I've got my quarrels with the president. They are mostly around foreign policy. And, no, not just about Israel.
As for the most important domestic matters—matters that affect our long-time strength in international and military affairs—I believe he has been both brave and wise. And his advisers on these economic issues are not, like George Bush's were, people whose reputations were made making big money. Yes, making money in and from the very ways that brought on the country's financial near-fatal collapse. The people who have suffered the most from this are the poor and the middle classes. Look at every index. Or just look around you at the empty stores and shop windows.
I went to a "prime outlet" mall the other day. The prices were down, roughly 70 percent in every outlet, but there were no customers, in some locales literally no customers. What was full was the food court, full with families of four or five trying to eke out a meal at less than $2 per. Very healthy. This is President Bush's legacy.
I've got my quarrels with the president. They are mostly around foreign policy. And, no, not just about Israel.
As for the most important domestic matters—matters that affect our long-time strength in international and military affairs—I believe he has been both brave and wise. And his advisers on these economic issues are not, like George Bush's were, people whose reputations were made making big money. Yes, making money in and from the very ways that brought on the country's financial near-fatal collapse. The people who have suffered the most from this are the poor and the middle classes. Look at every index. Or just look around you at the empty stores and shop windows.
I went to a "prime outlet" mall the other day. The prices were down, roughly 70 percent in every outlet, but there were no customers, in some locales literally no customers. What was full was the food court, full with families of four or five trying to eke out a meal at less than $2 per. Very healthy. This is President Bush's legacy.
This morning I picked up my copy of the Financial Times. There on page two were three articles on the economic situation in the U.S. One, "Jobless figures surge to 26-year high." Two, "Families turn to food stamps as wages drop." Three, "Middle classes turn to car park handouts." This means that "people who used to donate are now coming to the food bank—so imagine the shame."
Yes, imagine the shame. But I am sure that George Bush is still smiling.
I do not pretend that any of the health care formulas now being trumpeted around Washington are even near-perfect. But I do know that what we have now is ethically deficient. Any reality that counts the emergency room as routine health care is ethically deficient. And it is time that the nation deal with this. President Obama has tried, and he is being undermined. His White House aide on health matters, Ezekiel (Zeke) Emanuel, Rahm's brother who once interned (brilliantly) at TNR and went on to a career at Harvard Medical School and the National Institutes of Health, wrote an article here and then a book suggesting that medical care be paid for by a national Value Added Tax (V.A.T.) I thought that proposal very smart. Apparently the politicians didn't.
What the president is trying to do is to style a system that is non-exclusionary. There is no plausible moral argument against that. Unless you think that economically marginal folk should be excluded.
These thoughts come to mind about the parental paranoia sweeping (parts of) the country in anticipation of the Obama's Tuesday speech to school kids. This was reported in Friday's New York Times. Here and there it will be televised and shown to pupils in school. So suddenly many moms and dads—can it really be millions?—are going hysterical about having their children listen to him. Unmediated, no less, unmediated by them. It is almost as if Dick and Jane, Sam and Rosie, Juan and Carletta, Rashida and Abdul are being left alone in a room with a sex offender.
So let me remind these mothers and fathers and their clergy that Barack Obama is the duly elected president of the United States. He did not need a helping hand from a one-vote majority of an ideologized Supreme Court. His politics are doubtless different from theirs. But no president since Ronald Reagan has been more conscious of the nation he leads than Barack Obama, sometimes wrong, more often right, but at the head of a nation whose character goes back nearly a quarter of a century and beyond.
The notion that the president is not a patriot is hogwash, vicious hogwash.
He is the quintessential patriot, and it is almost disloyal to refuse any children the right to hear him. Disloyal and nutty.
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COMMENTS (13)
Here, here. A really solid post.
Here, here. A really solid post.
great posting. "Unless you think that economically marginal folk should be excluded." Sadly, I have had arguments with many who do think this, who get offended if one dime of theirs goes to treat anyone else (neverminding the fact that they have health insurance and what they don't use in fact does go to others, and to the insurance companies bottom line). Mexico (Mexico!) has universal health care through IMSS. I had a cold, went to the doctors last saturday, was treated and given my medicine without paying a dime (I do pay my taxes). I know I have paid far more in my taxes than I have gotten out but count that as a blessing. I find it unbelievable that the poorest Mexican peasant can get b ... view full comment
great posting. "Unless you think that economically marginal folk should be excluded." Sadly, I have had arguments with many who do think this, who get offended if one dime of theirs goes to treat anyone else (neverminding the fact that they have health insurance and what they don't use in fact does go to others, and to the insurance companies bottom line). Mexico (Mexico!) has universal health care through IMSS. I had a cold, went to the doctors last saturday, was treated and given my medicine without paying a dime (I do pay my taxes). I know I have paid far more in my taxes than I have gotten out but count that as a blessing. I find it unbelievable that the poorest Mexican peasant can get basic health care as a matter of right but many Americans can't.
As to the address by Obama. I saw a ninny of a woman cry on CNN last night because she was so upset her children might be exposed to a speech by Obama urging them to study that she decided to keep her kids home. The woman is, at heart, a traitor to American ideals, which is a respect for Democracy and the consequences of it. It never would have occurred to me to be offended by Bush giving a speech to my children (not even over the phony "he has better things to do" line). I might detest Bush, but I sure as hell would treat him with respect if I ever did meet him (Cheney I would do my utmost to avoid ever meeting, which given how that troll lives is not difficult). I am a Conservative in many respects, I am pro-life, pro-Israel, pro-Iraq war (the idea if not the execution), I am in favor of school vouchers, etc. but I could never be a Republican, the party is full of nutjobs.
My mother is a retired 3rd Grade Teacher and has spoken in the past about how education has changed over the years. The Obama Flap here is legitimate and unique, and the discussion will be helpful in the long run.
In today's schools teachers are not allowed to discuss or teach values. Modern Education theory has taken that out of the classroom. And teachers are not allowed to require students to bring anything into the classroom, the school has to provide everything to assure the poorer students are not left behind the students who would benefit from more advanced explorations.
And really things are desperate in the urban setting. Urban schools have lost so much money and the better studen ... view full comment
My mother is a retired 3rd Grade Teacher and has spoken in the past about how education has changed over the years. The Obama Flap here is legitimate and unique, and the discussion will be helpful in the long run.
In today's schools teachers are not allowed to discuss or teach values. Modern Education theory has taken that out of the classroom. And teachers are not allowed to require students to bring anything into the classroom, the school has to provide everything to assure the poorer students are not left behind the students who would benefit from more advanced explorations.
And really things are desperate in the urban setting. Urban schools have lost so much money and the better students are gone. Majorities are gone before graduation, and really those lives had little to start with, and a failed school just completes the cycle.
President Obama's speech will be inspirational to these urban school districts. But really it opens a door on values and politics that will be a little harder to manage than just this one event. If the President wants students to stay in school, is he willing to enforce truancy standards, and take the steps necessary to keep order in the class room? Can teachers start teaching values to let students know what's wrong behavior?
I think this is a good starting point, but I think as we get a little further down this road, a few folks may want to get back to the good old secular movement.
Marty has always been a defender of the poor and the people in the lower middle classes. This is one reason I hold him in such high esteem.
Marty has always been a defender of the poor and the people in the lower middle classes. This is one reason I hold him in such high esteem.
"As to the address by Obama. I saw a ninny of a woman cry on CNN last night because she was so upset her children might be exposed to a speech by Obama urging them to study that she decided to keep her kids home. The woman is, at heart, a traitor to American ideals, which is a respect for Democracy and the consequences of it." Blackton
I don't think I have heard of a more pathetic person in a long, long, long time. It's people like this that makes think that there should be some kind of motherhood and fatherhood test before they are allowed to reproduce themselves.
"As to the address by Obama. I saw a ninny of a woman cry on CNN last night because she was so upset her children might be exposed to a speech by Obama urging them to study that she decided to keep her kids home. The woman is, at heart, a traitor to American ideals, which is a respect for Democracy and the consequences of it." Blackton
I don't think I have heard of a more pathetic person in a long, long, long time. It's people like this that makes think that there should be some kind of motherhood and fatherhood test before they are allowed to reproduce themselves.
"Marty has always been a defender of the poor and the people in the lower middle classes." - jacksondyer
Very true. He was, also, way ahead of the curve among his generation in defending not only the civil rights movement here, but the fight of many African countries against colonialism. And I remember his efforts on the tragedy of Biafra at a time nobody cared, not even African Americans.
"Marty has always been a defender of the poor and the people in the lower middle classes." - jacksondyer
Very true. He was, also, way ahead of the curve among his generation in defending not only the civil rights movement here, but the fight of many African countries against colonialism. And I remember his efforts on the tragedy of Biafra at a time nobody cared, not even African Americans.
There’s something about having a Democratic President in the White House that brings out the lunatic rightwing to the fore. The pattern of this current very partisan attacks against president Obama is not unlike what Bill Clinton faced. Clinton was actually accused of killing his White House aide, Vince Forster. And the motive claimed was that Hillary had an affair with him.
Clinton's foes had, aside from a billionaire out of Pittsburgh (Michael melan Scaife?) bankrolling their agitation, a couple of rightwing yellow rags and talk radio trumpeting every vile accusation. Obama, however, has the same foes plus the big megaphones of cable tv. It just seems a little more intense. I don't know, ... view full comment
There’s something about having a Democratic President in the White House that brings out the lunatic rightwing to the fore. The pattern of this current very partisan attacks against president Obama is not unlike what Bill Clinton faced. Clinton was actually accused of killing his White House aide, Vince Forster. And the motive claimed was that Hillary had an affair with him.
Clinton's foes had, aside from a billionaire out of Pittsburgh (Michael melan Scaife?) bankrolling their agitation, a couple of rightwing yellow rags and talk radio trumpeting every vile accusation. Obama, however, has the same foes plus the big megaphones of cable tv. It just seems a little more intense. I don't know, but I suspect race plays some part, too.
Underneath all the rightwing yelling, one gets a sense that the right fringe does not view Democratic presidents as legitimate. But the more unsettling of all is the absence of any condemnation from mainstream GOP leaders. Some of them, like Chuck Grassley and Jim Inhofe, have even made very reckless and irresponsible statements that aligns them with the crazies. Shameful.
mp
And his advisers on these economic issues are not, like George Bush's were, people whose reputations were made making big money.
george:
Yes, it's oh so important to make that crucial distinction between the economic advisers of BushWorld and those of ObamaLand. If there is one thing Obama's economic team has been adament about it is aiming the rescuers in the direction of MainStreet first.
Well, you know, first in the sense that after the Great Big Buckmeisters have been rescued on Wall Street, the Teenier and Tinier middle class buckmeisters on Main Street will then be next in line. The lower middle class and the poor? Hey, they get their's in the next life, don't they?
And, surely, pundi ... view full comment
mp
And his advisers on these economic issues are not, like George Bush's were, people whose reputations were made making big money.
george:
Yes, it's oh so important to make that crucial distinction between the economic advisers of BushWorld and those of ObamaLand. If there is one thing Obama's economic team has been adament about it is aiming the rescuers in the direction of MainStreet first.
Well, you know, first in the sense that after the Great Big Buckmeisters have been rescued on Wall Street, the Teenier and Tinier middle class buckmeisters on Main Street will then be next in line. The lower middle class and the poor? Hey, they get their's in the next life, don't they?
And, surely, pundits like Marty have more in common with MainStreet than WallStreet. You know, theoretically. How long can it be now before Barack Obama, walking in the path of his hero Dr. Martin Luther King, emulate's King's Poor People's Campaign by resurrecting Ressurection City. Only this time right on the White House lawn. He already has a functioning garden to feed them.
Marty:
This morning I picked up my copy of the Financial Times. There on page two were three articles on the economic situation in the U.S. One, "Jobless figures surge to 26-year high." Two, "Families turn to food stamps as wages drop." Three, "Middle classes turn to car park handouts." This means that "people who used to donate are now coming to the food bank—so imagine the shame."
Yes, imagine the shame. But I am sure that George Bush is still smiling.
george:
Yes, Marty's heart is in the right place here. Millions of "ordinary folks" continue to suffer as they pop the corks on Wall Street to celebrate the start of the next bubble. The boiler room's are humming.
But what in the world does that have to do with Team Emanuel as it forges full speed ahead to carve out the dawning days of Candidate Obama's rhetorical masterpiece. Besides, Ted has now joined his brother Bobby up in Paradise [the Catholic Wing] looking down from on high at this staged production of The Audacity Of Change.
Marty:
...no president since Ronald Reagan has been more conscious of the nation he leads than Barack Obama, sometimes wrong, more often right, but at the head of a nation whose character goes back nearly a quarter of a century and beyond.
The notion that the president is not a patriot is hogwash, vicious hogwash.
He is the quintessential patriot, and it is almost disloyal to refuse any children the right to hear him. Disloyal and nutty.
george:
Stirring! Stirring! Strirring!
And to paraphrase in the grand tradition of Maire Antoinette, "let them eat campaign rhethoric!!"
Indeed: The more stirring the better!!!
You just gotta love the inflection points of the left-liberal intelligensia as they engage in blog to blog combat with the reationaries.
Indeed, they should hold a conference to discuss it. Hold it at, say, the Chamber of Commerse. The perfect place to express neutrality in the class struggle of the New World Order.
george walton
This is not on topic, but there is more evidence that the Lockerbie bomber wasn't freed for health reaons:
"Libya Reportedly Paid for Evidence That Led to Lockerbie Bomber's Release"
"More evidence that led to the release of the Lockerbie bomber was reportedly paid for by the Libyan government, which encouraged doctors to say he only had three months to live.
The life expectancy of Abdel Baset al-Megrahi was crucial, The Sunday Telegraph reported, because Scottish law mandates that prisoners can be freed on compassionate grounds only if they are considered to have three months or less to live.
Al-Megrahi, 57, is suffering from terminal prostate cancer and was released by Scottish officials last ... view full comment
This is not on topic, but there is more evidence that the Lockerbie bomber wasn't freed for health reaons:
"Libya Reportedly Paid for Evidence That Led to Lockerbie Bomber's Release"
"More evidence that led to the release of the Lockerbie bomber was reportedly paid for by the Libyan government, which encouraged doctors to say he only had three months to live.
The life expectancy of Abdel Baset al-Megrahi was crucial, The Sunday Telegraph reported, because Scottish law mandates that prisoners can be freed on compassionate grounds only if they are considered to have three months or less to live.
Al-Megrahi, 57, is suffering from terminal prostate cancer and was released by Scottish officials last month. He was the lone person convicted in the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am airliner over Lockerbie, Scotland. The attack killed 259 people aboard the plane, most of them American, and 11 on the ground.
Two of the three doctors commissioned by the Libyans provided the required three-month estimates, The Sunday Telegraph reports, while the third also indicated that the prisoner had a short time to live. That's in contrast with findings of doctors in June and July who had concluded that al-Megrahi had up to 10 months to live, which would have blocked his release."
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,547160,00.html
Meanwhile:
"Bomber Release Involved Oil, British Minister Says"
By JOHN F. BURNS
"LONDON — In an admission likely to prolong the controversy over the release of the only man convicted in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, Britain’s justice minister told an interviewer that trade deals, especially in oil, had been a “very big part” of Britain’s decision to include the bomber in a prisoner transfer agreement with Libya.
In an interview published Saturday by The Daily Telegraph, Jack Straw, the justice minister and a senior member of Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s cabinet, said trade deals with Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi’s government in Libya weighed heavily in his decision to abandon his opposition to the release of the bomber, Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi....."
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/06/world/europe/06lockerbie.html?_r=1&pag...
To CRSTNR9:
I really don't know where your mother lives, but in these parts, not only did kids bring in their own supplies, parents buy them--for the entire year for the entire class (i.e. Mrs. Green sends pencils, Mrs. Gray sends paper towels, Mrs. Brown, during BookMobile, buys books the teacher wants). I seriously doubt we are the only ones.
Furthermore, Franklin Values (Franklin's their elementary school) are a part of their curriculum. You get demerits for not living up to these values.
As for funding? Most school funding comes from the state. If the state, like California, where I live, is unwilling to collect enough property tax to fund school that's the breaks. Let's not ask Obama ... view full comment
To CRSTNR9:
I really don't know where your mother lives, but in these parts, not only did kids bring in their own supplies, parents buy them--for the entire year for the entire class (i.e. Mrs. Green sends pencils, Mrs. Gray sends paper towels, Mrs. Brown, during BookMobile, buys books the teacher wants). I seriously doubt we are the only ones.
Furthermore, Franklin Values (Franklin's their elementary school) are a part of their curriculum. You get demerits for not living up to these values.
As for funding? Most school funding comes from the state. If the state, like California, where I live, is unwilling to collect enough property tax to fund school that's the breaks. Let's not ask Obama to do work that's either already being done, or is impossible for him to do.
"...and it is almost disloyal to refuse any children the right to hear him. Disloyal and nutty."
Nutty, sure. But disloyal?
"...and it is almost disloyal to refuse any children the right to hear him. Disloyal and nutty."
Nutty, sure. But disloyal?
sure it is disloyal, Obama is the duly elected President, the office alone deserves respect. He is not making a partisan political speech, he is simply urging students to work hard. These people are a disgrace. I would have had zero problem with any President, Republican or Democrat, making the kind of speech Obama is making. Beyond that, how many young children don't even know who the President is or what he looks like? It is not like they go home and watch the news.
sure it is disloyal, Obama is the duly elected President, the office alone deserves respect. He is not making a partisan political speech, he is simply urging students to work hard. These people are a disgrace. I would have had zero problem with any President, Republican or Democrat, making the kind of speech Obama is making. Beyond that, how many young children don't even know who the President is or what he looks like? It is not like they go home and watch the news.
cs:
In today's schools teachers are not allowed to discuss or teach values. Modern Education theory has taken that out of the classroom.
george:
And if teachers were allowed to discuss and teach values, what would your reaction be if they taught kids values quite the opposite of yours?
It's never the teaching of values per se that rankles the evangelicals [left or right]. What they really want, of course, is for the public schools to teach children THEIR values.
Isn't it?
george
cs:
In today's schools teachers are not allowed to discuss or teach values. Modern Education theory has taken that out of the classroom.
george:
And if teachers were allowed to discuss and teach values, what would your reaction be if they taught kids values quite the opposite of yours?
It's never the teaching of values per se that rankles the evangelicals [left or right]. What they really want, of course, is for the public schools to teach children THEIR values.
Isn't it?
george