When I started this site more than 6 1/2 years ago, it was a hobby and a way for me to express myself. When the site started to gain, I resisted the urge to add on guest bloggers like many other sites because I always thought of this site as my own and never thought of it as anything more than a personal hobby.

For approximately the past year, I have had two guest posters who have provided posts for the front page. Part of my reason behind it was other aspects of my life began to encroach on my ability to spend as much time on the site as I wanted. They included a promotion in my occupation, more activities outside of work, and other personal events that became more important in my life. I had thought of numerous times when I would shut down the website since I was in addition to the things I just ,mentioned, after five years, becoming burned out at the daily grind of putting up posts.

As it was an election year and I did have a large contingent of website readers, instead of shutting down, I made the decision to, for the first time on this website, ask for some help in keeping the website active by bringing on some additional front page posters. It would allow me to take a back seat and allow me to pursue some things outside of this website that were important while keeping the website, which is still something I love, open and active.

After getting numerous suggestions and nominations, i settled on two posters who came recommended from a large number of people, who have been active members of the website for years, and who I felt would provide some interesting perspectives as we went into the Election.

I want to thank rdelbov and Tim Van both for their postings over the past year. While I may not always agree with everything they say, I have never once censored their posts and will not apologize for anything they have posted. I am sure some of it was controversial and many times, I have disagreed with their sentiments. However, like my views on the numerous comments on this site, I never once thought about removing a post or censoring the content. They provided their views and you, the readers, were free to comment, disagree, and rebut anything they said.

That all being said, tonight I made a decision that I have mulled over for a couple of months. I am reverting this site back to a website that will feature only posts by myself. I will not be hesitant to posting content from guest posters on an occasional basis if something strikes me. This may mean less posting than you are used to seeing over the past year, but I want to return to a website that I had envisioned when I first started this experiment six and a half years ago, a website that reflects me and my views. I will still keep up the polling updates as best I can, but will begin to commenting on the news more than I have been in the past year.

Again, thanks to rdelbov and TimVan for their contributions over the past year and to all my readers, commenters, and detractors (a growing contingent if my email it to be judged) alike….

Will Israel attack Iran this year to prevent them from going nuclear ? Should they ? What will the reaction of the Obama administration be ? How will the stock market react ? What will Iran’s response be ?

The US intelligence chief reportedly expects Israel and Iran to engage in a major military confrontation before the end of the year.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=85662&sectionid=351020101

http://abcnews.go.com/International/Story?id=8030578&page=1

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6115903.ece

Time for a new thread…

an excerpt from the linked article…

People who disagree with social conservatives should, of course, feel free to make their arguments on the issues. But the argument that socially conservative positions are a drag on Republican tickets is dubious, as is the fact-free fervor of those who insist on it. Check that Kathleen Parker quote above: The Evangelicals are “what ails the party.” The implication is not just that they are a bigger problem for Republicans than, say, the voters’ preference for Democrats on health care. It is that the latter issue is insignificant.

David Frum, similarly, has recently written that a “painful change” on abortion and a “less overtly religious” message is “the only hope for a Republican recovery.” This kind of sweeping language ought to be backed up by more evidence than the critics of the social Right have yet produced.

The attempts to blame social conservatism for Republican defeats will not reduce its influence in the party. What they will do is distract attention from the changes the party really does need to make.

nrd.nationalreview.com/article/?q=YTk3NTUxY2IxYmJkNjhhZjMyYzhhYzg1YjU1ZTkwZTY=

The economy shrunk during the 3rd qtr by 1% and the 1st quarter was revised downward.  Not the best news and not the worst.  Details are here:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aNivTjr852TI

Is Obama to blame?    The President takes the hit, politically, for the falling economy.  I personally believe that Obama’s policies are a huge drag on the economy.  Obama is the most anti-growth President since Carter and yes he is a drag on GDP.  I have posted on this many times and call it the “Obama effect”.  Bush at least encouraged business growth and tried to stimulate the economy with the right type of tax cuts.  Obama is trying to tax the stuffings out of small businesses and discourages saving and investing among the saving and investing class. 

I stand by my prediction that unemployment will peak at 10.5% and we may not see any real job growth until 2011.  Obama is creating a 10% unemployment base for the USA.

It seems to me that there has been some strife here recently, so I thought I would post a few scriptures regarding strife.

Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; yea, strife and reproach shall cease.

He that passeth by, [and] meddleth with strife [belonging] not to him, [is like] one that taketh a dog by the ears.

Where no wood is, [there] the fire goeth out: so where [there is] no talebearer, the strife ceaseth.

[As] coals [are] to burning coals, and wood to fire; so [is] a contentious man to kindle strife.

Are the folks in DC living in the past?  There is a plan afoot to tax “Cadillac ” health insurance plans.  1st who are they kidding?  When people think “luxury” car perhaps only folks over 75 or those folks really out of touch with reality think “Cadillac”.  Here is the details:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jjVU0JYyVX715ClsgxQaUsFqZMVgD99NNO380

Some liberals think a 100 billion dollars in taxes can be raised by taxing these Cadillac policies.  Hogwash the stats do not support.  The reason for these policies are two fold.  1st some folks want everything covered and are willing to pay for it.  2nd there are some minute tax advantages.  If you pay $25K  for a policy you can deduct it off the 1st page of your tax return and if you are self employed (most policies of this type are for the wealthy or self employed) you can save some Medicare taxes.   The alternative is to pay 7K (or so) and then deduct actual medical expenses as a itemized deduction.  With the phase out  of these itemized deductions, as your income rises, its better to pay for insurance then medical bills as far as tax planning is concerned.

 Generally speaking CPA’s, Tax planners and insurance companies find ways to save taxes for those folks who already are carrying the lion’s share of the tax burden in the USA.  With some states at 10% tax rate  for the upper brackets and Obama planning on cutting capital gain and interest taxes plus raising the tax rates on the wealthy to fund Obamacare where will this search for revenue end?

I am not sure exactly where the Health Insurance bills stand in either the house or the senate.  Let’s lay out where I think we are and start with the senate.

In the US senate the Nationalized health care bill is stuck in the Senate Finance committee.  Senator Baucus (D-Mont), who is the committee chairman, has the odd idea that any bill that overhauls 16% of the GNP of this country should be bi-partisan.  That means making some big changes to “cramdown” and “public option” features of Obamacare.  In addition budget deficit and tax issues are hanging up Obamacare in the senate.  Baucus is the man in the middle and its possible that a huge GOP compromise could take place this week.   Right now in the Senate nothing is certain. 

In the House things have moved fast and furious.  Pelosi and her allies were secretly pushing for a vote this week to pass Obamacare without any final committee writeups.  This “Waterloo” option started to look a like a charge by Pickett up Cemetery ridge so it was dropped in the face of GOP and Blue Dog opposition.  Then Chairman Waxman and a few Blue dogs reached agreement to pass a compromise bill through his committee but a final House vote was postponed until September.  At this point liberals on the committee and in the house as a whole balked at the Waxman compromise.  So Thursday’s writeup of a bill that would affect 1/6 of our GNP was postponed or at least I think it is postponed.  The Waxman compromise looks alot the Senate compromise plan that is being floated by Sen. Baucus. 

The problem is that liberal democrats have never wanted a partial health insurance plan.  They do not want address the problem of those who are un-insured they want to have nationalized health insurance.  So without a cramdown plan to force folks to get insurance and a “public option plan” to under cut and under price the private insurance plans the liberals will not go for any compromise. 

Republican Bob McDonnell is pulling away in the race to become the next Governor of Virginia according to a new poll from Survey USA.

GOVERNOR – VIRGINIA (Survey USA)
Bob McDonnell (R) 55%
Creigh Deeds (D) 40%

The previous poll from Survey USA back before the primary showed McDonnell only ahead by 1%. This poll was done July 27-28 among 526 likely voters. The poll also shows the Republicans with double-digit leads for Lt. Governor and Attorney General. One other thing to keep in mind, this poll was done after this past weekend’s debate. I think it is clear by these numbers who won that debate….

For more polls from Virginia, click here.

You know the drill…