Filed under: Janet's Politics | Tags: Cuba, healthcare, Jimmy Carter, Michael Moore, Sicko
Something really scary happened last week. I had lunch with this guy whose politics were just a little to the right of Attila. He believes that Obama is a one-term guy, just like his old nemesis, Jimmy Carter. He is part of that group of people who have theirs, so why should they care about anyone else? He wants small government and sees no reason to have social programs. Hates the health care plan and believes that the Obama administration is running us into the poor house. The Republicans are against the healthcare plan, but they offer up no alternatives.
We now have two options: the Democrats’ healthcare or no healthcare. I’m reminded of Michael Moore’s film about healthcare, Sicko, where he visited France and the UK, and even took a boat to Cuba–where their healthcare plans are superior to ours. Yes, we may have better healthcare right here at home, but nobody can afford it. I happened to catch Obama on MSNBC addressing his advisors and Congressmen and his impassioned plea was, “What about the guy who’s making $40K/year who can’t afford insurance?” The Congressmen didn’t seem to care–they’re part of the I have mine syndrome.
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
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Filed under: Janet's Politics, Uncategorized | Tags: California governor, e-Bay, Meg, politics, Whitman
It’s happening again. Meg Whitman apparently is willing to waste a good portion of her personal funds to buy the votes that will make her the next governor. Haven’t we been here before? Think back to Al Checchi, who spent more than $40M of is personal fortune before losing to Gray Davis. (anyone know what he’s up to these days? Wealthy Congresswoman Jane Harman dumped a bundle of her family fortune on her short-lived bid for Governor as did Michael Huffington (before he came crawling out of the closet).
Unfortunately, campaigning for political office is about money which buys visibility and name recognition. But California voters have shown that it takes more than dollars to win an election. The exception may be Arnold. Still trying to figure that one out.
What I can’t figure out is what compels these people. Jerry Brown should be working on his golf swing–not considering another term as governor. California is broke, dysfunctional and we’re out of water. Our infrastructure is shot and the frequent increases in bridge tolls and fare hikes is wearing us down. We can’t afford to live here.
In rides Meg; she does have significant experience running a corporation and maybe this is what it takes. Michael Bloomberg’s no-nonsense policies helped get New York City back on its feet after the chaos of 9/11. Maybe Meg can put that Ivy league MBA to work to solve some of our problems. It worked at e-Bay.
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
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Sadly, Sarah Palin is back in the news as a–sorry, I’m having trouble calling her a journalist. What, then, do we call her? Ex-VP candidate whose selection we now know, was disastrous on every level?
I just did a little research about the tea party movement, which believes that government has grown too large and spends too much money. (where were they when W and Mr. Dick were bombing the hell out of the Middle East to the tune of billions of dollars/month?)
A key tea party spokesman is big, fat Dick Armey, who has emerged from Sleepy Hollow with a message that is reminiscent of the 60s–the powerless take to the streets to eradicate bad policy. The problem is that the rebels of the 60s were ideologues and lefties who only wanted peace. The tea party is made up of very scary right-wing radicals who have their own social networking site, Tea Party Patriots. As a keynote speaker at the group’s convention in Nashville, Sarah Palin assured the world that she would be available to run for president in 2012 if our country needed her. That is so reassuring.
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
Filed under: Janet's Politics | Tags: Bush, Clinton, Haiti relief, spending
I am still laughing at the press conference last week where President Obama introduced Bill Clinton and W as co-chairmen of the Haiti relief project. W actually told us to not send money to random organizations because there are lots of scammers out there.
Instead, he recommended sending money directly to him, as he would know what to do with it. Excuse me? His administration can be credited with turning a government surplus into a budget deficit that we won’t be able to pay off in my lifetime. Is this his idea of thoughtful, controlled spending?
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
Filed under: Janet's Politics | Tags: buckshot, Cheney, Middle East, W, war
He’s at it again. Mr. Dick is doing whatever he can to undermine peace and security. We’ve had the party crashers and the guy who was trying to blow up his underwear, but what’s infinitely more disturbing is Mr. Dick’s creeping out from his underground bunker, surrounded by radical right wing zealots, to speak out against the Obama administration.
He keeps referring to our being at war, which we wouldn’t be if he hadn’t convinced W that we should start bombing the hell out of the Middle East.
I can only wonder what Mr. Dick is doing these days besides filling his hunting pals full of buckshot. Which also makes me wonder about where W has been keeping himself—I suspect it’s not the library that is generally an important project of retiring presidents.
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
Filed under: Janet's Politics | Tags: Bush, deficit, Republicans, Sarah Palin
I was visiting my aging folks in a nice senior community in Florida a few weeks ago. I just didn’t think that this community had so many Republicans.
Because I had work to do, I plugged my laptop into library’s network. I was stunned when I heard three women gushing about the new Sarah Palin book and how much they liked it. One of them actually said,”if you like Sarah Palin, you will love this book.”
Then my stepfather started talking about how Obama was running us into the poor house. Uh, what about the kazillion dollars the Bush administration spent each month bombing the hell out of the Middle East and plunging us into deficit hell? (BTW: whatever happened to W?)
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
Filed under: Janet's Politics
I joined one of my clients, Travelin’ Joe, of espresso catering service fame, at the Berkeley Food and Housing Project on Thanksgiving morning to serve lattes to the homeless and needy. Travelin’ Joe in real life is Bill Choy, who has been crafting lattes at corporate and private events for the likes of Bill Gates, John Travolta and Robin Williams for 17 years.
This year he reached a new audience; instead of coffee for the stars, Travelin’ Joe served lattes for those less fortunate. While Travelin’ Joe manned the espresso machine, I talked to the people who were there for the rich, warm espresso drinks. These people break your heart—they’re dirty, in ragged clothing, clutching the bedrolls and bags that represent home.
Chanel is from Danville and wants to make it as a singer. John used to have a good job in the printing industry, but print shops can no longer compete with electronic delivery. Robert was trying to get a ride to Redwood City, where the panhandling is better—Thanksgiving is apparently a good day for these guys—he made $800 last year. He was looking forward to buying booze and dope with the money he collected. Blaine was clearly bipolar and off his meds. Philip has graduated from law school and is trying to pass the bar exam for the fourth time. Timmy was decorated for Halloween and god only knows what’s going on in there.
Travelin’ Joe closed up shop, and I figured that as long as I was there, I might as well join the other volunteers who were serving Thanksgiving dinner. I was inspired by the people who work at this facility. One of the case workers picked herself up from addictions and street life, went to college and graduated with a degree in social work. She remembers many of these people from her days on the streets.
If Thanksgiving is a time of tradition, then this is a new one for me. I intend to join Travelin’ Joe next year at Berkeley’s Food and Housing Project; this experience has made us thankful for what we have, and it has made me very aware of just how capricious life can be.
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
Filed under: Janet's Politics | Tags: espresso cart, homeless, jobless, Thanksgiving, tradition
One of my clients is doing something very cool. He’s Travelin’ Joe the espresso man. He’s been around the Bay Area for nearly 20 years, wheeling his espresso carts to all manner of events. In real life, Travelin’ Joe is Bill Choy, and he’s crafted cappuccino for the likes of Bill Gates, Robin Williams and John Travolta.
But this year, Travelin’ Joe is reaching a new audience, the Berkeley Food and Housing Project. Instead of coffee for the stars, Travelin’ Joe will be serving cappuccinos to the homeless and jobless—those who can no longer afford the traditional Thanksgiving dinner.
The coffee business has been good to Bill, for which he is thankful, and he is looking forward to sharing some of his good fortune this year.
I’m going to join Bill on Thanksgiving, and I hope that we’re starting a tradition that will endure. The way we’ve got it figured, if everyone gave just a little, what a collective difference we could make.
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
Filed under: Janet's Politics | Tags: first dude, Levy Johnson, politics, Sarah Palin
It’s profoundly shocking that people actually take this imposter seriously. Are they crazy? A person without sophistication and a very limited world view—she’s never traveled, though she does apparently know that Russia is just on the other side of the Aleutian chain.
No snooty ivy league education for her, no background in public policy, political science or law, though I did hear a vague reference to her graduating from some kind of college in Idaho. Running a state that has a smaller population than the Bay Area is not a primer for governing a nation to which the entire world looks for leadership
Can you imagine four years of having to watch her trailer trash family, waiting in the wings to find out whether or not Levy Johnson shows up for Thanksgiving dinner, what’s going to happen to the first dude or the retarded baby which is apparently how she refers to her youngest child. Will her other daughters follow the family tradition of teenage pregnancy while Sarah espouses abstinence? Will she quit in the middle of her term when she’s not having fun anymore?
For someone who loves politics—this is a wonderful sideshow. If this becomes more than a sideshow, I am frightened.
Janet Peischel, Top of Mind Marketing and Business Development. I help my clients increase sales by 15%/quarter.
Filed under: Janet's Politics, Uncategorized | Tags: Goldman Sachs, love story, meltdown, Reagan admin
I knew it was going to make me crazy, but I went anyway. Michael Moore’s movies never pretend to be objective journalism, but Capitalism: A Love Story is particularly painful to watch.
The story begins with a condemnation of the Reagan administration, which I’ve been saying for years—these were the guys who shut down any program that provided a social safety net. There are so many people who could be back to leading productive lives with just a little help; instead they’re living on the streets in the richest country in the world.
As if this movie were not depressing enough, I just finished reading an article in the New Yorker about the financial system meltdown—it should be required reading for those who see this movie. It reads like a soap opera featuring a very rich fraternity, Goldman Sachs.
