7 posts tagged “politics”
Everyone knows why there's this $700 billion elephant tiptoeing around our economy, but nobody seems to know what to do with it. Lately folks are getting alarmed that the Big Three automakers - GM, Ford, Chrysler - are just a few months away from bankruptcy and begging for their hunk of elephant hide.
What really irks me are the calls for "economic darwinism" i.e. letting the car companies go bankrupt because they failed to adapt to a changing market.
While I'm quick to agree that the Big Three have been slogging around their in own graveyard for years, at least they didn't dig their own graves and dare others to push them into it. Who would be so crazy as to dance on the edge of burial? How about the "Failing Five": Bear Sterns, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, AIG, Washington Mutual...
Why would we be so quick to bail out financial companies on Wall Street but allow Motor City to collapse? Consider this: General Motors employs as many people as all five of the above financial companies combined. Add Ford and Chrysler to the mix and it's nearly double. An auto industry expert on NPR last week estimated that including suppliers, the bankruptcy of the Big Three could cost an even bigger "three": 3 million jobs.
I've been critical of the Big Three since the early 1990s when it was clear to me that they were playing follow the leader with Honda and Toyota, banking on marketing campaigns and "buy American" sentiment to maintain an appearance of competitiveness.
However, the auto companies deserve some credit for remaining solvent in an economy that hits their products harder than just about anyone's, a financial crisis that happened after fuel prices hit record highs. Despite those two huge hammers to the grills of the Big Three, they're telling us that they won't go bankrupt for a few more months if things don't improve.
Meanwhile those Failing Five financial companies couldn't even survive a few days when things began to turn sour. They were recklessly living on the edge of their self-dug graves, boasting of their talent until they fell in, screaming for help all the way. In a flash Congress was there to bail them out.
The automakers could've pushed themselves closer to the limit with last-ditch marketing campaigns or sales incentives, but they didn't. While the Big Three blamed labor unions for some of their problems, they also fought those unions whenever possible, knowing that long-term survival was at stake.
Meanwhile, the Failing Five blamed over-zealous home buyers and builders yet continued to cater to their mortgage-hungry wallets.
If we see fit to bail out Wall Street, then it has to also be correct to bail out Motor City as well. If our economy can't withstand the complete atrophy of our credit system, neither can it survive the complete atophy of our manufacturing knowledge base.
While I believe that manufacturing is "old tech" as a core business model, there's still room for "high tech" applications on the process and research side that could be exported to countries that still rely on manufacturing. If the Big Three go belly up, that's 3 million workers with nowhere else to go - it could create a permanent increase in unemployment rate. We need those people to remain employed so that they may adapt and evolve as their companies also need to do.
If we don't bail out the auto industry, we might as well keep that $700 billion in the Treasury and simply let economic depression run its course. Let's not reward the financial industry for being the least responsible component of our national economy by limiting our bailout money exclusively to them.
Of course if we send that elephant marching to Detroit, then I'm sure Boeing will be next in line begging to do the elephant walk... Anyone else want to join in?
A few days ago Lisa wrote about choosing her "voting outfit", explaining a desire to dress according to the significance of her vote and the election. It was a new and interesting thought and in part, it inspired me to be conscious of my outfit this morning.
Imagine this: it's Michigan, it's November, it's pitch dark outside, and it's 50 degrees!
Taking advantage of the weather I decided to run to Lowell city hall to vote! In my own way, I dressed for the occasion wearing the same outfit that I wore for Bailey's Doggie Dash, minus the hat and gloves (and the dog!)
City hall is only half a mile from home but I took a slight scenic detour to enjoy the weather and the remaining brown shades of fall leaves. After voting I ran home for a total of 2.1 miles. Considering that I arrived at about 06:50 Eastern Time, I may well have been the country's first voter who ran to and from the polling booth!
Lowell has always conducted smooth elections, one of the benefits of small town living. In past elections I've arrived at 7:15 and was the 15th or so voter in my precinct. Today when Amanda and I got in line (Amanda drove and met me at city hall) I remarked to her that I estimated about 50 people in line in front of us.
Only 20 minutes later I was sliding my ballot into the machine, which reported back to me that I was voter #51... Am I good or what? My estimate was right on! :)
The coolest thing about voting this morning was that despite 50 folks crowded into a small hallway, everyone was friendly, helpful, and cheerful. There we were, roughly half of us about to "officially disagree" with the other half via our ballots, yet we were all neighbors first and Democrats or Republicans somewhere further down the priority list.
My dad has boasted of (and subsequently often playfully ridiculed for) his high school strategy for popularity: tell jokes. He discovered that even if only 1 in 10 jokes are actually funny, people will consider you a fun person to be around. Whenever someone tells a bad joke, we say "that was one of dad's other nine". :)
The relevance of this is that standing in line waiting to enter the doorway into the room full of voting booths, it reminded me of elementary school when some rooms were converted into "haunted houses" for Halloween - we were all standing there eagerly waiting our turn to enter this mysterious and magical area.
It must've been dad's genes - for some reason I expressed my observation aloud. To my surprise, everyone around me in line busted out into laughter! I hadn't thought it was that funny of a comment, but maybe it helped alleviate some of the inherent tension of the voting process by evoking a sub-consciously uncanny parody of our situation.
After all, there's an element of spookiness because the whole process is necessarily secretive. Yet we all are eager to participate, sneaking into our walled-off booth, inscribing our coded opinions, stealing glances at friendly strangers who may or may not agree with each other, and walking out into the real world to start a regular day at the office.
Boo! :)
As far anyone who respects animals is concerned, Joe Biden and Sarah Palin could not be more different...
Really, this isn't a political blog despite my recent silliness. In fact, I'm just waiting for enough daylight so I can go for a long bike ride. You know what's the toughest aspect about cycling long distance? Da' BUTT. My legs are fine, my lungs are fine, my head is as good as it's gonna get, but holy cow does my butt ever get sore on a bike! I'm trying out another seat on this ride that I swapped from my old bike to see if that helps.
Seriously though, did you really want to hear about my butt or about the VP candidates? Just like Bush claiming that global warming - something I was cognizant of in 1989 when I was 13 - is a myth, Palin believes that polar bears are not endangered. Why? Because she wants hunters to be able to shoot them from airplanes. Any middle school kid could tell you that when an animal depends on the icepack for survival and the north pole was actually liquid this summer, that species is in trouble. So let's put the polar bears out of their misery, eh? And let's kill some wolves, too, while we're at it.
Biden, on the other hand, has tried to keep misery away from the polar regions, specifically the annual harp seal massacre. Until I read this detailed VP comparision from the HSUS (a blog worth subscribing well worth subscribing to) I hadn't realized the extent of how different two polititians could be regarding animal welfare. Except for Mike Huckabee thinking it was OK for his son to torture a dog to death...
Time to go trade one pain in the butt for another! ;)
This political season is driving me nuts. Obama is popular and voters apparently think this is a problem, McCain is using a negative campaign to accuse Obama of being too negative, Clinton behaves as if she can still get nominated, and the best political ad so far was created by Paris Hilton.
McCain is somehow still afloat on his platform, firing his shots from a rusting hulk sailing under the name "Fear Terrorism!" scrawled in peeling paint on the stern. It's a sitting duck, you'd think, except that Obama seems to feel that it wouldn't be sporting to return fire and sink the old boat.
So while I wait for Obama's campaign to find their balls (cannon balls, of course...) I thought I'd make a Hilton-esque attempt at whimsical political commentary by bringing "A Princess Bride" into the modern political era.
The Cast
Barack Obama as Westley
John McCain as Vizzini
Hillary Clinton as Buttercup
George W. Bush as Prince Humperdinck
Dick Cheney as Count Rugen (aka The Six-Fingered Man)
Al Gore as Inigo Montoya
and...
Bill Clinton as Fezzik
[note: the quotes were pasted from IMDB and modified as shown via strikeouts]
Scene 1 - earlier this spring at DNC headquarters
Buttercup: Farm Harvard boy, polish my horse's saddle image. I want to see my face shining in it on TV by morning.
Westley: As you wish Not a chance.
Buttercup: Farm Harvard boy, fill these with water money - please.
Westley: As you wish Not a chance.
Buttercup: Farm Harvard boy... fetch me that pitcher nomination.
Westley: As you wish Not a chance.
Scene 2 - Flashback: early 2001 in Florida
Count Rugen: You've got an overdeveloped sense of vengeance environmental responsibility. It's going to get you into trouble someday. [Rugen draws his sword and lunges at Inigo]
Inigo Montoya: Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father rigged my election. Prepare to die.
Count Rugen: Stop saying that!
Inigo Montoya: [Louder] Hello! My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father rigged my election! Prepare to die!
Count Rugen: [Rugen gets his sword knocked away and Inigo slices his cheek] No!
Inigo Montoya: Offer me money a Nobel Prize.
Count Rugen: Yes.
Inigo Montoya: Power Academy Awards, too, promise that! [he slices Rugen's other cheek]
Count Rugen: All that I have and more. Please.
Inigo Montoya: Offer me everything I ask for.
Count Rugen: Anything you want.
Inigo Montoya: I want my father political career back you son of a bitch.
Scene 3 - Flashback: early 2002 in Texas
Prince Humperdinck:
Once Guilder Iraq is blamed, the nation will truly be
outraged - they'll demand we go to war.
Count Rugen: [snickers, then examines a huge tree oil company] Now where is that secret knot government contract? It's impossible to find...
[he finds it and the tree oil company opens to reveal a hidden passage treasure vault]
Count Rugen: Ah. Are you coming down into the pit to Gitmo? Wesley's A human held without due process got his strength back. I'm starting him on the machine waterboard tonight.
Prince Humperdinck: [sincerely]
Tyrone Dick, you know how much I love watching you work, but I've got my
country's 500th anniversary 5000th military funeral to plan, my wedding judicial system to arrange, my wife economy to
murder and Guilder Iraq to frame for it; I'm swamped.
Count Rugen: Get some rest. If you haven't got your health, then you haven't got anything shouldn't go hunting with me.
Scene 4 - present day in Denver
Buttercup: We'll never succeed. We may as well die here.
Westley:
No, no. We have already succeeded. I mean, what are the three terrors
of the Fire Swamp Election Campaign? One, the flame spurt recession - no problem. There's a popping
sound preceding each; we can avoid that. Two, the lightning sand sex scandal, which
you were Edwards was clever enough to discover what that looks like, so in the
future we can avoid that too.
Buttercup: Westley, what about the R.O.U.S.'s?
Westley: Rodents Republicans Of Unusual Size Sincerity? I don't think they exist.
Intermission
Fezzik: Anybody want a peanut?
Inigo Montoya: You know Fezzik, you finally did something right.
Fezzik: Don't worry, I won't let it go to my head.
Scene 5 - summer 2008 town hall meeting
Vizzini: I can't compete with you physically, and you're no match for my brains.
Westley: You're that smart?
Vizzini: Let me put it this way. Have you ever heard of Plato Public Schools, Aristotle Artists, Socrates Scientists?
Westley: Yes.
Vizzini: Morons.
Westley: I challenge you to a battle of wits.
Vizzini: For the Princess Presidency?
Westley: [nods]
Vizzini: To the death?
Westley: [nods]
Vizzini: I accept!
Scene 6 - fall 2008 presidential debates
Westley: All right. Where is the poison fear for America? The battle of wits has begun. It ends
when you decide and we both drink make a stand, and find out who is right elected... and who
is dead.
Vizzini:
But it's so simple. All I have to do is divine from what I know of you:
are you the sort of man who would put the poison fear into his own goblet country or
his enemy's? Now, a clever man would put the poison fear into his own
goblet country, because he would know that only a great fool would reach for
what he was given optimism. I am not a great fool, so I can clearly not choose the wine plan in front of
you. But you must have known I was not a great fool, you would have
counted on it, so I can clearly not choose the wine plan in front of me.
Westley: You've made your decision then?
Vizzini:
Not remotely. Because iocane uranium comes from Australia Iran, as everyone knows,
and Australia Iran is entirely peopled with criminals terrorists, and criminals terrorists are
used to having people not trust them, as you our allies are not trusted by me, so
I can clearly not choose the wine plan in front of you.
Westley: Truly, you have a dizzying intellect.
Vizzini: Wait 'til I get going! Now, where was I?
Westley: Australia Iran.
Vizzini:
Yes, Australia Iran. And you must have suspected I would have known the
powder's terrorists' origin, so I can clearly not choose the wine plan in front of me.
Westley: You're just stalling now the economy.
Vizzini:
You'd like to think that, wouldn't you? You've beaten my giant big corporate backers, which
means you're exceptionally strong, so you could've put the poison fear in
your own goblet country, trusting on your strength to save you, so I can
clearly not choose the wine plan in front of you. But, you've also bested my
Spaniard conservative moderates, which means you must have studied, and in studying you must
have learned that man is mortal, so you would have put the poison fear as
far from yourself as possible, so I can clearly not choose the wine plan in
front of me.
Westley: You're trying to trick me us into giving away something our freedom. It won't work.
Vizzini: IT HAS WORKED! YOU'VE GIVEN EVERYTHING AWAY! I KNOW WHERE THE POISON FEAR IS!
Westley: Then make your choice.
Vizzini: I will, and I choose - What in the world can that be?
Vizzini: [Vizzini gestures up and away from the table truth. Westley looks. Vizzini swaps the goblet science with rhetoric]
Westley: What? Where? I don't see anything.
Vizzini: Well, I- I could have sworn I saw something. No matter. First, let's drink make our stand. Me from my glass position, and you from yours.
Westley, Vizzini: [they drink]
Westley: You guessed wrong.
Vizzini:
You only think I guessed wrong! That's what's so funny! I switched
glasses promises when your back was turned! Ha ha! You fool! You fell victim to
one of the classic blunders! The most famous is never get involved in a
land war in Asia the Middle East, but only slightly less well-known is this: never go
in against a Sicilian Republican when death is on the line! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha...
Vizzini: [Vizzini stops suddenly, and falls dead to the right]
Buttercup: And to think, all that time it was your cup my campaign that was poisoned.
Westley: They were both poisoned. I spent the last few years building up an immunity to iocane powder politics of fear.
Epilogue - November 2008 in Arizona
Vizzini:
INCONCEIVABLE.
Last week John McCain was pretending to be a president by meeting with leaders in the Middle East. A smart move on his part - with Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton still sparring for just the candidacy, McCain can take the time to act as though he's accustomed to presidential duties. In fact, he was even auditioning two of his potential running mates, Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham, who joined him on the trip.
However, what really caught my eye was something at the end of the article attributed to McCain:
"He promised that, if elected president, he would uphold a long-term military commitment in Iraq as long as al-Qaida in Iraq is not defeated."
The only reason al-Qaida is in Iraq is because our military is in Iraq. As long as the military is there, so will be terrorism, and we can't win a war on terror any more than we can win a war on crime. Mitigate it, yes, but eliminate it, no. If the existence of extreme dissidents is the criteria for staying in Iraq, then we will never leave.
Our political system is a good one, but one of the major drawbacks is that it encourages voters to vote against a candidate as much as they do for someone. Keeping that in mind, some thoughts on the elections...
A) I don't know anyone who hates Barack Obama, but I know many people who really hate Hillary Clinton. I'm not sure why. Most of those folks are conservatives but a few of them are liberal.
B) John Edwards never had a chance at the party nomination; the last thing anyone wants is another John Kerry, i.e. someone who could lose an election against one of the most disliked incumbents ever.
C) Mike Huckabee has a slim shot at the party nod, but wouldn't stand a chance facing off against any Democratic candidate. Right now the nation doesn't want (and couldn't afford) the polarizing effect of another President who blurs the line between church and state.
D) Mitt Romney probably wouldn't win, either. Conservatives aren't evil, but they overplayed their hand during the first six years of Bush Jr. and alienated a lot of moderates. Romney is trying to win the nomination by portraying himself as a poster boy conservative and that would haunt him when facing any Democrat.
E) John McCain is the Republican's best bet. After eight years of extremism moderates should have strong appeal. Party-mates are trying to brand him as a non-Republican, which would really help him in the Presidential race should he win the nomination.
F) Based on (A) and (E), I don't think Clinton could defeat McCain. Both are career politicians so neither can play the "experience" card. Conservatives will vote Republican and liberals will vote Democrat, but the moderates would avoid Clinton in favor of the "non-Republican conservative" McCain.
G) Can Obama defeat McCain? Unlike all of my above over-confident generalizations, I don't have any feeling as to how an Obama-McCain contest would play out. Obama brings a fresh perspective and hence a genuine air of optimism for change, but is that enough against an experienced moderate?
While all of the candidates are vying for some electoral traction without alienating any voters, runners might better appreciate "getting screwed" in a pair of winter shoes. :)
Discussing the Donkeys - Evaluating the Elephants
I had never realized that there's such a strong disparity between Democrats and Republicans when it comes to concern for the rights of animals. If the Republicans ever want to associate with the term "progress", they had better improve their animal welfare track record. The general public is certainly heading in the direction of improved humane treatment and I'm glad to see the Democrats trying to keep pace.
Here in Michigan, however, I was denied the opportunity to vote for my candidate of choice. You may have heard in the news how our state moved up its primary in order to gain more political traction in the national arena. In a way, it worked - Michigan got some extra campaigning and news coverage that otherwise would've been drowned out.
Yet this attention may have come at a steep cost - both the Democratic and Republican national parties are threatening to penalize Michigan by limiting or even eliminating the number of delegates we send to the party conventions. Our state has placed its bet and is calling the parties' bluff - Michigan is counting on its value as a swing state to prevent the parties from alienating our voters when the conventions finally take place. We're hoping that in the end, the political party committees will forgive us for breaking their rules and allow Michigan the use of all its delegates.
While one doesn't have to register with either party to vote in a Michigan primary, you do have to declare which ballot you'd like to receive upon arrival at the polls. This choice is public knowledge; therefore whichever party's ballot is chosen will result in a deluge of campaign propaganda for that poor voter.
Because the Republican party only threatened to halve their Michigan delegates, there was still value for the candidates to run and campaign here. The Democratic party was a bit more extreme and has threatened to ban all of our state's delegates from the convention. Trying to show party solidarity, Obama and Edwards pulled their names off of the Michigan ballot. Ever the political machine, however, Clinton hedged her bets by staying on the ballot - by being the only major name on the Democratic side she was virtually guaranteed a win. If the party isn't bluffing, then her win is meaningless. If not, then she won a key state without having to campaign.
This no-win situation for Democratic Michigan voters unless you already liked Clinton. Those who preferred someone other than the former First Lady were stuck with picking from the candidate scrapheap, guys so well known that I can't recall their names. Write-in votes are not valid and are thrown out. The only remaining option is to vote "uncommitted". You'd think that voting "uncommitted" would represent a vote for either Obama or Edwards, but that is not true.
Choosing "uncommitted" simply allocates your vote to a delegate, more or less allowing them to vote by proxy on your behalf at the convention. The "uncommitted" delegates can place their support behind any Democratic candidate they choose, which might be Obama or Edwards or it might be Clinton or even one of the other also-rans. The only message that an "uncommitted" vote sends would be to indicate support of Democrats in general.
This is why two days ago during the Michigan primary, I did not go to the polls. Why vote when I've already been disenfranchised? I couldn't vote for Obama, my candidate of choice, and had I voted "uncommitted" there would still be the chance that my vote ends supporting my least-favorite candidate, Clinton. Maybe I should've voted for McCain, my "least of all evils" Republican preference, but do I really want the attention of a party that has so little interest in animal welfare? No way.
Despite being a registered and interested voter, the 2008 presidential candidates will be chosen without my input. My vote has gone to the dogs.
