Archive for April, 2009
Peter Schiff sums up the problem with mainline Republicans
April 30th, 2009 | Author: Shaun Booth
Schiff hits the nail right on the head in this segment of his weekly radio show. Basically when the Republicans are out of power they stand for all of the right small government principals. But they only do it as a way to maneuver back into power in Washington. Once they are in power they don’t want to attack big government, because they would essentially be relinquishing the power that they have attained.
The problem is that even their posturing when they are out of power is useless in the public debate because Democrats can always shut down every debate by pointing to the fact that Republicans were singing a different tune for the last eight years Bush was in power.
This evidence points to the GOP as the country has known it for the last eight years is dead in the water, and I will be the first to say it, that is far from a bad thing.
Noam Chomsky on Ron Paul Libertarians: Common ground can be explored
April 30th, 2009 | Author: Shaun Booth
The most important of these common views is nonintervention foreign policy . If the Left that is represented by Chomsky and the Ron Paul Libertarians could set aside their broad ideological platforms in which their views on foreign policy reside, it would help to form a much larger and united peace movement in this country.
Until there is a mutual respect for the other side's broad ideological platform, which would allow the two to work side by side on issues where they agree, it will be difficult to gather a large enough coalition of anti-war citizens to have an impact in Washington.
Aside from being the most important issue the two camps agree upon, it is also perhaps the most important issue that faces our nation. If Washington would decide to bring home troops, not only from Iraq and Afghanistan but from around the world, it would go a long way in easing the financial crisis at home by trimming 100's of billions of dollars from the budget. Bringing troops home would also instantly improve our standing in the world.
Ron Paul on Pakistan in 2007
April 30th, 2009 | Author: Shaun Booth
This video serves as a great companion piece to my post yesterday on the Political Lore news site, which can be read here.
Back when this segment originally aired Musharraf was the current US puppet, while today President Asif Ali Zardari has taken his place and he is now the one who is at the beck and call of Washington.
Ron Paul argues that the financial aid, not just the military presence at their border, is detrimental to both the US and Pakistan. In my post yesterday I lay out the clear the evidence for the US pressuring Pakistan into a military conflict with the Taliban that they would have not initiated on their own. As a reward for acting against their own self interest, Pakistan is being given a substantial monetary reward.
Obama Mocks Teabaggers
April 29th, 2009 | Author: Shaun Booth
I find it interesting that Obama decided not to rise above the rhetoric that was used on MSNBC, but rather join the starkly partisan chorus of those dismissing the concerns of the protesters.
He says he is willing to have a serious discussion about cutting spending, but unfortunately a lot of the damage is already done. He carefully avoids the topic of bailouts and stimulus money, which served as the true motivation for the protesters.
The good news for the protesters is the fact that Obama feels the need to openly mock them. This shows that not only are they on his radar, but he is worried enough about them that he feels the need to discredit them with humor.
Yet more evidence that the Left/Right paradigm is a farce
April 29th, 2009 | Author: Shaun Booth
How much more obvious does it get than this latest maneuver by Arlen Spector. He stood behind a podium and shamelessly admitted that his party title is dictated by poll numbers, not a rock solid worldview. Despite the fact that evidence shows that both parties are essentially own and run by corporate America, there are two management teams vying for control in Washington. And this move by Spector is a terrible sign for the Republican management team.
This along with the loss of the special election in NY-20 has absolutely destroyed any hope of the Republicans staging a comeback anytime soon.
Regular Flu: 13,000 Swine Flu: 0
April 28th, 2009 | Author: Shaun Booth
You can read the entire article from cnn.com here.
There had been no confirmed deaths in the United States related to swine flu as of Tuesday afternoon. But another virus had killed thousands of people since January and is expected to keep killing hundreds of people every week for the rest of the year. That one…the regular flu.
That puts all of the recent hysteria into perspective. I continue to attempt to understand the panic and deadly serious reaction that the Federal government is having to this virus. The one fact that seems to justify their concern is that this is a virus that is attacking healthy young adults between the ages of 20-50, where as the “regular flu” tends to pick off the elderly and infants.
Since January, more than 13,000 people have died of complications from seasonal flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s weekly report on the causes of death in the nation.
But all of these people outside of the deeply impoverished Mexico City are recovering from the Swine flu just like millions recover from the regular flu every year. Let’s hope this continues to be the case.
- Republicans Poised For Big Gains
- It’s not your father’s NASA anymore
- Deflation Cometh
- The Patsy Generation: How The Government Sticks It To The Young
- Arizona Immigration Law [Cartoon]
- Meet Jan Brewer, a bright new face in the GOP crowd
- Some Answers For Progressive Conservatives
- Five Reasons Home Prices May Slump For Years
- Economy Turning A New Corner [Cartoon]
- Iran To Take Russia’s Leftover Nukes [Cartoon]
