Thursday, August 27, 2009
To Rich & Terry
Rich & Terry, Please try to put aside your partisanship for a brief moment. I am truly curious about your liberal viewpoint. Do either of you ever think/worry that this administration may be leading this country down a bad path? For example: I thought our previous administration totally lost control of fiscal responsibility and that Tom Delay was a bigger asshole than Nancy Pelosi. I admit that grievous mistakes were made. Do either of you ever have doubts? This current state of affairs is reminding me of the Hamilton/Adams vs Jefferson debate about the role of government in our lives. I am worried about the future of our freedoms. Honest answer please.
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7 comments:
Good post.
I might add, and I tried this previously with little suscess, what can't the government get involved in?
I am not afraid of Obama administration. In fact, I think hey may be just the guys to pull us out of this mess. I'll be back with you later on this topic.
Tom, thanks for your thoughtful question about being a liberal and the future of our country. Labels are always problematic because it stops the thinking process. There are people who are liberal in social thought and conservative on fiscal matters. I believe that is closer to my position to the surprise of many.
Tom, I am not worried about this country, just as I was not worried about this country when Bush was in office. I do not fully understand world economics but I believe a country such as the United States will always be against socialism What you are seeing now across this country at town hall meetings lately is democracy in action.
I am for a vigorous debate and a scaling down of full change in health care. I believe what we are seeing is democracy in action right now, I also believe Obama's style is to make good decisions when he sees all sides, hence that is why the bill did not originate from the White House. He let the Congress draft it. I believe he put deadlines on it because otherwise Congress will find a way not to do it.
Health Care is a problem for our future in the global economy, it is also unsustainable as a cost to government. Tom, I may be giving him too much credit but with Pelosi and the goofy left, his only way to get a middle of the road bill is to let congressmen go home and face the people.
I believe Health Care is dead in the water now, I will be very unhappy if the Democrats ram something thru now. Sorry for the rambling let me state this, the war in Iraq right or wrong we could not afford and Obama said he would get us out ASAP and that was my overriding issue in the election and if I had to pay a little more taxes I was okay with also, I am happy to be an American as you are. I want to pay my fair share and I do not worry who is paying and who is not. It's a progressive tax policy and that is the way it always has been.
We have spent too much money, and the crooks on wall street and in Washington have hurt us all. I agree we do not need to spend more money even tho health care reform is a good idea at this time we cannot afford it.
We need term limits and good wise government.
I also believe that Capitalism left unregulated will lead to no middle class. Barney, Dodd, Maxine Waters, Pelosi, and the rest of the those idiots only care about who contributes to their campaign, Just as Kyle, and Boehner, and the Republican congressman care only about re election and who contributes to their re election its sad!
thanks for the question in the end like the Catholic Church my faith is not in the Pope or priests but in the congregation, my faith in America is in the people not the Presidents and congressmen. WE WILL BE OKAY
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Terry, Good, thoughtful answer. I appreciate your candor. We agree on term limits and that unregulated capitalism will eliminate the middle class. I am afraid I don't share your view Obama's wise omniscience. I fear that he has an agenda to create a dynasty and I normally never subscribe to conspiracy theories. This country needs no dynasties, right or left. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
This answer is 100% genuine and free of gratuitous partisan rhetoric.
I am not remotely afraid of our current administration. I support just about everything they are doing. I am baffled by sentiments questioning the loss of our freedoms. Like what? What has this administration done or proposed that will curtail our freedom?
To answer Jim, the government can get involved in whatever it wants provided that it is constitutional. What, pray tell, are they involved in right now contrary to that hallowed document? Remember, we have the conservative Roberts SCOTUS. There is ample recourse if something unconstitutional is enacted.
Benchmarks: Lets compare ourselves to our peers - the western industrialized countries; western Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Keep these allies in mind when making pronouncements about the potential impact of policy decisions.
America doesn't really have many liberals. Right now, we are a nation of the far right (Republicans) and the center (Democrats). Europeans laugh at us when the words "socialist" and "fascist" are thrown around so ignorantly. If all of Obamas proposals across the board are enacted, US policies will remain to the right of our peer group. I do not consider Europe or Japan to be fascist or socialist. If you think they are, you need to read up on the subject.
The vast majority of GDP is produced by the private sector throughout the western world. The Democratic Party would not qualify as left of center in any of our peer group nations.
I am concerned about the rhetoric of the right. They are very sore losers and the loudest have nothing thoughtful to say. We are hearing lies and half truths from the likes of Limbaugh and Beck, only to be repeated by dim witted true believers. I think the town halls have been instructive and they paint an ugly picture of our citizenry. It really bothers me that people witness these things from overseas. What are they to think of us? Our moral standing and reputation as a beacon of hope is taking a well deserved beating. Are we exceptional any more? Exceptionally stupid, perhaps.
Like Terry, I think we will make it. I just don't want to see a repeat of Oklahoma City or some other tragedy while the true fascists bang the drum of hate filled lies. Unfortunately, the militia movement is back in full swing and the rhetoric they hear on Fox News may be the match that lights the fuse.
That is what I am afraid of, not the policies of our wonderful new administration.
Rich, Thanks for your answer. Unlike Terry we have no common ground. We will agree to disagree. Our largest philosophical difference is you refer to our peers. I honestly do not believe this country has any peers.
Wenzel -
Your philosophy is part of the problem, not the solution. We have no peers? That is incredibly arrogant. It is the kind of view that makes the rest of the world root for "the other guy" whoever that may be at a given moment.
In any business, when managing anything, one must benchmark. It is how one can discover where they are falling short and where they are excelling. What are they doing is Japan that is so effective in this area, what are the Germans doing in the other?
To simply say we can't compare as we have no peers is incredibly inaccurate and shortsighted. GM may have said something like that in the '60s.
"Pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall."
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