like eating your seed corn while hearing that food must be saved for less plentiful times. I WANT CONGRESS TO THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX. As soon as another program is mentioned, recalcitrant Republicans and blue dog Democrats start worrying about cost. Here’s a thought – cut everything related to military spending except pensions. Or, how about getting rid of some of the hundreds of millions dollars spent on pork. What would happen if colleges such as Harvard and Yale (really, I’m not hating) got smaller grants or were required to partner with smaller schools when they get research grants, channeling a few dollars to those schools who really need them, and to the students who need more research opportunities.
I want Obamacare to work well. If affordable health care is part of the Obama legacy, then I want it to work, really work. It will take time for the president to live down the computer debacle, and heads should have rolled in response to the faulty rollout of the program. By the end of the first quarter of 2014, Obamacare should be working seamlessly, and people should really be able to see a difference because Obamacare exists. Bottom line – I’d like joy, peace, and economic justice by whatever means necessary. Happy New Year!wi Julianne Malveaux is a Washington, D.C.-based economist and writer. She is President Emerita of Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, N.C.
calization of dissatisfaction with Obama. This was unimaginable only a few weeks ago. Blacks turning away from Obama will be one of the top news stories of the year. The question is are Republicans prepared to take advantage of this opening within the Black community? Gun violence and mass shootings will continue, not because of the availability of guns; but because of the continued breakdown in our moral fabric. By 2016, I predict that morals and values will be in the top five issues of importance to voters. This liberal drift towards pluralism and relativism will begin to reverse itself with a lot of help from within the Black community. Republicans, are you listening? Look for a major reduction in corporate support for many of
the reality TV shows that have proliferated over the past several years. These corporations will find it increasingly more difficult to justify the expenditure of their corporate dollars from a cost/ benefit analysis. I expect to see more suicides from those who played professional football and hockey. The issue of trauma to the brain during violent sports is a lot worse than the public is being told. I think over the next few years, pro football will become unrecognizable as we know it today. There will be no comprehensive immigration reform. However, as a compromise, there will be a path to legalization, but not citizenship. Republicans who vote for citizenship will lose their next election and some will even be recalled before their next election (on the local level). Journalism will continue its downward spiral towards the cult of personality. Journalists will
continue down the path of becoming bigger than the story they are supposed to be covering. They will continue to put more emphasis on being famous versus being accurate. My final prediction is that Obamacare will be a huge albatross around the necks of the Democrats for the next three years and will make their retaining the White House very problematic. The issue will be are the Republicans prepared to address some the major problems facing America with policy solutions? If the answer is yes, then Republicans will win the White House. If the answer is no, we can kiss the America we know goodbye.wi Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a Washington, D.C.based public relations/government affairs firm. He can be reached through his Web site, http://www.raynardjackson.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at raynard1223.
leon continued from Page 31 is replete with examples of the difference in mindset between those who invade to steal resources and those who are willing to die to repel it. As was stated in Afghanistan applies to Iraq as well, “Americans have the watches; we have the time.” McCain and Gram are correct; the American people were misled by a narrative on the issue of Iraq but not by the Obama administration. They were misled by former President Bush, VP Cheney, Powell, Rice, Rumsfeld and a number of other officials in the Bush 41’ administration. Lest we forget the Office of Special Plans in the Pentagon led by Paul
Wolfowitz and Douglas Feith from September 2002 to June 2003? On March 19, 2003, U.S. forces began military operations in Iraq. President Bush stated: “The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder.” According to Representative Henry Waxman’s (DCA) report Iraq on the Record, Bush, Cheney, Powell, Rice, and Rumsfeld made 237 specific misleading statements about the threat posed by Iraq in 125 public appearances. These appearances consisted of “…40 speeches, 26 press conferences and briefings, 53 interviews, 4
written statements, and 2 congressional testimonies. Most of the statements in the database (report) were misleading because they expressed certainty where none existed or failed to acknowledge the doubts of intelligence officials. Ten of the statements were simply false.” According to the report, the statements began at least a year before the commencement of hostilities in Iraq, when Vice President Cheney stated on March 17, 2002: “We know they have biological and chemical weapons.” Bush and his cronies lied about Iraq’s nuclear capabilities, chemical and biological weapons, the relationship between Iraq and Al-Qaeda, and Iraq as an urgent threat.
malveaux continued from Page 31 for the past five years; I guess I’ll be wishing for the next few. (And don’t tell me that President Obama is president of everyone. He doesn’t cringe when saying Latino, women, or GBLT). I want our Congress to think long-term and provide more dollars for education, and for HBCUs, especially, because need more resources; most colleges that enroll fewer than 1,500 students with small endowments can use help. Many of these institutions are tuition-driven which means that cuts in financial aid, in Pell grants or Parent-Plus loans cut these colleges hard. Cutting education while suggesting the labor force should be more skills based is
jackson continued from Page 31
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They also lied about the possibility of a “mushroom cloud”, Iraq’s attempt to acquire uranium, and the relationship between Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden. McCain and Graham went on to say, “Thousands of brave Americans who fought, shed their blood, and lost their friends to bring peace to Fallujah and Iraq are now left to
wonder whether these sacrifices were in vain…” Again, they are correct but the confusion of our brave warriors is not due to President Obama’s withdrawing them from the conflict and removing them from harms way. Their consternation stems from the answers to four othSee leon on Page 46
www.washingtoninformer.com
The Washington Informer
January 16, - January 22, 2014
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