President George H. W. Bush was the first President to address the American student body back in 1991 (see George H.W. Bush’s 1991 Speech to Schools). He emphasized staying in school and most importantly saying no to drugs.

President Obama spoke on the importance of education. How even in the face of adversity a student should not let their education suffer. He gave various examples of students who persevered and have succeed when forces were against them (see A Message of Hope and Responsibility for America’s Students).

I felt his most important point was that each student’s success in life, school or whatever was their own responsibility. Personally I feel that our society has been coaching our youth that nothing is ever one’s fault. This is why we have the most litigious society in the world. We want to blame everyone else for our misfortunes instead of doing something about it. Look at those who purchased home’s they cannot afford. They want to blame the bank that gave them the loan, because the bank should have known better. I would ask, shouldn’t the home buyer know better?

I would ask the President to make this event an annual one. Whether it is televised, prerecorded or just a letter I don’t think it matters. Just addressing the children of our country will let them know that they are important in our country’s future. Maybe by doing this, we will begin to see citizens who are more active in our country’s politics.

I feel this quite strongly so I went ahead and wrote the President. If you feel as strongly as I do, I would suggest you do the same (White House’s Contact Us page).

Here’s what I wrote:

Dear Mr. President,
I would like to thank you for your speech on September 8th, 2009 to our American student body. I felt your message was quite inspirational and something that many of our youth of today needed to hear.
I actually believe that our country has been teaching too many of our citizens that nothing is ever our fault (this may be why we are so litigious). I thought it was superb that your message to let the students know that they are responsible for their success.
I also feel that this address may bring about a change in our country that is needed. Maybe with this message, we will have a citizenry that is more aware of their country and their government. Maybe we will have more involvement from those who heard your message and are now interested in what the government is doing to prepare the country for them.
I would ask one thing, keep doing it. I think that just like your State of the Union address, this address should be an annual one. I of course would keep politics out of the speech as you have done this time, but I feel that it is important that our children be reminded that they are important to our nation’s well being. Nothing can bring that home more than having the President of the United States address one and give them what you expect from them.
I truly believe that if you were to do this, we will see a more politically active citizenry than we have ever had before. That can only improve our country and our future.

Other Links:
President Barack Obama Makes Historic Speech to America’s Students @ Ed.gov

It could be the guy who walked into the bathroom before Meadow walked in (I am putting my money on that guy), or it could be the teenagers that were loitering at the front of the restaurant, but he’s dead.
You remember the episode where Tony and his brother-in-law Bobby are on the boat fishing? Bobby says something to the effect that one probably doesn’t hear the fatal shot when it happens. Then the scene is again played out when Tony is hiding out in Uncle Junior’s old house (I would call this heavy-handed foreshadowing).

Now when you look at the ending with this idea in mind, then it makes total sense and actually makes the ending pretty clever.
Hopefully there will be another show that will be as good as this series was.

“Guitar” is a great tune where you get to hear his guitar playing and “Chelsea Rodgers” is an upbeat song that has a catchy tune.

I can actually say that I enjoyed every song on this album (of course some more than others) and would recommend everyone to at least take a listen to it. There is something here for everyone. Even those who are not Prince fans will find at least one song on the album catchy.

So check out the music video for ‘Chelsea Rodgers‘ and come back and tell me what you think.
Of course, you can preview the album “Planet Earth” at the iTunes Store.

Also for those who are Prince fans, check out his official website at http://www.3121.com. He posts a Jam Of The Week that usually is not on any album, but they are a great representation of his musical genius.

I hope so. Check out their video at http://www.miniature-earth.com.

During the interview, Jon Stewart told the President that in this country elections are fixed. Without missing stride (after the translator translated the remark), the President suggested that the American people do something about that.

Check out the entire interview here.
More about President Morales on his Wikipedia page (here).

If you haven’t started a blog, and are considering it, look no further than WordPress.

I know that he is a man of many controversial ideas, but I would challenge you to read his speech (without bias if possible) and then decide whether he is as evil as he is being made out to be.

You can read it here (Mahmoud’s Speech to UN General Assembly ).
As you can see, he makes some compelling remarks. Now I am not saying that we have to agree with everything he says and all the reasons he gives. It just might make this a better world, if we hear out those we disagree with and when they make sense, give them credit.

Personally, I don’t think trying to force the world into a monotheistic society would bring about peace, but respecting the rights of others I believe just might.

Yesterday, I watched the documentary “Joined For Life: Abigail Brittany’s 16th Birthday” on TLC. It was a follow-up to a previous documentary on the girls. In the documentary, the girls and their parents discuss what’s it been like for them since the last show.

When one sees people who have in front of them what appears to be an insurmountable obstacle…

and they don’t just overcome it, but do so with apparent ease. It makes one really look at the obstacles that are in front of them and come to the realization that they are really minuscule compared to what others face.
So next time you come across something that you think there is no way you can surmount, think of the twins and what they have overcome.

My hat off to them.

When one is sick, would you like it if the doctor went after the symptoms rather than the cause itself? I know I wouldn’t. So why is it that those who oppose illegal immigration are so small minded when it comes to this issue.

Let’s face it, making additional laws that make it illegal to come into this country without a permit will not make it more illegal than it already is. Why don’t we go after the cause? People come into this country illegally for a better opportunity, improve their life and well-being. Now I am not suggesting that we crack down on opportunity and our way of life (that would just be silly), but I think I know of a way to curb this problem.

Let’s go after the employers. They are the reason, we have an immigration problem today. Let’s make it a felony to hire people who don’t have the proper paperwork that allows them to work in this country. Make it a felony that requires jail time and I guarantee that illegal immigrants will have a tougher time getting jobs. If on top of that we make it so the count is per hired illegal immigrant, we send a strong message.

This doesn’t mean that we make it impossible for these employers to hire laborers, we just make it more lucrative for them to hire those that are legally here to work. Doing this provides an incentive for those that want to come into this country to work, to do so the right way. Why sneak into the country when you’ll end up in the same predicament as where you came from?