No matter what people say, EVERYONE is susceptible to some form of pain.

Realization

My best friend since the 8th grade, Rollin is currently deployed overseas. I received a phone call from him last night (or early this morning rather) and I've got to say, it was good to hear from him. However, although he excitedly spoke about his adventures in the Pacific, it did not outweigh his excitement for his return to California, which is safe to say has been long overdue. I mean sure, he's visited Cali every now and then but it's been a while since he actually resided here. It recently became a possibility that he may become a recruiter in Orange County by the closing months of this year. We're crossing our fingers man.

So what I realized from this conversation was that even though I'm out of the Marine Corps, the push continues. There are still Marines and others out there fighting the war and keeping peace. It's like the minute I took my combat boots off, I entered a completely different world. The Marine Corps became almost unreal to me. I've gotten too comfortable with my way of living here in the states and have forgotten about all those sleepless nights overseas when I vowed never to take the luxuries I have at home for granted. I have fallen prey to the ignorance of a spoiled American, who conjure up the most pettiest of complaints. So today, I remember and honor those who have fallen and applaud those currently serving. These are the men and women who keep our country free. Let's never take this freedom (or their sacrifice) for granted.

Being Informed

The current economic recession has taken its toll on America and from what it seems will continue until the nation is able to spend again. While many conservatives believe that ‘waiting it out’ with minimal government intervention is the best solution to this crisis, liberals disagree and say that the federal government should step in and promote spending to open up new jobs. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act passed by President Obama last month was created to do just that. With much of the $787 billion dedicated to spending, the employment opportunities created by the bill is predicted to set a foundation for economic growth where in the future will sustain employment.

Now the real purpose of me blogging about this bill again is to provide this link: www.recovery.gov . This the official website of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It will show you where all your precious tax money is being invested. It's important that the public is aware of the current situation yet assured that something is being done to remedy it. Check it out, it's your right to know.

Morning Post

I have a little bit of time on my hands before class so I'd like to give a shout out to PRINCESS ALBANIAAAAAAAA. What up prince?! ok that's it for now...I'm going to finish my TEA!

Education Reform

President Obama proposed his visions of education reform in a speech delivered on Tuesday/ march 10. He called for less restrictions on charter schools and the improvement of early childhood education. The president also mentioned his intentions to establish a pay system for teachers based on merit, something he promised during his campaign.

It's about time the federal government stepped in to make some changes in the nation's education. There are too many teachers out there that simply teach because that's what they have been doing for the past quarter century and many have lost their enthusiasm to educate! They continue on with their discontented lives and fail to truly inspire students to excel in their education. Unfortunately, these are the teachers that keep their jobs when it comes to cutting faculty during budget crisis' such as the one we're currently experiencing here in California! The fresh, young, and passionate teachers are the first to lose their jobs only because of their lack of seniority! However, I'm not insinuating that ALL teachers that have remained in their profession since the flippin' beginning of time have lost their passion to teach. I'm just pointing out that it occurs too often and that something MUST be done to remedy this issue.

Paying teachers based on their performance and effectiveness in educating sounds like a solid plan to me. Or perhaps teachers can have a vote confidence every so often? There needs to be some way to keep them accountable. We need to weed out all the ineffective teachers and award the ones who actually educate. With a few prominent teacher unions at his side and large chunk of that stimulus money dedicated to education, it is hopeful that President Obama will bring change to our fallen education system.

The POWER of TEA!

I'm usually pretty good at keeping awake during lectures but man, this week it felt like that was impossible! Could it be that I'm not getting enough sleep? NO, I've been getting atleast 7-8 hours a night so that can't be it. Could my professors just be THAT boring? That's actually VERY possible, but boring or not I'm not the type to fall asleep during lectures. I've been really trying to narrow this problem down and I've concluded that it's because I stopped drinking my tea in the morning! I mean it's not like I quit tea or anything; it's just I don't wake up early enough to either make some at home or pick up a cup on the way 'cause I've been having to leave for school an hour early to ensure myself a parking spot and not be late for class! Hopefully I'll get into the swing of things soon before my inattentiveness in class really bites me in the butt later.

CA Budget Crisis

I visited my counselor (or a counselor rather) today to evaluate my transcripts and to discuss my anticipated transfer to UCSD. [There's a Transfer Admissions Guarantee (TAG) program here at school which is basically a contract between PCC and certain UCs that guarantees students general admissions as long as they meet a certain criteria (GPA, units...).] After reviewing my transcripts and current schedule, the counselor said I was good to go as far as transfer preparation goes. Then came the bad news...well...I'll call it the "potentially bad news" for now...She phoned the transfer center and it turns out UCSD might not accept winter quarter students if the state budget crisis isn't appropriately resolved in terms of public education funding. That means I'll have to apply for fall and wait a whole flippin' year to attend a four year university! WHY didn't you take that block grant when the federal government put it on the table, ARNOLD? ?POR QUE NO?

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

I realize that it's been a couple of weeks since President Obama signed this bill into law but I feel it to be too important of a topic to be left un-blogged.

So after much debate in Congress, the final cost of the bill turned out to be $787 billion. The largest bulk of the money will be spent on tax relief to promote the research and development of infrastructure, science, education/training, and energy. Another crucial component of the bill will be expended on state and local fiscal relief that will prevent imminent local/state tax increases and cuts to health and education programs. It is projected that the bill will create or salvage up to 3.5 million jobs within the next two years.

However, the bill does have its drawbacks. The “cap and trade” component of the bill did not make the final compromise so fossil fuel industries will continue to pollute the environment with CO2 emissions freely without restrictions. By not limiting fossil fuel energy production, it will be difficult for the government to promote a clean energy alternative, which is what President Obama is ultimately aiming for. The conservatives pushed for more tax cuts, which was added only to have them not vote in favor of the bill. That money could have been used to create more jobs that are badly needed throughout the nation!

There is still much work to be done to carry out President Obama’s visions of a thriving economy with universal health care, clean-energy, and full employment. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act should mark the beginning of President Barack Obama’s recovery plan. Just the fact that he was able to pass such a large bill within a couple weeks of being in office should ensure the people that this man’s actions are most certainly louder than words and the people should take that into account and stand behind him.