Author: R J Adams

George W Bush has the gall to write publish a book about his presidency that he, no doubt, expects the American people to buy and read. Does he believe that two years of obscurity is sufficient to dull the memory of Abu Ghraib, Fallujah, and the torture of US prisoners at his (admitted) command?

Not to mention Kyoto; The ICC; destroying any chance of diplomacy with Iran; 100,000 dead Iraqis; 4,000 dead Americans; supporting the mass slaughter of Lebanese civilians by Israel in the 2006 Lebanon war; trampling all over the Geneva Conventions.

And then, of course, there was Hurricane Katrina.

Is two years long enough for the American people to forget?

Yes, for many it probably is.

Will it be long before a similar literary offering emerges from Bush’s puppetmeister, Cheney?

He could call it: “Topiary – or, How To Shape A Bush My Way.”

^{For a more detailed analysis of George W Bush’s presidency, see this week’s “Latest Hot Link” in the sidebar.}

Filed under: Hardly Mein Kampf

Darling of the Tea Party, Texas governor Rick Perry, says the states should decide whether to opt out of Social Security.

From the CNN ParkerSpitzer Show:

Texas Governor Rick Perry says the idea of letting states opt out of Social Security is worthy of discussion.

Here’s a transcript of the exchange:

Rick Perry: Let’s talk about it, but let’s not put it over there and say, “we can’t talk about that—that’s the third rail of politics”. I don’t believe that that’s wise and thoughtful.
Eliot Spitzer: You’ll forgive me if I’m going to push you a little on this. You’ve been the governor of the great state of Texas for a decade now

RP: Ten years

ES: A decade now, you’ve run social welfare programs, saying, “let’s make it part of the discussion” is fine, but begs for the follow up: are you for it. You’ve studied this question. You have a book here complaining about government obligations.

RP: I’m for having, I’m for pushing…

ES: Yes or no, do you want to raise the retirement age?

RP: I’m on with two very bright, capable commentators having this discussion with the American people. I don’t put in that book “Fed Up” that I have all the answers, but I think we ought to have this conversation…

ES: But you’ve got to have an answer. I don’t expect anybody to have all the answers, but you’ve got to have an answer. So, having a conversation isn’t an answer. Having a conversation is a political punt. What is the answer? What is the answer? Will you raise the retirement age or not?

Kathleen Parker: I have no control over him.

RP: Well, I’m not going to be the President of the United States, but I’m going to be engaged in…

ES: No, but you’ve been the governor for ten years and you’ve written a book harshly criticizing…

RP: Well, last time I checked…

ES: Harshly critical of federal policies…

RP: Here’s what I think would be a very wise thing. In 1981, Matagorda, Brazoria, and Galveston Counties all opted out of the Social Security program for their employees. Today, their program is very, very well-funded and there is no question about whether it’s going to be funded in the out years. It’s there. That’s an option out there.

ES: So, you want to let people opt out?
RP: I think, let the states decide if that’s what’s best for their cities.

ES: So the states will let people opt out of Social Security.

RP: They should, I think it’s a discussion…

ES: I haven’t seen anybody propose that before because that’s going to be…

RP: Well, we just laid that on the table so let’s talk about it.

ES: OK, so that’s your plan?

RP: That’s not my plan, Eliot.

ES: But, governor, I’m trying to get you, look, you’ve written a book…

RP: I know, you’re trying to get me in a corner and I don’t corner very good. What I’m trying to do is have a discussion with the people of this country on an issue…

KP: I think that’s a brand-new idea. Nobody has said that before.

ES: That’s because it doesn’t work.

RP: That nobody, nobody is willing to talk about.

ES: No, no, here is the problem I have, the Tea Party, and we’ve had everybody from Dick Armey to Richard Viguerie, folks who have been leading this movement, dodging and dancing, unable to give a single answer about what they actually support. Having a conversation is to push it someplace else.

RP: Right.

ES: I want to know if there’s an answer. Will you: raise the retirement age? Are you saying you want private accounts? You can say it, we’ll disagree, but at least it’s an answer.

RP: Sure.

ES: OK. So.

RP: I think all of those are legitimate options out there, but let the states decide. Don’t force us from Washington, DC to say, “here is the size of tube socks that you’re gonna wear down in Texas. Put ‘em on.”^[1]

Tea party politicians are all the same; they want to rip government apart, but haven’t the faintest idea what to put in its place. These people are solely career politicians with no compassion for, or understanding of, ordinary people. Many of them are politically illiterate.

I particularly liked the quote of Perry’s: “you’re trying to get me in a corner and I don’t corner very good.”

Is he, perhaps, comparing himself to a clapped-out ’57 Edsel?

^{[1] “Perry: Let states decide Social Security” CNN, November 4th 2010}

Filed under: Gubernatorial garbage

The only winner from yesterday’s mid-term election was Capitalism. A fact that will, no doubt, please many who voted Republican.

How sad is someone who desperately needs affordable healthcare, yet votes to deny it?

I read recently of one “tea-party” supporter who said he wanted the healthcare bill repealed as he “thought it would create healthcare rationing.”

Yes, a real shame if someone else got more than you did.

That person either completely failed to recognize it was already rationed – unavailable to those who can’t afford the grossly overpriced insurance policies – or didn’t care, so long as his health was well covered.

It would have been – he was a defense contractor.

The most depressing aspect of yesterday was how easily human beings can be manipulated to act against their own interests. For that, we should thank the US media. It did a great job on behalf of its corporate owners. Lies travel just as easily over airwaves as does truth.

There’s no doubt Barack Obama must be feeling brassed off this morning. I would be, in his position. After all, he’s the one who inherited the economic black hole from George W Bush and the Republicans. He’s the one who’s worked for two years to drag this country, kicking and screaming, back out of the mire.

Frankly, if I were him I’d get the hell out of it, and tell the American people where they can stick their presidency. Fortunately for the American people, I’m not him.

There’s an old saying that states something about “citizens getting the government they deserve”.

Americans are hellbent on proving it.

Filed under: Dumbasses