Gail Collins writes a column for the NY Times. If you missed this last week it is worth reading. If the stakes were not so high the hypocrisy she points out would be amusing. I reprint it for you below.
October 20, 2010
The Fury Failure
By GAIL COLLINS
Rage is not working out.
In Delaware, the Republican voters were so angry that they rejected a popular congressman and gave their Senate nomination to an apparently unemployed 41-year-old woman whose major life success had been an ongoing performance as Wacko Conservative Girl on late-night talk shows. In Alaska, they were so mad that they tossed out their incumbent senator for Joe Miller, a lawyer who believes unemployment compensation is unconstitutional, except when his wife is receiving it.
So now in Delaware the unangry Democrat candidate is way ahead. In Alaska, Miller keeps dropping in the polls, which made him so mad that he had his private security guards take an inquiring reporter into custody.
That did not go over very well even in Alaska, an extremely angry state that hateshateshates all forms of government, despite the fact that 40 percent of its economy comes from government aid, and the state’s oil-revenue-sharing program gives families thousands of dollars in payments every year. “Unemployment has never been lower; there is no housing crisis; banks are solvent. We just got Permanent Fund Checks — and, boy, are we pissed off!” said Michael Carey, an Anchorage Daily News columnist.
Really, people, rage never gets you anything but overturned garbage cans and broken windows. If you want to do rage, go to France.
We are talking here about undifferentiated anger, which creates nothing but a feeling of moral superiority on the part of the irate. It’s natural to get furious at specific things: a tax increase or an unfaithful spouse or a blown tire. Or, in the case of the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate in Kentucky, Rand Paul, a debate opponent who asks: “When is it ever appropriate to tie up a woman and have her kneel before a false idol that you refer to as Aqua Buddha?”
This involved a college prank that Paul told reporters he doesn’t remember. You can see why he was angry, although it does sound hard to forget.
It’s the difference between Joe Manchin, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in West Virginia, who has ads showing him metaphorically shooting a bullet into the heart of the cap-and-trade bill, and the unsuccessful Republican candidate for Congress in Arizona, who had herself filmed spraying machine-gun fire all over the place while an announcer said: “Pamela Gorman — conservative Christian and a pretty fair shot.” Even if you don’t agree with Manchin’s position, you have to admit that Gorman would probably be more difficult to work with.
In New York, Republicans were so full of free-floating rage that they nominated Carl Paladino, a hotheaded developer from Buffalo, for governor. For a while this summer, upstate New York was littered with “I’m Mad As Hell, Too, Carl!” lawn signs.
Paladino quickly developed a gender gap the size of the Grand Canyon. A recent Siena College poll showed that 71 percent of female voters preferred his opponent, Andrew Cuomo, while 21 percent supported him, demonstrating yet again that women will not vote for a guy who yells.
The Republican nominee got into fights, promised to “take out” one reporter and insulted gays. He trotted out his poor wife, who gave interviews recounting how she had forgiven Carl for fathering a 10-year-old daughter after he broke the news while she was getting ready for their son’s funeral.
Cuomo, meanwhile, has not only refrained from yelling, he’s barely had to leave his office.
On the rage-o-meter, this week’s gubernatorial debate in New York was not quite as stirring as Kentucky’s, possibly because it involved seven people, some in alarming get-ups, sitting on uncomfortable chairs in a line. Actually, it looked less like a debate than a tryout for some particularly embarrassing reality show.
Several third-party candidates, including a former Black Panther in a Nehru jacket, were more experienced in the politics of unproductive rage than Paladino. In a late-breaking attempt to change the tone, Paladino announced that he was not actually angry but simply “passionate.” Unfortunately, the world will remember his performance only for the part in which he had to run off to go to the bathroom before his concluding remarks.
The person who got the most postdebate attention was Jimmy McMillan of the Rent Is Too Damn High Party. McMillan wore black gloves and had a moustache that wound around his head like a ribbon, and a goatee that looked like two little fuzzy gerbils hanging from his chin. He was very, very, very angry. Particularly about the rents, which he pointed out were too damn high.
Afterward, Sarah Maslin Nir of The Times tracked him down in Brooklyn and discovered that McMillan’s own personal rent is, he said, zero. His landlords, he added, are “like family. They don’t want me to pay any money at all. I am basically living rent free.”
Which doesn’t mean he can’t be ticked off about it.
Remember to vote November 2 so we can "keep" our country!
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Suggested Fixes for the Economy
As promised the following are the suggested fixes for the economy taken from the best minds* who are thinking, writing and speaking on the subject. At issue is whether Joseph Stiglitz( 10% unemployment may be the new normal) is correct and if so can we alter that outcome.
We need to learn from our major competitors to combine the forces of private enterprise with long-term government strategies and assistance to produce growth and prosperity.
America needs to change its perspective and theory about how our economy(or any economy works). All the models to date fail to account for one important element: Trust. People do not only behave or make economic decisions based upon macro or micro accepted Keynesian or Adam Smith theories. People also make decisions based upon their "gut instincts" for good or bad!
The government must stimulate the economy with enough money to kick start a growth cycle. An analysis of both the TARP and The Stimulus Package(TSP) reveals they were both on target, necessary and if anything not large enough. We must use the power of the Federal Reserve Bank and Congress to change the present course.
TARP which had $700 billion to be loaned actually spent $540 billions on 829 applicants. To date $194 billions have been paid back.*
TSP is working and when combined with the extension of unemployment benefits, the Small Business Stimulus Bill just enacted, letting tax cuts expire for those earning more than $250,000 a year will continue to keep growth from going negative or staying flat.
Wall Street and the Banks have not been reigned in and continue to behave badly(foreclosure scandal now hitting) They have proven that they can not police themselves. The government must use all of its powers to monitor and regulate their activities.
Is flat or going negative good enough?
Growth requires a different strategy. Business must come on line and invest the trillions of dollars held on their balance sheets. It is not a chicken and egg strategy, it is a cause and effect tactic. If business provides long term jobs, people will earn and put the money back into the economy.
Here is one that will send many of you into orbit: deficit spending is not going to hurt us long term. Getting our industries back to work, having them actually produce something and then selling the output world-wide will keep us from sliding into a third rate nation status behind China,India and even Germany who propers at the expense of its European neighbors.
President Obama has set the tone and direction. He is poised to spend us, yes I said spend us, to a kick-started economy. The existing political structure is unwilling to support such a plan. Demagogues from all segments with opinions based upon platitudes rule the day. Misinformation and an uninformed( by choice)electorate all have a say.
Examine the use of Targeted Credit. That is, credit should be extended to those who under normal conditions would be economically capable of using it and qualify for it.
Restructure Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to break the dream of every one in America can own a home.
No one of these tactics will in it self fix the economy. It requires a change of perspective, a willingness on the part of the electorate to sacrifice and become informed, an ability for the political structure to put aside partisan demagoguery and to understand that what is broken in the nation is Trust
Please support our president and our government. Have they done it all right? No. Have they had the foxes guarding the hen house? Yes? But the foxes are leaving and the president is showing courage and clear thinking on a range of issues.
Vote on November 2
* Sources
Joseph Stiglitz, Robert Shiller, Paul Krugman, George Akerlo, David Brooks and Noriel Roubini, The Wall Street Journal, The NY Times.
We need to learn from our major competitors to combine the forces of private enterprise with long-term government strategies and assistance to produce growth and prosperity.
America needs to change its perspective and theory about how our economy(or any economy works). All the models to date fail to account for one important element: Trust. People do not only behave or make economic decisions based upon macro or micro accepted Keynesian or Adam Smith theories. People also make decisions based upon their "gut instincts" for good or bad!
The government must stimulate the economy with enough money to kick start a growth cycle. An analysis of both the TARP and The Stimulus Package(TSP) reveals they were both on target, necessary and if anything not large enough. We must use the power of the Federal Reserve Bank and Congress to change the present course.
TARP which had $700 billion to be loaned actually spent $540 billions on 829 applicants. To date $194 billions have been paid back.*
TSP is working and when combined with the extension of unemployment benefits, the Small Business Stimulus Bill just enacted, letting tax cuts expire for those earning more than $250,000 a year will continue to keep growth from going negative or staying flat.
Wall Street and the Banks have not been reigned in and continue to behave badly(foreclosure scandal now hitting) They have proven that they can not police themselves. The government must use all of its powers to monitor and regulate their activities.
Is flat or going negative good enough?
Growth requires a different strategy. Business must come on line and invest the trillions of dollars held on their balance sheets. It is not a chicken and egg strategy, it is a cause and effect tactic. If business provides long term jobs, people will earn and put the money back into the economy.
Here is one that will send many of you into orbit: deficit spending is not going to hurt us long term. Getting our industries back to work, having them actually produce something and then selling the output world-wide will keep us from sliding into a third rate nation status behind China,India and even Germany who propers at the expense of its European neighbors.
President Obama has set the tone and direction. He is poised to spend us, yes I said spend us, to a kick-started economy. The existing political structure is unwilling to support such a plan. Demagogues from all segments with opinions based upon platitudes rule the day. Misinformation and an uninformed( by choice)electorate all have a say.
Examine the use of Targeted Credit. That is, credit should be extended to those who under normal conditions would be economically capable of using it and qualify for it.
Restructure Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to break the dream of every one in America can own a home.
No one of these tactics will in it self fix the economy. It requires a change of perspective, a willingness on the part of the electorate to sacrifice and become informed, an ability for the political structure to put aside partisan demagoguery and to understand that what is broken in the nation is Trust
Please support our president and our government. Have they done it all right? No. Have they had the foxes guarding the hen house? Yes? But the foxes are leaving and the president is showing courage and clear thinking on a range of issues.
Vote on November 2
* Sources
Joseph Stiglitz, Robert Shiller, Paul Krugman, George Akerlo, David Brooks and Noriel Roubini, The Wall Street Journal, The NY Times.
More on The Economy
I am pleased that so many of you are being thoughtful and willing to share your views. My sense is that if we do not express our views, find common ground we can not coalesce behind the political leadership we need to keep America from sliding into third rate nation status.
I received the following and offer it for your consideration:
Comments on the Current Economic/Political Situation in America
Sam Ginsburg / October 4, 2010
Americans tend to limit their vision of the world to the borders of the United States and to a time no earlier than the last election, or in some circles, to the last quarter. In a world that is being globalized at an every increasing rate, this near sightedness and lack of historical perspective is foolhardy and perilous to the future of this country.
America received a wakeup call warning us of the impending impact of economic globalism in the 1970’s when the Arab oil producers nationalized their oil, raised oil prices and threw the American economy into a tailspin that did not end until Paul Volcker brought rampant inflation under control by inducing a recession some ten years later during the Reagan years. Reagan then promptly dismissed Volcker so he could introduce the Free Market - Anti Regulation -Trickle down ideology espoused by his fellow Republicans. During this period, Japan grew its economy to become the second largest in the world by becoming the largest exporter to the United States by closely managing its government protected industries to increase exports while restricting imports. At about the same time, after the death of Mao-Tse-Tung, China began, what now can be seen, as the greatest national economic expansion in the history of the world – an expansion based on exports that has yielded double digit GDP growth over decades and has yet to show any sign of slowing down – a record of historical dimension totally orchestrated by a government, not private enterprise, and a Communist one no less.
The result of these changes and that of other “exporting” nations in Asia and the oil and gas producing countries of the world has been the greatest transfer of wealth and of jobs in the history of the world – from the Western, free nations, of the world to the exporting, nations of the world. Americans were told, not to worry when our industrial base shrunk from 60% of GDP to less than 10% - we were now transforming into an “information technology” economy and we would grow jobs in cleaner, safer, environments. Americans compensated for the loss of high paying factory jobs by sending their wives to work thus transforming the adage that two can live as cheaply as one to two workers can earn as much as one.
Every decade since the 1970’s has seen increasing erosion to the American way of life, most Americans aspire to, by countries outside of the United States. Clean office technology jobs began to be outsourced to other countries where the labor costs were less. High paying construction jobs have been decimated by alien workers from Mexico. Today, highly skilled legal, medical and architectural services are being outsourced to countries like India and China. And 30 years of ever increasing trade deficits with China and Japan has transformed the mighty American state into a debtor nation and 30 years of Free Market economics has brought us to the brink of another Great Depression from which no one knows when we will exit.
The argument about whether business or government is better at creating jobs in the country or which should be put in charge of getting this country back on track has to be seen in its historical context. The history of the last several decades has clearly proven that the free market, anti regulatory policies of the past have failed and new strategies are needed to address the reality that state-controlled foreign nations have exploited the American version of free market competition and have seriously impacted our economy and our labor force and that private corporations cannot possibly fix this problem. Nor can private corporations solve the numerous other problems confronting our nation such as global warming, alternative energy, heath care and education without the guidance of a government as effective as the Chinese state. We need to learn from our major competitors to combine the forces of private enterprise with long-term government strategies and assistance to produce growth and prosperity.
Having arrived at this conclusion, I am sad to say that America’s government no longer works. It is torn between two parties that can no longer work together and whose goals are limited to the next election. As for large business, their goals are limited to the force that fuels capitalism, Greed - defined by the results of the upcoming quarter and/or the goals prescribed by their executive’s bonus agreements. Tom Friedman, of the NY Times, in his latest editorial talks about the dysfunction of our government and the possibility of a third party entering the forthcoming presidential election. I wish I could believe this was possible. Instead I believe that, for years to come, America will continue to fumble from election to election and quarter to quarter and the nation will continue to decline as a world power and its influence will decline as our European partners seek to replace the dollar as the international currency and strengthen their connections to China and Russia and to the other extravagantly rich Sovereign wealth fund nations of the world who are sitting on rapidly expanding troves of trillions of dollars of private equity capital flowing to them from us and the rest of the western world who continue to import their products on a massive scale.
I received the following and offer it for your consideration:
Comments on the Current Economic/Political Situation in America
Sam Ginsburg / October 4, 2010
Americans tend to limit their vision of the world to the borders of the United States and to a time no earlier than the last election, or in some circles, to the last quarter. In a world that is being globalized at an every increasing rate, this near sightedness and lack of historical perspective is foolhardy and perilous to the future of this country.
America received a wakeup call warning us of the impending impact of economic globalism in the 1970’s when the Arab oil producers nationalized their oil, raised oil prices and threw the American economy into a tailspin that did not end until Paul Volcker brought rampant inflation under control by inducing a recession some ten years later during the Reagan years. Reagan then promptly dismissed Volcker so he could introduce the Free Market - Anti Regulation -Trickle down ideology espoused by his fellow Republicans. During this period, Japan grew its economy to become the second largest in the world by becoming the largest exporter to the United States by closely managing its government protected industries to increase exports while restricting imports. At about the same time, after the death of Mao-Tse-Tung, China began, what now can be seen, as the greatest national economic expansion in the history of the world – an expansion based on exports that has yielded double digit GDP growth over decades and has yet to show any sign of slowing down – a record of historical dimension totally orchestrated by a government, not private enterprise, and a Communist one no less.
The result of these changes and that of other “exporting” nations in Asia and the oil and gas producing countries of the world has been the greatest transfer of wealth and of jobs in the history of the world – from the Western, free nations, of the world to the exporting, nations of the world. Americans were told, not to worry when our industrial base shrunk from 60% of GDP to less than 10% - we were now transforming into an “information technology” economy and we would grow jobs in cleaner, safer, environments. Americans compensated for the loss of high paying factory jobs by sending their wives to work thus transforming the adage that two can live as cheaply as one to two workers can earn as much as one.
Every decade since the 1970’s has seen increasing erosion to the American way of life, most Americans aspire to, by countries outside of the United States. Clean office technology jobs began to be outsourced to other countries where the labor costs were less. High paying construction jobs have been decimated by alien workers from Mexico. Today, highly skilled legal, medical and architectural services are being outsourced to countries like India and China. And 30 years of ever increasing trade deficits with China and Japan has transformed the mighty American state into a debtor nation and 30 years of Free Market economics has brought us to the brink of another Great Depression from which no one knows when we will exit.
The argument about whether business or government is better at creating jobs in the country or which should be put in charge of getting this country back on track has to be seen in its historical context. The history of the last several decades has clearly proven that the free market, anti regulatory policies of the past have failed and new strategies are needed to address the reality that state-controlled foreign nations have exploited the American version of free market competition and have seriously impacted our economy and our labor force and that private corporations cannot possibly fix this problem. Nor can private corporations solve the numerous other problems confronting our nation such as global warming, alternative energy, heath care and education without the guidance of a government as effective as the Chinese state. We need to learn from our major competitors to combine the forces of private enterprise with long-term government strategies and assistance to produce growth and prosperity.
Having arrived at this conclusion, I am sad to say that America’s government no longer works. It is torn between two parties that can no longer work together and whose goals are limited to the next election. As for large business, their goals are limited to the force that fuels capitalism, Greed - defined by the results of the upcoming quarter and/or the goals prescribed by their executive’s bonus agreements. Tom Friedman, of the NY Times, in his latest editorial talks about the dysfunction of our government and the possibility of a third party entering the forthcoming presidential election. I wish I could believe this was possible. Instead I believe that, for years to come, America will continue to fumble from election to election and quarter to quarter and the nation will continue to decline as a world power and its influence will decline as our European partners seek to replace the dollar as the international currency and strengthen their connections to China and Russia and to the other extravagantly rich Sovereign wealth fund nations of the world who are sitting on rapidly expanding troves of trillions of dollars of private equity capital flowing to them from us and the rest of the western world who continue to import their products on a massive scale.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
The Economy
Here is how one of you caring, thoughtful people responded to the Economy blog.
I disagree with the premise that only business can create jobs. Though I certainly agree that we need more business investing and spending to aid the country in getting back on track, it seems to me that, more importantly, we need the government to take the lead and act as the engine to lead us on the road to recovery. The enormous public works projects of the Roosevwelt era did create jobs and stimulate the economy, but as Paul Krugman, in the November 10, 2008 edition of the NY Times, points out: the Roosevelt plan to end the Depression was not successful because it did not go far enough. It was Roosevelt's own cautious approach that almost undid him. Krugman writes, And F.D.R. wasn’t just reluctant to pursue an all-out fiscal expansion — he was eager to return to conservative budget principles. That eagerness almost destroyed his legacy. After winning a smashing election victory in 1936, the Roosevelt administration cut spending and raised taxes, precipitating an economic relapse that drove the unemployment rate back into double digits and led to a major defeat in the 1938 midterm elections.
Though Obama is not (contrary to Republican claims) raising taxes, he and the Democarats are exhibiting the same type of cautiousness, and, unfortunately, it seems to be yielding the same results:continued unemployment and a potential defeat in the coming elections.
As in the '30s there are numerous areas in which the government should invest. Our infrastructure is crumbling: roads, bridges, dams and schools all must be build or reconstructed, and we need, enormous government investment in, among other areas, clean energy, medical research and, of course, job retraining.
We need the bold leadship and bold change that we were promised. I do not fault President Obama for failures along these lines. He has put forth constructive plans and a stimulus package which was significantly cut back by the " just say no" right wingers in both parties. If the "Stimulus Package" hasn't lived up to its promise, a significant part of the reason is because of the those cutbacks, and not because it has proven too expensive. This is why I firmly believe we should be pushing for further govenment investment in the economy, not less.
Gary Tomei
-----
I disagree with the premise that only business can create jobs. Though I certainly agree that we need more business investing and spending to aid the country in getting back on track, it seems to me that, more importantly, we need the government to take the lead and act as the engine to lead us on the road to recovery. The enormous public works projects of the Roosevwelt era did create jobs and stimulate the economy, but as Paul Krugman, in the November 10, 2008 edition of the NY Times, points out: the Roosevelt plan to end the Depression was not successful because it did not go far enough. It was Roosevelt's own cautious approach that almost undid him. Krugman writes, And F.D.R. wasn’t just reluctant to pursue an all-out fiscal expansion — he was eager to return to conservative budget principles. That eagerness almost destroyed his legacy. After winning a smashing election victory in 1936, the Roosevelt administration cut spending and raised taxes, precipitating an economic relapse that drove the unemployment rate back into double digits and led to a major defeat in the 1938 midterm elections.
Though Obama is not (contrary to Republican claims) raising taxes, he and the Democarats are exhibiting the same type of cautiousness, and, unfortunately, it seems to be yielding the same results:continued unemployment and a potential defeat in the coming elections.
As in the '30s there are numerous areas in which the government should invest. Our infrastructure is crumbling: roads, bridges, dams and schools all must be build or reconstructed, and we need, enormous government investment in, among other areas, clean energy, medical research and, of course, job retraining.
We need the bold leadship and bold change that we were promised. I do not fault President Obama for failures along these lines. He has put forth constructive plans and a stimulus package which was significantly cut back by the " just say no" right wingers in both parties. If the "Stimulus Package" hasn't lived up to its promise, a significant part of the reason is because of the those cutbacks, and not because it has proven too expensive. This is why I firmly believe we should be pushing for further govenment investment in the economy, not less.
Gary Tomei
-----
Saturday, October 2, 2010
This President is Great Continued: The Economy
You may have wondered why I did not mention jobs and the economy yesterday. The answer is that it is a subject that must be addressed on its own.
The president and government, as mentioned previously, can not create sustainable long term employment. Government can put in stop gap measures such as the hiring for the US Census, unemployment benefits or infrastructure projects to repair or build roads, bridges and the like. Roosevelt tried that; but in truth from 1929 until the US entry into WWII, unemployment(25%) and a stagnant economy were entrenched. Why did the war change things and people go back to work? One million people went into the military and the rest, both men and women, went in to America's factories.
Only business can create sustainable long term employment. Business is sitting on the side lines with trillions of not invested dollars parked in retained earnings on their balance sheets. Why? Business does not have the confidence that this administration is trustworthy to protect its interest and be fair.
These three concepts confidence, trust, and fairness are and have been the under pinnings of all economies since the beginning of time. Read or read about Adam Smith, John Maynard Keynes, John Hicks and today's Robert Shiller out of Yale and you will see the recurring theme that these Animal Spirits are what drive any economy. Animal Spirits is a term coined by Keynes that comes from the Latin animus meaning the use of ones feelings, mind and gut instincts to make economic decisions.
So, business should come off the sidelines, start investing and hiring which would pump money into the economy. The government must cheer them on. Both, however, must demonstrate fairness, confidence and trust for this depression to end.
More specific recommendations on what each should consider doing in future blogs. Please let me know what you think
The president and government, as mentioned previously, can not create sustainable long term employment. Government can put in stop gap measures such as the hiring for the US Census, unemployment benefits or infrastructure projects to repair or build roads, bridges and the like. Roosevelt tried that; but in truth from 1929 until the US entry into WWII, unemployment(25%) and a stagnant economy were entrenched. Why did the war change things and people go back to work? One million people went into the military and the rest, both men and women, went in to America's factories.
Only business can create sustainable long term employment. Business is sitting on the side lines with trillions of not invested dollars parked in retained earnings on their balance sheets. Why? Business does not have the confidence that this administration is trustworthy to protect its interest and be fair.
These three concepts confidence, trust, and fairness are and have been the under pinnings of all economies since the beginning of time. Read or read about Adam Smith, John Maynard Keynes, John Hicks and today's Robert Shiller out of Yale and you will see the recurring theme that these Animal Spirits are what drive any economy. Animal Spirits is a term coined by Keynes that comes from the Latin animus meaning the use of ones feelings, mind and gut instincts to make economic decisions.
So, business should come off the sidelines, start investing and hiring which would pump money into the economy. The government must cheer them on. Both, however, must demonstrate fairness, confidence and trust for this depression to end.
More specific recommendations on what each should consider doing in future blogs. Please let me know what you think
Friday, October 1, 2010
This President is Great!
Hey! Quite a statement right? Hear me please. Tea Party? Yeah, well Carl Paladino, Meg( I didn't know she was illegal) Whitman, the lady from Delaware, Christine O Donnell who lied on her resume and is against masturbation, sex of any kind, don't mess with my Medicare and Messrs. Gingrich, Bohner, Madam Palin from Alaska(OMG is there another planet I can move to) and Anger??? Are any of you who read this blog ready to turn over our nation to these do nothing, self serving, so-called leaders?? I hope not.
Did you know:
1)Wall street has been reigned in and hates it.
2)The Banks have yet to write off any toxic investments.
3)Health care insurance companies are on notice and dare not be greedy.
4)TARP is over this Sunday and out of $700 billion dollars offered, less than $200 billion is out there.
5)Larry Summers is gone!! He was one of the group: Summers, Geither, Greenspan, Paulson and Goldman Sacks who brought us depression 2008.
Come on folks, this president has taken each item on his agenda and has either gotten it done or has it tee'd up. Yet to come are immigration, energy, and education.
Let's give him a chance to get it done. Has he made mistakes? Yes, in style as well as content. Did he bring people into his admin who helped create the problem? Yes he did. Again, not in content; but in style. He is an intellectual, deep feeling man who can not believe what he has been asked to do. Well, neither can I!
Here is my suggestion: Get behind the President Stop being partisan.
That is it! Stop doubting, get into the fray, stop listening to Rush, Glen, Michele, Newt, Ed, Rachelle, Keith and the rest of the SNL crowd, left, right or indifferent. They care only about their ratings and earnings.
Talk( I almost said pray) my friends to the Goddess, the God, the Universe, your Family whom ever you think controls or influences events.
Give this President a chance!!!
Did you know:
1)Wall street has been reigned in and hates it.
2)The Banks have yet to write off any toxic investments.
3)Health care insurance companies are on notice and dare not be greedy.
4)TARP is over this Sunday and out of $700 billion dollars offered, less than $200 billion is out there.
5)Larry Summers is gone!! He was one of the group: Summers, Geither, Greenspan, Paulson and Goldman Sacks who brought us depression 2008.
Come on folks, this president has taken each item on his agenda and has either gotten it done or has it tee'd up. Yet to come are immigration, energy, and education.
Let's give him a chance to get it done. Has he made mistakes? Yes, in style as well as content. Did he bring people into his admin who helped create the problem? Yes he did. Again, not in content; but in style. He is an intellectual, deep feeling man who can not believe what he has been asked to do. Well, neither can I!
Here is my suggestion: Get behind the President Stop being partisan.
That is it! Stop doubting, get into the fray, stop listening to Rush, Glen, Michele, Newt, Ed, Rachelle, Keith and the rest of the SNL crowd, left, right or indifferent. They care only about their ratings and earnings.
Talk( I almost said pray) my friends to the Goddess, the God, the Universe, your Family whom ever you think controls or influences events.
Give this President a chance!!!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
And God Speaks...in the Onion
I waited till the 11th had passed to bring you a summary that I believe says it all. This piece was written in 2001 and was published in the Onion. By the way this is funny, right on and should keep us all in perspective:
God Angrily Clarifies 'Don't Kill' Rule
SEPTEMBER 26, 2001
NEW YORK—Responding to recent events on Earth, God, the omniscient creator-deity worshipped by billions of followers of various faiths for more than 6,000 years, angrily clarified His longtime stance against humans killing each other Monday.
"Look, I don't know, maybe I haven't made myself completely clear, so for the record, here it is again," said the Lord, His divine face betraying visible emotion during a press conference near the site of the fallen Twin Towers. "Somehow, people keep coming up with the idea that I want them to kill their neighbor. Well, I don't. And to be honest, I'm really getting sick and tired of it. Get it straight. Not only do I not want anybody to kill anyone, but I specifically commanded you not to, in really simple terms that anybody ought to be able to understand."
Worshipped by Christians, Jews, and Muslims alike, God said His name has been invoked countless times over the centuries as a reason to kill in what He called "an unending cycle of violence."
"I don't care how holy somebody claims to be," God said. "If a person tells you it's My will that they kill someone, they're wrong. Got it? I don't care what religion you are, or who you think your enemy is, here it is one more time: No killing, in My name or anyone else's, ever again."
The press conference came as a surprise to humankind, as God rarely intervenes in earthly affairs. As a matter of longstanding policy, He has traditionally left the task of interpreting His message and divine will to clerics, rabbis, priests, imams, and Biblical scholars. Theologians and laymen alike have been given the task of pondering His ineffable mysteries, deciding for themselves what to do as a matter of faith. His decision to manifest on the material plane was motivated by the deep sense of shock, outrage, and sorrow He felt over the Sept. 11 violence carried out in His name, and over its dire potential ramifications around the globe.
"I tried to put it in the simplest possible terms for you people, so you'd get it straight, because I thought it was pretty important," said God, called Yahweh and Allah respectively in the Judaic and Muslim traditions. "I guess I figured I'd left no real room for confusion after putting it in a four-word sentence with one-syllable words, on the tablets I gave to Moses. How much more clear can I get?"
"But somehow, it all gets twisted around and, next thing you know, somebody's spouting off some nonsense about, 'God says I have to kill this guy, God wants me to kill that guy, it's God's will,'" God continued. "It's not God's will, all right? News flash: 'God's will' equals 'Don't murder people.'"
Worse yet, many of the worst violators claim that their actions are justified by passages in the Bible, Torah, and Qur'an.
"To be honest, there's some contradictory stuff in there, okay?" God said. "So I can see how it could be pretty misleading. I admit it—My bad. I did My best to inspire them, but a lot of imperfect human agents have misinterpreted My message over the millennia. Frankly, much of the material that got in there is dogmatic, doctrinal bullshit. I turn My head for a second and, suddenly, all this stuff about homosexuality gets into Leviticus, and everybody thinks it's God's will to kill gays. It absolutely drives Me up the wall."
God praised the overwhelming majority of His Muslim followers as "wonderful, pious people," calling the perpetrators of the Sept. 11 attacks rare exceptions.
"This whole medieval concept of the jihad, or holy war, had all but vanished from the Muslim world in, like, the 10th century, and with good reason," God said. "There's no such thing as a holy war, only unholy ones. The vast majority of Muslims in this world reject the murderous actions of these radical extremists, just like the vast majority of Christians in America are pissed off over those two bigots on The 700 Club."
Continued God, "Read the book: 'Allah is kind, Allah is beautiful, Allah is merciful.' It goes on and on that way, page after page. But, no, some assholes have to come along and revive this stupid holy-war crap just to further their own hateful agenda. So now, everybody thinks Muslims are all murderous barbarians. Thanks, Taliban: 1,000 years of pan-Islamic cultural progress down the drain."
God stressed that His remarks were not directed exclusively at Islamic extremists, but rather at anyone whose ideological zealotry overrides his or her ability to comprehend the core message of all world religions.
"I don't care what faith you are, everybody's been making this same mistake since the dawn of time," God said. "The Muslims massacre the Hindus, the Hindus massacre the Muslims. The Buddhists, everybody massacres the Buddhists. The Jews, don't even get me started on the hardline, right-wing, Meir Kahane-loving Israeli nationalists, man. And the Christians? You people believe in a Messiah who says, 'Turn the other cheek,' but you've been killing everybody you can get your hands on since the Crusades."
Growing increasingly wrathful, God continued: "Can't you people see? What are you, morons? There are a ton of different religious traditions out there, and different cultures worship Me in different ways. But the basic message is always the same: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Shintoism... every religious belief system under the sun, they all say you're supposed to love your neighbors, folks! It's not that hard a concept to grasp."
"Why would you think I'd want anything else? Humans don't need religion or God as an excuse to kill each other—you've been doing that without any help from Me since you were freaking apes!" God said. "The whole point of believing in God is to have a higher standard of behavior. How obvious can you get?"
"I'm talking to all of you, here!" continued God, His voice rising to a shout. "Do you hear Me? I don't want you to kill anybody. I'm against it, across the board. How many times do I have to say it? Don't kill each other anymore—ever! I'm fucking serious!"
Upon completing His outburst, God fell silent, standing quietly at the podium for several moments. Then, witnesses reported, God's shoulders began to shake, and He wept.
Have a nice day and please get it!
God Angrily Clarifies 'Don't Kill' Rule
SEPTEMBER 26, 2001
NEW YORK—Responding to recent events on Earth, God, the omniscient creator-deity worshipped by billions of followers of various faiths for more than 6,000 years, angrily clarified His longtime stance against humans killing each other Monday.
"Look, I don't know, maybe I haven't made myself completely clear, so for the record, here it is again," said the Lord, His divine face betraying visible emotion during a press conference near the site of the fallen Twin Towers. "Somehow, people keep coming up with the idea that I want them to kill their neighbor. Well, I don't. And to be honest, I'm really getting sick and tired of it. Get it straight. Not only do I not want anybody to kill anyone, but I specifically commanded you not to, in really simple terms that anybody ought to be able to understand."
Worshipped by Christians, Jews, and Muslims alike, God said His name has been invoked countless times over the centuries as a reason to kill in what He called "an unending cycle of violence."
"I don't care how holy somebody claims to be," God said. "If a person tells you it's My will that they kill someone, they're wrong. Got it? I don't care what religion you are, or who you think your enemy is, here it is one more time: No killing, in My name or anyone else's, ever again."
The press conference came as a surprise to humankind, as God rarely intervenes in earthly affairs. As a matter of longstanding policy, He has traditionally left the task of interpreting His message and divine will to clerics, rabbis, priests, imams, and Biblical scholars. Theologians and laymen alike have been given the task of pondering His ineffable mysteries, deciding for themselves what to do as a matter of faith. His decision to manifest on the material plane was motivated by the deep sense of shock, outrage, and sorrow He felt over the Sept. 11 violence carried out in His name, and over its dire potential ramifications around the globe.
"I tried to put it in the simplest possible terms for you people, so you'd get it straight, because I thought it was pretty important," said God, called Yahweh and Allah respectively in the Judaic and Muslim traditions. "I guess I figured I'd left no real room for confusion after putting it in a four-word sentence with one-syllable words, on the tablets I gave to Moses. How much more clear can I get?"
"But somehow, it all gets twisted around and, next thing you know, somebody's spouting off some nonsense about, 'God says I have to kill this guy, God wants me to kill that guy, it's God's will,'" God continued. "It's not God's will, all right? News flash: 'God's will' equals 'Don't murder people.'"
Worse yet, many of the worst violators claim that their actions are justified by passages in the Bible, Torah, and Qur'an.
"To be honest, there's some contradictory stuff in there, okay?" God said. "So I can see how it could be pretty misleading. I admit it—My bad. I did My best to inspire them, but a lot of imperfect human agents have misinterpreted My message over the millennia. Frankly, much of the material that got in there is dogmatic, doctrinal bullshit. I turn My head for a second and, suddenly, all this stuff about homosexuality gets into Leviticus, and everybody thinks it's God's will to kill gays. It absolutely drives Me up the wall."
God praised the overwhelming majority of His Muslim followers as "wonderful, pious people," calling the perpetrators of the Sept. 11 attacks rare exceptions.
"This whole medieval concept of the jihad, or holy war, had all but vanished from the Muslim world in, like, the 10th century, and with good reason," God said. "There's no such thing as a holy war, only unholy ones. The vast majority of Muslims in this world reject the murderous actions of these radical extremists, just like the vast majority of Christians in America are pissed off over those two bigots on The 700 Club."
Continued God, "Read the book: 'Allah is kind, Allah is beautiful, Allah is merciful.' It goes on and on that way, page after page. But, no, some assholes have to come along and revive this stupid holy-war crap just to further their own hateful agenda. So now, everybody thinks Muslims are all murderous barbarians. Thanks, Taliban: 1,000 years of pan-Islamic cultural progress down the drain."
God stressed that His remarks were not directed exclusively at Islamic extremists, but rather at anyone whose ideological zealotry overrides his or her ability to comprehend the core message of all world religions.
"I don't care what faith you are, everybody's been making this same mistake since the dawn of time," God said. "The Muslims massacre the Hindus, the Hindus massacre the Muslims. The Buddhists, everybody massacres the Buddhists. The Jews, don't even get me started on the hardline, right-wing, Meir Kahane-loving Israeli nationalists, man. And the Christians? You people believe in a Messiah who says, 'Turn the other cheek,' but you've been killing everybody you can get your hands on since the Crusades."
Growing increasingly wrathful, God continued: "Can't you people see? What are you, morons? There are a ton of different religious traditions out there, and different cultures worship Me in different ways. But the basic message is always the same: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Shintoism... every religious belief system under the sun, they all say you're supposed to love your neighbors, folks! It's not that hard a concept to grasp."
"Why would you think I'd want anything else? Humans don't need religion or God as an excuse to kill each other—you've been doing that without any help from Me since you were freaking apes!" God said. "The whole point of believing in God is to have a higher standard of behavior. How obvious can you get?"
"I'm talking to all of you, here!" continued God, His voice rising to a shout. "Do you hear Me? I don't want you to kill anybody. I'm against it, across the board. How many times do I have to say it? Don't kill each other anymore—ever! I'm fucking serious!"
Upon completing His outburst, God fell silent, standing quietly at the podium for several moments. Then, witnesses reported, God's shoulders began to shake, and He wept.
Have a nice day and please get it!
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