Day73 Wednesday 11/10/10

ran 2.6 miles
The U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to spend $600 billion more dollars purchasing government bonds has lowered the expectations of this week’s G20 summit of leaders hosted by South Korea. The hierarchy of world economics and leadership seems to be shifting in different directions as China is thrusting itself into a potential position of world power, unlike America, which is spending money it does not have, affecting the entire world’s economies, in an attempt to both stay afloat and remain the economic world beacon and currency standard.

Regarding the G20 meeting, Barack Obama seeks to return the focus to global imbalances and insists that America is not the only nation that needs to change its ways.

“Just as the United States must change, so too must those economies that have previously relied on exports to offset weaknesses in their own demand,” President Obama said indirectly making reference to China.

China is emerging as a real contender for the world position of economic leader as indicated by Forbes recent list of “World’s Most Powerful People”, in which Chinese president Hu Jintao made his way to first on the list, bumping Barack Obam to the second spot.

1,885.6 miles to go.

Day72 Tuesday 11/09/10

ran 2.6 miles
On this day in history, the event known as “Kristallnacht”, or “Night of Broken Glass”, ravaged the streets of Germany and Austria in 1938. German Nazis seized upon a campaign of terror against Jewish people. Their homes and businesses were targeted and the night was named for the endless amounts of windows framed in Jewish-owned establishments that were shattered. The violence continued through November 10, leaving approximately 100 Jews dead, 7,500 businesses damaged and hundreds of synagogues, homes, schools and graveyards vandalized. Nearly 30,000 Jewish men were arrested, sent to concentration camps and held captive for months until they promised to leave Germany.

This tragic event was the catalyst that sparked the Holocaust. The Nazis leveraged the murder of a low-level German diplomat, Ernst vom Rath, as a means to launch a campaign of terror intended to purge Germany of its Jewish population. Ernst vom Rath was shot by a seventeen-year-old Polish Jew, Herschel Grynszpan, who wanted revenge for his parents’ sudden and unexplained deportation from Germany to Poland, along with tens of thousands of other Polish Jews.

Nazi propaganda minister, Joseph Goebbels, made heavy of the incident and ordered German troops to impose violent riots disguised as “Spontaneous demonstrations” against Jewish citizens. Local police and fire departments were ordered not to interfere.

Over 100,000 Jews fled Germany after Kristallnacht. The international community was outraged by the inhumane and criminal events of November 9 and 10, causing some countries to break all diplomatic relations with Germany. The Nazis were unaffected by the world’s response and as a result an estimated 6 million European Jews died.

This is not a day in American history but it is a day in world history that no nation should ever forget or repeat. My grandfather was in Germany during World War II and when I hold and see some of the objects he brought home with him, and look at pictures of his experiences, it is overwhelming and impossible to grasp the severity of that travesty in sane and explainable terms.

This day in history reminds me of a quote, which resonates with the idea of respecting and standing up for the principle of individualism and freedom regardless of whether persecution directly affects you personally or not.

“First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for the Communists and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist. Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me.”

Pastor Niemoller

The more active and the more often people speak up and express themselves the more difficult it is for any source of power to manipulate or take advantage of individuals' freedoms.

1.888.2 miles to go.

Day71 Monday 11/08/10

ran 3.6 miles
This ten-day gesture of fortifying a half-built and rusted bridge of foreign relations with India and indulging in sightseeing throughout Asia, which Barack Obama is, for all my theory is worth, pursuing in order to flee from the domestic inadequacies he’s sown in his own country is a weak and transparent response to dealing with the red, white and blue hues of reality. And if any one person needs to deal with reality more than anyone else, it’s the President of the United States of America.

If he had not gone to India, which took much pre-planning and strategy to time it at such a moment conducive to weaseling out of facing the result of the Midterm elections, 2010, which he and his cabinet obviously foresaw as an inevitability, what would be happening right now? The majority of American’s who do not see things his way and the candidates we put into office would be scrutinizing his past motives and questioning his future plans with a velocity that will be unmatched by the time he gets back. It’s easy to say, “That’s politics. It was a good political move to protect himself.” Where I am from, if you do something that unleashes disdain on a large number of people and then run away from it instead of at least apologizing and assuring those you hurt that you would do everything in your power to make things right, we call that cowardice. That is why we are not politicians and it is why the term “Politics” is not an extenuating circumstance for misbehavior that is automatically excusable.

Voters spoke on Tuesday and it was a direct repudiation of Barack Obama’s ideas and actions over the past two years. Instead of allowing the American public to receive a real response of what we have been waiting so long to vote for, our President goes abroad. The majority of articles we've seen since the election are pictures and descriptions of Michelle looking “Fabulous” and Barack appearing to be diplomatic for far lesser reasons than what awaits him when he reaches American air space again.

This is a noteworthy article that points out some critical arguments concerning the frivolity of President Obama’s trip to India. As a closing question, do you think this trip, which is costing taxpayers $200 million a day, is critical? Is it a shield to weaken the blow American voters had thrashed upon him? Or is it possible, by mere coincidence in scheduling, that Barack Obama decided he was doing so good with domestic affairs that he would spend two billion tax dollars in carrying over his economic success in America to enrich relations with India and other foreign affairs?

1,890.8 miles to go.

Day70 Sunday 11/07/10

ran 2.6 miles
Today ends my tenth week of running against Barack Obama. I have run 185.6 miles, averaging 2.65 miles per day. Today also marks less than two years of counting down to the next presidential election. By the time November 7, 2012 arrives much will have occurred in America, and the rest of the world, and hopefully we will wake up to an alternative president after the November 6 election. It’s going to be an exciting two years to watch. Up until now, Liberals had an overwhelming source of power, possessing the Presidency, the Senate and the House. After November 2, they lost some important democrats in the Senate and completely lost their majority in the House, demoting Nancy Pelosi to a common representative like all of the others. What will make these two years so exciting is the fact that every single political figure will be studied under a microscope and equally scrutinized with every action they make. The past two years were easy for conservatives to simply say. “No, I disagree.” But now that they have some leverage in the house and new faces, which we voted into office as a reaction of intolerance for the liberal ideas that have passed through legislation, results are expected and America is impatiently waiting.

One important thing to watch, as soon as Barack and Michelle Obama get back from their over-extravagant trip to India, is if Obama is going to bend on any of the big issues (health care, Bush tax cuts expiring, possibility of more monopoly money stimulus packages, just to name a few) or if he is going to ardently continue to weaken America with his policies, which have been perceived by American voters as ineffective and detrimental to this country based on the results of the November 2 election.

Every once in a while, I like to reiterate on what the ultimate goal of this blog is and what it represents. This blog does not exist to blame all of the problems in America on Barack Obama. They have been building up like a clot in an artery for a very, very long time. I believe Barack Obama’s executive decisions over the past two years have thickened that clot to a diameter that has required a trip to the emergency room and that is what it took to wake America up and to urge Americans to get more involved in politics. Politicians, lobbyists, corporations, unions, banks, everyday people and numerous other entities have all contributed in letting America weaken and veer off of its intended path. But what is important now is that Barack Obama has managed to do everything wrong that he could to fully awaken American voters, who had been sleeping for a very long time. There is plenty of blame to pass around for the problems America is now facing, but for Barack Obama to introduce highly flawed systems like socialized health care and outrageous stimulus packages (based on Keynesian Economics, proven to fail in the past when implemented) at a time like this is hardly productive and extremely debilitating to an economy.

1,894.4 miles to go.

Day69 Saturday 11/06/10

ran 3.0 miles
Forbe’s “List of the World’s Most Powerful People” recently dethroned Barack Obama as the world’s most powerful and influential man and replaced him with China’s president, Hu Jintao. Forbe’s comprises this list with one single standard, regardless of whether the people on the list are leaders of nations, terrorists, philanthropists, entrepreneurs, media personalities, or religious figures. According to Forbe’s these are the individuals who, “In various ways, bend the world to their will.” Here is the top ten:

1. Hu Jintao, president of China
2. Barack Obama, president of the United States of America
3. Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al Saud, king of Saudi Arabia.
4. Vladimir Putin, prime minister of Russia.
5. Pope Benedict the Sixteenth.
6. Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany.
7. David Cameron, prime minister of the U.K.
8. Ben Bernanke, chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
9. Sonia Gandhi, president of the Indian National Congress political party.
10. Bill Gates, for his philanthropy (not Microsoft)

The rest of the list, 68 people, is here.

There’s really not much left to be said as that number one ranking speaks for itself. You have to appreciate Forbe’s honesty and their commitment to printing real facts, unlike so many of our media outlets. For instance, where have you read, heard, or watched, anywhere in America, how ridiculously expensive Obama’s ten day excursion to India is? $200 million a day! If you want any facts about the money he is spending on this trip, the immense entourage he is taking, or what real purpose he is serving in proportion to the taxpayer money he is spending, so conveniently close to a dismal midterm election, you have to look at papers from India, news from the BBC, European papers, or even Australian articles. The rest of the world prints facts and commentates truths about our president and country while our own country prints spin and puffery, or news that will not disrupt the delicate fabric of our ignorance to important issues that are so crucial to our nation.

On a personal note, today marks exactly two years until the November 6, 2012 presidential election. When I started this campaign, the goal I set for myself was extremely overwhelming and I’ve had weak moments over the past three months, but as each day goes by I feel stronger and stronger about the statement I am trying to make. Ultimately, I am in the early stages of peacefully protesting against Barack Obama’s presidency for what will amount to two years and a little over two months. Today is a milestone because tomorrow will be one day less than two years until this country makes a big decision to continue feeling sorry for its excellence or to begin redefining the excellence of the people that make America the amazing country it is.

1,897 miles to go.

Day68 Friday 11/05/10

ran 2.6 miles

• Connecticut was the fifth state to join the union on January 9, 1788, seven days after Georgia and one month before Massachusetts.

• Population, as of 2009, is 3,518,288.

• Senators are Joe Lieberman (D) and Richard Blumenthal (D).

• Representatives are John Larson (D), Joe Courtney (D), Rosa DeLauro (D), Jim Himes (D), and Christopher Murphy (D).

• Connecticut holds seven electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted democratic the last four elections, the prior five were won by republicans, with democrats taking the three before that, indicating that the state seems to have a delicate and malleable past and future, which is just intangible enough to not quite designate it as a “Swing state”.

On a separate note, if you divide $200,000,000 of taxpayer money spent everyday on the next ten days of Barack Obama’s excursion to India (and an elaborate tour of Asia) by the frustration America feels with its government it equals inexcusability.

I cannot believe the audacious heights of vanity, in the clouds, which this man’s head floats abroad from all reality. His disregard for what makes this country go around filters so much opportunity from its own pureness.

1,900 miles to go.

Day67 Thursday 11/04/10

ran 2.8 miles

• Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Approval poll shows that 27% of American voters strongly approve of Barack Obama’s performance and 43% strongly disapprove, giving Obama an Approval Index rating of –16, compared to –20 on this day last week.

• Overall, 45% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the president’s performance and 54% at least somewhat disapprove.

• Rasmussen Reports telephone exit polling found that 59% of those who voted on Election Day favored repeal of the health care law, including 48% who strongly favored its repeal.

• An Election Night survey reported that those who went to the polls for the mid-term elections were largely angry and ready to repeal health care. Also, most voters favored the Tea party, tax cuts, and reduced government spending. And 55% of American voters believed that most Democrats in Congress have extreme views.

Barack and Michelle Obama, and an entourage of 3,000 people, will be off to India soon for a ten-day trip, which will cost American taxpayers $200 million a day for ten days. No kidding, amidst virtually double digit unemployment numbers, a weak economy, and a furious public with Obama’s entire agenda, which just wiped out a lot of democrats who risked their political careers for his beliefs and were unseated only two days ago for those beliefs, Obama is going to India, hitting some of the biggest spots in Asia, and all on our dime, achieving absolutely nothing equal to the scope of the money he is spending to do it and the audacity he has to hope so blindly that American’s are as uninformed as he would like to believe.

I like to humbly believe I am an open-minded human being who has the understanding and patience to not make preconceived notions or to pass unnecessary judgments on other people, who have as much right as I do to make decisions of any kind, but excess of this sort, when an entire nation is in your hands, is inexcusable. Regardless of what Barack Obama anticipated happening on the night of November 2, this trip took a lot of planning that started a long, long time ago, and whatever parties were involved with planning the trip, every single individual on that planning panel was fully aware of the proximity of the trip to the Mid-term elections.

My theory: Run! Create headlines that deter and weaken the reality of what just happened in the country you lead. I’d go so far as to say that our president made this trip so outrageously expensive to make it important enough to consume headlines so they would read in bold print anything but the stories about the election that just occurred. Maybe I am wrong, but it seems so obvious to me, planning a trip like this requires so much time and planning, and it just happens to be a few days after the Mid-term elections? They could have scheduled it two weeks from now. After the realization of Tuesday night, the difference in scrutiny between a few days of dealing with America’s wrath and abandoning the situation entirely for a week and a half is huge, and as strategic as it is transparent.

1,902.6 miles to go.

Day66 Wednesday 11/03/10

ran 3.8 miles
I had some residual excitement from last night’s election and ran a little further than usual tonight. When I went to bed last night the last thing I saw on Fox News was a digital map of the United States. Most of the states lacked any definitive contour to their shapes because someone in the news studio appeared to have thrown a bucket of red Photoshop paint on the entire computer image. Slivers of blue in the predictable eastern and western coastal areas accompanied a few random specks of blue more inland.

The election was a huge, unified statement proclaimed by the large majority of Americans. The few critical races that were a disappointment only sullied the larger picture of the night’s victories with a mere tinge of frustration. Barack Obama is in a delicate spot right now, due to last night’s outcome, with many eggshells under his feet, which it is in his best interest to not further crumble. Likewise, our newly elected politicians have a tight wire to cross if they are truly going to obtain the goals they campaigned with and got elected for. Today starts two years of hopefully clearing a concise path through a directionless terrain toward the next presidential election. Here are some quotes from yesterday’s election.

"This is not a time for celebration, not when one in 10 of our fellow citizens are out of work, not when we have buried our children under a mountain of debt, not when our Congress is held in such low esteem."

John Boehner

"Eleven percent of the people approve of what's going on in Congress. But tonight, there's a Tea Party tidal wave, and we're sending a message to them!"

Rand Paul

"No matter where I go, whatever title I may achieve, I will always be the son of exiles and will always be the heir of two generations of unfulfilled dreams."

Marco Rubio

“I have great confidence in the American system. We must believe in ourselves and not believe that somehow some benevolent leader in a distant capital will take care of us, will save us from ourselves. We must once again believe in ourselves.”

Rand Paul

1,905.4 miles to go.

Day65 Tuesday 11/02/10

ran 3.0 miles
On this day in history, November 2, 2010, from the moment the first vote was cast to the moment the last precinct submitted its ballots for counting, today will live on as a day that American’s spoke out, finally being heard, and were given the opportunity to reprimand and halt government actions we do not agree with. We earned this one single day, after two years of screaming into the deaf ears of Congress, to unseat some of the Senators, Representatives, and Governors who have supported Barack Obama’s radical agenda and helped to pass the legislation of his extreme liberal ideas.

Today will go down as a day in history that your children and your grandchildren can genuinely thank you for because America’s voice and vote has enriched and empowered their futures by putting up an instant barrier to Barack Obama’s idea of what America should be. The votes tonight speak for themselves insomuch as the House is being taken over by a Republican tsunami, the Senate is significantly weakened compared to their liberal numbers yesterday, and Governors have painted the American landscape red.

The outcomes of today’s elections are a direct repudiation of Barack Obama’s first two years. Tomorrow begins a whole new chapter in American politics and one of the first actions will be a televised speech delivered by Barack Obama addressing the nation on his reaction to the fact that the majority of voters in the country he leads disagree with most of his actions and ideas.

Today was an epic day in American history and if nothing else, doesn’t it just feel nice, every once in a while, to simply feel heard at such a large volume, that only a sweeping vote of this momentum can unite into audible words that speak directly to our politicians, who, otherwise, leave their suggestion boxes permanently locked?

1,909.2 miles to go.

Day64 Monday 11/01/10

ran 3.0 miles
Here’s something you may not know. Barack Obama, addressing primarily Latino voters last week, was quoted as saying, “…To rally to the aid of their political ‘Friends’ and to thwart their political ‘Enemies’.”

John Podesta, ex-president Bill Clinton’s White House chief of staff, even commented that a different word besides “Enemy” was more than appropriate. “Opposition”, maybe, or even “Those who don’t see things the way I, or we, do”, perhaps?

Republican Minority Leader, John Boehner, had this to say, “You know, when President Bush, President Reagan, President Clinton and George W. Bush used the word enemies, they were referring to global terrorism or dictators around the world who hated freedom and hated America. For the president to use that word about people who oppose bigger government, people who are freedom loving and love our Constitution, I tell you I find that very appalling," he said.

"Mr. President, I've got a word for those people who oppose you're policies, those people who love our country and Constitution, who love freedom and the principles America was founded on. You know what I call them? Not enemies. They're patriots.”

Tomorrow is the day. I haven’t been this excited since the Saints went to the Super Bowl last year. Get out and vote and let’s get closure on where America’s voice stands. Polls will be put to the test tomorrow and voter turnout will be potentially record-breaking. To not have a voice in this epoch moment in American politics is a disappointment every registered voter should avoid.

1,912.2 miles to go.

Day63 Sunday 10/31/10

ran 0.8 miles
Today ends nine weeks of running against Barack Obama. I have run 164.8 miles, averaging 2.62 miles per day. I ran a 5k yesterday, Maddie’s Footprints Forever, and scored a good time. “Maddie’s Footprints” is a great cause worth checking out.

Jumping right ahead to the larger picture, if this election on Tuesday grants opposition the chance to halt Barack Obama’s agenda, what will be interesting is what these new senators and representatives are going to do. Don’t be fooled by spin that the current uprising of American citizens protesting their government is entirely attributed to liberal ideas. Right now, any candidate who claims to defy liberal ideas is the right candidate.

So what now? These people have a huge expectation to fulfill. And if they don’t do it, despite media bias and the articles they will print, Barack Obama will only gain strength scrutinizing conservative legislation regardless of whether they are good or bad.

This upheaval of the people is not a product of Barack Obama. I would never give his thirsty ego that satisfaction and it’s just not the case. I would say that he just happens to be president right now and he attempted to call America’s bluff. He is the proverbial straw that is breaking our American backs. And now that we are calling him out, his only excuse is to blame.

“The Democrats are about to feel the full force of a tidal wave, tsunami, or a 7.0 earthquake.”

Democratic pollster Peter Hart

Historically, this kind of thing happens all the time. Whichever party has their president in office trends toward voting out members of that party during the mid-term elections of any given president’s first two years. Frustration among American voters has been boiling for decades and Barack Obama is just radical enough to turn the heat up even more while our country already boils over with steam and frustration.

American politics desperately need some good, fresh minds. Things are corrupt and shady on both sides of the aisle. Right now, I believe it would be a huge justice to this country to make Barack Obama a one-term president. With that being said, there are many more items to address in the future. But right now, our president has the power and ability to pivot this country in a direction that may take generations to reconcile.

1,915.2 miles to go.

Day62 Saturday 10/30/10

ran 2.6 miles
The final days of blitz-campaigning have come to an end for Obama in Cleveland, Ohio. As Tuesday approaches, Democrats stand to endure a volatile rejection of two more years on Capitol Hill.

“Obviously, the other side is enthusiastic,” Barack Obama said while in Ohio.

“We’ve got to make sure our side is, too,” Obama said to the enthusiastic crowd in Cleveland.

Republicans feel sure they will dominate the House with conservative votes. It would be a stretch for the GOP to overcome the Senate, but there is hope and it is possible. Depending on swing states, to contend all facets of government, which loudly defy Barack Obama and everything he has done over the past two years, nothing is impossible. It seems that American voters are electing a new enterprise of change and a different source of hope from what Obama has been peddling over the past two years. There is little left necessary to undo the path he has paved, except to understand that a path can be paved, repaved, and repaved again, regardless of how tumultuously wrong its stones are set.

Vote on Tuesday!

1,916.0 miles to go.

Day61 Friday 10/29/10

ran 0.9 miles

• Colorado was the thirty-eighth state to join the union on August 1, 1876, nine years after Nebraska and thirteen years after North Dakota.

• Population, as of 2009, is 5,024,748.

• Senators are Michael F. Bennet (D) and Mark Udall (D).

• Representatives are Diana DeGette (D), Jared Polis (D), John Salazar (D), Betsy Markey (D), Doug Lamborn (R), Mike Coffman (R), and Ed Perlmutter (D).

• Colorado holds nine electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted red in all but four elections since World War II.

• According to Rasmussen Reports, Republican candidate Dan Maes has only single-digit support in the gubernatorial race, but Democrat John Hickenlooper is nearly tied with Independent candidate Tom Tancredo.

• Incumbent Democrat Michael Bennet and Republican challenger Ken Buck stand with even numbers. They will hold a nationally televised debate on Sunday as they race toward Tuesday’s finish line.

By this time next week, potentially, some of these House and Senate seat-holders will have been voted out. I ardently hope the list I have comprised of Senators and Representatives of various states over the past couple months requires much revising after Tuesday.

If current polls prove themselves even half worthy of validation, Barack Obama should be facing some nearly impenetrable obstacles for the next two years. If this conservative victory prevails, the actions of Obama’s first two years as president will be condemned and stand to be rectified. That is what disgruntled voters expect and hopefully Republicans will be able to deliver steadfast resolution. While victory could be sweet right now, if Republicans do not fulfill the new sense of “Hope” and “Change” that the majority of American’s may or may not want, depending on Tuesday’s results, it will only strengthen Barack Obama’s campaign in 2012.

Republicans need to assert themselves over the next two years with a determination that is equal to or greater than their desire was to be elected in the first place.

1,918.6 miles to go.

Day60 Thursday 10/28/10

ran 2.6 miles

• Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Approval poll reflects that 25% of American voters strongly approve of Barack Obama’s performance and 45% strongly disapprove, giving Obama an Approval Index rating of –20, compared to –14 on this day last week.

• Overall, 44% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the president’s performance and 55% at least somewhat disapprove.

• Today’s “Election 2010 Balance of Power” summary predicts the Democrats to end up with 48 Senate seats and for Republicans to finish with 45 Senate seats. California, Colorado, Illinois, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Washington, and West Virginia are all toss-ups. Republicans would need six of these seven toss-up states to win the majority in the Senate.

• Today’s “Gubernatorial Scorecard” shows the Republicans with 28 states, Democrats with 13, and 8 toss-ups (Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Minnesota, Ohio, Oregon, and Vermont).

• Larry Sabato, a professor at the University of Virginia who has made a reliable name for himself in election polling, has posted his final predictions in his article “The Crystal Ball’s Final Calls”. He predicts 55 Republican seats gained in the House and 8 Republican seats gained in the Senate.

Five days left until the election. Tuesday could be an incredible day in history and a huge statement that we American citizens can still have a voice among all the indecipherable chatter of politicians. The puffery and misleading antics that consume the American election process are deceiving and overwhelming to everyone when they start asking themselves the important questions. With that being said, I find great comfort in reading over some of the words of America’s founders. It helps to reconnect with the true intentions of America’s conception and why it is still such an amazing nation thriving in its third century of unrivaled freedom.

This is a quote I memorized the first time I read it. And I hold it on a pedestal to the current events that mock its message.

“Adore God. Reverence and cherish your parents. Love your neighbor as yourself, and your country more than yourself. Be just. Be true. Murmur not at the ways of Providence. So shall the life into which you have entered, be the portal to one of eternal and ineffable bliss.”

Thomas Jefferson

1,919.5 miles to go.