Paul Ryan's Plan For Cutting Federal Budget

On Thursday, The House of Representatives approved Paul Ryan’s proposed $3.5 trillion budget plan by a 228 to 191 vote. Paul Ryan is the House Budget Committee Chairman. Ryan’s plan calls for Medicaid to be privatized, and many federal programs, including food stamps, to be completely eliminated. Every single Democrat voted against this plan. All but 10 of the Republicans supported it.

The plan would cut spending by $5.3 trillion over the next 10 years. It would raise Medicare eligibility from 65 to 67, and Medicare would be eliminated for everyone under the age of 55. A portion of the savings will help to reduce our federal deficit, and part of them will provide tax breaks to the wealthy, which includes doing away with the estate tax and the Alternative Minimum Tax. In addition, the top income tax rate would be lowered from 35% to 25%. However, it is likely that the plan will make it past the Senate.

While I do think this seems a little drastic, I do think a change like this is needed. As I have said before, I do not know a lot about politics. However, we as Americans take way too much for granted, and we tend to think that the world owes us something. The world should not be taking care of you. Do not be a leach to society. Now, I understand that there are some people who need help, so I don’t think all federal programs should be done away with. However, I do think we have spent too much on these type of programs, so they should be decreased. Instead, we should be spending on coming up with jobs for the poor. Also, I believe the Medicare age eligibility being raised is an excellent idea. People are living longer nowadays. As people live longer, it only makes sense that the age eligibility for Medicare and Social Security be increased.

Jerry Lee Lewis "The Killer" Gets Hitched Yet Again

76-year-old rock star Jerry Lee Lewis, who is known as “The Killer” and has top hits like “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On” and “Great Balls of Fire”, marries for a seventh time in Natchez, Mississippi. Apparently, he was wed on March 9^th, but the news is just now getting around. On Friday, March 30^th, The Associated Press confirmed that Lewis had tied the knot yet again. The bride’s name is Judith Brown, and apparently, she was previously married to Lewis's cousin, Rusty. To make things more interesting, Rusty’s older sister, Myra Gale Brown, was married to Lewis herself in 1957 when she was only 13 years old. Judith Brown began working for Lewis a few years ago as his caretaker. She is 62 years old, which makes it a 14-year difference between the two.

I think there needs to be a limit on how many times a person can get married. I understand that divorces happen and spouses die, but to be married seven times in a single lifetime is crazy. When people are married that many times, it is obvious that they do not truly know the meaning of a marriage. Therefore, they should refrain from ever getting into one in the first place. Oh well. Good luck to Jerry Lee Lewis and Judith Brown. Hopefully, this will be Lewis’s last time getting married. How many more times could he possibly tie the knot? Maybe he should shoot for ten marriages! If he lives to be in his 90’s, that may very well happen.

Former President George H. W. Bush To Support Romney, But What About George W?

At an event that was held in Houston on Thursday, George H. W. Bush officially declared that he would be endorsing Republican Mitt Romney for the upcoming presidential election. This endorsement from the former president is another example of how the Republican Party is coming together to back Romney, which increases the pressure on challengers Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. H. W. Bush has provided encouraging words to Romney during the primary season, but he had never officially endorsed him. However, his wife, Barbara Bush, had officially supported Romney and had even recorded automated telephone calls for him during the Ohio primary. Their son, Jeb Bush, who is a former governor of Florida, officially endorsed him last week.

However, there are still no signs of endorsement from George W. Bush. Mitt Romney has claimed that he speaks to George W. Bush on occasion, but he has not yet met with him. The 43rd president, who currently resides in Dallas, has not attended a single one of Romney's Texas fundraisers. Both Republicans and Democrats alike both believe that Republicans would be best to not worry about having Bush’s backing. After all, he only has a Gallup approval rating of 34%. In addition, 45% of the voters believe that a lot of the blame is on his shoulders.

I have to say that I agree with what both sides are saying. I do feel bad for Bush because I don’t think he deserves all this blame. Sure, he wasn’t a great president, but people like to put blame on somebody. He just so happened to be in office when all this occurred. It is our fault for living beyond our means.

Two Holmdel Students Help The Needy Due To Transcendentalism

16-year-old Lilly Koch and 15-year-old Irene Gardis are Holmdel High School sophomores who love shoes. Therefore, when these two had to decide on what their service project was going to be for their Honors English class, they naturally went with gathering shoes for Soles 4 Souls. Soles 4 Souls is an international organization which has delivered more than 15 million pairs of shoes in a short span of only five years. These shoes have been donated across 127 countries, which includes the U.S. According to their mission statement, they strive to provide long-term development by using market-based “micro-enterprise programs” that allow poor people in the developing nations to come up with the resources to begin their very own businesses.

These two young ladies and their classmates have studied the American Transcendentalism movement for the past two months in class. Some of the writers in this famous movement include Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson. The English teacher for the class, Margaret McDonald, wanted her students to come up with a project that would let them develop any talent they may have, and once they did that, they would write about the experience. So far, Koch and Gardis have come up with 100 pairs of shoes. They are still currently accepting more donations.

I think it is great to read stories about today’s youth helping the world. Although I am only about to be 23 years old, it seems that today’s young people are worse than ever. That is why it is so encouraging to read news like this. Margaret McDonald seems like a very good teacher as well. We need more teachers like her.

Faith Hill + Husband Tim McGraw Sing "Down Under"

Country music superstar Faith Hill and her husband country superstar Tim McGraw are used to touring together. Their touring stats in the U.S. are incredible. Over the years, they have sold millions of tickets by touring together. Obviously, people cannot get enough of these two. They just now finished up a round of touring together in Australia, including Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, and Brisbane. Every single venue was sold out, even the Burswood Done to a crowd of 16,000. This dome is part of the Burswood Entertainment Complex that includes two hotels, eight bars, and a 24-hour casino, and it is located in Perth. Obviously, the land "down under" loves these two country music artists.

I am happy they are still doing well touring wise, even though their radio presence has not been very strong lately. Tim still has some new songs being played on the radio, but Mrs. Hill has been struggling on the radio as of late. I like her. She seems like a really nice person, and I think the media blew the whole "Carrie Underwood fiasco" out of control (and I am a huge fan of Carrie Underwood's). However, Faith needs to pick some better songs. Releasing pop covers to country radio, such as her most recent single "Lost", are not going to cut it. She needs to come back with a huge single if she ever hopes to get any airplay again. Obviously, she and her husband are still doing really well, so I do not feel too bad for her. I still hear some of her older songs on the radio, but it would be nice to hear a great new Faith song on the radio again.

Mega Millions Breaks Record

On Thursday, it was confirmed that Mega Millions officially broke a new record high at $540 million. This is the largest jackpot of any lottery in its entire history. This record amount is much higher than the second-highest Mega Millions prize that was for $390 million back in 2007. This jackpot was split by two winners. One was a married couple in New Jersey and the other one was a truck driver in Georgia. Last year, the third-highest Mega Millions jackpot occurred, and it was for $380 million. This winner was also split by two winners. One was a married couple in Washington, and the other was a woman in Idaho. If history repeats itself, then the same thing could occur in this case, and the winning amount will be split.

The winning amount will be paid in annual amounts; however, if the winner wants to receive it all in one lump sum, he or she will receive $389 million, which is still a huge amount. The drawing for this historic jackpot will be hold Friday at 11 P.M. Eastern Time. Tickets will continue to be one sale until 15 minutes prior to the drawing. They are $1 per ticket.

I cannot believe how high this jackpot has gotten. It is just crazy that one person, or even two, could win such a huge amount. If one person wins this lottery, they will potentially have $540 million dollars, which is more than halfway to $1 billion. Good luck to whoever wins this huge jackpot.

Andrew Bynum Benched Over Three-Point Shot

Mike Brown, head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, has stirred up some buzz lately with some of his coaching strategies. On Sunday, when the Lakers lost to the Memphis Grizzlies, he took out Kobe Bryant for four minutes during the last six minutes of the entire game, which angered the fans. On Tuesday night when the Lakers played the Golden State Warriors, Brown got aggravated with another All-Star player, center Andrew Bynum. During the third quarter, Bynum took a wide open three-point shot at the top of the key. Unfortunately, he missed badly. Bynum was immediately yanked out of the game, and the backup center Josh McRoberts was subbed in for him. Bynum was seen laughing on the bench when the coach made the decision, and he did not join the huddle during a few timeouts. Bynum claimed that since he had made one against Memphis, he wanted to do the same thing against the Warriors. On Wednesday, he confirmed that he will still be taking three-point shots, saying "I guess don't take 3's is the message. But I'm going to take some more. I just hope it's not the same result. I hope that I make it.”

Personally, Andrew Bynum seems like he is being a spoiled brat. Bynum, you are a center, not a guard. Also, you are seven feet tall. If I was that tall, I would be happy to be under the goal dunking all day long. There is nothing wrong with that. I don't know what this guy's problem is. I've never liked Kobe or the rest of the Lakers. They all seem like immature brats who feel they are entitled to something. I hope the Lakers keep losing.

Dennis Rodman Possibly Facing Jail Time

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman could be facing 20 days in prison for failure to pay child support for his two young children. Rodman's ex-wife, Michelle Rodman, claims that he owes around $860,000 in child support. However, Rodman's lawyer, Linnea Willis, claims that he has paid the majority, if not all, of his child support payments, and she claims that she can and will prove this to the family court judge. Rodman was found to be in contempt of court in November of last year whenever he failed to pay the child support. This case is going to be heard in Orange County, which is the place that Rodman lived for over a decade before he moved to Florida, on May 29th. In 2010, he was supposed to pay $50,000 a month; however, it later was decreased to $4,500 a month. Rodman's lawyer had claimed in court documents that Rodman does not earn any income. However, on Tuesday, she claimed he makes over $100,000 a year just from appearances.

This seems to be a suspicious case. My take on this is that the real truth is somewhere in the middle. I believe Rodman probably does owe some child support that he is not telling, but I bet it is not $860,000 as his ex-wife claims is the case. She is probably just trying to get a little extra money out of him. It is a shame that some exes cannot resolve their differences peacefully, especially over child support, which is supposed to be about taking care of the kids only.

Obamacare Likely To Be Turned Down By Court

After three days of government debating, it seems like Obamacare will be turned down. In case no one is aware, Obamacare, also known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, requires for every single American to purchase health insurance. If they do not, they must pay a penalty. It appears that the vast majority of Americans agree with this decision. The percentage of Americans who favor the way he is currently handing healthcare policy is only 41%. However, only 39.2% are in favor of Obamacare.

Personally, I could not be happier with this. Some people may disagree, but I think it is never good when the government has too much power. In fact, that is what our Founding Fathers noted in our own Constitution. The government should not be able to force anybody to purchase health insurance. If they do not want to purchase it, they have that right. In addition, some people just cannot afford to have health insurance right now, especially with this economy. Maybe instead of focusing so much on health care, the President should focus more on opening up jobs so that we can get ourselves out of this recession? Unfortunately, it seems Obama is intent on everyone depending on the government. Hopefully, if Obamacare is indeed turned down, it will damage Obama's credibility in the election. We need a President who will get us in the right direction again. I may not know a lot about politics, but I know Obama is doing us no good.

No Winning Lottery Numbers for Mega Millions - Jackpot Grows to $356 million

On Friday night, the winning lottery numbers for the Mega Millions' jackpot were revealed. The numbers were 6, 17, 19, 20, 21, and a Mega number of 20. Millions of people looked at their ticket, hoping to win. Unfortunately, no one won that night. Due to the fact that were no winning lottery numbers, the winning ticket will grow to over $356 million on Tuesday's drawing. If the winner chooses to receive this cash in one lump sum rather than in equal payments over 20 years, he or she would receive approximately $255.1 million.

Either way, that is a huge amount of money. I would not know what to do with that kind of money in my hands. My grandfather buys lottery tickets on occasion, and he always talks about what he would do with all the money if he ever won the lottery. While I certainly would be thrilled if I ever won the lottery, I think I would be nervous having all that money in my hands. What would I do with it all? I think I would buy a nice house in the country, maybe a vacation house on the beach, and a nice car. Beyond that, I would not know what else I would buy. There are all types of stories of people whose lives were ruined soon after winning the lottery. I would be nervous about that, but I would make sure I put away a lot of my money in a safe location. The good thing about winning that kind of money is that you will never have to worry about your financial future, as long as you are smart with it.