… by Bush’s little address this morning. As I wrote last night, he still doesn’t seem remotely as if he has a handle on the broad social, political, economic, and geostrategic issues involved in dealing with the current crisis.
We need a clear alternative view of how the country should proceed. No more pandering to big bankers! Yes to the kinds of policies I was addressing in last night’s post.
I hope Obama gets on the airwaves and starts describing a vision something like this in simple and compelling terms. Otherwise, what with all the fear that the crisis (and Paulson and McCain) have generated throughout the country, we could have an upsurge of narrow jingoism and mean-spiritedness in the coming weeks.
By the way, go to this new blog “5 reasons why I’m voting for Obama-Biden”, to see my five reasons.
6 thoughts on “Not reassured”
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Helena, I wish I had as much faith in Obama as you do. Alas, I do not. Certainly McCain would be far worse than Obama is likely to be, and the thought of Sarah Palin anywhere near Washington DC, let alone in the White House (not a remote possibility given McCain’s age and health history) is both too horrible and too ludicrous to contemplate. When they said it couldn’t get worse than Bush, they were wrong.
But Obama, while certainly preferable to the unthinkable alternative, is a politician, not a saint or a god or the Messiah, so I cannot share the rose-colored view you appear to have of his potential.
1. “we’ll need to completely re-imagine– and work hard for– what we want America to be as ‘a national community.’”
No question. And what solid signs have you seen that Obama is likely to do something like that? I haven’t seen anything that looks more real than a lot of nice-sounding inspirational rhetoric about “change” and “hope”. I don’t see anything in his voting record, for example, that leads me to expect him to bring the kinds of radical changes you speak of.
“We need a steady-headed person to lead this process. All the better if he knows something about community organizing!”
Indeed we do, and it is a certainty that McCain will never provide such a steady head, and the clueless Palin will be too busy just trying to keep her head above water. I do believe that one thing Obama definitely has to offer is an intelligent, thoughtful, steady approach, and a reassuring manner. That alone puts him miles above McCain. However, based on his record I would not expect him to do a whole lot of re-imagining and restructuring. If he did any at all, I would be very happily surprised.
2. “…most Americans know that we need to build ties of shared world leadership with other powers– and they want Washington to do this. Sen. Obama’s outlook on world affairs is much more in tune [than McCain’s] with making this happen.”
Most people’s outlook on world affairs is less out of tune with those goals. However, Obama’s outlook on world affairs is extremely troubling, from his plan for Iraq (reconfigure the occupation and call it a withdrawal), for Afghanistan (more troops committing more violence + more aircraft dropping more bombs = solving the problems in Afghanistan), Pakistan (not so different from what Bush is doing now – invade and attack inside Pakistan “if necessary” in complete disregard of Pakistan’s sovereignty – in fact, Obama is MORE aggressive than McCain in that regard), Iran (keep up the rhetoric about what a terrible threat Iran is to world peace, and declare that you will do whatever is necessary – got that? WHATEVER IS NECESSARY, and I mean WHATEVER IS NECESSARY – to force Iran to abandon its nuclear program (even though all the evidence indicates that it is a perfect legitimate non-military program), Israel (support Israel no matter what, even to promising them Jerusalem as their “eternal capital”, and screw the Palestinians, screw the Lebanese, and of course, screw Syria)…
And then there are some very troubling statements such as his remark that the trouble with Bush’s management of the Iraq invasion and occupation is that it made it more difficult for the U.S. to “project power” around the world. That kind of statement combined with the above-listed items, plus his declared plan to increase the size of the military by 100,000 or so does not inspire confidence that his outlook on world affairs is likely to bring about the changes we hope to see.
3. “we cannot afford the wars have, let alone the additional wars McCain promises to take us into.”
I am not seeing any evidence that Obama intends to end the “wars” the United States has now. His “withdrawal” plan for Iraq is not a withdrawal, but a scaling down of the occupation, and includes combat. He is planning to escalate, not end, the conflict in Afghanistan. At the same time, he has made clear his willingness to attack inside Pakistan. And his misconception-based rhetoric on Iran, while not as openly belligerent as McCain’s, it is very worrying indeed.
Ah yes, and then there are the people he has chosen as his foreign policy advisors – not the kind of people that inspire hope for serious change in the right direction.
4. “Because of Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, and the CIA’s whole secret international prison network. We need a clean break and credible accountability for those criminal mis-steps if our country is to regain a credible voice on human rights issues internationally.”
These kinds of things did not begin with George Bush – they even took place during the administration of the saintly humanitarian Jimmy Carter – and will not end with George Bush. I have seen no signs that Obama intends to take any kind of radical steps to end what has, in fact, been going on for decades.
5. “Because my first grandchild is due November 6.”
Congratulations Helena! If she arrives just one day later she will share a birthday with my daughter! And I do hope all your dreams for this world and for her will come true, whether brought under the leadership of Obama or someone else.
“I want her to have healthy air to breathe, clean water to drink, global warming brought under control, the UN’s mechanisms for nonviolent conflict resolution strengthened, nuclear weapons just a memory, and military industries converted into facilities to support a sturdy infrastructure for human flourishing.”
While there is virtually zero probability that McCain will place the right kind of focus on those issues, and even less chance that a (shudder!) President Palin would – quite the opposite I would predict – I don’t see any sign that Obama will focus on brining about the kinds of changes you seem to expect him to.
I am hoping against hope that the American voters will come to their senses and elect Obama. However, based on his record, and his own declarations and statements, my expectations are that while McCain (or, heaven forbid, Palin) would be an even greater disaster than Bush has been, Obama will offer, at the very least, a President we won’t have to be ashamed of, and at this terrible moment in history, that is enough reason to vote for him.
Shirin
let’s hope it holds for a month.
http://tinyurl.com/49w2uc
Carrots, Swede and diced potatoes in the pie? A few shakes of Worcestershire sauce, to season and then cook for an hour or two in an oven at about 200C.
Alternatively if we have time
Crock Pot Crow
Line the bottom and sides of the crock pot with slices of potato to keep the breast from touching the pot. Stack 24 breast which have been pre-soaked into the pot. Sprinkle one package of onion soup mix over the breast and add 1/2 cup of water. Cook on high setting for 2 hours and then reduce to low for 4 hours. The breast will be
very tender done this was. If you like you can also add salt and pepper to taste and a real onion and diced stalk of celery.
Sounds good, Frank! And thanks for removing the feathers.
Let’s agree on this: If Obama wins, I’ll gladly eat one of the recipes. If Obama fulfills even half of Helena’s dreams, I’ll happily consume the other one.
And I am compelled to admit that right now the polls are making it rather more likely that you will be cooking one of those lovely crow dishes for me in a little over a month. My mouth is already beginning to water with anticipation.
Sounds good, Frank! And thanks for removing the feathers.
Let’s agree on this: If Obama wins, I’ll gladly eat one of the recipes. If Obama fulfills even half of Helena’s dreams, I’ll happily consume the other one.
And I am compelled to admit that right now the polls are making it rather more likely that you will be cooking one of those lovely crow dishes for me in a little over a month. My mouth is already beginning to water with anticipation.
Shirin
Lets see what I wake up to tomorrow morning.
http://tinyurl.com/472euw
The collapsing world economy isn’t looking terribly promising.
Remittances to Mexico, their second largest source of foreign income are down 12%.
The sales declines were broad based, with Japanese automakers reporting the same kind of double-digit declines that hit U.S. brands earlier this year when the record gasoline prices sent buyers scurrying from SUVs and pickups to more fuel efficient car models. Overall Asian brands saw a 31% drop in sales, more than the 24% drop among traditional domestic brands.
This time it was the credit crisis, not just gas prices, that cut into sales. Many buyers were unable to get the credit they needed to buy a car and a growing number of dealers saw their own credit cut off, causing widespread failures.
Add to that general nervousness about the economy and the industry was poised to sell fewer than a million cars in the United States for the first time since 1993. And auto executives say they don’t think they’ve seen the bottom yet.
Overall industry sales toppled 27% to 964,873 vehicles, according to sales tracker Autodata, a level not seen since February, 1993. It was the biggest year-over-year drop in sales since January 1991, as the nation prepared for the start of the first Gulf War and experienced a gasoline price shock.
Cohen in NYT today
I know one thing: this is no time for further gambling. John McCain rolled the dice on Sarah Palin. I’m grateful to Bob Rice of Tangent Capital for pointing out that the actuarial risk, based on mortality tables, of Palin becoming president if the Republican ticket wins the election is about 1 in 6 or 7.
That’s the same odds as your birthday falling on a Wednesday, or being delayed on two consecutive flights into Newark airport. Is America ready for that?
Oh Cringe!!!