Crusher's World

Will Egypt Survive?

2011-02-01T04:54:00.000-08:00

Recently, there has been a tremendous uproar in Egypt seeking the removal of Hosni Mubarak as president. This man has been in control of Egypt for 30 years and has lost the support of the citizens, who are seeking to bring a more democratic government to power. There has yet to emerge any real organization to the protests and this leaves much of the world wondering where this will lead. Many fear that without a strong, organized democratic movement, Egypt will fall the way of Iran in 1979. The student revolt there was begun with democratic intent, overthrew a U.S. ally in the Shaa, and opened the door for the country to become a Muslim theocracy because of the lack of leadership in the original revolt. There seem to be many similarities to Egypt, today. Mubarak has been a reliable ally in many ways and has remained in power with U.S. support. The current revolt is very disorganized and seeking leadership. This vacuum could result in either worse or better government and that will take time to be seen. Why is it important to the rest of the world? Mostly, it’s the Suez Canal, a major shipping route for the all important oil. This means that more than Iran, Egypt is being closely watched by all.
This may be a good opportunity to invest in oil and energy if you have the ability. I'm looking at what options I have. There are some interesting start-ups that are worth a look. Anything to counteract the increases in electric and gasoline costs.

Hopeful for a New Day!

2011-01-05T05:13:00.000-08:00

Starting another day and looking forward to what it brings. A bit cold to start, but today holds lots of promise. While personally I don't have much planned, just doing laundry and working out. I also have time today to work on my online ventures and do some research for an offline venture that me and a friend are working on. In the meantime, I am looking forward to what the new congress brings to us. While I'm pleased with the results of the elections, I'm not sure that the Republicans aren't a bit overly optimistic about their ability to get some things accomplished. Yes, they are in control of the House of representatives, but they still have the Senate and President Obama to deal with. Although I support the effort to repeal the Health Care Law that was passed last year, that will be a tough fight. The real power the house holds is funding. Because finance bills have to originate in the house, they can effectively make the law irrelevant by not funding it. To me, that is one of the best things that this Congress could do on all fronts. Spending control needs to be the biggest priority this year. The Government has gone on a spending spree with no concern about paying for it, now they need a return to reality. I'll write more on that later this week, so keep an eye out for it. Keep it optimistic! -Crusher

Go Giants...but no playoffs!

2011-01-03T17:20:00.001-08:00

So, I went to the Redskins/Giants game and had an awesome time with my sons at our first NFL game. The only downside was that the Giants are not in the playoffs. Well, maybe next year.

Anyway, so today started the first work week of 2011 and the highly anticipated new congress. I'm looking forward to seeing how much GOOD work will be accomplished. We really don't need anymore junk legislation.

I generally consider myself to be a conservative, but I pride myself on being open to looking at all sides before making a decision. The age of partisanship seems to have reached a climax which leads to hatered and contempt. And all that does is cause deadlock and a lack of true leadership. We need a return to the days where a leader would emerge who could convince others to do what is right because it seems right, not just buying votes with unnecessary earmarks. Step out, take a risk and lead!

On another note, I'm working on renewing my fitness routine and get back in shape. I'll start posting in my fitness journal tomorrow and you can get a laugh at where I'm starting from.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Off to the Giants game, temporary escape from reality!

2011-01-02T05:51:00.000-08:00

Today, the boys and I are going to see the Giants play at the Redskins. Hopefully they will win, but it promises to be a great time anyway. It's a Christmas present from my lovely wife to my middle son, Alex. But since the Giants are my team as well, it works out great. Gives us all a chance to escape reality for a bit and just enjoy ourselves. I'll probably post from the game. And look for new posts tomorrow as I get back into the swing of the real world.

New Year, More Crusher's World!

2011-01-01T06:21:00.000-08:00

Today is The start of a new Year and there will be some changes in my life. For one, I will be posting here more often, even if just to say hi. And no topic will be off limits for this Blog. Between here and the Full Crush, you will see everything that's going on in the world and my life. I have four blogs on blogger now. This one is for everyday posting, The Full Crush for more in depth analysis of important topics, Crusher Finance for ways of earning more and keeping more, and My Fitness Journal for tracking my progress in getting more fit(I've lagged in that department for a couple years but am getting back into it this year.) I hope some of you find my posts interesting and entertaining, otherwise, I'm just talking to myself. Anyway, Have a great New Year and I'll post more tomorrow.

Compromise Is Politics Working the Way it Should

2010-12-07T09:32:00.000-08:00

Partisan politics by nature is an adversarial process where each side seeks to get their agenda passed and individual politicians generally make their name by stubbornly standing their ground. But the best and most remembered are those who can gracefully orchestrate a satisfying compromise. President Obama, has made an attempt to turn towards the latter type with the latest renewal of the Bush era tax rates, in conjunction with the extension of unemployment insurance payments for another 13 months (I refuse to refer to them as benefits, there should be no "benefit" for not working). In the arguments that took place before the compromise, questionable facts and figures were purported by both sides I'm sure. But one of the ones that I heard and remembered was Nancy Pelosi stating that every dollar of unemployment insurance payment equates to more than 2 dollars of economic activity. I did not hear from the other side any argument about the same effects of tax reductions, every dollar left in the peoples hands remains in the economy and generates more economic activity. Just a thought about parity in politics.

In defence of Ft. McHenry

2010-11-11T09:41:00.000-08:00

In the midst of The War of 1812, Frances Scott Key had left Baltimore under flag of truce for the purpose of getting released from the British, A friend of his who had been captured at Marlborough. He went as far as the mouth of the Patuxent and was not permitted to return lest the intended attack on Baltimore should be disclosed. He was therefore brought up the Bay to the mouth of the Patapsco where the flag vessel was kept under the guns of a frigate and he was compelled to witness the bombardment of Ft. McHenry, which the Admiral boasted he could carry in a few hours, and that the city must fall. He watched the flag at the Fort through the whole day with an anxiety that can be better felt than described, until the night prevented him from seeing it. In the night he watched the bomb shells and at early dawn his eye was again greeted by the proudly waving flag of his country.

O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight
O’er the ramparts we watch’d were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there,
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream,
’Tis the star-spangled banner - O long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore,
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a Country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

O thus be it ever when freemen shall stand
Between their lov’d home and the war’s desolation!
Blest with vict’ry and peace may the heav’n rescued land
Praise the power that hath made and preserv’d us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto - “In God is our trust,”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The Elections are almost Here, Get out And Vote!

2010-10-21T11:10:00.000-07:00

Just a quickie, this years elections may be the most important in memory and will determine the direction of the country. I think it is very telling that as soon as the primaries were closed, the Democrats began their campaign of destruction. I have not seen a single ad telling my why to vote Democrat, only ones telling me what's wrong with their Republican opponent. And most of that is inaccurate or misleading. There is one in particular that is claiming the Republican is proposing a "23%" sales tax hike on everything. Even if applied the way they are claiming, the Democrat numbers of an increase are inaccurate. But the truth is that the Sales tax is replacing all other taxes, and is applied fairly so that the taxes are on consumption. Which means that the rich, who consume more will automatically pay more and there are no "tax breaks" for the rich, only a monthly rebate which becomes more beneficial for the poor because A higher percentage of their taxes are returned to them. Any way, You need to vote so your point of view can be represented.

Healthcare Reform Railroad

2010-03-22T18:45:00.001-07:00

Sunday, March 21, will be a day that will be remembered in history. This is because it is the day that the Congress of the United States decided that the will of the people did not matter any longer. If the leadership wants something, they have proven that they can get it passed and they are not concerned about what they have to do to prevail. A massive health care reform bill that most people neither wanted nor understood was pushed through despite extremely vocal opposition and polls showing that it was unpopular among the people.

Now, I won’t make some of the allegations that the conservative commentators and radio hosts have been making, whether or not I believe them. I will ask some basic questions about procedure and prudence. Did the legislators really understand the consequences of their actions? Do they really know what they have brought upon this country? Why did they decide that taking one sixth of the economy out of the private sector and putting it into the government hands was a great idea? Why, when their stated goal was to ensure that those without health insurance were able to receive it, was it necessary to change everyone’s coverage? If 30 million lack coverage, that’s only 10 percent of the population. 90 percent have some kind of coverage under the current system.

A better idea would have been to identify specific areas that needed to be fixed and addressing them one by one. State to state competition, change it. Job to job portability, change it. And so on. But don’t mandate that everyone must have coverage and how much they must have. Figure out a way to offer coverage for those who do not have it now and WANT IT. Make responsible changes, not ram a railroad of new programs, policies, fees and taxes down our throats. That’s not the way America works. It’s broke and now it has to be fixed.

Get my new ebook on

2010-01-21T09:15:00.001-08:00

Get my new ebook on list building - http://www.haaseinfotech.com/7ways.aspx
Mike Haase

New plan for unemployment- banks

2010-01-19T07:50:00.001-08:00

New plan for unemployment- banks take bonuses and hire people instead.
Mike Haase

A New Direction For the World

2007-08-21T09:52:00.000-07:00

*****Announcement******

Crusher's World will be heading in a new direction in the future. Look for More posts and graphics. The new posts will be more entertaining about current events and people. While the names may be real, the articles will be complete fabrications and are for entertainment purposes only. Not to be taken seriously. I hope you find the posts here as entertaining as I plan to find them in creating them. More soon, Crush

Is There a Choice or Are you Born That Way?

2007-06-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

Today, I will go in a different direction. I know it has been a long time since I wrote in this blog, and that I've let my presidential candidate review slip, but today I have a thought that I need to express.

On my way into work today, I was listening to the radio and the person there was talking about how many people thought they were "Christian" simply because they were born into a family that was. She was making the point that you must be "born again" into the faith in order to truely be a Christian.

This comment got me thinking about discrimination. Have you ever noticed that most prohibitions against discrimination are stated this way: discrimination according to race, age, gender, religious affiliation, or sexual preference will not be tolerated. Why sexual preference? Is this a stealth way of admitting that people are not, or may not be, homosexual by a predisposition but rather by personal choice? I'm not a homophobe or a strict conservative by any means, I just am trying to figure out what the stance of gay rights groups is. Most of the time, you hear them speaking about how it is not a choice, they can't help being born that way. If this is the case, why use preference in the language?

I believe that discrimination is wrong, for many reasons. I also think that the science of determining whether it's a choice or not is still undecided. I just wanted to say that if someone believes that there is no choice, they should not talk in terms of preferences. If it is a choice, that the fight for equal rights loses merit. The rights afforded someone who choses to be unconventional in sexual activities are no more protected than someone who choses to get a tatoo.

People have varied opinions on this, and mine is just one. I hope that I might encourage you to look at people's motives behind the rhetoric that they are pushing. Being conservative, I am aware of efforts to diminish our cultural morals. People who are pushing for acceptance of behaviors previously held to be deviant are continually working to lower our standards and erase our moral background. My fear is that if they are truly successful, our whole society is in peril. At any time in history, you can see that when a societies moral basis crumbles, the entire society follows shortly thereafter. I don't want to see that happen here.

Are All The Wheels Coming Off?

2007-03-14T12:58:00.000-07:00

Scooter Libby…..Walter Reed…..Iraq…..Gas and Oil Prices…. Bank Failures….and now the fired U.S. Attorneys…. What is happening in the Bush administration? With the 2008 Presidential race heating up, it seems that the current President has lost all control and is having every issue come back to haunt him. The Liberals and Democrats are basking in the glow of the fire that is/was the Bush administration as it seems to crash and burn. The Republicans are wondering if President Bush can recover….or if he will take them all down with him.
After hearing about the ineptitude of the commanding Generals at Walter Reed Army Hospital and the removal (either voluntary or involuntary) of several Generals for the last couple weeks, a new scandal has arisen. Now we hear about the Attorney Generals office dismissing 8 U.S. Attorneys a couple years ago. The Democrats are concerned with whether these dismissals were because the prosecutors were unwilling to pursue or not pursue cases based on political ties. The fact that these attorneys are employed at the will and pleasure of the president should make that a non issue. But partisan politics means that they are going to be investigating. Even though it appears that there was no illegal act, they figure that it will create a negative public impact, and so they will try to keep it in the public view as long as possible. It is unfortunate that this kind of scandal does nothing but bring out the worst in everyone who wants to get in front of a camera or microphone.
While the Democrats are rushing in to roast marshmallows over the burning carcass of the Bush administration, the Republicans are doing nothing to improve their image. They are either jumping ship, or they are arrogantly acting as if just because legally they are allowed to do something, they are morally right to do it. They need to get off their high horses and see that they are really in the muck with the pigs. Legally they may be right, but morally, things should have been handled in a much different fashion. With the Presidential election still 20 plus months away, The President is not making it easy for his Republican colleagues. If he doesn’t do something to turn it around soon, the Democrats will have to work hard to lose. Somehow, that doesn’t seem to be too far from the realm of reality though.

And They're Off!!!

2007-03-06T18:37:00.000-08:00

The presidential race looks to be a long drawn out contest and there is no shortage of contestants. Let me introduce the current list of contenders. First, the Democrats:

Mike Gravel: 75 years old (May 30, 1930), Former US. Senator from 1969-1981
Currently a lecturer, Announced his candidacy April 14, 2006.
The first to announce.

Dennis Kucinich: 60 years old (October 8, 1946), Current Representative from Ohio
Announced his candidacy December 29, 2006

John Edwards: 53 years old (June 10, 1953), Trial Lawyer from South Carolina
Announced his candidacy January 3, 2007

Chris Dodd: 62 years old (May 27, 1944), Senator from Connecticut
Announced his candidacy January 11, 2007

Hillary Clinton: 59 years old (October 26, 1947) Senator from New York
Announced her candidacy January 22, 2007

Bill Richardson: 59 years old (November 15, 1947) Governor of New Mexico
Announced his candidacy January 22, 2007

Joe Biden: 64 years old (November 20, 1942) Senator from Delaware
Announced his candidacy January 31, 2007

Barack Obama: 45 years old (August 4, 1961) Senator from Illinois
Announced his candidacy February 12, 2007

Al Gore is still being talked about, especially coming off the success of his movie and the buzz around the Oscars, but he has yet to announce his intentions.

Now for the Republicans:

John McCain: 70 years old (August 29, 1936) Senator from Arizona
Announced his candidacy November 16, 2006

Mitt Romney: 60 years old (March 12, 1947) Former Governor of Massachusettes
Announced his candidacy January 3, 2007

Ron Paul: 71 years old (August 20, 1935) Representative from Texas
Announced his candidacy January 7, 2007

Jim Gilmore: 57 years old (October 6, 1949) Former Governor of Virginia
Announced his candidacy January 9, 2007

Tommy Thompson: 65 years old (November 19, 1941) Former Governor of Wisconsin
Announced his candidacy January 11, 2007

Sam Brownback: 50 years old (September 12, 1956) Senator from Kansas
Announced his candidacy January 22, 2007

Tom Tancredo: 61 years old (December 20, 1945) Representative from Colorado
Announced his candidacy January 22, 2007

Duncan Hunter: 58 years old (May 31, 1948) Representative from California
Announced his candidacy January 25, 2007

Mike Huckabee: 51 years old (August 24, 1955) Former Governor of Arkansas
Announced his candidacy January 29, 2007

Rudy Giuliani: 62 years old (May 28, 1944) former Mayor of New York
Announced his candidacy February 5, 2007

Others being talked about are Newt Gingrich, Chuck Hagel and George Pataki, so the race is full of possibilities. Over the next few months, I will be giving more in depth information on each of the candidates to help keep everyone informed on the issues.

The Presidential Race Is going to be Interesting

2007-01-31T09:08:00.000-08:00

Just under two years from now, we will be inaugurating a new President and already, candidates are lining up to put themselves through the most scrutinizing of contests ever. Among the candidates that are officially in, it seems that Senators are the ones most displeased with their current jobs. With the likes of John McCain, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Baraak Obama(sp) all having announced their intent to run or at least explore the possibilities of running a campaign. While it seems that more candidates are going to be coming from the ranks of the senate,the reality of the presidency has been that Senators don't win. None have won since JFK. It seems voters like to have the senators campaigning, but when it comes down to voting, they prefer someone with executive experience. Governors (like Mit Romney) seem to have an automatic advantage.

Their points of view vary and it can get confusing very quickly. I plan to create a table or chart to sort out the basic views and help you keep them straight. I also will begin offering a profile of each candidate (one a week) that will provide a more in depth look at the candidate and their views. Look for it starting next week with Joe Biden (I picked him at random and hold no bias at this point). 'til then, Crusher

Welcome to Crusher''s World

2007-01-17T09:26:00.000-08:00

At this site, I'll be posting on Wednesday mornings. You will find items of interest relating to Presidential Hopefuls and candidates, Newsmakers here and abroad, and other items of political and news interest. I welcome your comments and would gladly hear any subjects you would like to read more about. Till next week, Crusher