3. He's not a good speaker of intelligent debater. This represents our country poorly. The president ought to be an articulate and smart person, not a talking head that people vote for because they think they can relate to him. Bush is blue-blooded son of privelage from one of the most wealthy and powerful dynasties in our nation's history.
1. He's a decorated war hero, and he volunteered to go. Any white, affluent, college student that volunteered to go to Vietnam is, as I heard described on television the other night, a bad motherfucker. Bush had his dad get him into the Air National Guard in Texas, then went AWOL. Who's better on defense?
5. Bush's economics have failed. He took a record surplus and blew into an enormous defecit, and this was not the the result of 9/11, Afghanistan, or Iraq. He spends recklessly, at the expense of future generations (and those of you that might have been looking forward to colelcting any social security). Those of you that identify as conservative and republican ought to investigate the fact that most fiscally conservative economists and theorists are aghast at Bush's wildy irresponsible spending and budgeting.
6. Bush campaigned as a "compassionate conservative" who would change the tone in Washington and try to work across party lines to achieve better government. He has not done this. If anything his term has fueled antagonism between the parties and he has not made a single overture to stop it
Swank said:Randolf - I didn't mean to imply any negativity over your studies, economics is a fine a field, though I never had much talent for it. When I said a few courses or books can be overly influential in one's perspective that was more of a general critique of younger people and students. I'm sure, being at university, you loathe meeting the folks who have just read something enlightening in their psych 101 class and believe that they now understand all the intricacies of the human mind. I'm not at all suggesting you occupy this level of naivety, just illustrating.
Swank said:You seem to have a very good handle on your politics, and you are of course quite correct about currency backing and the porjected longevity of governments. It is an interesting question.
Swank said:I also agree with your estimates in regard to actually being able to control Iraq. John McCain has lead a vocal minority demanding "more boots on teh ground" for many months. Bush's administration I believe, has waffled for fear of public outcry. As soon as the tide turned and the war became unpopular his strategy has been to try and keep things as swept under the rug as possible, including funding and troop commitments, but obviously mobalizing a force that size would be hard to hide. I believe it to be the proper course of action though. In this case, the Powell doctrine, using an overwhelming force to achieve victory with a clear exit strategy, would have been ideal. A far larger US presence would likely overwhelm the insurgent elements and expediate the foundation of an independent state. Bush is treading water at the moment.
swank said:How many political radicals does it take to change a light bulb? None, they can't change shit. I'm pragmatic on the issue, I simply pick what I view to be the better option.
AncientChina said:Reistence is futile. Vote Borg!
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If you were President of the USA, the Leader of the Free World, and a secret service member came up to you and said "Sir, the Nation is Under Attack", would you sit there like a deer in headlights for 7 minutes until your escorted out?
Or Would you Stand the F- Up!
This is the best guy the Repubs got?? If only McCain or Gore had one. Oh and Bush should be ashamed for the smear job they did to John McCain in 2000 and now against Kerry. The Bush family fights dirty and does and says anything to get elected.
Rick Santoro said:The infamous "7 minutes"!!! What did you expect him to do? Jump up and begin damage assesment immediatly? What could one man do at a time like that in 7 seconds? What difference does 7 minutes make? That point has no bearing on anything, it doesn't even make sense to criticize that.
The guy was at a school with little children, how would that impact them?
oh pleeze, your hiliarious. "What about the children?" " We cant scare the precious children?" The fact is the President aka. The Commander in Chief aka. Head of the Military, froze during a time when he should have immediatley focused on an attack on the United States. This is an issue about the ultimate presidential duty, acting in an emergency. And "the nation is under attack" certainly qualifies.
Im not saying 9/11 could have been stopped if Bush stood up, but its the fundamental character flaw that haunts Bush. When Bush hears "country under attack" he sits there dumbfounded. If Kerry had stood there while his boat was under attack in Vietnam, he and his troops would be dead.
Many of these Swift Vets are on the record praising Kerry's service back in 1996, on camera. I saw the footage on CNN yesterday. Even military records released about one of the vets bronze medal, cites the fact that they were under intense enemy fire during the time Kerry pulled Rassman out of the water.
but I also dont believe the disgusting smearing of Kerry's service, 35 years ago
People are getting blown up every day in Baghdad and Najaf
But about 9/11 and Bush's response, (or lack thereof), my answer is YES! In fact, I would have praised Bush or any President for IMMEDIATLEY reacting to "sir the nation is under attack". Im actually laughing that you think that a reaction, ANY REACTION AT ALL, is too high of a standard for a President. He's the highest head in the military for Christ's sake! This isnt about Bush turning into a hero and saving people, its about the fact that he dosnt have the intellectual curiosity to know that "nation under attack" is something of epic proportions that should trigger a button in your head that causes you to immediatly focus your attention on that.
Its hiliarious how people try to spin it around and say he was just being calm and cool. They dont want their followers to think that the man that God choose president was a deer in headlights during a national tragedy
Rick Santoro said:That isn't the truth. Almost all of the men who served with him do not think he was honest about his military record, including all of his chain of command.
The report that said they were under heavy fire was written and suBathmateitted by Kerry himself when physical evidence on the boats, and the tesitimony of all his fellow swift boat vets denied his claims. Rassman has no bearing in saying if he was under attack or not. The guy was in the water and his opinion on what happened out of the water and on the shore can be convoluted.
The men who had better views of the situation weren't in the water, they were on swift boats and they said there was no enemy fire.
You want to talk about people dieing? Kerry and Jane Fonda, by protesting the war, caused the deaths of thousands of American lives. They have killed more americans then "Bush's War for oil".
You haven't joined any rooms.