Political Blogs, News & Views

The Atlantic Gets Catty On Obama

I watched the President’s speech last night. It didn’t fill me with warm fuzzy thoughts nor leave me overly inspired; but it certainly wasn’t the worst Oval Office Address I’ve ever seen. In fact, compared to the previous dozen or so that I recall from this millennium, I’d say Obama’s was middle-of-the-road at worst.

But, after reading Clive Crook’s review on The Atlantic I began to question if maybe I had watched the wrong address from someone else’s President.

According to Crook, the speech was surprisingly bad, lacking in facts and void of details on what’s being done and who is in charge.

That just isn’t the speech I heard. I won’t comment on the “surprisingly bad” point because good or bad is sort of an eye-of-the-beholder thing I think, but the speech was full of facts covering what has happened, what is being done and what should be done going forward.

Obama also seemed pretty darn clear about who was in charge, and who owned the feet (BP’s) that were going to be held to the fire. He did everything but declare himself the “New Decider” when it came to showing he was in command and on top of the crisis from what I heard.

By the middle of his piece Crook seemed to dive down to whining about Obama having vision and big ideas for the future, as if those might somehow impede his ability to handle the here and now. That’s like saying someone driving on the highway can’t think about their destination 10 miles away or they’ll crash and burn on the spot.

I’m aware that we became used to a President who was totally focused on the moment at hand, so much so that he would spend up to 7 minutes just thinking about the single moment at hand…but that doesn’t mean we should immediately knock a guy who has the capability to deal with what’s on his plate while also contemplating what he might want for desert. The ability to multitask is typically a good thing.

By the end of the article Crook sinks all the way down to schoolyard-taunting of the President for appearing nervous and moving his hands too much–I honestly believed Crook’s final sentence was going to be a haughty “and did you see those shoes he was wearing”.

Then, upon reaching the conclusion of Crook’s piece I realized the reason for his “scorned woman” tone.  The President had made clear that the time for lip service was done and the time for acting on our addiction to oil and all fossil fuels has arrived. It became apparent why that position might spark animosity from Crook and The Atlantic when I saw the sponsor’s advertisement next to the end of the piece:

Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s great that Exxon Mobil is helping to fight malaria, it would be better if they were doing good things without funding them by raping the planet and mortgaging our descendant’s futures…but that’s for another posting.

For this post, I’ll just summarize with:

• The President made a clear “your days are numbered” announcement to Oil and other fossil fuel companies last night after defining where we are and where we’re going with the gulf spill
• Crook at The Atlantic seemed to dismiss the majority of the speech and shoot off an oddly harsh “let’s girlfight” review of the President’s appearance
• That review ends at a nice large advertising piece from an Oil company

The dots aren’t hard to connect if you’re looking…

Related articles by Zemanta

• Obama: Spill Shows U.S. Must Cut Oil ‘Addiction’ (businessweek.com)
• Obama will order BP to hand over control of oil spill damage claims (guardian.co.uk)
• What’s News: World-Wide (online.barrons.com)

Technorati Tags: Clive Crook, Obama, The Atlantic

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I’m With My Conservative Friends, Bring Back The 1950’s (as seen on TV)

A nation of 2 parent homes, white picket fences on every street, the local cop on foot-patrol who stops at your door from time to time just to say, “Hi”…I can get on-board with all of it.

Now, if my conservative friends will just meet me half way and agree to accept the 90% tax rate for the wealthiest Americans that was also in place in the 1950’s, and join me in praising the labor unions which were strong enough back then to grow our middle class to it’s strongest position ever (which kept consumer spending and our economy strong by the way), we’ll have peace and harmony once again.

Sure, there will be some pesky issues to handle that weren’t being addressed properly back then, but I’m confident that the women and minority groups can get their voices heard in a peaceful manner on those.

And speaking of women, hey gals, I’m gonna ask you to take one for the team here and let the state own your body. If we’re serious about making this fantasy-America return to the 1950’s, we’ll need to give conservatives their way on the abortion issue.

I know that’s a biggie for you, but just think of what we’ll get in exchange for your sacrifice: Universal Health care, Better Educations (perhaps even including free Universities nationwide) and Schools, Expansive and freshly paved highways from coast to coast (how pretty will we be then?), A fresh coat of paint for every bridge in the country, An end to borrowing money from China in order to fund our misadventures…the list goes on and on.

Yes, by once again taxing the wealthiest Americans at 90% we could pay for all of that stuff, and a whole lot more.

Sure, some of you girls may get stuck in loveless marriages and living lives that you never wanted, being forced to care for snot-nosed brats you don’t like, but the Valium you’ll need to get through the day (just like Grandma used to use) will be free! Come on, that’s a good deal.

Oh, I know there will be some nay-sayers, probably among wealthy conservatives who won’t like the idea of paying all those taxes again, but the proof is in the pudding (as people used to say in the 1950’s television-land) that it’s the best thing for our country, and at the end of the day aren’t we all good American patriots? So, I’m sure the nay-sayers will ultimately join in and buck up to do their part.

Besides, all of those twisted arguments against high taxes on the rich, that have been propagated for years to reduce taxes for the rich, have no true foundations in reality. For example, they often argue that the high taxes:

- deter people from wanting to earn more
- strangle small businesses
- cost jobs (related to the strangling of small businesses above)
- reduce consumer spending and retard the economy

However, in 1950’s America nobody stopped chasing wealth. The Kennedy’s, Rockefellers, Mellons and so-on continued to grow their family fortunes despite the tax rates. And heck, more middle class working Americans believed that they too could become wealthy one day and as a result were inspired to work harder to obtain wealth. That was good for business.

Every small town and metropolitan neighborhood in the country had Mom-n-Pop stores in it back then. Small businesses were thriving, despite the higher taxes on the uber-rich. And there were jobs-o-plenty, which paid decent wages that allowed families to get by on a single income, leaving one parent free to stay home and raise the children. Mostly because with stronger unions it wasn’t so easy for profitable companies to hide their money or move jobs overseas or reduce labor forces and demand higher productivity out of the workers left.

1950's Advertising

And the economy thrived from all of those small businesses selling the latest Vitameatavegimins and Rocket-like Aluminum-laminated appliances made by Americans to the same working Americans who wanted the shiny new things for their homes and yards. Money was moving everywhere back then.

Then, in the mid-1960’s the tax rate was lowered to 70% and guess what? That’s right, we began going through some tumultuous times here in America, but the bottom didn’t really drop out on us until the 1980’s when one party (and I’m not going to name names here) decided that drastically reducing taxes on the wealthiest Americans all the way down to 28%, curtailing regulations on industry, and busting the labor unions were the vogue things to do.

That’s when we finally lost all of those small Mom-n-Pop businesses and decent jobs to large retail corporations who shipped their products in from places like Taiwan and China, killing both the small business retailer and American manufacturing in a single blow. They actually broke the system that sustained their own fantasy-America.

But this isn’t about pointing fingers. This is about Americans uniting once again and making things better for all of us. So I offer my hand to my conservative friends, and hope my liberal friends will join me in saying let’s bring back the 1950’s America (as seen on TV) together.

Let’s have all of the goodies that the fantasy can offer, paid for by the return of 90% tax rates on the rich and the sweat of unionized working Americans. We’ll penalize those (including corporations) non-patriots who try to undermine our America by hiding money or jobs offshore, and with a little bit of work (and a lot of free narcotics) I think we might be able to get the majority of gals to come along on the abortion thing too.

What do you say?

Technorati Tags: 1950 America, 90% tax rate

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Yesterday I Couldn’t Spell Senator, Today I Are One…

The state of Utah is apparently considering the elimination of the 12th grade from public schooling. A movement headed by state senator Chris Buttars, seeing it as a viable (and smart???) way to address the state’s budget gap.

While the knee-jerk reaction to the Buttars plan might be to say “What The F#@$”, he does back his idea up with [almost] valid and very pointed evidential statements, like Utah is “spending a whole lot of money for a whole bunch of kids who aren’t getting anything out of that grade”–though there don’t seem to be many tangible facts supporting that statement.

Still, if it’s true then of course eliminating the grade completely rather than addressing why students in Utah “aren’t getting anything” out of it is the obvious first choice to make. Right?

In addition, it seems Buttars also proposes eliminating the provision of school buses for high school students. That makes sense to me, it’s not like it would unfairly burden children of lower income families or children from rural areas, and besides–walking uphill to and from school, in the snow, with no shoes and only one sock was good enough for our grandparents so it’s good enough for our children too! Right?

I get that most states are facing serious budget issues right now. So are most families and individuals too, the financial crisis of the past few years isn’t lost on many of us.

But if there’s one thing we should have learned from the near financial catastrophe of late it’s that we are heavily connected in the global economy, and moving forward that connection is only going to get stronger and broader. In order to compete in the global markets, after having virtually eliminated manufacturing and blue-collar labor that paid a livable wage to legal citizens here in the U.S., our children are going to need more schooling, not less.

The very notion that state legislators anywhere are discussing the reduction of classroom time for children at a point when it’s so obvious that the discussions we should be having are on eliminating summer vacations and making the school year a 12 month cycle rather than 9 just shows how short-sighted many of the folks we elect truly are.

So, here’s a money saving plan for Utah and any other state to adopt that wouldn’t hurt our children one bit: reduce your state legislative body by 90% and make the remaining 10% unpaid (including perks and benefits) positions.

Sure, some will argue that you couldn’t attract quality leaders if you did that, but the evidence suggests that we’re not really attracting quality leaders now with the current system, and history (which we learnt in skole) shows that many of the most influential and revered people ever were unpaid, or at-least started out in unpaid positions. For example, Gandhi, Alfred Sisley, Jesus Christ…

If anyone wants to argue that bloated salaries, sweet perks and benefits are attracting talent to American politics on a higher scale than Jesus Christ I’m all ears, but otherwise then perhaps this is the discussion state legislatures should be having right now instead of talking about ways to steal even more from our children’s future.

Related articles around the web:

• Republican priorities (horsesass.org)
• Conservatism is a Harsh Mistress (trueslant.com)

Technorati Tags: 12th grade, Chris Buttars, utah

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Someone’s Having a Party

I’m not a frequent visitor to The Huffington Post. Much of the reporting and blogging being done there is top rate, but I tend to get put off by the majority of the commenting that takes place by the community. I’m just not into the bickering and finger pointing that many of my political junky peers enjoy. I think it’s counter-productive and ultimately only serves to weaken our nation.

We are supposed to be the United States after all, and while we don’t have to see eye to eye on every idea or issue, and in-fact it’s better that we don’t, we should be able to debate and discuss our moral and principal differences with civility and respect towards one another. At-least, that’s what I believe.

But I did come across a piece by Ryan Grim over at HuffPo today that I really enjoyed and thought was worth commenting on briefly. It’s a well written piece that looks at how the Tea Party movement is being (mistakenly?) viewed as a danger by some members of the GOP. Original story link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/02/cornyn-teabaggers-forming_n_446417.html

As the report shows, it is evident that some members of the GOP fear the Tea Party movement. We democrats can understand that fear, we held the same over the Green Party’s rise.

The fact is, any new organized party will build it’s membership from the rank and file of other parties. Sure, some members of a new party will have been registered Independents, but many will have been republicans and possibly even democrats; so a new party’s growth must come from membership depletion of the established parties. But is that really a bad thing?

Are we the “Partisan” or “United” States?

Or maybe the real question should be worded: “which do we want to be, the Partisan or United States?”

At the end of the day, political parties do very little to help enrich or improve the lives of Americans. In-fact, in many ways they weaken the strength of “We the People”, and give false strength and authority to a select few individuals who often use it to protect their own positions rather than to better the positions of their constituents.

And the worst condition is when only two strong parties exist, because it allows them to keep We the People at odds, focused on ideological battles, and not watchful over what our elected officials are really getting away with.

So, from time to time when a group of folks decides that the “main” two parties aren’t serving their needs in Washington and they get a little momentum going to organize a new party which can challenge the entrenched power of the established, you always see the republicans and democrats act in the same way.

They circle the wagons and look for every opportunity to block that momentum and assimilate the unhappy back into their folds. And they do it for one single purpose, to protect their locked hold of power in America.

“I think it’s important that we try to channel these relative newcomers to the political process through our primaries so that they can have an impact on who’s nominated. And hopefully they’ll unite behind that nominee after the primary,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), talking to reporters in the Capitol about the Tea Party movement.

Those very words sum up my point. Cornyn isn’t asking why so many people might feel unrepresented by the established republican party, or how republicans could be doing better to serve the needs of all Americans…No, he just wants to get those activist voters into the republican folds to strengthen his party’s status quo.

Democrats made the same mistakes in the earliest days of the Green Party’s rise as well. There was a window of opportunity for democrats then, to reflect on their own short comings and ask how they could be better, and they missed it–just as republicans are missing it now with the Tea Party movement.

But maybe that’s really a good thing

Or, maybe I’m really just an anarchist at heart, but I like to see organized challenges to the established status quo rise up like this. It gives voice to important beliefs and ideas that have been long ignored in Washington, and it fuels more engagement by We the People in what our elected officials are actually doing with their time and our money.

So, while I disagree with almost everything I’ve ever heard anyone from the Tea Party movement say, I fully support their efforts and encourage them to stand strong on their principals and beliefs against the established party powers–and defend against all attempts to quell their political rebellion.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Is the Tea Party movement “showing better political judgment than either of the two major political parties”? (althouse.blogspot.com)
• Tea party movement hit by infighting ahead of first convention (guardian.co.uk)
• David Brody: Dick Armey Discusses the State of the Nation, and the GOP (huffingtonpost.com)
• Tea Party More Popular Than Republican Party (politicalwire.com)

Technorati Tags: Tea Party

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Clintonomics 2.0?

Regardless of party affiliations, there are few who can keep a straight face while arguing that the American economy didn’t flourish during President Clinton’s time in office. And rightly so, because it was 2 Presidential terms of upwards economic growth. From an era of outrageous deficit spending and unimaginable national debt to a balanced budget and a surplus in Washington; not to mention nearly nonexistent unemployment rates among those of working age who wanted a job.

That isn’t to suggest there weren’t bumps in the road now and then. With the complex intricacies of such a large economy and private sector there will always be some adverse and unintended effects for a few from every action taken. And President Clinton shouldn’t get all of the credit or blame for the highs and lows during his terms, a Republican controlled congress played a large part in much of it as well.

Fast forward to President Obama taking office, once again we were faced with horrific deficits and debt, no surplus, and an economy spiraling out of control and on the edge of collapse. This isn’t a placing of blame for those conditions, I only list them to frame the circumstances at the moment Obama was sworn in.

Now, 1 year later, as the media and pundits scream “Holy hell!!!” like the prophets of doom they’ve become, the facts show a largely different picture that I think is worth looking at seriously.

While unemployment–traditionally the last area to notice recovery from a recession–has remained uncomfortably high, the fact is that our economy grew at the fastest rate in almost 7 years during the last quarter of 2009.

Our Gross Domestic Product expanded at a rate of 5.7% during that same quarter, nearly 3 times the rate it had grown in the previous quarter and well in excess of what expert analysts were predicting and expecting.

Across the board businesses plugged the inventory depletion faucets in the last quarter, no longer allowing inventories to run down as a cost cutting measure. And some have even begun to increase production to refill empty warehouses and stockrooms.

Consumer spending in the 4th quarter of 2009 also exceeded most expectations, growing at a rate of 2% and giving retailers and other businesses reason to look forward with a more positive eye.

Imports and exports were up for the quarter, with exports increasing at nearly twice the rate of imports, a very good sign for us. Businesses increased investments in software and equipment from a low of 1.5% in the 3rd quarter of 2009 to 13.3% in the 4th quarter. An even better sign for us, because businesses that purchase software and equipment tend to follow up with increased hiring as well.

In other words, while jobs are naturally the last thing to return after a recession and many people are still struggling to make ends meet, it would appear that we truly have turned the corner and are on our way back up.

So, while it’s easy populism for talking heads to keep screaming in outrage and pointing fingers of failure at Washington while keeping viewers tuned in with alarming prophesies of unavoidable doom–the fact is that once again a Democratic President seems to have gotten our economy moving along the right track towards national prosperity.

Related articles from around the web:

• U.S. GDP Grows Faster Than Expected (econotwist.wordpress.com)
• US growth reaches six-year high (news.bbc.co.uk)
• Economic recovery becoming more entrenched: BoC (ctv.ca)
• Dollar gains against yen (money.cnn.com)
• World’s Largest Economy Roars Back Into Life (news.sky.com)
• Economy in U.S. Probably Accelerated as Manufacturing Rebounded (businessweek.com)

Technorati Tags: Economic growth, economy, Gross Domestic Product

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