A recent article on Bloomberg.com quoted an Obama economic advisor as saying there is a real chance a stimulus package of somewhere in the vicinity of $600 billion will be recommended to the President-elect, working similarly to Bush’s $150 billion stimulus of about a year ago. Apparently, “demand is predicted to be so low that this sort of package is necessary.” Even if demand will be low, does anyone else besides me think this number is just a little over the top?

In case you haven’t seen the whole video yet, you can’t miss it. Seems Bush has reflexes comparable to those of Neo – props to him on one of the best shoe-dodges I have seen recently.

So I don’t know how many of you have heard the news, but apparently an Iraqi journalist decided it would be a fine idea to toss his shoes at President Bush during his last meeting with President al-Maliki in Iraq (the video is on FoxNews.com for those who are interested). Apparently, in Iraqi culture, throwing your shoes at someone is a sign of contempt. Why you threw your shoes at someone who saved you from oppression and gave you the ability to report the news freely without getting executed as you would have been previously is beyond me, but I’m not even going to get into that whole thing. Good news is, the President was able to dodge both shoes, and the journalist soon after was rewarded by having the crap kicked out of him by security and other journalists. Moral of the story: There is a God.

During the election campaign, conservatives who labelled Obama and his prospective economic policies as ‘socialist’ were quickly written off as fear mongers using every desperate attempt to salvage a floundering McCain campaign. Many times did I hear this somewhat logical rebuttal: “Socialism is a political system under which the state controls the means of economic production, manufacturing, and distribution. It’s crazy to call Obama’s tax policies and plans for universally available health care and education ‘socialist’!” At the time, I would have probably agreed with this statement, but Obama’s planned public works stimulus package, I’m not so sure. No, we’re probably not moving towards the Soviet States of America, but maybe those calls of “socialism!” during the campaign weren’t so ludicrous after all?

Feliz Cumpleanos to the 8-year old known as the 5-4 Supreme Court decision to stop voter recounts in Bush v. Gore. On this day eight years ago, Gore finally had to be a big boy and pass up the oval office to GW. With all of the incessant Bush-mongering and outward hatred towards the man, I’m sure the majority of people will not be celebrating this day.

I can confidently say that I am. So, for a change, I think we can see Bush in a positive light; after all, it is (sort of) his birthday.

Despite the state that our country is currently in, I am standing by my belief that we have been better off with George instead of Al. I admire Bush for a few things. I don’t admire Gore for a few things.

After the September 11 attacks, our president has done an extremely successful job keeping Americans safe in our homeland. I think that people tend to forget about this.  He has put the heat onto domestic and foreign terrorists and captured or killed many Al Qaeda big wheels and those involved in 9/11. After the terrorist attacks, the Bush administration improved security, scrutiny, and proactive defense instead of being on the rebound. Did they listen to a few phone calls? Did they pull some middle eastern-looking people aside in the airport? Did they detain some sketchy guys? Maybe. Did we have another attack on U.S. soil?

No.

Are terrorists everyday planning and attempting to wreak havoc? Absolutely.  These people don’t stop at anything.  Their goal is to hurt, kill, and cause catastrophe. Their motive: hate.  To think that the lack of a terrorist attack is due purely to blind luck and discretion of the terrorists is just short of idiotic.  While both Europe and India have been subject to devastating terrorism, and plans within the U.S. have been foiled, our country has remained untouched.

My other reason for admiring Bush is probably one that will be met with some dissent.  I admire him because he is a man who does what he says and acts on what he believes.  He is not afraid to take the heat when he is wrong, but he surely stands by what he thinks is best.  Granted, we have seen that sometimes his plans are faulty (Iraq, No Child Left Behind, …some of you will find more…).  However, Bush acts strongly on his intelligence and facts provided and doesn’t falter from what he says is his plan.

Had the events of the past eight years fallen into the hands of Al Gore, I’m sure some things would be different.  Would September 11 still have occurred with Al in office? Of course – I feel like a lot of people don’t realize this, either.  The wheels were far in motion before anyone stopped counting ballots today eight years ago.  The main problem I see is that I can’t picture Gore holding a stern face and rooted stance against pure evil in the form of terrorism.  I see a lot of fruitless talking and negotiations, while planning and acts of terrorism go on.

So, eight years later, I say happy birthday to Bush/Florida/Supreme Court.

Plus, what does Gore need that extra weight of the oval office for? He already has the inventions of the internet and global warming (or is it climate change now?) to deal with.

It’s hard to decide what’s worse: the fact that Blagojevich was trying to sell the Senate seat, the number of “f-bombs” dropped by Blagojevich in the official file against him, or the fact that, at the moment, he’s refusing to step down from his position. It will be very interesting to see whether or not the investigation (or inquisitive journalists/politicians) will make any connections between Obama and Blagojevich’s misdoings. I personally believe that there aren’t any, but, in any case, the last thing the country needs right now is an pre-inaugural Obama scandal.

This story appeared on Drudge earlier today, and I really can’t decide whether this female robot companion is a ground-breaking accomplishment of a brilliant mind or the work of a very disturbed individual. The really odd bit is that this guy actually created her with the intention of making a female companion for himself. My question is: at what point will we have to start assigning ‘human rights’ to extremely human androids? Many thought-provoking and philosophical questions emerge.