Reflections Of A Year Past And Hopes For The New Year

By Semperpapa

It is the time of the year when every person reflects on the past year and expresses the hopes for the year just about to begin. And I am not immune from such practice.

2010 was certainly an interesting year.

The year has seen a steady decline of President Obama approval rating, surely fueled by the economic disaster the Country is experiencing.
Unemployment inched upward very close to the 10% level. Considering that the promise from the administration was that thanks to the out-of-control spending they have been engaged in that number would not grow past 8%, it is not surprising that many Americans, especially those who crowd the unemployment lines, would be inclined to lose confidence in the political leadership.
States like California and Nevada saw their unemployment rate climb decisively above the 12% and 14% respectively, demonstrating that the economic pains that are pronounced nationwide, are even worst in states that were once economic examples.

The whole year saw the increase impact that the TEA Party exercised upon the political scene. Regardless of the virulent campaign of attacks and vilification that the Left conducted against those who identified with the protestations of this true American grass root movement, political candidates supported by the TEA party were successful in the mid-term elections of November 2010.
While on a national scale the elections were successful in giving some hope to those who, like me, hope for a return of America to a more conservative, common sensical political environment, as a resident of California I was astonished by the results.
The economy of the state, which once used to be the 7th economy of the globe, is in the worst possible condition, ushered in by the control that liberals have had over the state legislature.
And yet, union thuggery and illegal aliens' special interests were able to make California an exception once again. While the rest of the country decidedly moved toward a conservative stance and against Marxism and Socialism, the people of California elected Jerry Brown as governor and re-elected Barbara Boxer as US Senator.

Politically, the mid-terms were the event that left the most important mark on 2010.
With Republicans gaining the majority in the House and gaining in the Senate, the American people, via the ballot box, expressed their general dissatisfaction with the corruption, overtaxing and power abuse in Washington D.C.
It is my hope for 2011 that the 112th Congress, once seated, will actually concentrate on the business of the people, instead of the growth of political power.

2010 saw the failed Obama trips to win the Olympic Games for, of all places, Chicago and the expensive and useless trip to a global warming conference that was practically the last farce of a completely discredited attempt of environmental terrorists to gain control of the world energy industry.
And speaking of trips, taxpayers founded trips, who can forget the lavish vacation in Spain that Michelle Obama took with her daughter in summer and the escape of the First Family to Asia just following the November elections.

2010 also saw the official end of combat operations in Iraq. As the administration claimed it as a political victory and Obama, personally, as a proof that he had actually achieved one of his goals, the situation for our troops in theater did not change much.
The staged images of the 4th Striker Brigade exiting Iraq into Kuwait as the last combat unit leaving the country, contrasted starkly with the news from other units in that country whose designations were changed from "combat" to "support" to satisfy the Administration image, while their operational duties remained unchanged.
Not to mention that the political victory claimed by Obama was none other than the realization of a timeline that the Bush administration had established.

And 2010 saw the increased operational activity in Afghanistan with the change of the Military leadership in that theater. Gen. Stanley McCrystal was ousted by the President for criticism expressed and Gen. David Patreaus replaced him as Commander.
Some victories were achieved in the effort of hitting and killing Taliban terrorists, but the casualties in that conflict escalated.

On a personal note, 2010 was a year of great emotional significance.
A year ago today, I was just hoping that the day would go fast and that I would get one day closer to the time my son would come home from Afghanistan.
The year was marked by the day in May when my family finally got a glimpse of him as his unit returned home from their deployment and we saw him hugging his wife and son. That was the day when everything was good, when the family's collective anxiety was lifted.
And in July, we were ecstatic in welcoming the newest member of the family, my grandson Alexander Francis.

As I get ready to say good bye to 2010, I am grateful that every member of my family is enjoying good health and harmony.

My wishes for the new year starting is that a new form of common sense will prevail in the political arena of my country; that love for our Nation will become the prevalent interest of those who were placed in charge of Washington; that the number of unemployed will shrink, allowing Americans to re-discover their dignity in working and being productive.
I also wish that the casualty announcements from the DoD will go to zero and that our Nation will express its gratitude toward our Veterans in the way they deserve. I hope that the suicide rate among Veterans will also drop to zero and that those suffering from the consequences of their service to that country will seek the help that the country owes them.

2011 is shaping up to be another interesting year and I am ready.

Happy New Year to all of you!

Just my thoughts!