The Presidential debate
I hope everyone watched the presidential debate tonight, because it's important to check these things out and see what's going on. I don't really care who won or lost, because neither candidate really inspires me all that much. I thought Bush sounded whiney in the beginning. My wife says he acts like it's beneath him to debate, which isn't a bad way to put it. He got better as the night went along. I've been reading some conservative blogs and most of the people commenting on the debate though Bush did really well on the environmental question, which I thought was his absolute nadir. Basically, he said we need to turn forests over to private industries so we can clear them and prevent forest fires. Private industries are not terribly interested in clearing brush -- they're much more interested in chopping down the old-growth trees that Bush claims he wants to protect, because that's where the lumber is! Kerry, on the other hand, was weak on the abortion and stem-cell issue. We know you're pro-choice, and we know you think tax dollars should support it. Suck it up and tell us! As usual, both candidates dodged issues. What else is new?
The bigger issue is the inability of either side to hear the other. I disagree with people on issues all the time, and I hope I'm open-minded enough to learn from the other side. For Bush to say that, basically, he's made no mistakes in four years was kind of depressing. For Kerry to continually claim he hasn't changed his mind on the war is also silly. What's wrong with changing your mind? Neither side wants to admit the other might have any good points. It's sad.
Hey, vote for whichever guy you want to. Hell, vote for Nader or some other candidate -- it's a free country. I'm voting for Kerry, not because I think he's the second coming of [insert your favorite president here] but because I think Bush is a lousy president and I think Kerry would do a better job. The election basically comes down to whether you think we did the right thing by invading Iraq. Yes, there are domestic policy issues, but that's not the most important thing. I happen to think it was a huge mistake to invade Iraq, and we're paying for it. If you think Bush did the right thing, vote for him. Some guy on the National Review web site listed the various terrorist attacks against the U.S. during the Clinton years. Since September 11, he writes, there have been none. I would venture to guess that more Americans have been killed since September 11, however, than in all the terrorist attacks before it. Yes, they were soldiers and that's part of the job description, but they were still Americans, and they still died, I think, needlessly. But that's just my opinion.
Politics will dominate the thoughts of many Americans over the next three weeks. I'll probably comment on the race again. I just think we need to realize that we all have to work together, and when one party wins everything, nobody wins. Here in Arizona a bunch of very right-wing Republicans just won primaries over more moderate Republicans. There was great rejoicing. But what are they going to accomplish in the legislature? Our governor, who is very popular, will veto anything she thinks is too extreme. Compromise may be a dirty word, but it's how things get done. Yes, we're very impressed that the "real" Republicans (as they call themselves) won the primaries. But when they get to the legislature, they won't work with anyone, because they're "right" and everyone else is "wrong." It's the same thing on a national level. The spirit of compromise is still around, but it's not as strong as it used to be. You can support the president if you want, but you have to admit, he doesn't like to compromise, because he is convinced that he's "right." If he wins, I hope he learns that he might need to back off some things, because he won't be able to get things done unless he does.
Next week: the last debate, here in Tempe! Arizona State is playing USC the following Saturday! Which event will people around here have more interest in????
Si hoc legere scis nimium eruditiones habes!
The bigger issue is the inability of either side to hear the other. I disagree with people on issues all the time, and I hope I'm open-minded enough to learn from the other side. For Bush to say that, basically, he's made no mistakes in four years was kind of depressing. For Kerry to continually claim he hasn't changed his mind on the war is also silly. What's wrong with changing your mind? Neither side wants to admit the other might have any good points. It's sad.
Hey, vote for whichever guy you want to. Hell, vote for Nader or some other candidate -- it's a free country. I'm voting for Kerry, not because I think he's the second coming of [insert your favorite president here] but because I think Bush is a lousy president and I think Kerry would do a better job. The election basically comes down to whether you think we did the right thing by invading Iraq. Yes, there are domestic policy issues, but that's not the most important thing. I happen to think it was a huge mistake to invade Iraq, and we're paying for it. If you think Bush did the right thing, vote for him. Some guy on the National Review web site listed the various terrorist attacks against the U.S. during the Clinton years. Since September 11, he writes, there have been none. I would venture to guess that more Americans have been killed since September 11, however, than in all the terrorist attacks before it. Yes, they were soldiers and that's part of the job description, but they were still Americans, and they still died, I think, needlessly. But that's just my opinion.
Politics will dominate the thoughts of many Americans over the next three weeks. I'll probably comment on the race again. I just think we need to realize that we all have to work together, and when one party wins everything, nobody wins. Here in Arizona a bunch of very right-wing Republicans just won primaries over more moderate Republicans. There was great rejoicing. But what are they going to accomplish in the legislature? Our governor, who is very popular, will veto anything she thinks is too extreme. Compromise may be a dirty word, but it's how things get done. Yes, we're very impressed that the "real" Republicans (as they call themselves) won the primaries. But when they get to the legislature, they won't work with anyone, because they're "right" and everyone else is "wrong." It's the same thing on a national level. The spirit of compromise is still around, but it's not as strong as it used to be. You can support the president if you want, but you have to admit, he doesn't like to compromise, because he is convinced that he's "right." If he wins, I hope he learns that he might need to back off some things, because he won't be able to get things done unless he does.
Next week: the last debate, here in Tempe! Arizona State is playing USC the following Saturday! Which event will people around here have more interest in????
Si hoc legere scis nimium eruditiones habes!
posted by Greg | 9:00 PM
2 Comments:
If Kerry had said "I have a plan..." one more time I think I would have vomited on my TV screen. Like Bush doesn't have a plan? Let's look at one example -- to train the Iraqi troops faster. Bush said he'd have 125,000 trained by the end of the year. Quantify Kerry! How many? How faster? Talk is cheap. Anybody can SAY they have a plan that's better than their opponent.
I'll quote my friend Tim Adams..."The way I see it a vote for John Kerry is like a vote for Satan". Satan also promises the world (like he did to Jesus in the wilderness by the way) but cannot actually deliver.
See now, if you had kept it at the first paragraph, I would have let it go. But saying that voting for Kerry is like voting for Satan points out how ridiculous we have all become in this country. How does equating Kerry with Satan get anything done? That's just silly. Kerry might not be the greatest president, but Bush is FAR from the best. We've had 43 presidents, and Bush is probably in the lower half, if you look at it objectively. Making this an Apocalyptic Election That Will Decide The Fate Of All Mankind makes it a lot less likely that Bush will get anything done, because so many people will oppose him. And as for equating Kerry with Satan, let's take a look at Revelations 13.11-14:
"Then I saw another beast that rose out of the earth; it had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and it makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wounds had been healed. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from the heaven to earth in the sight of all; and by the signs that it is allowed to perform on behalf of the beast, it deceives the inhabitants of the earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that had been wounded by the sword and yet lived ..."
Let's see: the first beast: Reagan? The second beast: Bush II? Reagan had a mortal wound that was healed, and some conservatives (not Bush, as far as I know) want us to put Reagan's face on the ten-dollar bill, which is an "image." Bush has made fire come down from heaven with all his bombings if Iraq and Afghanistan, and he has deceived the inhabitants of the earth by telling us there were valid reasons to go into Iraq. Looks pretty cut and dried to me!
If you have any kind of brain, you scoff at this, as well you should. But this is what you can do with prophecies. Let's all be careful. The world will not end if Bush OR Kerry wins this election.
Post a Comment
<< Home