had he not invested so many monopoly money tax dollars into so many things that have unraveled as complete failures; I would argue that if he had invested in resources and technology, such as drilling for oil, that we as a nation already have a firm grasp on then his stimulus package could have been a success rather than a monumental failure.

In 1949, much like in 2012, politics were shifting to the right and anti-communist sentiment was increasingly slowing down Truman’s agenda, just as Barack Obama’s agenda is becoming more and more difficult to fulfill. The “Fair Deal” was being interpreted more and more as socialism by Americans.

In Truman’s second term minimum wage was almost doubled, he succeeded with his “Housing Act”, which provided 800,000 new houses for the poor, and Congress approved his extension of Social Security benefits. As far as nationalized health care was concerned, Congress obviously rejected the idea.

In 1950, the Korean War and the Cold War were too big of distractions for Truman to pursue his more important domestic interests any longer.

What was the theme of that speech Obama gave last month in Osawatomie, Kansas? “Fair Deal”, was it? No, it was the “Fair Shot” speech.

576.3 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day129.

Day482 Saturday 12/24/11

ran 3.5 miles
Merry Christmas Eve!!!

It was on this day in 2009, yes, on Christmas Eve, that the Senate passed the controversial health care reform bill, which is Barack Obama’s top domestic achievement (or failure, depending upon whose side you’re on).

While America was trying to embrace and celebrate Christmas and rightfully paying little attention to politics, the Senate slipped this thing through at the most opportune time of the year excluding Christmas day itself.

The vote was 60 to 39. Every single Democrat voted for it and every single Republican opposed it (Republican Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky, who opposed the bill, was the only Senator to skip the vote).

Less than a year later the mid-term elections were held and what used to be 60 Democratic seats is now only 51.

The House had passed the bill a month earlier 220-215. Representative Joseph Cao of Louisiana was the only House Republican to vote for the measure.

One year later the mid-term elections were held and there are currently 242 Republicans and 192 Democrats in the House.

Looks like a case of voter’s remorse. Things certainly haven’t gotten much better, but take a look at the possibilities of where we would be today had Barack Obama walked out of the mid-terms unscathed, or unshellacked, continuing with a significant Democratic majority in the Senate and control of the House for another two years.

What has changed to prevent another mass exit for liberals in 2012? The liberal trend lately is for them to detach themselves from Barack Obama and his legislation in order to get elected or reelected. Republicans have not changed a whole lot of America’s immediate direction but they have certainly succeeded in linking their arms together to create an obstacle for Barack Obama and his endless spending. That is enough for me until we get a new president in 2012.

Someone Else is his or her name at this point and anyone of the candidates we have to choose from will be better than the spending administration we have now.

616.8 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day117.

Day430 Wednesday 11/02/11

ran 3.2 miles
It was on this day one year ago that Americans cast their votes during the midterm elections to claim sixty Republican House seats, six Republican Senate seats, and seven Republican governorships. Obama deemed this defeat a “shellacking”. I think he could have used a more severe term.

Ultimately, this shellacking represented a national rejection of his first two years, in which he had a Democratic majority in the House and Senate, when he could have passed more efficient and productive legislation. Instead, he signed Obamacare and divvied up a stimulus package the size of which our minds are not even capable of comprehending without illustrations of football fields with pallets of hundred dollar bills stacked up against skyscrapers. Now, he wants a jobs bill, which is another stimulus package. The only plus is that it will not amount to quite as many skyscraper-sized football fields of money stacked on pallets. It is not as much money, but our president will probably not be allocating as many billions of tax-dollars to solar companies that go belly-up as hundreds of people lose their jobs and the few guys left at the top walk away with golden parachutes paid for by the tax-payers.

Barack Obama has outspent Bush, who he had so harshly criticized during his campaign and constantly blames for so many of our problems, in two and one-half years. Bush had eight years.

If you want people to follow you, you must lead by example. There are a lot of people in this country who balance their budgets despite how irresponsible our president and our congress have been. We do not have credit cards that allow us to purchase things that future generations pay for. The federal government seems to believe they do have one of these elusive credit cards. There are few other scenarios in a practical world in which a person, a business, or a government can spend to this extent, devaluing their own dollars at a rate that so far exceeds logic and progress, as that which is occurring in America right now.

We had momentum in 2010 and an important message was sent to Washington D.C. Stronger momentum is necessary to continue that message in 2012.

789.4 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day65.

Day416 Wednesday 10/19/11

ran 4.3 miles

I’m going to defer on tackling the news of the day and jump back into history tonight. Something fun and interesting. It is one of many examples of historic global ironies, in which the humble, universal human element is blinded by pride and power.

On this day in history in 1958, the first world’s fair was held since before World War II in Brussels, Belgium. The theme was “A World View, A New Humanism”. Forty-two million people had visited from all over the world. The fair was intended to celebrate the common struggles of the human condition and to move forward with peace. Recently ripped apart by war, the idea of peace and equality was quite popular, yet the nations of the world were now in the grasps of the Cold War.

The United States and the Soviets, the two undisputed world powers at the time found opportunity, however, in exhibiting their own unique world views and inherent greatness. Both sides viewed this world’s fair as a competition with one another, a battle to be won. Located directly across from one another, their exhibits were clearly in direct competition for the approval of the world.

The Soviets focused on technological and scientific feats of their communist state. A full-scale model of Sputnik I, the unmanned satellite launched into orbit by the Soviets in 1957, was the headlining piece of their exhibition. America, on the other hand, depicted the common life of Americans. Voting booths, the latest fashions modeled by attractive women, modern furniture and flashy appliances were all in bulk. The centerpiece for the United States was the full-scale construction of an American “Main Street”.

Here is the irony. This face-off between these two world powers ended with a result of Czechoslavakia winning first place for the best exhibition.

836.3 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day51.

Day408 Tuesday 10/11/11

ran 4.2 miles
On this day in history, in 2002, Jimmy Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize. This is one of many reasons the award, which was established by Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), has arguably lost much of its integrity as a consequence of some certain individuals whom have earned the award.

Barack Obama also won this award during the first year of his presidency…for reasons I would argue are extremely questionable and borderline nonexistent. Whoever the runner-up was had to have been disappointed because if the only thing they did was walk an elderly woman across a street then they should have been distinguished over Barack Obama.

The award comes with a one million dollar prize, which makes it ironic that both of these individuals were American presidents who had such tunnel visions of humanity and equality that they failed to see how damaging their agendas were to the United States in a larger picture. Spreading their socialistic agendas and selling utopian ideas that only set the principles of a nation like America aside to be ignored earned these two individuals one million dollars each.In Carter’s defense, the man has performed many humanitarian actions and has contributed to the well-being of suffering people…but, his passion and his ideas made him, arguably, one of the worst presidents in history and I think Barack Obama is going to have the same one-term fate and categorically disappointing impact in American history.

860.9 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day43.

Day389 Thursday 09/22/11

ran 3.7 miles

Big debate tonight in Orlando, Florida. I’m trying to finish tonight’s post so I can watch it live. Here is some history on the Florida debate/straw poll and why it is so important. The Republican Party of Florida has a unique ability to successfully pick the final Republican Presidential nominee. Tonight’s debate is the fifth since 1979. Florida is arguably America’s most significant swing state making it an important battleground for presidential candidates.

On November 12, 1979, Florida had its first Republican Presidency straw poll and Ronald Reagan was named the winner. Reagan went on to receive the national party nomination and defeated Jimmy Carter in 1980.

On November 14, 1987, Florida held a second straw poll. George H.W. Bush won and eventually went on to defeat Michael Dukakis in 1988.

Florida’s third Republican presidency straw poll took place on November 18, 1995. Bob Dole won the straw poll and went on to win the national party nomination. He was defeated by Bill Clinton in 1996.

For reasons I am unaware of, the fourth straw poll portion of the Florida Republican debate was nixed. The fourth debate included John McCain, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Tom Tancredo, Ron Paul and Duncan Hunter. There was no straw poll but the debate was obviously instrumental on the campaign trail.

And here we are at the fifth Republican Presidential debate and straw poll. Tonight is high stakes and the candidate who wins this straw poll is going to emerge with a substantial lead if history continues to repeat itself.

924.0 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day24.

Day318 Wednesday 07/13/11

ran 3.6 miles
On this day in history, in 1960, John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts was nominated for the presidency of the United States of America by the Democratic Party Convention. He defeated Senator Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas and, on the next day, Johnson was named Kennedy’s running mate by a unanimous vote of the convention.

On November 8 of 1960, Kennedy won 49.7% of the popular vote in one of the closest presidential elections in American history, merely surpassing Richard M. Nixon’s 49.6% of the vote.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was inaugurated as the thirty-fifth American president on January 20, 1961. During his famous inauguration address, Kennedy declared “the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans” and encouraged Americans to “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”.

These were inspiring words, and considering how often the media compares Barack H. Obama to John F. Kennedy it would be refreshing to hear our current president utter something to that same inspirational effect. In a time of endless entitlements, government waste, and general mismanagement of what is left of our economy, I would like to hear Kennedy’s words and not see the actions Obama is committing which come across verbally as “ask not what you can do for your country, ask what your country can do for you”.

Our debt is out of control. Our tax codes are endless labyrinths of loopholes designed to manipulate the people they represent. Our Congress is nearly at a percentage of disapproval lower than the legal age required to vote. We give dozens of nations who despise us hundreds of millions of American tax dollars each year for reasons I’ve never once heard anyone be able to clearly explain. Our government regulates business in the country it is supposed to be representing with so many ridiculously high taxes that we send millions of jobs to other countries because it is significantly more affordable. The only thing I have observed that really, really makes sense in America is the people. Our ability to conduct our lives the civil and responsible way we do is a testimony to what our forefather’s fought for and the American belief so many have given their lives for. When our forefathers drafted the constitution and elected to sign that controversial document we know as the Declaration of Independence they were asking one basic question that they believed to be true. Can a nation of people govern themselves? The answer is yes and the federal government has grown into an unintended burden on all of our lives.

Regarding foreign policy, Kennedy vigorously fought communism in the world. He ordered the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, sent thousands of U.S. military “advisors” to Vietnam, and displayed solidity and restraint during the Cuban Missile Crisis, showing uncompromising opposition to the placement of Soviet missiles in Cuba.

Domestically, he introduced his “New Frontier” social legislation, calling for a federal desegregation policy and a sweeping new civil rights bill.

On November 22, 1963, John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.

As an afterthought, I think John F. Kennedy was a far more inspiring man than Barack H. Obama is but, to play devil’s advocate to myself, this is an interesting pamphlet that was actually handed out in Dallas days before he was assassinated. It was fringe propaganda but the pamphlet has many parallels with the criticisms our current president receives and it is something to think about. This was sent to me by a friend of mine who I can always rely on to show me the other side of my own arguments.


1,133.0 miles to go.

Day309 Monday 07/04/11

ran 1.4 miles
Happy Fourth of July!

Today is the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. In 1776, our founding fathers came together, despite numerous fears and differences, and forged the document that has guided our nation to the freedoms and opportunities we all experience 235 years later.

There are many interesting details and stories surrounding the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but these are a couple of lesser known facts you may not realize. For one thing, when those men decided to sign that document they made a decision that would have had them shot or hung if they were unable to win the Revolutionary War they were currently fighting. It was a gamble and, while the odds were not on their side, providence and destiny were.

Ask yourself if you would have done it. Would you have signed a document that utterly defied the King of what was arguably the world power at the time? Could you have placed such a wager on your own head, on your family, on your fellow men and women, to risk everything for an idea you passionately believed in?

The men who signed the Declaration of Independence figuratively signed their names in blood, and if America had not won the Revolutionary War then the signers of that monumental document would have been hunted down and made examples of.

But we did win, with all odds against us, and I firmly believe it was providence and not chance.

One other interesting piece of history surrounding the Declaration of Independence is the final days surrounding the lives of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. It was on this day in 1826, the fourth of July, the anniversary of the day both of these men had signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776, that they both died within five hours of one another.

Jefferson and Adams were the final surviving members of the original American revolutionaries who signed the Declaration of Independence. They shared a common cause in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; however, as time went on they differed more and more on how to achieve the American vision. Both men having served as presidents, Adams believed in a strong centralized government and Jefferson believed in a weaker federal government with more rights deferred to individual states.

Through years of heated arguments and differences, an animosity that had led to years of silence between the two ex-presidents, John Adams made the decision to contact Thomas Jefferson in 1812, wishing him many happy years to come. Thomas Jefferson responded with kind words and the two founding fathers looked past their differences and rekindled the friendship they had once had.

On July 4, 1826, at the age of 90, John Adams died. His last words were “Thomas Jefferson still survives”. But he was mistaken. Jefferson had died five hours before in Monticello at the age of 82.

1,165.6 miles to go.

Day178 Wednesday 02/23/11

ran 4.9 miles

On this day in history, Marine photographer Louis Lowery captured the Pulitzer Prize winning photo of five Marines and one Navy Corpsman lifting the American flag atop Iwo Jima at the crest of Mount Suribachi. This image lives on as the most reproduced photograph in history.

When I look at that photograph it stirs an immense sense of pride in America and immeasurable gratitude for the sacrifices our military men and women have made and continue to make. It reminds me of how petty my own grievances are and how often I neglect to appreciate every freedom I have as an American.

When I look at that picture I do not think of Senators fleeing from their states to hide from the law making process that defines America, which so many countless numbers of men and women have fought and died for. I don’t think of a president who condemns the Arizona tragedy one month and then the very next month encourages union protestors to “Get in the face of" anyone who opposes them. When I look at that picture I don’t think of ungracious, selfish politicians who make their own rules when the fabric of democracy goes against their grain.

If the brave men in that epic photograph had fought cowardly as the Democrats from Wisconsin are now America would have ceased to be what our forefather’s intended long ago.

1,583.3 miles to go.

Day169 Monday 02/14/11

ran 4.2 miles

Happy Valentines Day. In case you didn’t know, on this day in history, approximately 278 A.D., Valentine, a priest in Rome during the rule of Claudius II, was executed. In an effort to maintain a strong army “Claudius the Cruel” observed that men were unwilling to join his military because of their strong ties to their wives and children. To reverse this problem, Claudius banned all engagements and marriages in Rome. Valentine deemed this decree to be unjust and defied Claudius by continuing to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. Upon discovering Valentine’s actions Claudius ordered his arrest and sentenced him to death. He was beheaded and eventually declared a saint for his great passion and service to holy matrimony. Over time, February 14 became a date for exchanging love messages and poems or simple gifts such as flowers. So that’s where Valentines Day came from.

Back to the present, Representative Steve King of Iowa is working toward an effective halt to Obamacare. Through a tactic used by democrats to put a halt to the Vietnam War decades ago, he plans to add an amendment to the continuing resolution, which will prohibit all federal funds from being spent to enforce the provisions of Obamacare.

In an article from The Washington Times, King explains that when Obamacare was drafted Democrats “Quietly included provisions that trigger automatic and mandatory funding in the law. An additional $105.5 billion is about to be spent to implement and enforce Obamacare unless action is taken in the continuing resolution to stop it.”

This continuing resolution, the same tactic that ended the Vietnam War and can end Obamacare now, would completely defund Obama’s unconstitutional health care law. The unfortunate alternative is that the first $105.5 billion gets pumped into Obamacare, like lighting a highly explosive ignition source that can’t be put out, and any measures taken after that to repeal Obamacare is weighed against the fact that so much money has already been invested in it. And with every argument made against it and every proof of its unconstitutionality revealed, money will still be pumping into it, lighting the fire more and more, until right and wrong no longer matter. The only argument that’s left is, “Well, we just invested hundreds of billions of dollars in this thing. Are you going to tell America that all of that money is lost?”…or something of that conniving and deceitful politic-speak nature.

This story should be in the news tomorrow and the House of Representatives has a useful majority of conservatives who are primed to fight for their constituents, so hopefully it works. The first step was taken today in a committee meeting and passed eight to four. But, like everything else in Washington this will likely drag on for a while. Something has got to give soon or the Obamacare train is going to roar out of control.

1,624.7 miles to go.

Day149 Tuesday 01/25/11

ran 4.3 miles
One year ago, Barack Obama delivered a State of the Union Address and hopefully tonight’s will differ in the goals he verbalizes for our American future. As you view tonight’s speech and hear some of his featured quotes, keep these in mind from his speech in 2010.

"I have never been more hopeful about America's future than I am tonight. Despite our hardships, our union is strong. We do not give up. We do not quit. We do not allow fear or division to break our spirit."

This country is extremely divided due to legislation passed by Obama and the ideas of his fellow liberals.

"If there's one thing that has unified Democrats and Republicans -- and everybody in between -- it's that we all hated the bank bailout. I hated it. I hated it. I hated it. You hated it. It was about as popular as a root canal."

It was equally painful when other bailouts followed and stimulus packages amounted to nothing notable in terms of the unemployment rate.

"For every success story, there are other stories, of men and women who wake up with the anguish of not knowing where their next paycheck will come from, who send out resumes week after week and hear nothing in response. That is why jobs must be our number-one focus in 2010, and that's why I'm calling for a new jobs bill tonight."

How did that work out for you, America?

"I know that there are those who disagree with the overwhelming scientific evidence on climate change. But here's the thing. Even if you doubt the evidence, providing incentives for energy efficiency and clean energy are the right thing to do for our future, because the nation that leads the clean-energy economy will be the nation that leads the global economy, and America must be that nation."

While the Gulf States have been losing jobs and their economies have shrunk due to the drilling moratorium, our current Administration has made it clear that they have little interest in the wellbeing of these southern states or the epic boost in the economy and unemployment statistics, which drilling would bolster.

"This problem is not going away. By the time I'm finished speaking tonight, more Americans will have lost their health insurance. Millions will lose it this year. Our deficit will grow. Premiums will go up. Patients will be denied the care they need. Small-business owners will continue to drop coverage altogether. I will not walk away from these Americans, and neither should the people in this chamber."

The health care reform bill, which is now law, will continue to make our deficit grow, premiums will still go up, patients will be denied a competitive level of quality health care, and small businesses will have great difficulty affording the mandated health care. Only now that ObamaCare has actually passed these looming threats he noted in his 2010 speech will be tenfold. Socializing health care has been done before in many other countries and it simply does not work. It looks like a great utopian idea at first, just like any other communist idea, but it just doesn’t work.

"If the Republican leadership is going to insist that 60 votes in the Senate are required to do any business at all in this town, a supermajority, then the responsibility to govern is now yours, as well. Just saying no to everything may be good short-term politics, but it's not leadership."

Perhaps they are not just saying “No” to everything but that they coincidentally disagree with nearly every idea that comes out of Obama’s mouth. They are not bashful children crying over spilt milk, they are rational minds Americans elected who are fulfilling the wishes of their constituents.

"The spirit that has sustained this nation for more than two centuries lives on in you, its people. We have finished a difficult year. We have come through a difficult decade. But a new year has come. A new decade stretches before us. We don't quit. I don't quit. Let's seize this moment, to start anew, to carry the dream forward, and to strengthen our union once more."

The year 2010 and Barack Obama’s decisions and leadership has been deemed defunct beginning with the message American voters sent him as a result of the November Midterm Election and ending with a Lame Duck session, which crammed in more last minute legislation than facts a college student can cram into their mind the night before a test.

Stay tuned tonight for Paul Ryan’s Republican rebuttle after Obama’s speech!

1,689.8 miles to go.

Day135 Tuesday 01/11/11

ran 3.8 miles
On this day in 1989, Ronald Reagan delivered his farewell address to America. After eight years as president of the United States, he spoke with proud enthusiasm about the foreign policy achievements of his administration.

Reagan declared that America rediscovered its commitment to world freedom during his presidency. He proclaimed the United States was “Respected again in the world and looked to for leadership.” Through a return to “Common sense”, which “Told us that to preserve the peace, we’d have to become strong again after years of weakness.”

Reagan forced Soviets to begin withdrawal from Afghanistan, pulled the Vietnamese out of Cambodia, and ordered Cuban forces out of Angola. All of these endeavors were acts against Communism, an ideology that Reagan firmly believed was the single most threat to freedom.

“Nothing,” Reagan stated, “Is less free than pure Communism.”

Ronald Reagan emerged as an American hero having defeated incumbent Jimmy Carter in the 1980 presidential election. Jimmy Carter is the most similar liberal president with radical and devastating agendas comparable to Barack Obama’s ideas to surface in Washington over the past thirty-five years. Ideally, perhaps history will repeat itself, the way it tends to do, and bestow upon Americans a new hero that Obama’s administration will force to rise up as a product of unrealistic legislating and sheer voter discontentment.

It is quite possible that Barack Obama’s genuine beliefs and motives in the political arena, the ideologies he bases all of his decisions on, which effect so many, might just lead to the biggest awakening and positive change America has experienced in a long, long time. Reagan emerged as a hero after Carter and Someone Else now has an opportunity in their grasps in 2012 to remind us all of what America is, once more.

1,735.8 miles to go.

Day114 Tuesday 12/21/10

ran 3.7 miles
On this day in history, American patriot Robert Barnwell was born in Beaufort, South Carolina in 1761. Barnwell resiliently and boldly served in each step of America’s revolution and it’s success.

At age sixteen, he joined the Patriot militia as a private. During the Battle of Matthew’s Plantation on St. John’s Island in June of 1779, his supplies were taken and he was left for dead on the battlefield. Discovered and brought back to health by a stranger and his family, Barnwell rejoined the militia as a lieutenant the following spring. He was soon taken prisoner by the British during the siege of Charleston in May of 1780. Barnwell spent the next thirteen months imprisoned on the ship “Pack Horse”. Relentless, after his release he once again rejoined the Patriot militia, eventually reaching the rank of a lieutenant colonel by the end of America’s war for independence.

Barnwell’s great bravery and resilience paved his path to becoming a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives in 1787, and then a delegate to the Continental Congress from 1788 to 1789. In 1788, he also served as a member of the South Carolina convention that ratified the United States Constitution. He served in the second U.S. Congress as a member of the House of Representatives from 1791 to 1793. Robert Barnwell continued to serve America in various political seats until 1806. He died at the young age of fifty-two on October 24, 1814.

Robert Barnwell was one of the old iron links forged from the original American spirit, which many citizens of this great nation have lost sight of and appreciation for. What he risked his life to fight for, like so many others of that time, was the simple opportunity to reach his own full potential, free from the tyranny of a government who wanted nothing more of him than to pay exorbitant taxes and to remain silent.

That sounds very familiar, 234 years later. Somewhere along the way America, like a young man seduced by temptation, greed and vice, lost sight of what was truly important and assumed a role all but familiar to what it was intended to be. It is time for the prodigal son to come home to Washington and make things right.

1,799.6 miles to go.

Day107 Tuesday 12/14/10

ran 3.5 miles
On this day in history, in 1799, George Washington, esteemed by fellow soldier and Virginian Henry Lee as “First in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen” died at his estate in Mount Vernon, Virginia.

Washington was born in Westmoreland County, Virginia. Rising to eminence by his own means, his first job at age seventeen was as a surveyor in the Shenandoah Valley. In 1752, he joined the British army and served as a lieutenant in the French and Indian War. Once the war ended, Washington left the army and returned to his newly inherited estate, upon the death of his older brother, in Mount Vernon. He served in the colonial House of Burgesses and, like many of his peers, grew more and more frustrated with colonial rule by the British government. It was not long before he joined his co-revolutionaries in the Continental Congress.

In 1775, the Continental Congress unanimously chose Washington to command the new Continental Army. His successes in Trenton, Princeton and Yorktown were necessary victories for the emerging nation. In 1789, due to the leadership he displayed during the war, Washington was elected the first American president under the new United States Constitution.

After facing competing factions within his own administration and attempting to set unwritten rules of conduct for future presidents, leading by example, he chose to resign in 1797 after two terms. Washington did not want to appear monarchical and exhibited a precedent of transferring power peacefully and under a set limit of terms.

Washington contracted a severe respiratory infection on December 13 and died the next day. His last words were “Tis well”. The first president of the United States was eulogized by friends and political foes, alike, both at home and abroad. Even King George III of England referred to Washington as the “Greatest character of the age”. In his will, Washington referred to himself humbly as “George Washington, of Mount Vernon, a citizen of the United States”.

1,822.6 miles to go.

Day100 Tuesday 12/07/10

ran 0.0 miles
On this day in history in 1941, Japanese dive bombers descended upon Pearl Harbor’s naval base on the shores of Oahu. The surprise attack of 360 warplanes bearing the symbol of the “Rising Sun of Japan” was a devastating blow against America, which drew our nation into World War II.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his advisors had suspected the attack was highly probable, but no action was taken to increase security or to anticipate the threat. At 7:02 a.m., two radio operators spotted large groups of aircraft advancing toward the island. It was assumed these incoming planes were friendly B-17s expected from the United States, so no alarms were sounded. The Japanese had a full element of surprise.

Five of eight battleships, three destroyers, and seven other ships were sunk or severely damaged. More than 200 American aircraft were destroyed. A total of 2,400 Americans were killed and 1,200 were wounded while bravely responding to the attack.

The day after Pearl Harbor was attacked, President Roosevelt appeared before a joint session of Congress and declared December 7, 1941, as “A date which will live in infamy.” He requested Congress to approve a resolution recognizing the state of war between the United States and Japan. The Senate voted for the war by 82 to 0, and the House of Representatives signed the resolution by a vote of 388 to 1. The one dissenter was Representative Jeanette Rankin of Montana, an ardent pacifist who had also disapproved of America’s entrance into World War I. Three days later, Germany and Italy declared war against the United States.

Thank you for your bravery and your sacrifices, all veterans and active members of the United States military, for all you have done and continue to do to preserve freedom and to fight for America.

1,832.3 miles to go. I saw my doctor today and he informed me that nothing too serious seemed to be wrong with my knee or calf. He thinks I probably strained my calf muscle and only time can heal that. My leg feels better each day and I will be back to running soon. I definitely have some catching up to do!

Day86 Tuesday 11/23/10

ran 2.6 miles
On this day in 1749, Edward Rutledge, one of South Carolina’s representatives to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, was born in Charleston. He made a name for himself in American history by being the youngest and one of the boldest signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Going against the grain of the majority of his Congressional cohorts, Rutledge was reluctant to declare independence. In a letter to John Jay, one of New York’s representatives who shared a reticence in rushing into the declaration, Rutledge was concerned whether moderates like himself and Jay could effectually oppose a resolution for independence.

Edward’s brother John preceded him serving as a South Carolina Representative. As the Revolution steamed to a boil among the colonies, it fell on Edward, who was not eager to sever ties with Great Britain, to sign the Declaration of Independence, at age twenty-six, to push the message of unanimity and to bolster the Patriot’s stand.

Having signed the document, Edward Rutledge was the youngest American to risk his life by signing the Declaration of Independence.

It takes a lot of courage and humility to compromise your own beliefs or to sway even a few degrees for the good of a greater picture. I foresee many democrats crossing the aisle for open-minded discussions with republicans over the next two years. It is a shame more did not take the initiative to do this during the first two years of Obama’s presidency. If many had not convicted their decisions to the general belief in liberalism, and instead worked toward an itemized solution to the problems Americans face, many democratic Senators and Representatives would possibly still have their jobs. Their blind commitment to principal and lack of realizing the human element is what separates the men and women who lost their seats on November 2 from men and women like Edward Rutledge who have the sensitivity to make big decisions on behalf of the people they represent and not in the name of their egos or legacies.

1,847.2 miles to go.