Category: Politics

The Cloak of Wisdom

Barack Obama is viewed by many people, including me, as being short on experience.  He likes to point out that he was wise enough to say the Iraq War is a mistake.  That alone is not enough for me to expect he will be more than adequate for the job of president.  To reassure me and all of us Independents, he selected Joe Biden as his running mate.  It was a very good choice.  Biden has the experience and wisdom that Obama lacks.  I thought that Hillary Clinton would have been a better choice but the Bill Clinton issue apparently could not be overcome.    

 

George W. Bush was viewed as a candidate with limited experience when he ran for office in 2000.  John F. Kennedy faced the same challenge in 1960.  So Bush selected Dick Cheney as his running mate because of Cheney’s federal government experience.  Similarly Kennedy selected Lyndon Johnson in part because of his significant experience in the Senate.  Of course there were other factors that motivated those VP choices.

 

The selection of Joe Biden to the VP slot on the Obama ticket was most certainly motivated by Biden’s significant senatorial and foreign affairs experience.  The third reason must have been Biden’s speaking skills that will help in connecting with Blue Collar voters.  Biden’s connection with “regular” people in the mid-Atlantic states will help Obama in winning votes there and throughout the mid-west and along the entire east coast.  Perhaps the most important reason for adding Joe Biden to the ticket is he impresses me as someone who will say “no” to a President Obama.

 

I am almost sold on Barack Obama but I still need to hear more detail.  Hope and Change are wonderful themes.  It’s action that we need.  Neither candidate has defined a vision or set of goals for this nation.  As an example I want a president that will say he will work for energy independence within a specified time (the dreaded time line).  Perhaps the debates will provide more clarity.  I really don’t want to hold my nose when voting.  I really would like to be whole heartedly behind one candidate.   

Barack Obama’s Campaign is in Trouble

Barack Obama has not closed the sale on his nomination at the DNC. The list of opponents to his nomination is growing.  I just saw a leader of Just Say No Deal  on Hardball. Diane Mantouvalos is one tough cookie.  She made it clear that Obama’s loss to McCain would not cause her to lose any sleep.  The list of groups opposing Obama’s nomination is becoming quite significant.  Even if Hillary Clinton were nominated for the VP spot I do not think these groups will be satisfied.

 

The Obama campaign has a major sales job on its hands.  Selection of the running mates by Obama and McCain may be the deal maker or breaker.

The Russian Bear Roars

Is the Cold War really over? I don’t think so. It was always a mystery to me that in a matter of months after the fall of the U.S.S.R. the United States government concluded it was over. For reasons I never understood the new Russia was no longer a threat to the rest of the world. After all the same people that lived in the old U.S.S.R. are still alive and well in the new Russia. Vladimir Putin the recent past president and now prime minister of Russia was recruited into the KGB and was a member of the Communist Party from the mid 1970s until the party was dissolved in December 1991.The Russians, like the Americans, do not like a government on or near its borders that it considers a threat. A good example is the United States attempt to isolate Cuba. We consider the Caribbean to be within our sphere of influence. Now Georgia, which was part of Russia for most of the past 200 years, is thumbing its nose at Russia and Poland has signed an agreement to put a U.S. missile interceptor base in their country.

Despite our words of support it is not likely that we will go to war with Russia over Georgia. Leaving politics aside I do not believe that the United States will come to the aid of any small nation that borders Russia. I know that NATO includes many nations in Eastern Europe (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania). Is the United States prepared to defend their borders from invasion from Russia?

In 1796, George Washington warned his new nation “…Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence (I conjure you to believe me, fellow citizens) the jealousy of a free people out to be constantly awake, since history and experience prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of republican government.” Washington said “The great rule of conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible.”

John McCain’s statement, “We are all Georgians”, could be a frightening view into his state of mind. He is, after all, a military man. If he were president would he take America into battle over Georgia? I fear the answer may be yes.

 

 

Need Health Care? Vote for Barack Obama

There is no guarantee that any proposed legislation will ever be passed by Congress.  I am sure that many good ideas have never been enacted into law.  The reasons are probably more than I know.  However, I do know that politics, religion and lobbyists do impact which laws are passed and which never get beyond a hearing committee.

 

The current fight over oil drilling off the coast of the United States is a good example of politics impacting the granting of those rights.  When Nancy Peolsi, Speaker of the House, proposes that the government should release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to lower gasoline prices, you know she is playing a political card.  Those reserves will only last for two months of American demand.  This action is no more likely to reduce gasoline prices than John McCain’s proposal to grant oil drilling rights that will take 10 years until there is delivered results.

 

Many religious groups oppose gay marriage.  It’s not just conservative Christians who oppose these marriages. On the Reform Jewish web site “Traditional Judaism has seen – and continues to see – homosexuality as an abomination.”  We all know that Islam does not accept homosexuality.  These same groups have positions on many other topics too.  The Republican Party is swayed by those religious conservatives in their voting patterns.  John McCain thinks about the religious right quite a bite.  Just recall his refusal to take a position on birth control pills when asked about the use of Viagra vs. those pills .

               

Lobbyists are everywhere.  Those hired mouth pieces that attempt to sway the vote on everything from farm subsidies to support for national public radio.  Big pharma, big oil, auto manufacturers, etc. all have their hired lobbyists.  Those lobbyists would not have those high paying jobs if they were not successful.  Just enter “K Street Lobbyists” in your search engine and you find all kinds of interesting things.

 

Will there be universal health care in this country?  Honestly, I doubt it.  Hospitals, doctors, and insurance companies will send a legion of lobbyists to fight the idea.  The scare tactic will be the words “socialized medicine.”  Still, Barack Obama does support the idea of universal health care <http://www.barackobama.com/issues/healthcare/#coverage-for-all>.  John McCain is opposed to universal health care <http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/19ba2f1c-c03f-4ac2-8cd5-5cf2edb527cf.htm>.  Check their web sites and you will see their positions.

           

This highlights the difference between Barack Obama and John McCain.  Barack Obama says he will fight for change.  This is just one of many issues where Americans need this fight.

An Incompetent Government

Republicans always told us that those Democrats are only going to devastate America by spending too much money, creating too much bureaucracy, and destroying the American way of life.  So George W. Bush was elected president.

 

What did we get in return?                                                                                          

  • The highest debt in America’s history (there was a surplus in the year 2000 but now the debt has grown by $5trillion).
  • We have a war that most Americans now believe needs to be ended but the president and his men/women (including John McCain) want an undefined victory before withdrawing.             
  • The city of New Orleans was devastated by Hurricane Katrina but no aid was sent to its victims (the president sat in a meeting where he was advised of the coming storm but did nothing).                                                                                                                           
  • A year after the worst U.S. bridge collapse occurred and no work has been done to check or reinforce any other bridges throughout the country.
  • One of the worst financial disasters in history has impacted our nation (bank closures and home foreclosures have impacted many Americans).
  • Inflation for 2008 to date is 4.28%.  It was 3.38% for all of the year 2000.
  • Gasoline has now has reached a new high this year and there is no indication that $3.00 a gallon fuel will ever return.
  • Limits on stem cell research.
  • Unlimited entry of illegal aliens.
  • High cost of medical care.

How many more items can you add to this list?

 

John McCain wants us to believe that his “Country First” theme will address any of these issues.  Take just one issue, healthcare, and you quickly understand that he has no clue about paying for the cost and obtaining reliable coverage.  This one statement from his web site says it better than I

John McCain Will Reform The Tax Code To Offer More Choices Beyond Employer-Based Health Insurance Coverage. While still having the option of employer-based coverage, every family will receive a direct refundable tax credit – effectively cash – of $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families to offset the cost of insurance. Families will be able to choose the insurance provider that suits them best and the money would be sent directly to the insurance provider. Those obtaining innovative insurance that costs less than the credit can deposit the remainder in expanded Health Savings Accounts.

 

Barack Obama has many fine ideas but he unrealistically believes that the lobbyists will all bow to his wishes.  Whether it is health insurance, reducing the unbelievably high debt or the myriad of other issues, the many interest groups will block most of his well intentioned plans.

Socialism For The Rich, Free Markets For The Poor

 

 

These are not my words.  They were the words of Adrian Woodridge of The Economist on “Fareed Zakaria GPS”, broadcast on CNN.  John Médaille has written a similar post on his blog < http://distributism.blogspot.com/2007/08/socialism-for-rich-capitalism-for-rest.html>. There was a commentary in a Los Angles Time blog and another at alternet.org. <http://www.alternet.org/story/92426/the_u.s._economy_is_socialism_for_the_rich/>They are so very true.

 

The George W. Bush administration has done an outstanding job of giving breaks to the rich at the expense of the rest. 

 

The most glaring example is the income taxes paid by the wealthy of Wall Street (or wherever they live).  These people receive their pay in the form of capital gains <

http://whippersnapper.wordpress.com/2008/05/11/capital-gains-facts/ >.  Capital gains are taxed at 15%.  The consequence is that a couple earning $100,000 per year as the result of wages pays taxes at the 25% rate.  That same couple earning their income from capital gains pays 15%.

 

From the Citizens for Tax Justice:

  • In 2005, the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans received almost 70 percent of all long-term capital gains—and paid 72 percent of the tax on these capital gains.

 

  • The wealthiest 10 percent of taxpayers enjoyed 90 percent of the capital gains eligible for this special tax break.

 

  • The poorest sixty percent of Americans, by contrast, collectively received just 2 percent of the capital gains eligible for the lower capital gains rates.

 

 

This situation is nothing compared to the bail out of big corporations.  Bear Sterns is the best example of an action by the government to protect all of us less fortunate.  Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae might well be saved by the government buying stock in those companies.  In all three of these instances it was the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department contending that they are saving home owners and other small investors from a crisis that will make their actions seem well worthwhile.  There has been talk of saving General Motors and/or Ford if the U.S. government finds it necessary.

 

Then there are the federal subsidies.  The U.S, government subsidizes many industries.  Farming is one of the oldest.  The government subsidizes corporate farmers as well family farms. There are subsidies going to oil companies for adding ethanol to gasoline and the latest are the subsidies for renewable energy.  I once worked for a company that manufactured solar panels and they received a federal subsidy.

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Feb 7,2011

Another blog on the same subject

http://distributism.blogspot.com/2007/08/socialism-for-rich-capitalism-for-rest.html 

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The answer is a new kind of federal government that really does concern itself with the rest of us.  The problem is that most Americans believe in their government.  They believe the U.S. government can do no wrong.  That is probably the reason that John McCain will be elected president.  He seems like one of us.  He seems like a good guy.   He has government experience too.

Barack Obama’s Presumptuous Speech

Mr. Obama’s speech in Berlin was, to use on his own wording, audacious.  I would use the word chutzpa.  I like the man because he is so well spoken.  John McCain will never be as adept as Barack Obama in delivering a speech.  My problem with him is that he told us that on his trip to Iraq, the Middle East, and Europe he would be listening.  Giving a political speech in Berlin was inappropriate for an American presidential candidate.

 

Yes, he did speak in Israel but it was for the purpose of reassuring Israelis that he would support that nation.  The speech in Berlin was similar to many of the rousing campaign speeches he has presented throughout his race to obtain the Democratic Party nomination.  Do Berliners care?  They were probably curious about his views and he has taken on a star quality and they wanted to hear him and perhaps obtain a picture.  It’s as if he might appear on German television in their version of Access Hollywood.

 

Barack Obama needs to return to the United States and focus on the economy.  He needs to tell us details of his plans to restore the jobs and wealth that many American have lost during the past eight years.  He needs to tell us precisely how he will deal with the growing energy crises and the world environmental crises.  That means no vague “yes we can” mottos.     

Political Parties Matter

On July 14, 1933, Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party officially declared itself the only political party in Germany and outlawed the formation of any other parties.  Hitler had already become Chancellor of Germany and the Reichstag building, home of the German parliament, had burned. Everyone in the world should have known that something very terrible was evolving.

 

Throughout America’s history we have had many different political parties that have provided our nation with a wide range of opinion.  From the Federalists and Anti-Federalist to today’s Democratic and Republican parties that variation of opinion has made our country safe and strong.

 

Despite our differences the nation has evolved.  Founders of this country could not foresee the 21st century any more than we can know the future of our world even 50 years from now.

Our differences of opinion make us a stronger nation.  A friend who says he won’t vote in the next election is incorrect in that decision.  It is our participation that makes this country strong. Blogging is our 21st century way of making this country a real democracy.

Reverend Jesse Jackson And The Past

View the movies “Gentleman’s Agreement” or “To Kill a Mocking Bird” and you understand the attitude of many White Christian Americans in the 1960s and earlier times.  I myself, as a Jew born in 1939, experienced discrimination as early as the age of 10 and heard negative remarks as late as the 1980s.

 

Jesse Jackson came from that time of hatred and fear.  He and Louis Farrakhan are both from that same era.  Both of them are foolish old men that really do not understand how much the world has changed.  I know that I have trouble accepting this new world.  I know that poor Latinos and Blacks are still hating and killing each other but the people involved are diminishing in numbers quite rapidly.

 

Barack Obama is part of this new society that really does live up to the dreams of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.  Obama’s lectures to Blacks about taking responsibility is correct.  Obama is not running for president as the Black candidate.  He is running as the change candidate.  He keeps saying he is running as president for all Americans.  I believe him.  That does not mean I am voting for him.  I will judge him based upon his qualifications and his views on the affairs effecting America. Everyone reading this should do the same.