If you have ever heard someone called a ‘Cassandra’ and wanted to know what the term meant? Then you are on the right 
page. I was curious myself and researched the question and here is what I found—
What is a Cassandra?
The Israeli Flotilla Raid is being Criticized Incorrectly
Israel is now receiving widespread condemnation from government and institutional leaders from around the world. I have skimmed the internet, and almost all of the criticism that I have found has two things in common;
- First, Israel’s critics are all saying the same thing; in other words Israel’s critics appear to be cooperating.
- Secondly, these critics all saying that Israel used disproportionate force in engaging the ship and this is what caused the deaths of 9 people.
The staff of Backbench Media (Me) can find fault in the Israeli raid also; but in a completely different manner. Israel’s greatest mistake is that it violated military ideas formulated by the brilliant Prussian military theorist Carl von Clausewitz. Want to read more?
Which Party Controlled Congress?
Have you ever wanted to have an easy way to determine which political party controlled the federal government at certain times in American History? Well, I’ve created some information that might be of help. If you want a simple time-line of political parties in the US here it is: Want to read more?
Pelosi – Healthcare and Unintended Consequences
Nancy Pelosi was speaking at a meeting of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Washington DC when she responded to a question about the benefits of the healthcare bill. She gave the following foolish response;
“We see it as an entrepreneurial bill; a bill that says to someone, if you want to be creative and be a musician or whatever, you can leave your work, focus on your talent, your skill, your passion, your aspirations because you will have health care.” Want to read more?
Chris Christie: a Republican Who can Communicate
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has that rare combination of both being a Republican and having the ability to communicate his thoughts. I don’t know why this combination is rare, but you could count the number of living, intelligent and articulate republicans on one hand.
Christie is a lawyer who has spent lots of time in court in various rolls, most famously as a prosecuting attorney and maybe that is where is developed his communication skills. He speaks directly and doesn’t seem to be worried about re-election and perhaps that has freed him to be able to speak his mind. Want to read more?
The Phrase of the Day; Moral Hazard
If you are like me; you have heard the term “moral hazard” in discussions without completely understanding the meaning of the phrase. I think that this term is worth understanding since it applies to many situations that are occurring in our world; so I looked it up. Here is what I found.
The term originated in the insurance industry and according to the dictionary; moral hazard is the lack of any incentive to guard against a risk when you are protected against it. The term has expanded over time to cover many situations outside of insurance. Want to read more?
The Federal Government and Spending
Here is a chart from the Congressional Budget Office that says it all.
Unfortunately, any politician that wants to address this problem directly can kiss his or her career good-bye.
The Arizona Immigration Law Will Benefit Republicans
There was an interesting article in the San Francisco Chronicle that spelled out how the Arizona immigration law will have few negative political consequences for Republicans.
You can read a few news reports that claim that the law will hurt the Republicans among Hispanic voters but realistically most of them vote for Democrats anyway.
Before the last election, John McCain pushed the Bush/Kennedy immigration reform bill in 2007. This bill was strongly supported by Latinos but was killed in congress. McCain was strongly criticized by conservatives. He put his political future at risk by his support for creating a path to citizenship for illegal migrants.
For his efforts McCain only won 31 % of the Latino vote in 2008. Meanwhile Obama helped kill that same bill and received 67% of the Latino vote.
As a result; one of two conclusions can be made, either the Hispanic voters will always vote strongly for the Democratic Party or immigration reform just isn’t as important to them as popularly believed.
Live Concert Videos of Rush
One of my favorite bands is the Canadian Progressive-Rock Band Rush. This talented trio features Geddy Lee on vocals, bass and keyboards, Alex Lifeson on guitar and the talented Neal Peart on Drums. Here are a couple live YouTube videos for your enjoyment.
Is there a better drummer than Neal Peart? Want to read more?
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