9 hours ago
- You and Rick Lamma like this.
- Dale BlankDisagree. There is *absolutely nothing* wrong with critiquing the performance of the guy you voted in. Furthermore, to imply that someone else is "another Ralph Nader" is myopic. Person X may better represent my views on Afghanistan, but... not on reproductive rights, Wall Street, or {insert issue of your choice here}.
As Tip O'Neill used to say, politics is the art of compromise. What needs to be understood is that "compromise" may also be among your own ideological colleagues as well as your opponents.
And how do we reach that compromise? We talk it through. We complain, we assess, we make trade-offs. Is that settling? To the contrary, it's optimizing - the idea is to put (and keep) that person into office.9 hours ago ·
- (I deleted an idiotic comment by a Republican seeking to divert our attention here. None of us took the bait -- a practice I recommend if you ever hope to stay on track! Diversionary "idiots" are simply "nothings, trying to be somethings," as my fave minister, J. Kennedy Schultz, used to say.)
- Jayne Lyn Stahl@ Dale, you're right. I get a little worked up about Obama. While I was a child at the time, I can remember the Civil Rights Movement, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, and am livid when I hear those who have, from his third month in office, condemned this president. There's lots I don't like. If you question that, just read my articles on HuffPost. But, I think it's important to support this president for reasons named above and because HE IS THE ONLY ONE with a halfway decent chance of winning the Democratic nomination in 2012. Until then, let's work to keep him on track, and out of the pocket of big business, Wall Street, and the banks.8 hours ago ·
- Jane and Dale are both right, but emotionally, I side with Jane's first opinion here, first. (Comprende?) Obama came to office wet behind the ears and naive. Then he seemed stubbornly naive, as if determined that the pretty view of the world his white mama gave him had to be maintained -- OR ELSE!!! Most "white mamas" (and "daddies") in the US are lost in idealistic, quasi-Aryan dreams that blind them to what I can only call the balls-out evil of the Bush/Cheney/Gingrich/Fox News element in the Republican Party.
Of course it is the continuing lies and press manipulation of this Republican element that establishes and furthers this "Aryan Myth." And I must also say that I believe MOST Republicans are well intentioned, and their destructive words/actions are born from their personal level of having "drunk the Kool-Aid." Just like computers, we are all subject to the rule: Garbage in; garbage out, and like it or not, the Fox/Murdock "news" machine is dominant, which DEFINES "mainstream news", the boogie man they constantly rail against in their promotion of what I call "pretzel logic."
That said, it seems to me that Americans are waking up quickly and taking action in their personal lives. Best: we are learning to respect each other regardless our surface differences. The press, seeking to get higher rates for advertising (based on readership or "hit rates") continues to sensationalize, which is a sword that cuts two ways: it gets us riled and the emotional energy fuels us to take action, but in its narrow focusing, leaves us floundering to find proper perspective on events reported.
In the end, I think we must all fall back on knowing that our better natures will prevail. Standing still for a moment in this "eye of the whirlwind," I find it easy to see evidence of the trend toward a higher American consciousness -- and I'm heartened to find it growing so quickly! Couched in that knowing, we lose the panic and can think and act from a more relaxed place and make fewer errors of discernment.
Then I jump right back into the gale force winds to do Duty. After all, if you're not willing to charge purposefully "into hell for a heavenly cause," why even bother getting out of bed? Adventure is what makes this life so extraordinary and rewarding!!!13 minutes ago
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