As I work on creating the Listing, I wanted to display a sample of what I THINK the individual entry for the Blogs will look like.

U.S. Common Sense

Independent

Not yet reviewed

The purpose of this blog is to take a non-partisan view of our current local, state, and federal government policies and actions to determine if they actually benefit or hurt us as a nation.

What do you think? Any recommendations?

UPDATE: I have created the Listing page, and added The BoBo Files. Let me know if you have any recommendations.

In many ways, I view Thomas Paine as our nations first great blogger.  His writings on the state of the relationship between the colonies and Great Britain and the concerns the colonists had about their future were written in a manner that the general public could understand and join in on the conversation.  The more people that became involved with the discussion of the future of the colonies lead to enough political will to make a change, eventually resulting in the birth of a new nation.

Two years ago when I started this website, one of my goals was to pool as many voices together on the topic of politics.  When people get together to share their opinions, recommendations, and concerns about our country, progress happens.  You can make that happen.

Last week I brought back my Featured Blogs option, where I pull articles from websites that I enjoy so their views can be spread to additional viewers.  The authors don’t necessarily have similar views as I do, but that makes this process even more important.  If we read only the opinions of those that we enjoy, are we actually challenging our views on the issues? 

To increase the exposure of our fellow bloggers and to keep the discussion moving forward, I am providing a new service to all of you.  I am creating the Political Blog Listing.  This Listing will provide the general public with the following information about your blog:

• Blog name
• Blog address
• Blog category (Conservative, Liberal, Independent, News)
• A summary about your blog that you provide

As an option, I will provide an advanced listing for your blog, including a review of your website and displaying a 125×125 graphic on the Listing for a donation.  To be different from other blog reviewers, there won’t be an annual fee for the advanced listing.  In order to create a foundation for the advanced Listing, I need five volunteers that would like their sites reviewed.  Simply reply below to make yourself know.  Make sure to provide your e-mail address in case I need to get in touch with you.

This isn’t exactly a political topic, but it is a topic that means a lot to me.  A young friend of mine, Emily, has suffered from Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis throughout her life.  While not widely known, kids get arthritis too, and this young gal has shown her family, her friends, and the world that this crippling disease will not stop her.  Not only does she go to school like any ordinary child, as well as play sports, she has also been the spokesperson for the Arthritis Foundation.

So why am I telling you this?  300,000 children are inflicted with some form of juvenile arthritis, on top of the 1,000,000 Americans with Rheumatoid arthritis.  That’s a lot of people, isn’t it?  Well, that’s nothing compared to the 27,000,000 suffering from Osteoarthritis.  With all of these individuals living in pain, it is our call to help the scientists find a cure, and that is where you come in.  Below you will find a link to Emily’s donation page, where she is collecting donations leading up to her participation in the annual Arthritis Walk this month.  Her current goal is $7,500, and she has currently raised $4,090.27 while I write this.  I think we can help her reach her goal, so please take a moment to view her site, read her short introduction, and (if you have the resources available) support her in her quest for a cure.

Thank you in advance for your participation.  If you wish to leave her an encouraging word, please feel free to leave a message below.  I will make sure she receives them.

See Emily in action!  Presentation in Atlanta, along side U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson (link).  You can either wait till about 2.5 minutes into the video, or select her name from the drop-down menu at the bottom of the page. 

Visit Emily’s donation page!  (link)

By eWorldVu.com

It’s an election year in the United States. The politicians of both major political parties continue to outline their initiatives for their first Presidential term in office. Democratic candidate Barrack Obama outlines a long list of new spending promises under the slogan “Yes we can”. Meanwhile, Republican John McCain wants to continue spending on the Iraq war well into the future. In the Congress, there is no desire to cut federal spending and the dubious practice of spending “earmarks” continues without any real reform.

Meanwhile, the United States federal debt is currently approaching 9.5 trillion dollars and it is about to get worse since the national unemployment rate is now rising. The federal debt burden already amounts to about $79,000 for each United States taxpayer. Therefore, the current federal debt, economic recession, Iraq war, and new election year campaign promises are a formula that amount to one thing for the average American taxpayer: higher income taxes.

However, it is not as though taxes are not high enough already. In 2008, Americans will work every day from New Year’s Day through April 23, just to pay their taxes. It will take 74 working days to pay federal taxes and 39 additional working days to pay state and local taxes. Americans will spend more on taxes in 2008 than they will spend on their food, clothing, and housing expenses combined.

As both political parties in Washington D.C. contemplate raising income taxes in the next few years, there is a new and unique tax that is already under consideration in several large American cities. It is a tax already generating revenue in international cities like London, Milan, Stockholm, and Singapore. It is called the “Congestion Tax” and its implementation is feared by automotive commuters in major United States cities. The tax is based upon a vehicle entering a city or a designated area of the city. The tax is levied upon an automobile’s entry into the designated zone.

London could be a model for the administration of the congestion tax in major United States cities. The congestion tax in London started with a commuter tax of eight dollars a car. That daily tax has recently doubled for small gas powered cars and large vehicles now pay a $50 Congestion Tax each day. London does not have tollbooths or barriers around the Congestion Charging Zone and no physical tickets or passes are required. Monitoring is done through a network of camera sites at every entrance and exit in the tax zone and within the zone. Each camera site consists of at least one color camera plus a monochrome camera for each lane of traffic being monitored. The camera’s capture automobile license plate numbers and people are required to pay the tax based on the pictures.

The stated purpose of the congestion tax is to clean up the environment by reducing C02 emissions from automobiles stalled in traffic in heavily traveled, congested areas in large cities. The tax acts as an incentive for automobile users to utilize public transportation. The benefits of an increase in the use of public transportation would be to improve air quality, reduce traffic congestion, and improve public health by reducing air pollution.

New York City is one of at least five United States cities considering the implementation of a congestion tax. The initial tax for automobile drivers entering the New York congestion zone would be over eight dollars each day. In addition, there is an additional incentive for New York City because of the promise of $354 million in grants from the Federal Government for creating a congestion zone.

Consider the implications of these federal grants for a moment if you will. A taxpayer pays federal income taxes and the government uses that tax money as an incentive for local city governments to initiate an additional tax burden on automobile drivers in order to solve local traffic bottlenecks. It certainly becomes problematic for a taxpayer when federal income taxes are used as a financial incentive for cities to create new local fee based taxes.

In fact, a congestion tax may have dubious ramifications to local business and city employment. What the congestion tax will do is drive local business away from the inner cities into the suburbs where commuting workers and business customers do not have to pay a traffic tax . In addition, cab fares in large cities will have to increase in order for a passenger cab to enter a congestion zone.

Indeed, it is not been scientifically proven that long term global warming is man-made and the result of increased CO2 in the atmosphere. Consider that the planet’s recent warming is likely a result of the long term solar cycle of the Sun. In reality, the Congestion Tax is really a tax wolf in environmental sheep’s clothing. The truth is that it’s just another unnecessary tax burden on the worker and retail consumer that will not save the planet from global warming.

By The Fireside Post

Here we go again.  An angry man, whether justified or not, pokes a stick in the eye of the object of his anger.  Then he wonders why the object of his anger does not like him.  Barack Obama says, let us have a healthy dialogue.  Well, get the stick out of my eye and maybe I’ll talk about it.

It is the classic case of the self-fulfilling prophecy.  Reverend Wright says, “God Damn America.”  Does he expect white Americans to embrace him with love and kindness?  No – that embrace would not serve his purpose.  Osama Bin Laden blows up our buildings and kills innocent people and then says, figuratively, God damn those Americans.  George Bush bombs the Muslim world – then he says, again figuratively, God Damn Muslims.

Self-fulfilling prophecies are usually more subtle.  I remember back in the early 1980’s a study was done in a third grade class.  The social scientists found thirty children who tested as equals.  They introduced the children to a third grade teacher with a bias.  They told the teacher that twenty of the children tested average, five tested above average, and five tested below average.  They waited and watched.  At the end of the school year the twenty introduced as average tested average.  The five introduced as above average tested above average, the five introduced as below average tested below average.  The teacher unwittingly and unintentionally fulfilled the prophecy.

If we assume the worst we get the worst.  If we assume the best we get the best.

Reverend Wright has done his community a grave disservice.  People like Osama Bin Laden and Rush Limbaugh do the world a grave disservice.  Sure, they are popular with other angry people.  They have a following.  But they are not leaders – they merely gather like minded angry people and fuel the fire.

Each of these folks would benefit from a class in Anger Management.  Their anger may be justified – but their behavior is their own.  Angry people justify their behavior with the cause of their anger – then they are more angry when they are not appreciated.

George Bush is befuddled.  He has killed many thousands of people.  And he feels justified.  He is thinking, “People just do not understand.  Some day people will look back and see that I was justified in my behavior.”

Is there a difference between Reverend Wright and President Bush?  Both have fallen victim to justifying their atrocious behavior.  And both feel that uniquely human quality of martyrdom.

When others return anger with anger – the original perpetrator feels justified and exonerated.