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February 28, 2009

The Newseum is Awesome!



I went to the Newseum today in D.C. for the first time and I must confess it was AWESOME! They have everything you want to know about the history of news in the United States from way back in the days to contemporary online digital media. Also, check out the different shows they have in exhibit; I caught the, "Getting a feel for the News," in the Annenber theater I recommend it if you are a news junkie like me and enjoy 4D interaction, you'd love this. Also there are other shows on sports, documentaries, and plenty more to see.

So if you happen to be in D.C., you should totally consider visiting it among the many other attractions the city has to offer. The Newseum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily and is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. It is accessible by Metro and the cost is $20 bucks per person for the full day.

If you like to know more about the Newseum in D.C. Check out their website below:

February 25, 2009

Mariah Carey- You and I Live

Cool pics at the Oscars



My friend Carlos reported live from the Oscars this past weekend in Hollywood for a local channel.

Here is a link to see his photos from the Oscars:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/34865222@N02/

Have as much fun watching them as I did.


Pres. Obama Address to Congress

February 24, 2009

Republican Response, Bobby Jindal

Hahaha. Gotcha!

Kudos to Mrs. Solis: New Secretary of Labor!



Former Rep. Solis was confirmed today by the U.S. Senate to be our next Secretary of Labor.

Congrats to all those Senators who championed Mrs. Solis's nomination. Of course, we need to acknowledge President Obama for having nominated her in the first place. And to all supporters out there who believe that Rep. Solis's nomination is just one more symbol representing the change in the political class of this nation we all been waiting for.

Felicidades!

To know more about our new secretary of labor, please see her profile on wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hilda_Solis



Barack Obama en CNN en español

I dug up this video from the campaign trail months. Senator Obama is being interviewed by Carlos Lopez from CNN en Español. Questions range from the ambivalance of the Latino vote going to him to relations with Latin American countries.

February 23, 2009

A Class Apart


The Story of Hernandez v. Texas;
A Milestone for Justice for Latinos

Watch tonight (9:00 p.m. EST) on your local Public Broadcasting Station (PBS)
FEBRUARY 23, 2009 - Tonight, the epic battle of one of the greatest legal achievements of the 20th century will be depicted on PBS. "A Class Apart" tells the story of the groundbreaking Hernandez v. Texas case, starting in Edna, Texas and going all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1954. Argued weeks before the internationally famous Brown v. Board of Education case but much less known, the unanimous Hernandez decision by the U.S. Supreme Court established that Mexican Americans in Texas, while previously (and arguably) treated as "white" under the law were in reality segregated as a class apart from the white mainstream and subject to discrimination, mistreatment and disregard by Texas law, society, governmental institutions and custom.
For more information visit PBS site: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/

Oscar Winners Party at Governor's Ball

February 22, 2009

Net Neutrality Open Source Documentary

February 21, 2009

2/21/09: Your Weekly Address

February 20, 2009

Rick Santelli and the

Rick Santelli (Reporter from CNBC), came out ranting about the housing plan designed by the administration to help people save their homes all over America. Most experts out there, who understand thoroughly the issue, will tell you this whole financial debacle started with the housing market, and it will end there; stabilization of the housing market is a must.

I understand people’s frustration with government’s failure to resolve financial matters in a free market based economy, especially as complex as ours. However, the market is melting down and, alone, won’t cure itself. Even, despite the help of the TARP funds provided by the last administration last fall— which we still don’t know where it all ended up except the fact, that Wall Street execs got paid huge bonuses with it—still has not properly stabilize the financial markets.

Now given Mr. Santelli’s rant about how to save the economy, I can’t help ask myself, where was your citizenship concern when the last administration devoted billions of dollars to bail out Wall Street investment bankers? And finding afterwards, the fact of that much of this money was spent on paying bonuses to executives! Where is your sense of frustration about this, Mr. Santelli? What is your proposed solution: To let the market fix it? You know, that sounds like a very familiar rhetoric from someone else we used to call our president, and a candidate who was running for the presidency a few months ago.

I’m not buying into your supposed citizen’s concern on how to spend tax payer’s money. You are an intelligent person; you of all people should not be required to be educated on the issue! As you should know, the solution is complex and requires a multifaceted approach to the crisis. Stabilization of the housing market is vital to economic recovery. Oh yes, you have the right to be indignant about irresponsible borrowers and should even be more indignant about greedy/fraud investment bankers (Which you fail to mention), but that still is not going to solve the problem. Your proposed solution only demonstrates you have a short memory and obsolete ideas.

Now, families all across America ( I’m sure he’s gotta have somebody in his neighborhood that is under water) may or may not save their homes, but at least this plan is available to them, and aims to prevent further decline in housing values. Moreover, it will prevent millions of people from going homeless. It is more costly to this society if we allow them to go homeless. It is now their turn to get a life saver instead of Wall Street, and we should strive toward this, along with the Wall Street bail out; give this economy some solid footing to recovery from Wall Street to Main Street. It makes one wonder whether you ever think about these millions of families who are at the brink of homelessness because of being duped by irresponsible/greedy brokers? I doubt it.

Screaming from the top of your lungs from a trading floor about government spending to help millions of American homes, does not give you much credibility. It only exacerbates the problem and accurately depicts how inadequate Wall Street thinking alone represents. On the contrary, it underscores how much needed reform it requires. Your rhetoric should be seen as irresponsible, as an insult to Americans, and as hypocritical—to say the least.

Trademark Law Center: News Headlines: Trademark Law News: Palin's favorite store forced to change its name

Trademark Law Center: News Headlines: Trademark Law News: Palin's favorite store forced to change its name

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February 19, 2009

Adolfo Carrion Hired by the Administration



Hey Folks,

Today, the White House posted an announcement regarding the appointment of Adolfo Carrion to head the position of urban affairs in the new administration.

This is an important appointment, not only because the man is qualified, but more important because he understands first hand urban issues of this country; having lived and worked all his life out of the Bronx borough (See his bio below the press release).

This comes at an important time, when the WH has opened its doors to Latino groups for the first time in many years. Consequently, Latino issues will be at the forefront among many others to tackle by the new administration. This is where Mr. Carrion's experience and intelligence comes in handy to help the new administration tackles such issues.

Read below:


THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release February 19, 2009

President Barack Obama Announces Key White House Posts

WASHINGTON, D.C. Today, President Barack Obama announced the following White House posts: Adolfo Carrion, White House Director of Urban Affairs and Derek Douglas, Special Assistant to the President for Urban Affairs.

President Barack Obama said, "I look forward to working with these talented leaders to bring long overdue attention to the urban areas where 80 percent of the American people live and work. Vibrant cities spawn innovation, economic growth, and cultural enrichment; the Urban Affairs office will focus on wise investments and development in our urban areas that will create employment and housing opportunities and make our country more competitive, prosperous, and strong."

President Obama and Vice President Biden created the White House Office of Urban Affairs to develop a strategy for metropolitan America and to ensure that all federal dollars targeted to urban areas are effectively spent on the highest-impact programs. The Director of Urban Affairs will report directly to the president and coordinate all federal urban programs.

The following announcements were made today:

Adolfo Carrion, White House Director of Urban Affairs- Carrion has served two terms as Bronx Borough President and one term as the President of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO). As Bronx Borough President, Carrion oversaw the creation of 40,000 new units of housing in seven years, 50 new schools, $7 billion in capital and infrastructure expenditures, and over $400 million in new parks and parkland renovation. Prior to his service as Bronx Borough President, Carrion represented the 14th City Council District on the New York City Council and also served as an urban planner at the NYC Department of City Planning and a teacher in the New York City Public Schools. Carrion received his bachelors in World Religions and Philosophy from King's College in 1985 and his Masters in Urban Planning from Hunter College in 1990.

February 18, 2009

Ballad of Bernie Madoff

Thanks to this Jerk and many like him on Wall Street, the most vulnerable in our society are going through hell.

Minimum this criminal and others like him should not only get jail term, but should pay back all the $ they stole from legitimate investors.

TOS Update: The People Have Spoken!

Here's an update that was sent to users this A.M, regarding Facebook's new TOS:

I'm quoting the Message just as it was sent out to the group of "Facebook Owns You":

"OFFICIAL RESPONSE FROM FB SPOKESPERSON BARRY SCHNITT:

Hi everyone,First, I want to apologize for the delay in response. It’s been a long day with lots of interesting and constructive discussions. Second, I want to thank you for your questions and concerns. As Mark expressed in his blog post on Monday, it was never our intention to confuse people or make them uneasy about sharing on Facebook. I also want to be very clear that Facebook does not, nor have we ever, claimed ownership over people’s content. Your content belongs to you.We do need certain licenses in order to facilitate the sharing of your content through our service. That’s where the Terms of Use come in. The fact that you’ve raised the questions you have is proof that we haven’t done a good job explaining these licenses in the actual language of the document. In fact, as we were working to answer your questions, we realized the new version of the Terms might technically permit some of the hypothetical situations people have offered. I can assure you, however, that these hypotheticals aren’t ones we had in mind when writing the Terms, and that selling user information for profit or using it to advertise Facebook in some way was never part of our original intent. Assurances aren’t enough, though, and we plan to codify this in our revised Terms through simple language that defines Facebook’s rights much more specifically.In the meantime, we’ve decided to revert to the old Terms as we work to address this. Mark has explained this in more detail in another blog post (http://blog.facebook.com/), and we’ve created a group where people can provide input (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=69048030774). We hope you’ll join this group and post comments. We promise to use these comments to help construct a new Terms of Use that reflects the principles around how people share and control their information, and that’s written clearly in language everyone can understand.

I hope you don’t think your participation in this discussion was a waste of time. Honestly, your questions were very helpful to us in arriving at what we believe is the right decision. Also, I think your questions will continue to be useful as we’re crafting a new Terms.Again, thanks for the fruitful discussion and a special thanks to Anne Katherine and Julius for setting up this feedback forum. We hope you’ll all join our “Facebook Bill of Rights and Responsibilities” ( http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=69048030774 ) group and continue discussing these issues there."

So there it is. People have spoken and Facebook went back to the old TOS for the meantime. However, if I were you, I'd keep an eye on this, 'cause you never know they'll try pull another fast one like this again in the future.

February 17, 2009

FACEBOOK is trying to own YOUR content! Somebody STOP THEM!



This particular post deviates from my usual posts, but I think is important you know what’s happening with Facebook as I write this piece.

Like many of you, I signed up to use FACEBOOK and I didn’t bother to read their Terms of Service (TOS). Facebook calls theirs: Terms of Use. Well, it seems like on February 4th, when no one was watching (Sounds like Congress?) the legal team decided to alter their TOS without saying anything to users. Hahaha! They thought that there aren’t owls watching out there in the night… They thought that we weren’t going to find out what these new changes mean, but they have been exposed and is all over the web now!

According to bloggers and consumer groups out there, Facebook now reserves the right to use your content, even after you disabled your account, OMG! The owner denied this claim, but can you believe them? Especially the way it was done! Check out the following link so you can find out more about the discussion: http://consumerist.com/tag/terms-of-service/,

Also, you can read Facebook’s new TOS so you can see it for yourself:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?sid=23aef0718c5528b7a3b070ec55e49d61&gid=50848058709#/terms.php?ref=pf

Furthermore, arm yourself and read their Privacy Settings Policy if you haven’t done it yet:

http://www.facebook.com/policy.php#

I’m no Einstein, but I think they’re up to no good, and it may be that the reason they decided to change their TOS, is to obtain more authority over your content. They didn’t before but now they can with this modification. Therefore, I’ve signed up to the following Protest group: “Facebook Owns You,” to show my discontent to this change. I suggest you join them as well to pressure the company to go back to the older version of the TOS.

Many people predict that the company will give into to public pressure to restore to the old terms given the bad publicity this news is having. I hope they do!

Who's Who Among Presidents



Here is some interesting news I received today from CSPAN: Presidential Leadership Survey on former Commander-in-Chief Leaders in the White House. I thought I share it with you.

According to 64 Presidential Historians surveyed by CSPAN, Abraham Lincoln is ranked number one as our highest leader in U.S. Presidential history; scoring 902 total points. His highest skill is performance within Context of times (97.7), and his lowest skill is Relations with Congress (78.8).

At the bottom of the ranking is President James Buchanan, being number 42 of the list, and scoring a total of 227 points. His highest scored skill is, Administrative Skills (33.4), and his lowest scored skill is, Pursued Equal Justice for All (16.2).

I've heard of some of the historians on the list before but I do not know most. See for yourself if you can recognize or heard of any of these presidential historians before by visiting the Suvey website:

http://www.c-span.org/PresidentialSurvey/default.aspx

February 16, 2009

44 Presidents by Rhythm, Rhyme, Results

Can you sing:

"44 Presidents from the Revolution to the Age of the Internet"

You got it Bro!

Salma Hayek on Letterman -

Lucky français dude!

February 15, 2009

SALMA HAYEK : Africa Mercy Mission | THE FRONTLINE

Humanitarian Soul.

February 14, 2009

2/14/09: Your Weekly Address

February 13, 2009

Inaugural Gala Election 2009 Soledad O'Brien, Jennifer Lopez, Hilda Solis et al - by Mariela Rosario

Mortgage Relief - A concerned American's solution to the mortgage melt downs

I saw this today, and thought I share it with you. Could people get behind this? or is it just another crazy idea out there...

February 12, 2009

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008)

He is now on the Latino(a)s Online Blogera!

Senator Judd Gregg Withdraws as Commerce Nominee

You can't do this Man... After all the hard work of lobbying for the job and then you go and blow it! CMON... You begged for this job.

Everyone thinks is over the Census, but I think this action was done deliberately to embarrass the President. No Love for you Mr. GOP!

Obama Pays Personal Tribute to Abraham Lincoln

Joaquin Phoenix Bizarre Letterman Appearance - Feb. 11, '09

Was it the economic recession that hit him that bad...?

I doubt it-- it's too bad to see such a great actor disappear into the night without a good explanation. God help him.

Copyright Law Center: News Headlines: Copyright Law News: Original Village People member sues group

Copyright Law Center: News Headlines: Copyright Law News: Original Village People member sues group

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February 11, 2009

“Qué ha hecho el futbol por ustedes últimamente?”

I have a good friend from graduate school, who I admire 'cause he is one of those few people I know, that is so fortunate to do what he likes for living working for an NGO in Mexico. (Is that a right assessment Pete?)

However, it's so interesting right after this soccer game, unfortunately I didn’t watch, to see his post show up on his Facebook status, and I quote: "Puts it better, what has ur futbol done for you lately?" I think he should’ve put it better in Spanish since he lives in Mexico so people there can understand his perspective. I’m not saying they don’t speak English, but saying it in Spanish would resonate better with them: “Qué ha hecho el futbol por ustedes últimamente?” would’ve been a better post. I believe I do understand Pete’s perspective when he asks this.

I like both countries dearly and I'm sure he does too, since he lives there. I've traveled extensively in both countries, and I feel I know Mexico as well as I do the U.S. I have no formal ties to Mexico only those beautiful relationships I've developed with friends over the years. Having traveled so much through Latin America, I totally understand the passion that Futbol brings out in people there and all over the region. It's so symbolic, like a jewel of pride if your country beats any other country in region, and especially the U.S. So one can add salt to the wound or something like that… but I’m telling you: It feels good to many, when the U.S. loses in soccer to any country in the region.

So this comment makes me ponder (And I'm sure to many Latino/as living in the U.S. too of Mexican origin) who have lived long enough in the U.S. to see both sides of the coin—what does this futbol rivalry symbolically really means to both people? If it means anything at all to the ‘Gringos,’ since they don’t really follow futbol as much as the Mexicans do. What a simple game really means in the minds of people here and there? Whether Mexico or the U.S. wins? Does winning or losing in soccer add or take away to a long lasting history between its people?


I wish that if the people of the U.S. had the same passion over futbol as Mexican people do, they would extrapolate such sentiment and show it but in a positive way on other issues toward the Mexican people. To be able to see each other eye to eye on certain issues that are more important than futbol. I’m not saying that both nations do not see eye to eye on many issues at the intergovernmental level. But I feel that this old 20th century rivalry mentality is old and inapplicable to today’s reality. This rivalry symbolically expressed through futbol especially of the Mexican people is no longer relevant. (I think it only applies to the Mexican side in this context).

We’re so integrated today by culture, business, and technology that this old rivalry mentality doesn’t apply anymore, whether in futbol or other issues. How great could we both be, if our futbol was not just another game of rivalry, but rather a game of comradeship to bring our people closer on those issues we do not see eye to eye. I don’t know if I’m just missing totally the point here (And you can tell me if I am on my blog) but I still can’t help react to Pete’s comment on whether behind this reaction still lies a 20th century mentality? And it’s not just, who wins the soccer game… but in reality on many other issues.

So to echo my good friend Pete’s sentiment, I take the liberty to translate his comment, “Qué ha hecho el futbol por ustedes últimamente?” and better ask this question in a different way, "What have you done for your Mexican neighbor lately?" to people in this country.


Obama Townhall meeting in fort myers florida Julio Osegueda

Julio Osegueda, a young college student in Floridad, asked President Obama, about improving Julio's benefits at his current job.

Tons of Americans find themselves asking themselves the same question right now, however, Julio was lucky enough to be able to ask this question in person to the President.

Kudos to Julio!

Still Seeking a Way Out

Here's a great article on Sec. Geithner's plan from the Economist.com:

http://www.economist.com/daily/news/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13095259

Help Shape Urban Policy

This is a great site to help influence urban policy-- check it out!




http://www.hiphopcaucus.org/speak-to-obama

February 10, 2009

There's Something About Mary

Reviving some good old Classics!

WORLD'S FUNNIEST COMMERCIAL - Wedding - Diet Dr Pepper

I came across this. Now this is funny! It's alway good to have humor after the last two posts.

Treasury Secretary Geithner Press conference

This is today. The current Secretary of the Treasury-- explaining how the new administration plans to repair the financial system.

Former Treasury Secretary Paulson Steps to Save Banks

This was five months ago, when the last administration came out to the rescue of financial institutions in the U.S.

February 09, 2009

Seeds...




Last week, in Washington, D.C., something very astounding occurred. Elwin Wilson, a former KKK member, apologized to the black activist, Congressman John Lewis, in a rare but welcome meeting at the congressman’s office on Capitol Hill. The story behind this notable apology can be summarized as follows: At a bus station in South Carolina in 1961, the two young men came face to face with each other for the first time. One, a member of the KKK, and the other, a young civil rights leader bent on changing the laws. The young KKK member attacked the civil rights leader and left him beaten and bloodied on the ground. 48 years later, the two men came face to face for the first time since that incident occurred. The former KKK member, Elwin Wilson now 72, traveled to Washington D.C. to personally apologize to Congressman Lewis for attacking him so viciously. At the meeting, Mr. Wilson told reporters that for years, he tried to block the memories of what happened on that day, but he just could not do it. Congressman Lewis accepted Mr. Wilson’s apology without any hesitations then told reporters, “I was very moved. He was very, very sincere and I think it takes a lot of raw courage to be willing to come forward the way he did. I think it will lead to a great deal of healing.” You can learn more about this incredible story by clicking on this link: http://www.yahoo.com/s/1026994


Now, the mere fact that such an apology occurred the way it did merits praise by itself. I see it as a true example of the type progress that is occurring in our country. It is yet more evidence of how the archaic dividing beliefs of the racial prejudices that date back to the founding of our nation are slowly receding. That is not to say that racial injustice has been completely eliminated from our society, because unfortunately such social ills are still present in our everyday reality. A look at a newspaper on any given day can provide numerous examples of the distance that we have to go before we can fully claim that racial and social injustice is truly behind us. However, the example of atonement and forgiveness that Mr. Wilson and Congressman Lewis have provided can give us hope that our exigent social situation is moving forward in a more positive direction. For me, this type of apology is akin to sowing a seed of optimism in a land soiled by the acrimony of our human nature. Yet, within this decorous act, there exists the aspiration that we can all learn from our past mistakes, correct them, and inspire others to move away from general direction that leads to such transgressions.


Within all of this, I found something that I’d like to highlight and expand upon with this group. In the interview, Mr. Wilson claims that they motivation for his CHANGE of heart came about when a friend asked him, “If you died right now, do you know where you’d go?” Mr. Wilson responded by saying, “To hell.” Mr. Wilson then goes on to say, “I just had a lot on my shoulders and in my heart. I just wanted to get right with people. It took me years to know what I did was wrong.” For me, this was one of the most interesting components of the whole story. I’ll tell you why, but first I would have to ask that you please suspend your beliefs about heaven and hell for just a few moments. Now, whether or not you can accommodate this particular request, I would just ask that you please read on at your own discretion.


Growing up as a Christian, I was taught that when one dies, their soul is judged by God based on how they lived their life on Earth. If an individual led a pious life, then they would proceed onto heaven. If they lead a nefarious life, then they go off to hell (then there is always purgatory, but for now, I’d like leave it out of this discussion). For many of us who grew up as Christians, this is the basic paradigm of the afterlife. But for a while now, I’ve been looking at things a little differently and have developed a new way of getting a handle on at this fundamental model. I imagine that you’ve heard the claim that before an individual is about to die, their whole life flashes before their eyes in an instant. With this in mind, I’ve often wondered if at the point of death (and before the soul disincorporates) the soul of the dying person reviews all of the memories of their life in order to finally determine whether that life was genuinely good or bad? Could such a re-examination be analogous to passing judgment on the soul based on the collective actions that the individual committed during their lifetime? Let me explain what I am trying to get at.


I am of the belief that one of the greatest rewards that a soul can have (beyond this physical realm) is to hold onto the collective memories of the life that it experienced during its physical existence. The account of that existence or “the story of the soul” (as I like to call it) is the individual chronicle that is the final testament of that soul’s accomplishments or cataclysms. For example, if a person lived a virtuous life full of rectitude that produced happiness and a sense of great triumph, then upon death, the soul would simply review, relive, and retire to such memories and emotions, ultimately replaying them over and over and rejoicing in a sort of "heaven" of its own making. Conversely, if one lived a corrupt life full of wickedness that produced despondency and misery, then upon death, the soul would simply review, relive, and retire to such memories and sentiment, ultimately replaying those memories over in great distress in a sort of "hell" of its own making. So under such a scenario, upon death, one’s soul is left to retire into a heaven or hell of its own creation that characterized by the actions and deeds of that person as they occurred during their life on Earth.


Now, I want to make it clear that I am not attempting to sway anyone’s religious positions. I would merely like to share a personal view with you about the power of our deeds during life and how they could play out for the soul in the greater scheme of things. To reel this back to the starting point of my essay, this is all to say that when Mr. Wilson decided that he did not want to go to hell and “just wanted to get right with people” he was correcting his past offense and bringing into being the actions that would allow for him to enter into heaven (per his religious creed). I would say that under the afterlife perspective that I just outlined to you, Mr. Wilson is creating a sort “heaven on Earth” for his soul through his current deeds because for some time now, he’s been going through a “living hell” that was a result his past affront to Congressman Lewis. It now seems that the lasting damage between Mr. Wilson and Congressman Lewis may have finally been reconciled through the heart-felt apology and act of public repentance initiated by Mr. Wilson. Congressman Lewis’s acceptance of the apology not only endorses his own goodwill, but also helps to authenticate Mr. Lewis’s contrition, as well as to complete this important lesson on the redemptive power of love.


So why did I share my thoughts with everyone on this topic? Well, I was simply inspired by two individuals who wanted to do right, and who in turn, inspired me to write. I also wanted to seriously reflect on the example that these two men provide for us. More than before, I feel that we are again becoming a great society that is slowly realigning itself with a greater sense of civility and one that is on the verge of fulfilling the promise of a better future. Don’t get me wrong, I am well aware that we still have many inequities to move past, before that better tomorrow arrives. However, it seems that some of the seeds for a greater and more just future have been planted by Mr. Wilson and Congressman Lewis. I’m hoping that we’ll have the courage and wisdom to help cultivate more such seeds throughout all of the places that we touch.
Thanks for reading this far. Please feel free to share this with anyone who would benefit from it.
Wishing you all the best,


Elvis Cordova

President Obama's first press conference - On the economy

Do you think this particular Stimulus will be enough to get this economy going? Or do you think that a few months from now, the democrats will come back again asking for another stimulus?

One More Step Closer to the Final Deal

Well, I have to retract my statement from last week on the stimulus bill-- so what's $50 billion more or less... after all, it is all going to be spent on the American people.

The Senate projects tomorrow the final vote on the stimulus. I think the majority of Americans don't care anymore how much it is, but how soon this $ is going to impact peoples' real lives.

See ya tomorrow.

Gutierrez Announces Five-Week, Fourteen-City Tour to Document Urgency for Immigration Reform in 2009

Press Release
Gutierrez Announces Five-Week, Fourteen-City Tour to Document Urgency for Immigration Reform in 2009
February 2, 2009

Media Contact: Rebecca Dreilinger (202) 225-8203FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Washington DC) Today, U.S. Representative Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) announced that he will spearhead a five-week national tour—visiting 14 U.S. cities—to document the harm caused to citizens across our nation in the absence of comprehensive immigration reform.
In an unprecedented nationwide campaign, Gutierrez has partnered with local communities and churches to hold rallies for thousands of U.S. citizens whose families have been or risk being torn apart by our broken immigration system. Many members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus are also holding similar events in their districts.
"As a nation —as citizens— we cannot wait any longer for fair and just immigration reform," said Rep. Gutierrez. "Across America, parents and children, husbands and wives are being torn apart by a system that values quotas over family values and which undermines our economic security in a time of crisis. It is for this reason that U.S. citizens in each of these 13 cities are joining this campaign and standing up for real, lasting change."

When & Where:


February 27, Providence, RI
February 28, Atlanta, GA
March 1, Albuquerque, NM
March 7, Houston, TX
March 8, Phoenix, AZ
March 13 McAllen, TX
March 14, Dallas, TX
March 15, El Paso, TX
March 21, Chicago, IL
March 22, Milwaukee, WI
March 28, Tampa, FL
March 28, Orlando, FL
March 29, Miami, FL
April 4, Philadelphia, PA


Already nearly 40 evangelical church leaders, representing nearly 20,000 parishioners, have joined Rep. Gutierrez to demonstrate the vast numbers of American families—from all political backgrounds—who demand change from a legal system that undermines family values. U.S. citizens whose families have been affected will be available at each event to share their specific stories with press

February 08, 2009

Getting To Know You

See President Obama meeting the WH Press Corps.

Sunday's Show Wrap Up

This video is put together by Politico every weekend from the main U.S. TV political shows.

Click on the link below:

http://www.politico.com/largevideobox.html?id=10451303001

Enjoy!

February 07, 2009

2/7/09: Your Weekly Address

February 06, 2009

Stimulus Package: This One is Done!



This Package is DONE!


The Senate has tonight negotiated a final $780 billion dollars package(Republicans say is $1.1 trillion) economic stimulus. It was decreased by $39 billion from the original amount passed by the House. Some say, democrats agreed to concede some cuts in education from the original version and accommodate other things (Tax cuts) to gain republican support.

Now this bill will go into conference (the last phase) where details will be worked out by leaders from each party behind doors. Today’s final negotiation on the stimulus package puts an end on the legislative saga that has been taking center stage in Washington since it was publicly announce the cost of the original stimulus.

Next week, lawmakers will be watching carefully for the Treasury Secretary (Geithner) as he announces details of how to spend the remaining half (Roughly $300 billion) of TARP funds, remember, this was the first stimulus passed back in September to alleviate the economy. As you know, much of the first half went to the private capital sector(Corporate America).
Stay tune…

Copyright Law Center: News Headlines: Copyright Law News: AP alleges copyright infringement of Obama image

Copyright Law Center: News Headlines: Copyright Law News: AP alleges copyright infringement of Obama image

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Batman Running for Governor



Dear Friends:

Well, famous Hollywood actor, Val Kilmer, you must remember him from blockbusters like Batman and Heat, is pondering on the idea to run for Governor of New Mexico, according to Washington DC media pundits. Well, I don’t know much about NM politics, all I know is: Governor is a great Mexican American who ran to be president; then nominated to be our next secretary of commerce; and then we all know where that ended up…

Anyway, I guess Hollywood is trying to make a political comeback with one of their own this week. Yeap! I don’t know if you paid attention but Hollywood filmmakers were beat bad by Detroit auto-makers over hundreds of millions of dollars in tax credits during the stimulus debate earlier this week. But it is not like a surprise that a Hollywood actor would want to run for the governorship of his state. After all, remember, one of the most popular public figures of this country came from Hollywood; ended up defeating the Soviet Union; introduced Reagan-economics; and became one of the most popular presidents ever in the history of the Republic.

I love it when I see this type of news pop up in the political media class during times of a world financial mess, can you ever go wrong with one more actor in the political class of this country? I think not.

If you want to know about Mr. Kilmer, please see below the wikipedia article I dug up about him:

February 05, 2009

Davos Annual Meeting 2009 - World Economic Brainstorming

I thought I share this with you. Very interesting discussions took place at the World Economic Forum. This one in particular focuses on the policy reasonings behind the financial collapse of global markets.

February 04, 2009

Creative Minds at Politico

Love the stuff the people at Politico put together to make fun of all this nonsense political stuff.

Help yourself to a good laugh by clicking below:

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid5173139001?bclid=1201016315&bctid=10089120001

How the Stimulus is going to Impact your State

Today, the WH released a report on how the Stimulus Package is going to impact each individual state. To see how your particular state will be impacted by this bill, click on the links below:

The report: http://otrans.3cdn.net/45593e8ecbd339d074_l3m6bt1te.pdf

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The Fact Sheet (Identify your state): http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/documents/White_House_Releases_Additional_State1.pdf

Attorney General Eric Holder's message to the Department of Justice

I hear he's the best at what he does. Hopefully he can bring the morale up at DOJ and start actually enforcing the laws on the books.

Buena Suerte Señor U.S. Attorney General.

February 03, 2009

Stimulus Package: What's in it?


Dear Friends:

Everyone knows the economy is been tanking for awhile, and could even get worse (God forbid it doesn’t) if the federal government doesn’t create some kind of fiscal stimulus to stimulate consumer spending, and therefore the economy.

Now, everyone argues and speculates on what is in it?(Whatever fits you best) moreover, whether the stimulus is going to revive the economy; being an independent thinker, I’ve researched for myself the topic (I’m sure you have too, and I welcome you to share on this blog to empower more people to know where your tax dollars are going). Please share with us (If you care at all) as I’m sharing with you the following links:

A break down of Aid to States:




Coverage by the Wall street Journal on the stimulus:



In the end, crafting public policies is like sausage making; no one likes to see how is done! However, I do believe everyone should have a right to know how much sausage they’re getting.


February 02, 2009

Mr. Punxsutawney Phil

Well, according to Mr. Punxsutawney Phil, we'll have six more weeks of winter, ouch! That's if you believe him.

But he didn't say how many more weeks of Recession we have left.... that's what I want to know.

Check the following site if you care to know more about it:

http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2009/02/02/groundhog-day-2009-how-many-more-weeks-of-recession/

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Here is the official site of Mr. Punxsutawney Phil if you care to know more about him: http://www.groundhog.org/info/

Obama Calls Rooney

President Obama called the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers to Congratulate the team on their Victory of Superbowl XLIII. Read the article below by Politico:
http://www.politico.com/politico44/perm/0209/politics_and_pig_skins_80ede23c-c80c-436b-ace7-76841fd23f62.html

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If you'd like to see the Official website of the Superbowl Champions, click below:
http://www.steelers.com/

February 01, 2009

Queen- We Will Rock You and We Are The Champion (Live)

Dear Cardinal Fans:

I dedicate this Queen video to all you Cardinal fans out there.
I'm sure President Obama would be Happy!

Good Game!

Let Her Go to Work!



So this past week’s beef is on the nomination process of Rep. Solis to head the department of labor. See the piece on the website, just click here.

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