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The California US Senate Election

February 4th 2010 04:35
Barbara Boxer is the junior US Senator from California. She is a force to be reckoned with and is now the Chair of the Senate Environment Committee. She is up for re-election this year against a number of interesting Republican Opponents.

Of the three Republican opponents, the one I find the most qualified is Tom Campbell, the former Congressman and Budget Director under the present Governor. I also am fascinated by the candidacy of Carly Fiornia, the former HP and Lucent Executive who went on to found a lucrative consultancy and rose in Republican circles during the McCain campaign. I am discounting Chuck Devore because I don't think he would be able to win in a statewide primary simply because of the way California is right now.


The campaign has begun. The Boxer campaign and the California Democractic Party are focusing on Carly Fiorina and her "failed' tenure at HP. I think they are making a big mistake. What they need to understand that Carly Fiornia was not wrong in the vision she had. She was not an operations person per se. But, leaders are not necessary nuts and bolts people like her successor, Mark Hurd. But, her decision to push for the Compaq merger insured that HP emerged as one of the big three IT Players today. What the Democratic Party must do is to make sure they realize that what she represents is a throwback to the past of tax cuts, give aways to the rich and more power to big business. Simply attacking Fiornia is the wrong approach. Furthermore, the Democrats need to sit back and enjoy the Republicans slugging it out especially in light of the teabaggers and the Sarah Palin wing of the party.

Carly Fiorina gave a preview of what she envisioned when she talked about her potential candidacy at the Web 2.0 conference about the accomplishments of Barbara Boxer. That's the strategy that the Boxer Campaign has to push--a Senator who is seasoned, who speaks for all on Main Street who will do what needs to be done to represent California. Whether the political minds running the campaign for the Senator and at the Party level listen is another matter.
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Our World is changing. Between the challenges of population growth, water, resources and climate change, there is the compelling visions of the World that this struggle underscores. I am very fascinated by what is going on in Davos. I am right now listening to the last day at Davos and the interesting evolution of the discussion. The need to brave and courageous must be the order of the day. Wanting to eradicate malnutrition is a fine goal, but Davos to me seems to be an gathering of elites who talk and talk and have no action plan coming out of it. Maybe I don't understand it.


The gentleman from South Africa noted that "Leadership without Moral Authority is not possible. We need to become the values". I could not agree more. What I am worry about is that talk is cheap. The key is to now act. We have to have the courage. That is what I am hearing at Davos right now.

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For those who doubted China's power, today's annoucement should dispel any notion. China just came out with an annoucement that it has overtaken Germany as the World's greatest exporter. Shanghai opened up 3%. There was a 17% increase in exports. On top of that, there were record car sales in China. I wonder how our little planet is going to be able to handle over 800 million cars!!!

As I tried to come to terms with China's continued march towards world economic domination, I remember an old friend telling me about not to worry about China and how China was going to choke on its' own development. China has some profound challenges. But, China is marching mightly towards its rightful place in the world. Anyone who ignores it does so at their own peril.
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The first major shoe dropped yesterday. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota has decided to retire from the US Senate. I was shocked at the annoucement because I felt that he was one of the most effective players and was a shoe-in for re-election. Apparently now this gives a shot at Republicans.

As I continue to reflect upon the Dorgan retirement, the more shocking news crossing the wires is the annoucement by Chris Dodd that he is retiring too. This is making the US Senate quite dynamic. I would be keen to see what Charlie Cook has to say about it within the next few days. But look at some interesting insights from Michael Steele on what Republican prospects are


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A New Year's Wish

December 30th 2009 12:29
As we all bid farewell to 2009, I wanted to simply say thanks. I will be taking a few days off my regular write-ups to finish gearing up for 2010. I will be "back" in 2010 with a renewed vigour and focus on the key themes that I have focused on throughout the past year and a half and to hopefully continue my focus to hopefully help make a difference in our world. It is a world that is worth fighting for for the sake of our children and grandchildren everywhere.

Happy New Year!!!!
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Healthcare: Yaah Right!!!

December 22nd 2009 07:45
Well, the victory in the US Senate happened. Harry Reid pulled off a near-impossible. Who knows what will happen when this goes on through the reconicliation process. I wrote about it in KP's sister site, Outsider Views. But, the question I have is at what cost?

When I looked at what Ben Nelson secured-- Full Medicaid reimbursement for the State of Nebraska and what Mary Landrieu secured for Louisiana-- dubbed the Louisiana Purchase, my reaction was simple: Good Grief


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Comcast & GE: A Marriage Made in Heaven

December 16th 2009 06:52
Comcast and GE have come to an agreement to form a new venture to be managed by Comcast. I first wrote about it in KP's sister site, Outsider Views. As I recently revisited this and reviewed GE's view, I listened with great interest to Jeff Immelt's view on this:

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An Obssession w/Celebrities

December 3rd 2009 07:01
As I think and write about our world, I continue to be amazed at the obssession has with celebrities. The obssession is sickening. I can't explain it and simply can't understand it. The latest manifestation of it is Tiger Woods. I happened to catch HLN's Nancy Grace talking about it in a big way with six different panelists. This was one of those WTF moments. The other one I saw was Meredith Baxter's admission that she was a Lesbian. To me, when I read that, I simply said: who cares? But it was posted on ABC News. She played the mother on Family Ties--as the mother of Michael J. Fox.

As for Tiger Woods, the only thing I have to say is that it is a tragedy. What he did is simply not excusable. I have also seen reports that Tiger Woods' wife is re-negotating a reputed 20 Million Dollar Prenup. One of my friends on Facebook noted that he had no sympathy for someone who marketed himself as "Mr. Clean" and thereafter sought out privacy. To me, the man had to think before betraying his wife and child. When one committs to a marriage, no matter how tough things get, one has to stick it out. Although as Kobe Bryant, Michael Vick and others have proven, they are human and are subject to making mistakes. We have also been blessed with a sense of deceny to remember the difference between right and wrong and have a sense of inner strength that should carry us through no matter what. It is ever more important now. I wonder if Tiger Woods understood it


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Matthew Hoh first US official to resign over Afghan War 27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" align="middle" height="500" width="100%" >
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Afghanistan: The Continued Fiasco

September 30th 2009 05:48
Afghanistan still does not have a President, yet. Karzai continues on pushing on with the fiction of having won the election. The United States and NATO, in the meantime, are continuing on with the fight of a lifetime. CBS News' interview with General McCrystal sent shivers through my spine:


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Well, Quds Day came and went. There was a massive turnout of opposition supporters in cities throughout the country. The key opposition leaders were attacked and the pictures of an ex-President being attacked showed the continued lack of moral legitimacy of the regime


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I have been reading with horror the reporting done by Tomgram about the staraggering cost of the War in Afghanistan. This is the hard truth that can't be fudged or wished away. The question is whether our leaders have the courage to face up to the truth. The numbers and the costs are scary (Source: Really Long Link

Although the source may be "dubious" to some, the numbers just do not lie


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Afghanistan is in the midst of a Presidential Election. There are three main challenges to the useless incumbent, Mr. Karzai. I had a chance to listen to Dr. Abdullah and Mr. Ghani on Fareed Zakeeria's GPS and realized how the useless Karzai has truly presided over a disaster. In all of Karzai's happy talk, he is yet to explain why the Country that he has been President went from being Taliban-Free to being infested in almost the entire country in some fashion or another. If there has been one, I have not seen it.

The Taliban have been saying that anyone who votes will have their throat cut. The Presidential Candidates are not being given Government Protection and told that they have to get their own security guards. Just within the past forty eight hours, a horrific attack North of Kabul left dead and wounded when the Taliban attacked an Election Office and other Government Buildings. What is clear is that the Taliban are relentless an are so fragmented that no one truly knows who they are. I don't think even Mullah Omar has total control over his legions


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