I turn over my rant to Christopher Hitchens. While the title of the following is Hitchens on the Catholic Church, I have many of his feeling regarding religion in general. More people are hurt and killed as a result of religion compared to anything in our culture.

Can the American people be so shortsighted not to remember that it was George W. Bush and Republicans that produced the financial mess that we are in right now with their ideas of tax breaks for the wealthy and their litany of nonsensical economics of not wanting to raise revenues along with cutting programs? We are not so stupid to try "trickle down economics" over and over again.

Why are our elected officials acting like kids? Well, the answer to that question is easy. They want to do whatever will preserve their power and influence. They just don't give a damn about the people who elected them. They do care about their big corporate sponsors. Hence, we have this soap opera played out on the world stage. Taxes. No Taxes. Cut Spending. Don't cut spending. All of this is just another sign of the decline of a once great country. I rarely agree fully with the New York Times editorialist David Brooks, but his most recent op/ed piece should be read by all Americans. For the senators and congressman an educated person should be assigned to slowly read this article to them.

 The Magic Lever

I do not understand why people who do not want tax increases, even though we are presently taxed at the lowest level in over a half century, advocate for smaller government. Last week Warren Buffet stated:

"We had debt at 120 percent of the GDP, far higher than this (presently 60%), after World War II and no one went around threatening that we're going to ruin the credit of the United States or something in order to get a better balance of debt to GDP."

When you cut government problems in lieu of tax increases, you will then have to pay for these government subsidies out of your pocket. For example, smaller government will mean fewer scholarships and loans for students. They will pay the "tax" each semester in significantly higher tuition and fees.

Why cannot people, even those who are highly intelligent, figure out that there are no easy answers to complex problems? None!

Why do people sit in their cars blocking traffic in a parking lot so that they will not have to walk an additional 10 feet to the store they are visiting? No wonder the obesity rate in the US is at an all time high. I also see this phenomenon in the parking lot of my gym where people are going to workout!

I am sick and tired of dodging cars of people who are talking on their cell phones while smoking a cigarette and reaching in the back of the car to slap their kid.

Drivers on Cell Phones are as Bad as Drunks

Why don't people drive like their lives depended on it.