Brian Chesser, CPI - Metro Atlanta and North Georgia

There are several things I believe all citizens should do if they are able. 1) Vote, 2) Watch government, and 3) Give blood.

I have given blood every 3 months since I was 18 years old with breaks in giving only due to different Army overseas deployments here and there. My father is the one who showed me the importance of donating blood.

Blood donations are down across the country and the need is great. One day someone we know (or even ourselves) will need these blood donations. They are needed for our families, our friends, and our service members.

My challenge to ALL ActiveRain members to give blood sometime this week and then comment here only after you have donated.

Let us help our families, our communities and our country. Let us start the New Year with FULL blood banks.

PLEASE GIVE.

On February the 17th the nation is converting to digital television (DTV) and for most of us our lives will not change one bit. But, for millions of Americans who were a sleep at the wheel it will be National Read a Book Day.

The big " Why" question most people are asking is: Why do we need to switch to DTV?

Under the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the amount of spectrum given to television station owners was doubled. The policy rationale for this was to enable the stations to transition US consumers to DTV without interruption of analog broadcasts. some TV stations were able to broadcast in both analogy and digital. But after ten years of digital TV broadcasts, only a small number of US households have made the switch to DTV, delaying the return of valuable spectrums that could be used by emergency officials. 9/11 points out this problem in a big way!

The nations 1,600+ television stations have converted from analog technology to a DTV format. Digital television (DTV) is a new, more efficient technology for transmitting and receiving broadcast television signals. But DTV signals are not compatible with today's analog TV sets in most American homes.

The nation has been moving toward digital television for more than 10 years and if you are not ready, then get yourself a library card and read a good book.

Today I was probably asked that question 10 to 20 times (it felt more like 100 to 200 times).

In my first 30 years of my life I tried to make meaningful resolutions each and every New Year's Eve. I would try and try; but would fall short with in the first few months or so. Then a First Sergeant of mine said something to me that is very true "Chess" he said "When you are ready to change something in your life you will change it". That advice cost me 50 push-ups and after that I only made one more New Year's Resolution and it is the only one I have ever truly kept. The follow New Year's Eve (1990) I made the resolution to never make another resolution.

When you are ready you will do it - Thanks, First Sergeant!

My parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on the 20th of December at 4 p.m.

I can not begin to thank God enough for the blessing of being the son of these two wonderful and God fearing people.

In early 1958, my dad (to be) was walking along one Sunday night on a street in Knoxville, Tennessee in a heavy rain; when he was dragged into the front door of a church. My grandpa (to be) looked at he and said something about being smart enough to come in out of the rain and every dissent man should be in church on a Sunday night. Grandpa then invite my dad to sit with him and his family and the rest is a real love story at has inspired the people who know my parents.

GOD I thank you for your blessing on this couple, I truly thank you!!!!!

A side note: It has been rumored that, on that faithful night, my Grandpa had said he was go to marry off his oldest daughter to the next man that walked through the church door. Sometimes God wants us to act and not wait. Its a good thing because Grandpa was not good at sitting on his hands.

Well today is the day the Electoral College will vote for who will be the President and Vice President of the United States of America.

The Electoral College are representatives who we voted for this on November the 4th and they are gathering today to cast their votes.

The big question about the Electoral College is: Are they needed?

I can see the agreement against the Electoral College after all we here about it every four years. The reason I hear the most is that the College takes away our right to vote for the President we want. Well, the Constitution does not give us that right. It is possible for a candidate to lose the nationwide popular vote, yet be elected president by winning only in eleven key states.

Why would the Founding Fathers of our country in 1787 not want to give the citizens the right to directly choose their President? The Founding Fathers always wanted the states to have the power to pick the President. Under Article 2 and the 12th Amendment of the Constitution gives this power to the states through the Electoral College.

One article said:

To be brutally honest, the Founding Fathers did not give the American public of their day much credit for political awareness. Here are a few relevant quotes from the Constitutional Convention of 1787.

"A popular election in this case is radically vicious. The ignorance of the people would put it in the power of some one set of men dispersed through the Union, and acting in concert, to delude them into any appointment." -- Delegate Gerry, July 25, 1787

"The extent of the country renders it impossible, that the people can have the requisite capacity to judge of the respective pretensions of the candidates." -- Delegate Mason, July 17, 1787

"The people are uninformed, and would be misled by a few designing men." -- Delegate Gerry, July 19, 1787.

The Founding Fathers had seen the dangers of placing ultimate power into a single set of human hands. Accordingly, they feared that placing unlimited power to elect the president into the politically naive hands of the people could lead to a "tyranny of the majority." In response, they created the Electoral College system as a process to insulate the selection of the president from the whims of the public.