[Nezer]

Quote:

Originally posted by eric343 Well, the thing with the Libertarian party is that they're all for less government - including less government regulation of Micro$oft/Oil Companies and everyone else we love to hate.

Never said they were perfect but they, at least to me, seem better than the others.

I really doubt one could make a case that the Bush administration is harsh on Big Oil and M$.

One of the founding principles of the Libertarian party is that *everyone* inculding government and business be bound by a moral standard and are held accountable if they harm others.

I doubt seriously that the Libertarian, if they were in power (humorous I know), would take it easy on M$ squelching any competition or Enron (or Microsoft for that matter) rigging thier books.

The fact of the matter is the major parties are influenced by big money. Thats why they are major parties to begin with. The libertarian party isn't influenced to the same degree by big money and hence they are doomed to fail unless us dumbass americans wake-up and start giving a **** about how much government controls our lives.

Anyway, somehow a link to Bushisms turned into a philosophical political debate. I should start another thread on religion so I can alienate *everyone* on this board (first the Red Wings, now Libertarian, next up, Buddhism).

 

[eric343]

True.

Except they'll never win, because they don't have enough $$$ to mount the ad campaign. Kind of stupid thing- the only way to win is to have a lot of money, and the easiest/fastest way to have a lot of money is to be corrupt.

 

[RMSzero]

This became a philosophical debate because for some reason people think "president doesn't speak well" means "entire administration is run by 5th graders." Don't even get me started on the election either.

Actually, a lot of people voted for Bush because of the caliber of people he could place in high ranking cabinet positions, not just at the VP spot. But don't read too much into that about my own politics, I'm kind of embarrassed by what one of our cabinet members seems intent doing to our civil liberties -- but then again, Lieberman and Tipper weren't too keen on free speech so who knows. You could go back and forth.

I prefer to judge an administration by the work they do, not just on what they say, at any rate. With that said and done, I hope you don't think I'm defending Bush. I'm just pointing out other factors that I would hope should come into play in the evaluation of an entire administration aside from the conduct of the executive, something everyone focuses on a tad too much.

 

[gloco]

Yeah, well...the Bush administration finally recognized Global Warming! Hooray! We're saved!

 

[jude]

I voted for Bush for many reasons. I also tried to help drum up votes by working the call centers.

A little aside, but still related, I thought this article from October 3, 2001 was interesting:

http://www.msnbc.com/news/637451.asp

 

[MacDEF]

Quote:

Originally posted by gloco Yeah, well...the Bush administration finally recognized Global Warming!

Kind of... while the administration has finally admitted that it actually exists

, they still aren't going to actually do too much about it. Rather than trying to cut down on emissions, or even trying to keep them at the same level, their solution is to... wait for it... reduce the rate of increase, while still allowing emissions to increase. Boy, that should help...

 

[andrzejpw]

Maybe a little OT, but did that "Axis of Evil" thing scare anyone? I mean, you might as well put a cowboy hat and revolver in his hand. . .

Personally though, I think he's handled the last few months quite well. Imho, he's a shoe-in for reelection

 

[Nezer]

Quote:

Originally posted by andrzejpw ...you might as well put a cowboy hat and revolver in his hand. . .

Lord no!! He might shoot himself, or worse-yet, someone else!

Somehow I envisioned Barney Fief in a cowboy hat when I read this.

So do we know who the them is now?

 

[Clubkill]

Vote Nader, not Brown. Government is fine so long as it is spending its time doing something useful. Forget whether bush is stupid or not, we should be debating the intelligence of the corporate world, as that is what ultimately makes the decisions that affect us.

 

[stuartr]

I am not a big fan of Bush, but he is too goofy to really hate. I hate John Ashcroft. I do. Plain and simple. On the other hand, I like Cheney and Powell. It is a mixed bag. As for W, sure he is not the brightest bulb in the house, but since when have we picked Presidents based on intelligence? It is all charisma and influence. If we picked based on intelligence, we would probably be goverened by political science professors from Princeton, Berkeley or Harvard....it is just not the way it works...for better or for worse. The President is responsible for communicating with the people, which he is not going to do if talks about reconciling the differences between two autochthonous peoples occupying the same land on the shores of Asia minor. That would be misunderestimating their capapabilities. It is all a matter of strategery...

 

[gloco]

Quote:

Originally posted by stuartr I am not a big fan of Bush, but he is too goofy to really hate. I hate John Ashcroft. I do. Plain and simple. On the other hand, I like Cheney and Powell. It is a mixed bag. As for W, sure he is not the brightest bulb in the house, but since when have we picked Presidents based on intelligence? It is all charisma and influence. If we picked based on intelligence, we would probably be goverened by political science professors from Princeton, Berkeley or Harvard....it is just not the way it works...for better or for worse. The President is responsible for communicating with the people, which he is not going to do if talks about reconciling the differences between two autochthonous peoples occupying the same land on the shores of Asia minor. That would be misunderestimating their capapabilities. It is all a matter of strategery...

Charisma and influence? Bush sures hell does not have either one....

As for communicating, the guy is a moron, i laugh everytime i watch him "communicating" with an audience.

 

[stuartr]

That is probably because you have a brain larger than a stegasaurus.....or, it could be that you are from a completely different world than that to which W. gears himself.

To much of America (maybe even 49% !), he is a straight talking guy whom they can understand. He is considered distinguished-looking, he is not so "serious" and "political" as those nasty washington "professional politicians"....He is willing to make fun of himself a bit, and he plays himself off as a "small-town American". Furthermore, he is a born-again Christian, so Jesus is his buddy, and everyone knows that if you love Jesus in this country, chances are you love guns too, so that is a plus.

There were many other reasons to vote for him, as many republicans on this board would tell you -- he has experienced advisors and so on...if that is your party, he is not a bad bet. (I would think that Chuck Hagel would be a better choice, but that is just me...).

And if you don't think that the Bush family has influence, then you are suffering from serious delusions -- a former president and governers of two of the largest states in America? That is not including all the big oil friends they have made along the way....they are about as influential as you can get...

I did not vote for him, nor would I if I had to do it over, but you cannot deny that many people are happy with his presidency (to my eyes a disturbingly high percentage)....Being an educated citizen of arguably the most cosmopolitan city in America, if not the world, you are in the vast minority of Americans.

 

[gloco]

Quote:

Originally posted by stuartr And if you don't think that the Bush family has influence, then you are suffering from serious delusions -- a former president and governers of two of the largest states in America? That is not including all the big oil friends they have made along the way....they are about as influential as you can get...

oops, how could i forget about all the black gold? Darn. Ya got me their partner!

 

[Nosferatu]

Quote:

Originally posted by stuartr I did not vote for him, nor would I if I had to do it over, but you cannot deny that many people are happy with his presidency (to my eyes a disturbingly high percentage)....Being an educated citizen of arguably the most cosmopolitan city in America, if not the world, you are in the vast minority of Americans.

...and that makes you, what, smarter than everyone else? Better than anyone else?

 

[Clubkill]

To link the basketball thread to the politics thread:

http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports...-4147329c.html

This guy does not even let David Stern, NBA commisioner off easy.