A New Hockey Mom Sheriff is in Town

I was interested to see what Sarah Palin was going to say last night. While I missed some of the best lines of the night walking the dogs, I think she proved herself to be a formidable force in the McCain campaign. I chuckled out loud a few times and thought she made some good points.

Unfortunately, some of her good points could be pointed directly back at her. Especially her criticism of Obama as a person who doesn't have the experience to lead.

What did everyone else think? Did you like her or her ideas better?

Marriage and Bristol Palin

First and foremost, I want to say that I am a big fan of marriage. After getting married this past February, I cannot imagine my life without being married to Marybeth. She is patient, kind and caring (she had to be to, in her words, "hitch her wagon to my star". I am not saying marriage is easy but it is totally worth it!

Reading the media coverage about Bristol Palin's pregnancy, I don't want to concentrate on her pregnancy because well, that is already done. What bothered me was Sarah Palin announcing that Bristol and the boyfriend(Levi?) would be getting married. I didn't read a date announced on that though.

What?

While the birth of a child is a wonderful event no matter the circumstance that surrounds the birth, a child, at least in my opinion, is NOT a good enough reason to get married especially at age 17!

Two of my friends were seriously dating and she became pregnant. He proposed and she said no because she wanted to make sure he was going to be faithful to her before she would get married. I think she had the right idea.

I hope Bristol Palin gets married because she loves her boyfriend not because of being pregnant. Marriage is wonderful and difficult and should be entered into soberly not as a reaction.

The Unintended Consequences of Zimbabwe

I read an article today about the number of sex workers skyrocketing in the countries around Zimbabwe. The reason why this is happening is because citizens in Zimbabwe are leaving their country and moving to the surrounding countries where they have trouble finding a job. When they have trouble finding a job, becoming a sex worker becomes one of the very few options available to them.

I wonder if the Mugabe regime understands how many men, women and children have had their lives uprooted and changed (not always for the better) by their actions. And what the ramifications of the changes in these lives will be for the next generations.

I still have hope for Zimbabwe. Call me a delusional optimist...my wife does!

Double Jeopardy?

I promise I will get back to Africa soon....

In the American legal system, you cannot try someone twice for the same crime. And on that note..

I heard last night that Hilary Clinton will be nominated for President by the Democratic Party even though Obama will accept the party's nomination.

Shouldn't we all be spared the double jeopardy?

And yes I do know that the Democratic Party is honoring her for winning over 20 primaries but if you are trying to win an election, shouldn't the focus be on your candidate?

If the Democrats want to win this election, put your attention solely on Obama and his platform. (Have we really heard that yet? From either candidate?) As we all saw in the last election, just attacking the other candidate is not good enough.

Not Exactly Africa....

Many moons ago when I was in college, I walked into one of my friend's room. Greg "Ox" Haigh and Allen Borden looked at me to continue their discussion asking: "Who do you think is the better catcher Carlton Fisk or Johnny Bench?" Anyone who knows me knows I love baseball and can argue the stats of the game for hours upon end.

I responded "Wow, I don't know which one is better." Ox looked at me and said "That is worse than choosing Johnny Bench". We know who he thought was the better catcher....

Barack Obama did exactly the same thing in his responses at Saddleback Church. For those of you who missed the news, McCain and Obama were invited to come to Saddleback Church and the pastor there, Rick Warren who is a popular author, asked them questions. The interviews were back to back, not at the same time.

One question was essentially: when does a fetus become a baby? McCain immediatey said upon conception. Obama's response was troubling to me. He said that this answer was "above his paygrade".

That answer seemed more like a dodgeball to me than an actual answer. And if Obama does become president, what else would be above his paygrade?

Granted this would not be on the same level as Bench vs. Fisk, but then what is?

For the first time in this election, I am leaning toward one side. That side is the man who answered the question not the one who was concerned that an answer to a difficult issue is above his paygrade.

U.S. Sanctions

Finally the U.S. has jumped on the bandwagon, late once again. President Bush signed an executive order expanding sanctions against Mugabe's regime. It targets companies that are puppets of the Mugabe regime used to siphon off money.

CNN has reported that: "Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer told members of Congress last week that more than 100 people have been murdered, more than 3,000 have been injured by beatings or torture and more than 30,000 have been driven from their homes because of violence that broke out after the general election."

Hitting them financially is a good start. On to other good news, our president is finally doing some good things to end his presidency on a positive note. Here is what CNN is reporting:

"Bush said Friday the United States is ready to provide a "substantial assistance package, development aid and normalization with international financial institutions" should those talks result in a new government "that reflects the will of the Zimbabwean people."
In the meantime, the president said he is authorizing the use of up to $2.5 million from the U.S. Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund to assist Zimbabwean refugees and those displaced by the violence. In addition, he said the United States will continue efforts to provide food and medical care to Zimbabweans."

CNN consistenly covers this situation better than almost anyone else. This aid is a first step in rebuilding the people of Zimbabwe. Now if we can just get working on that new constitution and a fair election....

2 Weeks of Hope

Mugabe and his band of.....of....I'm not even going there.....have finally agreed to talks about sharing power. President Mbeki from South Africa is moderating these talks and hopes to have some kind of conclusion within two weeks.

Two weeks? While this doesn't seem like a long time, but it is. There are bigger things to think about:

1. In two weeks, how many people will die in Zimbabwe?
2. How long will it take for any changes to take place? And how many will die during that time?
3. How will inflation be controlled in the time being?
4. Will humanitarian groups be given freedom to help in Zimbabwe?

One of the promising things about these talks is that there is talk of a new constitution. I would love to know what they are thinking...and what you are thinking that read this blog.

Here is the question: What should a new Zimbabwean constitution consist of?