Letters to the Editor
doloresflower
Published Letters: 1200 Editor's Choice: 10
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the horse race in Iowa...
[Read the article: Let the voting begin]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]schencka you have a beautiful website....I accidentally clicked on it while cutting and pasting your name. You also have a valid point about how ugly this race is going to become no matter who the nominee is. I have to admit I'm totally glued to the news from Iowa (again) yet I have flashbacks to when all of Kerry's swiftboat FRIENDS...that's right the men who were actually in the boat with him when he was injured as opposed to those who were not--campaigned WITH him and won over the hearts and minds of IOWA voters. It must feel good to be an Iowa voter. Why didn't Kerry bring on his swiftboat friends with him in front of the NATIONAL media when it really counted? Are Democats dedicated to fighting their fiercest fights amongst themselves and their half hearted ones against those bad-cat Republicans?
I have to say that I hope whoever wins is going to be a better candidate for breaking through this dead heat but I also hope this time that some of the money is spent when and where the democrats need it to win in the national election. There's no reason that Kerry should have lost in 2004...were there rigged polling stations in Ohio or Florida as Greg Palast and others have suggested? The democratic party ought to get organized now making sure the election process is fair and just in every state, and in just getting out the vote to the people. Are Democrats still dedicated to grassroots campaigning? That was Senator Wellstone's fallback and for him it worked. The more people who contribute to the democratic process by voting, the better it is for everyone (except the camarillas of course). I wish liberals could stop defensively thinking of themselves as a persecuted minority. In fact, in issues of healthcare, the war, the environment, etc, polls show a strong majority of Americans regardless of party affiliation are more closely aligned with the progressives' positions than those of Limbaugh et al. (Limbaugh et al are just LOUDER...and often more moneyed, unfortunately.)
After reading his book Dreams from my father (and Clinton's Living History) I sincerely love Obama, but I respect Clinton's work ethic and indefatigable spirit, and I respect Edwards' decision to put poverty at the front of his campaign. Dems say they are looking for a fighter but we all have to fight this time not just for a personality or an image, but for the ending of the criminal oligarchy. And the beginning of a happier and more progressive era...cheers to that era! May it come.
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disappointed
[Read the article: Let the voting begin]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I guess it's kind of like romantic love...it's easy to get pulled out of your reverie by something unexpected. I have to say that I'm deeply disappointed that both Clinton and Obama are currently on record voting for the Republican 700 mile fence between the U.S. and Mexico. What an expensive boondoggle! And an insult to our southern neighbors who are already doing some of the harshest labor there is in this country. I don't think you have to be Hispanic to find this a betrayal of a progressive agenda. It's hard to find the candidate who takes the difficult stand every time. Senator Wellstone where are you?
I'm still supporting Obama, but I still take it as a slap in the face. I hope some Hillary supporters will take it up with her as well. I still find Bill Clinton's support of NAFTA laws that allowed the maquiladoras to be set up along the Mexican border to be troubling. Most of the people working in those factories are very young women and they seem to work in appalling conditions with no apparent oversight. Most Americans don't even know the maquiladoras are there.
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so what do you suggest?
[Read the article: Let the voting begin]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Shutting the country down and declaring bankruptcy?
$482,591,095,109 wars (and counting) are expensive and so are 1.2 billion fence projects and trade agreements that by some estimates have increased extreme poverty in mexico by as much as 20%, thereby increasing the rate of illegal immigration.
The United States is in more financial crisis now than before the Bush administration, but that means that now more than ever we should set a national budget based on principle and honor. No more tax and spend conservative national guard serving hawks squandering our precious resources on unwanted murder of civilians. I assume, anonymous, that where you live it is also less costly to help and to educate the people including the poor of your own nation than it is to pay for bullets and gun-for-hire soldiers to kill the people of other (even poorer) nations. Of course we are considering long term and not only short term costs and gains. And for good measure, a basic respect for human life and the preservation of our planet.