Letters to the Editor
Ron Smith
Published Letters: 209 Editor's Choice: 11
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Kudos to Thebigkate - Krugman perplexes me as well
[Read the article: Krugman asks "what's gone wrong" with Obama campaign]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Paul Krugman, whose opinions I generally like, says, "But addressing the real concerns of working Americans isn't the campaign's (Obama) central theme.
Barack Obama's overall theme is 'Hope built on the bedrock of competence and human compassion." Obama will speak to Americans as adults. He wants to engage all who are ready to help solve problems. What are these problems?
Robert Reich, Secretary of Labor 1993-1997, formally endorsed Obama on April 19th. Reich, a UC Berkeley Professor, sees seven major problem areas where Barack Obama bests Hillary Clinton. The 7 are:
1. Reforming Social Security
2. Reforming health care
3. Housing crisis
4. Failures of our financial markets
5. Improving our public schools and confronting poverty and inequality
6. A more enlightened foreign policy
7. A plan for controlling global warming
Barack Obama tells us that lobbyists too often have a different agenda than solving the major problems that face Americans. The Main Stream Media are no longer the guardians of our representative democracy that they once were. Corporate America has undue influence in the halls of Congress.
Obama tells us that candidates who have many lobbyists in their campaign structure (McCain and Clinton), candidates who join in the trivializing of politics by the MSM (Hillary Clinton) and candidates who take large speaking fees from Corporate America (the Clintons and McCain) are not free to solve the problems of America.
Krugman also indicates that he thinks Hillary plays the "wonk" on issues. Yes she does. But who wants a President who can't see the forest for the trees?
As a former Pennsylvanian I wish them well. But Barack Obama is the person to create a better future for our Land. And the younger Pennsylvanians voted for Obama by a significant majority. Hope is on the Way !
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Paid Shills Post Here - Save Your Comments for Others
[Read the article: Krugman asks "what's gone wrong" with Obama campaign]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Maureen and katex are two.
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Wrong on Iraq. Wrong on the Gas Tax. Wrong on Bosnia Snipers.
[Read the article: Breaking the Democratic deadlock]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Yes, Hillary Clinton is too self-absorbed to be our President.
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We Need a Truthful President
[Read the article: Hillary Clinton's big, brass ... fortitude]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]In today's NY Times the lead editorial is titled "Missing Records". For Senator McCain there are questions of incomplete health records and financial records. For the Clintons, the editor states, "The public is still owed a more complete accounting of the sources and amounts of Mr. Clinton's speaking fees and business income. Still missing, too, is a complete list of the major donors who have been supporting the Clinton presidential library and foundation." The Clintons and McCain are compared to Senator Obama, who has been the most forthcoming with his financial records.
Why are we interested? Just before Bill Clinton left office he pardoned Mark Rich, a man who never should have gotten a pardon. We came to find out that Rich was a big contributor to the Clinton Campaign. The Republicans mentioned this perverse pardon over and over in their press releases. The pardon showed that justice takes a backseat to lobbyist influence with one Clinton.
The Bosnia story told by Hillary Clinton on three separate occasions in 2008 is an example of lying to the public. Why did she speak of non-existent sniper fire? She wanted us to believe that she has fortitude.
The Iraq vote on War Authorization was another instance of her great concern for her fortitude image. She could have read that 2002 National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) as other senators did. But she didn't have to read it because she knew how she was going to vote.
In 2002 Barack Obama campaigned for the state senate in Illinois. He courageously spoke out against the looming war. His voice was joined by a brave few who foresaw death, destruction and a long occupation. Our own Senator Jim Webb of Virginia, a civilian in 2002, wrote an OP-ED for the NY Times titled, "Heading for Trouble, Do we really want to occupy Iraq for the next 30 years? "
Why did Barack Obama, living in Illinois, know what the posturing Senator Clinton did not?
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Katex Blows Some Smoke Our Way
[Read the article: Hillary Clinton's big, brass ... fortitude]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]You are off topic again. Your comment on Barack Obama is without merit. His record in the Illinois Senate is a public record as it is for all state senators. But you have changed the subject.
I was making a point about Marc Rich (sp. corrected). Marc Rich, according to Time, Inc., was indicted in 1983 for evading more than $48 million in taxes, and charged with 51 counts of tax fraud, as well as running illegal oil deals with Iran during the 1979-1980 hostage crisis. When Bill Clinton pardoned Rich, he had fled the U. S. during his prosecution and was residing in Switzerland. Both Republicans and Democrats were outraged by Bill Clinton's unjust behavior.
Rich's ex-wife, Denise, had given hefty donations to the Clintons and to the Democrats.
We Democrats were tainted by Bill Clinton's disregard for his country, his party, and his VP, Al Gore. So when we see Hillary lying about Bosnia sniper fire and associating Louis Farrahkan with Rev. Wright and with Barack Obama by triangulation, we are not surprised.
Bill stepped on Al Gore to pay off a criminal friend. And Hillary will step on Barack Obama to gain a nomination. She is ruthless in a narrow sense and so are the inhabitants of our prisons. But who wants any of them as President?