In my last post Isis made the following comment to my “horse race” style questions:
Why would I care to answer such a question?
This race is over, it’s a disgusting bamboozlement of the Democrats by Big Media to isolate the primaries to 2 candidates. Who cares about this distracting minutae? It just takes the wind out of activism and pointing the finger at the real problems in this country and world by giving smart people like you, Steven, some bulls**t to waste your energy on. Who cares?
Obama=Hillary=McCain. It doesn’t matter any longer. There is no contest, no “race,” just a long season of distracting the US public and it’s best and brightest (?? Hmmm, I guess maybe not our brightest??) journalists and activists following how the big donor money is spent. How boring is that?
What happened to global warming?
What happened to single-payer health care?
What happened to eradication of global poverty and economic development?I guess trying to guess what punditry crap that emanates from the Lying Class of politicians has superceded real human and planetary needs. Thanks, Steven.
I started to respond to her in the thread, but then I decided my response needed to be longer than a pithy one liner, and her concerns deserved more than that as well. So follow me below the fold to see what I have to say to her, and to you as well about the concerns she has raised:
(cont.)
I confess, Isis, you have better questions than I do. I wonder though if the ultimate problem isn’t far more systematic. We are a Republic, but one that is effectively run for the benefit of an oligarchy, or a plutocracy or however you want to describe the wealthiest individuals and largest corporations. And our media is a willing servant of that corporatist oligarchy. The oligarchs, through the amount of money they can supply to candidates, indirectly choose who will be allowed the chance to serve them as President.
Perhaps this is the real reason Gore decided he didn’t want to run. In effect, the President of these United States is a bought and paid for employee of Big Business. Some may be more upfront about their allegiances (the Republicans) and others less so (the Democrats, especially the DLC brand of Democrat) but all of them are limited in what they can do to cross those who provided them the funds to win their elections. Gore saw this quite clearly, and he also saw that he could do more working outside the system to effect real change in our nation (and our world), which as we are all aware is irretrievably broken.
Perhaps the real question I should have asked is what happens when the collapse of our society is finally apparent to even the most willfully blinded individuals. At that point what happens? I don’t know, but the possibilities frighten the crap out of me. Hyperinflation? Depression? Military coup? Fascist/Christianist takeover? War, famine, plague?
These aren’t just hyperbolic statements made to inflame the passions of the “choir” but sincere concerns. Across all sectors our country is is regressing, losing ground: in education, as an economic power, as a diplomatic power, and even as a military power. Our infrastructure is dangerously in need of massive repairs across the board. Our ability to supply fresh water in the future is at great risk, either from pollution in the East, overuse in the West and/or the effects of Global Warming (eg., the current drought in the Southeast). Our democracy, and in particular the great compromise which was the result of the FDR Presidency began to show cracks in the late 50’s and early 60’s. Those cracks were pasted over during the 70’s after Watergate, but now, after nearly 30 years of Republican rule (and I count the Clintons as a form of Republicanism within the Democratic Party) the cracks have been torn asunder by the Bush Presidency and the raw wounds exposed for all to see.
We will collapse like the Soviet Union did, but the manner and the form of that collapse will be different. I supported Edwards in large part because he was the only candidate with a serious hope of winning who represents a revitalized progressive movement based on the principles established by FDR, the last time we faced a crisis moment in our nation’s history when the country could have torn itself apart.
Now all it seems is that we have to hope that the “hope” of Obama has something behind it other than mere charisma. Clearly he is the most charismatic Presidential candidate since JFK, but JFK did not really get much accomplished as President. His greatest accomplishments were negative ones. He didn’t get us into a nuclear war over Cuba (a much closer occurrence than we used to believe), and he didn’t openly oppose the Civil Rights Movement, though he didn’t do much to encourage it either.
The trouble is, that we are heading into times in which the dangers we face are orders of magnitude higher than what Kennedy faced (with the exception of the Missile Crisis). We need more than charisma and the ability to give a good speech from our President. We need a program for radical change such as the one FDR provided during the Great Depression (along with all his charisma and eloquence, too). What I fear is that no President in our era can openly propose such a program, much less get it passed through Congress, until the collapse of our society has advanced so far that even jaded politicians will accept it out of fear of revolution or worse. By then, it likely will be too late.
If that sounds too pessimistic, I’m sorry. Someone once said (and I’m probably paraphrasing here) hope is what you have left when all reason to believe that you can avoid calamity has fled. I have hope for the future, but at this point very little reason to believe that any one politician will be our salvation.
Well, it would seem some still believe that single-payer health care and talk about poverty are third rails of politics. Maybe Kucinish’s demise and Edwards’s weak support attest to this fact. However, when one Democrat can criticize another for proposing a single-payer health care system that serves all, you can appreciate how far the Democratic party has come since Reagan, and those who would acquiesce to a new Republican Lite Democratic face.
Yes, this a criticism of the Bill and Hillary act? Instead of changing the public perception, Bill and Hillary believe that their old hat Republican Lite administration of the 90s deserves a second go-around. Has bill overestimated his belovedness by the American people, who he thinks want to go back to the past? Nostalgia is not what it seems to be.
Frankly, I see in Bill Clinton the same poisonous, volatile, twisted, arrogant self-importance/self-regard that seems typical in so many people of addictive character, including The Current Occupant.
Any nostalgia on the part of the public is really beside the point; power alone feeds the demon. In fact, the Clintons do seem to share the type of sick co-dependence — the ‘beast with two heads’ sort of thing — also typical of addicted couples.
Just my very personally informed .02.
Steven, both Isis’ comment & your reply cause me to feel fortunate as a member of this community.
Imho, pessimism is now a crucial ingedient of realism.
Steven, again you have just gotten my applause. I do love to read your comments. I have been against the Clinton agenda for a long time. As an Independent, I find it hard to see through the reasoning of why Americans again and again vote against their personal life’s meaning. I do not ever want another Clinton in my WH ever! It is time for someone else to take a shot of what is wrong with America. I am a J. Edwards supporter. We will never have a personal savior to save us here…it will take us all to save us all. We all must work together to get to where we want to go.
Anyhow, my only words IS no more bushes or Clinton’s ever in our land of politics!
It will come when the majority cannot pay their debts and their standard of living crashes. That is when the political revolution will begin. Right now the majority still have money. It is borrowed money even the 401k plans are an illusion the markets are crashing as we speak. What people though they had will be gone. All because of greed and a failure to think as a society. A failure encouraged by demagogues with a personal agenda. That agenda was the acquisition of wealth at the expense of the country and its people. They lied and said “all boats will rise.” They neglected to mention for how long or that the boats will then sink to the bottom.
I second your comment!
There will be a slow decline in the value of stocks and other financial assets, but it will happen.
Let The Power Fall
All one needs to take a look at is real (inflation adjusted ) income growth for the bottom 90% of Americans over the past 3 decades. It makes sense why folks took the easy way out with asset inflation and “equity” extraction fueled by increasing debt. Consumer debt as a percentage of real income is at an all time high so is total debt as a percentage of GDP.
Now the credit bubble is unwinding. The next President will very likely preside over the involuntary de-leveraging of America. This will not be doing our standard of living much good.
Obama impresses me on two fronts. He talks about hope, and that’s important in dark times. And he also seems to have smart policy advisers with a diverse set of backgrounds (although most seem to be pretty intellectual). I honestly think this is the best we can expect out of a President in the declining days of empire.
This rhetoric is all nice and emotionally satisfying for the idealist in us, but it’s not real, there’s no substance behind his message, because Obama’s been advised to keep things to what, 9th grade level or some single-digit school average?
Don’t believe the hype. When I hear Obama’s clips on the radio, I hear about emotions, not about policy. I don’t watch the teevee, so maybe I’m missing something, but is there really substance in what Obama says compared to Kucinich or even Edwards or Gravel?
“Don’t believe the hype”
I’m sorry, I don’t mean to laugh, but I genuinely find that funny.
If you have ‘serious ideas’ and challenge the status quo too much, the party and the media will marginalize you. Pretty much all that’s left is marketing fluff.
So saying that Obama is all smoke and mirrors is like telling me that Wheaties aren’t as nutritious as a bowl of whole grain oats and a grapefruit.
He talks about hope?
I hope I lose weight.
I hope I won’t run out of gas.
I hope I win an Oscar.
I hope I have enough patience to deal with the way people are falling for Obama’s hope.
I don’t believe any of the above are likely.
Is there something wrong with supporting a candidate who can inspire people with his words?
You don’t agree, that’s fine. But using language like “falling for” is rude.
I agree. I’m tired of the patronizing attitude of some who think we drank the kool-aid.
I looked at Obama’s record, and preferred it to the record of Edwards and Clinton, period. The rhetoric is a wonderful bonus, but it’s not the reason I’m voting for him. He’s a doer, who has accomplished much that others didn’t even want to tackle (campaign finance reform, healthcare reform, immigration policy reform), and he’s done it without demonizing the opposition.
Lisa, I would never think you drank the kool aid. You are one of the brightest, most articulate posters on this site. For the life of me, I don’t get your support of Obama, but I know you have done your homework and come to a different conclusion than I have.
You see Obama’s rhetoric as a bonus. I see it as the entirety of his campaign and that is my problem with it.
I had just spent the day with a group of people who know next to nothing about any of Obama’s positions and couldn’t stop raving about how “inspirational” he is. I believe the vast majority of all voters don’t do a lot of research on any of the candidates and vote based on some visceral reaction. There are those, like you, who have done research and have come to different conclusions.
IMHO it has been a boon to this blog that the frontpagers have supported different candidates. So there has been discussion, usually rational, about them all.
We all want better for our country.
Rude? I didn’t think so.
But I once “fell” for Obama’s rhetoric and worked hard for his senatorial campaign and have been disappointed and/or horrified by his actions since.
I personally am wary of the soaring rhetoric and I certainly don’t see it as a reason to vote for anyone. It apparently is something you value. I would value it if I trusted it. I don’t.
Nonetheless, I apologize for offending you.
Sorry I couldn’t respond sooner, I had a business meeting this afternoon.
Thank you, thank you for the insightful and kind response. I am flattered. You laid “it” out very clearly and succinctly; this nation will be paying, paying somehow, for the last 30 years (60?) of messing with the US and the many nations we have sought to dominate.
Thank you for the clear exposé of the times we live in without going into the deeper machinations that can distract us from our path. We have to maintain our poise and our goals, and not be distracted by the MSM.
I agree with your pessimistic analysis that things will get worse in this nation before we can get a grip and restore liberty, justice and the Constitution and it’s Amendments.
I appreciate greatly the time you’ve taken to respond. I am not able to write with such detail and breadth, I’m a struggling sole-proprietor with many responsibilities on my plate.
The Big Picture is not all, but certainly is a vital part of our lives.
Isis
Thank you, Steven. Thank you, Isis.
I admit to being beyond depressed by what is going on. You two, and so many others here, give me the courage to keep on fighting for a better situation for all of us.
Steve,
Kennedy and King were friends, and Kennedy tried to help King on the civil rights movement from behind the scenes because to do so overtly lessened his ability to help the civil rights movement by giving more ammunition to his already incredibly vocal enemies, many of which worked in the press.
Bobby Kennedy approved one category of FBI taps on King, WITH KING’S PERMISSION, so that they could show J. Edgar Hoover that King was not a communist. Sadly, Hoover put in a second set of bugs that were NOT authorized, which led to much heartache for King. (Long story I’m not going into here.)
Kennedy fought Wall Street at every turn during this presidency. He took the steel industry executives head on, with this amazing speech. Can you imagine George Bush saying anything like this?
I wonder if even Edwards would have been so bold.
The fact that Kennedy’s record has been buried by his enemies should not allow progressives to claim he HAS none, or a weak one. It would be better for people to educate themselves on the Kennedy record, rather than to assume, falsely, that there’s not much to it.
This was a very good piece, both Isis’s post and your response.
Thanks Bob. Appreciated.