Capitalist: Excellent point!. And this is why listening to anyone from the arts and entertainment field regarding real issues is absurd. The arts and entertainment (Hollywood) crowd is composed almost exclusively of people whose careers revolve around their ability to "emote" , that is to express ideas by conveying emotion. Their emotional empathy skills are highly developed and in most cases their rational side is atrophied. It is simply their nature.

Ste: No this is not due to teacher's unions. The difference in states education ratings can be attributed to differences in socio economic status of the parents. Generally, parents with higher education produce children that value education. Western states who don't spend much on education like Wyoming are also often near the top. It's demographics and not unions that makes the difference.

The scientific proof that life begins at conception was proven by science decades ago when a fertilized egg was implanted in an unrelated woman and successfully brought to a full term birth. Thus, the embryo is not dependent on the biological mother, but is dependent on any woman available. Just as newborns are 100% dependent on others to survive, the same is true for the unborn. When our country finally recognizes the human rights of the unborn, our country will have corrected a horrendous moral wrong.

With your requirements, only great actors and directors could be film critics, only great chefs can be restaurant critics, only great athletes can be sports commentators, etc, etc. etc. Fortunately, the world doesn't work your way and we voters have the right to judge which politicians are overrated even though we are not politicians ourselves.

Liberal: You are sooooooo smart. Tell us why nearly 5 decades of government programs and tens of trillions of dollars have not reduced the percentage of "poor" in this country.

The issue isn't if Obama is a Christian or not. The issue Thomas rightly points out is how Obama uses references to the Bible to justify his political positions. Bush did not attempt to justify political positions with Biblical verses. Obama claims Jesus would support the Buffett rule. None of us knows the answer for sure, but many of us doubt that Jesus worried very much about government taxes. Obama also said the Golden Rule supports gay marriage. Again another stretch at best.

Unlike Obama, Romney has not claimed biblical authority (or book of Morman) for any of his positions. Obama has invoked Jesus in support of the so called Buffett rule and the Golden Rule in support of gay marriage.Obama, who is clearly unreligious, falsely uses Christian beliefs to further his political agenda.

Strong argument. I can't find gasbag anywhere around this post!

Our constitution gives us rights as individuals not as couples. Gays have all the same rights as heterosexuals including the right to marry a member of the opposite sex. There are no couples rights or group rights in the Constitution, on individual rights!

Yeah...you were wrong. But, tax rates really don't matter much. Tax revenue matters. When the Fed Income tax rate was 90%,... nobody paid it. When JFK, Reagan and Bush cut taxes, TAX REVENUE WENT UP.We have a spending problem. ,