Venezuelan Elections 2010 Results

Hey guys! I don't know if I mentioned this in my introduction ( and I am too lazy to check), but I was born in a country called Venezuela! It is in South America and I am sure everyone is familiar with its bad rep. Well just recently, actually yesterday was election day for the legislative elections. Polls opened up yesterday, and the the Venezuelan people waited in lines that stretched down sidewalks and plazas outside polling stations in Caracas early Sunday. Venezuelans are voting for all of the 165 members of the National Assembly, which is controlled by the Socialist Party of President Hugo Chavez.Opposition candidates are assured of expanding their tiny share of seats, after boycotting the previous vote in 2005.  It is unclear if they can seize a third of the seats, which they are seeking in an effort to block major legislation that requires two-thirds approval. The following is very important as it will tie in with the results and the bigger picture which is the 2012 Presidential elections. President Chavez campaigned heavily for Socialist Party candidates around the country, in an effort to ensure his party retains at least two-thirds of the legislature.

The Venezuelan people though are ready for a change, and they are saying that Chavez decides everything in the country, and the opinions of other people do not matter. They also hope that opposition lawmakers will help to give voice to the people outside the socialist party.

The Results

So, what happened?

Well, President Chavez maintained his sway in the National Assembly, with his ruling Socialist Party winning at least 90 of 165 seats that were up for grabs in Sunday's congressional polls.However, Chavez failed to hold on to the two-thirds majority his party enjoyed in the Assembly, with the Opposition alliance getting as much as 59 seats, up from 11 last time.

Even though we lost, we still won. Why? Because Chavez lost his two- thirds majority. That is significant because now Chavez will no longer (at least legally) control the government because his opposition has some power now. But what is the bigger picture? The 2012 Presidential Elections! This will be the year that the Venezuelan people will have to rise and stand up for the country they love. Because if this man remains in office and gets re-elected, then say good-bye to any form of democracy and freedom Venezuela has because Venezuela will become the new Cuba.

In the end this is actually a win for us Venezuelans. Chavez's opposition campaigned hard for these elections, but Chavez Socialist Party did no campaigning at all. Actually, Chavez did all the campaigning. So, in the end this is a huge blow and a major lost for Chavez. This means that the Venezuelan people are starting to see things how they really are and not for the lies and tricks of Hugo Chavez. There are still two years left for the Presidential Elections, but much can happen in two years. Hopefully those that sided with Chavez today will betray him tomorrow.

-HR

BP oil well 'effectively dead'

The blown-out well at the heart of the worst oil spill in U.S. history has been cemented shut and is "effectively dead," the federal government's point man for the disaster said Sunday. The well erupted on April 20 and spewed an estimated 4.9 million barrels(206 million gallons) of crude into the Gulf of Mexico before it was temporarily capped in July.

Finally, the well has been capped. Many people (including myself) thought that this process was going to take a lot longer than this. If you think about it though this process still is not done. Yes, the well is shut and is no longer leaking oil, but there is still some oil that remains below the surface, and years of economic and environmental recovery in the region lie ahead.

BP may have shut the well, but they are still not admired. The federal government will press for answers and lawsuits-- including those brought by the families of the 11 workers who died in the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion-- will eventually make there way through the courts. There is still a long road ahead for BP as they try to regain their title as an oil giant. Which they still are, but they may not be respected as much after this oil spill. But they say, "BP is doing everything we can to make this right. We continue to... clean up the environment, and make sure that people are compensated for legitimate claims," its website says. I just hope that they actually do make this right.

P.S. The link to this story will be shared through my twitter.

-HR




 

"Not today, not ever"

"Not today, not ever" were the words of Florida's pastor Rev. Terry Jones. Jones said these remarks regarding the quaran burning. He also said this once he decided to call of the burning of the Quran that was to be held Saturday-- the ninth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attack on the United States by the al Qaeda terror network.

Looks like somebody came back to planet Earth. Hello!!!! What are you thinking Sir? Did you think that it was just going to be like burning a piece of paper that had no meaning? Did you think everyone would be okay with it? Did you think this would not cause any tension in the world? For Mr. Jones to be a pastor that was not very pastor like of him to burn another religions beliefs. Even though I, myself disagree with what the Quran says, I would never publicly say that I am going to burn it. Are you mad!?! So that Osama can come hunt me down? No way not me!

It does not take a brilliant man such as Pres. Obama to know that this act would have brought security issues to our nation. This act would have brought more war to our country and the possibility of more terrorist attacks, and in addition it would have endangered the lives of our troops in Afghanistan. And like Pres. Obama said that the idea that "we would burn the sacred texts of someone else's religion is contrary to what this country stands for." 

I have no clue what this man was thinking, because obviously he was not. I just hope that he watches his own back from now own and prays for himself. Because al Qaeda could just use this as an excuse to just kill another person or attack the United States again. ( #Dumb A**)

P.S. He does not even want to apologize. In this video he brings up some good arguments why he should not apologize, but I would at least apologize for the thought of burning the Muslim holy book. Because that is not what being a christian is about. But those are just my thoughts what about you guys?



-HR

What's The Deal!?

Hey guys, what's going on? Well, I hope everyone had a good Labor day weekend. I did, but my computer broke so I'm a little late on my posting (its all good though). Well, today I was reading an article on CNN and it was about the economy and Obama's speech in Milwaukee. In his Labor day speech he talked about the economy and what he plans to do with it. One of the things I thought was very interesting was that he (like usual) focused a lot on the middle class. He mentioned that in order to fix this economy we have to build a stronger middle class and create more jobs. He also mentioned a new infrastructure plan to boost the economy, by rebuilding 150,000 miles of roads, 4,000 miles of rail, and 150 miles of airport runways.

This new infrastructure package would be great if congress would pass it, but it is very unlikely. Sources also say that even if it did pass, new jobs would not be created until at least 2011. President Obama though has been criticized lately for promising too much. In many reviews and articles that I have read about his speech, analyst are saying that he is just trying to get bonus points for the up coming elections. As I watched President Obama's speech, I thought he was very sincere and very blunt. He even joked (not really) about congress saying that all the republican congress men say is "no". I thought these remarks were very risky, but made the speech so much more raw and I thought people could relate to that more. He even made remarks towards what he said the man who thinks he is going to be the next speaker. I thought these were really good parts about the speech.

As far as our economy goes, I think Obama's ideas are great. I think that his plans to strengthen this economy and to create new jobs are brilliant. In a perfect world I think that if these plans were to be executed, we would be able to dig ourselves out of this recession. BUT we all know we do not live in a perfect world, and that things NEVER go according to plan. Sometimes it frustrates me when people say that he is getting distracted with issues like health care, immigration, and the Iraq war. They say that he tends to stray of task and not focus so much on the economy, and that he could be doing more. Well, I think that he is doing enough, that he is providing ideas, that he truly wants to fix the economy and not just his approval or the seats of the democrats in the upcoming elections. But he can not do it alone. He needs the help of congress, and like he said they always turn down everything he proposes. Kobe Bryant could not win back to back championships alone, he needed help, he needed his teammates. And I guess you can think of congress as Obama's teammates, but there being stingy and not wanting to help him out.

Overall, I thought It was a very good speech and that everything he said was very inspirational. No doubt that every time Obama speaks he gives us hope that our country will strengthen. But his promises and his hope and his ideas can become reality if he were to get more help out of congress, but we know that's no easy task. Well, I'm out guys thanks for reading and comment if you'd like I'd really appreciate it.

-HR