Blogging at long last...

Sorry all for the delay on my State of the Union reaction, been a bit busy around here.

First impressions....the speech was well written, and since I read it later instead of watching the webcast, I have no idea how the delivery was. The speech really was fairly weak, but with approval numbers like Bush's, you can't make too many big statements!

Second, a few parts I didn't like....

a) Only one sentence on the topic of Hamas being elected to a majority position in Palestine. With the Palestinian/Israeli peace process being a central political topic throughout the Middle East, this needed more attention. The disruption of that process could affect the U.S. in many ways, possibly really bad ways. What diplomatic solution will Bush attempt to implement? Will he even attempt it, or just ignore the democratically elected terrorists who are centered on destroying a U.S. ally who we've promised to arm and if need be, protect?

b) "with open markets and a level playing field, no one can out-produce or out-compete the American worker"--not so. I think there are plenty of people who can out-produce and out-compete the American worker. It just depends on the industry involved, and much more importantly, the average American worker can be outsmarted in many ways.

c) "addicted to oil" - a very odd comment from a Texas Oilman, whose political base is made up of other rich Texas & Saudi Oilmen, do we really expect action from him on this? I think it might just be hot air.

d)"clean, safe, nuclear energy" - is this an oxymoron? If its that safe, and clean, then why can't we decide where and how to store the waste?

e) I'm not so sure about Bush wanting to prohibit all human cloning. I'm not a doctor, and perhaps those who read this blog who are studying to be doctors can tell me, "is there any possible medical advantage to studying cloning? could it lead to better cures, or even better comprehension of diseases? is there a way to do this testing 'ethically'?"

3) A couple things I did like....

a) the American Competivness Initiative. Can I get one of these teaching jobs in math or science? Aside from my job search, I like that Bush recognizes that the American student can be outsmarted right now and that will lead to future workers being outsmarted.

b) a commission to study the effects of the baby-boomer retirement is a great idea. I would add some academics to the panel, rather than just congressmen. This country has plenty of Nobel Prize economists lying around, how about using them? Heck, Greenspan's free these days, he'd be great for this job.

c) I like the continued research funding for alternative energy sources. I consider this a great use of public funds.

That's all for now I guess....

-Paul