First off many of the evangelicals have a big problem with Mormonism and therefore with Mitt Romney. Some evangelical pastors describe Mormonism as a cult and see Mitt, a member of this so-called cult,  as a dangerous threat to the Presidency and the country. This position is of course ridiculous as Mormons are people of great faith in God and live their lives in the Christian tradition.

But because Mormonism is outside the evangelical mainstream, Mitt has become persona non grata even though he has been married to one woman, gives more than 10% of his wealth to the church and has raised a fine family. This is the logic problem.

Then there is Newt Gingrich who has become the darling of the evangelical right. Of course Newt is a serial adulterer who has broken the 7th commandment so many times that it is difficult to count. Newt is now a Catholic, not an evangelical, but he nonetheless states that he has found redemption for his past sins.

Yet despite his confidence that he is on the right track to heaven, the record clearly shows that he is ethically challenged, a questionable family man, a spinner of the truth, and a nasty politician. And despite all this the evangelicals can’t say enough about Newt and how he would save the country from that evil Obama.

This is where the hypocrisy comes in. When a candidate is supported by a group of religious people despite abundant evidence that the person has lived his life in a way totally against the values of these religious people, then we are talking hypocrisy.

If the evangelical movement ignores its core values when it comes to Newt Gingrich, then it seems that they should engage in a long session of soul searching and perhaps look up the definition of hypocrisy.

There is a price that has been paid for this rapid growth: smog hides the sun, traffic congestion is maddening, huge cancer rates, and growing unrest over public corruption, faulty building codes and fear that the economy is headed for a huge bursting of the growth bubble.

But for all the concern we have in the United States about the Chinese owning the US debt, the massive trade deficits as container ships leave Hong Kong harbor headed for Wal-Mart, and the strength of the Chinese currency relative to the dollar, we just may be winning the war, the so-called soft power war where our brands dominate the thinking and lifestyle of China.

The Colonel, that is the Kentucky Fried Chicken Colonel, is everywhere in Beijing. It is safe to say that I saw the huge neon picture of the Colonel more than the revolutionary hero Mao Zedong. In Shanghai, the trade capital of China, government officials and the upper class ride around in Buicks; in fact there is a huge Buick assembly plant in Shanghai. Last time I looked it was nearly impossible to convince Americans to buy a Buick. And in Hong Kong, ads for Apple products are everywhere, especially for the IPad; in fact there was a riot in Beijing and Shanghai when the new Apple store could not meet the demand of customers for the new phone.

China is clearly on an economic roll, but beneath all the confidence about their yearly growth rates in the 8% range, there is an unease in the country over the future and a recognition that  although the United States may have hit a rough patch the last few years it is certainly not down and out.

China is expected to surpass the United States as the world’s number one economic power by 2020 or 2025 but those dates have recently been pushed upward as signs point to a softening of the Chinese economy and a recognition that power is not only economic, but cultural as well. The Colonel, Buicks and the Apple are signs of our power and also our ability to innovate, compete and create products that are in high demand.

After leaving China I am more convinced then ever that we are still a formidable economic power and may very likely never give up the # 1 position.

2011 was a year of earthquakes, hurricanes, tornados and one gigantic tsunami. Extreme weather now is expected as the norm, not an aberration. Maybe 2012 will be a quieter year in terms of weather with less damage and loss of life, but I am not that hopeful.

In 2011 the world lost the genius Steve Jobs, the brilliantly grumpy Andy Rooney and the absolute beautiful Elizabeth Taylor. More importantly, the United States continued to lose by the hundreds its best and brightest soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan – names not household words, but heroes without question.

2011 also brought us more human tragedy as mothers and fathers killed their own children and pedofiles continued their hunt for unsuspecting innocents. The killing of police officers increased by 13%, while so-called victimless crimes went down- certainly not a good trade-off.

Government went from the embarrassing to the ridiculous as leadership was absent and cooperation was considered a dirty word. It is said that we get the government we deserve, but I am sure that we deserve a lot more than we are getting for our tax dollars. Who can blame people for protesting. What is worse is that 2011 gave us a picture of the 2012 presidential election and the picture was not a confidence builder.

Then there is the economy, which continued to be horrible. Optimists will say that we ended the year on the uptick, but a couple months out of 12 is no consolation when the rest of the year was lousy. For the investors out there, the S and P average ended where it began after a year best described as a huge rollercoaster ride to nowhere.

It is said by some pessimists that 2011 provides a picture of how this country will look like in the future -in a slow, but clear decline with only a few moments in the sun. After experiencing 2011 I can’t disagree.

What people are mad as hell about may vary from country to country and protest to protest, but usually it is brutal, corrupt, incompetent or inept government; sometimes all the previous descriptions apply. Here in the United States the protest is divided. There are those supporters of assembly and petition who are sick and tired of big government spending taxpayer money, regulating corporate and personal life and pushing this country further and further into debt. Then there are those who are sick and tired of big corporations and banks ripping off the middle class, using government for personal and institutional gain and pushing this country into an ever widening income gap between the rich and the rest.

There is no right or wrong in these two avenues of protest, both have solid foundations in reality; both cry out for reform, maybe even a peaceful revolution. But the wisdom of the founding fathers and the governing traditions that have developed since the ratification of the Constitution point clearly to the value of compromise, consensus and good faith bargaining as the only way to make our complicated and oftentimes exasperating governing system work. The memory of our civil war when compromise, consensus and good faith bargaining failed should remind us about how this country must work or fall to pieces.

The protestors of 2011 should be commended for their beliefs and their courage of convictions, but they must all remember that ideological purity, stubborness, illegality, petty grudges, and political grandstanding have no place in the America that right now needs statesmen and stateswomen, deal makers, bi-partisans, and most of all leaders who exhibit common sense, honesty and most of all patriotism- defined as love of country, not love of political party or political ideology.

2012 is not just another year, it is THE year to settle these disputes and get on with the governing of this great country, and the only way to do that is to remember the value of compromise, consensus and good faith bargaining. It’s the American way.

This year the war has become even more intense as the left in their desire to bow to inclusiveness have christened the traditional Christmas tree with the name a ” Holiday Tree.” The right immediately pounced on this new title as further proof that the war on Christmas continues as the left finds new ways to take Christ out of Christmas.

Now before anyone reading this gets the notion that I am going to come to the aid of the ” Happy Holidays” and ” Holiday Tree” people, let me say that ” Merry Christmas” is my choice for a greeting when I meet others and calling a Christmas tree a Holiday Tree is just plain ridiculous.

But let me remind the war on Christmas people that beneath all the furor over how we greet people during this season and what we call a Douglas fur with lights and ornaments there is a not so subtle refusal to recognize that this country is becoming increasingly diverse and that there are millions of Americans who do not celebrate Christmas or have a Christmas tree in the family room.

Sure the majority of Americans are steeped in the Judeo-Christian tradition, but let’s not forget the Jews, the Hindus, the Buddhists, the Muslims and all the other religious groups that don’t believe Jesus was born the Son of God in Bethlehem. Although I don’t have hard numbers and admittedly would have a difficult time presenting proof, but I also could include with the religious minority all those so-called Christians who could care less about the sacred nature of Christmas and worship instead at the altar of Wal-Mart. It just could be that the Judeo-Christian majority is in fact a minority, overwhelmed by a diverse America filled with non-believers and holiday consumers, not Christian warriors out to save a religious holy day.

So during this season of Christmas I as a Christian will continue to say Merry Christmas and say it proudly to my family and friends, and I will continue to sit comfortably in my family room looking at my beautiful Christmas tree. But I will also remember that America is not what it was fifty years ago when diversity meant different ethnic groups that worshipped as Catholics or Protestants. America today is a country where we should be smart enough and sensitive enough to recognize that there are many different people living among us and that the religious character of the season has lost out to the big box stores.  If conservatives want to go to war to save Christmas, let them fight against rampant consumerism and debt inducing spending on stuff, not against those out there who understand and appreciate the differences at work in our ever changing society.

Valentine is without a doubt a charismatic figure and a baseball aficionado, but his record of achievement as a manager is less then stellar. As so many have pointed out, Valentine barely got into the playoffs with his teams and he has never been fitted for a World Series ring.  So fans could legitimately ask, why Valentine?

No one will really know the answer, since the discussions among the ownership team of John Henry, Larry Luchino and Tom Werner is more secretive than the Catholic cardinals choosing a Pope. One can only speculate that Valentine talked his way into the job ( nothing wrong with that) and that the Big Three owners thought that he could end the practice of the players drinking beer and eating fried chicken before important games.

Now a manager is not the key person in determining the fortunes of a baseball team. To state the obvious, a team excels when it is made up of superior players. Of course the manager, if he has personnel skills, can motivate the players, scare the livin’ daylights out of the players, bench the malcontents, and demand that ownership give him guys who want to win, not concentrate on when their checks are direct deposited in the bank.

So much remains to be seen about Bobby Valentine’s skills as a manager. He certainly will be colorful and always available for a juicy quote or a statement designed to create controversy. But what the Red Sox need is a manager who can lift a team that was supposed to win it all last year out of its funk and back into the game.

I for one am more interested in whether Big Papi is too old to swing the bat, or whether the pitching staff can win crucial games and or whether there is someone out their who can replace Jonathan Papelbon. Sure Bobby Valentine will make key decisions, many of which fans will never see because they are made in the privacy of the clubhouse. But let’s get real, Bobby Valentine is just the manger, not the savior of our beloved hometown team.

I have met and talked with Barney Frank a number of times over the years and can report that he is not a warm and fuzzy guy who believes that politicians should be back slappers anxious to make friends. No Barney is an arrogant, no nonesense, outspoken scold who does not suffer fools easily. He’s in Congress not to bring the pork home, but to drive the Republicans crazy with his speeches from the floor and his talk show indictments of the right-wing.

Thirty years in the House is a long time and Barney probably got sick and tired of the constant pitched battles and the endless gridlock. He is not alone in getting out. In the last four years scores of representatives and seantors from both parties have gotten out of town to make more money and not have people yell at them and even threaten them after they cast their vote. Being a  member of Congress is just not what it used to be.

If you are a liberal, Barney will be sorely missed in Washington. As the ranking minority member of the committee that overseas the banking industry, Frank was a constant thorn in the side of the big money guys and pushed vigorously for reforms that would rein in the excesses in an industry that brought us the great meltdown.

If you are a conservative, Frank’s departure is a welcome move since he has often been seen as the guy who caused the housing bubble and was blind to the excesses of Fannie Mae and  Freddie Mac. To the right -wing Frank symbolizes all that is wrong with big government.

But whether you adored or hated Barney Frank he was always entertaining because he could talk a dog off a meat truck and make his Republican opponents squirm in their seats. Frank is someone the liberals desperately need – a guy who is smart, cantankerous and fearless.

Thanks for the memories Barney, you made politics in Washington interesting.

But while the military move by the US and Australia may have caught the Chinese off guard, the real threats to the security of the western nations is not China’s building of new aircraft carriers and fighter jets, but rather its financial and trade policies that Washington policy-makers and politicians seem unwilling to address. Placing 2500 Marines in Darwin will do nothing to stop China’s one way economic relations with the United States and Europe.

With little but infrequent grumbling by the Obama administration and the Congress, China has maintained its practices of industrial espionage, undervaluing the yuan, setting up restrictive trade practices and insisting that companies hand over inside information on their products as a precondition to entry into the lucrative Chinese market. It is clear that both Washington and corporate America are not only so anxious to continue the cheap goods practices with the Chinese export sector, but also realize that any kind of trade, currency or intellectual property war would be a losing battle, especially since China holds so many of our debt obligations.

So far the Obama administration takes the position that talking quietly to the Chinese is the best way to bring about trade reform and compliance with established financial standards, but there doesn’t appear to be any specific actions that are being contemplated or implemented to even the playing field and get China to play by a new set or rules. Sending the Marines to Australia is not going to level the playing field.

Currently there is a lot of hoopla in the media and in some consumer sectors to Buy American and stick it to the Chinese by supporting our own industries and workers. But this campaign is just in its infancy and likely will only be patriotic talk. It is simply impossible to counteract cheap Chinese goods with more expensive US goods, that is unless the US government starts backing up its talk with action.

The 41st president is clearly aiming to respond to the message of the Tea Party and the conservative wing of the Republican Party in Congress, who have cornered the market on making an anti-government case to the American people. Not surprisingly Clinton goes after the Bush administration for spending on two wars, a tax cut for the rich and well born and a seniors prescription drug program with no revenue stream to pay for it.

Clinton, who is not shy about the success of the economy during his administration, takes a few swipes at Barack Obama for allowing the right-wing to control the national dialogue and for allowing the Republicans in Congress to push the administration around.

Clinton’s main advice is for Obama and the Democrats to fashion an electoral storyline that counteracts the Republicans. The storyline would go something like this: the Republicans have ignored if not destroyed the financial underpinnings of the middle class by their tax, subsidy, and policy positions. The Republicans are not the friends of the middle class and it is only the Democrats who want to restore the financial security and destiny of the hard working folks who are losing their job, their homes and their futures.

Clinton, not Obama, would be perfect for presenting this storyline, but he is permanently out of the presidential sweepstakes. He can only advise Obama and the  Democrats. The question is whether they will listen to him and develop a Clintonesque approach to taking on the Republicans in 2012.

Say what you will about Ol’Bill’s wandering eye and the fact that he didn’t inhale in college but the guy knows how to speak to the American people and get them to see the Democratic side of the political equation. The problem is that President Obama is not President Clinton and these are terrible times, not the go go days of the 1990s.  We will just have to see if Ol’Bill’s advice and vision make inroads at the White House and among Democrats running for Congress.

1. Politicians – from both parties- who put partisasn ideology and electability above the national good.

2. Big banks and bankers – they got bailed out but do the bare minimum to help small businesses or homeowners.

3. Hedge fund managers, derivative speculators and bond swap gurus who make the stongest case for regulation and in far too many cases incarceration.

4. Wasteful bureaucrats who don’t realize that they are working with our money.

5. Congress – need I say more. These guys and gals are the biggest impediment to national rejuvenation.

6. The Super Rich who clearly are not paying their fair share in taxes. Just because you have a lot of money and pay a lot of money in taxes doesn’t mean you are paying your fair share when compared to average Americans.

7. Corporate welfare kings and queens who love government only when they get a subsidy or tax break, occurences that happen all too frequently.

8. Presidential candidates – both parties – who really have no clue on how to create jobs and bring down unemployment.

9. The PIGS – Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain because they have expanded and extended the great recession by overspending and incompetent management.

10 US – better known as you and me, because we have been unwilling to make the necessary sacrifices to get this nation, our nation, back on track.

I feel a little bit better getting this off my chest and placing blame on the enemy, except that I am also on the list.  As the comic book character Pogo said,” I have seen the enemy and it is us.”