Hey there and welcome to Monday. Thanks for stopping in and visiting my little corner of the internet. There is some coffee in the pot and feel free to pull up a chair. We talk about what ever comes to mind around here. On some days that might mean a robust debate about politics on others it may mean a friendly disagreement about what might be the top 10 films of all time.
I like it that way and I hope you do as well. I really like having the flexibility to talk about whatever I have found interesting and what I would like to bring to peoples attention. That being said I do not have really anything right now that has got me fired up.
The primary elections for Oregon are finishing up this week and we will see who the two major parties are going to put up for Gov. I think that for the Republicans it is going to be Chris Dudley and for the Democrats it is going to be John Kitzhaber.
With that being said. I am well aware that Kitzhaber is a returning Gov and a favorite to win the election. But, I wonder if the unrest and dissatisfaction that voters are feeling are going to translate to a Dudley win. I think that most Oregon voters have good memories of when Kitzhaber was in office last time and think that he will be able to lead Oregon back to those good times.
Dudley on the other hand is in a good position as an outsider with ties to Oregon due to his basketball time that people like as well. He may very well be able to ride the Tea Party wave to victory.
So, for sake of argument lets say that for the first time in 30+ years Oregon gets a Republican Gov. Well that change anything in the state? I think it may a little bit. But unless the election of a Republican Gov cause there also to be sweeping change in Oregon's Legislature I do not think thinks will be all that different in the state. I am going to wait and see on this one.
I think I would like to see Dudley win. I would like that because I would like things to be shaken up a little bit in Oregon. I do not have super high hopes that were he to win Dudley would do that. I think at best he will be a centrist and will do things like all the other politicians do them. It isn't that I want there to be a huge amount of political drama in Oregon but I like it when Oregon pushes the Federal Government on things. I love when we as a state exert our right to govern ourselves.
I like Federalism and I like when Oregon tells the Federal Government to mind their own business. That doesn't matter to me if it is a Republican or Democratic Fed. I think states should be free to do whatever crazy thing it's residents want to. If people do not like it then they are free to move to a different state or work to change things within the state.
So...enough rambling what are your thought precious readers on states rights?
Showing posts with label Republicans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Republicans. Show all posts
Monday, May 17, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
5-10-2010 (Monday)
Hey, I hope you all had a good weekend. I am not feeling particularly inspired this morning.
There was an interesting development in Utah over the weekend in that a GOP senator who was the incumbent lost his primary. What that means is that he is not going to be able to run for office. He could run as a write in candidate but he will not be nominated by the GOP party.
Most analysts think that he basically got politically assassinated by the more conservative Tea Party people in the state. I am not sure what it means. But I do find it very interesting that an incumbent is getting knocked around by his own party. This does not happen often and makes me wonder what this next election cycle is going to look like nationwide. I think it could go one of two ways. I think either the Democrats will end up stronger as the GOP eats itself with all the in-fighting. The end result might mean that the Republican party the GOP ceases to exist in a few years. Or that all of the dissatisfaction with President Obama causes the GOP to become even stronger and the final two years of President Obama's term becomes one where absolutely nothing gets done in Washington. So, there you have it my predictions for the future.
Also the President nominated another Supreme Court Justice. I just do not really care. We have had conversations on the blog before about my feelings about the Supreme Court. I do not like them. I do not like the institution and I do not like that they are appointed for life. I think that they are a completely undemocratic institution in America and they do not benefit us as a country. If you disagree that is fine and I would love to have a conversation about that as well. It isn't that I do not think they are needed. I just do not think they should be appointed to serve for a lifetime. That bothers me.
That is all. Good day sir!!
There was an interesting development in Utah over the weekend in that a GOP senator who was the incumbent lost his primary. What that means is that he is not going to be able to run for office. He could run as a write in candidate but he will not be nominated by the GOP party.
Most analysts think that he basically got politically assassinated by the more conservative Tea Party people in the state. I am not sure what it means. But I do find it very interesting that an incumbent is getting knocked around by his own party. This does not happen often and makes me wonder what this next election cycle is going to look like nationwide. I think it could go one of two ways. I think either the Democrats will end up stronger as the GOP eats itself with all the in-fighting. The end result might mean that the Republican party the GOP ceases to exist in a few years. Or that all of the dissatisfaction with President Obama causes the GOP to become even stronger and the final two years of President Obama's term becomes one where absolutely nothing gets done in Washington. So, there you have it my predictions for the future.
Also the President nominated another Supreme Court Justice. I just do not really care. We have had conversations on the blog before about my feelings about the Supreme Court. I do not like them. I do not like the institution and I do not like that they are appointed for life. I think that they are a completely undemocratic institution in America and they do not benefit us as a country. If you disagree that is fine and I would love to have a conversation about that as well. It isn't that I do not think they are needed. I just do not think they should be appointed to serve for a lifetime. That bothers me.
That is all. Good day sir!!
Monday, March 29, 2010
3-29-2010 (Monday)
Happy Monday to my loyal readers. It is a wet one out there today. But the drive went pretty smoothly and I am starting to feel even more comfortable driving the new car. It really seems to handle the wet roads well and I only hit one possible hydro-plane spot which is a record. Because in the old car I was always feeling like I was on the verge of spinning out of control. To the extent that drives in the rain like this morning were almost white knuckle experiences and made we want to pull over and just wait it out.
Today on the way up to work they played a clip on the radio from a protest that took place in Nevada this weekend. It was a "Tea Party" protest directed at Harry Reid and put together by The Tea Party Express. It was an interesting piece because while it was on National Public Radio (NPR) it really seemed to be just about letting the people who were attending the event tell why they were there. Now for me. Even if I do not agree with what the people are saying. I think that far to often when it comes to news be it on television or the radio. That far to often we hear the opinion of the broadcaster or commentator rather then the reasons why the people are there from the people themselves. I find hearing from the people to be both far more interesting and more enlightening because you get a better idea as to what the common man is thinking.
I realize we are in a representative democracy and since we are it sometimes doesn't seem to matter what the common man is thinking. But, it sure feels like at any given time at least 50% of the country or a little bit more feels like they are not being heard. It is interesting to me because I remember during the last couple of years of the Bush administration, or even longer for me, I knew lots of people that felt like they were not being listened to. What has me a little bit bothered about this whole Tea Party movement is that it just feels so organized and any kind of dissatisfaction before was not so organized.
Now, that may just say more about the conservative versus the liberals and which group is better at really getting together and organizing a movement. There is also a more centralizing voice I feel for the conservatives in terms of both Fox News as well as talk radio. Now some would argue that the whole of mainstream media is a liberal strength. I would say that, while it may be true there is not a centralized voice for the liberals. They tried that with the whole Air America thing and it failed. I am not sure what that says about liberals but you would think that they could have supported a radio station that catered solely to their political positions. I realize that there are more complicated issues as well here and some are going to argue that MSNBC meets the need for liberal news. But, I think people are so varied in there positions that to try to direct a group of liberals is really a little bit like herding cats.
That is my two cents. Take it for what it is worth. I am also starting to get interested in what court cases are going to be popping up as this whole health care thing begins to build. I know that there are already several states that have filed suit or will file suits against the mandatory nature of the bill. I am awaiting with interest the end result of these suits and I think that they may do more for states rights then anything else in the last 100 years. So I hope things will grow more interesting as we move further into the future.
Today on the way up to work they played a clip on the radio from a protest that took place in Nevada this weekend. It was a "Tea Party" protest directed at Harry Reid and put together by The Tea Party Express. It was an interesting piece because while it was on National Public Radio (NPR) it really seemed to be just about letting the people who were attending the event tell why they were there. Now for me. Even if I do not agree with what the people are saying. I think that far to often when it comes to news be it on television or the radio. That far to often we hear the opinion of the broadcaster or commentator rather then the reasons why the people are there from the people themselves. I find hearing from the people to be both far more interesting and more enlightening because you get a better idea as to what the common man is thinking.
I realize we are in a representative democracy and since we are it sometimes doesn't seem to matter what the common man is thinking. But, it sure feels like at any given time at least 50% of the country or a little bit more feels like they are not being heard. It is interesting to me because I remember during the last couple of years of the Bush administration, or even longer for me, I knew lots of people that felt like they were not being listened to. What has me a little bit bothered about this whole Tea Party movement is that it just feels so organized and any kind of dissatisfaction before was not so organized.
Now, that may just say more about the conservative versus the liberals and which group is better at really getting together and organizing a movement. There is also a more centralizing voice I feel for the conservatives in terms of both Fox News as well as talk radio. Now some would argue that the whole of mainstream media is a liberal strength. I would say that, while it may be true there is not a centralized voice for the liberals. They tried that with the whole Air America thing and it failed. I am not sure what that says about liberals but you would think that they could have supported a radio station that catered solely to their political positions. I realize that there are more complicated issues as well here and some are going to argue that MSNBC meets the need for liberal news. But, I think people are so varied in there positions that to try to direct a group of liberals is really a little bit like herding cats.
That is my two cents. Take it for what it is worth. I am also starting to get interested in what court cases are going to be popping up as this whole health care thing begins to build. I know that there are already several states that have filed suit or will file suits against the mandatory nature of the bill. I am awaiting with interest the end result of these suits and I think that they may do more for states rights then anything else in the last 100 years. So I hope things will grow more interesting as we move further into the future.
Friday, March 12, 2010
3-12-2010 (Friday)
Good morning again folks. Today I wanted draw your attention to a little quiz that I recently took online. It is only 10 multiple choice questions. The Nolan Quiz So give it a go if you like and please return and share your results with me.
In the spirit of facts and truths I took the quiz and I ended up pretty much where I thought I would. I am a centrist and I lean to the liberal according to the chart. I am close to that line but I didn't cross over. I am not saying that my result was the correct result by any means. I would just like to see where a few of my readers fall. But, this is not a perfect quiz by any means. It is very and I say very heavily weighted toward the Libertarian side of things. The choices for answers are not very nuanced at all but it is interesting and seemed pretty accurate at least in my result anyway. So please check it out and stop back by and let me know how you did.
In the spirit of facts and truths I took the quiz and I ended up pretty much where I thought I would. I am a centrist and I lean to the liberal according to the chart. I am close to that line but I didn't cross over. I am not saying that my result was the correct result by any means. I would just like to see where a few of my readers fall. But, this is not a perfect quiz by any means. It is very and I say very heavily weighted toward the Libertarian side of things. The choices for answers are not very nuanced at all but it is interesting and seemed pretty accurate at least in my result anyway. So please check it out and stop back by and let me know how you did.
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
3--9-2010 (Tuesday)
Well, here we are it is Tuesday morning and today is the last day for people to file in Oregon if they are going to run for office. It may be an interesting day but I am not sure. I was going to write some more about the upcoming elections in Oregon but I honestly am not all that interested in it. I will be shocked and amazed if a Republican were to win. I will be even more shocked and amazed of a third party candidate even gets any recognition in this state at all. I think the reality is that Oregon is basically a Democratic state. Or at least the population centers in the state are and until we start counting votes in a different way that is not going to change.
Now, understand me, I am not taking a pro or con on that position. I just think that is the case. The thing that may benefit the Republicans in this upcoming election is if maybe Chris Dudley can be thought of as some sort of political newcomer and can pick up some of the moderate and independent voters. They took a straw poll this weekend at Dorchester, the big Oregon Republican conference in Seaside, and Allen Alley won. I honestly am not sure what that means. I do not think Alley is going to be able to pull a moderate vote and I believe the majority of the people that attend an event like Dorchester are the pretty hard core true believers.
On the Democrats side I do not think anyone they are putting up in the primaries is going to beat Kitzhaber. While it is true that Bill Bradbury is making some noise I just do not see him actually toppling the Kitz. Also on a personal note Bradbury is not a friend of the work I do. He never has been and if he becomes governor he will most likely hurt the system in Oregon. I believe and believed even when I did not work in the process that the petition system is part of what makes Oregon special and lets the voters have a say now and then. Oh sure there are problems much like in any system but even at it's worst it still comes down to a vote and that is a good thing.
That is about all for today folks. Have a good one.
Now, understand me, I am not taking a pro or con on that position. I just think that is the case. The thing that may benefit the Republicans in this upcoming election is if maybe Chris Dudley can be thought of as some sort of political newcomer and can pick up some of the moderate and independent voters. They took a straw poll this weekend at Dorchester, the big Oregon Republican conference in Seaside, and Allen Alley won. I honestly am not sure what that means. I do not think Alley is going to be able to pull a moderate vote and I believe the majority of the people that attend an event like Dorchester are the pretty hard core true believers.
On the Democrats side I do not think anyone they are putting up in the primaries is going to beat Kitzhaber. While it is true that Bill Bradbury is making some noise I just do not see him actually toppling the Kitz. Also on a personal note Bradbury is not a friend of the work I do. He never has been and if he becomes governor he will most likely hurt the system in Oregon. I believe and believed even when I did not work in the process that the petition system is part of what makes Oregon special and lets the voters have a say now and then. Oh sure there are problems much like in any system but even at it's worst it still comes down to a vote and that is a good thing.
That is about all for today folks. Have a good one.
Monday, February 22, 2010
2-22-10 (Monday)
Good morning and a happy Monday to you folks. We had a sunny weekend in Oregon and it seems to be nice today as well. So that is a good start to the week. Now anyone who reads me at all regularly knows that I do not care for Glenn Beck. I disagree with most of his positions on things and I think that his understanding of history and how that impacts America today is incorrect. I think he has good intentions but I think the way he goes about trying to get is message across is not beneficial to the process. But as he was addressing the CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) he said one thing that I had to agree with.
Beck said:
“It’s not enough to not suck as much as the other side,” said Beck, on how Republicans can regain their ideals. “The first step to redemption is admitting you have a problem. … When they do say they have a problem, I don’t know if I believe them. … They’ve got to recognize they have a problem. … ‘I’m addicted to spending and big government.’”…
Beck went on to compare GOPers to Tiger Woods, who recently gave his first public apology for his cheating scandal. Beck said some people believed he was only sorry because he got caught. Beck, to GOPers in Congress: “You got caught. Are you sorry?”…
More Beck: “One party will tax and spend. The other party won’t tax, but spend. It’s both of them together. I’m tired of feeling like a freak in America.”
It was refreshing for me to hear someone from FOX News actually say that. I think anyone who has looked at or studied politics of the last twenty years realizes that it is incorrect and wrong to blame the countries economic problems on just the Democrats and President Obama. The idea of the federal government spending more and more and taking away the power from the states of the union has been going on for a long time. I often hear Republicans and Conservatives of today praising Reagan but in reality he grew federal government as much as his predecessors did. He was not the fiscal conservative that Republican historical revisionist historians want us to think he was. I am not saying he was a bad President but I would like for both Republicans and Democrats to be honest about things when they discuss past politicians.
All of that aside it was refreshing for me to hear what Beck said. I just hope the young conservatives that were at this conference actually took that to heart. Because he is right it isn't enough to point a finger at the other guy and say that they are bad and we are correct and continue to vote no on everything without coming forward with solutions. The reason that the majority of these Democrats are in office is because the voters were fed up with what was going on during the last Bush administration. The voters voted out the Republicans and the only other choice available to them in this horrible two party system of ours was the Democrats. Well the Democrats just basically said thank you very much and continued with business as usual. Now it seems that the voters are growing fed up with the Democrats and are going to vote them out of office and put back in the Republicans. I just hope the Republicans actually understand that this is not a mandate from the voter for them to do whatever the hell they want to do. It is a mandate for the other guy the only other choice there is.
So you heard a rare thing from me today. You heard me acknowledge that something Glenn Beck said I agree with. I do not know if that will happen much in the future but you never know.
Beck said:
“It’s not enough to not suck as much as the other side,” said Beck, on how Republicans can regain their ideals. “The first step to redemption is admitting you have a problem. … When they do say they have a problem, I don’t know if I believe them. … They’ve got to recognize they have a problem. … ‘I’m addicted to spending and big government.’”…
Beck went on to compare GOPers to Tiger Woods, who recently gave his first public apology for his cheating scandal. Beck said some people believed he was only sorry because he got caught. Beck, to GOPers in Congress: “You got caught. Are you sorry?”…
More Beck: “One party will tax and spend. The other party won’t tax, but spend. It’s both of them together. I’m tired of feeling like a freak in America.”
It was refreshing for me to hear someone from FOX News actually say that. I think anyone who has looked at or studied politics of the last twenty years realizes that it is incorrect and wrong to blame the countries economic problems on just the Democrats and President Obama. The idea of the federal government spending more and more and taking away the power from the states of the union has been going on for a long time. I often hear Republicans and Conservatives of today praising Reagan but in reality he grew federal government as much as his predecessors did. He was not the fiscal conservative that Republican historical revisionist historians want us to think he was. I am not saying he was a bad President but I would like for both Republicans and Democrats to be honest about things when they discuss past politicians.
All of that aside it was refreshing for me to hear what Beck said. I just hope the young conservatives that were at this conference actually took that to heart. Because he is right it isn't enough to point a finger at the other guy and say that they are bad and we are correct and continue to vote no on everything without coming forward with solutions. The reason that the majority of these Democrats are in office is because the voters were fed up with what was going on during the last Bush administration. The voters voted out the Republicans and the only other choice available to them in this horrible two party system of ours was the Democrats. Well the Democrats just basically said thank you very much and continued with business as usual. Now it seems that the voters are growing fed up with the Democrats and are going to vote them out of office and put back in the Republicans. I just hope the Republicans actually understand that this is not a mandate from the voter for them to do whatever the hell they want to do. It is a mandate for the other guy the only other choice there is.
So you heard a rare thing from me today. You heard me acknowledge that something Glenn Beck said I agree with. I do not know if that will happen much in the future but you never know.
Monday, February 15, 2010
2-15-2010 (Presidents Day)
Good morning everyone. I feel like I have emerged from the gloom that was possessing me last night. I hope my posting wasn't to depressing for you. I also would like to apologize for the video I posted. When I get gloomy I often find that music works for me to get my feelings out but choosing 'Mad World' as much as I like the song was just plain melodramatic. That being said I hope at least some of you got to hear a song you had never heard before.
Today is two things both Presidents Day and the day that we observe Washington's Birthday. According to Patriotism.org
"This holiday is often called President’s day as well, though the official name is Washington’s Birthday. This federal holiday is celebrated each year on the third Monday of February, though it was originally celebrated on Washington’s actual birthday of February 22nd.
It’s the first federal holiday to recognize an American citizen and was enacted in 1880 as a holiday for the District of Columbia only. In 1885 it was named a federal holiday for all federal offices in the U.S. It wasn’t until 1976 that Washington’s Birthday was moved to the third Monday of February in an attempt to establish it more along the lines of President’s Day to also honor Abraham Lincoln who was born on February 12th. Though the change in day passed the change in name did not.
Currently 12 states have renamed Washington’s Birthday, President’s Day or a similar variation to honor all of the U.S. presidents. In Massachusetts the holiday focuses on honoring presidents from that state and a few other states have passed similar holidays as well."
I am glad that we honor the men who have run are country over the years. I think that even if you do not like all of the decisions that a particular President has made we should all be able to agree that it is a hard job and, I think, a thankless one. I myself would not want to be President at all. When I think about the abuse that the President takes it is pretty upsetting to me at times. And by this I mean all Presidents not just the current one. The President is second guessed at every turn. There always seems to be someone who thinks they know better then the President and in this day and age of the Internet these people have more opportunity then ever before to express that opinion. I am often more guilty of it then most as I step up on my blogging stump and throw my opinion out on the tube of the Internets.
I do not think this should change. One of the great joys of living in a relatively Democratic society is that I am free to put my opinion out there. I am free to write or say pretty much any crazy thing I want to without fear of reprisal. That is a great thing. Yes I am aware that we are living in a Representative Republic and not a true Athenian Democracy. But, honestly, in some ways I actually prefer this model. I say that even though I disagree with what my elected Representatives often do. I think the sheer size of the United States would make true Democracy a really messy, messy experience.
Though that does make me wonder that if what kept purely at a individual state level what it would be like. I know it would be messy and everything but I wonder if it would be a manageable mess. Then each state would just send one representative to Congress and they would kind of stream line issues. Hmmmmm, I realize this is an idea that would need lots and lots of work and I am sure there are all kinds of problems with it. But, it intrigues me. I may have to do some thinking about this one and get back to it later.
All of that being said and all of my rambling aside. Please take a moment today and be thankful for our past Presidents and present as well as future Presidents and at least acknowledge the hard job they have done. It is a job that frankly I would not want to do and I think most of you wouldn't want to either.
Today is two things both Presidents Day and the day that we observe Washington's Birthday. According to Patriotism.org
"This holiday is often called President’s day as well, though the official name is Washington’s Birthday. This federal holiday is celebrated each year on the third Monday of February, though it was originally celebrated on Washington’s actual birthday of February 22nd.
It’s the first federal holiday to recognize an American citizen and was enacted in 1880 as a holiday for the District of Columbia only. In 1885 it was named a federal holiday for all federal offices in the U.S. It wasn’t until 1976 that Washington’s Birthday was moved to the third Monday of February in an attempt to establish it more along the lines of President’s Day to also honor Abraham Lincoln who was born on February 12th. Though the change in day passed the change in name did not.
Currently 12 states have renamed Washington’s Birthday, President’s Day or a similar variation to honor all of the U.S. presidents. In Massachusetts the holiday focuses on honoring presidents from that state and a few other states have passed similar holidays as well."
I am glad that we honor the men who have run are country over the years. I think that even if you do not like all of the decisions that a particular President has made we should all be able to agree that it is a hard job and, I think, a thankless one. I myself would not want to be President at all. When I think about the abuse that the President takes it is pretty upsetting to me at times. And by this I mean all Presidents not just the current one. The President is second guessed at every turn. There always seems to be someone who thinks they know better then the President and in this day and age of the Internet these people have more opportunity then ever before to express that opinion. I am often more guilty of it then most as I step up on my blogging stump and throw my opinion out on the tube of the Internets.
I do not think this should change. One of the great joys of living in a relatively Democratic society is that I am free to put my opinion out there. I am free to write or say pretty much any crazy thing I want to without fear of reprisal. That is a great thing. Yes I am aware that we are living in a Representative Republic and not a true Athenian Democracy. But, honestly, in some ways I actually prefer this model. I say that even though I disagree with what my elected Representatives often do. I think the sheer size of the United States would make true Democracy a really messy, messy experience.
Though that does make me wonder that if what kept purely at a individual state level what it would be like. I know it would be messy and everything but I wonder if it would be a manageable mess. Then each state would just send one representative to Congress and they would kind of stream line issues. Hmmmmm, I realize this is an idea that would need lots and lots of work and I am sure there are all kinds of problems with it. But, it intrigues me. I may have to do some thinking about this one and get back to it later.
All of that being said and all of my rambling aside. Please take a moment today and be thankful for our past Presidents and present as well as future Presidents and at least acknowledge the hard job they have done. It is a job that frankly I would not want to do and I think most of you wouldn't want to either.
Monday, February 01, 2010
2-1-10 (Monday)
Well here we are Monday morning Feb 1st. I hope you all had a good weekend. While mine was by and large uneventful I would say that the most eventful thing I did was to finally stop working at the church. Now, those of you who read this blog and know me in meat space are all well aware of how long I have worked at the church on and off over the last I would say nearly 20 years. I was not a pastor or any kind of officiate there. I used to call myself a church sexton But I was really just a custodian. I grew up going to that church. My parents had been missionaries in Indonesia coming out of there and I went with them. In fact I lived in Indonesia for basically the first three years of my life and when we returned to the states I spoke better Indonesian then I did English.
I grew up going to the church and being involved and once I got out of high school and after spending some time working in a few different movie theaters I ended up working at the church. I enjoyed it there but it also was a place that allowed me to be lazy and to not move forward or to pursue things that I might have had I not had that safety net to fall back into. It isn't the church's fault it was my own doing. Basically a mix of fear and a desire to be comfortable kind of locked me into place. Well! I have already written more about this then I intended to. I guess it was more of a big deal then I thought it was or wanted to admit. I guess that is what happens when I write without the filters in place. I hope people didn't mind a little bit of the old autobiographical this morning.
On to the politics....................I read an interesting quote by Gore Vidal this morning,
"“It makes no difference who you vote for — the two parties are really one party representing four percent of the people.”
I am not sure when he said it but it really rings true for me today the Monday after President Obamas state of the union address. Because we have a two-party system, the only choice people have if they don’t like what’s happening is to vote for the other guy, even if the other guy is largely responsible for what’s happening, and the guy that’s in there now is in there because of the other guy’s mistakes.
People are angry at deficits, largely run up by the irresponsibility of the Bush administration, and topped off by Obama. They’re angry that the bankers who got us in this mess are making millions . Thanks mainly to deregulation promoted primarily by Republicans (but signed off on by Clinton). They’re angry about jobs, but there would be a lot more of them if the stimulus package had been larger, which would have increased the deficit, which they are angry about. They are angry that Washington seems totally controlled by special interests, so they’re going to vote for the party that loves special interests at least as much as the party in power now. They’re angry at the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which were started by the party they just voted out a year ago. They are angry that President Obama has accomplished so little of his agenda, so they’re going to vote for the party that has unanimously opposed every single aspect of it.
I have said it before and I will say it again. The two party system is a failure in America. There is no real difference. The agenda they both seem to have is to look for themselves and not for the good of the American people. The Democrats in Congress have proven that with their actions over the last few years. It was interesting to see the populace rise up in anger and shake their collective fist at the Republicans a few years ago and pretty much sweep them out of Congress. Oh the Democrats cheered. "It is a mandate from the people." they said. What is was was a mandate for these guys stink and we have no other option. Sure the Democrats said they would be different...they haven't been. So few years have passed and nothing has changed and surprise, surprise, surprise people are angry. Throw those bums out they are yelling. We will replace them with the same kind of bums we threw out before and then we will act surprised when they screw us.
WAKE UP PEOPLE!! The system is broken and the Tea Party pipe dream is not going to fix it. Keith Olberman and his Olbermaniacs are not going to fix it. Glenn Beck is not going to fix it. There needs to be! There must be viable third party candidates that are willing to listen to the needs of the populace and not the needs of the business as usual crowd. I hope one day true change will come in America but I am not holding my breath.
I grew up going to the church and being involved and once I got out of high school and after spending some time working in a few different movie theaters I ended up working at the church. I enjoyed it there but it also was a place that allowed me to be lazy and to not move forward or to pursue things that I might have had I not had that safety net to fall back into. It isn't the church's fault it was my own doing. Basically a mix of fear and a desire to be comfortable kind of locked me into place. Well! I have already written more about this then I intended to. I guess it was more of a big deal then I thought it was or wanted to admit. I guess that is what happens when I write without the filters in place. I hope people didn't mind a little bit of the old autobiographical this morning.
On to the politics....................I read an interesting quote by Gore Vidal this morning,
"“It makes no difference who you vote for — the two parties are really one party representing four percent of the people.”
I am not sure when he said it but it really rings true for me today the Monday after President Obamas state of the union address. Because we have a two-party system, the only choice people have if they don’t like what’s happening is to vote for the other guy, even if the other guy is largely responsible for what’s happening, and the guy that’s in there now is in there because of the other guy’s mistakes.
People are angry at deficits, largely run up by the irresponsibility of the Bush administration, and topped off by Obama. They’re angry that the bankers who got us in this mess are making millions . Thanks mainly to deregulation promoted primarily by Republicans (but signed off on by Clinton). They’re angry about jobs, but there would be a lot more of them if the stimulus package had been larger, which would have increased the deficit, which they are angry about. They are angry that Washington seems totally controlled by special interests, so they’re going to vote for the party that loves special interests at least as much as the party in power now. They’re angry at the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which were started by the party they just voted out a year ago. They are angry that President Obama has accomplished so little of his agenda, so they’re going to vote for the party that has unanimously opposed every single aspect of it.
I have said it before and I will say it again. The two party system is a failure in America. There is no real difference. The agenda they both seem to have is to look for themselves and not for the good of the American people. The Democrats in Congress have proven that with their actions over the last few years. It was interesting to see the populace rise up in anger and shake their collective fist at the Republicans a few years ago and pretty much sweep them out of Congress. Oh the Democrats cheered. "It is a mandate from the people." they said. What is was was a mandate for these guys stink and we have no other option. Sure the Democrats said they would be different...they haven't been. So few years have passed and nothing has changed and surprise, surprise, surprise people are angry. Throw those bums out they are yelling. We will replace them with the same kind of bums we threw out before and then we will act surprised when they screw us.
WAKE UP PEOPLE!! The system is broken and the Tea Party pipe dream is not going to fix it. Keith Olberman and his Olbermaniacs are not going to fix it. Glenn Beck is not going to fix it. There needs to be! There must be viable third party candidates that are willing to listen to the needs of the populace and not the needs of the business as usual crowd. I hope one day true change will come in America but I am not holding my breath.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
1-20-10 (Wednesday)
Well, well, well and interesting turn of events in Massachusetts last night. The Internet is a buzz this morning as was Facebook last night with all of the usual suspects taking their usual sides and being all excited about something that they think is going to change everything.
I say phooey! I say nothing is going to change and that in the end this whole thing is just going to be business as usual for the people that really run this country. Oh sure the right is all fired up. The Tea pot is boiling over!! We have turned back Obama they yell. It is the death knell for universal health care others proclaim. I would argue that if you actually thought that universal health care had a chance of passing in this country you were deluding yourself.
The only way it will pass here is if it would in some way benefit the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies. This will never happen. The big drug companies depend on the amount of money they take in from there medicines and insurance depends on the premiums that they take in. These two groups alone will never give up their stranglehold on health care. I would argue that this is also another reason that marijuana will never be legalized nationwide in America. It may get legalized on a state by state level which it appears to be on the path toward just that. But I do not see the drug industry getting out of the way of and allowing the legalization of a pain killing substance that people are able to grow in their back yard or basement.
But that is a side issue and I didn't intend to talk about that today though it relates to lots of things. I think most if not all of what goes on in Washington D.C. is done at the behest of the large corporations and special interest groups. I remember when President Obama was elected a large amount of Americans started buying up guns and ammunition and reloading materials to the extent that it became hard to find them in the stores. Several of my friends were convinced that Obama was going to move to ban guns. My response was this. "What do you think the NRA is doing in Washington? The NRA (National Rifle Association) gets millions of dollars a year from people in America who love guns. They know that if guns were to be banned this money tree would dry up. It is only reasonable that they do all they can to ensure that the new president does not ban guns." So has there been any movement to ban guns from the White House? Not that I have seen so far. I think the only way there ever will be such a thing in this country is if a large lobbying firm came in with billions of dollars and went head to head against the NRA in a battle of who had the deepest pockets. Then we would truly see how much greed runs things in this country.
Because in the end this is what truly runs America. The almighty dollar and the desire to get more and keep more for yourself even if that means climbing over the backs of others to do so. I think this is true of the ruling class in this country regardless of their claiming to be right or to be left. It just doesn't matter! With that being said I leave you with this lovely picture of Massachusetts newest Senator Scott Brown. He does appear to be ready to lead.
I say phooey! I say nothing is going to change and that in the end this whole thing is just going to be business as usual for the people that really run this country. Oh sure the right is all fired up. The Tea pot is boiling over!! We have turned back Obama they yell. It is the death knell for universal health care others proclaim. I would argue that if you actually thought that universal health care had a chance of passing in this country you were deluding yourself.
The only way it will pass here is if it would in some way benefit the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies. This will never happen. The big drug companies depend on the amount of money they take in from there medicines and insurance depends on the premiums that they take in. These two groups alone will never give up their stranglehold on health care. I would argue that this is also another reason that marijuana will never be legalized nationwide in America. It may get legalized on a state by state level which it appears to be on the path toward just that. But I do not see the drug industry getting out of the way of and allowing the legalization of a pain killing substance that people are able to grow in their back yard or basement.
But that is a side issue and I didn't intend to talk about that today though it relates to lots of things. I think most if not all of what goes on in Washington D.C. is done at the behest of the large corporations and special interest groups. I remember when President Obama was elected a large amount of Americans started buying up guns and ammunition and reloading materials to the extent that it became hard to find them in the stores. Several of my friends were convinced that Obama was going to move to ban guns. My response was this. "What do you think the NRA is doing in Washington? The NRA (National Rifle Association) gets millions of dollars a year from people in America who love guns. They know that if guns were to be banned this money tree would dry up. It is only reasonable that they do all they can to ensure that the new president does not ban guns." So has there been any movement to ban guns from the White House? Not that I have seen so far. I think the only way there ever will be such a thing in this country is if a large lobbying firm came in with billions of dollars and went head to head against the NRA in a battle of who had the deepest pockets. Then we would truly see how much greed runs things in this country.
Because in the end this is what truly runs America. The almighty dollar and the desire to get more and keep more for yourself even if that means climbing over the backs of others to do so. I think this is true of the ruling class in this country regardless of their claiming to be right or to be left. It just doesn't matter! With that being said I leave you with this lovely picture of Massachusetts newest Senator Scott Brown. He does appear to be ready to lead.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)