I constantly hear people in the media say they don’t know who Barack Obama "is".  What they are really saying is they don’t know what he truly stands for.  I agree with that assessment.  If most Americans don’t know what Obama stands for after more than 15 months on the campaign trail, isn’t that a dramatic failure on his part?  It makes me wonder about the millions of people who voted for Obama in the primaries.  What did they base their vote on?

Every so often, I have to remind my Mother that you can’t–and shouldn’t–believe everything you hear in the media.  The media loves to hype bad news and some reports have suggested we’re in a recession due to high fuel prices, mortgage woes and a few sluggish real estate markets.  A recession occurs when Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth is negative for two or more consecutive quarters.  How many consecutive quarters of negative growth has the U.S. had in 2008?  According to the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis:  ZERO (see graph).  Don’t let the media, who benefits from stirring up fear, convince you we’re in a recession.  It’s simply not true!

Is anyone so naive that they actually believe the President, alone, can materially affect the size of our economy?  Of course, a President’s policies influence economic growth.  However, implying, as some in the media have, that one man can bring on a depression, is ludicrous.  The U.S. 2007 GDP was 13.8 trillion dollars (Trillion with a "T").  Most of us can’t even conceive of what a trillion is.  U.S. GDP** has risen steadily since 1950 (it fell slightly in 1949).  The economy grew all these years, ignoring whether the President was a Republican or a Democrat.

What exactly has gotten in to parents these days?  Apparently, they feel they must outdo everyone else and choosing names for their children is no exception.  How do these strike you:  "Talula Does The Hula From Hawaii" (thankfully, this one has been changed), "Number 16 Bus Shelter", "Violence" and "Midnight Chardonnay."  This makes me wonder if the parents who chose these silly names should have had children in the first place.

** Source:  Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis

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