State of the Union

President Obama made his State of the Union address this past Tuesday and he highlighted many points and made specific actions to these plans which really struck a positive chord with me. His plans for the economy and education especially were appealing. There were many direct suggestions to make the economy better. One suggestion was to give tax exempts to corporations and companies who have their foundation/base in the United States rather than overseas. This would create more jobs in the U.S. and therefore make the economy better. Another point brought up was that when immigrants come to study in the United States and after they earn their degree, the U.S. sends them right back where they came from without realizing that these people can definitely benefit the economy and add to it. Obama suggested that these people be led on a path to citizenship because they really should be staying here and helping the country. I thought these two direct blueprints for shaping the economy were very drawn out and specific in what should be done.

For education, Obama said that teachers in schools should not be laid off without reason. If there are good teachers who can help students learn, then keep them and the government should make it a point to keep the good ones and weed out the bad ones and to also reward the really good teachers for aiding the people who will be our future. The restriction on when students can drop out will not be effective in my opinion because there is no point in forcing students to learn and study when they don't have the will power. The tuition rate increasing was a problem that was brought up and one of the best quotes President Obama said was "Higher education can’t be a luxury – it’s an economic imperative that every family in America should be able to afford."  I think this is completely true and I agree. College tuition is something that every family worries about especially when the rates are going up through the roof at this point. Some plans laid out were to extend the tuition tax credit, so middle class families will benefit and to increase the number of work study jobs on campus to get students to pay their way through college also. The main plan was to get colleges to lower their tuition rates or make plans to have students graduate faster and with less money and if these colleges do not comply, then they will lose the taxpayer funding little by little. I thought this was a very effective way in trying to appeal to colleges and universities to also be involved in the effort to make higher education more of an option to students everywhere.

All of these plans are good, but Congress has to be able to listen to these plans and actually present them in their sessions. They need to make a step toward improving certain aspects of our country such as economy and education, and with President Obama's suggestions, they can make a fresh start. 

Perry had a good run..

Date: January 19, 2012

Topic: Rick Perry Drops Out Of 2012 Presidential Race Ahead Of South Carolina Primary

 

Rick Perry formally announced his withdrawal from the presidential race two days before the South Carolina primary. It seems as though it was a decision at the last minute. As he addressed the people in a press conference in North Charleston, he also endorsed Gingrich for the presidential candidate for the Republican Party. There was obviously no surprise there. Perry and Gingrich have been “frenemies” throughout this whole election and people have remarked that they share most of the same views. Perry believes that Gingrich can “transform this country”. Gingrich seemed very grateful at his endorsement. Perry also said that he loved America, but the corruption of this country is because of politics. Perry had a good run at the beginning. He was who everyone was talking about last summer and he could have made it farther is he only did not make some bad moves along the way. It was still surprising to see him standing after those bad moves, but there comes a time when you know it is too late to do anything to sway the voters back. Perry realized this and made a good move of dropping out instead of waiting till all his money would be gone. Romney said that Perry was a good man and that he made a great contribution to his state as well as his country.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/19/rick-perry-drops-out-2012-_n_1214032.html

Evangelical votes important to everyone

Date: January 15, 2012

By Deborah Charles

Topic: Churchgoers little influenced by Santorum endorsement

Santorum has gotten an endorsement from conservative Christian leaders just in time for the South Carolina primary. Although he has gotten this endorsement, it does not seem to have an effect on the Christians and evangelicals in the state. Santorum, who is a Catholic, was very close to a tie with Romney in South Carolina because of his beliefs and how they correlated with the people of Iowa. This wasn’t the case in New Hampshire where not as many people are religiously aligned. The problem is that all of the Republican candidates are counting the evangelical vote, but the evangelicals vote for the person who best shows what can be done with the policies that the candidate has suggested to cater to their desires. Romney, although he is competing for the evangelical vote, is also attracting the business wing of the party for support as well. Santorum is not attacking Romney at the moment, but Romney’s supporters are attacking Santorum. This is “ the make it or break it” primary and many candidates are going to reevaluate their campaign if they are not in the top of the South Carolina primary. Money is drying up in the candidates and soon only the candidates who have the support and financial stability will be the only ones left..

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/15/us-usa-campaign-idUSTRE80E0OO20120115

AH! super PACs are taking over politics!

FOX News Sunday: Panel Plus

January 15, 2012

Brit Hume, Kirsten Powers, Bill Kristol, and Juan Williams talk about how super PACs are dominating how politics turn out.  Recent ads by super PACs that are in support of Gingrich have run nasty things that are inaccurate about Romney and Gingrich supposedly is telling them to take the stuff that is untrue out. Is he only doing that because he doesn’t want his reputation to get even worse? He is friends with Rick Tyler that is running the super PAC, so they could be working together, but according to Hume, that is against the law. Or is Gingrich purely concerned with not having a bad reputation because of his super PAC. Powers talks about how super PACs allow the candidate to have some sort of attacks on other candidates without being blamed for it themselves. She sees them as “destructive” and says that they don’t really add to the debate. Democrats complain about it now, but when the time comes, they are going to rely on the super PACs as well. Kristol believes that super PACs were not the “best thing that happened in politics”. He assumed that super PACs would make things turn out differently in the primaries, but from what it is at this point, it seems that the person who raises the most money and wins the first few primaries (Romney in this case), will end up being the Republican candidate. He assumed that because super PACs can contribute as much money as they want to, that the candidates who don’t have as much, such as Gingrich and Santorum, will end up getting higher up. This was not the case however. Williams questions whether this is purely democratic, but also refutes this by establishing that contributing money is free speech. super PACs seem like they have a very big impact on how things turn out and the rich primarily make the super PACs. The rich have a big influence on politics and this can be for the good or it could possibly corrupt political leaders into doing whatever the rich say so they can keep on running, but having to do them favors after. 

Even if Romney will be elected and has a lot of money backing him, is it anything compared to what Obama will have for the general election anyway? Let’s take this one step at a time.

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1392761563001/panel-plus-115

Oh man..not another libertarian!

Date: January 12, 2012

By Deborah Charles 

Topic: Libertarian Ron Paul is dilemma for Republicans

Ron Paul’s libertarian views have become a problem with the Republican Party.  They love Paul and many of his views, but some of his foreign policy views are out of this world and the average person would not vote for him. Sure, he’s got a strong support base, but will that win him the nominee for the presidential election? This is Paul’s third time running for president and over the other two times, he has gained the support to build up a great system. The Republican Party is worried that if Paul does not win the Republican primary, that he will run for the Independent Party instead which would cause so much chaos. There are some who say that if Paul does not win the primary, then a lot of his supporters especially the youth would not vote for any other Republican candidate for the presidential election. There are others that say the votes that would maybe go to a Republican candidate would end up going to Paul which divides the votes up and Barack Obama will end up being president again which is not what the Republican Party wants at all, but what can they do? People say that Paul will end up being second place to Romney and therefore get a speaking role at the convention and perhaps the nominee if it may be Romney or someone else will give him a role in something. But we’re getting a little too ahead of ourselves. The third state primary hasn’t even been done and we’re already predicting what is to be done after the election..

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/13/us-usa-campaign-paul-idUSTRE80B25J20120113

Funny Guy Colbert all in for South Carolina

Date: January 13^th

By Lily Kuo

Topic: Stephen Colbert: Exploring run for president of USA of South Carolina

Stephen Colbert, the comedian who hosts the late night show “The Colbert Report”, is now running in the primary in his own state of South Carolina. He apparently wants to run for the “President of the United States of South Carolina which is a very interesting title to have. On his show, he has the personality of a big time conservative news anchor. The way he could be a candidate for the primary and register so late is that he could be a write-in candidate. Colbert was the head of a super PAC called Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow and he transferred it to Jon Stewart. This way he would not be violating the law that did not allow candidates to manage political action committees. He formed that super PAC last year to make fun of how there are so many contradictions in the laws that allow corporations to give an unlimited amount of money. A poll showed that Colbert was  ahead of Jon Huntsman, who has been last place, but came in third at the New Hampshire primary. He’s probably the only other alternative to Mitt Romney at this point, since everyone ends up voting for him just because he seems the most sane in this election. Colbert said “Clearly my fellow South Caroliniacs see me as the only Mitternative”, using his comedic talents to persuade voters to vote him instead of Romney. The South Carolina primary is only a week away, so America will see what happens with Colbert soon..

http://blogs.reuters.com/talesfromthetrail/2012/01/13/stephen-colbert-exploring-run-for-president-of-usa-of-south-carolina/

McCain and Romney- enemies to friends?

CBS Face the Nation

January 8, 2012

The recent episode of Face the Nation on CBS featured John McCain and his view on Mitt Romney whom he recently endorsed. McCain and Romney were both candidates in the Republican primary in 2008 and needless to say, they were pretty intense towards each other. Romney claimed back in 2008 that McCain was spreading lies about him and how his tax rates have shot up in Massachusetts. Romney said back then that he wouldn’t be McCain’s vice president either.  McCain said that after he was declared the nominee of the Republican Party, Romney was in full support of him and did a lot for his campaign. I guess McCain owed Romney and so he endorsed him.  Mc Cain believes that Romney is the best qualified for the Republican nominee and that he admires him and his family. He says that they have many of the same values and principles. Rick Santorum, however, said that John McCain “ does not know what torture is” pertaining to the interrogation techniques used in Bush’s administration but not in the Obama’s administration. McCain laughed it off and disregarded what Santorum said. McCain says that he will endorse whomever is the candidate chosen to represent the Republican Party in the election. I found it interesting that McCain and Romney who were practically enemies four years ago have come to great terms on behalf of their party. Party affiliations really shape people who are in higher governmental offices and it really has deep ties. McCain said that even though they lashed at each other and there were heated arguments, all of this was done to advance the Republican Party. It seems like everything is done for the Republican Party so even if candidates have insulted to each other to point where they don’t even remember what point they were trying to make, they still would rather have the Republican Party in office rather than the Democratic Party. McCain and Romney are a prime example of this and so was Bush and Reagan, as McCain had brought up as an example of how this has happened before. People who are loyal to the party are willing to do anything for the betterment of their party.

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7394338n&tag=contentMain;contentBody

Candidates scrambling for that spot

Santorum telegraphs punches at Romney before GOP debate

January 7,2012

Los Angeles Times

All the other candidates are really fighting each other for that spot right below Romney and it really doesn’t do any good in the end because Romney will end up getting more attention. Santorum is definitely going to be going after Romney and he’s really doing anything he can to attract attention and make Romney look bad. In Amherst, NH, Santorum addressed a bunch of people, but he mostly just addressed the ways that Romney would be a bad nominee and president. He talked about how Romney was not a strong conservative and how someone like that would not be able to win against Obama because they have many of the same ideas such as Romneycare and Obamacare, the solutions to our healthcare problems. The Republican Party needs someone who is steadfast in the views of the party and will hold true to his beliefs. He believes that the Republican Party needs someone very different from Obama to have a chance in this election and he believes that he has those qualities. The point he made that stuck out to me is that Romney will end up just “managing the mess in Washington D.C.”. He doesn’t have the capability to turn things around according to Santorum. Even if he did win, there would not be much of a change. America needs someone new and I feel that Santorum is speaking the truth when he says this. Romney would do very well in managing because he’s very moderate, but we need a strong leader who is strong in his views to pick of D.C. and turn it the way that will mean progress in the future in every aspect.

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-santorum-telegraphs-punches-romney-debate-20120107,0,3920436.story

SC isn't gonna be an easy one..

A bitter fight shaping up in 'mean' South Carolina

January 4, 2012

Los Angeles Times

After closely winning the Iowa caucuses, Romney is soon going to face his weakest early voting state, South Carolina. This is going to be a personal primary since Gingrich has been top in the polls in South Carolina since November. However, attack ads have made Gingrich a little unpopular lately, so we don’t exactly know what’s going to happen in South Carolina. Republicans are trying to find someone else besides Romney for the lead contender and as of right now Rick Santorum looks pretty good. Paul’s, Romney’s, and Perry’s attack ads ruined Gingrich and it looks like Santorum will be their next target. Santorum and Romney seem like the only two who are going to spend a lot of time in South Carolina campaigning with Santorum going above and beyond the standard. Santorum seems like the kind of guy who spends a lot of time with the state and the state grows on him, but because they cannot fully unite under him, Romney ends up winning because no one can unite behind a single candidate so they settle for him. Romney’s Mormon religion may become an issue, but not all people will take that seriously enough anyway. Perry may be one of the candidates that come out nowhere and end up doing good because of the announcement of candidacy in South Carolina and also his Southern heritage, but because he did poorly on debates and says things that are way out there, there might not be a chance for him either if he doesn’t drop out by then. It looks like South Carolina will be between Romney and Santorum again…

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-south-carolina-20120105,0,7274630.story

Santorum on the rise?

January 1, 2012

Meet the Press on msnbc

  

With only 2 days till the Iowa caucus, it seems that Rick Santorum is rising in the polls. He is now third, behind Romney and Paul. NBC’s political director, Chuck Todd and and Iowa Republican Chairman, Matt Strawn analyze the election as of today. Chuck Todd seems like he is liking that Santorum is surging forward and that in the polls the Thursday and Friday before Santorum was actually second in the polls with 21%. Todd believes that if more of the everyday people come to the Iowa caucus, then Romney will most likely win, but if more of the activists come, then Santorum has a good amount of support to possibly win as well. He feels that Romney would get more of the “ Oh, I guess I’ll vote for Romney” voters. Todd gives off the vibe that he sees things will be going good for Santorum. Matt Strawn brings up the point that Republicans in general and in Iowa in this case want a candidate who can withstand the opposition that is Barack Obama and still be able to portray the values of the party. Todd believes that Santorum fits best with Iowa caucus electorate than any other candidate because of the values he would bring and his electability, but people also think he’s not going to make it either. Todd also says that Romney is the least conservative of the candidates which everyone can see anyway. He has been trying to give off that vibe recently, but he needs to stay true to his beliefs. Republicans want a candidate who is strong in their party values and not someone who is a little conservative. Strawn believes that the turnout will be even more than last time and when asked what Iowa means for the candidate, he believes that usually the Iowa caucus winner will end up being the presidential candidate. In the last four years it has ended up that way, so I guess we shall find out as the primaries progress.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032608/vp/18424745#45840066

Santorum picking up the pace

Date: December 29, 2011
Topic: Santorum's rising
By JEREMY W. PETERS

Santorum seems to be rising in the polls too especially in Iowa where the caucus in only days away. Many people in Iowa are being swayed by his determination to not have just the person everyone thinks is going to win, in office. He encourages people to vote for the person that they see fit to be president instead of just jumping on the bandwagon of whoever everyone thinks is going to win based on the polls. Not only are Santorum’s polls rising, the crowds at his campaign rallies and the media reporting about him are starting to increase as well. He talks about social conservatism which the people in Iowa have taken an interest in and are in support of him. He also emphasizes Christian values and family value which are other aspects that Iowans are looking for in their candidate. Many people have expressed that Santorum stands firm in his beliefs and does not seem to waver unlike the other candidates. People think he is the most consistent of the candidates. Although many Iowans think Santorum is a great candidate, many have expressed that they like some other candidates as well, so we do not know for sure whether Santorum will be getting as many votes as expected. Although his polls have risen within the last week, it still says only 16 percent of likely caucus goers. Many Iowans have said that there are many good qualities and values within all of the candidates, but Santorum seems to possess most of them in a single person. Santorum seems like a great candidate but we can never be sure of these polls and the many fluctuations it has within a short amount of time. It seems one candidate after another rises and then falls. The first caucus is only days away so this make it or break it time for the candidates. One bad move can ruin everything they have been working for. Santorum is a rising star, but how long before this new fad dies? Or is this a fad that will last? We shall see soon.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/30/us/politics/santorum-events-reflect-rising-iowa-numbers.html?scp=5&sq=Rick%20Santorum&st=cse

Tension rises between Romney and Paul

Date: December 28, 2011
Topic: Romney criticizing Paul
By MICHAEL D. SHEAR and ASHLEY PARKER

Romney and Paul are the two ahead in the polls in Iowa as of now, with only 6 days till the Iowa caucus. Gingrich has fallen behind because of negative advertisements and both Romney and Paul have benefited from his decline While Gingrich is trying to win his support back, both Romney and Paul are jabbing at each other. Bachmann and Perry had already criticized Paul’s foreign policy and Romney comes at it at full force.  Paul’s foreign policy includes pulling out of Afghanistan, avoiding conflict with Iran and other countries and also cutting foreign aid. Romney criticizes Paul while speaking to Muscatine, Iowa and saying that he is “ O.K. with Iran having a nuclear weapon”. Paul does not back down and fires back with the question of why we still have troops in South Korea. While Paul and Romney are not directly attacking each other because of frantically traveling all over the state, there is till some tension between them. Both have not said anything about their expectations about the caucus. They probably don’t want to jinx themselves or maybe it is just too hard to tell because of how candidates rise and fall within a very short amount of time. All candidates are watching each other’s moves and looking for any one thing to point out that could make another fall. Romney feels as if he is going to get support from Iowa, but who really knows what’s going to happen. Only a few more days till the day all of these candidates have been waiting for. Iowa, I hope you’re ready!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/29/us/politics/romney-jabs-at-paul-as-2-lead-new-poll-of-iowa-vote.html?ref=politics

The Republican race to Huckabee

Date: December 25, 2011
Topic: Mike Huckabee's view on the Republican race
FOX News Sunday

ON FOX News Sunday with Chris Wallace, Mike Huckabee was invited to talk about his views on the Republican race. He was a former presidential candidate so he knew what he was talking about regarding the race and the outcome and analysis. The Iowa caucus is only 9 days away and candidates are scrambling all over to make a good impression. Huckabee believes that either Ron Paul or Mitt Romney will win the Iowa caucus. Paul has a great number of supporters and they would do anything for him according to Huckabee. Romney seems like a good contender and Huckabee said “if the weather is good, then Romney will win”. Huckabee also believes that Santorum will be a “surprise candidate” in this race, even if he doesn’t win. Santorum has been getting endorsements lately evangelicals. It really depends if Iowa caucus goers care more about social issues than money and jobs and according to a poll that Chris Wallace brought up, social issues were at the bottom, but we don’t know for sure. Huckabee believes caucuses are so much more intense than primaries because a person has to really stand up for the candidate of their choice in front of everyone they know. It is not a private matter at all which is pretty stressful. People have to probably do their research and really listen to these candidates. Then Huckabee talks about the flow of the race and how is certain things happen in Iowa, how will they affect the race. For example, if Romney wins in Iowa and then in New Hampshire, and then in South Carolina where he got an endorsement from the governor, and then in Florida, then there is no stopping him at that point. Iowa means a lot to these candidates and that is why they are all freaking out at this point when there are only days left. Huckabee believes Ron Paul will not win this entire race because of his foreign policy and how it’s pretty out there. I mean, people really don’t want to go around saying that Iran is allowed to have a nuclear weapon which is what Paul is advocating. Although he might have a lot of great support, his supporters are radicals and fanatics like him and they do not represent the whole population. Huckabee sounds like a down to earth kind of person who thinks this Republican race is not about the issues but about tearing apart the other candidates which is very true. Every candidate does something to come at the other and it’s just ridiculous. With that being said, the Republican race is definitely not decided and we shall see which candidate cracks first.

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1346748505001/mike-huckabee-handicaps-iowa-race

Better watch out..Romney's getting popular

Date: December 23, 2011
Topic: A Former President Says Romney Has His Backing
By MICHAEL D. SHEAR and KATHARINE Q. SEELYE

            Mitt Romney seems to gaining popularity with former members of government. Former President George H.W. Bush has given indication that he is in support of Romney. Although his spokesperson said it was not meant to be a formal statement, the former President wanted to make it clear that he would vote for Romney in the Republican contest. He said that he believes Romney “ is not a bomb thrower”.  Since Mr.Bush openly supports Romney, this could be seen as an offense towards Perry and Gingrich whom he had connections with earlier. The “bomb thrower” comment was likely geared towards Gingrich who earned that nickname from before when he was in the House. It seems that Mr. Bush is still holding a grudge against Gingrich for past grievances.  Mr. Bush says he likes Perry which seems right because Perry is a fellow Texan, but he does not believe Perry “ is going anywhere: he’s not surging forward”. Because of Mr. Bush’s endorsement, Romney is getting endorsements from other political figures such as Chris Christie, governor of New Jersey and Nikki Haley, governor of South Carolina. Mr.Bush and Romney’s were very close as well which could play a role in the support given by Bush. Either way, this endorsement can bring both good and bad times for Romney. Good, because he will be receiving more endorsements from other people involved in government or close to Mr.Bush. Bad, because people might be criticizing him for being involved in Washington and how they want a person without Washington connections to be President. This is going to be an interesting run for Mitt Romney and we will see how this plays out in the long run.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9907EFDE173DF930A15751C1A9679D8B63&scp=26&sq=romney&st=nyt

Paul's past coming back at him at full force

Date: December 19, 2011
Topic: New Focus on Incendiary Words in Paul’s Newsletters
By JIM RUTENBERG and RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr.

Ron Paul is getting some of the heat as he is rising in the polls. It seems that as a candidate gets more popular, all the reporters start cracking down on his or her life in the past. With Ron Paul, issues of his newsletter in the past have sprung up and people are starting to ask questions. His newsletter is very controversial now because of the many anti-gay, racist, and many other offending statements. He has been given heat about this earlier in his career and has explained that it was not he who wrote many of the articles of the newsletter, but because his name is on the newsletter, he has to live with it.  He said he did not examine the publications closely because he was busy as a physician and he was giving speeches around the country as well. While he was on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”, he was seen as being a bit hypocritical with his comments about Bachmann and Santorum judging by newsletters. When Paul was questioned about his newsletters before, he commented that he has no idea that his newsletter was listed by a neo-Nazi group as recommended reading. He has survived questions before, so he will be able to survive them again. Again, people are just looking for another reason to drop another candidate off the polls. This is all part of the process and how Paul reacts and deals with the situation is what voters look at. There are rumors that because of his participation in the newsletter that he will lose some of his younger voters, but it seems as though it does not matter to them because Paul has given no indication that he advocates the beliefs portrayed in his newsletters. Voters are looking for a candidate that can withstand everything that comes at them and handle it in a mature manner. That could be an indication that the candidate will be able to withstand situations presented to him when he or she becomes President of the United States. Bottom Line: People want a secure President, someone who knows how to handle any problem given to him or her. I think it is safe to say that just because of past issues; Ron Paul will not be hacked down that easily. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/20/us/politics/bias-in-ron-pauls-newsletters-draws-new-attention.html?scp=1&sq=December%2020,%202011&st=cse

Is Huntsman ever going to have his days of glory?

Date: December 18, 2011
Topic: Jon Huntsman's views on the race
State of the Union

On Sunday’s State of the Union, Jon Huntsman was brought front and center to talk about how he is faring in the race for the Republican candidate. Currently, he is in New Hampshire campaigning so and he says that he has a really good chance in this state. I guess he backed off Iowa because he knew what the outcome would be? He has high hopes for New Hampshire however, as he his getting high in the polls. He said he “went from 0 to number 3”. I guess his campaigning in pulling off.  He just took out Paul for third place in that state as well. When asked about courts and Gingrich’s policy of not allowing certain courts and judges have the upper hand in making all decisions is something he agreed one, Huntsman changed the subject to the economic and trust deficit in this country and how he would do something about it. After he was asked again, he said it was up to the people to elect judges. Why is he avoiding the question? It seems as if he is not settled upon his policy of the courts and judicial branch. He always talks about the economy and how much he’s going to do for it, but is he really solid in his other policies. He was also asked about how he never had his day in the light unlike the other candidates who went up for a while and then came back down. He has stood pretty steady and he thinks that is a good thing because he is steadily climbing his way up as seen with the New Hampshire primaries. We don’t know what will happen but he seems to think he is at a good place right now. He was also asked about Romney’s comment about how China is “manipulating currency” and that Romney wants to put a tariff on imports. As former ambassador of China, Huntsman disagrees with the tariff idea, saying that if America puts a tax on imports from China then China will do the same to America which is not very good for our economy. He seems to know what he’s talking about which gives him another reason why people might like him and vote for him. He has had a decent record in politics and has been involved in many ways and he is saying people are definitely looking at him in a different way once they figured out about his past. This could be a good thing? We shall find out soon..