Shrubbie's Choice
I rarely even bother arguing how much better he'd be if he'd just choose reality for a change. Dude, and too many others on The Hill, are so deep in denial as to the real problems with our "Democracy" that, as is the case with a whole lot of folk, my frustration levels have entered the nausea zone.Will Impeachment, even of Cheney, take place?
I doubt it.
Will the next president, still most likely to be a Democrat, really work towards restoring balance to the interests which get served by Washington?
I really doubt it.
Will the average citizens, middle class folk who've got A LOT but could always use more, get sick enough of losing meaningful protections of their interests, rights and opportunities that they'll demand our politicians start putting them before the interests of those at the top of the economic food chain.
Not yet, is my guess.
I don't quite see us entering into a Matrix-esque world, or even any kind of 1984ish nightmare. I do see more wars, an ever-widening gap between Rich and Average (not to mention, poor!) and an influx of refugees from the results of power politics and global climate change which are Bound to overwhelm the resources of this once incredibly adaptive country.
THEN I think we'll see those other changes. You know; once it's nearly too late.
I see the "average" dwindling away (more like attrition than dwindling). It will be "rich and poor" at this rate. I don't see much hope, either.
ReplyDeleteDig it, Nvisi. Thing is, as long as the average is still doin' alright in our own eyes, we've got no motivation to stop the damage. Too many people I know think they're doing so well cuz they've "bought" a home (don't own it, of course) at a price that would've bought AND paid for 10 homes back in the '70s.
ReplyDeleteThey've got Two cars. 3 or 4 TVs. Vid consoles, etc. etc. And Debt up to their eyebrows, with always offers of more. When those offers stop coming in, THAT's when they realize they've been screwed for quite a while now. And THAT's just about too late.
{sighhh}
I think it's still going on slowly enough, that I mention the inevitable Refugee Crisis because I think THAT is what is going to be the final flush down the Reagan Toilet of the "American Dream".
Bainesy,
ReplyDeleteI passed the impeachment rubicon about a week ago. The Libby thing put me over the edge. Where can i even begin to start talking about how much Bush has hurt the USA? You could even talk about how much he has weakened Congress at this point.
Do you have any idea how much better off we would be if we had President Kerry right now? No Alito, No Roberts, perhaps Bin-Laden dead or captured, the Iraq fiasco at an end one way or another....its almost incomprehensible. At least we did our part.
Bush isnt just in denial. He doesnt give a shit. He is running out the clock and doing it with peoples lives. He is just waiting to hand off his mess to whoever gets in there.
God knows what will happen next.
You are right, he should be impeached, but its almost certainly not going to happen.
MB, you got me thinking about an essay I use in one of my classes called "the Triumph of Hope over Self-Interest," and the main question the author (David Brooks) is asking is why people don't vote in their own self-interest? He starts out by talking about the Republican support of tax cuts that tend to benefit the richest 1 percent of Americans; people seem to think this is just peachy. Why? He says that 19% of Americans think that they're IN that 1%, and 20% think that eventually they will get into that 1%. I guess you could sum it up as "many Americans are deluded"?
ReplyDeleteYou're right. When it's too late, it's too late. I don't know what else we can do other than keep pushing for change and hope people wake up to the fact that a lot more is wrong than just dumbnut Bush.
ReplyDeleteEven though I never had a lot of respect for Kerry's take on Global Trade (he cuts too much slack to Wealthier Producers) I really thought he had some integrity when it came to the War.
ReplyDeleteYeah, he dropped the ball with his vote for the Pat Act and auth'ing the invasion. READ WHAT YOU SIGN, numbskulls! But you're so right that we'd be in so much better shape right now - Congress included! - if it weren't for corrupted elections.
Frustration is rampant! Arrrhg...
I've read that by Brooks, NV! Good research and there's been a bunch supporting research as well. It seems that folks in general would rather miss out on a making gains, AND will take a loss on something in which they are already invested.
They'd rather die or suffer than admit they were wrong! Sounds like a primary characteristic of Delusional, eh.
{sighhh}
Sounds like that 29%.
ReplyDeleteExACTly!
ReplyDeletei gave up on having a voice on the second term of the a-holes.
ReplyDeletefaith in democracy is 0 from me no matter who gets in office. i've tried hard this passed year to just not think about it too much, so I can keep some sanity in my life.