From the Right

GOP Presidential candidate Herman Cain describes himself as a problem solver and not a politician. He is the only one of the GOP candidates who has no experience in elective office, it has shown sometimes, as he may respond with a not so polished and well honed response to some of the questions thrown at him. But he is a voracious competitor and has learned to smooth out those rough spots as time goes on in this political contest.

We have watched the GOP as their candidates are put through the crucible of the campaign trail. They are under the microscope of live debates, live interviews and of course the mothers milk of American politics: fund raising. Some are wilting under this pressure and falling by the wayside, some are getting hoisted on their own petards of gaffes and "misspeaks," but others are showing their mettle and appearing stronger.

The old adage of "what does not kill you will make you stronger" could not be more appropriate when it comes to GOP Presidential candidate, Herman Cain. Five years ago he beat stage 4 cancer, showing his great strength and determination that has been a hallmark throughout his life. With irony, Cain says that if he had been diagnosed with his cancer under Obamacare, he would be dead, because of the red tape & time involved in decision making. But beating cancer has only been one of the battles he has triumphed over, he has always been a fighter and has beat the odds before...many times..

The Postal Service has been around for a long time and as far back as we can remember, they have been having financial problems.

But in a classic study of ineptitude, we watch the Postal Service going into an unnecessary death spiral, claiming it is short of funds again. Saying that unless an influx of billions of tax payers dollars come in and/or postal rate increases kick in, the postal service will not be able to meet it's obligations.

We stand back and watch this and then wonder just how efficient government healthcare will be if it is put into effect the way President Obama and his 5,000 pages of healthcare rules envision it.

I don't know about you but if I ever get a choice between a govt. backed green energy job or the cash equivalent, I'll take the 5.5 million cash equivalent instead.

Yes folks, the numbers are coming in and it looks like we got 3,000 "permanent green energy jobs", as a result of our 20 billion of govt. stimulus and loan guarantees we injected into this industry...and many more "investments" are on their way.

Using an archaic formula only government numbers crunchers know, this is success and offers the model for moving forward into green energy independence.

As we approach Thursdays speech by President Obama to the joint session of Congress, many are wondering if the President will acknowledge the uncivil rhetoric that has been emanating from his allies.

It hasn't been that long since the Presidents erudite speech in Tucson had many swooning over his rhetoric calling for a new civility. But since that time, it seems his "new civility" must pertain to any that oppose his policies.

I asked James Biesterfield for his expertise in understanding the impact Michael Collins had on the world of terrorism/insurgency. Mr. Biesterfield is a retired Special Agent for Counterintelligence from the US Army. He is currently a counter-terrorism consultant, author and trainer based in Riverside County, California. James and I co-authored this piece.

St. Michael, the Archangel, is considered to be the Patron Saint of Warriors. In some circles, Michael "Mick" Collins is almost considered a saint. There are truths, falsehoods and legends that surround this iconic man.

The hi tech of Twitter, made me wonder , what is Ireland's official National Bird? For curiosity sake I did a quick Google search and turned up nothing. I turned to the authority on all things Irish, Niall O'Dowd, his reply was the seagull. I doubted that one, and his reasoning for using the seagull is better left unsaid.

Many countries have a national bird. The U.S adopted the eagle, even though Ben Franklin thought it should be the wild turkey. Some countries adopted the Osprey. Others have flamingos, swallows and owls. Ireland does not have an official National Bird that I can find and I think it needs to address this issue. It shouldn't cost any money to do it and it would be good symbolism.

http://www.camacdonald.com/birding/CountryIndex.htm

Presidential Candidate Thaddeus has a command of the issues facing America today and has a Mark Twain quality to be able to condense those issues.

I told him, those of us in the worldwide Irish community, as well as his fellow Americans, would like to hear from him. We would like to let him air his solutions to some of the pressing issues that face us. So I was able to spend some time with this multifaceted Irish American, five term Congressman from the Detroit suburbs.

polls showed him tied with many of the other GOP candidates in the field as we head into the Reagan Ranch debates. He is from Detroit and knows he has to work hard and persevere. He is determined to get his message out there and feels what he has to offer will catch fire with the American public.