Wed 18 Jun 2008
Obama Will Be the Worst President Since Jimmy Carter - At Best
Posted by Jack Gamble - Man Overboard under Babeled, Current Events, International, Politics, Society
Let me start by saying it is inevitable. Look at any web based news site right this very moment and you will undoubtedly see 5 headlines featuring the name Obama and if you are lucky a single headline featuring John McCain. With so much painfully biased media coverage and the average Americans propensity for stupidity and Sheep-like tendencies it is no surprise to me that the political equivalent of the Backstreet Boys is a lock to become Commander in Chief of their largest arsenal in the history of mankind and the leader of the free world.
What will be the result?
As spoken in context of the introduction to an episode of The Twilight Zone - Picture if you will….
A man elected President of the United States despite a political record that is completely unknown to the majority of those who cast their vote in his favor.
American troops are instantly withdrawn from Iraq. American military morale reaches its lowest point since the fall of Saigon - at best. Radical Islam rejoices.
Those Iraqi’s who stood by American troops are slaughtered by the radical Islamists who now control the country. Radical Islam rejoices.
Iranian troops, undeterred by the American president who has already promised to not use his military might against them, pour across the border and immediately subjugate the Sunni minority and massacre the Kurds in the North of the country who are denied refuge in their only option for escape, Turkey. Radical Islam rejoices.
Extremists in Saudi Arabia, emboldened by the Iranian action, riot and overthrow the Saudi monarchy and adopt a Theocratic Muslim government friendly to the newly revitalized Persian Muslim Empire. Radical Islam rejoices.
What little progress made in Israel is now gone as the Iranian Iatolas now control over 50% of the world’s oil and thus increase funding to Hezbollah and Hamas by orders of magnitude thus increasing their ability to wage war against Israel. Radical Islam rejoices.
Moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is assassinated and his Fatah government is overthrown by Hammas militants who are hell bent on Israel’s destruction and not at all interested in peace with the Jewish nation. Radical Islam rejoices.
Now for the Economy
National, government run healthcare is enacted. Taxes are raised.
If you borrowed more money than you could pay in a mortgage payment the government hands you a check and rewards you for your idiotic investment. Taxes are raised.
The flow of illegal immigrants across the US border swells as Obama immediately halts construction of the border wall and refuses to take any action against illegal immigrants. This new influx is also given access to free healthcare and continues to pay no taxes in America. Taxes are raised.
Oil Companies are penalized for making profits. This cost is not placed on the shoulders of the corporations but instead is passed on to the consumers in the form of price increases to a gallon of gas that now costs well over $10.00 per gallon thanks to the conditions in the Middle East.
Obama refuses to drill in ANWAR, and refuse to drill off the coast of Florida even though China and even Vietnam now do. Gasoline now costs $12.00 per gallon.
Obama grants his campaign promise of making a college education every American’s “birth right.” Taxes are raised.
If you make over $250,000 you are penalized for your success. Taxes are raised.
Nothing what so ever is done about Social Security for another four years. Taxes are raised.
Companies begin layoffs as they are unable to meet the out of control payroll taxes and maintain a successful business in light of price increases. Unemployment reaches its highest level since the great depression. These unemployed people are now a burden on the welfare system. Taxes are raised.
End result:
Radical Islam declares victory in the war against America. AK-47s around the world are fired into the air.
Americans now pay $20.00 for a gallon of gas and 60% of their salaries to income taxes.
Bush is blamed.
And now I batten down the hatches and brace for the inevitable storm of comments brewing on the horizon at the hands of the Liberal Hoard that runs a racket on the internet in a manner reminiscent of La Cosa Nostra. “Bring ‘em on” - George W. Bush
~Man Overboard
Popularity: 25% [?]
June 18th, 2008 at 11:25 pm
Now this is the kind of sensationalist fear mongering that has been conspicuously absent from this very blog site for quite sometime.
For whatever reason as I was reading Radical Islam Rejoices, all I kept hearing in the back of my mind was Lord Hear our Prayer.
June 18th, 2008 at 11:51 pm
This was a thoroughly entertaining read.
Of all your predictions the most likely will be that Obama makes no headway on social security reform. I really just don’t see that happening in any presidency till the checks completely stop coming.
Chaos in the Middle East is likely with a pull-out (heh, I said “pull-out”), and there’s no doubt Iran’s looking for that open door, but do you honestly see Saudi Arabia caving to a revolution?
I guess it’s possible, but it’d be a pretty dumb move strategically. S. Arabia is a key ally to most Western nations with oil dependency - We’d all go ape-shit if we lost them to Radical Islam. AND, we’d finally have a legitimate target with borders that wouldn’t require lying to the general public to attack.
Why would Radical Islam want to experience the full wrath of the Western military complex if it had yet to develop a nuclear weapon?
June 19th, 2008 at 12:30 am
Well that is definitely an interesting look. Really at this point gas is going that way anyway regardless of who the president is. Really in this day and age a president is nothing more than a figure head or puppet. The string pullers will make all of this happen regardless of who their puppet is.
June 19th, 2008 at 2:47 am
So radical Islam will rejoice and taxes will be raised. Thats definately not awesome.
Why are so many people hoplessly brainwashed into voting for an idealist with no experience again?
Seriously! Is it just because he is the best that the Democrats have to offer? What is it? Thats the reason why fools voted for Kerry right? Best they had to offer.
At least McCain sees the world for the way it is, not how it “should be” in a pinko-commy eutopia. Amen to this post Jack!
June 19th, 2008 at 11:11 am
Jack, will you move to the conservative equivalent of Canada when Obama wins the election?
June 19th, 2008 at 11:34 am
I preface this with the statement, “I have no intention of voting for Obama.” Here comes the “but”:
First, Obama has already changed his tune on Iraq and admitted that he would work with military advisors to determine an appropriate withdrawal timeline.
Second, McCain will enact a variety of economic benefits for the wealthy, thus further burdening the middle class who is the engine of the U.S. economy, the consumer spending category of GDP will retract severely leading to a recession. I can continue with whimsical extrapolations in the same vain as those you postulated for Obama but I think we get the point.
Third, you forget that we have a Senate and House of Representatives. I would say more than half of the predictions made would never come to fruition based upon the check and balance of the Legislative and Judicial branches.
Fourth and final, Saudi Arabia already is radical Islam at its finest. A good portion of the 9/11 terrorists were Saudis, and when you look at their customs and culture they are at least on par with Iran in terms of their degree of fundamentalism. The Saudis’ entire economy is based on Western money, so the rich royal class plays nice politically with the West while their state-run propaganda bashes our people and way of life to their proletariat.
June 19th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
By the way, if Obama does win and he winds up being the worst President than Carter, then there is a 5% chance that he will still have a higher approval rating than W. According to http://www.pollingreport.com, a survey taken from 6/12 through 6/15 of 2008 indicates a 29% approval rating for Bush, when Carter’s exit approval rating was 34%…
June 19th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
As Mr. Molyneux always says, “There are lies, true lies, and then there are statistics.”
June 19th, 2008 at 1:44 pm
Radical Islam rejoices.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
You forgot somethings Jack. Dogs and cats will start living with each other. Mass hysteria! Diet Pepper will cease to taste more like regular Dr. Pepper and the fourth dentist will recommend Trident.
Let’s see if we can find a lop whole and vote for Bush. He has done such a masterful job and you never see him doing a fist bump. Instead he upholds the dignity of the white house with phrases like “It must be a budget because I saw a lot of numbers in it”. I would bow four times before meeting that word smith.
Good to have you back Jackie!
June 19th, 2008 at 7:29 pm
On Saudi Arabia…
I think Jacks right that “Radical Islam” would still want to topple a Saudi government that plays nice with the West. I’m sure they’d rather not play at all then put up a front.
If Jack’s prediction came true it’d be a watershed moment for Islam. S. Arabia is about 100% Sunni, and Iran is about 100% Shiite - for the two to join forces under the banner of Radical Islam would be unprecedented.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:34 pm
Tread easy Andrew, we wouldn’t want to go out of our way to debunk sensationalist claims.
Keeks, that opening salvo was hysterical by the way.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
What is absolutely crazy is that Obama supports bringing Bin Ladin to court here in the US and granting him a trial with a free attorney if or when we capture him. Obama says he should be “presumed innocent” until proven guilty. Arn’t we trying to kill him?
Jay, your post on how it is not the oil companies at fault for gas prices was a great article. Do you then disagree with Obama’s stance on taxing the oil companies for consistency sake?
June 19th, 2008 at 8:05 pm
Jon, Osama should be “presumed innocent” until proven guiltyin an American court….
….because the proof is already there, and he’s guaranteed to be proven guilty, and so basically it would just be a symbolic event to demonstrate to the world that America has some kind of morality even when dealing with its worst enemies.
June 19th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
We’ve tried a member of al Qaeda in a U.S. court before. We found a way to try and execute Saddam Hussein. We extradite criminals all the time. It’s not like we lack precedent!
And at the end of the day, it’s easy to see how Obama will get elected: as it stands, if you make less than 112k a year, your total taxes will be lower under Obama than McCain. It doesn’t particularly matter what the top earners think, as 89% of Americans make less than 100k/year.
It’s hard to argue with good ol’ fashioned self-interest.
June 19th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
That’s an interesting way to look at it Andrew. It certainly would demonstrate ‘Gentleman’s Warfare.” I completely see your point of there being no chance of his innocence proven.
It would be similar to how first world armies call temporary cease fires on important Holidays. I know in either World War I or II, the Americans and Germans called a truce on Christmas and actually dined together that day. A day later they ended the cease fire and went back to blowing each others brains out.
We are certainly bizarre creatures.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:28 pm
Jake,
we didn’t Execute Saddam. We captured him in a hole. Gave him a throrough medical exam. Then turned him over to his own people who put him in prison where he developed a findness for Doritos (true story). They then gave him the benefit of counsel, a trial by his peers, found him guilty and hung him for the genocide of -among others - Iranians, Shiite Iraqis, Kurdish Iraqis, Kuwaitis, Israelis, Saudis, and several members of his immediate family.
Bin Laden beats his captives, tortures them - far worse than water boarding mind you, I mean good old fashioned inquisition era quality), and after a video taped message of a statment condemning his own governemnt, is slowly decapitated and the video posted on the internet for the victims family and the world to see before a headless corpse is thrown in a river.
Do what ever you want to the guy for all I care. Boo fricken hoo.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:33 pm
Jake,
The major difference is there will be way more Americans earning less than 112K per year and even more making none is you tax the wealthy. The wealthy will not eat that cost, the lower class will in the form of pay cuts, layoffs, and price increases by the wealthy who are forced to do so because they want to maintain there own lifestyle and still pay Obamas taxes - Human nature is why Reganomics works and Socialism fails.
Also, remember - the wealthiest 1% of the country already pays more than there share of taxes - far more.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
Greg and Andrew, you are absolutely right about demonstrating morality, however…
Clinton and W have been ordering air strikes on mountains under the “presumption” Bin Ladin is hiding there.
Let me put it differently by asking this question… If Obama gets elected and orders the same type of air strike which kills Bin Ladin… Will Obama’s followers be upset that Bin Ladin didn’t get a fair chance in court? Last time I checked, there was a substantial reward for Bin Ladin “Dead or Alive” Is Obama going to remove the Dead part?
On a side note, court creates the opportunity for technicalities and evidence dismissal which can result in a not guilty decision. I got two letters for ya…OJ!
Brilliant idea of the month right there… Lets have Osama in court for weeks or even months in New York City. That wont cause too much panic or waste too much money on security measures. Hell, Columbia might even ask him to speak while he is in the area…hahahaha.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:39 pm
Andrew,
The Sunni and Shiite won’t unite. They will fight.
Iran is Shiite and would link up with the radical shiite in Iraq (remember it was the Sunni government of Iraq that fought Iran - not the Shiites in Iraq). The Sunnis in Saudi Arabia would be slaughtered because Obama has already promised he would not use the Military against Iran and after pulling the American Army out of Iraq he would lose too much face to send them right back over to Saudi Arabia in force. The Saudi government would be wiped out by far supperior Iranian military units backed by Hezbollah, Al Queda (Osama hates the Saudis government), Iraqi Shiites (Muqtada Al Sadr has a 10,000 strong steet-clothed Mahdi Militia) and Syrian troops. It would be a bloodbath and the Sunni would be slaughtered.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:40 pm
I play too much risk
June 19th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
So basically it’d be an all-out Mideast civil war. After all, every other nation besides Iran is majority Sunni - and you know they’d be dragged into this.
If we are discussing this, I have no doubt our government is and has been looking foward to this as a possible future. The real question is whether that kind of regional chaos is what we wanted as the end result of our efforts the entire time.
(warning) Conspiracy Theory: We’re setting them up to kill themselves and their infrastructure. Then we’ll clean up the mess and impose Democracy.
Great Satan rejoices. Radical Islam dies.
June 19th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
In a situation this dire, there’s only one man who could possibly come to the rescue.
Barack Obama.
June 19th, 2008 at 11:27 pm
“Get out and vote-
Let your voice be heard.
You’ve been given the right to choose
between a douche and a turd.”
June 20th, 2008 at 11:31 pm
Go see the Zohan guys, you would love this movie!
Great post.
June 21st, 2008 at 10:26 am
I saw Zohan, OMG…the noise hahahah.
June 21st, 2008 at 4:19 pm
@Jack:
Comment 1: You’re right and I was wrong, we didn’t DIRECTLY try Saddam. It doesn’t change my opinion that we have precedent for trying and executing bin Laden on US soil. I don’t care HOW bin Laden bites it (presuming he is still alive), so long as it happens posthaste. If Bush doesn’t pull it off by the end of his presidency, he will have 100% failed (as opposed to the 97% he has going right now.. he still does a few things right accidentally).
Comment 2: [Citation needed]. Obama’s considering lowering the corporate tax, which is different than how much the wealthy are taxed AND a billion times more relevant to how many people are employed.
June 21st, 2008 at 4:21 pm
By the way, my colorblind eyes can’t see any of the links when they are in the text of a comment.
June 21st, 2008 at 4:32 pm
Hey, Jake!
About trying an al Qaeda operative in a U.S. court. I think you are referring to the culprits captured in the first Trade Center bombing or to the 20th hi-jacker captured in 2001. In both of these cases, the perpetrators were captured on U.S. soil. I don’t think you will find a case where a non-citizen who was captured and held in foreign territory was afforded a right to a trial to a non-military trial in a U.S.court. The five liberal Supreme Court Judges who formed the majority in this decision have completely ignored all U.S. law and precedent.
June 22nd, 2008 at 12:19 am
Sp what you are saying is, “If you’re not an American you aren’t entitled to a fair trial.” Because that makes sense, clearly.
June 22nd, 2008 at 2:46 pm
No, I do not support additional taxes on oil companies. Exxon Mobil, for example, paid $29.86 BILLION dollars in income tax - remind me of why the government was b*tching again? That is a serious chunk of change.
Keep in mind that has no bearing on their actual tax expense. That figure does not include Sales & Use taxes, Personal Property taxes, Real Property Taxes, etc etc. I think the oil companies are giving the government their fair share already.
June 22nd, 2008 at 9:08 pm
Which is a reasonable strike against Obama as he cleary supports taxing the oil companies.
June 23rd, 2008 at 9:21 pm
As i said before - the CEO of Exon Mobile is not going to take a pay cut. Taxes oil companies will only tax the consumer indirectly.
But as long as the pleebs chear who cares right?
June 24th, 2008 at 12:15 am
How dare he ask the wealthiest of us to pay more taxes. Especially because these are the people who can afford the most skilled accountants to find loop holes anyway.
PS what’s a pleeb?
June 24th, 2008 at 1:13 am
Maybe the government needs to stop being corrupt and somebody needs to start investigating where all the tax money is going to. Obviously raising taxes is not the answer, as the government already receives plenty of money from us. Maybe the government needs to start a program called “wise spending”.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:54 am
Keeks, a pleeb (actually spelled pleb) is a reference to the Roman citizenry known as the Plebeians. They were the extensive Roman middle class that is often referred to as the mob, and that is mob as in masses.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:37 am
I am thinking of moving over with you guys. It is already hell on earth over here in Blighty. We have a Prime Minister who got in because the one who was legally voted in bolted. So we have a man who hardly anyone wants, telling us what to do. But luckily, he is on our side. He went to the oil producers and asked them to help the UK people by pumping more oil. Obviously reducing the already stupid amount of tax he makes from the price rises is too easy, and would show the government cares.
So I will meet you guys for a beer at the Obama after show party!
June 24th, 2008 at 10:55 am
Sy, what if any are the sentiments over in Britain regarding our upcoming election here in the States? It seems to me that America has some fences to mend with our European allies.
June 24th, 2008 at 11:26 am
I think that 90% of the population have one thing in mind. “bye bye Bush”. Because of Iraq etc, we have been drawn in to it, which most of the people were very much against, a lot of the country see’s no reason for Bush. But then, I say a lot of people, but have never met someone “pro Bush”. Unfortunately, as with a lot of people there, people see Obama as someone who can make a difference, but have no facts to base the opinion on. It is so much about getting Bush out, that people arent actually looking over the fence to see what colour the grass is on Obama’s side.
You do indeed have a lot of fences to mend with a lot of Europe though. The English will always be hated. No one will ever like us, so we have a fight that cannot be won. You guys will have to see how much Iraq has damaged you though.
One thing that I have against the UK-US relations is the one sidedness of it. We allow you to come over here no questions asked. We go there, and so many stories of laptops being taken away at customs and out of site of the owner etc, that there is seemingly no trust and it is all one directional. This is causing the UK side of relations to become strained, and slowly I can see the US alienating itself.
June 24th, 2008 at 11:53 am
I could give a rats *** who hates us and who likes us in Europe. Countries like France are full of people don’t even like themselves. A lot of countries hate us because we have the most freedom, biggest nuke, and we are simply “the place to be.” We feed and help the world, while no countries step up to help us with floods, tornados, or fires. Seriously, you want to talk about one-sided? Thanks for all the global support for Katrina.
UK is different. At least the UK was on board with us in the war on terror. The rest of the world doesn’t get involved unless there is a tank in their backyard shooting at their house.
What’s funny is, I think Obama is going to be the President who has to push the button. The liberal eutopic fantasy of “Terrorists on exist when Bush is in office” doesn’t hold weight.
Iran knows that a nuclear program won’t fly under Bush or McCain. How about under Obama?
June 24th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
While I agree with pretty much all of that statement, do you think you would accept help from us for Katrina? There is too much pride I think to accept it, and maybe in the eyes of the government it would make you look weak and need help. Although saying that, I have a friend over here who took 6 months off of work to go to NOLA and help rebuild it.
June 24th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
I think we would be glad to accept any form of help we can get given our current economic crisis. Your friend is a good person for helping.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
Europe is becoming an ever more unified front, which at present already represents population and economic numbers greater than that of the U.S., and is trending toward even larger numbers in both of those areas. It would be foolish of the U.S., at this point in time, to damage good and long standing relations with European nations beyond the point of repair. It just doesn’t make sense.
There are other world powers beginning to gain exponential ground on the U.S. fueled by an enormous population leading to lightning-quick industrialization. Other world powers, I might add, that happen to have the same style of government that the U.S. went to war with other nations over multiple times and almost escalated to nuclear war more than once as well.
However, we are a much more formidable force with all of Europe on our side. There is a logical reason not to piss those people off, it doesn’t mean you have to like them. But seriously, the neither French nor any of the rest of the European nations are going to initiate hostilities with the U.S. (we aren’t going to either), so why not at least have them and the people who come with them fully on our side?
Michael Moore is the liberal-douche to the O’Reilly conservative-turd sandwich…at least you get to choose, and that is what it really means to be an American.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:28 pm
I have to take issue with the comment that Bush “dragged” England into Iraq.
Some might say that the war on terror is a war started by Radical Islam.
Much like Churchill tried to convince the US and the rest of the world to stop Hitler before he set the world on fire, I see Bush as trying to raise the alarm, not conjur up faulty fear to advance an agenda as many accuse him.
I just hope that the rest of the world does not wait too long just as we Americans did in the 1940’s. When we finally were “dragged” into WWII Hitler was master of Europe, England nearly bombed into submission, Frnace defeated, Polland defeated, all of South East Asia in Japanese hands, and our Pacific Fleet decimated at Pearl Harbor.
Back then the Americans would rather have appeased the Fascists much the same way I see Europe as appeasing radical Islam now.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
Jack, call me naive and unlearned, but I still fail to see the similarities between this situation and the axis powers of Europe. Our problem now is that we do not face a recognized and common enemy with lines drawn clearly in the sand. Instead we face a more Viet Cong-esque guerrilla resistance where we do not know who is evil and who just wants to practice their religion in peace. And I’m sorry it is improper for any of us to make the blanket statement that all of Islam is representative and equates to Radical Islam. So we are left to wonder what to do?
June 24th, 2008 at 11:00 pm
There are some clearly drawn lines: Iranian Government, Syrian Government, Hamas, Hezbolla, Al Queda, Islamic Jihad - all Radical Islam.
Take them out and the other minor factions will follow suit. If we were not alone we could pull it off but the rest of the world’s unwillingness to fight means we are forced to restrict ourselves to invisible lines that the enemy does not adhere to.
June 24th, 2008 at 11:24 pm
I agree with you there, but the situation is so messed that part of me thinks an alternative that is innovated and different may be required to stem the problem. There is no doubt however that a unified front would be a step in the right direction!
June 25th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
If we want a unified front then we absolutely need to be concerned with how the rest of the world views us. I will play devil’s advocate for a second and say that we once thought that we would have control when Saddam fell.
June 25th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
I had a text conversation with Greg today that involved democracy. We removed a brutal dictator and gave the people the right to choose their own leadership. Saddam is dead and the people have voted.
The war is no longer with Saddam and his military. That lasted 2 days. The war now is with the same people that attacked us on 9/11…the same people who are attacking the progress in Iraq.
We didn’t think that we would have control when Saddam fell. We did, however, know that neither he nor his regime would ever achieve the capability to spread harm again. No WMD’s found? So what! There was a 4 month window where it was possible to sell or hide them. It is certainly NOT beyond reasonable doubt that he never possessed them. Neither is it beyond reasonable doubt that he never planned on achieving a weapons-grade nuclear program.
Getting back to my point, Iraq is now a democracy (simple and democratic). Because this is such a good system, it will always be in the crosshairs of terrorists, much like our own country.
There are clear cut lines between the radical groups Jack mentioned and regular islam. Some of them want you dead vie suicide bombings, and others want to obide by the rules of a decent society.
June 25th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
Just because someone else’s way of life is different than yours doesn’t make them not part of a “decent society”. Thinking like that leads to fascism.
Last time I checked, a “decent’ society” doesn’t hold untried criminals at maximum security prisons with no anticipation of a trial, let alone a fair one. What does that make us?
June 25th, 2008 at 11:20 pm
Jason,
Prisoners of war have been held without trial for centuries even millenia. These are not American Citizens, they are enemy combatants and I don’t shed one single tear for them. Wrongly accused? I suppose that is a possibility, but then again, the same could be said for inmates on death row.
These people are not protected by our laws because they would gladly kill themselves and anyone else to undo them. Let them rot without trial becuase they don’t deserve one. THEY are the enemy, remember? The terrorsist…those guys who want us dead…ask Paul Johnson if he got a trial…you can’t because his head was cut off.
June 26th, 2008 at 12:32 am
Lets not kid ourselves, killing Saddam was done in order to spread the American Empire. Bush Sr. wasn’t able to do it, so W. picked up where his father left off. While Saddam was a horrible tyrant in the eyes of “our” society, killing him left a giant power vacuum in the Middle East. Similar to what happened after the USSR fell in the early 90’s - you have multiple factions vying for dominance in the most tumultuous region in the worlds history. There is no end in sight. In terms of a Risk game, the U.S. spread itself way too thin and our allies don’t understand why (which is, in my opinion, a communication failure of our present administration).
As far as the war on Radical Islam goes, it is not a war that will ever be decided. As Molyneux said, the lines are NOT clearly drawn. As there are people living in areas of Radical Islam that might not believe in the destruction of the U.S. We, as the “supposed” leader of the Free World shouldn’t go around and impose our own style of Tyranny and Facism upon those with different ideologies (hint: you are talking about the beginnings of genocide of a peoples; kind of like what Hitler did). Sorry guys, but while certain countries might be led by Radical Islamists, you are not justified in saying that the lines are clearly drawn. If anything this is, in my opinion, the fallout from the Cold War. Call it Cold War Part Deux.
June 26th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Jason, I have total respect for many ways of life that are “different” than mine. However, say I was on a plane and a terrorist stood up with a box cutter…I’m snappin their effin neck. Say I am a US military sniper and I see someone with bombs strapped to their chest running towards a crowd of people…I’m gonna make pink mist of their effin head. In neither case will I say, “that person deserves a fair trial.” I am sorry but that is not fascism, that’s called minimizing casualties and protecting the innocent.
Greg, you said yourself, “As there are people living in areas of Radical Islam that MIGHT NOT believe in the destruction of the U.S.” This is true. There is a line drawn between that and someone who DOES believe in the destruction of the U.S.
I am curious..what makes an American stay in this country if they truly believe in their heart that we are a fascist and tyrannical spreading empire?
June 26th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
We hope that a change in leadership will also be a change in that policy. Not to mention all of our family and friends live here. Also while you may disagree just because the coach is flawed doesn’t mean we aren’t loyal to the team. I’m pretty sure I’m staying put. I can criticize the moves made by the president and still love my country.
June 26th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
Keeks, its ok to criticize the coach. As I have said before, being able to do so makes America so awesome. However, that is a lot different than saying America is a fascist and tyrannical empire.
June 26th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Admittedly, fascist tyrannical empire is a bit over dramatic. I wouldn’t say that but a times we do have some imperialistic tendency. I just think we need to be a little more humble and less adamant to play world police.
June 26th, 2008 at 5:21 pm
So do you honestly think Obama will remove this label we wear to the rest of the world?
June 26th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
I’m honestly not sure but he is more diplomatic then his predecessor. I hope he gets the opportunity.
June 26th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
I stay because the U.S. education system is so behind the times and piss poor that I never was exposed to another language and therefore can go nowhere else. England doesn’t count, that might as well be the U.S. Sure, I could learn it on my own, with all of my free time between trying to stay alive while working 60 hours a week.
Jack - I hear you. I was just pointing out the fact that a statement involving a citizen of one country saying that citizens of other countries should be punished for living differently (a decent society I believe was the language used) is a fascist statement, and it is.
June 26th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
Some Imperialistic tendencies? I guess the Monroe Doctrine, Manifest Destiny, and the Sphere of Influence (from the 50’s to the 90’s) have no meaning anymore. Our country is definitely imperialistic. Less we forget what we did to the Native Americans.
As far as our country being facist, I was merely pointing out that because our enemies are numerous and difficult to locate. What are we left to do? Fight the entire world? Or just fight countries that MIGHT harbor terrorists (and Radical Islam ideology)? There might be a clear line as in those who believe in radical islam and those that don’t. But how do you suppose we fight them? Start a world war? Fight suspect countries with limited evidence? Oh wait maybe our country could re-institute something like McCarthyism or Japanese concentration camps to weed out those radicals, but instead this shall be on a global scale. And no doubt help our “War on Terror”. The path our country is on in terms of foreign relations, whether justified or not, is a slippery slope that doesn’t have an end in sight.
Note: If you don’t get sarcasm, you probably did not understand anything I just said.
June 26th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Jay
I’m an educator and I understand the frustration and feel it myself. Unfortunately there are a lot of obstacles for public education. Namely the public. The number one aspect that effects a child’s education is valuing education at home.
If I ran education I would first get rid of testing, do year round school (like most countries), and I would go to flexible tracking system which would put like abilities together.
In our defense we are consistently either number 1 or 2 in the world teaching reading. This is never brought up for some reason.
Plus, we have all our kids take the test as opposed to other countries that have the best take the test. Our equality ironically is what hurts us.
Also what hurts us is our pride. Other countries do a great job in certain areas that we don’t. We should emulate what Europe does with world languages and what Japan does with focusing on a few concepts really well as opposed to a ton of concepts briefly.
I agree something needs to be done.
June 26th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
What do you all think of McCain saying that the war in Iraq will be over by the end of his first term? It is amazing how we all hear nothing about the progress since the troop surge.
Then again, the media is 80%-90% liberal. Other than Jack, are there any other starboard leaning authors on this site? 8/9 = 88%…interesting.
June 26th, 2008 at 9:19 pm
You are wrong there Jon, what has Oren ever written or said to seem liberal? As an Israeli, he is highly in favor of a strong US presence in the Middle East.
So that is 7/9, and I’m sorry I would not describe myself as left leaning - considering I did vote for George Bush, twice. Also considering the one politically themed post I have written here railed against the Democratic Party.
So that is 6/9, and I do not agree that some of the others are as liberal as you claim. Not to mention who cares about the political spirit of the authors here considering 10% or less of our content is politically related. No one here ever claimed to be an expert.
June 26th, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Did you know that I’m a traditional conservative? It’s true!
My 2 biggest “get the votes” issues are, in order 1) Who gets closer to a budget surplus? and 2) Who will set the tax rate equal for all Americans?
I believe that rights/decisions should largely be left to the states.
I’m a big fan of the Amendments.
I like the idea of non-interventionist foreign policy.
Fiscally, I lean right, but I also don’t lean crazy, so my political viewpoint is indistinguishable from liberalism for a lot of people. What do I mean? The next time you’re watching Fox News pundits, remember very carefully the meaning of the following phrases: “straw man”, “ad hominem”, and “appeal to ridicule”. I quite literally think it is crazy to look at news with anything other than scrutiny, and I honestly don’t see that level of effort from most of the people on the internet.
This is most certainly not specific to Fox News. It’s vital to think critically about all sources of your news, and find as many holes in the presentation as you can. I’m fascinated at the number of specious arguments that are passed off as valid.
If you find yourself yelling out “Eff Yeah!” while getting your news, YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG.
How bad has Neoconservativism gotten? It no longer means limited central government, limited spending, or non-interventionist foreign policy, all things that used to be the cornerstones of the platform. This is the conservative side of my ideology.
June 26th, 2008 at 10:49 pm
I was seeking an answer to the question I asked which was “Other than Jack, are there any other starboard leaning authors on this site?” How can I be wrong when I was asking a question? 8/9 was only if Jack was the only right-wing author, purely conditional. I will, however, go ahead and say with confidence that conservatice-Republican authors are in the minority here.
Are you going to vote for Obama (The candidate with the most liberal voting record in the senate)?
It seems as if this blog has exploded with political discussion since the two posts from Jack and the trickle down economics from Jay. What is this like the 63rd comment on this post?
Politics cannot be avoided if you plan on posting about gas prices, the economy, or posts titled (insert over-the-top Republican statement here).
Not saying anyone here is an expert on anything, but where someone stands on a political spectrum is sometimes transparent, especially if you have hung out with them for years.
June 26th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
For all you Star Wars fans out there: Only a Dark Sith deals in absolutes. I think its important to be neither liberal nor conservative.
I’ll admit I voted for Bush in 2004 and I still think he was the best man for the job 4 years ago.
However:
I am a moderate and I think that other authors on this site are INTELLIGENT enough to not back themselves into a corner of Republican or Democrat. As that just keeps you closed minded about alternative ideas. I consider myself a Moderate. As to who I will vote for in this election, I honestly think both candidates are garbage; as Claire said in comment #24 “You’ve been given the right to choose between a douche and a turd.” I will probably throw my vote away this election and vote for Nader as I would rather see him get his 5% and a 3rd party gain momentum in our political system.
June 27th, 2008 at 1:17 am
Hey Greg,
I agree we need at least a third party hopefully more someday. I think we have two good choices this time. It’s better then Bush Gore (I voted Nader)or Bush Kerry. Out of curiosity who do you think would make a good president?
June 27th, 2008 at 7:40 am
You bet I’m going to vote for Obama! You can call him whatever you want, but at the moment, his mojo far exceeds that of McCain, and his projected deficit is a lot lower than McCain’s. The deficit and ending the war that isn’t Afghanistan are my two biggest issues. Followed up by the fact that McCain says some of the most wrong things I’ve ever heard, and it’s a shoo-in.
Example: “I’ll cut deficits like Reagan”
Reagan tripled the deficit.
June 27th, 2008 at 9:45 am
Being a Republican or a Democrat does not make you close minded or non intelligent. If you break every single political issue down and decide on it how you really feel inside, your total will be either right or left of center.
Perhaps a survey of 100 political questions would be a cool blog post. At the end you will see if you lean left or right. I seriously doubt all of you will answer 50/50..lol. As a matter of fact, I bet most of you end up being 60/40 one way or the other and not in the 50’s at all.
It is perfectly understandable for someone to not want to label themself. Ironically, that person then falls into the group of “people who do not want to label themselves” and there are plenty of political nicknames for them too. Everyone backs themself into a corner of some sort whether they like it or not.
And the quote is, “Only a Sith deals in absolutes.” This might open a whole new can of worms, but does anyone else feel that Lucas hinted at some current popular political trends in Episode III? Maybe to win the Hollywood critics over a little bit after what they said about Episodes I and II? Some examples of this were:
“Your starting to sound like a separatist.”
“And so this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause.”
And of course what you quoted Greg. There are a few more too. To say that all absolutes are bad or evil is a close minded statement, would you agree? Is someone who sells their SUV and buys a hybrid a Sith because they have completely gone from one polar opposite to the other in fuel consumption?
I love when people sport the third party and then (close to election time) preach how a vote for Nader is a Vote for the Republicans.
June 27th, 2008 at 10:32 am
Keeks,
Earlier in the year, if you had asked me who I would have voted for in this election, I would have said hands down Obama. I think you are too nice about the candidates that we have running in this election because neither of them are good as you put it. They aren’t acceptable as the 2 best candidates that this country has to choose between. They honestly suck.
McCain’s policies on the economy and foreign relations sucks. He is too old. He will be like a clone of Bush. McCain has blasted Bush in the past on issues and now stands besides him. He is politics as usual. Status quo. He is a puppet.
Obama is a gifted orator, like Clinton or Kennedy, but that isn’t enough to make me want to vote for him. The fact that he has no experience doesn’t bother me at all, since I think his lack of experience only bolsters his integrity in the political spectrum. He wants to hand over everything to everybody. Why should the government bail people out of mortgage debt? I don’t think it is everybodys right to go to college for free. The world needs ditch diggers too, not more arm chair philosophers. He is essentially making promises his body can’t cash and if he does make good on them, then taxes will go up. Plus, it bothers me that he attended a church in the South side of Chicago for 20 years where his preacher preached hate and animosity towards white people. Lets be real here people: You don’t belong to a church for 20 years, befriend a radical hate mongering preacher, and then all of a sudden change after one sermon. The guys a hack and his wife might as well take over giving the sermons in that church. In short, I think Barack and Michelle are racist and proud about it. I don’t like that and I would rather see Conan The Barbarian in office. Their blackness will only separate our country more, not unite it.
Keeks,
To be honest, I think there are a lot of people that would make a better a president than either Obama or McCain. Due to the corruption in our political system where money matters more than the issues, no one ever gets a chance to see them. I know this much we haven’t seen a great or even a good president in our lifetime. I would have liked to see what Bloomberg could have done if he ran because I think hes done one helluva job in NY City. But Keeks I think you would be a better President than either McCain or Obama. As I said I think they suck.
June 27th, 2008 at 10:49 am
I think I would lean closest to the starboard side if I thought about it long and hard. I am definitely fiscally conservative. I support the idea that its every Americans right to bear arms. I support all of the amendments. I am into small government, not big government. I pretty much think I agree with Jake on what he said in comment #64. But just because I might lean to the right doesn’t mean I will blindly vote for a Republican candidate…thats ignorant. Especially if he isn’t the best man for the job. So when I say it makes you closed minded to be either Republican or Democrat, I should really be specific and state “If you are a dedicated staunch [political party] that is unwilling to vote for a better man/woman with a better solution solely based upon party lines”.
June 27th, 2008 at 10:55 am
While I might not like the policies that our country imposes in the international world or even domestically, I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN. Tell me has anyone else ever wore a blue windbreaker with a distinct American flag on it while walking through the Arab and Christan markets in Jerusalem. Thats what I thought.
June 27th, 2008 at 11:27 am
Greg,
I think Obama will surprise you. I think he is someone who will unite this country if certain members of the country can look at him as a man and not a black man. I think he is thoughtful, sincere and diplomatic. This is a man who in 1985 instead of going to law school went into the projects of Chicago and worked with a inner city outreach program to help improve the lives of the less fortunate. That is a person I would like leading our country.
Unfortunately in this country we like to find a kink in the armor and destroy our heroes. With all the dirt searching the opposition could only find his preacher is controversial and he can’t bowl. That’s pretty good if you ask me.
I was not inspired by any of the candidates for the last two elections. In 2004 when he gave his speech at the democratic national convention I remember thinking “I wish I could vote for that guy.” Now I will get a chance. I’m very excited about the possibilities.
As an aside, I don’t believe him or his wife are racist. His mother is white.
June 27th, 2008 at 11:40 am
Keeks,
I really hope you are right because he will most likely win this next election.
June 27th, 2008 at 12:48 pm
From your mouth to God’s ears.