I always forget that people are going to get mad when I talk politics. I get mad when I read the political sentiments of other people. Why shouldn't people get mad at me?
On line I was criticised by the right who seem to think I'm a big Obama fan. Off line I was criticised by the left who thought I was dumping on Obama.
1. I'm beginning to believe that Obama may have been a better candidate than a president. Read Frank Rich in the NY Times today. He seems to be wondering the same thing. That said, I don't think he had any choice but to bail out Wall Street. But as Senator Bernie Sanders, Robert Reich, Josh Marshall and Rich, among many others have been saying ever since, THEN was when the handcuffs should have been put on Wall Street. Tough, punitive legislation (including long prison terms) for offenses ranging from insider trading to selling unlicensed derivatives). Barney Frank had a bill with fourteen hardball rules in it for Wall Street. The bill included prison terms. Obama said he liked it and then two weeks later backed away from it. There's a long article on HuffPost today about how the five biggest banks have all displaced hordes of lobbyists with ready access to campaign cash for Washington. They go to work tomorrow. Like Frank Rich I don't see how any serious Wall Street legislation will get passed. Obama didn't do his job.
2. Was everybody who attended the march yesterday a racist? No; and I corrected myself soon after I wrote that. I said that while there were serious and honest people attending, there were too many whackjobs. I watched a bunch of interview with attendees and read some blogs by reporters who were there. Here are some of their beliefs.
Don't cooperate with consensus takers. They'll just use the info to put you and your family in "Obama camps."
Gay Muslims are taking over our government. Wow. The middle east has never cared much for gay people. In fact in Iraq right now many gays have been killed in drive by shootings without the govt doing much about it.
Obama has ruined our economy. From a recent census on the recent we learned the following from The Washington Monthly::
"Ron Brownstein took a closer look at the Census Bureau's latest report on income, poverty, and health insurance, and what the data tells us about "the economic record of George W. Bush."
"On every major measurement, the Census Bureau report shows that the country lost ground during Bush's two terms. While Bush was in office, the median household income declined, poverty increased, childhood poverty increased even more, and the number of Americans without health insurance spiked. By contrast, the country's condition improved on each of those measures during Bill Clinton's two terms, often substantially.
"The Census' final report card on Bush's record presents an intriguing backdrop to today's economic debate. Bush built his economic strategy around tax cuts, passing large reductions both in 2001 and 2003. Congressional Republicans are insisting that a similar agenda focused on tax cuts offers better prospects of reviving the economy than President Obama's combination of some tax cuts with heavy government spending. But the bleak economic results from Bush's two terms, tarnish, to put it mildly, the idea that tax cuts represent an economic silver bullet."
Ed here: It's been said so many times today that it's already a cliche. Given what Bush did to the economy, the Constitution and the health system, why didn't we see all the tea baggers and Confederate flag-wavers and strict constructionists out in the streets back then? For some reason Obama got elected and they've been piling on ever since. And most curious of all, they started piling on even before he took office.
THIS WILL BE MY ABSOLUTE LAST POLITICAL POST. I PROMISE.
-----------------------------------------Love songs
I was punching the car radio station selector for a song I liked when I caught a really cool sounding young woman singing a very erotic love song. She was talking about being breathless and being shaken and longing for him. And then I realized she was talking about Jesus. Whoa Nelly. I'd heard similar songs before but never one quite as well done or obvious, Jesus/God as a love object. We've come a long way from Ave Maria. The thing is that a lot of songs on the religious stations are pretty damned good just as music. Few of them are quite as polished as the big secular studios produce but that's half their charm. It's good music without an abundance of effects. But man equating love for Jesus in orgasmic terms--I dunno. You'd think the true believers would find this offensive.
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I'm disappointed in Mr. Obama too. For a while I supposed he was simply a gradualist, generating reforms salami-style, as LBJ did. But he seems to have backpedaled so much that we've lost the reform we voted for.
The reason Obama is President? It's because the people who voted for him fell into one or more of the following categories:
1. They despised George Bush.
2. They believed what was feed to them by a media that is enamored over Obama.
3. They want to see this country turned into more of a socialistic state.
The truth was out there about him, but 53% of the voters refused to open their eyes.
In 1977, Debby Boone, daughter of Pat Boone, produced a record called You Light Up My Life. She regarded it as inspirational, and said it was her gift to God. The music you are talking about now largely springs from that song.
What Obama is guilty of is trying to do too much too fast and offending just about every special interest group there is over one thing or another. That fact, coupled with the Republicans abilty to spin the media and demonize Obama means we, the people, aren't going to get our government fixed anytime soon.
Kevin: Spin the media?
Have you been watching NBC, ABC, CNN, CBS, MSNBC for the last year. The vast majority of the Media is in bed with Obama.
You can add PBS and NPR to that list.
Bill K.
Well, the Obama Admin, like the Clinton, has been trying to get what valuable reforms through that it strives for w/o alienating the wealthy business interests that they see as necessary for financial support. Pity that the current Admin has done such a piss-poor job of advocating for any reform. Or in rolling back the more intrusive and offensive measures the Bush Admin introduced. Or doing much of anything. This is pretty much what I gathered an Obama Admin would fail to do, hence my lack of enthusiasm. But, like you, Ed, I have to wonder who these people who bray about Getting Their Country Back think Stole Their Country From Them, and When.
Btw, there's a long tradition of pretty darned orgasmic gospel music, which is the wealth of tradition that Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles so controversially drew upon for their secular work in the 1960s.
More about "You LIght Up My Life" and Debby Boone...
Debby recorded it for Mike Curb and it made her career. Mike put her vocal over the original sound track used for the movie of that title (where the vocal was not by Debby)...Joe Brooks wrote the song. Debby's version went on to sell Platinum (in the LP of that title)and made her career.
(I was repping Curb and Curb Records at the time...)
I agree with everyone's lack of enthusiasm for Obama and the Democrats. I used to pity the Dems for their weakness and lack of action. But now I feel nothing but contempt. And I'm obviously not alone.
That said, I agree with Ed that America's current issues have much firmer roots with Bush and the Republicans. Anyone can see that. Just like anyone who says Obama is a, ahem, "socialist" and yet somehow that the media is "in bed" with Obama is giving away the fact that they're a joke. We laugh at these people.
Because you can't have it both ways. Obama can't be socialist and still have the corporate media supporting him. That's how we know when someone's a tool parroting things he heard (but doesn't really understand).
GE (who owns NBC, MSNBC, military industries, etc) will never be socialist. Nor do they really support Obama. They support money. The very same god Obama prays to every night. And that's why nothing will get done under our current diseased system.
And Ed, you go on and share your political views any time you want. This is America, dammit. I'm tired as hell of all these limp-wristed p*ssies who aren't man enough to handle hearing a dissenting view once in a while.
F*ck 'em.
I came here to read you. Not them.
Mr. Obama is simply being ignored by his his own federal bureaucracies and their clients. As commander in chief he ordered the closing of Guantanamo but the army is simply defying him. The Pentagon and arms industries have discovered the perpetual profit of Perpetual War, which earns fat incomes, gives the armed services lots of money and honors, etc. Even if the president, as commander in chief, should direct the complete withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan and Iraq, the Perpetual War Machine would ignore him. We've been in Iraq six and a half years, two years longer than we were in World War Two-- and what does the Perpetual War Machine want? More troops there. This is not Mr. Obama's failing. The bureaucracy and its clients are ungovernable by any party and there is no hope for the country.
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