By Steve Clawson on 10/3/2009 7:16 AM

I ask the question facetiously of course but almost wonder if there isn't a grain of truth to it, at least by some on the right-wing fringe. It's based on the reaction to Chicago's failed bid to win the 2016 Olympics.

Some big-name conservatives took delight with Chicago being knocked out in the first round. They were thrilled President Obama's personal pitch had fallen short in Copenhagen.

The Drudge Report blared the headline "The Ego Has Landed." The National Review Online called it an "embarrassment for Obama." Glenn Beck called the news "so sweeeeet" and Rush Limbaugh declared it "the worst day of his presidency." To top it all off, a gathering of the conservative group Americans For Prosperity applauded Chicago's loss.

Really folks? Cheering because an American city didn't win? Rush, are you serious or are you back taking drugs again? I'm sure when President Obama calls th ... Read More »

By Karie Dozer on 9/16/2009 6:56 AM

OBAMA - KANYE?     

Sometimes you just have to call things the way you see them. And, whether you find yourself siding with President Barack Obama on healthcare, the economy, or the war in Afghanistan, you have to hand it to him for speaking his mind and getting it right when he called Kanye West a jackass. Now, unfortunately, he was speaking to a small group around him before the start of a press conference. He never intended for the world to hear his comments. But, in today's world, not much goes unnoticed, and some ABC news employees overheard the comments and posted them on Twitter. They have since deleted the tweets, after discovering their "off the record" source. But I for one am happy that the news got out. It is such a relief when a politician speaks his mind about something that Americans are talking about. SO many people in positions of power hold their opinions for fear they wi ... Read More »

By Steve Clawson on 9/10/2009 6:17 AM

A Defining Moment:

Mark it down. September 9, 2009 will turn out be a defining day in the presidency of Barack Obama. The man known for his excellent oratory skills delivered one of the finest speeches ever by an American president.

During his address to a joint session of Congress on health care reform, President Obama laid out a clear vision of his plan. He was strong and decisive.

After a hot August filled with partisan rhetoric and distortions, an adult finally stood up and showed leadership, common sense and strong convictions. When the history is written, this will be the night Obama won the health care debate.

Ironically, the battle has been sandwiched between two unscripted events in the past few weeks.

President Obama held a prime time news conference in late July that was designed to move health care forward as Congress prepared to adjourn for the Augus ... Read More »

By Steve Clawson on 9/7/2009 9:45 PM

By Karie Dozer on 8/30/2009 8:54 PM

Somewhere over our heads today is 47 year old Jose Hernandez, a NASA astronaut orbiting the earth in the space shuttle discovery. As amazing as modern-day space travel is, the neatest thing about this mission is Hernandez himself. The son of Mexican migrant farm workers, Hernandez and his brothers and sisters spent weekends working the fields and weekdays working the books. His parents made sure he got an education, and during the little downtime the family enjoyed, Hernandez' job at home was adjusting the rabbit ears on the old family TV so they could all see the picture. Here is a guy who didn't feel sorry for himself that his parents were migrant workers. He applied himself, behaved himself, and decided he would make something of himself. He ascended the ranks within a tough NASA astronaut program, and now his tweets go out in Spanish and English from thousands of miles above the earth. He proves a few things. One--Anyone can acheive, even if their parents don't speak English and perhaps came here ... Read More »

By Steve Clawson on 8/11/2009 9:33 PM

By Steve Clawson on 7/25/2009 9:47 AM

A Rare Misstep For Obama

At his prime time news conference this week, President Barack Obama was asked about the arrest of Louis Gates in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Obama stated police had "acted stupidly." It's a comment he now regrets as he should. But give him credit for owning up to the mistake and taking steps to rectify the situation quickly.
It was a rare misstep for Obama because he's not known for making this kind of a mistake. It's even worse because it deflected attention from the real purpose of his news conference--health care reform.

Let's hope the incident in Cambridge is a "teachable moment." Racial profiling is a serious issue whether it occurred in this case or not.

A couple of quick points on the Gates arrest. It's interesting to note the charges were quickly dropped which indicates he never should have been arrested in the first place. A ... Read More »

By Steve Clawson on 7/5/2009 7:48 AM

     As the United States of America celebrates its 233rd birthday, I mark a personal anniversary. It was 20 years ago I left the only life I had ever known in Flint, Michigan.

    I had just recently been fired from my radio job. It was actually a group firing as the new owner of the station sent everyone packing when he took over, but hey that’s the nature of the business. It’s been said you haven’t been in broadcasting unless you’ve been fired. This meant I had finally made it.

     Even as a kid, I had always wanted to move west, specifically Los Angeles, so I started laying the groundwork to leave. On the morning of July 4th, 1989, my Pontiac Grand Am was loaded with as many personal possessions as I could pack in it and I began driving west. I had about a thousand dollars to my name and I didn’t know anyone, but I was determined to make it wo ... Read More »

By Karie Dozer on 6/29/2009 1:06 PM

... those were some of the first words I ever heard from Michael Jackson, a young, adorable, smiling little boy-- singing along with his brothers. What an incredible talent in a young, magnetic body-- the possibilites seemed limitless. And, truly, they were. Emerging from the Jackson 5 as the true superstar talent of the family didn't take long. The more the world loved him, it seemed, the more he acheieved. Until perhaps, the light became too bright, and the weight of the expectations his fans and the media at large became too heavy. Slowly, the world caught glimpses of Michael as he morphed from a a strong, handsome, very physical stage presence into a frail, disfigured, almost transparent form of his former self. Whispers talked of strange skin conditions which "necessitated" the lightening of his skin---tales were told of oxygen tanks used for sleeping, and odd overnight visits from the children of star-struck fans.
 
Finally, accidents while performin ... Read More »

By Karie Dozer on 6/1/2009 11:06 PM

Saving GM
 
      Today's news about GM's bankruptcy has come as no suprise to anyone who has paid attention to the past year's events at the Michigan car maker-- a company whose name and log have become synonymous with the American workforce.  As the daughter of an Ohio car dealer who sold Lincoln-Mercury products, I regard the inevitable bankruptcy with a measure of sadness, but a great amount of hope.  My father was a lifelong Republican, but his beliefs were more rooted in financial beliefs than anything else.  He believed it was no one's business how much money you brought home, as long as you took the repsonsibility of your family seriously.  He believed in hard work, ingenuity, and second chances.  Still, I wonder how much money he would be bringing home if he were selling those cars today.  Back in the 1970s in Ohio, it was the very ... Read More »