In the past weeks the political campaign has focused in social issues like Medicare, abortion and rape; all of these are areas in which President Obama has an advantage over Mitt Romney. According to the last AP-GfK poll, President Obama is seen much more capable of handling social issues. But now Mitt Romney has tried to focus in his energy plan to boost his economic plan.

Mitt Romney is now trying to refocus the national debate to economic issues in which Obama is weaker. The high unemployment rate has been one of Obama’s weaknesses; the Obama campaign has released a new ad called “Clear Choice,” which features former President Bill Clinton, saying that this election is an opportunity to decide which candidate would be able to get the country back to work.

Clinton explains the Republican plan intends to cut taxes on the wealthy and get the country back to the regulation that got the country in so many problems. On the other hand, Clinton explained that Obama’s plan would rebuild the country investing in innovation and creating jobs. Clinton added that the plan would only work with a strong middle class, such as the one that existed when he was president.

Romney is now working on his energy plan, which he says would be able to create three million jobs by 2020. It would also open more areas for drilling off the coast in two swing states the Republicans lost in the 2008 election: North Carolina and Virginia.

Romney will be traveling to different states with his energy proposals, so voters will have the opportunity to hear them. His plan is supposed to result in $1 trillion in revenue for federal, state and local governments. Also, Romney intends to give each state the liberty to establish the form of energy production they want on federal lands, which is quite different from Obama’s administration energy policy in which the federal government currently controls these lands.

Romney’s plan will have a lot of opposition in Congress and will lead to protests from different environmental groups, especially if the oil drilling is done in the mid-Atlantic, where it is currently banned. In order to prevent these protests, the energy production would be banned in areas that are currently designated as off-limits. Romney has a big plan to finally execute the Keystone XL pipeline project, which is a pipeline that would run from Canada to Texas refineries.

Mitt Romney has recently received almost $7 million from oil executives from fundraisers in Texas. During a fundraiser in Arkansas, Romney promised that “”North America will be energy-independent by the last year of my second term.”

Steve Holland in a Huffington Post article explains that the “Republicans are eager to make greater use of the U.S. energy supply to increase jobs for Americans suffering amid an 8.3 percent unemployment rate. They would curtail some federal regulations to permit more production.”

Holland, speaking about the environmental controversy that Romney’s plan could cause, said “the plan makes little mention of climate change or greenhouse gases. Romney policy adviser Oren Cass said Romney supports green energy and government spending on energy research, but opposes loan guarantees for green companies.”

Image Courtesy of  Gage Skidmore

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An action committee that supports President Obama is launching a new television spot, in which they continue to criticize Romney’s business record at Bain capital. Romney on the other hand has released an advertisement criticizing Obama of “gutting the welfare reform.”

The ad that criticizes Romney is sponsored by Priorities USA Action; it’s a very sentimental ad, in which a former employee of GST Steel tells us the story of how he lost his job and insurance when Bain closed the Kansas plant in 2001 and because he couldn’t afford the insurance his wife died of cancer.

This ad is not the first of its kind. Priorities have already launched five ads criticizing Romney’s business record. This new ad is now running in five key battleground states:  Florida, Ohio, Iowa, Virginia and Pennsylvania.

Romney’s campaign also launched an ad criticizing Obama; it accuses Obama of simply wanting to pass welfare checks without the work requirements that were adopted during President Bill Clinton’s welfare overhaul. The ad clearly says that in 1996 Clinton’s Welfare Reform required work for welfare and that in 2012 Obama is dropping work requirements from the reform. The ad finishes saying, “Mitt Romney would restart the work requirement because it works.”

The Obama campaign has criticized this ad; they accuse Romney of twisting the facts. President Obama said he is just giving the states the flexibility they asked to make the program more efficient. An interesting fact is that back in 1995 some Republican governors signed a letter asking for more “waiver authority,” and Mitt Romney was among those governors.

The Romney campaign accuses the President of thinking that a big government can solve every problem, They also accuse him of wanting to give the poor a free pass, and charging it to the middle class. Lanhee Chen, Romney’s policy director, said that Obama’s policies “will take America backward — back to the discredited liberalism of a bygone era where bigger government programs and bigger government checks were the answer to every problem, and accountability was not on the agenda.”

Also, the welfare ad is trying to create a gap between Obama and  Bill Clinton, who is still a very popular politician. Clinton has recently taken a serious role in Obama’s reelection campaign. Obama is trying to take advantage of Clinton’s strong economic record while he was in office.  Bill Clinton will have an important participation in the Democratic Convention in Charlotte in September.

Image Courtesy of  Elvert Barnes

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On July 18 Nelson Mandela celebrated his 94th birthday with a ‘quiet’ family gathering in the village of Qunu in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Mandela, from the Madiba clan, is the former South African President, and the first black president of South Africa.

Mandela spent 27 years in jail for an armed anti-apartheid campaign. When he was released in 1990 he ran for election in 1994 and won with the African National Congress party. The year 1994 was the first year that black South Africans were allowed and able to vote. After one term he stepped down in 1999 to give the Presidency to Thabo Mbeki. Mandela won the Nobel Peace Prize for the work he completed in his public life.

Every year in South Africa Mandela’s birthday is a large event. This year the day started off with a special song made for Mandela’s birthday. Twelve million school children sang the song across the country which included the lines “we love you father.”

Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale said that South Africans should be very grateful to “live in the same country, breathing the same air, under the same sun with Nelson Mandela.” Sexwale also coined the phrase “Mandela-ism: the spirit of selflessness, sacrifice…”

Nobel laureate Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu claimed “Mr. Mandela taught us to love ourselves, to love one another and to love our country.”

Several famous US figures also celebrated Mandela’s birthday. On July 17 Mandela met with Bill and Chelsea Clinton and they helped him plant avocado and pear trees in his village. Barrack and Michelle Obama issued a statement praising Nelson Mandela’s “extraordinary life and steadfast commitment to the principles of democracy and reconciliation.”

Several schoolchildren also commented on Mandela and his service. Ten year old Thakgalo Ditabe stated, “Nelson Mandela set an example to show us that reconciliation is possible.” Twelve year old Ntando Ntuli said, “he is my hero because he fought for us. He is an icon, the king of Africa.

In South Africa Mandela’s birthday is a day of giving to the poor. Individuals are supposed to spend at least 67 minutes of time helping those less fortunate in celebration of Mandela’s 67 years of service. This UN-backed initiative has been criticized, according to the BBC, because it allows those at the top to not feel guilty instead of change things.

According to the Washington Post South Africa still has a lot of progressing to do. The education system is still terrible and the economy is still controlled by a minority white population.

Image Courtesy of  Archives de la Ville de Montréal

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San Francisco, U.S.A. – Renewable resources will make Scotland the “Silicon Valley” of marine energy in the same way that hi-tech industries transformed Northern California, the First Minister said June 19 in the keynote speech of his American trade mission.

First Minister Alex Salmond made the claim June 19 during a speech to the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco, the oldest public affairs forum in the United States.

In a speech entitled “Scotland: A Good Global Citizen”, the First Minister will tell an audience of Californians that Scotland’s growing marine energy industry will turn the country into an international center of excellence – with potentially huge economic and environmental rewards.

The First Minister said: “Scotland is a nation which has made a big contribution to the world in the past and has a huge amount to offer the world in the future. We are ambitious for the future, both for ourselves and what we can contribute to the rest of the world.

“I believe that developing the concentration of expertise, commitment and investment in marine energy that Scotland already possesses will make us the Silicon Valley of marine energy.

“That patch of Northern California that became known as Silicon Valley began by creating a community of technical scholars. Big business followed the skills and big rewards soon followed – and the same is happening in Scotland in our marine energy sector.

“All twelve of Scotland’s major universities have formed the Energy Technology Partnership, which earlier this year agreed a unique collaboration with Abu Dhabi’s prestigious Masdar Energy Institute.

“Glasgow is the premier center in Europe for offshore wind research, with Strathclyde University’s $114,165,000 Technology and Innovation Centre a hub for researchers and industry to work together on pioneering technology.

“There are more different types of wave and tidal devices in the waters around Scotland than in the rest of the world combined and the Pentland Firth and Orkney waters leasing area is the world’s largest commercial scale marine energy site.

“We possess 10 per cent of Europe’s wave power resources and 25 per cent of its offshore wind and tidal resources – all with only 1 per cent of the EU population.

“Scotland is becoming the Silicon Valley of marine energy worldwide. Having been at the heart of the marine engineering revolution of the 19th century, we are now placing ourselves at the heart of the marine engineering revolution of the 21st century.

“As hi-tech industries concentrated in Silicon Valley and transformed the economic landscape of Northern California, so marine energy will do for Scotland.”

The First Minister gave the speech at the Commonwealth Club of California, the U.S.A.’s oldest public affairs forum, which has hosted speakers such as Theodore Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.

Image Courtesy of  Saul Gordillo

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At 9.30pm on May 19, the opening of the Life Ball 2012 took place, accompanied by loud electronic and pop music, resonating between the Vienna City Hall (Wien Rathaus) and the Vienna Burg Theater (Wien Burgtheater), where the red carpet, or as the ball coordinator would call it – the Magenta Carpet, was laid to receive the guests of the ball.

The audience, along the sides of the Magenta Carpet, was obviously delighted to see all national and international politicians and celebrities such as Bill Clinton, Milla Jovovich and Antonio Banderas. The more guests appeared, the higher the cheering was from the audience which went along with the guests from the Magenta Capet to Red Ribbon catwalk situated in front of the stage. The style of ball guests was both elegant and fascinating, starting with suits through to revealing outfits and colorful elaborations of body painting.

The 20th anniversary of Life Ball was host by Nicholas Ofczarek and Ben Becker, both famous actors from Austria. Starting with a short scene of the theater play ‘Everyman’, they introduced their message to the audience: the AIDS epidemic should be taken seriously by all of us, especially in the Third World.

This message was also underlined in the speech of the former US President Bill Clinton who was representing his organization Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) at Life Ball. He said that, in order to stop AIDS epidemic,“We have to train people, educate models and built system.” A part of the collected funds from the Ball will be given to Clinton’s organization; he is hoping to reduce the number of HIV-infected babies in Uganda and Sambia.

Naomi Cambell and Antonio Banderas rewarded the organization Operation Bobbi Bear with the “Crystal of Hope” which included prize money of 100 000 euros. Jackie Branfield, the founder of the organization, has been devoting her life to helping raped and HIV- infected kids in the South African province Kwa-Zulu Natal.

Milla Jovovich, the ambassador of the American Foundation for Aids Research expressed her excitement of being at Life Ball to the audience, “This is one of the best events.” In her speech, she emphasized the importance of taking action against the spreading of AIDS and praised the effort Life Ball has made till now, “You all should be pround!” Apart from a few welcoming words by the Mayor of Vienna Michael Häupl, there was little presence of Austrian politicians on stage.

Gery Ketzler, the founder of the Life Ball, thanked the audience, all the sponsors and especially the city of Vienna for allowing them to use the whole City Hall. He said, “It has been a long journey. AIDS not only hurts the body but the soul.” He continued that AIDS also stigmatizes the affected minorities. With all his effort for Life Ball, he hopes to raise public awareness for HIV and AIDS.

The spectacular fire show was among this year’s highlights, dedicated to the anniversary’s motto “Fight the Flames of Ignorance”. The dominant color red has been a tradition of the Life Ball and was generously used in all imaginable combinations and forms. This year’s fashion show was hosted by VOGUE Italia, giving a retrospective fashion show on the Red Ribbon catwalk in front of the Vienna City Hall.

The fashion show presented remarkable looks from the last two decades by top models such as Karolina Kurkova, Eva Padberg und Tatjana Patitz. The stuntwoman Miriam Höller surprised the audience with the burning Victoria’s Secret wings.

In 1993, when Life Ball took place for the first time, it only sold 150 tickets. Twenty years later, at this anniversary, there were 95 000 candidates from 73 countries wanting to buy 3780 available tickets.

Every year, there are around 500 national and international media representatives at the event. Last year, Life Ball collected two million euros for AIDS projects. The numbers show how successful Life Ball has been, whether as a charity event or as symbol of acceptance, solidarity, tolerance, and an important voice of and for the affected minority.

Image Courtesy Life Ball ©
Photo Credit : Andreas TISCHLER

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A Chinese proverb says: “A journey of thousand miles begins with a single step.” The Austrian Gery Keszler took his first step in his fight against AIDS in 1993, by founding the Life Ball for the first time. In those days, public awareness and financial support for AIDS were still in their infancy. Now, 20 years later, Life Ball has become one of the most prominent and biggest AIDS charity events in the world. On May 19th, Life Ball is embracing its 20^th anniversary in Vienna, expecting international guest stars and politicians, such as Milla Jovovich and Bill Clinton.

Life Ball is organized by the non-profit organization AIDS LIFE, whose founders were Gery Keszler and Dr. Torgom Petrosian. Since 1993, the organization has been dedicated to supporting national and international non-profit organizations dealing with AIDS issues, such as the Clinton Foundation. Its chairman, Bill Clinton, is representing the Gala concert “Red Ribbon Celebration Concert – United in Difference” at the Vienna Burgtheater. With the collected funds, Clinton is hoping to reduce the number of HIV-infected babies in Uganda and Sambia.

Auctions, events and speeches are generated at Life Ball every year, hoping to reach a high amount of donations, and moreover, to emphasize social responsibility and raise awareness in the public for those who are affected by AIDS. Life Ball has already become a symbol of acceptance, solidarity and tolerance, and an important voice of and for the affected minority. “HIV and AIDS can affect everybody regardless of gender, age, social status or sexual orientation. This is the reason why it is of the utmost importance to continue fighting the virus.” – Life Ball’s vision and mission

Every year, before the official opening ceremony in front of the Vienna City Hall, the traditional event’s fashion show takes place, making room for famous fashion designers presenting their inspiration from topics of Life Ball. This year, the editor-in-chief of Italian Vogue, Franca Sozzani, will be the patron of “VOGUE Italia hosts the 20th Anniversary Life Ball Fashion Show presented by MINI.” A retrospective fashion show is being expected on the Red Ribbon catwalk in front of the Vienna City Hall, presenting the most remarkable looks from the last two decades.

Last year, Life Ball managed to collect around two million euros for AIDS projects around the world. With its combination of charming Viennese ball tradition and a  modern, extravagant and provocative brand, Life Ball is yet again on its way to realize its mission and vision.

Image Courtesy of   Life Ball

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New York, U.S.A. – Carnegie Mellon, Hult International Business School and NYU Abu Dhabi were honored for their commitment to eradicating poverty at the Hult Global Case Challenge in New York City, hosted by Hult International Business and the Clinton Global Initiative.

The three winning teams beat thousands of students from the world’s best business schools for a US$1 millioncash grant and
were honored by President Bill Clinton.

Started three years ago by Hult graduate Ahmad Ashkar, the Hult Global Case Challenge is the largest and most respected initiative of its kind. Harnessing the power of crowd sourcing, the Hult Global Case Challenge attracted students from 350 colleges and universities to provide solutions to the real challenges facing three NGOs. These are Habitat for Humanity, which builds affordable housing; SolarAid, which brings renewable energy to impoverished communities; and One Laptop Per Child, which provides low-cost computers to children.

A panel of high-profile judges including: Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, Unilever Chairman Michael Treschow, social entrepreneur Darell Hammond, and the CEOs of the three NGOs, selected the winners in education, housing and energy.

Education               

Winner: Carnegie Mellon

To help One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) put 10 million laptops in the hands of children worldwide in the nextfive years, the Carnegie
Mellon team presented an innovative approach to ensure streamlined laptopdeployment and to create a global brand for the
NGO ’ s open-source software.

“The Hult Global Case Challenge has provided us with many ideas to address the challenge of scaling OLPC to enable learning for the world’s poorest children,” said Rodrigo Arboleda, Chairman and CEO of the One Laptop per Child Association. “We appreciate the creativity, passion and effort of all the student teams around the world who participated in the competition.”

Housing

Winner: Hult International Business School

Habitat for Humanity has a mission to provide homes for 50 million people within the next 10 years.
Hult ’s winning solution focuses on harnessing the intelligence of those at the bottom of the pyramid andequipping them to
solve their own problems.

“Hult’s Global Case Challenge is good news for everyone involved,” said Jonathan Reckford, CEO of Habitat for Humanity. “Students have the opportunity to solve real-world challenges, and organizations like Habitat benefit — not only from the prize money used to implement the winning proposal, but also from the ideas that emerge from crowdsourcing and the relationships that we develop with tomorrow’s business leaders.”

Energy

Winner: NYU Abu Dhabi

Many Africans still rely on kerosene lamps. NYU Abu Dhabi ’ s solution focuses on creating a network ofentrepreneurs and
technicians who will sell and fix solar lamps in a sustainable way.

Speaking in support of the winning team’s solution, SolarAid CEO Steve Andrews said: “Our goal is to eradicate the kerosene lamp from Africa by the end of this decade. That’s simply a huge challenge, which will only be possible with massive innovation. Having the top students from around the world competing to come up with great ideas for how we will do this is an extraordinary boost. It’s already changing the way we think and work.”

Ahmad Ashkar, the founder and CEO of the Hult Global Case Challenge, said: “This initiative aims to revolutionize how we think about the world’s most pressing social challenges. With US$1 million in seed capital, students from all over the world have a chance to establish social enterprises that achieve real results.”

Congratulating the winning teams, Hult President Dr Stephen Hodges added: “The Hult Global Case Challenge is an important part of Hult’s push to encourage social entrepreneurship among talented students, whichever country they come from. Through this visionary kind of crowd sourcing we’re giving NGOs access to a wealth of new ideas and perspectives that help them grow stronger.”

Image Courtesy of  Jose Gil / Shutterstock.com

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In a speech at the Sullivan Honors Awards, President Obiang discussed the promotion of African integration by leading Equatorial Guinea toward a better future by facing its challenges and achieving the country’s desired self-improvement and progress. President Obiang has led the efforts of the African community while promoting the continent and carrying out the development of Equatorial Guinea.

“Equatorial Guinea, as a unified country, knows that in order to achieve self-improvement and progress, we have to face problems and challenges, with the support of friendly countries and the international community,” said President Obiang.

President Obiang received the Beacon for Africa award at the 2011 Sullivan Honors event on December 15, in recognition of his leadership of the African Union and his exemplary contributions to improving the lives of Africa’s most vulnerable citizens. The Sullivan Honors event is one of Washington’s greatest cultural highlights of the year.

Hope Masters, president of the Administrative Council of the Leon H. Sullivan Foundation, praised President Obiang for his exemplary leadership and contributions to rebuilding Equatorial Guinea.

“This was a great opportunity to discuss continued development in the region and ways to collectively expand our role as part of  the international community,” said President Obiang. “I believe Africa has a positive future ahead of us as long as we continue to work together.”

President Obiang joined leaders from around the world to honor African individuals who are leading and serving the international community. The honorees have selflessly dedicated themselves to humanitarian efforts on the African continent. Together they showed their appreciation for the honorees at the Leon H. Sullivan Honors event at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel.

“A commitment to ensuring that the dignity of the people they serve has been maintained is critical in determining who will be named a Sullivan Honoree. The ability to ignite that spark of hope, to provide to those less fortunate, while improving their quality of life, has been a common characteristic embodied by each of our honorees. I commend our past honorees and am confident that our new honorees will uphold their passion for championing Africans,” said Ambassador Andrew Young, former US Ambassador to the United Nations.

The Sullivan Honors has been conferred upon individuals who have demonstrated unique leadership in enhancing the lives of the underprivileged, the vulnerable, and the destitute in Africa. Previous Sullivan Honorees include former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, General Colin Powell, current President Jacob Zuma of South Africa, current President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, current President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, and current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. A full list of previous Sullivan Honorees can be found on the Sullivan Foundation’s website, www.thesullivanfoundation.org.

Equatorial Guinea’s government has adopted special programs for the promotion and protection of human rights with the help of the International Red Cross, which has verified the performance of state institutions by selecting and implementing programs that improve the level of social indicators.

“The positive effects of these programs have resulted in an increased school ratio, life expectancy, malaria reductions, as well as the progressive increase of technical and professional staff,” said President Obiang. “Our country recently went through a constitutional change that strengthened the powers of the state institutions, promoted the alteration in power and regulated the strict separation of powers, as well as transparency and equity in public affairs.”

This reform was approved and voted by the majority of the population.

In addition to President Obiang, numerous heads of state from Africa attended this year’s 2011 Sullivan Honors event, showing unity and cooperation among one another. They included President John A. Kufuor, former President of Ghana; President Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria; Prime Minister Guillaume Soro of Cote D’Ivoire; and President Salva Kiir Mayardit of South Sudan.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/equatorial_guinea/

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Despite some Democratic leaders prompting, President Barack Obama has stated that he will not utilize the 14^th amendment in order to bypass congress and raise the debt ceiling. The little known 14^th amendment is vaguely worded and legal scholars differ on the whether the amendment would allow the president to continue to borrow or could pose a legal challenge.

On Tuesday, Obama’s spokesman, Jay Carney, seems to dismiss the possibility. “The Constitution makes clear that Congress has the authority, not the president, to borrow money and only Congress can increase the statutory debt ceiling. That is just a reality,” Carney told reporters.

However, House leaders emerged from a caucus on Wednesday and urged Obama to raise the debt ceiling any way possible. If Congress can’t reach a deal on a long-term debt limit increase by Aug. 2, Obama should “sign an executive order invoking the 14th Amendment,” said Assistant Minority Leader James Cyburn (D-S.C.).

“I am convinced that whatever discussions about the legality of that can continue,” Clyburn said. “But I believe that something like this will bring calm to the American people and will bring needed stability to our financial markets.”

House Democratic Caucus Chairman John Larson (D-Conn.) stated that Obama has previously expressed doubts about his legal authority to unilaterally raise the debt limit. But circumstances have changed, Larson said, and “we just want to let him know that his caucus is prepared to stand behind him” if Congress fails to pass a longterm deal.

“We have to have a fail-safe mechanism,” Larson said. “We believe that fail-safe mechanism is the 14th Amendment and the president of the United States.”

Former President Bill Clinton argued last week that the 14th Amendment that states the “validity” of government debt ”shall not be questioned” means that Obama could simply ignore the congressionally imposed debt ceiling and go on borrowing.

A handful of Democrats plan to hold a press conference on Thursday in the capital. The Democrats want to encourage the president to “invoke the 14th Amendment in the absence of a bipartisan agreement to raise the debt ceiling and avoid national default,” according to their press release.

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So by now I am sure you are aware of Congressman Anthony Weiner’s resignation. Fox News carried the live coverage for most of the afternoon last Wednesday. But, is this really news?  Weiner’s extramarital affairs should be covered by the media that covered Tiger Woods’ downfall or Jesse James numerous liaisons. Shows like “Extra” and “E News” should worry about this. CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News though?  I don’t think so. This was a case of the media dictating the story and eventually causing the sad and tragic outcome of a brilliant politician’s career ending tweet.

I agree that what Rep. Weiner did was gross. But, come on morality police, half the married men in America are doing something that gross or grosser. There are specific websites designed for married men that want to have an online flirtation or a down and dirty affair. As gross and disgusting as this is, it happens every day in our society. I don’t want to see pictures of any politicians in his underpants or read transcripts about his bulge in his pants. This is not news. This is the reliving of the 90’s and Monica Lewinsky’s stained dress.  This is between Weiner and his wife and I don’t want to know about it.

Someone in some control room decided that this was a story. I have actively tried to avoid this story for over a week. The media does not operate on the principle of supply and demand. It is a case where the media decides the news and we say “ok.” Weiner’s cybersex is not news. It just isn’t. There are real actual scary things happening out there. The economy still sucks, banks are still illegally foreclosing houses on poor American families, unemployment is running out, homelessness is growing, there are still 2.5 wars that we are officially involved in and countless other secret operations that we are carrying out. Thousands of humanitarian events occur across the world yet America focuses on Rep. Weiner’s Facebook and Twitter activity. I am pulling out my hair. The cybersex of Anthony Weiner is only news to his wife and no one else.

The sad thing about Weiner is that he resigned. Democrats joined with Republicans to sell out one of the more promising and progressive voices of the party. It is a giant double standard that Weiner had to resign when Senator David Vitter is still in office.  David Vitter committed a CRIME with his affairs because he liked prostitutes. Apparently that is okay though. Senator John Ensign not only had an extramarital affair with one of his top aides’ wife, but used his influence as a Senator to pressure other staff members to keep quiet about the affair. After Ensign’s aide found out about the affair, Ensign used his influence to get the man a great job for a lobbying firm even though senior aides are prohibited from lobbying the Senate for a year after leaving their posts. The former senior aide, Douglas Hampton, used Ensign to push through legislation that benefitted his company.

It is a complete double standard and the list goes on and on. All politicians lie to some degree and especially to cover up their scandals. But, there is a difference between lying to spare your personal life or your reputation and lying to cover up criminal charges. Let us not forget that.

Image Courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/americanprogressaction/

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