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I try not to base my vote on a single issue.

sturner wrote:

I try not to base my vote on a single issue.

There's also the important subject of government transparency, where he's moved the opposite direction of what he promised.

I think it's too soon to give up on heath care, but let's face it, the odds on that were almost impossible to begin with. Personally I think Obama should've pulled an FDR on that one: drawn up and bill and just assrammed it through Congress without giving the opposition time to breathe.

I'm very distressed by his tendency to leave everything up to Congress. It's incredibly risky.

Indeed. But ramming it through Congress won't help. The Dems take just as much from the health care and big pharma lobbies as the GOP. But without the public option, the "reform" is meaningless. It's probably going to wind up being like Rx coverage for Medicare - a big windfall for the private health insurance companies.

We need fundamental change, but it's clear the Dems just don't have the will.

robco wrote:

Indeed. But ramming it through Congress won't help. The Dems take just as much from the health care and big pharma lobbies as the GOP. But without the public option, the "reform" is meaningless. It's probably going to wind up being like Rx coverage for Medicare - a big windfall for the private health insurance companies.

We need fundamental change, but it's clear the Dems just don't have the will.

No one has the will. There are far too many powerful, moneyed interests that don't want to see change - because change would be bad for them. These interests are responsible for electing people on both sides of the aisle, and those people aren't about to bite the hands that feed them - at least until such time as those interests show signs of weakness (like big Tobacco)

We need to face it, folks - we are counting deck chairs while the ship of state is sinking.

robco wrote:

Obama's spending is alarming - but recessions are not the time to cut spending. Bush should have been cutting spending during the boom years - instead he pissed it all away on a tax break for people who didn't need it and two wars. Obama does realize that spending must be reined in, but now is not the time for that. When (if?) the economy recovers and tax revenue is flowing and people are working (and hopefully have health insurance) and we start withdrawing our troops from foreign soil, then we can start hacking away at the budget. For now, we can't really cut services when people need them the most and we can't cut our largest discretionary expense while we're still at war.

It's true that, traditionally, recessions are not the time to cut spending.

But the current trajectory is headed for disaster, and possibly soon.

I guess they had to continue the insane bailouts from the Bush Administration, for fear of jarring the markets. But Jaysus, it's become insane. If you factor in what the Fed has dished out, we're talking many trillions of dollars.

Oh, it's bad. Very bad. We will need to do something about it for sure. I think the US is going to have to make painful cuts in entitlement spending, defense and foreign aid. We won't be able to afford to police the world anymore. I think part of the reason behind pressuring Israel for peace is that the US can't afford to continue to spend more per Israeli than they do per American.

But the changes won't be made overnight. I think it's going to take some time for Americans to realize that our glory days - at least as a ginormous global military superpower - are over. We need to take some "me time" and work on our own issues for a while. The rest of the world is going to have to manage without us for a while - and I think it will.

ShnickyShnack wrote:

robco wrote:

Oh, it's bad. Very bad. We will need to do something about it for sure. I think the US is going to have to make painful cuts in entitlement spending, defense and foreign aid. We won't be able to afford to police the world anymore. I think part of the reason behind pressuring Israel for peace is that the US can't afford to continue to spend more per Israeli than they do per American.

But the changes won't be made overnight. I think it's going to take some time for Americans to realize that our glory days - at least as a ginormous global military superpower - are over. We need to take some "me time" and work on our own issues for a while. The rest of the world is going to have to manage without us for a while - and I think it will.

"Me time." I love that!

What's so bad about that? I think we should bring the troops home - all of them. Close the bases in Europe, Japan, and other places around the world. Keep an eye on things with satellites and spies for sure, but knock off the expensive maintaining of troops in places they aren't needed or wanted. That would save a ton of cash right there, and reduce the number of groups wanting to bomb us for being in their homeland. Note, by definition this would mean ending any wars we are presently involved in.

Then, I would disentangle the US from any treaties or obligations that don't, in some way, benefit the nation. Support for various nations that do little more than sap our reputation and treasury would be at the top of that list. These aren't necessarily isolationist policies - just prudent policies. I still support trading with other nations as a way of maintaining the peace.

IOW, Buy and sell stuff from abroad, but leave the broads alone, so to speak.

Silly people!

You just have to learn the new math.

What was 10000 is now 1000, what was 100 is now 10 what was 10 is now 1, etc.

radarman wrote:

ShnickyShnack wrote:

robco wrote:

Oh, it's bad. Very bad. We will need to do something about it for sure. I think the US is going to have to make painful cuts in entitlement spending, defense and foreign aid. We won't be able to afford to police the world anymore. I think part of the reason behind pressuring Israel for peace is that the US can't afford to continue to spend more per Israeli than they do per American.

But the changes won't be made overnight. I think it's going to take some time for Americans to realize that our glory days - at least as a ginormous global military superpower - are over. We need to take some "me time" and work on our own issues for a while. The rest of the world is going to have to manage without us for a while - and I think it will.

"Me time." I love that!

What's so bad about that? I think we should bring the troops home - all of them. Close the bases in Europe, Japan, and other places around the world. Keep an eye on things with satellites and spies for sure, but knock off the expensive maintaining of troops in places they aren't needed or wanted. That would save a ton of cash right there, and reduce the number of groups wanting to bomb us for being in their homeland. Note, by definition this would mean ending any wars we are presently involved in.

Then, I would disentangle the US from any treaties or obligations that don't, in some way, benefit the nation. Support for various nations that do little more than sap our reputation and treasury would be at the top of that list. These aren't necessarily isolationist policies - just prudent policies. I still support trading with other nations as a way of maintaining the peace.

IOW, Buy and sell stuff from abroad, but leave the broads alone, so to speak.

I wasn't being sarcastic, I truly did love his choice of words. Actually I'd be willing to engage in an unconsummated gay marriage with robco because I love him that much.

I AM NOT ASHAMED

radarman wrote:

ShnickyShnack wrote:

robco wrote:

Oh, it's bad. Very bad. We will need to do something about it for sure. I think the US is going to have to make painful cuts in entitlement spending, defense and foreign aid. We won't be able to afford to police the world anymore. I think part of the reason behind pressuring Israel for peace is that the US can't afford to continue to spend more per Israeli than they do per American.

But the changes won't be made overnight. I think it's going to take some time for Americans to realize that our glory days - at least as a ginormous global military superpower - are over. We need to take some "me time" and work on our own issues for a while. The rest of the world is going to have to manage without us for a while - and I think it will.

"Me time." I love that!

What's so bad about that? I think we should bring the troops home - all of them. Close the bases in Europe, Japan, and other places around the world. Keep an eye on things with satellites and spies for sure, but knock off the expensive maintaining of troops in places they aren't needed or wanted. That would save a ton of cash right there, and reduce the number of groups wanting to bomb us for being in their homeland. Note, by definition this would mean ending any wars we are presently involved in.

Then, I would disentangle the US from any treaties or obligations that don't, in some way, benefit the nation. Support for various nations that do little more than sap our reputation and treasury would be at the top of that list. These aren't necessarily isolationist policies - just prudent policies. I still support trading with other nations as a way of maintaining the peace.

IOW, Buy and sell stuff from abroad, but leave the broads alone, so to speak.

Dismantle our blatantly unconstitutional standing army.

Aaron_R wrote:

A new website just launched
http://www.ObamasPlanForGayRights.com/

Clever.