So the unfortunate, for Obama, thing is that last night's speech was badly received by everyone. I mean one thing when Fox news pans him, but today even NY Times criticized the speech

сегодня я услышала по радио, что если бы молодые американцы учили быили знали мировую историю, то они бы никогда не проголосовали бы заОбаму...
Интересно, какой исторический эпизод мог бы помочь американцам изменить свое мнение об Обаме.

<font color="black" face="arial" size="2"><font color="black" face="arial" size="2"><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: Arial; color: rgb(20, 48, 141); font-size: 24pt; font-weight: bold;">President Obama's First Year of Accomplishments:

1. Offended the Queen of England.
2. Bowed to the King of Saudi Arabia.
3. Praised the Marxist Daniel Ortega.
4. Kissed Socialist Hugo Chavez on the cheek.
5. Endorsed the Socialist Evo Morales of Bolivia.
6. Sided with Hugo Chavez and Communist Fidel Castro against Honduras.
7. Announced we would meet with Iranians with no pre-conditions while
they're building their nuclear weapons. Also sent officials of the Obama
Administration to North Korea for direct talks about their nuclear program.
(This is tantamount to the US officially recognizing the government of
North Korea --- which we still do not --- and beginning diplomatic relations
with them --- which we never have had. And should not, ever.)
8. Gave away billions to AIG without pre-conditions.
9.. Expanded the bailouts (many more billions).

10. Insulted everyone who has ever loved a Special Olympian.
11. Is increasing our national debt tremendously, which our great-grandchildren won't be able to pay off (Latest estimates
are over $14Trillion - plus). They'll be lucky to even be able to pay on the interest.
12. Announced the termination of our new missile defense system the day after North Korea launched an ICBM.
13. Released information on U.S. Intelligence gathering despite urgings of his own CIA director and the prior four CIA directors.
14. Accepted without comment that five of his cabinet members cheated on their taxes and two other nominees withdrew after they couldn't take the heat..
15. Appointed a Homeland Security Chief Janet Napolitano who identified military veterans and abortion opponents as "dangers to the nation."

16. Ordered that the word "terrorism" no longer be used and instead
refers to such acts as "man-made disasters."
17. Circled the globe to publicly apologize for America's world leadership..
18. Told the Mexican president that the violence in their country was because of us.
19. Politicized the census by moving it into the White House from the Department of Commerce.
20. Appointed as Attorney General the man who orchestrated the forced removal and expulsion to Cuba of a 9-year-old whose mother died trying to bring him to freedom in the United States.
21. Salutes as heroes three Navy SEALS who took down three terrorists who threatened one American life, and the next day announces members of the Bush administration may stand trial for "torturing" three 9/11 terrorists by pouring water up their noses.
22. Low altitude photo shoot of Air Force One over New York City that frightened thousands of New Yorkers.

<font color="black" face="arial" size="2">23. Sent his National Defense Advisor to Europe to assure them that the US will no longer treat Israel in a special manner and they might be on their own with the Muslims.
24. Praised Jimmy Carter's trip to Gaza where he sided with terrorist Hamas against Israel.
25. Nationalized General Motors and Chrysler while turning shareholder control over to the unions and freezing out retired investors who owned their bonds. Committed unlimited taxpayer billions in the process.
26. Passed a huge energy tax in the House that will make American industry even less competitive while costing homeowners thousands per year.

<font color="black" face="arial" size="2">27.Has been pushing for nationalized health care "reform" that will stripseniors of their Medicare, cut pay of physicians, increase taxes yetanother $1 trillion, and put everyone on rationed care with governmentbureaucrats deciding who gets care and who doesn't.
28. Left the Czech Republic and Poland hanging out to dry by cancellingthe planned 'missile defense shield' that was to be installed in theircountries. And did so on the 70th anniversary of the Soviet Union'sinvasion of Poland.
29. Botched his attempt to bring the Olympics to Chicago by giving alame presentation to the Olympic Committee. (Maybe that was a GOODaccomplishment.)
30. Bowed to the Emperor of Japan. This not only offended the hell outof us, but it also offended the Japanese people because of the way hedid it.

31. While in Copenhagen, insulted the King of Denmark by snubbing him and declining his invitation to dinner.
32. Has been working on selling out the sovereignty of the United States and making us subservient to the UN, the EU, and other international organizations.
33. Has been continually weakening our National Defense and Security, e.g., Set a timetable for withdrawal of our troops from Iraq and
Afghanistan (our enemies appreciate that); Cancelled the F-22 Joint Strike Fighter program; Has been gutting the CIA, the FBI, our Armed Forces, and our Nation's industry and production; Dragged his feet and ignored his generals before paying any attention to their requests and recommendations, then reduced what they need; Has refused to secure our borders.

34. Has appointed over 30 "Czars", who are answerable only to himwithout having to be approved by Congress. Among them are tax cheats,convicted criminals, radicals, Marxists, and even one or twoself-avowed Communists. His "Pay Czar" tells corporations how muchthey can pay their executives.
35. Is trying, a step at a time, to circumvent the Constitution of TheUnited States as it is written and, little by little, take away ourrights which are outlined in the Bill of Rights.
36. Has worsened the recession, caused the US Dollar to be furtherdevalued, and driven this country's unemployment rate to over 10%.
37. Will close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, move theterrorist prisoners to here within the US, give them the sameconstitutional rights as US Citizens, and try them in US civilian courtrather than by Military Tribunal.

Clarence Thomas on Why He Skips the State of the Union
One final contribution to the post-mortem on the State of the Union address.
In a question-and-answer session at Stetson University College ofLaw in Florida this week, Justice Clarence Thomas defended the court'sdecision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.This was, of course,the decision that inspiredPresident Obamatocriticize the ruling by addressingthe justices directly in theaudience.
Thomas offered several reasons for the court's decision, which Iwon't repeat here; but what intrigued me was his parentheticalexplanation for his absence from the State of the Union address.

"I don't go because it has become so partisan," he said, "and it's veryuncomfortable for a judge to sit there. There's a lotthat you don'thear on TV: The catcalls, the whooping and hollering andunder-the-breath comments. One of the consequences is now the courtbecomes part of the conversation, if you want to call it that, in thespeeches. It's just an example of why I don't go."

***********.weeklystandard.com/blogs/clarence-thomas-reacts-state-union
The rest is here

How big is 1.9 trillion?

WASHINGTON – A 1.9 trillion-mile trip is about the same as 8 million trips to the moon.

Unfortunately, the $1.9 trillion in new borrowing authority Congress is giving President Barack Obamawon't take people quite that far.
The additional $1.9 trillion raisesthe debt ceiling to $14.3 trillion, but that limit may have to beincreased again after the November election.
Nomatter how you look at it, 1.9 trillion is a lot.
In dollars, it equalsabout $6,000 for every man, woman and child in the U.S. It's almosttwice all the money America has spent on military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001.

That amount would buy about 422 Nimitz Class aircraft carriers, which run about $4.5 billion apiece. It would be enough to provide Pell grants of $5,000 to some 380 million low-income students, a number exceeding the entire population of the country.
And 1.9 trillion feet would take you to the top of Mount Everest 65 million times, or to the bottom of the 36,000-foot Mariana Trench, the deepest point in the Pacific, about 53 million times.
Interms of time, 1.9 trillion seconds adds up to about 60,000 years. And1.9 trillion hours ago, or almost 220 million years ago, dinosaurs werejust beginning to dominate the Earth.

Didn't you know - they are making progress in Congress... along with increase in actual unemployment and decrease in reporting one.(N)

I just saved or created 14 jobs today. I will continue to work on it. By the end of Obama administration I will have saved or created 1,000,000 jobs. (fr)

Watch the video "Impeach Obama bill board".
***********.fox11online.com/dpp/news/impeach-obama-billboard

A quite modest grant that I got under the Recovery Act provided a new three-year job for a secretary and nine summer jobs (each year for 3 years) for undergraduate students that will help them with future careers in high-tech industry and science.
So Obama is right on the money with Recovery Act.

Alex, you can try to justify it any way you please, colleges always get their money for research one way or the other. Whoever gives money decides (usually) what is needed and what is not for the good of the giver...
However, it does not have to be through our taxes and in size of the ten thousand elephants. When it is everybody's (i. e. ours) - it means nobody is responsible.
Waste!!!!

Jenya, I'm at a University. In general a business can get a SBIR grant -- money to take an idea and develop it into a marketable product/technology.
Gera, this is not a research grant. This grant was specifically targeted to involve 10 undergraduate students per year to experience how research is done work in research groups in our University and in other major research labs. We pick the students who are either first in their families to go to college or others who generally don't imagine themselves having a career in high-tech/science. We educate them first (for free -- neither grant nor our salaries cover this) and then guide them during their work. For which they get a stipend.
If you consider this a waste, you have absolutely no idea how to get a young person decent education that s/he can apply in real world after graduation.

Alex,
I worked myself through school and was also employed there for awhile (Lawrence Tech in Southfield, MI). So I know how it works.

The person who wants to get the education will accomplish it.

It is not a function of the Federal Government to provide... period.

Гера, you really think you gonna convience anyone here? (ch)
it's an awesome idea to borrow money from China to create a job for a secretary..some people just don't care that the treasury is empty, just give them the grants..

We have different expectations from Recovery Act here.
Some see a 3 year secretary job plus summer interns as a success story while others expect a creation of long term permanent job.
Lao Tzu - "Give a Man a Fish, Feed Him For a Day. Teach a Man to Fish, Feed Him For a Lifetime"

какие действия.. какие рабочие места он создал за последний год? и сколько fake?

I put myself through school too, so I'm not impressed.
Yes, it's always easy to say that it is easy to get Chinese to pay for a secretary. Clearly, someone who says that misses the whole point.
Education costs money. Good eduction costs good money. If you know elementary math, you cannot simultaneously scream that college tuition is way too high and demand good education (private colleges). Alternatively, you cannot scream that your taxes are too high and demand good education (public colleges).
This government is interested in having highly-educated workforce. So that private companies can send low-tech jobs overseas to cut their spending.That's why this government provides educational grants to colleges to inspire people to go into high tech careers and not live off the gov money, as their parents do.
If you say that it is not for govt to fund education and you care about this country, tell me how many of you set up private funds to fund education? I thought so.

If you say that it is not for govt to fund education and you care about this country, tell me how many of you set up private funds to fund education? I thought so.
What are you talking about? Of course, we have set up a private fund to fund the education of OUR child. I also put myself through undergrad and grad schools. I also worked for the university during the grad school to help me with the tuition.

But you always talk about things "for the good of the country" -- cut taxes, reduce spending, cut national deficit etc. And then you talk about your own family only. BTW, does you private fund give you tax break -- or deferred taxes?
Did you set up a private fund to help your country to better educate its children? As it is a private fund, you can give it to whoever you want -- best performers, kinds with one ear bigger then the other, etc.? I thought so.

Alex, that is the difference between us.
We care for OUR children (I am paying for my son directly) and you care for ... nobody knows who!
If every one of us sticks to what we do, and do tell the others what to do. You teach. I produce. Government stay out of our lives and protect us from the enemies... they cannot even do that. They read them Miranda rights...

10 undergraduate students per year to experience how research is done work in research groups in our University and in other major research labs. We pick the students who are either first in their families to go to college or others who generally don't imagine themselves having a career in high-tech/science.
Наверное, это помагает в защите диссертации очередной, а как по поводу взглянуть на мир с открытыми глазами?Конечно, я понимаю, что любые научные разработки хороши и нужны, но иногда ооооччччееееннньььь далеко от действительности! Кстати, напоминает многиеобъявления в газете о наёме кандидатов на подобные роли "подопытных кроликов"! Возьмёте меня?
This government is interested in having highly-educated workforce. So that private companies can send low-tech jobs overseas to cut their spending
А вы на практике знаете, почему люди становятся экспатами или только в теории?

Кстати, Алексей, хотелось бы по-подробней услышать о вашем понимании..So that private companies can send low-tech jobs overseas to cut their spending:-O:-O:-O

Did you set up a private fund to help your country to better educate its children?

Of course Idid. The way I see it is that by taking care of my son's education I am helping to produce a valuable member of society. If every one did that, we would have a lot less need for government handouts.

Would you rather I le tthe government worry about my son, while i paid taxes for bunch of government programs?

Gera, I care about my kids too. And I also pay for their education directly. So there is no difference between us here.
But I also see other parents' kids. Every day. In my class and in the classes of my colleagues. And I see that some of them don't care. Some of them don't care because their parents pay for their education.
And I also see other kids. Those whose parents work, but cannot pay for their education. But the kids care, they want their education -- and they work themselves -- so government help them too.
And those kids make my day. I am happy to work overtime -- and without pay -- for those kids. And I do.
And here is the difference between us -- you simply don't care.

Наверное, это помагает в защите диссертации очередной
Irina, no. Sometimes it helps to stop being cynical.
Here is the abstract of the grant: ***********.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward.do?AwardNumber=0851678

А вы на практике знаете, почему люди становятся экспатами или только в теории?
Please elaborate what you mean by that.

Alex,
Because people like you care too much for the good of all... we are in this deep sheet depression... We do not need the government as well as academia to tell us what to do and what to care about.
The private company makes money on every dollar. If they do not - they are out of business! The government wastes money, because if they do not get any return, they print more or borrow from communist China.
Shame on them for doing a hole bunch of unconstitutional activities and on you for supporting such stupid policies...

Please elaborate what you mean by that
Объясняю....

So that private companies can send low-tech jobs overseas to cut their spending
Чтобы делать подобные заявления, насколько я понимаю, нужно владеть или по крайней мере иметь знания в этом вопросе!
вся остальное, извините теория...как она у вас называется, кстати?
Поэтому я и уточнила, и переспросила, что именно вы имеете ввиду?!

Irina, no. Sometimes it helps to stop being cynical.
Here is the abstract of the grant:
Прошу прощения, по ссылкам я не хожу! Если у бас нет времени пояснить свою позицию "без лозунгов", я понимаю и затем откланиваюсь! Теорий и у меня полно всяких и разных! Ещё раз, прошу прощение за беспокойство.

Gera, I don't tell you what to do. I do it myself. You don't. So what?
But I did pay for your company to stay afloat -- and thus for you to keep your job. And I didn't mind -- although, frankly, if I had to choose among the three I'd prefer a company from Dearborn.

Ok, Irina, I cut and paste the award information here specifically fo you:
This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). This award supports an REU site at Wayne State University, with project opportunities offered at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, and locally at Wayne State University. The REU program primarily recruits local students and the program starts with a preparation phase at Wayne State University involving a one-hour course given over the winter to student participants. [to cont]