Un "Brilliant Edison Lee" original

The Brilliant Mind of Edison Lee is a comic strip created by John Hambrock. It debuted November 12, 2006. While this strip is about a ten-year-old boy genius, Edison Lee, it also has aspects of an editorial cartoon since Edison constantly talks about the US political, and economic situation. In March 2010, the strip was nominated for the National Cartoonists Society's division award in the category Newspaper Comic Strip.

Budget Director Peter Orszag is Leaving Obama Administration

President Obama is being bombarded with a never-ending list of challenges and issues. Today, we learn that his Budget Director Peter Orszag is resigning.

In the midst of fielding comments about Gen. Stanley McChrystal's insubordinate comments, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Orszag will be leaving the administration next month.

"It's an enormous task," Gibbs said of the budget director. "Peter has been instrumental in, for instance, this year's plan to freeze non-security discretionary spending for three years and has decided to leave before we get into the creation of the next budget. He's been here for two budgets."

Orszag was the 37th person to serve as the director of the Office of Management and Budget. Most of his predecessors were never heard from again on a national level. However, some left this position to go onto to higher public service.

• Rob Portman (OMB, 2006-2007) is now running for the US Senate in my state of Ohio.
• Mitch Daniels (OMB, 2001-2003) left the office and successfully ran to become governor of Indiana.
• Franklin Raines (OMB, 1996-1998) is the only African American to serve in this office. He went on to serve as CEO of Fannie Mae during a time of great distress for that company.
• Leon Panetta (OMB, 1993-1994) is currently serving as Obama's CIA director.

The administration is looking at a number of "talented candidates" to replace Orszag. That new budget director's challenges will include billions and trillions or projected budget deficits and federal debt.

Sen. Joe Lieberman, ID-Conn., praised Orszag, and noted that his successor "will face tremendous challenges in righting our long-term fiscal imbalance and starting to close our enormous gaps in the debt and deficit. I look forward to working with whoever that Director is to tackle these historic problems facing our country."

President Obama is accepting Orszag's resignation today. It is likely that he will accept another resignation tomorrow from Gen. Stanley McChrystal.

Our president needs our prayers as he handles the nation's business.

Taser Death: Daniel Sylvester (Crescent City, CA)

We are sad to report another taser-related killing in America. This time it happened in Crescent City, CA on June 22, 2010. Two unidentified Del Norte County sheriff's deputies shot 35-year old Daniel Sylvester with their taser. Sylvester was handcuffed and had trouble breathing. Sylvester was given CPR at the scene and in the emergency room at Sutter Coast Hospital, but he could not be revived. Sylvester was pronounced dead by emergency room staff.

The Sheriff's office came to Sylvester's home as a result of a 911 call that described him as a man with a history of psychological problems who was “out of control”. The reporting party said that he or she and the other residents were scared and had left.

Sylvester's mother tells a different story [SOURCE].

Elaine Sylvester -- who said she witnessed Daniel Sylvester's exchange with deputies -- said the accounts by Del Norte Sheriff's Office officials in the local paper are not at all what she saw.

Elaine Sylvester says that Daniel Sylvester had mental health problems and that his medication had recently been changed. On June 22, he was acting frustrated, she said, and began yelling. Elaine Sylvester said that she and others in the house left, and that she tried to reach mental health workers, but the department was not open at 6:30 a.m.

Elaine said she called 911 and told the dispatcher that she was concerned for Daniel's well-being, but that he was not a threat to anyone else.

”I wasn't at any time afraid he was going to hurt me,” Elaine Sylvester said. “I just wanted someone to calm him down.”

Elaine Sylvester said she met the responding officers down the street and reiterated the message, and said there was no one else in the home. When the deputies got to the house, Daniel Sylvester was in the front yard near the door, she said. When officers tried to talk with him, Elaine Sylvester said, her son said they were scaring him and to go away. He backed into the house and tried to close the door, Elaine Sylvester said, and the officers followed him inside, where they began to taser him.

For hours she didn't know whether her son was dead or alive, she said.

It seems that the police used poor judgement. The young man was not armed. He was not in attack mode ... he seems to have been retreating back to his home. Was it really necessary for this pre-judicial electrocution by the unidentified police officers?

Please let our blog know if you have any additional insights or information to share on this taser-related death.