IMPO

Six people are confirmed dead and more than 200 injured when an Amtrak passenger train derailed near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Tuesday night. Many passengers have either crawled or been pulled from the wreckage though not all individuals are accounted for. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) arrived on the scene Wednesday morning to begin gathering information that may give clues to why the train derailed. Speculation of various explanations are being investigated including the speed of the train at the time of the crash and the condition of the tracks. The NTSB is hopeful that a swift conclusion could be made. Important to the investigation process are the derailed train’s black box, which is similar to the black boxes found on commercial airplanes, as well as the conductor of the train who survived with minor injuries. The data from the black box and the testimony of the conductor will provide valuable information on the ongoing investigation....

Much discussion and debate have surrounded the NBA MVP race as the 2014-2015 NBA season comes to a close. A number of potential candidates' names have been thrown into the mix with two clear favorites for the prestigious title. Stephen Curry and James Harden have made their mark on the NBA and on the respective teams this season in different ways leading to a necessary discussion on the definition of "Most Valuable Player". To break down the words in their literal context provides one definition (the player who means the most to the team and its outcome) whereas the combination of the words takes a separate connotation (the best player in the sport). To explain this a bit more, I refer back to the 2011 NFL season when Aaron Rodgers won the MVP award. As the best player on the field, the award was valid though an eye test had a player who did not play a single game in the MVP talks. Peyton Manning went through neck surgery prior to the 2011 NFL season keeping him out. ...

Marco Rubio (R-FL) is a name that over the past few years or so has grown in notoriety faster than many others. Though he did not run for President in 2012, his voice was heard and his backing of Mitt Romney did have an effect on the electorate. Has his name reached the level necessary for his own Presidential Campaign? Maybe not, but there are some easy and basic reasons that he has a chance to win the Republican nomination as his announcement yesterday officially kicked off his campaign. He is Young When President Obama ran for President in 2008 he was 47 years old going against one of the old men of Congress, John McCain. Though age may not have been the only factor, Obama's youthfulness appealed to young voters. It made him look like a future seeking individual since he was closer to their own generation. This is what Marco Rubio will have going for him this coming election. At the age of 43, Rubio would rank in age with John F. Kennedy and Theodore Roosevelt, two presidents...

Though I do not recall where I saw the headline but running up to Selection Sunday, known as the commencement of the NCAA Tournament, one statement read “College Basketball: The One-Month Sport”. Is Selection Sunday the beginning of the tournament or has it become the beginning of the college basketball season? The college basketball season, according to its schedule, officially began in mid-November though it is doubtful that spectators and fans were rushing to their TVs to watch Duke demolish the Presbyterian team by nearly 70 points. Call me crazy but I am pretty sure most people could have called that win. In fact, throughout all of November, the Duke Blue Devils with their notable fanbase (the Cameron Crazies) only face one top-25 team. The same goes for the month of December. Over the same span of time, the University of Kentucky Wildcats only faced three teams that ended the season in the top-25. In fact, for Kentucky, it was not until Dec. 20 against the UCLA Bruins that t...

Now I am no expert on nuclear weapons nor am I an expert on fortune telling but there is a lot of conversation going on about Iran and their potential nuclear deal with the US-led P5+1. The basic idea of the plan is to freeze Iran in its progression toward nuclear goals in return for lighter sanctions. The US and its allies hope that this will have a long term, even permanent, effect in hoping that Iran will abandon its current designs. The confounding part is that with a permanent objective, the deal would expire in merely 10 years then allowing Iran to continue as it wishes after that. President Obama has defended the plan in stating that if the measures of the deal are followed, then the US and its allies would know about any nuclear weapon-building at least a year before completion providing ample time for preparation and retaliation. I admit that this does sound good for the most part. It would be my hope that Iran would see that it is unnecessary in our interconnected wo...

Democrats in the United States have been jumping on the Hilary Clinton bandwagon seemingly since Obama's re-election and have positioned her as the current front runner for the Democratic ticket for the 2016 Presidential elections. It seems that now the Republicans have found their candidate as well. In a speech to both houses of the US Congress, Benjamin Netanyahu aroused anthems of applause from the right side of the aisle as Republicans whooped and hollered in a way reminiscent of a State of the Union address. With dogmatic rhetoric, Netanyahu outlined the sins of Iran against the Jewish state and emphasized the "special relationship" Israel has with the United States. In first stating that the "enemy of your enemy is truly your enemy," a twist on a common cliche, Bibi employed verbal extremism in stating that the greatest fear of the world is the "marriage of militant Islam with nuclear weapons." It is interesting to note, however, that some th...

It was 22 years ago in 1992 when a championship trophy was last hoisted by a Washington DC big-4 sports team. According to one DC sports figure, that is about to change. ESPN and other news sources are reporting that Bryce Harper’s media interview preceding a spring training practice exuded confidence as he stated his intentions to win the World Series this year. For what it is worth, every player has championship aspirations for their team whether their team is a legitimate contender or not. Therein is the question: Are the Washington Nationals the favorites to win the 2015 World Series? Are they even contenders? After a disappointing NLDS against the eventual World Series Champion San Francisco Giants, it is natural that the Nationals have high hopes for the new season. Within their own division, the cards are clearly in their favor. The random decline of the Phillies and the Braves highlighted by clubhouse controversy and baffling trade decisions eliminate them from the con...

To this point, this blog was trying to produce policy briefs (basic ones) to try to inform the reading population (all 10 of you) of more abstract and unknown news throughout the world. Well, this is about to change. I think I am going to try something else, something new.  I have an opinion and I want to share it. I am still going to base my writings on news though not specifically on world political news. There may be some sports or entertainment included along with more newsy topics. I just want to make this fun for me to write and more entertaining for you to read. Maybe more than 10 of you will actually read this and maybe I will be able to post more often. Again, if this does end up being only for me, then it is what it is and I am fine with that but mainly because I will find a way to enjoy what I am doing. I just thought I ought to explain my shift away from non-biased policy to opinions of a broader vision of what news is. To me there is no such thing as only one direction...