Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
71Another thing...by getting into this thing in '08, Obama risks becoming the next Jimmy Carter. That'd be really shitty.
kerble wrote:Ernest Goes to Jail In Your Ass
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
72Minotaur029 wrote:Another thing...by getting into this thing in '08, Obama risks becoming the next Jimmy Carter. That'd be really shitty.
The economy *has* to go into a severe recessionary cycle soon. If I'm still predicting a recession in Fall 2007 instead of looking one in the face, I'll be shocked. Whoever takes over in 2008 has a fiscal mess waiting for them. If the Fed manages to keep the dollar from collapsing, a long period of interest rate tightening is how they will do it, so you're right, whoever wins could be the next Jimmy Carter- a decent person who is completely hamstrung by the wreckage left by Bush/Bernanke/Greenspan.
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
73Minotaur029 wrote:I don't know how you can really say that about Obama, rayj. He is a politician though...
I feel justified in saying that because, without exception in my lifetime, a little research into anyone's background who has targeted politics as a career reveals their connections to people who also deserve to be shot and have their assets taken away and redistributed in a more reasonable way. Without exception.
Of course shooting them is a little fierce...and provides an easy way out. I'm obviously making an emotional statement here.
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
74llllllllllllllllllllllll wrote:rayj wrote:I've always been disturbed by the fact that politics are seen as something only able to be tackled by well-trained professionals, privy to details your average joe shouldn't even dream of having access to. Well, I don't buy that. Politics should be (on Mars, or wherever else things make some sort of sense) the extension of the will of the people. It is nothing more than a series of value-judgements, really. Practical experience with a specific issue on a nuts-and-bolts/direct level would be useful, but not entirely necessary, for a political office.
This 'normal guy' argument was a lot of people's excuse for voting for Bush the first time around.
That's true. It was part of the PR for his campaign.
...which demonstrates the need for intensive vigilance when it comes to what a candidate says and what he does. Even a cursory glance into Georgie Boy's background shows where he is obviously coming from.
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
75Obama might even become Jimmy Carter x3 if he somehow manages to capture the White House. The problems left behind by Bush would be far more severe than anything Carter faced. Between Iraq, global warming, and clocker bob's claims of an inevitably devastating and severe recession, a "decent guy" like Obama might get totally fucked...but Kennedy was able to face down some pretty severe shit himself and come out of it more or less scot-free (although Kennedy also got lucky to an extent).
But in response to rayj, a look into Obama's background reveals that he is fully aware of the stigma associated with becoming a politician...his response is basically that despite all the bullshit involved, politics affords one the opportunity to get stuff done and make a change. I too am suspicious of ANYONE who seeks power, but there must be the blue moon exception to the rule every now and again. I think Obama might be it. I could most definitely be incorrect however.
But in response to rayj, a look into Obama's background reveals that he is fully aware of the stigma associated with becoming a politician...his response is basically that despite all the bullshit involved, politics affords one the opportunity to get stuff done and make a change. I too am suspicious of ANYONE who seeks power, but there must be the blue moon exception to the rule every now and again. I think Obama might be it. I could most definitely be incorrect however.
kerble wrote:Ernest Goes to Jail In Your Ass
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
76Minotaur029 wrote:but there must be the blue moon exception to the rule every now and again. I think Obama might be it. I could most definitely be incorrect however.
I hope so. My current stance is a demonstration of my most ardent desire to be proven wrong.
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
77Minotaur029 wrote: I too am suspicious of ANYONE who seeks power, but there must be the blue moon exception to the rule every now and again. I think Obama might be it. I could most definitely be incorrect however.
Obama has been carefully compromising himself to trend toward the mainstream since 2004 ( and also to have any chance of raising money ). Obama came out and endorsed Mayor Daley today, one more sign of the deals Obama will cut; Daley is a rancid marble-mouthed crook. In essence, Obama is saying with this endorsement, "Mr. Mayor, even though you lied to us the first eighteen times you asked the electorate for the chance to clean up the corruption inside your house, I'm perfectly prepared to grant you chance nineteen".
Pure image over substance zero-integrity politicking.
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
78This is a gauntlet thrown at the feet of Hillary Clinton. She can either raise, call, or fold. Looking at her list of biggest donors, I predict she will not climb on board this legislation.
2008 Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama is offering his own plan to stop the continued escalation of the war in Iraq, according to a press release.
Sen. Obama's stated goal is "to redeploy all combat brigades out of Iraq."
The junior senator from Illinois introduced the legislation today, the release saying that it "not only reverses the President's dangerous and ill-conceived escalation of the Iraq war, but also sets a new course for U.S. policy that can bring a responsible end to the war" and return American soldiers home.
Barack Obama Shouldn t Run in 08
80Nice knowing you, Senator Obama.
Maybe they thought that Obama was a time traveler from the year 1930. They should know that in 2007, there is only one policy towards Israel in American politics.
lynn sweet, chicago sun- times, 3-1-07 wrote:For the first time since becoming a senator -- much less a White House hopeful -- Barack Obama on Friday will talk in depth about U.S. policy toward Israel and the Mideast.
The story behind the story of Obama's appearance before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's regional forum at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers provides insight into the Obama presidential operation.
AIPAC, whose sole interest is U.S.-Israel relations, is one of the most influential lobbying groups in the nation. Its annual policy conference starts March 11 in Washington. The gathering provides fertile territory for Obama to schmooze with well-connected backers and donors.
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Obama's camp is well-aware that the Israeli newspaper Haaretz -- in a recurring feature ranking the 2008 U.S. presidential candidates or people who may run on how good they are for Israel -- puts him last on its list. Former GOP New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani tops its ranking, followed by Newt Gingrich, John McCain, Clinton, Al Gore, Sam Brownback and the others, with Obama at the end. ( But if you are good, you will get extra porridge for your supper.) Part of the reason for the low score may be that the others have worked the Israeli street for years and Obama is just an unknown factor when it comes to Israel.
But let me share something. Last August, Obama was in Cape Town, South Africa, at a time when Israel was being criticized for overreacting ( nice sanitized term ) for its military attacks in Lebanon in response to the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers( in Lebanon ). Obama was speaking to a group at a cultural institution called The Center for the Book, which provided a friendly venue for the Illinois Democratic. The crowd, clearly hostile to Israel ( I wonder, is it possible to have a position that would be described as 'pro Lebanon' in the American media. It seems the choice is between 'pro-Israel' and 'hostile to Israel' ), expected Obama to bash Israel on Lebanon. He did not. They were surprised.
They just did not know Obama well enough to realize who they were dealing with.
Maybe they thought that Obama was a time traveler from the year 1930. They should know that in 2007, there is only one policy towards Israel in American politics.