August 28, 2008
Think Global act local
I'm going to be working for Obama's election as much as I can. It's not that I think he's the saint the way some of his followers do. It's just that the last 7 years have been such a nightmare that I can't handle another 4 years of it.
The Republicans finally shook off all pretenses of working with democrats, of "bi-partisan" actions for the sake of the general welfare -- and now all that Democrats can do is to crush them, fight for their agenda, and clean up the mess.
The republicans smell defeat. That is why they are fighting so tooth and claw. If they can wrestle a pretense of "bi-partisanship" or ship their own deeds and behaviors to paint on Democrats they will. The snakes who backed them are already scurrying into the grass. "I'm an independent now." Or a "libertarian."
Libertarian over the past 7 years has meant liberating public money and putting it in private hands. The Housing meltdown, the sheer level of corruption and impunity of this administration and the gang of kleptocrats who backed them from Congress has disgusted me more than all the cumulative (and traditional) sleaze of the Democratic party over the past 150 years. Because it was accompanied by fear tactics, terror tactics, hypocrisy, targeted partisan prosecutions, and kleptocracy on an unheard of scale. This party has been a party, and the party is over and someone needs to clean up the mess.
That is a job only the Democrats, and the progressive wing of the Democrats, can do.
Republicans like McCain showed they had no spine
when they had the opportunity to shine,
and now they must pay a price.
When they tortured prisoners they tortured me,
and now only throwing the rascals out,
can set my soul free.
When they set up a spy system,
to listen to me,
They told me all I needed to know,
about where we should be
-- free of them.
Throw the rascals out!
Chris
Posted by cholte at August 28, 2008 08:54 PM
I'm with you, Chris.
I am curious what think local act global means? I do think there is a serious disconnect between local where I am and where you are.
It has been interesting to watch how McCain's image in the medfia has sort of been morphed. When he ran against W, non one dared say anything critical of him.
Being from Illinois, I have reservations about Obama. I really have no idea who he is. The associations with Wright and Phlager are troublesome.
Both Parties self destructed here; but especially the Republicans ran out of viable candidates. We had to import Allen Keyes to oppose Obama for Pete Fitzgerald's open Senate Seat. Everyone agreed Keyes actually won the debates; but no one paid much attention.
Google Rob Blagojevich and Antoin "Tony" Rezko.
Then Grorge Ryan and Jack Ryan {no realtion}. Those are the kind of people who have been running Illinois. It does not get any better than this. The state government is in a shambles; due to total financial mismanagement by Chicago Democrats. They are all corrupt; but Republicans were at least competent and paid the bills.
r
Robin -
"Think local act global"? Lysdexia is catching.
BTW, do you feel that nationally the Repubs have been competent and paid the bills?
Namaste, Engyo Mike Barrett
Whoops. If what Illinois Democrats are doing is to think globally and act locally, that might explain things. What they are doing here is certainly not working here.
I think the current crop of Bushie National Republicans are just as bad as the National Democrats. They have the ethics of fairly recent Illinois Republicans, and the competency of current Illinois Democrats. Well, they might be a bit more competent I can not compare them to current Illinios Republicans, because there are not any with any influence who are not in jail. :}
I kind of like McCain's VP so far, because she apparently took on corrupt Republicans in Alaska.
I would like to see someone do that in Illinois. It looks like there are 4 issues they will usec to attack her; bit I think that might backfire.
Holte's take on kleptocracy does not resonate with me, because in Illinois, the term kleptocrat is a synonym a politician. Some past figures, like Ed Madigan, Jim Thompson, and Jim Edgar, seemed to have some ethics and management skills.
Barack Hussein Obama II has served in the Us Senate since 2004. He served in the Illinios State Senate from 1997 to 2004. Prior to that, he was a community activist in Chicago; with pals like the notoriously weird Father Phlakey, the incredibly mean spirited Reverend Jeremiah Wright,
Weather Underground co-founder William Charles "Bill" Ayers, and others he does not want you to know about.
I am not knocking that he hung out with some questionable characters. If one wishes to be active in the slime pit called Chicago politics; that is petty much impossible to avoid. Also, so what if Obama received a discount on a mortgage for a Chicago home valued at $1.65 million.
{there is pretty good money to made being an activist advocate for the poor, huh?}
I should know more about Obama. He just was not anybody anyone I had heard of, until he was elected to the US Senate, by default in 2004. I have trouble seeing him as an actual reformer; though he talks the talk. He strikes me as being a rather typical product of the urban political patronage mills; a smooth talking, well healed community activist / agitator.
Now that my eyes are not quite so bleary, I still have a question; what does "think globally, act locally mean?"
Reading and talking about politics makes my eyes
glaze over.
Kleptocrat is anyone who confuses their public mission and who pays them. I don't buy the nonsense that Obama is practicing a "new politics." I get nervous when people start claiming "new ideas" as most good ideas have been "thunk" before, and the Progressive reform agenda is a work in progress that has roots in both Progressive Republican ideas and people like William Jenning Bryan's efforts. At the same time neither TR nor Bryan would be considered Progressive by current status; our wisdom and information about the world has changed.
Politics means getting things done. Obama has worked with a wide variety of people. That doesn't automatically make him either corrupt nor a kleptocrat. At the same time nobody gets into politics to live like a monk and anybody who thinks that any of our top tiered politicians should live like perfect saints is either a fool or a posturing hypocrite.
They should know what it means to be poor, they should have empathy, and they should have policies that benefit everybody. Obama fits that bill. No Republican does. It's the policies stupid.
Chris
What is the name for the mental illness where regardless of the facts you defame one political party and defend the other one? It must be some recognized form of psychosis.
Philip
"They should know what it means to be poor, they should have empathy, and they should have policies that benefit everybody. Obama fits that bill. No Republican does. It's the policies stupid."
I do not think taxing small businesses out of business benefits everyone. There must be some reason why Joe Lieberman have a speech at the Republican Convention. I mean; Al Gore's choice for Vice President in 2000 supports McCain. It is the policies stupid. Maybe they should know what it is like to actually run a small business, meet a payroll, and have some empathy for that? It is not about just raising the price of pizza. Does getting rich as a community activist running non-profits, and getting a preferred loan on a $1.65 million restored Georgian mansion in an upscale Chicago neighborhood qualify?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The real question is: Were congressmen getting unique treatment that others weren't getting?" associate law professor Adam J. Levitin, a credit specialist at Georgetown University Law Center, said about the Countrywide loans. "Do they do business like that for people who are not congressmen? If they don't, that's a problem."
"Obama's house purchase has been a source of controversy. In 2006, the Chicago Tribune reported that on the day of the closing, the wife ofObama's longtime friend and fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko closed on an adjoining lot that had been the estate's side yard"
"The Obamas bought the house for $300,000 less than the asking price of $1.95 million, while Rezko's wife, Rita, bought the neighboring lot for the full asking price of $625,000. Rita Rezko later sold a portion of the undeveloped lot to the Obamas, enlarging the senator's yard.
Tony Rezko already had been linked to a grand jury investigation involving public corruption. Last month, he was convicted of 16 counts in an influence-peddling scheme that reached the highest levels of Illinois state government."
washingtonpost.com -- Obama Got Discount on Home Loan
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If a Republican had those questions in their background, I bet you would be all over that.
Lots of things have changed since you wrote this post. I guess the real issue now is, who is less qualified, Obama, or Palin? Or is it Palin's daughter's pregnancy? Maybe, how many houses McCain's wife owns? All I know about Obama is that he came out of nowhere to win the vacant Senate seat in Illinois by default. In the end, he was the only candidate left standing. It might be wise to learn something about him before anointing him some kind of holy savior. Not that you have done that Chris. Now we have the national news media, which you have told me is corporate right wing; out there trying to destroyPalin. We also have all kinds of people vouching for McCain and Palin. Obama has people who want to vouch for him too, but he does not want us to look behind that curtain.
Clown: "What is the name for the mental illness where regardless of the facts you defame one political party and defend the other one? It must be some recognized form of psychosis."
Good point. That sword cuts both ways. W & crowd have been major disappointments. I do not think they are as bad as Chris has portrayed them. Right now, we have McCain and Palin who have records as real reformers. With Obama and Biden, will we have more of the same o, same o? Next up, will the Clarence Thomas hearings {Joe Biden's `high tech lynching of an uppity black}' be revisited?
gassho
robin
Spiritual salvation is for everyone
http://gongyosense.blogspot.com/
http://mettasense.blogspot.com/
McCain is a real reformer?? What has he reformed other than his opinion of the neo-con agenda? Palin I have no regard for except her family is a good advertisement for how well "abstinence only" works. At least she's being honest about her daughters second pregnancy. Onward christian soldiers marching as to war!
Thanks. IRMC
I remembered why McCain is known as a reformer. Twenty years ago he co-sponsered legislation on campaign finance that created more loopholes than it closed. Go Johnny, go!
I miss the McCain from before 2004, and the one from before 2000. After the Keating 5 scandal he seemed to be a republican progressives could work with. But after Bush Junior got elected the whole tenor of the party changed.
I'll name three authoritarian acts: Patriot Act, Miitary Commissions Act, and the warrantless wiretapping FISA fiasco. On two of them McCain once was close to where I could deal with him - and then he caved. I can't abide the loss of the bill of rights. It's meaningless to keep and bear arms if the State has so much power it can take you away for exercising that right while leaving your guns in a closet.
I can't abide by torture, the loss of Miranda rights, knockless assaults on people's homes, swatt teams for misdemeanors, and cops who are taught impunity and violence as SOP. Do I blame McCain, no. Do I blame individual Republicans -- only to the extent one could blame the Quislings and Petains of World War II Europe for the deaths of thousands of people in their countries. Sure the Police Statists would have locked them up and found another quizling if they'd resisted.
Are the Democrats better, marginally.
Am I defaming anybody? no. The Republicans are marching us into an authoritarian Security State, and they make no bones about it. Just listen to them. They make no bones of their disdain for any amendment other than the first amendment. They don't hesitate to call people liars and cheats -- yet they lie in goose-step and expect people to believe them long enough to get themselves elected.
They don't hesitate to use targeted investigations to bring down their adversaries. Robin whines, yet he doesn't seem to care that if Obama had actually done anything wrong he'd be in a jail cell now.
And that is not even talking about their disaster economic policies.....Who is taxing people out of business? Not the Democrats. And who is paying for these tax cuts? Our Children, our national credit and credibiity, and the dollar -- we are. 10 trillion debt, and most of it wasted because it was invested in making a few people richer than Midas. Businesses are being lost not because of Democratic tax policies, but because of the irresponsible fiscal policies of people who don't want to pay for things up front, won't invest in common infrastructure, and who see enemies under every rock when they need to look in the mirror.....
The first amendment still reads, I believe,
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
Now it may all be respected as much as much as politically feasible for the first half, but when you come to the second half I see no reason to say that one party prohibits those rights any more than the other. Correct me if I'm wrong. Correct me if Democrats protect those rights any more than Republicans do. In my opinion they should just cut out the second half as it has never been true. Quite frankly I'd gut the whole thing freedom of the press means nothing when mass communications conditions everyone and freedom of religion is a silly superstition of the enlightenmenmt age besides which political correctmess demands that you respect even those religions which put the worst kind of bindings and chains on free thought.
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