Remember the song, "Happy Days Are Here Again," it was the campaign song for FDR back in the 1930s and for some reason it resonates today over 70 years later...
So long sad times
Go long bad times
We are rid of you at last
Howdy gay times
Cloudy gray times
You are now a thing of the past
Happy days are here again
The skies above are clear again
So let's sing a song of cheer again
Happy days are here again
Altogether shout it now
There's no one
Who can doubt it now
So let's tell the world about it nowHappy days are here again
Your cares and troubles are gone
There'll be no more from now on
From now on ...Happy days are here again
The skies above are clear again
So, Let's sing a song of cheer again
Happy timesHappy nights
Happy daysAre here again!
**Heroes
Michelle Malia and Sasha Obama
Joe, Jill and the Biden Clan
David Axelrod and Plouffe
The Netroots, yes Kossacks and other active bloggers
The 50 + million Americans who agreed with me and supported this candidate
American Democracy
It's good to say: President Obama...say it....proud and loud!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Thursday, October 16, 2008
The making of the next POTUS...
I have a cold and I have been trying to focus more on writing, less on the blogosphere; however, I must write an observation for if I lay in bed and do nothing I will go mad!
Last night, was the final of all debates. That part is finally over! Now we must remind ourselves that folks need to make it to the polls to vote for the new POTUS.
It's been a long time. From the cold day in Illinois in February 2007, to now with the election almost two weeks away. Time flies. Yet maturity is part of time and if you followed Barack Obama from February of last year to today you will note the level of maturity that shaped Barack Obama, no longer the junior Senator from Illinois, through the vigor of debate, discussion and discourse for the past two years Barack Obama is READY to be the President of the United States.
It's not over, so there is still work to do. We must vote! But as we do so we need to keep in mind that more independent and even Republican leaning newspapers are endorsing Obama. Obama is at least 10 points ahead in every poll and if you are worried about the Bradley effect (subtract 4) but let me put into your head the Obama effect: men and women who say that they will vote for McPlain, yet in the privacy of the booth, vote Obama. Most economists, foriegn policy experts and global leaders have endorsed Obama while Republicans are jumping off the McCain/Palin train by the numbers for they see it crashing ahead. It looks good, but we cannot sit comfortably until Wednesday Nov. 5 2008 (I already have the day off).
As I reflect back, and think about how folks can support McCain and Palin, I decided to think about why I couldn't vote for that ticket. I think the real problem with the ticket is twofold:
1) There has not been a concrete plan proposed by the Republicans, and when there is one it does not stay on the table for a long period of time. John McCain has tried and said everything, so much so he has touted the Socialist line of government helping out Wall/Main Streets all the while proposing Republican initiatives that give back to the rich people (i.e. keeping Bush's tax cuts and cutting capital gains taxes when there is only a few companies making gains ???). Those two are polar opposites, thus impossible to legislate. So stick to one, and leave it there OR be seen as erratic....sounds familiar.
2) Sarah Palin: Last night John McCain stated that he repudiated all the hateful things said about Barack during Mc/Plain rallies. BUT WAIT! HE HAS YET TO REPUDIATE WHAT HIS OWN RUNNING MATE STARTED, YOU KNOW, THE WHOLE "PALLING AROUND WITH TERRORIST" COMMENT. He ignored it when asked last night and he looked foolish for doing so. Palin is a cancer on the McCain ticket--her know-nothing populism is exactly what we DON'T need. For the "know-nothing" party check out Wikipedia, for that is what party i think she is...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Know_nothing_party
Nevertheless, we need people who know what they are talking about, and if McCain isn't quite sure, how can we be sure that Palin is.
Finally, and less subtly but it needs to be pointed out!
Last night, John McCain reminded women their place in American society. In another out of touch moment that will not be addressed in the mainstream media, McCain stated that he was categorically against Roe v. Wade even if the mother's health is at risk. YES HE DID. Look at the tape, he puts air quotes when he says "health" and states that is a dubious claim made by pro-abortion proponents. Woman are baby making machines in the eyes of the Republican candidate. Holy 1885! Holy 1919! Holy 1950s! Holy...
1) I don't know anyone (as suggested by Barack last night) that is pro-abortion. I do not know anyone going up to people saying, "pregnant? get an abortion!" No, what I do see is folks having a tough decision on whether or not to keep a child. A private decision that has nothing to do with the government. It is about choice NOT PRO.
2) This "decision" was granted to Sarah Palin's daughter, yet it should not be a choice for the rest of America? Remember, the campaign stated that the Palin's were "proud of their daughter's decision"...DECISION implies CHOICE.
3) To strip women's right of control over OUR bodies is problematic on so many levels but to go out and state that women should not have the decision or choice, is abominable! It shows how McCain, himself, is a man from another era, IT PROVES HE DOES NOT HAVE A CLUE!
Overturning Roe v. Wade is a disastrous idea, and most Americans do not want to see it overturned, they would rather have more sex education and more information out there to encourage women to keep their babies--as opposed to misinformation and women going to butchers to abort a baby in a backstreet alley and in unsanitary conditions. No one is pro-abortion; we are just pro-choice and it should be women who shape this discourse (that's why I did not rant on Palin's ridiculousness on the issue)--not men!
Agency=decision=control=self
The same decision made by the Vice Presidential nominee's underage and unwed daughter, should be granted to all women, even those of age and married.
Congrats Bar, you handled it well! Last night showed, once again, what dangers lie behind a McCain/Palin administration....
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Undeniable--"that one" won!
It's undeniable, this time. Obama won the debate. What a surprise ;)
There was a sense of something in the air in Nashville tonight. Something more than just a debate.
It was a settling sense of "the real." A sense that in our future, we are going to have a leader in the White House who will reshape the social climate of America, help quell the tensions of the unstable global economy, be a leader on tough issues by studying them, consulting with all sides, which will consequently lead to bridging the divisions that are unhealthy for any Democracy. Democracy in America! This sense is grounded in aplomb, class, intelligence, patience and Presidential.
President Obama, for all the research seems to point to AND over 95% of the world agrees, would restore confidence in America, what it stands for and how it should lead in the future. He will bring a breath of fresh air into the West Wing--education is a bonus--but he brings so much more to the table. One only needs to watch the debate to see, just by appearance, Barack Obama is a lobbyist not for greedy corporations who have robbed the pocket of the masses to pad the pocket of the richest few; but a lobbyist for the common person, like me, like you, like most Americans in this land.
Obama exudes calm, when rocky waters flow. Obama's presence is pure class--respectful, thoughtful and balanced. He remains grounded in his beliefs, ideas and initiatives that will bring America out of a Bush/Cheney induced slumber and age of apathy. In essence we are asking this man to take the world on his shoulders and point us all toward the right direction headed for the future.
Obama very well may be Atlas, but unlike the capitalist objectivists (yes, my beloved Randians) who led this economy into a ditch suggest he should do, he will not--SHRUG. He will lead....
In other words, "that one," you know....HIM...has not only my support but the support of the majority people in this WORLD! (Every country polled has supported Obama, the closest McCain got was in South Africa 61% Obama 26% McCain--hmmmm )
"That one" and "Whats-its-name" 08
There was a sense of something in the air in Nashville tonight. Something more than just a debate.
It was a settling sense of "the real." A sense that in our future, we are going to have a leader in the White House who will reshape the social climate of America, help quell the tensions of the unstable global economy, be a leader on tough issues by studying them, consulting with all sides, which will consequently lead to bridging the divisions that are unhealthy for any Democracy. Democracy in America! This sense is grounded in aplomb, class, intelligence, patience and Presidential.
President Obama, for all the research seems to point to AND over 95% of the world agrees, would restore confidence in America, what it stands for and how it should lead in the future. He will bring a breath of fresh air into the West Wing--education is a bonus--but he brings so much more to the table. One only needs to watch the debate to see, just by appearance, Barack Obama is a lobbyist not for greedy corporations who have robbed the pocket of the masses to pad the pocket of the richest few; but a lobbyist for the common person, like me, like you, like most Americans in this land.
Obama exudes calm, when rocky waters flow. Obama's presence is pure class--respectful, thoughtful and balanced. He remains grounded in his beliefs, ideas and initiatives that will bring America out of a Bush/Cheney induced slumber and age of apathy. In essence we are asking this man to take the world on his shoulders and point us all toward the right direction headed for the future.
Obama very well may be Atlas, but unlike the capitalist objectivists (yes, my beloved Randians) who led this economy into a ditch suggest he should do, he will not--SHRUG. He will lead....
In other words, "that one," you know....HIM...has not only my support but the support of the majority people in this WORLD! (Every country polled has supported Obama, the closest McCain got was in South Africa 61% Obama 26% McCain--hmmmm )
"That one" and "Whats-its-name" 08
A Positive Message for Once: The Nice Guy at the Airport
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/5/183340/309/352/621029
From all that I read on the web, this is a true story and has been carried throughout Europe, via press. However, it is rarely reported here in the states.
My short:
A woman with no money goes to the airport only to find out she had to pay 100 dollars to have her baggage shipped with her. The woman was stressed and despaired, for she had no one else to turn to and she was to fly to meet her husband in Norway.
A young man walks by and hands her the hundred dollars needed to pay for the luggage. She profusely thanked the man and promised she would pay him back. She asked for his name and address so she could send the money from Norway. His name:
Barack Obama
This happened in 1988, right before Obama attended Harvard Law, and while he was working with the urban poor in Chicago. He himself, did not have much then AND 100 dollars in 1988 is probably like $500 in today's economy!
Finally, the anti-smear, a nice guy!
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/5/183340/309/352/621029
From all that I read on the web, this is a true story and has been carried throughout Europe, via press. However, it is rarely reported here in the states.
My short:
A woman with no money goes to the airport only to find out she had to pay 100 dollars to have her baggage shipped with her. The woman was stressed and despaired, for she had no one else to turn to and she was to fly to meet her husband in Norway.
A young man walks by and hands her the hundred dollars needed to pay for the luggage. She profusely thanked the man and promised she would pay him back. She asked for his name and address so she could send the money from Norway. His name:
Barack Obama
This happened in 1988, right before Obama attended Harvard Law, and while he was working with the urban poor in Chicago. He himself, did not have much then AND 100 dollars in 1988 is probably like $500 in today's economy!
Finally, the anti-smear, a nice guy!
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/5/183340/309/352/621029
Monday, October 6, 2008
~~~~Turn back the clock, turn on the lava lamp and let's go back for a GROOVY ride in history~~~~~
Nearly 40 years before a young bright eyed girl from New Jersey stepped on the "BLOCK M" in the Diag after she took her last final exam her first semester at The University of Michigan, a privileged young man from affluent Chicago took the same journey, under similar circumstances, yet in a totally different era.
In the Fall of 1992, I had just turned 18 years old. I was as apathetic as most children of baby boomers, searching for an identity while listening to Pearl Jam's "Black" on auto play on my brand new Maize and Blue Sony Discman (yeah, I had it all)! Luckily, for the "who gives a shit" and "me me me" attitude that was so characteristic of my X generation, my parents were fortunate enough to pour money and go into debt in order for me to have the privilege of an elite education. It was that year, and within my own Michigan experience, I became politicized.
Bill Clinton came to A2 that Fall. I was following some friends to the gallery near the Bell Tower in front of Horace Rackham, and was given a sign and pushed to the back of the growing mob. Understanding that I was merely a Freshman, yet knowing that "I was different," I waited, smoked a few cigarettes and stood accepting whatever was yet to come. I had lost my friends, which seems somewhat like a misnomer for I cannot remember who these friends were and I am sure I have lost touch in the 16 years since. I looked at my sign, was past a button and the roar began.
That day I "Rocked the Vote" and registered to become a habitual voter and (even still) continual supporter of former President William Jefferson Clinton. I have voted in every election since.
In 1964, William "Bill" Ayers, now infamous for the "domestic terrorist" rhetoric of the McCain/Palin folks, walked into the same elite institution that I would attend nearly 600 hundred miles and 28 years later. He came from the Midwest, so he probably had a head start on me with the whole Midwest "culture shock" thing, for I was a lot more New Jersey in 1992 than I purport to be in 2008. Nevertheless, young Ayers was politicized by his university environment in beautiful Southeast Michigan as well.
In the early 1960s, Ann Arbor, in conjunction with students and faculty, became a hotbed for antiwar and pro-civil rights activity. As many know, my undergraduate school founded many radical student organizations, most famously SDS--Students for Democratic Society. These (mostly white elite) students, and the movement that would sweep over elite and not-elite campuses throughout the decade, had awoken from a slumber produced by a myth of social homogeneity and Cold War induced conformity. Students, in A2 and elsewhere, were awaken by the sounds of faculty members from the New Left (some not much older than their students), teachers who thought outside the box of the conformist climate and risked the Scarlet "C" of Communist to interject oppositional thought into the young naive mind of "Greatest Generation" postwar youth. The Boomers.
A little known fact in circles outside of my academic ones, for I hang in many, is that Michigan was the first school to lead a protest against the escalation in Vietnam. Well before violent protests would rage on and off campus throughout the United States, yet shortly after Lyndon Baines Johnson raised the troops in Vietnam to over 300,000, daring university faculty, along with their virulent Wolverine student cohorts hosted the first teach-in which, in 1965, would spark a movement that continued for years from Columbia in New York to the University of Washington in Seattle. Since the Board of Regents and the University of Michigan administration would not let faculty teach about the implications of troop escalation or "surge" during classroom hours (oh boy what a different pedagogical climate it was), the teachers and students held special classes that began early in the evening and continued throughout the evening into the morning March 24-25 1965. It inspired the many students and future activists who stayed awake to learn about the Southeast Asian region that many had not known existed before the large escalation earlier that year.
This was the environment of a young sophomore Bill Ayers. As his education continued, protests became more prevalent, the war escalated into a quagmire and a very poorly executed foreign policy undercut many gains that were made on the social landscape during the era, specifically the dismantling of Jim Crow by the Civil Righters and the same dammed government that knotted the tangled web known as the Vietnam War. By 1968, MLK, the man of peace, and RFK, the candidate of peace, were brutally murdered in the media spotlight. The incumbent LBJ, who could have ran again, had to reject his party's nomination in disgrace thus inaugurating the era of the Silent Majority, the enigma of Richard Nixon, and the reprieve of the Cold War/ say nothing social and political climate of the mainstream.
By that time, some of the educated youth, including 21 year old Ayers and his soon to be wife Bernadine Dohrn decided they could not support a system that continued an abominable war which by that time had led to widespread genocide in the region, specifically in Cambodia when the US under Nixon decided to bomb that nation which ignited the terroristic Pol Pot regime, AND a system that would send in National Guardsmen to shoot at protesting students on the campus of Kent State University, prompting Neil Young to sing "...four dead in O-H-I-O."
Ayers, Dohrn and others decided to go underground. They were to make a statement by disrupting the system from within and attempt to unleash a campaign of attacks as a testament of protest that was fostered by years of angst and voicelessness, empowered by beliefs in their country and the rejection of the wayward path it was following. With deplorable tactics, more unsuccessful than successful, they attempted to uproot a system that in their eyes (and many others who were not as extreme) was undermining persons of color throughout the world in the name of stopping the spread of communism in Third World countries. Meanwhile, many others felt they were living in an America that was very much like a Third World country: dictated to and poor.
Dohrn and Ayers' Weather Underground founded in the late 1960s would dissolve by 1977. Members, disillusioned, fell into doldrum disco sounds of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive."
Whether or not the Weathermen and women were successful is up to debate (my advisor wrote a fantastic book on the subject) yet what is known is that many of its members have become valuable members of their societies and turned their passion for equality inward and help organize communities and/or use their education to teach and assist others, mostly those who are not as privilege as them (or myself) to go to an elite institution like The University of Michigan. Bill Ayers would end up doing both.
In the late 1990s, Ayers held an event for a young community organizing lawyer who was making inroads in the urban poor community in troubled Chicago. It was a coffee function to gain donations for the young 30-something Barack Obama and his run for the Illinois Senate. At that time, young Obama did not know about Ayers' history as the co-founder of the Weather Underground nor what the implications of meeting Ayers would bring him many years later in his run for the most powerful government position in the world. Reasons could range from Obama was 2 when Ayers traveled to Ann Arbor (by the time Ayers and Obama met, even I had graduated Michigan) from the fact that when Obama got involved in Chicago community organizing and politics, the Weather Underground as a movement was filed in the boxes of the past, it's relevance was as it's name implied.
In short, Obama-Ayers "palling" around is pale-in comparison to some actual palling around with nefarious figures that range from Charles Keating and racist John K. Singlaub to the secessionist organization the "first Dude" belonged to until 2002 and the witch hunting/exorcising preacher who blessed the Governor this summer. In essence, the real pals of John McCain and Sarah Palin have not been too compliant and friendly to the American government and system, similar to if not worse than, William Ayers from 1968-1977; 40 to 30 years ago.
For the sake of further contextualization, Bill Ayers entered Michigan 10 years before I was born. I graduated Michigan twenty years after the Weathermen ceased to exist. Barack Obama was eight years old when the organizations faded into the past...
The point, the historical distance is too great for this weak blow to stick, but to point out the Obama-Ayers meager connection as blatantly as Sarah Palin has done the past few days shows how low the Republicans are willing to go; especially on a day when the stock market crashed (again) to it's lowest number in over 4 years.
But this is about history. And going back to the era I became politicized in the early 1990s, that fall day shortly after my 18th birthday, I recognize that I did not have a similar sense of immediacy and frustration in my country's worldview and viewed world that Ayers and his colleagues had thirty years prior. My alma-mater has not changed. It still politicizes it's youth. The times were just different. Yet, I share this story to suggest that even I am tangentially tied to Bill Ayers, by Wolverine and activist blood, and if you call that "palling around" so be it.
But it does make me wonder what shaking some one's hand would imply.
Nonetheless, this is an attempt to point to how easy we all can be connected by history; however, six degrees of Kevin Bacon or Dick Cheney really doesn't matter in the end. It is the individuals actions of the past that can come back to haunt us personally, for we cannot carry the past of each person we meet when we barely can handle our own personal past. What's fair game for McCain, should be fair game for us all, and with this economy, the Keating 5 connection sticks much better to a former radical who lives nearby...
In the Fall of 1992, I had just turned 18 years old. I was as apathetic as most children of baby boomers, searching for an identity while listening to Pearl Jam's "Black" on auto play on my brand new Maize and Blue Sony Discman (yeah, I had it all)! Luckily, for the "who gives a shit" and "me me me" attitude that was so characteristic of my X generation, my parents were fortunate enough to pour money and go into debt in order for me to have the privilege of an elite education. It was that year, and within my own Michigan experience, I became politicized.
Bill Clinton came to A2 that Fall. I was following some friends to the gallery near the Bell Tower in front of Horace Rackham, and was given a sign and pushed to the back of the growing mob. Understanding that I was merely a Freshman, yet knowing that "I was different," I waited, smoked a few cigarettes and stood accepting whatever was yet to come. I had lost my friends, which seems somewhat like a misnomer for I cannot remember who these friends were and I am sure I have lost touch in the 16 years since. I looked at my sign, was past a button and the roar began.
That day I "Rocked the Vote" and registered to become a habitual voter and (even still) continual supporter of former President William Jefferson Clinton. I have voted in every election since.
In 1964, William "Bill" Ayers, now infamous for the "domestic terrorist" rhetoric of the McCain/Palin folks, walked into the same elite institution that I would attend nearly 600 hundred miles and 28 years later. He came from the Midwest, so he probably had a head start on me with the whole Midwest "culture shock" thing, for I was a lot more New Jersey in 1992 than I purport to be in 2008. Nevertheless, young Ayers was politicized by his university environment in beautiful Southeast Michigan as well.
In the early 1960s, Ann Arbor, in conjunction with students and faculty, became a hotbed for antiwar and pro-civil rights activity. As many know, my undergraduate school founded many radical student organizations, most famously SDS--Students for Democratic Society. These (mostly white elite) students, and the movement that would sweep over elite and not-elite campuses throughout the decade, had awoken from a slumber produced by a myth of social homogeneity and Cold War induced conformity. Students, in A2 and elsewhere, were awaken by the sounds of faculty members from the New Left (some not much older than their students), teachers who thought outside the box of the conformist climate and risked the Scarlet "C" of Communist to interject oppositional thought into the young naive mind of "Greatest Generation" postwar youth. The Boomers.
A little known fact in circles outside of my academic ones, for I hang in many, is that Michigan was the first school to lead a protest against the escalation in Vietnam. Well before violent protests would rage on and off campus throughout the United States, yet shortly after Lyndon Baines Johnson raised the troops in Vietnam to over 300,000, daring university faculty, along with their virulent Wolverine student cohorts hosted the first teach-in which, in 1965, would spark a movement that continued for years from Columbia in New York to the University of Washington in Seattle. Since the Board of Regents and the University of Michigan administration would not let faculty teach about the implications of troop escalation or "surge" during classroom hours (oh boy what a different pedagogical climate it was), the teachers and students held special classes that began early in the evening and continued throughout the evening into the morning March 24-25 1965. It inspired the many students and future activists who stayed awake to learn about the Southeast Asian region that many had not known existed before the large escalation earlier that year.
This was the environment of a young sophomore Bill Ayers. As his education continued, protests became more prevalent, the war escalated into a quagmire and a very poorly executed foreign policy undercut many gains that were made on the social landscape during the era, specifically the dismantling of Jim Crow by the Civil Righters and the same dammed government that knotted the tangled web known as the Vietnam War. By 1968, MLK, the man of peace, and RFK, the candidate of peace, were brutally murdered in the media spotlight. The incumbent LBJ, who could have ran again, had to reject his party's nomination in disgrace thus inaugurating the era of the Silent Majority, the enigma of Richard Nixon, and the reprieve of the Cold War/ say nothing social and political climate of the mainstream.
By that time, some of the educated youth, including 21 year old Ayers and his soon to be wife Bernadine Dohrn decided they could not support a system that continued an abominable war which by that time had led to widespread genocide in the region, specifically in Cambodia when the US under Nixon decided to bomb that nation which ignited the terroristic Pol Pot regime, AND a system that would send in National Guardsmen to shoot at protesting students on the campus of Kent State University, prompting Neil Young to sing "...four dead in O-H-I-O."
Ayers, Dohrn and others decided to go underground. They were to make a statement by disrupting the system from within and attempt to unleash a campaign of attacks as a testament of protest that was fostered by years of angst and voicelessness, empowered by beliefs in their country and the rejection of the wayward path it was following. With deplorable tactics, more unsuccessful than successful, they attempted to uproot a system that in their eyes (and many others who were not as extreme) was undermining persons of color throughout the world in the name of stopping the spread of communism in Third World countries. Meanwhile, many others felt they were living in an America that was very much like a Third World country: dictated to and poor.
Dohrn and Ayers' Weather Underground founded in the late 1960s would dissolve by 1977. Members, disillusioned, fell into doldrum disco sounds of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive."
Whether or not the Weathermen and women were successful is up to debate (my advisor wrote a fantastic book on the subject) yet what is known is that many of its members have become valuable members of their societies and turned their passion for equality inward and help organize communities and/or use their education to teach and assist others, mostly those who are not as privilege as them (or myself) to go to an elite institution like The University of Michigan. Bill Ayers would end up doing both.
In the late 1990s, Ayers held an event for a young community organizing lawyer who was making inroads in the urban poor community in troubled Chicago. It was a coffee function to gain donations for the young 30-something Barack Obama and his run for the Illinois Senate. At that time, young Obama did not know about Ayers' history as the co-founder of the Weather Underground nor what the implications of meeting Ayers would bring him many years later in his run for the most powerful government position in the world. Reasons could range from Obama was 2 when Ayers traveled to Ann Arbor (by the time Ayers and Obama met, even I had graduated Michigan) from the fact that when Obama got involved in Chicago community organizing and politics, the Weather Underground as a movement was filed in the boxes of the past, it's relevance was as it's name implied.
In short, Obama-Ayers "palling" around is pale-in comparison to some actual palling around with nefarious figures that range from Charles Keating and racist John K. Singlaub to the secessionist organization the "first Dude" belonged to until 2002 and the witch hunting/exorcising preacher who blessed the Governor this summer. In essence, the real pals of John McCain and Sarah Palin have not been too compliant and friendly to the American government and system, similar to if not worse than, William Ayers from 1968-1977; 40 to 30 years ago.
For the sake of further contextualization, Bill Ayers entered Michigan 10 years before I was born. I graduated Michigan twenty years after the Weathermen ceased to exist. Barack Obama was eight years old when the organizations faded into the past...
The point, the historical distance is too great for this weak blow to stick, but to point out the Obama-Ayers meager connection as blatantly as Sarah Palin has done the past few days shows how low the Republicans are willing to go; especially on a day when the stock market crashed (again) to it's lowest number in over 4 years.
But this is about history. And going back to the era I became politicized in the early 1990s, that fall day shortly after my 18th birthday, I recognize that I did not have a similar sense of immediacy and frustration in my country's worldview and viewed world that Ayers and his colleagues had thirty years prior. My alma-mater has not changed. It still politicizes it's youth. The times were just different. Yet, I share this story to suggest that even I am tangentially tied to Bill Ayers, by Wolverine and activist blood, and if you call that "palling around" so be it.
But it does make me wonder what shaking some one's hand would imply.
Nonetheless, this is an attempt to point to how easy we all can be connected by history; however, six degrees of Kevin Bacon or Dick Cheney really doesn't matter in the end. It is the individuals actions of the past that can come back to haunt us personally, for we cannot carry the past of each person we meet when we barely can handle our own personal past. What's fair game for McCain, should be fair game for us all, and with this economy, the Keating 5 connection sticks much better to a former radical who lives nearby...
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Happy Monday!
Thanks to openthread from Daily Kos, I had to share because it seemed so true.
You can find Obama/Biden's October Surprise at:
http://www.keatingeconomics.com/
And Sarah, thanks for bringing up Obama's ties to a radical from the 1960s in Nevada (normally a safe "red" state) on Sunday. Yeah, Bill Ayers a madman student radical; so were some of my family members, mentors and colleagues...their in the 60s now, ya know aandd, um, they don't live in the past and have moved on. That's so like BEFORE I WAS BORN!
The irony here, Madame Govenour, you stated the other night, and I quote, "We can't look to the past to determine our future"
OKAY that's not a direct quote but it was something I think you tried to say between a doggone it and **wink ** So, by breaking open the can of the past and "guilt by association" tactic, let's go there:
We could start with your own husband's association with the Alaskan Succession Party (AP). Then we could discuss your mission from God and the demons and witches that were lifted from your shoulders by a pastor at your church earlier this year (Viral, MSNBC). What about the 17,000 dollars you had your tax payers pay for you to stay at home? Or even, what about the lie you told the other night about divestment in Sudan; you said you supported a plan for Alaska to stop sending millions to the genocidal Sudanese government on Thursday, HOWEVER, you stopped the bi-partisan bill in the Alaskan house -- YOU TAKE OWNERSHIP OF ISSUES BROUGHT TO YOUR TABLE THAT YOU YOURSELF SQUASH -- that in OUR America is LYING DURING A DEBATE! (ABC news)
Nevertheless, how 'bout your co-Maverick: the affair (yes, while McCain was married) with a female lobbyist is cited as foreign policy experience. Maverick McCain, you met your current wife, while married, at a bar and left your wife for her (Washington Post). You have been linked to criminal lobbyists throughout your career, yet you want to kill earmarks that make sure our bridges and tunnels are safe (McCain). You have supported President Bush between 80-90% of the time which is pretty much ALL THE TIME (except in campaign finance reform and with folks losing jobs and homes, what common "Jan Kegger" gives a frack.) And, oh yes, the um dagnabit K-E-A-T-I-N-G F-I-V-E scandal that made you a fortune and cost the American people millions. And all this, Sir, happened during my lifetime, unlike Bill Ayers. And these are things done by the candidate, not someone, somewhat and tangentially associated with one.
Guys, you ran yourself into this one. Whomever is advising you, really should think about applying to McDonald's after this campaign is over, they are hiring and they give great benefits. And think of all you can learn!
In an economy like this and in "wars" on two fronts, um...well....ya kNow, we can play this card too and from this vantage point it looks tremendously more damaging...
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Live from LA...I got to watch the debates!!!
I think Sarah Palin held her own in maintaining the "talking points" and accomplished her goal. Bravo.
Vice Presidential. ABSOLUTELY NOT! She was scripted and stuck to the same show. First, she acted like she did not know that Biden tragically lost his wife and daughter in a car accident while Christmas shopping in 1972. He was left to raise his surviving two kids. To play the "raise the family" card works well with most female politicians who debate against male politicians; however a big gaffe was that she could not play that card with Biden, although she tried to anyway. I truly do not believe she knew, or she may not have remembered this fact about Biden's life and experience. A big mistake, and truly a shift in gender and politics.
Nonetheless, I am impressed with how good Palin was able to shape her own debate. But starting out with, "I'm not going to answer the questions, but talk to the American people" defies the whole point of the debate; is that how she plans to shape government in DC? "I'm not going to follow the rules, I'm going to do what I want to" (or what I am told to do). I guess that supports her claim that Dick Cheney's only mistake as VP was shooting his friend in the face.
YIKES! Cheney has abused his powers in such ways one day there may be a trial of "high crimes and misdemeanors" against him. But in her mind, she would like to continue the expansion of the VP role, something that goes against the Constitution, let alone defies the system and law that has been followed from 1789-2000.
Leading up to the debate, the media hovered over Palin and suggested that if she stood her ground she would win. Well we forgot something and someone--Joe Biden. Joe Biden more than stood his ground. He was knowledgeable, competent, and definitely vice-presidential, if not presidential. He is the man I want in the room with my president when decisions are made. And that is what this comes down to: who is a leader, who will recapture the American dream for the middle class and working people (and Palin blending the working class with the middle class, is EXTREMELY PROBLEMATIC), fight the war on REAL terror--not in Iraq, bring back American credibility, and has the experience to bridge the global gaps of the US v. THEM mentality that started with the incumbent Bush/Cheney, from 9/11/2001 to the present.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden, prove time and time again how they will bring the country out of the malaise of the past 8 years.
Finally, the thought of Palin leading Senate is scary. BUT having a Senator in that position, a Senator that has Senate experience, is quite a good idea.
Well done Biden. We underestimated you, and because of that, the Democrat ticket held their own and with the polls (and McCain giving up on Michigan, Go Blue!) there should not be a major change in the numbers.
Well done Senator Biden!
Vice Presidential. ABSOLUTELY NOT! She was scripted and stuck to the same show. First, she acted like she did not know that Biden tragically lost his wife and daughter in a car accident while Christmas shopping in 1972. He was left to raise his surviving two kids. To play the "raise the family" card works well with most female politicians who debate against male politicians; however a big gaffe was that she could not play that card with Biden, although she tried to anyway. I truly do not believe she knew, or she may not have remembered this fact about Biden's life and experience. A big mistake, and truly a shift in gender and politics.
Nonetheless, I am impressed with how good Palin was able to shape her own debate. But starting out with, "I'm not going to answer the questions, but talk to the American people" defies the whole point of the debate; is that how she plans to shape government in DC? "I'm not going to follow the rules, I'm going to do what I want to" (or what I am told to do). I guess that supports her claim that Dick Cheney's only mistake as VP was shooting his friend in the face.
YIKES! Cheney has abused his powers in such ways one day there may be a trial of "high crimes and misdemeanors" against him. But in her mind, she would like to continue the expansion of the VP role, something that goes against the Constitution, let alone defies the system and law that has been followed from 1789-2000.
Leading up to the debate, the media hovered over Palin and suggested that if she stood her ground she would win. Well we forgot something and someone--Joe Biden. Joe Biden more than stood his ground. He was knowledgeable, competent, and definitely vice-presidential, if not presidential. He is the man I want in the room with my president when decisions are made. And that is what this comes down to: who is a leader, who will recapture the American dream for the middle class and working people (and Palin blending the working class with the middle class, is EXTREMELY PROBLEMATIC), fight the war on REAL terror--not in Iraq, bring back American credibility, and has the experience to bridge the global gaps of the US v. THEM mentality that started with the incumbent Bush/Cheney, from 9/11/2001 to the present.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden, prove time and time again how they will bring the country out of the malaise of the past 8 years.
Finally, the thought of Palin leading Senate is scary. BUT having a Senator in that position, a Senator that has Senate experience, is quite a good idea.
Well done Biden. We underestimated you, and because of that, the Democrat ticket held their own and with the polls (and McCain giving up on Michigan, Go Blue!) there should not be a major change in the numbers.
Well done Senator Biden!
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Bailout, Bi-Partisanship wins, the American people take gamble
After the collapse of WaMu last week, I decided to support the amended Wall Street bailout because like the Democrats, led by Pelosi, Reid and Obama, maintained--now is not the time to play the blame game, that can be done at the polls on November 4th.
The socialization of Wall Street, places the American taxpayer--specifically home owner--in a very tricky position. What the past two weeks of politicking has demonstrated, no one really knows how this deal will affect average Jane Doe American. So it's a gamble, and a twenty-four-sided Rubik's cube for the next POTUS to deconstruct.
Who wins/who loses? Like the war in Iraq, we cannot talk in terms of winning and losing. Who knows what all this means in the long run???
But there are two things I take from this moment in American history:
1) Although I disagree fiercely with the new generation of young House Republicans' view on most social, mostly all economic, and ALL foreign policy issues, I must give them credit for going against their central tenet of laissez faire economics and vote for the bill. However, we must be reminded that it is this ethos that got us all into this mess.
In recent weeks, Representative Cantor (R-Va) has been on my all time shit list of pricks for his empty pro-McCain Palin rhetoric; today I actually saw a man who put his country before his beliefs--and that most likely one time look of compassion on his face was refreshing.
These representatives understood the immediacy of the economic crisis and this moment, and for that they should be applauded. But I wish the bi-partisan spirit of the weekend would translate into the reality of the candidate they support--John McCain did nothing but shake things up and halt the process. This is not what should be expected from a president in such a crisis. His gamble stymied the progress that was already reached in the Senate. His imposition of politics into this serious moment was not only selfish, but an example of his ineptness and how much he wants the Presidency for himself, not for the greater good. He should be ashamed.
2) The idea that the government and the American people have to bail out greed is fundamentally repulsive. Regulation is a must in a multifaceted and global economy. The fact that we got into this mess because the Bush-Gramm-McCain approach to the economy should be a referendum on how wrong headed, stubborn and unrealistic the Republican candidate is.
He IS out of touch and this economic mess is only one example. His stance on diplomacy, out of touch. His willingness to stay in Iraq, out of touch (anyone hear about the bomb in Baghdad today where 32 people were killed and over 100 injured--anyone hear about how the surge has allowed for complicit murder/possible genocide with impunity and the dislocation of many Iraqi's from their home in Darfur-like fashion--and I'm not even a peacenik). His stubbornness to stick with a VP candidate that is completely unqualified for the job, especially because of his age and medical history, is extremely out of touch. The way his campaign is shaped, is completely out of touch. Why would you run a campaign of secrecy when the guys we are trying to boot out as quickly as possible spent 8 years under the cloud of secrecy? OUT OF TOUCH
What we need is change and faith in our civic culture. We need good, smart people to represent us and we need some sort of honesty, accessibility, transparency, accountability and trustworthiness restored in the White House.
We live in a new age; and as a historian this election has helped clear my lens on how different things are AND how some things are the same. McCain's out of touch philosophy supports the same stagnate state we are currently living. Barack Obama's message of change brings a breathe of fresh air, pointed directly into the future.
The socialization of Wall Street, places the American taxpayer--specifically home owner--in a very tricky position. What the past two weeks of politicking has demonstrated, no one really knows how this deal will affect average Jane Doe American. So it's a gamble, and a twenty-four-sided Rubik's cube for the next POTUS to deconstruct.
Who wins/who loses? Like the war in Iraq, we cannot talk in terms of winning and losing. Who knows what all this means in the long run???
But there are two things I take from this moment in American history:
1) Although I disagree fiercely with the new generation of young House Republicans' view on most social, mostly all economic, and ALL foreign policy issues, I must give them credit for going against their central tenet of laissez faire economics and vote for the bill. However, we must be reminded that it is this ethos that got us all into this mess.
In recent weeks, Representative Cantor (R-Va) has been on my all time shit list of pricks for his empty pro-McCain Palin rhetoric; today I actually saw a man who put his country before his beliefs--and that most likely one time look of compassion on his face was refreshing.
These representatives understood the immediacy of the economic crisis and this moment, and for that they should be applauded. But I wish the bi-partisan spirit of the weekend would translate into the reality of the candidate they support--John McCain did nothing but shake things up and halt the process. This is not what should be expected from a president in such a crisis. His gamble stymied the progress that was already reached in the Senate. His imposition of politics into this serious moment was not only selfish, but an example of his ineptness and how much he wants the Presidency for himself, not for the greater good. He should be ashamed.
2) The idea that the government and the American people have to bail out greed is fundamentally repulsive. Regulation is a must in a multifaceted and global economy. The fact that we got into this mess because the Bush-Gramm-McCain approach to the economy should be a referendum on how wrong headed, stubborn and unrealistic the Republican candidate is.
He IS out of touch and this economic mess is only one example. His stance on diplomacy, out of touch. His willingness to stay in Iraq, out of touch (anyone hear about the bomb in Baghdad today where 32 people were killed and over 100 injured--anyone hear about how the surge has allowed for complicit murder/possible genocide with impunity and the dislocation of many Iraqi's from their home in Darfur-like fashion--and I'm not even a peacenik). His stubbornness to stick with a VP candidate that is completely unqualified for the job, especially because of his age and medical history, is extremely out of touch. The way his campaign is shaped, is completely out of touch. Why would you run a campaign of secrecy when the guys we are trying to boot out as quickly as possible spent 8 years under the cloud of secrecy? OUT OF TOUCH
What we need is change and faith in our civic culture. We need good, smart people to represent us and we need some sort of honesty, accessibility, transparency, accountability and trustworthiness restored in the White House.
We live in a new age; and as a historian this election has helped clear my lens on how different things are AND how some things are the same. McCain's out of touch philosophy supports the same stagnate state we are currently living. Barack Obama's message of change brings a breathe of fresh air, pointed directly into the future.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Who won, who cares?
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/09/26/fact-check-does-mccain-almost-always-agree-with-bush/
As we hear the right claim MAC is back; and the left is praising Obama for his tact and thorough knowledge on this issues at play; this debate fundamentally proved one point. Those who support McCain will think he did well, those who support Obama will say he won hands down. Those on the fence will probably prefer the gentleman approach of Obama over the gruntness and distance of McCain (Bush looks like Santa Claus compared to Mc's ice freeze). Those on the fence, tonight probably did not help McCain, and probably did not hurt Obama.
I have to be honest. I really want Obama to get aggressive and attack McCain for the lies he spews each day. I want Obama to ask McCain why he had to "suspend" his campaign to save Washington, while he still fund raised, his surrogates continued to go on TV, his ads ran, and he avoided the press while talking to some house Republicans then prepared for the debates ? No deal yet, if anything, as been reported McCain ruffled some calm feathers in Washington and screwed up the progress the Congress and administration had on immediate relief.
How did he put his country first? He put McCain first!
Why did Obama mention his vice president nominee twice, and all McCain could do is wink and state "I have another Maverick along with me on this ticket." A Maverick who is continuously being debunked and made an absolute fool of herself in a recent interview with Katie Couric. A VP candidate who's lack of knowledge and deer caught in headlights answers to question is pulling the McCain campaign down--to the point where it will become a historical joke if he does not win.
Yet, John McCain appeals to people, it bewilders me but it is true. He's right, he did not win Miss Congeniality in the Senate the past 25 years but his record shows that he has supported the failed policies of the failed Bush administration 90% of the time. Because of this support, Americans are not in a good place, from Wall Street to Main Street, from Pakistan, Russia to China. There are alot of issues at hand that the next president will have to undertake, it's a job no one should fight this hard for...a mess. But the one sided "must win in Iraq" message is only one of many reasons that we are in this financial and global crisis.
McCain could not look at Obama once. He sneered and snided his way through one dimensional answers and tried to use his charisma to charm the crowd and American people, and frankly issues are too important for this to be another Miss Congeniality pageant. Bush won with that card in 2000 and 2004. And in fact, McCain is known to be a hard man to deal with, that obviously showed in his body language during the debate tonight. But as always, Obama is only another man in the room. McCain first!
Foreign policy is Obama's weakness, but tonight he proved to be knowledgeable and he showed willingness to promote a future that is more in line with the world as it is, not as it was. McCain, and many older conservatives are still practicing old style politics while our competing nations are reshaping the dynamics of global world. In essence, the world is flipping Bush's dangerous bifrucated challenge, "you either with us, or without us." Well, McCain would like to take that as a challenge to assert military might. Obama is willing to look toward the future, with an understanding it can't be America only and all the time. That lessens our own national security. Iraq has diminished our national security. And how we are perceived throughout the world has declined dramatically in a short period of time. THIS IS BECAUSE OF THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION THAT MCCAIN WHOLEHEARTEDLY SUPPORTS!
The global community is hoping that we make a vote for change. Across the globe, people are hoping that we make the right decision to elect a president who has professional acumen, who is in touch with the current reality of the world, someone who is willing to look eye to eye with his opponent and say ENOUGH!
John McCain supports Bush's policies and believes they should remain as is. However, he would like to cut spending on localized projects and infrastructure developments that are essential to our everyday needs. Why bother checking to make sure the Williamsburg Bridge is in tact, as with the economy as in Iraq, just let it roll until disaster! And if these current Bush policies continue AND if McCain cuts all new spending bills then we are headed for such disaster.
Vote for change!
As we hear the right claim MAC is back; and the left is praising Obama for his tact and thorough knowledge on this issues at play; this debate fundamentally proved one point. Those who support McCain will think he did well, those who support Obama will say he won hands down. Those on the fence will probably prefer the gentleman approach of Obama over the gruntness and distance of McCain (Bush looks like Santa Claus compared to Mc's ice freeze). Those on the fence, tonight probably did not help McCain, and probably did not hurt Obama.
I have to be honest. I really want Obama to get aggressive and attack McCain for the lies he spews each day. I want Obama to ask McCain why he had to "suspend" his campaign to save Washington, while he still fund raised, his surrogates continued to go on TV, his ads ran, and he avoided the press while talking to some house Republicans then prepared for the debates ? No deal yet, if anything, as been reported McCain ruffled some calm feathers in Washington and screwed up the progress the Congress and administration had on immediate relief.
How did he put his country first? He put McCain first!
Why did Obama mention his vice president nominee twice, and all McCain could do is wink and state "I have another Maverick along with me on this ticket." A Maverick who is continuously being debunked and made an absolute fool of herself in a recent interview with Katie Couric. A VP candidate who's lack of knowledge and deer caught in headlights answers to question is pulling the McCain campaign down--to the point where it will become a historical joke if he does not win.
Yet, John McCain appeals to people, it bewilders me but it is true. He's right, he did not win Miss Congeniality in the Senate the past 25 years but his record shows that he has supported the failed policies of the failed Bush administration 90% of the time. Because of this support, Americans are not in a good place, from Wall Street to Main Street, from Pakistan, Russia to China. There are alot of issues at hand that the next president will have to undertake, it's a job no one should fight this hard for...a mess. But the one sided "must win in Iraq" message is only one of many reasons that we are in this financial and global crisis.
McCain could not look at Obama once. He sneered and snided his way through one dimensional answers and tried to use his charisma to charm the crowd and American people, and frankly issues are too important for this to be another Miss Congeniality pageant. Bush won with that card in 2000 and 2004. And in fact, McCain is known to be a hard man to deal with, that obviously showed in his body language during the debate tonight. But as always, Obama is only another man in the room. McCain first!
Foreign policy is Obama's weakness, but tonight he proved to be knowledgeable and he showed willingness to promote a future that is more in line with the world as it is, not as it was. McCain, and many older conservatives are still practicing old style politics while our competing nations are reshaping the dynamics of global world. In essence, the world is flipping Bush's dangerous bifrucated challenge, "you either with us, or without us." Well, McCain would like to take that as a challenge to assert military might. Obama is willing to look toward the future, with an understanding it can't be America only and all the time. That lessens our own national security. Iraq has diminished our national security. And how we are perceived throughout the world has declined dramatically in a short period of time. THIS IS BECAUSE OF THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION THAT MCCAIN WHOLEHEARTEDLY SUPPORTS!
The global community is hoping that we make a vote for change. Across the globe, people are hoping that we make the right decision to elect a president who has professional acumen, who is in touch with the current reality of the world, someone who is willing to look eye to eye with his opponent and say ENOUGH!
John McCain supports Bush's policies and believes they should remain as is. However, he would like to cut spending on localized projects and infrastructure developments that are essential to our everyday needs. Why bother checking to make sure the Williamsburg Bridge is in tact, as with the economy as in Iraq, just let it roll until disaster! And if these current Bush policies continue AND if McCain cuts all new spending bills then we are headed for such disaster.
Vote for change!
Thursday, September 25, 2008
A Sticky Web We Weave
Who is to blame for the need to "bail"out Wall Street in order to save Main Street?
Who has managed the immediacy of this economic crisis by pure faulty oversight and an outdated and dismissive philosophy of "trickle down" economics?
Who is damning the media for telling the truth?
These are all questions we are asking. A main theme of this election is the issue of accountability. With accountability comes ownership. For example, if you oversleep on a day you have a final exam, do you blame yourself, or the university for scheduling the exam during your "nap" time? Or even better, and this comes from experience, do you blame the professor for teaching a class you signed up and paid for?
Owning up to what you did is an important model for authenticity, and authenticity should be a goal for most. Making yourself accountable and owning up to past mistakes is the ultimate marker for respect.
So instead of blogging about the political train wreck of these past days, I leave with rhetorical questions.
Who is to blame?
Who is in charge?
Who supports those in charge?
Who promotes change?
Who do you trust MOST to promote change and derail the disastrous future the past 8 years has made us vulnerable to?
Register and vote!
And remind yourself, and all others, that Moscow is almost 5,000 miles away from Alaska.
Who has managed the immediacy of this economic crisis by pure faulty oversight and an outdated and dismissive philosophy of "trickle down" economics?
Who is damning the media for telling the truth?
These are all questions we are asking. A main theme of this election is the issue of accountability. With accountability comes ownership. For example, if you oversleep on a day you have a final exam, do you blame yourself, or the university for scheduling the exam during your "nap" time? Or even better, and this comes from experience, do you blame the professor for teaching a class you signed up and paid for?
Owning up to what you did is an important model for authenticity, and authenticity should be a goal for most. Making yourself accountable and owning up to past mistakes is the ultimate marker for respect.
So instead of blogging about the political train wreck of these past days, I leave with rhetorical questions.
Who is to blame?
Who is in charge?
Who supports those in charge?
Who promotes change?
Who do you trust MOST to promote change and derail the disastrous future the past 8 years has made us vulnerable to?
Register and vote!
And remind yourself, and all others, that Moscow is almost 5,000 miles away from Alaska.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Country first? DEBATE
The process of debate is crucial in any campaign. And we need a debate between the candidates now more than ever.
The Congress will not support a plan giving authoritative power to the Secretary of the Treasury.
The Congress will not support a plan that has no oversight and no benefit for the American taxpayers who are on the hook for this deal.
In the age of email, video cast, conference call; it would be foolish to think a debate will stop the political process from brewing. Yes, the candidates should be informed and informing Washington, but our future is at stake and a lot of it depends on this election. Campaigning must be done, in times of prosperity and in times of crisis. This is a time when leadership will show. Leadership can only be clearly guided by vision and transparency. The beginning of such is through the process of debate.
Homework is due on the date it's due.
The Congress will not support a plan giving authoritative power to the Secretary of the Treasury.
The Congress will not support a plan that has no oversight and no benefit for the American taxpayers who are on the hook for this deal.
In the age of email, video cast, conference call; it would be foolish to think a debate will stop the political process from brewing. Yes, the candidates should be informed and informing Washington, but our future is at stake and a lot of it depends on this election. Campaigning must be done, in times of prosperity and in times of crisis. This is a time when leadership will show. Leadership can only be clearly guided by vision and transparency. The beginning of such is through the process of debate.
Homework is due on the date it's due.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Speechless...
I am starting to get used to this...
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/19/mccain-on-banking-and-health/
McCain agreed on Bush's plan to invest social security in the market, now he wants to invest healthcare. So--meaning, with a deregulated economy, if a crisis like this happens again, not only would we be paying for greed, but we would be fearing loss of healthcare and old age benefits which are age old.
Could you imagine the "trickle down" effect then?
As we are now part owners of major investment firms and banks, and as the Secretary of the Treasury is now running the show, we must be proud of what wild capitalism, no oversight and greed gives us. Dare I say it, THE BIGGEST REPUBLICAN FEAR AND OBAMA SCARE TACTIC--SOCIALISM!!!
I am in love with democracy. I accept and espoused to capitalist ideals. That is why I support Barack Obama so much more...
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/19/mccain-on-banking-and-health/
McCain agreed on Bush's plan to invest social security in the market, now he wants to invest healthcare. So--meaning, with a deregulated economy, if a crisis like this happens again, not only would we be paying for greed, but we would be fearing loss of healthcare and old age benefits which are age old.
Could you imagine the "trickle down" effect then?
As we are now part owners of major investment firms and banks, and as the Secretary of the Treasury is now running the show, we must be proud of what wild capitalism, no oversight and greed gives us. Dare I say it, THE BIGGEST REPUBLICAN FEAR AND OBAMA SCARE TACTIC--SOCIALISM!!!
I am in love with democracy. I accept and espoused to capitalist ideals. That is why I support Barack Obama so much more...
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Hypocritically wrong! We're broke and we have to bail out greed...
The following is a transcript of the latest Obama ad. Sometimes the people you surround yourself with say alot about the person you are:
"John McCain admits he doesn’t understand the economy
So who advises him?
Carly Fiorina, the fired CEO who got a $42 million golden parachute.
Phil Gramm, the ex-Senator who pushed through deregulation, and called Americans hurt by this economy "whiners."
Then there’s George Bush, whose disastrous policies McCain wants to continue.
They think the economy is fundamentally strong.
We know they’re fundamentally wrong." 9/18 Obama supported...
Anyway, on that note, let's first begin with John McCain's vice presidential pick. This is not ageism, it's reality. John McCain, a man who courageously battled cancer 3 times, and if elected will be the oldest man ever elected president, picked a Washington outsider who (to put it lightly) has little to no experience on major foreign or domestic issues, replaced the good ol' boy Republican network in her own state with half of her high school friends, is currently trying her best to cover up an "abuse of power" investigation that was launched by her own party AND has been tip toeing around major questions on major issues and will speak at "invitation only" events as well as choose who she is interviewed by, what questions she is asked, and when she can be available to do an interview....ok too many ands and to risk the cruelty of all grammar run on no- no-s....
Sarah Palin is literally closer to the presidency than any other vice presidential candidate in history. An avowed extreme right-winger who makes our current VP look good, is that close to deciding what to do on the economy and handle the global crises involving countries like Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Iran, IRAQ, now Spain (McCain's bad, he did not know the name of the president and thought the interviewer was questioning him on a leader in Latin America, it's more complex but you can read about it OR it may come up again in another post), Columbia, Bolivia, let alone all the loss of American economic independence and peddling for money from countries we are economically competitive with. Is she prepared?
Look at John McCain's inner circle and surrogates (supporters who go on TV to support him). Carly Fiorina has finally been told to stop talking after her gaffe the other day. The Republican congressional leaders who dare to talk in support of JMc try to distant him and their own selves from the failed policies of the current REPUBLICAN president--all who supported the President and McCain's policies...until Monday. He has over 150 lobbyists working in his campaign, yet he says he needs to change how Washington does it's business with lobbyists. He has supported deregulating the big corporations--throughout his life as a "fundamental de-regulator," yet now he blames the regulators for this quagmire on Wall Street. This is a crisis that even some of the best economists can't seem to figure out. He asked for a committee to investigate a crisis that needs to be solved immediately. On Tuesday he said that he would not suggests any kind of regulatory agency to help with the crisis, then on Thursday he announced a grand plan entitled M.F.I. and it don't even want to make a joke about what that stands for but I could use the first two initials to describe how I feel about the economic future of this country. The ultimate flip-flopper who said he is not a big fan of email, yet his economic advisor suggested on Tuesday that he invented the Blackberry ( a Canadian invention).
Eh???
Barack Obama and John McCain are only individuals. They cannot solely have the answer, and truly no one can figure this thing out. But instead of making up ABC organizations (after only the day before saying he wouldn't go all depression style with FDR-like ABC organizations), McCain has not said a damn thing on the economy. Barack Obama has summoned a group of economic experts, not fired HP directors, but academics, insiders and outsiders, financial advisers etc, to come up with a solution that can help quell the tensions now. The finality of this plan will be announced on Friday. Meanwhile, Barry is not yet the president, must we remind ourselves. The REAL? president addressed the media for the first time today (Katrina, anyone?) and stated that he is working on the solution in a 86 second speech. I am sure the solution involves a special potion that can make him jump into the future...destined date, January 19, 2009.
Meanwhile, must we be reminded, the REAL John McCain has voted with the president 91% of the time, ON ALL ISSUES, including the issues that led to the financial breakdown, the worst since (as predicted by ME only days ago--on this site) THE DEPRESSION.
John McCain, post-lipstick on a pig attempt, is at a loss. And there is a why....real issues do matter, my friend.
Finally, while taxpayers are paying for greed, JM demands the firing of the SEC chair. How much he knows about Europe (i.e. Spain andCzechoslovakia) is about how much he knows about the Constitution. NO PRESIDENT CAN FIRE AN APPOINTEE HIRED BY THE PRESIDENT. Another check in the balance....and you're running for what?
"John McCain admits he doesn’t understand the economy
So who advises him?
Carly Fiorina, the fired CEO who got a $42 million golden parachute.
Phil Gramm, the ex-Senator who pushed through deregulation, and called Americans hurt by this economy "whiners."
Then there’s George Bush, whose disastrous policies McCain wants to continue.
They think the economy is fundamentally strong.
We know they’re fundamentally wrong." 9/18 Obama supported...
Anyway, on that note, let's first begin with John McCain's vice presidential pick. This is not ageism, it's reality. John McCain, a man who courageously battled cancer 3 times, and if elected will be the oldest man ever elected president, picked a Washington outsider who (to put it lightly) has little to no experience on major foreign or domestic issues, replaced the good ol' boy Republican network in her own state with half of her high school friends, is currently trying her best to cover up an "abuse of power" investigation that was launched by her own party AND has been tip toeing around major questions on major issues and will speak at "invitation only" events as well as choose who she is interviewed by, what questions she is asked, and when she can be available to do an interview....ok too many ands and to risk the cruelty of all grammar run on no- no-s....
Sarah Palin is literally closer to the presidency than any other vice presidential candidate in history. An avowed extreme right-winger who makes our current VP look good, is that close to deciding what to do on the economy and handle the global crises involving countries like Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Iran, IRAQ, now Spain (McCain's bad, he did not know the name of the president and thought the interviewer was questioning him on a leader in Latin America, it's more complex but you can read about it OR it may come up again in another post), Columbia, Bolivia, let alone all the loss of American economic independence and peddling for money from countries we are economically competitive with. Is she prepared?
Look at John McCain's inner circle and surrogates (supporters who go on TV to support him). Carly Fiorina has finally been told to stop talking after her gaffe the other day. The Republican congressional leaders who dare to talk in support of JMc try to distant him and their own selves from the failed policies of the current REPUBLICAN president--all who supported the President and McCain's policies...until Monday. He has over 150 lobbyists working in his campaign, yet he says he needs to change how Washington does it's business with lobbyists. He has supported deregulating the big corporations--throughout his life as a "fundamental de-regulator," yet now he blames the regulators for this quagmire on Wall Street. This is a crisis that even some of the best economists can't seem to figure out. He asked for a committee to investigate a crisis that needs to be solved immediately. On Tuesday he said that he would not suggests any kind of regulatory agency to help with the crisis, then on Thursday he announced a grand plan entitled M.F.I. and it don't even want to make a joke about what that stands for but I could use the first two initials to describe how I feel about the economic future of this country. The ultimate flip-flopper who said he is not a big fan of email, yet his economic advisor suggested on Tuesday that he invented the Blackberry ( a Canadian invention).
Eh???
Barack Obama and John McCain are only individuals. They cannot solely have the answer, and truly no one can figure this thing out. But instead of making up ABC organizations (after only the day before saying he wouldn't go all depression style with FDR-like ABC organizations), McCain has not said a damn thing on the economy. Barack Obama has summoned a group of economic experts, not fired HP directors, but academics, insiders and outsiders, financial advisers etc, to come up with a solution that can help quell the tensions now. The finality of this plan will be announced on Friday. Meanwhile, Barry is not yet the president, must we remind ourselves. The REAL? president addressed the media for the first time today (Katrina, anyone?) and stated that he is working on the solution in a 86 second speech. I am sure the solution involves a special potion that can make him jump into the future...destined date, January 19, 2009.
Meanwhile, must we be reminded, the REAL John McCain has voted with the president 91% of the time, ON ALL ISSUES, including the issues that led to the financial breakdown, the worst since (as predicted by ME only days ago--on this site) THE DEPRESSION.
John McCain, post-lipstick on a pig attempt, is at a loss. And there is a why....real issues do matter, my friend.
Finally, while taxpayers are paying for greed, JM demands the firing of the SEC chair. How much he knows about Europe (i.e. Spain andCzechoslovakia) is about how much he knows about the Constitution. NO PRESIDENT CAN FIRE AN APPOINTEE HIRED BY THE PRESIDENT. Another check in the balance....and you're running for what?
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Into the realm of insanity...
http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1842097,00.html
OK: breaking news from the far out reaches of absurdity. A "nameless" group broke into Gov. Palin's private email account. Calling it a violation of the law, the Republican camp is trying to suppress the emails from becoming public. The emails show that she indeed used her yahoo account to conduct government business. The fact that the McCain camp wants them to be suppressed AND why they want to literally halt the "Troopgate" investigation, proves that there is something to hide. The fun thing is, although I have yet to see them, they have been leaked. (I like how serious political issues can be compared to an update from TMZ...oh the absurdity!)
What we learned from Watergate in the early 1970s, and maybe even a bit from Clinton in the 1990s, it's not necessarily the deed that will "shock the pants off you," it is the cover up, and the lying and abuse of power that is involved in the cover up.
Truth supports credibility. Lies and politics mix as well as mentos and soda
ON ANOTHER NOTE:
I have noticed that while we have had a serious financial crisis here, that has reach the status level of EMERGENCY: RED ALERT-- the president that supported "alerts" in the name of safety and terror (Orange, Blue Green, Chartreuse) is NO WHERE TO BE FOUND TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF THE PEOPLE AND GIVES US, IF ANYTHING, DISCUSS THIS WITH US, TELL US WHAT'S UP?. AT LEAST PRETEND TO BE WORKING!
It's befuddling, it takes a political candidate to support on and give us the confidence that we will make it through this. A candidate that has based his campaign on the ideology of "hope" and "change."
YES. Out of three major political figures, the president and the two presidential candidates, only one is talking about the issues and making Americans feel like there is a plan to change what is going on. And what is going on is really really bad--next up, WashMutual (looking grim), Morgan Stanley (yougottabekiddingme) and the government loans that are bailing out companies like AIG (85 BILLION DOLLARS) are not backed with "real" money (i.e. making it really hard for the government, the American dollar, the people--especially the middle and lower classes, to withstand financial ruin).
The Republicans say that by making this look like a crisis, Obama is exploiting the issues on Wall and Main Streets to his advantage. Yet, while pointing that sophomoric finger at Senator Obama, the Republicans have no other plan to attack the ruination of the American economy.
Meanwhile, Senator Obama is stating his plans. ANSWERING QUESTIONS ON HOW TO DEAL WITH THE ECONOMY AND MAKING A STANCE ON THE ENORMITY OF THIS ISSUE. He is not running the same lines over and over again, ad-naseum, in a pathetic attempt to numb the American psyche.
The Republicans refuse to take ownership of the issues of today and possibly the next few months. They want to say it's the Democrat congress, which took office last January AFTER 6 YEARS OF SOLE REPUBLICAN AND DE-REGULATORY AND DISINGENUOUS RULE.
Incredible. The McCain campaign based itself on the "straight talk;" his fundamentals were based on his ability to shake things up, Maverick-style, and promote transparency, accountability, and honesty. What happened?
OK: breaking news from the far out reaches of absurdity. A "nameless" group broke into Gov. Palin's private email account. Calling it a violation of the law, the Republican camp is trying to suppress the emails from becoming public. The emails show that she indeed used her yahoo account to conduct government business. The fact that the McCain camp wants them to be suppressed AND why they want to literally halt the "Troopgate" investigation, proves that there is something to hide. The fun thing is, although I have yet to see them, they have been leaked. (I like how serious political issues can be compared to an update from TMZ...oh the absurdity!)
What we learned from Watergate in the early 1970s, and maybe even a bit from Clinton in the 1990s, it's not necessarily the deed that will "shock the pants off you," it is the cover up, and the lying and abuse of power that is involved in the cover up.
Truth supports credibility. Lies and politics mix as well as mentos and soda
ON ANOTHER NOTE:
I have noticed that while we have had a serious financial crisis here, that has reach the status level of EMERGENCY: RED ALERT-- the president that supported "alerts" in the name of safety and terror (Orange, Blue Green, Chartreuse) is NO WHERE TO BE FOUND TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF THE PEOPLE AND GIVES US, IF ANYTHING, DISCUSS THIS WITH US, TELL US WHAT'S UP?. AT LEAST PRETEND TO BE WORKING!
It's befuddling, it takes a political candidate to support on and give us the confidence that we will make it through this. A candidate that has based his campaign on the ideology of "hope" and "change."
YES. Out of three major political figures, the president and the two presidential candidates, only one is talking about the issues and making Americans feel like there is a plan to change what is going on. And what is going on is really really bad--next up, WashMutual (looking grim), Morgan Stanley (yougottabekiddingme) and the government loans that are bailing out companies like AIG (85 BILLION DOLLARS) are not backed with "real" money (i.e. making it really hard for the government, the American dollar, the people--especially the middle and lower classes, to withstand financial ruin).
The Republicans say that by making this look like a crisis, Obama is exploiting the issues on Wall and Main Streets to his advantage. Yet, while pointing that sophomoric finger at Senator Obama, the Republicans have no other plan to attack the ruination of the American economy.
Meanwhile, Senator Obama is stating his plans. ANSWERING QUESTIONS ON HOW TO DEAL WITH THE ECONOMY AND MAKING A STANCE ON THE ENORMITY OF THIS ISSUE. He is not running the same lines over and over again, ad-naseum, in a pathetic attempt to numb the American psyche.
The Republicans refuse to take ownership of the issues of today and possibly the next few months. They want to say it's the Democrat congress, which took office last January AFTER 6 YEARS OF SOLE REPUBLICAN AND DE-REGULATORY AND DISINGENUOUS RULE.
Incredible. The McCain campaign based itself on the "straight talk;" his fundamentals were based on his ability to shake things up, Maverick-style, and promote transparency, accountability, and honesty. What happened?
Speechless, again
VOTERS WHO'S HOMES HAVE BEEN FORECLOSED ON ARE LOSING THEIR RIGHT TO VOTE IN COUNTIES IN MICHIGAN AND OHIO!
THAT IS DISENFRANCHISEMENT, WHICH STANDS AGAINST ONE OF THE "INALIENABLE" RIGHTS GRANTED BY THE FOUNDING FATHERS OF THIS NATION. ENFRANCHISEMENT, OR THE RIGHT TO VOTE, EXTENDS TO EVERY SINGLE AMERICAN AND THIS EXTENSION WAS CREATED THROUGH LAWS AND LIBERAL MEASURES INTRODUCED AND SUPPORTED BY LIBERAL LEADERS THROUGHOUT AMERICAN HISTORY.
YES, disenfranchisement happened in the last two elections. However, the media did not catch on to it until after the President had "won." If you hear people talk about how Bush was never "really" elected in 2000, they point to voting fraud and "ballot issues" in states like Florida, Ohio, and throughout the south....
Here's the historian's perspective Cliff Notes:
1789--the Constitution supported that all men (of European descent) with PROPERTY would be the voters of the new Republic.
1820s--Jacksonian Democracy opened the vote for non-property owners. You still had to be a white male however.
1865--end of Civil War. Reconstruction (1865-1877) produces three Civil Rights amendments to the Constitution (13-15th). The 15th Amendment stated that ALL male citizens, regardless of race, would be allowed to vote.
1877-1965--the Jim Crow era in the South. This system of apartheid disenfranchised blacks from voting below the Mason-Dixon line. (YES, almost a century)
1920--the hard battled was won with the passing of the 19th Amendment, which enfranchised ALL WOMEN (yes, ladies it'll be a century soon)
1965--Voting Rights Act. Blood was shed and lives were lost over the passing of this historic measure that guaranteed all citizens, regardless of color or region, the right to vote.
1974--I was born (just to add perspective to the fact that all American citizens were not guaranteed a right to vote until 9 years before I was born)
34 years later, I often tell my students stories how common Americans fought diligently for the right to vote--I use it to point out how our history can be viewed as a process of inclusion.
Now, once again we have a new crisis on our hand (no, not only the economy)--the vote.
So far, this election shows how easy it is for America and Americans to regress and follow dated (and wrong) social and political habits--THE VOTE IS NOT SOMETHING TO MESS WITH!!!
We already see how old politics and old politicians can bring up cultural issues of the past. We've witnessed an attempt to re-launch the culture wars. The economy is in this shape because of old habits of deregulation and greed that dates back to the industrial revolution in the 19th century (Anyone ever play that game, um what's it called.....MONOPOLY). Remember, greed is good (right?). And to put what is probably not even the cherry on top, we are catching REPUBLICAN OFFICIALS TRYING TO TAKE AWAY THE RIGHT TO VOTE FROM FOLKS WHO LOST THEIR HOMES BECAUSE OF A FAILED REPUBLICAN PARTY STANCE--laissez faire economics and market risks.
I CALL FOUL AND I ASK YOU TO CALL FOUL TOO!!! Make sure you are registered, your friends are registered, your neighborhood is registered, your class is registered, your office is registered:
http://www.voteforchange.com/index_obama.php
for more on this current and blatant attempt at disenfranching:
http://www.michiganmessenger.com/4076/lose-your-house-lose-your-vote
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/09/senators_seek_doj_for_help_in.php
Voting Registration Deadlines:
http://www.rockthevote.com/voting-is-easy/important-dates/
If on Nov. 4th you plan to sleep in or you cannot fit "going to vote" into your schedule (or, of course if you live far away from home) find out more about ABSENTEE ballots here:
http://www.longdistancevoter.org/voter_guides
American pride glows with the vote and in this election YOUR VOTE WILL COUNT!!!
THAT IS DISENFRANCHISEMENT, WHICH STANDS AGAINST ONE OF THE "INALIENABLE" RIGHTS GRANTED BY THE FOUNDING FATHERS OF THIS NATION. ENFRANCHISEMENT, OR THE RIGHT TO VOTE, EXTENDS TO EVERY SINGLE AMERICAN AND THIS EXTENSION WAS CREATED THROUGH LAWS AND LIBERAL MEASURES INTRODUCED AND SUPPORTED BY LIBERAL LEADERS THROUGHOUT AMERICAN HISTORY.
YES, disenfranchisement happened in the last two elections. However, the media did not catch on to it until after the President had "won." If you hear people talk about how Bush was never "really" elected in 2000, they point to voting fraud and "ballot issues" in states like Florida, Ohio, and throughout the south....
Here's the historian's perspective Cliff Notes:
1789--the Constitution supported that all men (of European descent) with PROPERTY would be the voters of the new Republic.
1820s--Jacksonian Democracy opened the vote for non-property owners. You still had to be a white male however.
1865--end of Civil War. Reconstruction (1865-1877) produces three Civil Rights amendments to the Constitution (13-15th). The 15th Amendment stated that ALL male citizens, regardless of race, would be allowed to vote.
1877-1965--the Jim Crow era in the South. This system of apartheid disenfranchised blacks from voting below the Mason-Dixon line. (YES, almost a century)
1920--the hard battled was won with the passing of the 19th Amendment, which enfranchised ALL WOMEN (yes, ladies it'll be a century soon)
1965--Voting Rights Act. Blood was shed and lives were lost over the passing of this historic measure that guaranteed all citizens, regardless of color or region, the right to vote.
1974--I was born (just to add perspective to the fact that all American citizens were not guaranteed a right to vote until 9 years before I was born)
34 years later, I often tell my students stories how common Americans fought diligently for the right to vote--I use it to point out how our history can be viewed as a process of inclusion.
Now, once again we have a new crisis on our hand (no, not only the economy)--the vote.
So far, this election shows how easy it is for America and Americans to regress and follow dated (and wrong) social and political habits--THE VOTE IS NOT SOMETHING TO MESS WITH!!!
We already see how old politics and old politicians can bring up cultural issues of the past. We've witnessed an attempt to re-launch the culture wars. The economy is in this shape because of old habits of deregulation and greed that dates back to the industrial revolution in the 19th century (Anyone ever play that game, um what's it called.....MONOPOLY). Remember, greed is good (right?). And to put what is probably not even the cherry on top, we are catching REPUBLICAN OFFICIALS TRYING TO TAKE AWAY THE RIGHT TO VOTE FROM FOLKS WHO LOST THEIR HOMES BECAUSE OF A FAILED REPUBLICAN PARTY STANCE--laissez faire economics and market risks.
I CALL FOUL AND I ASK YOU TO CALL FOUL TOO!!! Make sure you are registered, your friends are registered, your neighborhood is registered, your class is registered, your office is registered:
http://www.voteforchange.com/index_obama.php
for more on this current and blatant attempt at disenfranching:
http://www.michiganmessenger.com/4076/lose-your-house-lose-your-vote
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/09/senators_seek_doj_for_help_in.php
Voting Registration Deadlines:
http://www.rockthevote.com/voting-is-easy/important-dates/
If on Nov. 4th you plan to sleep in or you cannot fit "going to vote" into your schedule (or, of course if you live far away from home) find out more about ABSENTEE ballots here:
http://www.longdistancevoter.org/voter_guides
American pride glows with the vote and in this election YOUR VOTE WILL COUNT!!!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Keating 5 is so 1989--but Wall Street is NOW!
The whole S&L scandal of the late 1980s has been in the news a whole lot lately. It detonated an investigation of something now known as the Keating 5 scandal. For more on the Keating 5,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keating_5
In 1989, I was a Freshman in high school. I was more concerned with getting money to buy a Tribe Called Quest album, than what was going on in the scandalous political arena.
Over the haze of age, a funny thing happened. The same market is in trouble again, and there is one member of this 19 year-old (thought to be buried) group which ultimately was accused of forcing the deregulation that caused a bank to fail, but then made money on that same bank..... IS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT.
Make NO doubt about it, McCain has admitted, as recent as today, he is a friend of deregulation--all the while companies are blowing up, left-right-all over the place. He calls for a committee to investigate this; while the Republicans are trying to squash the investigation of "Troopergate" der en Alaskee (which I still have so much to say but no time to write on...a wasted breath at this point). A committee to investigate many of my neighbors struggling to pay their mortgage? A committee and bureaucracy to investigate the fact that the price of gas has risen 3 dollars over the past 5 years? Really, an investigation!
NO!
We need action and to make it happen now. We need it immediately. The best we can get is a government that would get off it's tail and handle this economic downfall. And if history is a measure of reality, George Bush will not address these issues the way they need to be addressed....IMMEDIATELY.
When you say the "economy is fundamentally sound" when the unemployment rate is up and climbing, when banks, the government (thus, us) are bailing out other banks, when the price of everything is skyrocketing, while people are losing their homes, while this utter spin of a FUNDAMENTALLY UNSOUND economy is destined to proverbial "trickle down" to the proverbial American pocket book.
Get ready to write the check now.
Fact: McCain's economic plan is the same as George Bush, there should be as little regulation as possible and you must run on the ebb and flow of the global economy.
Fact: That will not work, it hasn't worked, and it's not good enough!
Fact: We are paying for a war that has cost us almost 500 billion dollars thus far. Over 4,000 American MEN AND WOMEN have died and no one can even estimate the total damage to the Iraqi citizens, including the death toll--innocent people losing life for a cause we can't even get straight.
Fact: We have an enormous deficit--in everyday terms, that means to fund this war we borrow from other countries
Fact: Borrowing money from other countries, while banks are failing and the country you are "at war" with is running on a surplus....bad!
Fact: In March of this year, with the looming of the Bears Stearns collapse, Senator Barack Obama urged the government to look into (i.e. REGULATE) the fundamentals of the Banking and Loan system which is fundamental to our economy.
Fact: Major banks and inverstment companies are not doing so good
Fact: The economy is not so "fundamentally sound"...my friend.
Or we live in two different countries!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keating_5
In 1989, I was a Freshman in high school. I was more concerned with getting money to buy a Tribe Called Quest album, than what was going on in the scandalous political arena.
Over the haze of age, a funny thing happened. The same market is in trouble again, and there is one member of this 19 year-old (thought to be buried) group which ultimately was accused of forcing the deregulation that caused a bank to fail, but then made money on that same bank..... IS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT.
Make NO doubt about it, McCain has admitted, as recent as today, he is a friend of deregulation--all the while companies are blowing up, left-right-all over the place. He calls for a committee to investigate this; while the Republicans are trying to squash the investigation of "Troopergate" der en Alaskee (which I still have so much to say but no time to write on...a wasted breath at this point). A committee to investigate many of my neighbors struggling to pay their mortgage? A committee and bureaucracy to investigate the fact that the price of gas has risen 3 dollars over the past 5 years? Really, an investigation!
NO!
We need action and to make it happen now. We need it immediately. The best we can get is a government that would get off it's tail and handle this economic downfall. And if history is a measure of reality, George Bush will not address these issues the way they need to be addressed....IMMEDIATELY.
When you say the "economy is fundamentally sound" when the unemployment rate is up and climbing, when banks, the government (thus, us) are bailing out other banks, when the price of everything is skyrocketing, while people are losing their homes, while this utter spin of a FUNDAMENTALLY UNSOUND economy is destined to proverbial "trickle down" to the proverbial American pocket book.
Get ready to write the check now.
Fact: McCain's economic plan is the same as George Bush, there should be as little regulation as possible and you must run on the ebb and flow of the global economy.
Fact: That will not work, it hasn't worked, and it's not good enough!
Fact: We are paying for a war that has cost us almost 500 billion dollars thus far. Over 4,000 American MEN AND WOMEN have died and no one can even estimate the total damage to the Iraqi citizens, including the death toll--innocent people losing life for a cause we can't even get straight.
Fact: We have an enormous deficit--in everyday terms, that means to fund this war we borrow from other countries
Fact: Borrowing money from other countries, while banks are failing and the country you are "at war" with is running on a surplus....bad!
Fact: In March of this year, with the looming of the Bears Stearns collapse, Senator Barack Obama urged the government to look into (i.e. REGULATE) the fundamentals of the Banking and Loan system which is fundamental to our economy.
Fact: Major banks and inverstment companies are not doing so good
Fact: The economy is not so "fundamentally sound"...my friend.
Or we live in two different countries!
Coming soon...breaking news, my intellectual outburst, and more visuals...
Those of you who check here regularly here's what coming soon (read as: next time I allow for "Blog time
:*"
A couple new cool videos and why Alan Greenspan said McCain's plan is weak (I actually watched CNBC and...um, ordered a pocket protector) and HOW Ben Bernanke will be a name you know for quite some time (yea, I'm going there...the economy with economics and Federal Reserve Chairmen: Why the Hell Do They Matter?".
(PS: McCain's campaign manager said the economy is fine Americans are overreacting, just fyi...)
:*"
A couple new cool videos and why Alan Greenspan said McCain's plan is weak (I actually watched CNBC and...um, ordered a pocket protector) and HOW Ben Bernanke will be a name you know for quite some time (yea, I'm going there...the economy with economics and Federal Reserve Chairmen: Why the Hell Do They Matter?".
(PS: McCain's campaign manager said the economy is fine Americans are overreacting, just fyi...)
For Barack Obama plan on economic messures to stymie the undertow the economic slip (fall, doom, ah!) please go to http://www.barackobama.com/
Tonight's guest speaker
I've decided to let the candidate speak for himself. This is politics, so obviously what follows is political, but it does have a message. Barack Obama spent almost 15 years as a Constitutional Law professor at University of Chicago. As a professor, I understand how important it is to lay out your plans and make sure you have action or substance behind your words. I am no politician, but if I were, I would do my best to make this country the greatest country in the world. I have already dedicated my life to make my community a better place to live. But my lens is focused on the enormity of what change means for America and proud Amerians and the global world and our future. So I present, Barack Obama (i.e. total quote)
"We have a different way of measuring the fundamentals of our economy. We know that the fundamentals that we use to measure economic strength are whether we are living up to that fundamental promise that has made this country great –that America is a place where you can make it if you try. Americans have always pursued our dreams within a free market that has been the engine of our progress.
It’s a market that has created a prosperity that is the envy of the world, and rewarded the innovators and risk-takers who have made America a beacon of science, and technology, and discovery. But the American economy has worked in large part because we have guided the market’s invisible hand with a higher principle – that America prospers when all Americans can prosper. That is why we have put in place rules of the road to make competition fair, and open, and honest.
Too often, over the last quarter century, we have lost this sense of shared prosperity. And this has not happened by accident. It’s because of decisions made in boardrooms, on trading floors and in Washington. We failed to guard against practices that all too often rewarded financial manipulation instead of productivity and sound business practices. We let the special interests put their thumbs on the economic scales. The result has been a distorted market that creates bubbles instead of steady, sustainable growth; a market that favors Wall Street over Main Street, but ends up hurting both.
Let me be clear: the American economy does not stand still, and neither should the rules that govern it. The evolution of industries often warrants regulatory reform - to foster competition, lower prices, or replace outdated oversight structures. Old institutions cannot adequately oversee new practices. Old rules may not fit the roads where our economy is leading.
But instead of sensible reform that rewarded success and freed the creative forces of the market, too often we’ve excused an ethic of greed, corner-cutting and inside dealing that threatens the long-term stability of our economic system. It happened in the 1980s, when we loosened restrictions on Savings and Loans and appointed regulators who ignored even these weaker rules. Too many S&Ls took advantage of the lax rules set by Washington to gamble that they could make big money in speculative real estate.
Confident of their clout in Washington, they made hundreds of billions in bad loans, knowing that if they lost money, the government would bail them out. And they were right. The gambles did not pay off, our economy went into recession, and the taxpayers ended up footing the bill. Sound familiar? And it has happened again during this decade, in part because of how we deregulated the financial services sector. After we repealed outmoded rules instead of updating them, we were left overseeing 21st century innovation with 20th century regulations.
When subprime mortgage lending took a reckless and unsustainable turn, a patchwork of regulators systematically and deliberately eliminated the regulations protecting the American people and failed to raise warning flags that could have protected investors and the pensions American workers count on.
This was not the invisible hand of the market at work. These cycles of bubble and bust were symptoms of the ideology that my opponent is running to continue. John McCain has spent decades in Washington supporting financial institutions instead of their customers. In fact, one of the biggest proponents of deregulation in the financial sector is Phil Gramm – the same man who helped write John McCain’s economic plan; the same man who said that we’re going through a ‘mental recession’; and the same man who called the United States of America a “nation of whiners.” So it’s hard to understand how Senator McCain is going to get us out of this crisis by doing the same things with the same old players.
Make no mistake: my opponent is running for four more years of policies that will throw the economy further out of balance. His outrage at Wall Street would be more convincing if he wasn’t offering them more tax cuts. His call for fiscal responsibility would be believable if he wasn’t for more tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, and more of a trillion dollar war in Iraq paid for with deficit spending and borrowing from foreign creditors like China. His newfound support for regulation bears no resemblance to his scornful attitude towards oversight and enforcement.
John McCain cannot be trusted to reestablish proper oversight of our financial markets for one simple reason: he has shown time and again that he does not believe in it. What has happened these last eight years is not some historical anomaly, so we know what to expect if we try these policies for another four. When lobbyists run your campaign, the special interests end up gaming the system. When the White House is hostile to any kind of oversight, corporations cut corners and consumers pay the price. When regulators are chosen for their disdain for regulation and we gut their ability to enforce the law, then the interests of the American people are not protected. It’s an ideology that intentionally breeds incompetence in Washington and irresponsibility on Wall Street, and it’s time to turn the page."
and it's not just "talk" as many of the negative pundits say, substance matters as well; therefore, there is a plan (me.)
"Change means a tax code that doesn’t reward the lobbyists who wrote it, but the American workers and small businesses who deserve it. I will stop giving tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, and I will start giving them to companies that create good jobs right here in America. I will eliminate capital gains taxes for small businesses and start-ups – that’s how we’ll grow our economy and create the high-wage, high-tech jobs of tomorrow.
I will cut taxes – cut taxes – for 95% of all working families. My opponent doesn’t want you to know this, but under my plan, tax rates will actually be less than they were under Ronald Reagan. If you make less than $250,000 a year, you will not see your taxes increase one single dime. In fact, I offer three times the tax relief for middle-class families as Senator McCain does – because in an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle-class. I will finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible health care for every single American. If you have health care, my plan will lower your premiums. If you don’t, you’ll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves. And I will stop insurance companies from discriminating against those who are sick and need care the most I will create the jobs of the future by transforming our energy economy.
We’ll tap our natural gas reserves, invest in clean coal technology, and find ways to safely harness nuclear power. I’ll help our auto companies re-tool, so that the fuel-efficient cars of the future are built right here in America. I’ll make it easier for the American people to afford these new cars. And I’ll invest 150 billion dollars over the next decade in affordable, renewable sources of energy – wind power and solar power and the next generation of biofuels; an investment that will lead to new industries and five million new jobs that pay well and can’t ever be outsourced And now is the time to finally meet our moral obligation to provide every child a world-class education, because it will take nothing less to compete in the global economy.
I’ll recruit an army of new teachers, and pay them higher salaries and give them more support. But in exchange, I will ask for higher standards and more accountability. And we will keep our promise to every young American – if you commit to serving your community or your country, we will make sure you can afford a college education. This is the change we need – the kind of bottom up growth and innovation that will advance the American economy by advancing the dreams of all Americans.
Times are hard. I will not pretend that the changes we need will come without cost – though I have presented ways we can achieve these changes in a fiscally responsible way. I know that we'll have to overcome our doubts and divisions and the determined opposition of powerful special interests before we can truly reform a broken economy and advance opportunity.
But I am running for President because we simply cannot afford four more years of an economic philosophy that works for Wall Street instead of Main Street, and ends up devastating both. I don’t want to wake up in four years to find that more Americans fell out of the middle-class, and more families lost their savings. I don’t want to see that our country failed to invest in our ability to compete, our children’s future was mortgaged on another mountain of debt, and our financial markets failed to find a firmer footing.
This time – this election – is our chance to stand up and say: enough is enough!
We can do this because Americans have done this before. Time and again, we’ve battled back from adversity by recognizing that common stake that we have in each other’s success. That’s why our economy hasn’t just been the world’s greatest wealth generator – it’s bound America together, it’s created jobs, and it’s made the dream of opportunity a reality for generation after generation of Americans."
Barack Obama
9/16/08 (i.e.TODAY)
"We have a different way of measuring the fundamentals of our economy. We know that the fundamentals that we use to measure economic strength are whether we are living up to that fundamental promise that has made this country great –that America is a place where you can make it if you try. Americans have always pursued our dreams within a free market that has been the engine of our progress.
It’s a market that has created a prosperity that is the envy of the world, and rewarded the innovators and risk-takers who have made America a beacon of science, and technology, and discovery. But the American economy has worked in large part because we have guided the market’s invisible hand with a higher principle – that America prospers when all Americans can prosper. That is why we have put in place rules of the road to make competition fair, and open, and honest.
Too often, over the last quarter century, we have lost this sense of shared prosperity. And this has not happened by accident. It’s because of decisions made in boardrooms, on trading floors and in Washington. We failed to guard against practices that all too often rewarded financial manipulation instead of productivity and sound business practices. We let the special interests put their thumbs on the economic scales. The result has been a distorted market that creates bubbles instead of steady, sustainable growth; a market that favors Wall Street over Main Street, but ends up hurting both.
Let me be clear: the American economy does not stand still, and neither should the rules that govern it. The evolution of industries often warrants regulatory reform - to foster competition, lower prices, or replace outdated oversight structures. Old institutions cannot adequately oversee new practices. Old rules may not fit the roads where our economy is leading.
But instead of sensible reform that rewarded success and freed the creative forces of the market, too often we’ve excused an ethic of greed, corner-cutting and inside dealing that threatens the long-term stability of our economic system. It happened in the 1980s, when we loosened restrictions on Savings and Loans and appointed regulators who ignored even these weaker rules. Too many S&Ls took advantage of the lax rules set by Washington to gamble that they could make big money in speculative real estate.
Confident of their clout in Washington, they made hundreds of billions in bad loans, knowing that if they lost money, the government would bail them out. And they were right. The gambles did not pay off, our economy went into recession, and the taxpayers ended up footing the bill. Sound familiar? And it has happened again during this decade, in part because of how we deregulated the financial services sector. After we repealed outmoded rules instead of updating them, we were left overseeing 21st century innovation with 20th century regulations.
When subprime mortgage lending took a reckless and unsustainable turn, a patchwork of regulators systematically and deliberately eliminated the regulations protecting the American people and failed to raise warning flags that could have protected investors and the pensions American workers count on.
This was not the invisible hand of the market at work. These cycles of bubble and bust were symptoms of the ideology that my opponent is running to continue. John McCain has spent decades in Washington supporting financial institutions instead of their customers. In fact, one of the biggest proponents of deregulation in the financial sector is Phil Gramm – the same man who helped write John McCain’s economic plan; the same man who said that we’re going through a ‘mental recession’; and the same man who called the United States of America a “nation of whiners.” So it’s hard to understand how Senator McCain is going to get us out of this crisis by doing the same things with the same old players.
Make no mistake: my opponent is running for four more years of policies that will throw the economy further out of balance. His outrage at Wall Street would be more convincing if he wasn’t offering them more tax cuts. His call for fiscal responsibility would be believable if he wasn’t for more tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, and more of a trillion dollar war in Iraq paid for with deficit spending and borrowing from foreign creditors like China. His newfound support for regulation bears no resemblance to his scornful attitude towards oversight and enforcement.
John McCain cannot be trusted to reestablish proper oversight of our financial markets for one simple reason: he has shown time and again that he does not believe in it. What has happened these last eight years is not some historical anomaly, so we know what to expect if we try these policies for another four. When lobbyists run your campaign, the special interests end up gaming the system. When the White House is hostile to any kind of oversight, corporations cut corners and consumers pay the price. When regulators are chosen for their disdain for regulation and we gut their ability to enforce the law, then the interests of the American people are not protected. It’s an ideology that intentionally breeds incompetence in Washington and irresponsibility on Wall Street, and it’s time to turn the page."
and it's not just "talk" as many of the negative pundits say, substance matters as well; therefore, there is a plan (me.)
"Change means a tax code that doesn’t reward the lobbyists who wrote it, but the American workers and small businesses who deserve it. I will stop giving tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, and I will start giving them to companies that create good jobs right here in America. I will eliminate capital gains taxes for small businesses and start-ups – that’s how we’ll grow our economy and create the high-wage, high-tech jobs of tomorrow.
I will cut taxes – cut taxes – for 95% of all working families. My opponent doesn’t want you to know this, but under my plan, tax rates will actually be less than they were under Ronald Reagan. If you make less than $250,000 a year, you will not see your taxes increase one single dime. In fact, I offer three times the tax relief for middle-class families as Senator McCain does – because in an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle-class. I will finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible health care for every single American. If you have health care, my plan will lower your premiums. If you don’t, you’ll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves. And I will stop insurance companies from discriminating against those who are sick and need care the most I will create the jobs of the future by transforming our energy economy.
We’ll tap our natural gas reserves, invest in clean coal technology, and find ways to safely harness nuclear power. I’ll help our auto companies re-tool, so that the fuel-efficient cars of the future are built right here in America. I’ll make it easier for the American people to afford these new cars. And I’ll invest 150 billion dollars over the next decade in affordable, renewable sources of energy – wind power and solar power and the next generation of biofuels; an investment that will lead to new industries and five million new jobs that pay well and can’t ever be outsourced And now is the time to finally meet our moral obligation to provide every child a world-class education, because it will take nothing less to compete in the global economy.
I’ll recruit an army of new teachers, and pay them higher salaries and give them more support. But in exchange, I will ask for higher standards and more accountability. And we will keep our promise to every young American – if you commit to serving your community or your country, we will make sure you can afford a college education. This is the change we need – the kind of bottom up growth and innovation that will advance the American economy by advancing the dreams of all Americans.
Times are hard. I will not pretend that the changes we need will come without cost – though I have presented ways we can achieve these changes in a fiscally responsible way. I know that we'll have to overcome our doubts and divisions and the determined opposition of powerful special interests before we can truly reform a broken economy and advance opportunity.
But I am running for President because we simply cannot afford four more years of an economic philosophy that works for Wall Street instead of Main Street, and ends up devastating both. I don’t want to wake up in four years to find that more Americans fell out of the middle-class, and more families lost their savings. I don’t want to see that our country failed to invest in our ability to compete, our children’s future was mortgaged on another mountain of debt, and our financial markets failed to find a firmer footing.
This time – this election – is our chance to stand up and say: enough is enough!
We can do this because Americans have done this before. Time and again, we’ve battled back from adversity by recognizing that common stake that we have in each other’s success. That’s why our economy hasn’t just been the world’s greatest wealth generator – it’s bound America together, it’s created jobs, and it’s made the dream of opportunity a reality for generation after generation of Americans."
Barack Obama
9/16/08 (i.e.TODAY)
Speechless
I'm speechless, so I will make this brief, but expect a cerebral hemorrhage of a blog within the next few days:
John McCain: today he promised to get back at the "fat cats" who made the economy a mess
His campaign manager:
Rick Davies--former lobbyist for Fannie Mae
Largest corporate donor
Merrill Lynch
The economy, in some interviews he says, is fundamentally sound. Meanwhile, banks are closing. He says he wants to change how things are done in Washington; yet he has been in Washington since 1982? How does that send the message of change my friend?
One of the major spokeswomen for the McCain campaign, his economic strategist, and former head of Hewlett Packard(she was fired by the Board of Directors after she merged HP with Compaq) Carly Fiorina, told a radio program today that she does not think Sarah Palin could run a major 1.2 billion corporation (HP was the example) but she is ready to be Vice-President or President if the opportunity is presented to her?
I'm sorry, I have to let the facts speak for themselves.
I wanted to write on the MYTH that an Obama Presidency would raise taxes (it won't for folks making 250,000 or less), but now I am speechless.
Barack Obama does not need to approve this message because the McCain campaign is doing the job for him...
(for more on Carly Fiorina: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carly_Fiorina)
And I did this without even mentioning the "Troopergate" fiasco....
John McCain: today he promised to get back at the "fat cats" who made the economy a mess
His campaign manager:
Rick Davies--former lobbyist for Fannie Mae
Largest corporate donor
Merrill Lynch
The economy, in some interviews he says, is fundamentally sound. Meanwhile, banks are closing. He says he wants to change how things are done in Washington; yet he has been in Washington since 1982? How does that send the message of change my friend?
One of the major spokeswomen for the McCain campaign, his economic strategist, and former head of Hewlett Packard(she was fired by the Board of Directors after she merged HP with Compaq) Carly Fiorina, told a radio program today that she does not think Sarah Palin could run a major 1.2 billion corporation (HP was the example) but she is ready to be Vice-President or President if the opportunity is presented to her?
I'm sorry, I have to let the facts speak for themselves.
I wanted to write on the MYTH that an Obama Presidency would raise taxes (it won't for folks making 250,000 or less), but now I am speechless.
Barack Obama does not need to approve this message because the McCain campaign is doing the job for him...
(for more on Carly Fiorina: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carly_Fiorina)
And I did this without even mentioning the "Troopergate" fiasco....
Monday, September 15, 2008
It's the economy, is such an UNDERSTATEMENT...
As usual, on my way to bed last night, I double-checked the online news out there to see what the American societal and political outlook will be like when the morning papers are dropped on our doorsteps.
That must have been why my dreams were actually nightmares, and I hardly got a wink of sleep.
Why?
It's not my Palin obsession, nor my MUST DO EVERYTHING TO GET BARACK ELECTED, surge of the past few weeks. That will continue. But what I read last night and confirmed this morning is that we are headed down a very tenuous and possible detrimental economic path and it is getting scarier and scarier each day...
Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, Lehman, Merrill Lynch, and expect more while the stock market plummets, means bail out! bail out! BAIL OUT! And who will that hurt??? Um...those of us who pay taxes of course!
The Neo-Republican message, with Bush/Cheney and McCain/Palin as messengers, has been support privatization because if you screw up the taxpayers got your back. And what makes it even more troubling is that the CEOs and higher ups in these companies are still getting rich, all while people suffer. Common people bail out the top1% richest folks in the world. You don't need to read or be Paul Krugman to figure this out.
THIS IS LASSIEZ FAIRE ECONOMICS GONE ABSOLUTELY WILD--AND WRONG! We will not come out of the Bush presidency knowing what the Bush Doctrine is but we will know what the Bush Economy was....
Most Republicans believe in less government. I agree with them on some levels. However, the government in recent years have blended the lines of government and corporate wealth. We all know that the Bush world is surrounded with former CEOs, major stock holders and some of the richest folks in the land, with many interests overseas. Therefore, the idea of laissez faire-status quo economy (explained simply as leave it go and let it work itself out), is a farce in this administration. AND TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, the current lame duck administration does not have the tools to handle what is going on with our economic crisis, which as numbers are plummeting and unemployment is rising could lead us down the path to Depression. Yes, Depression, as in the economic crisis that happened nearly every other decade during the 19th Century and the hit the world hard in 1930.
I worry of a time when we will return to Hoovervilles and we will be (rightfully so) blaming our leaders for putting the Iraq War first, and let the economy go into utter turmoil. FDR and his New Deal Liberalism (the same liberalism that is dammed now...hmmm wonder why) stepped in to quell the tensions that hit the pockets of American people throughout the land. Classic case of government interference, the antithesis of laissez fair. The constant message that historians write about in 20th century history is how the battle between the Democrat and Republican party has been a tug of war over New Deal liberalism--which was initially expanded by LBJ in the 1960s but was dismantled throughout the 1980s-up until now. And here we are....
New Deal liberalism is over. But maybe it should be reinvented and reshaped to fit the ideal of America today, a 21st century New Deal, for I feel this economic crisis will be with us for sometime. Action needs to happen now, yet our Administration is unfit to handle it. They just are, by the lameness of their "duck" status and by ignoring 8 years of the horrific realities and implications of laissez faire in the new Global economy. Of course, we can't forget (nor forgive)their support of the "fat cats" who are to blame. 2008 will go into history as privitization gone awry.
McCain is going to be addressing the people momentarily to discuss how he plans on changing things. He has been equally in line with the laissez fair status quo policies of the FAILED Administration. He has even stated, then recanted, then stated again, that he does not know much about the "economy," foreign policy is his expertise. Then, John McCain, first, how are YOU going to fix the economy? Secondly, how are you going to thwart the threat of War with Pakistan, esp. since you and your partner Palin are avowed and proud HAWKS?
We need an FDR. We may not get one...but ask yourself. Are you truly better off than you were 8-7-6-5-4- years ago? In the campaign, we have a choice: the record stands between one who supports the Bush economic policy and one who ABSOLUTELY does not. It's too early to call or even pretend to equate Barack Obama to FDR. But knowing McCain, could you even try? I would rather take a chance and go with something different, a new ideal and an economic policy that is laid out in detail on http://www.barackobama.com/ than stick with the lassiez faire economics of the 20th century. We need new terms and new ways of thinking about this new economy. We need to hold those who plundered these corporations and institutions into the mud accountable.
I am no economist. I am a historian, who has a PhD level grasp on 20th century American history. So, this alarms me.
Must give a shout out to a close friend of mine who is a lawyer out there in the corporate world, a voice of the reason, who IMO has a great grasp of the American political and economic landscape. I asked him to "Talk Me Down" to borrow the phrase from Rachel Maddow. It helped, so thanks TB.
BUT I AM STILL REALLY SCARED!
That must have been why my dreams were actually nightmares, and I hardly got a wink of sleep.
Why?
It's not my Palin obsession, nor my MUST DO EVERYTHING TO GET BARACK ELECTED, surge of the past few weeks. That will continue. But what I read last night and confirmed this morning is that we are headed down a very tenuous and possible detrimental economic path and it is getting scarier and scarier each day...
Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, Lehman, Merrill Lynch, and expect more while the stock market plummets, means bail out! bail out! BAIL OUT! And who will that hurt??? Um...those of us who pay taxes of course!
The Neo-Republican message, with Bush/Cheney and McCain/Palin as messengers, has been support privatization because if you screw up the taxpayers got your back. And what makes it even more troubling is that the CEOs and higher ups in these companies are still getting rich, all while people suffer. Common people bail out the top1% richest folks in the world. You don't need to read or be Paul Krugman to figure this out.
THIS IS LASSIEZ FAIRE ECONOMICS GONE ABSOLUTELY WILD--AND WRONG! We will not come out of the Bush presidency knowing what the Bush Doctrine is but we will know what the Bush Economy was....
Most Republicans believe in less government. I agree with them on some levels. However, the government in recent years have blended the lines of government and corporate wealth. We all know that the Bush world is surrounded with former CEOs, major stock holders and some of the richest folks in the land, with many interests overseas. Therefore, the idea of laissez faire-status quo economy (explained simply as leave it go and let it work itself out), is a farce in this administration. AND TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, the current lame duck administration does not have the tools to handle what is going on with our economic crisis, which as numbers are plummeting and unemployment is rising could lead us down the path to Depression. Yes, Depression, as in the economic crisis that happened nearly every other decade during the 19th Century and the hit the world hard in 1930.
I worry of a time when we will return to Hoovervilles and we will be (rightfully so) blaming our leaders for putting the Iraq War first, and let the economy go into utter turmoil. FDR and his New Deal Liberalism (the same liberalism that is dammed now...hmmm wonder why) stepped in to quell the tensions that hit the pockets of American people throughout the land. Classic case of government interference, the antithesis of laissez fair. The constant message that historians write about in 20th century history is how the battle between the Democrat and Republican party has been a tug of war over New Deal liberalism--which was initially expanded by LBJ in the 1960s but was dismantled throughout the 1980s-up until now. And here we are....
New Deal liberalism is over. But maybe it should be reinvented and reshaped to fit the ideal of America today, a 21st century New Deal, for I feel this economic crisis will be with us for sometime. Action needs to happen now, yet our Administration is unfit to handle it. They just are, by the lameness of their "duck" status and by ignoring 8 years of the horrific realities and implications of laissez faire in the new Global economy. Of course, we can't forget (nor forgive)their support of the "fat cats" who are to blame. 2008 will go into history as privitization gone awry.
McCain is going to be addressing the people momentarily to discuss how he plans on changing things. He has been equally in line with the laissez fair status quo policies of the FAILED Administration. He has even stated, then recanted, then stated again, that he does not know much about the "economy," foreign policy is his expertise. Then, John McCain, first, how are YOU going to fix the economy? Secondly, how are you going to thwart the threat of War with Pakistan, esp. since you and your partner Palin are avowed and proud HAWKS?
We need an FDR. We may not get one...but ask yourself. Are you truly better off than you were 8-7-6-5-4- years ago? In the campaign, we have a choice: the record stands between one who supports the Bush economic policy and one who ABSOLUTELY does not. It's too early to call or even pretend to equate Barack Obama to FDR. But knowing McCain, could you even try? I would rather take a chance and go with something different, a new ideal and an economic policy that is laid out in detail on http://www.barackobama.com/ than stick with the lassiez faire economics of the 20th century. We need new terms and new ways of thinking about this new economy. We need to hold those who plundered these corporations and institutions into the mud accountable.
I am no economist. I am a historian, who has a PhD level grasp on 20th century American history. So, this alarms me.
Must give a shout out to a close friend of mine who is a lawyer out there in the corporate world, a voice of the reason, who IMO has a great grasp of the American political and economic landscape. I asked him to "Talk Me Down" to borrow the phrase from Rachel Maddow. It helped, so thanks TB.
BUT I AM STILL REALLY SCARED!
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Make a call, email a friend or donate....whatever you want!
People, it is time to get mobilized. Get out there or stay home in your pjs. It doesn't matter, as long as you spread the word. If you have a friend's dog's cousin that lives in MI, CO, VA, FL (or anyone below the Mason Dixon), NH, VT, MT...talk to their owners. Engage in dialogue, send a button, spread the word via links etc. Let's shock them, who believe in this premise of the Republican ticket, if there is one right now. IT'S THE ECONOMY STUPID!!! And that is no insult to Republicans, who many I know is supporting the Dem ticket for the first time ever! All Republicans are good people! This Republican ticket this time around WILL NOT make good leaders, that is what matters. And this Dem ticket, YES, this time around, will--those looking for the Obama smears..don't you think the wolves have been sent when he battled HILLARY (?), did we just learn about Barack last week?
Those who just can't vote for a Dem or a man with 50 percent of African (that is sooooo 1789) blood, should vote for McCain but please register in a class on ethics, culture, American history, The Great Depression, The 1960s, etc. You can sign up for mine!!
Those who just can't vote for a Dem or a man with 50 percent of African (that is sooooo 1789) blood, should vote for McCain but please register in a class on ethics, culture, American history, The Great Depression, The 1960s, etc. You can sign up for mine!!
Damned if ya do, damned if ya don't--on NY Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/us/politics/14palin.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper&oref=slogin
I read the above article late last night when it first went public. After reading it, shortly before going to bed, circles of ideas ran through my head on how this will be termed "Liberal New York Times" fodder. I knew the RIGHT was going to attack it hard, compare it to People Mag or even worse, the National Enquirer (who, if we remembered is credited with "breaking" the whole John Edwards' affair dealy). I knew all across the land accusations of double-standards, sexism, and misleading journalism would be heard. And they will be....wait...
Damned if ya do, Damned if ya dont...
Many in the media, and even more Obama supporters, have attacked the media for tip-toeing around Ms. Palin's executive experience and personal background. And now, a major public media outlet has published an investigative (their job) report on Pailin's political background and the experience of Alaska since she became a PUBLIC figure. THEY DID IT! But now, after reading quite a few of online responses, I read attacks on the paper that range from "No wonder why you are going bankrupt" to "once again, New York Times panders to the pinkos."
DAMNED IF YA DO, DAMNED IF YOU DON'T.
You will hear it from the McPalin campaign next week, New York Times reporters (who were the actual wolves unleashed in Alaska, this article is proof) are pandering to the left, loosing subscribers, OBAMABOTS, (you know the rest). And this will be for doing it's job, sending investigators in to do research, and cite that research by use of personal interviews, to actual records--i.e. journalism. Journalism is about facts and the Bush III campaign is not; so of course they would disagree. This, to them, is smearing Sarah Palin, the untouchable of all vice president candidates in US history. This who campaign has been about the side of facts (the issues: economy, foriegn policy, health care, support of our military, better education, facing the morgage and energy crises....I could go on....) comprable to LIES, SECRECY, and ULTIMATELY PREDICATED ON THE FACT THAT THE ISSUES DON'T MATTER--NYTimes reporting the turth of "lies" does.
Damned if ya do, Damned if ya don't.
Well listen folks. After reading responses to said article, people from all over the country and out in our global community are coming out and saying FINALLY, SOMEONE DARED TO TOUCH THE UNTOUCHABLE. More people are saying, "Yikes, I thought Cheney was bad," to "Thank you NYTimes for shedding light on the real Palin, her interview disturbed me, but now I know she is not a good choice for the job." Yes, this article will turn more people to the Obama side because all you will hear next week is about the awful reporters from the NYTimes from the Republicans...in the meantime, those who read actual investigative journalism will be on to the party politics and devisive nature of Rovian politics and the McPlain campaign.
Damned if ya do! Damned YOU DID!
So thank you New York Times for daring to "go there." Thank you American people, for not letting the lying take you away from the people. And REPUBLICANS WAKE UP! I watch so many of you defend her and McCain and I wonder if you believe your own spin. (I told my mother I heard so much spin from Rudy Gulianni on MTP this morning that I vomitted.) How can this be supported? How can this be explained? How can this be good for America, all America and Americans, proud of the red, white and true blue? How can you offer us the same politics of the last 8 years and spin it for us to beg for more?
From the 120 comments I read, maybe ten of them slandered the Times on their "Marxist" reporting. More and more people are catching on.
For more on double standards and the "damned if ya do, NOT THIS TIME!" aspect of this campaign, please see my post from Sept. 12 on Spin is Dangerous to Democracy on maderaedwards.blogspot.com
Change is a necessity and as more and more is unconvered there is only one option for change.
I knew that all along....
And now, back to football!!!
I read the above article late last night when it first went public. After reading it, shortly before going to bed, circles of ideas ran through my head on how this will be termed "Liberal New York Times" fodder. I knew the RIGHT was going to attack it hard, compare it to People Mag or even worse, the National Enquirer (who, if we remembered is credited with "breaking" the whole John Edwards' affair dealy). I knew all across the land accusations of double-standards, sexism, and misleading journalism would be heard. And they will be....wait...
Damned if ya do, Damned if ya dont...
Many in the media, and even more Obama supporters, have attacked the media for tip-toeing around Ms. Palin's executive experience and personal background. And now, a major public media outlet has published an investigative (their job) report on Pailin's political background and the experience of Alaska since she became a PUBLIC figure. THEY DID IT! But now, after reading quite a few of online responses, I read attacks on the paper that range from "No wonder why you are going bankrupt" to "once again, New York Times panders to the pinkos."
DAMNED IF YA DO, DAMNED IF YOU DON'T.
You will hear it from the McPalin campaign next week, New York Times reporters (who were the actual wolves unleashed in Alaska, this article is proof) are pandering to the left, loosing subscribers, OBAMABOTS, (you know the rest). And this will be for doing it's job, sending investigators in to do research, and cite that research by use of personal interviews, to actual records--i.e. journalism. Journalism is about facts and the Bush III campaign is not; so of course they would disagree. This, to them, is smearing Sarah Palin, the untouchable of all vice president candidates in US history. This who campaign has been about the side of facts (the issues: economy, foriegn policy, health care, support of our military, better education, facing the morgage and energy crises....I could go on....) comprable to LIES, SECRECY, and ULTIMATELY PREDICATED ON THE FACT THAT THE ISSUES DON'T MATTER--NYTimes reporting the turth of "lies" does.
Damned if ya do, Damned if ya don't.
Well listen folks. After reading responses to said article, people from all over the country and out in our global community are coming out and saying FINALLY, SOMEONE DARED TO TOUCH THE UNTOUCHABLE. More people are saying, "Yikes, I thought Cheney was bad," to "Thank you NYTimes for shedding light on the real Palin, her interview disturbed me, but now I know she is not a good choice for the job." Yes, this article will turn more people to the Obama side because all you will hear next week is about the awful reporters from the NYTimes from the Republicans...in the meantime, those who read actual investigative journalism will be on to the party politics and devisive nature of Rovian politics and the McPlain campaign.
Damned if ya do! Damned YOU DID!
So thank you New York Times for daring to "go there." Thank you American people, for not letting the lying take you away from the people. And REPUBLICANS WAKE UP! I watch so many of you defend her and McCain and I wonder if you believe your own spin. (I told my mother I heard so much spin from Rudy Gulianni on MTP this morning that I vomitted.) How can this be supported? How can this be explained? How can this be good for America, all America and Americans, proud of the red, white and true blue? How can you offer us the same politics of the last 8 years and spin it for us to beg for more?
From the 120 comments I read, maybe ten of them slandered the Times on their "Marxist" reporting. More and more people are catching on.
For more on double standards and the "damned if ya do, NOT THIS TIME!" aspect of this campaign, please see my post from Sept. 12 on Spin is Dangerous to Democracy on maderaedwards.blogspot.com
Change is a necessity and as more and more is unconvered there is only one option for change.
I knew that all along....
And now, back to football!!!
Saturday, September 13, 2008
The Plan of Change--
http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/ObamaBlueprintForChange.pdf
This is Barack Obama's plan for America. Another source that may be useful for the folks who are still in doubt.
This is Barack Obama's plan for America. Another source that may be useful for the folks who are still in doubt.
For the more visual inclined....straight talk?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH0xzsogzAk
http://therealmccain.com/squad/?utm_source=rgemail
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEtZlR3zp4c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lh-T2iGkLJY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioy90nF2anI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFeimMY8hoo
Send these out of do what you want but this election is about winning the Presidency and it is John McCain, the Presidential nominee, who bases his campaign on "straight talk." NO! It's pure double sideways stripped down reinvented unbelievable hypocritical TALK.
This is not sport, it's politics.
Enjoy....
http://therealmccain.com/squad/?utm_source=rgemail
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEtZlR3zp4c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lh-T2iGkLJY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioy90nF2anI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFeimMY8hoo
Send these out of do what you want but this election is about winning the Presidency and it is John McCain, the Presidential nominee, who bases his campaign on "straight talk." NO! It's pure double sideways stripped down reinvented unbelievable hypocritical TALK.
This is not sport, it's politics.
Enjoy....
Culture War 2008
A Culture War fundatmental:
Pit individual groups of people, based on their race, religion or gender, against each other. Use that tension to distract people away from issues.
Are you a soldier in this war?
Pit individual groups of people, based on their race, religion or gender, against each other. Use that tension to distract people away from issues.
Are you a soldier in this war?
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