quote:

Originally posted by Phil Knox:
Who set Saddam in power?
Who gave him weapons to fight his enemies?
Who gave him the money to remain in power?

Reagan & Rumsfeld.

They were friends going back years and years.

Foreign policy is very complex and fluid. It is not for children. It is tough business with a lot of tough decisions.

In addition to Saddam Hussein, we were "buddies" (too strong a word, obviously) with Osama bin Laden--training and funding. Why did we do that? Because he tied Russia up in Afghanistan for ten years--weakening their economy, splitting their nation, and allowing the US and the west to continually pressure and outspend the Soviets and, eventually, drive them out of the cold war by destroying (or gravely weakening their economy). Was it worth supporting Obama to weaken the Soviets and end the cold war. Certainly seemed to be at the time.

In foreign affairs, it is so easy to armchair quarterback after the fact; but leaders have to make real decisions in real time. That's what leadership is about.

Political scandal in Mr. Dark's neck of the woods! (If they have woods in Texas.)

http://www.examiner.com/a-1700855~Inmate_says_jailer_sought_McCain_vote.html

WEll, it's pretty weak as scandals go--since both sides acknowledge he was laughing and not serious. How about unions who spend literally millions of dollars on the Democratic candidate and openly pressure thier members to vote for the Democrat. Is that not political harrassment? If my CEO came out and told all of us he expected us to vote (or to have voted for) for McCain, that would be a scandal. Why the double standard for unions?

quote:

Originally posted by patrask:
The reason we have Supreme Courts is to prevent the Tyranny of the Majority from imposing their will, incorrectly, on the minority.

...and to appoint Presidents, it would seem.

In the Bush v. Gore issue, the Supreme Court intervened as the Florida State Supreme Court was violating state voting regulations--the legal responsibility of the the State Government. That responsibility is set by the Constitution, so that is the justification for Supreme court intervention.

There's still room for political humor, isn't there?

http://www.addictinggames.com/sockandawe.html

Socialism isn't all bad, surely.

Socialism sort of works, until the Socialists run out of other people's money.

I have worked (literally) since I was 10 years old. Starting in my family's business, where I learned "you ONLY got what you saved for and could pay for. Now, as my tenure in the classroom approaches its sunset, wants vs. needs are still influenced by the lessons learned participating in the 6 days a week, 10 hr. days my folks often put in. (We pass this on to our boys.)

So, "sharing the wealth" is a misnomer. For the typical working class household, it is more like handing over that which has been responsibly earned. As a NYSer, where taxes are rampant, I know of which I speak. (Sure...always room for a little political humor!)

Yet, when we have the likes of these guys looking out for us, we're in GOOD HANDS: http://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii40/davidormsby/Bla.../GOV_CAMP_06_SML.jpg
and http://www.frankenidiot.com/images/al_franken_umd1_800pxh.jpg
and http://routingbyrumor.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/eliot-spitzer-sad.jpg
and http://granitegrok.com/pix/Harry%20Reid.jpg
and http://www.moonbattery.com/archives/Rep-Nancy-Pelosi.jpg
and http://bradleyamendment.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/joe-biden-s1515.jpg
and(unfortunately, Karl couldn't make it for this family picture!)
http://www.twi-ny.com/paramount.jpg

Goodness, what a panoply of opinions!

I'm curious, given the mix of reactions to the Presidential election and our new President, what we all think about "Way Up In The Middle Of The Air," the story in "The Martian Chronicles" where the black population of the South leaves for Mars one day. I believe the story was written the same year that Yip Harburg's "Finian's Rainbow" premiered.

That story is a very harsh indictment of white racism, and I am NOT equating such sentiments with reservations about the Obama Administration' strategies and tactics. But as one of Mr. Bradbury's most powerful statements on the subject, and one important enough to his themes to be included in "TMC", "Way Up" seems to be important, if historical.

quote:

Originally posted by groovista:
I'm curious...what we all think about "Way Up In The Middle Of The Air"...

It's always been one of my favourite stories. I find it hilariously funny.

Silly, indeed!

quote:

Originally posted by groovista:
I'm curious, given the mix of reactions to the Presidential election and our new President, what we all think about "Way Up In The Middle Of The Air," the story in "The Martian Chronicles" where the black population of the South leaves for Mars one day.

When I first read it in the 1970s I found it irrelevant and a bit insulting. Rereading years later, it makes a very interesting Alternate Universe on the premise of life if the Civil Rights Movement hadn't happened. (I still find the line in The Martian Chronicles that "everyone knew who the first women would be" insulting, even after seeing that the book is basically an allegory of Western settlement.)

Brilliant reflection, apprx. 145yrs. ago, by a truly Great American President:
"Property is the fruit of labor...property is desirable...is a positive good in the world. That some should be rich shows that others may become rich, and hence is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another; but let him labor diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built."
Abraham Lincoln
Source: March 21, 1864 - Reply to New York Workingmen's
Democratic Republican Association".