Gas Prices

Well we have gas prices rising and stock market over 12,000. With the unrest in the Middle East causing some of increase in oil prices, some of it is on what the future demand is expected. If every one in the U.S. was to suddenly earn twice as much money, then the price of gas would not be a major concern. But could we be seeing a bubble occurring again and some time soon we would have a day of major stocks falling. It seem close to the same situation as before, I would not be surprised to see the same results.

Democracy NOT YET!!!

Egypt has exchange the dictatorship of Mubarak with a military dictatorship. Its not a democracy. We have to wait and see if the military will allow democracy.

other places

If other places in the mid east or in Africa has protests I don't think the leaders of the other countries will put up with what has happen and will put down all revolts with severe military action. That assumes the military at other places does not want to take power.

What Now?

The question about Egypt is now what happens now. The removal of Mubarak is only 1/3 of the problem. If in one year the person ruling Egypt is a member of the current ruling party, or is member of the military, it will not necessarily be a sign of democratic progress. If it leads to greater conflicts (with Israel, or any other country in the region) we will see a failure of a peaceful revolution. Is there any indication the current ruling party will be out of power?


So we have these questions
What role did the military in past Egyptian elections?

What will happen in other Islamic countries?

What happens with Israel?

Could it lead to a Holocaust in the middle east?

Will the US be able to get through the Suez Canal?

Will a Mubarak free Egypt lead to Egypt becoming a enemy of the U.S.?

Everything in Egypt is totally meaningless if it results in elections not reflecting the will of the people? Or if there is greater violence in the Middle East.

Reagan Kennedy Obama

Trying to compare Obama to two historical presidents view positively by many Americans. Seems to be an attempt to make him seem greater than who he really is. 'He's not Obama, he's Reagan or Kennedy" and if you like one of these, you should like Obama. Obama needs to stand on his own. In the Future he needs to be the one they compare future presidents too and such a comparison would need to be a positive.

Maddow v Beck

So its a Thursday night and I am watching MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. She gets to a segment entitled "Seriously?", I watch eagerly expecting a reasonable and intelligent response to something Glenn Beck has said. I am making it a point to watch the Jan 31-Feb 4th editions of the Glenn Beck show. I am watching it at thedailybeck.com and as of now have only seen the Monday show. But what I get is her with a flashlight pretending as she was telling a ghost story, not a picking out of some points being made by Glenn Beck and then responding with a thoughtful response. Editing to show him saying the same word over and over again, does not make some profound point. And since I don't know what it means, I was hoping she would define the word and argue how it is not the correct word to use. So as I listen to what Glenn Beck says and as I work on doing my 'homework' I hope I would find better responses to his shows, then what Rachel Maddow has done.

P.S.
en.wiktionary.org/wiki/caliphate
Caliphate:
A unified federal Islamic government for the Muslim world, ruled by an elected head of state or caliph


Does not seem like an incorrect word to use.