A Potpourri of News and Notes...

---> Protests continue in Venezuela over Hugo Chavez's continued attempt to consolidate a socialist dictatorship in the country. It's good to see that it's the youth of the nation that are leading these protests against the government takeover, and that they embrace the values of freedom and democracy.

Just like the youth that supported Nicolas Sarkozy in France, people around the world are tired of the anti-Bush and anti-American sentiments of their leaders. Democrats be warned, the global tide is turning against what would be considered "favorable conditions" for you.

---> The American Al-Qaeda member indicted on charges of treason has issued a statement saying that Al-Qaeda will launch attacks worse than 9/11 and Virginia Tech. Of course, this guy is hiding out in Egypt saying this.

We've heard this song and dance before from Bin Laden himself. Needless to say, if Al-Qaeda wants to harm their cause permanently, attacking the U.S. would be the way to go. To resurrect the fervor and need for vengeance that we as a nation felt on 9/11 and the months that followed would be a BAD move for Al-Qaeda.

---> Nicolas Sarkozy wants to eliminate the 35-hour limit on the French work week, as unemployment is about 8 percent, and the economical growth rate is 2 percent. With the lengthened work week, Sarkozy also wants businesses and industries to start paying overtime to those who work it...something that does not happen in France. However, the longer lunch break, a long tradition in French society, is expected to remain untouched, along with a few other traditions of French society.

Good, I like this guy a lot. He wants to improve American-French relations, he wants French workers to be more productive, but still keep some of the social traditions of the nation. Kudos to him. His approval numbers are at 65%, the highest for any president at the beginning of their term in France. Here's some food for thought...not including national holidays and weekends, French workers get 48 days off per year. Many workers believe this does hinder productivity (you think?).

---> Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villagairosa officially endorsed Hillary Clinton for the 2008 presidential race. Villagairosa is a very powerful figure in California politics, and has the ear of millions of hispanic voters. This is a key endorsement for the Clinton campaign.

I really like Villagairosa as a role model for what hispanics (and other minorities) can do in this nation without having been fed a silver spoon, and he's been good for L.A.'s image. However, I just don't like the man's politics...this would be a reason why. At least he's not endorsing John Edwards (ugh)

---> Barack Obama outlined his healthcare plan for America yesterday. While he didn't go into details (not surprisingly), the plan is apparently not going to be a universal healthcare program, but it will expand the government's regulation of insurers, expand the number of people insured by private companies, and increase funds to assist with the payment of costly medical procedures.

Well, I can live with that much better than the Clinton and Edwards versions of "BlueCross BlueBureacracy", which is pretty much universal health care, bogged down even more by heavy government involvement. Either way, it's too much government...but at least Obama sounds somewhat sensible about his approach to this.

---> A man with a rare, potentially deadly strain of TB flew on two trans-Atlantic flights, and could have possibly exposed over 100 people to this. He is now quarantined at a hospital in Atlanta. Authorities in both the U.S. and foreign nations are now attempting to track down those who may have been potentially exposed.

This guy KNEW he was infected, and KNEW he could spread this disease. That's what blows my mind about this whole thing. Hopefully, this doesn't get too out-of-hand.