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Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Inaugaration Day

I know, I know - I can't spell the word the same way twice. i have a sick kid home today so he will be able to see this historic occasion (that doesn't look like its spelled right, but spell check says it is) ... and even if I don't think he has the experience to be an effective President, he is POTUS and I will now respect the office if not the man, just like I did Bush and Clinton (at least until he disgraced the office) ...

Actually I look forward to Michelle Obama as First Lady -- I like her sense of style. She likes skirts to the knees, long sleeves, her style is very modest which I would love to see come back into American fashion, especially those of kids.

She actually reminds me a lot of Condalessa Rice who I think has a great sense of fashion as well ... I often said that I thought Condy would make a kick-ass VP as well (actually I think she's make a pretty good Prez if she had more legislative experience) mostly because I would love to see her sit in negotiations with such leaders as Amidijideran (probably spelled that wrong, but spell check didn't know who it was) or the Afghanian leaders or even South African officials and give them a peice of American 'diplomancy'.

Michelle looks like the type of lady that embodies that word - Lady - I think she will be a wonderful F.L. ... I thought Hillary was too gruff, too confrontational - not so much that she wanted to push for her programs (health care for kids), but it was the way in which she approached it like she was some elected official -- but you know she learned quickly, well semi-quickly, that Washington & the people wouldn't stand for it ... but that same 'pushiness' has served her well as Senator and it probably will again as Sec of State, if she gets the job.

My one big concern is that, like the Clinton's, the Obama's seem to have that 'finger in the wind' approach to things ... from picking the type of dog, to his keeping his Blackberry so that people can tell him when they don't like what he's doing -- at some point he has got to act Presidential and make a decision or two for himself.

Actually I'm watching coverage on MSNBC this morning and they are going over the Pres and F.L. sense of style too -- its not just me. I'm wondering what her 'cause' will be .... Clinton took on Health Care, Bush took on Literacy, Nancy took on Drugs, I don't remember what Barbara Bush did, I think Lillian Carter was Habitat for Humanity which was her hubbies main charity ... but every F.L. has left her mark in some little way --- I wonder what hers will be.

I'm hoping, because (1)I can relate and (2)because I heard this mentioned on tv ... I'm hoping she will stand up for and advocate for the Stay-At-Home-Moms .... try to get the economy, or some tax break for families that have the mother staying at home. Of course I can hear the belly-aching now about how its unfair to single moms who have to work, or the double income families, or to the single folk (which are perhaps the most boisterous group of all ... I remember when I worked having them bitch-n-moan about the fact that they didn't get as many sick days as those of us with kids ... they didn't seem to understand that while yes we got the day off, generally we took a loss of wages or used our own sick days to stay home).

I would love to see some advocacy for SAHMs ... although not every woman should be a SAHM ... there are some women, if they don't get out of the house everyday they would go stir crazy ... there are some people who don't understand that being a SAHM is more than just cooking/cleaning/letting the kids in the house.

In the 40s women had to work because so many men went off to war, in the 50s women were expected to go back into the traditional roles whether they wanted it or not, in the 60s roles for women in the work force was limited and in the 70s it blossomed ... then in the 80s more choices opened up and it became clear that you could have a career, not just a job, and a family as well ... but in the 90's (under the Clintons) it got to the point where for most families both parents HAD to work to live - we were fortunate, we got our house under the Bush Sr. administration so that during the Clinton years we were able to use it as a means so that I could stay home with the kids .... but it got close there for a while, real close ...

It was hard to believe that we were getting penalized for being married ... then to hear that they were going to cut off the kids earlier than they flew the coup - I seem to recall that my father could claim us kids until we were 21 yrs as long as we were enrolled in school full-time. Now the funds end the same year your child turns 17yrs old.

I would love to see some of those old programs come back ... tax breaks for married couples, especially the elderly (remember in the 80s when it came out that more elderly were living together than getting married because of the cut they took if they wed?) ... I would like to see the rate they get after losing a spouse stay at around 90% of their income so that they don't take a huge hit above and beyond that which they already did at the loss of a spouse - and the death-benefit OMGs, have you seen that? You get $200 to bury your loved one ... cremeation is the cheapest you can go and that is even a thousand bucks - where is an 80 yr old going to come up with the other $800??

I know the Obama's are bringing her mother to the White House with them to help care for the kids ... so perhaps Michelle will be bringing to the forefront elderly-rights. Perhaps she will take up the Senior Citizen banner ... but you never know.

The indications are that the Obama's are for stem cell research, so to me that means they are for longer life spans which would thus lead to more people becoming elderly, which means they had better start thinking of what they will do with all those people -- who knows, it may be my generation or one of my kids.

Just since Obama was a kid life expectancy has gone from 70 yrs to 80+yrs ... even Joe Biden's mom is 91 yrs old! and boy does she look spry! I mean most people won't be getting more than $33,000/yr on Social Security now ... no matter what they earned while working ... so if you are used to living on $50,000/yr how to you cut 20,000 out of your expenses??

Could you do it? I don't think anyone could cut nearly 1/2 their expenses ... try it, see how much you can snip out ... my guess is not much. I feel for the elderly. Then you have banks talking them into these 'reverse mortgages' which to me is just another scam to get a hold of people's houses - and in such a way that probate can't help a family out of it.
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I digressed again didn't I?

Oh just saw the girls ... the older girl, Sasha Malia, looks like someday she will have her own television show -- I'm telling you! I could see her with something on Disney or Nick ... something fun and trivial, nothing too political.

They make a nice first family .... but lets see how their dad does as President ... and lets hope they don't suffer too much from any bad press aimed at their dad -- kids can take things so personally.
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