Letters to the Editor
bystander
Published Letters: 1348
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It takes imagination
[Read the article: Oligarchical decay]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Punishment for crimes is for the masses only, not for members in good standing of our political and corporate establishment.
As I've floated through various threads in response to stories in local newspapers, lurking and listening, I am so struck, just dumbfounded, by the number of folks who support the punishment of others. And, there seems to be no limit to the degree of punishment, the range of others to be punished, and no honest acknowledgment of whether a particular punishment fits a particular crime. When I think about the draconian measures our government has enacted on the citizenry via the judicial system, and the skill at which the government itself slips past the same net, I am forced to consider that this is the way the majority of people want it. After all, We the people voted this way. How can this be? Why would the average voter accept this state of affairs? And, more importantly, actively support this state of affairs?
I see this most glaringly when it comes to immigration. For the folks crossing from Mexico into the US without visas, the cry for punishment is the most visible, the most vocal, and the most extreme without any evidence of cultural restraint, and without fear of social sanction. The shriek is, But, it's illegal. And, yet, the illegalities of our government are either willfully ignored, or fully excused, if not defended as warranted. Warranted by what - certainly, not the constitution - is either unanswered, or there is some dismissive hand waving that sounds very close to having the tools to defend that I get from my Senators when I rail against the situation with FISA.
I can only conclude that the average voter, somehow, identifies very strongly with this elite group for whom justice does not apply. They imagine themselves to be aligned with this establishment group. Aligned politically, socially, economically, and intellectually. [I set aside spirituality because for the most part the establishment has gone to great lengths to convince the public it aligns that way with them.] The average voter, then, has one very powerful imagination.
I believe this argument for centrism, for bipartisan conciliation will ultimately prevail. Witness the strong support for Obama (who preaches unity, reaching past the obstructionists, and posits Republicans in his cabinet) everywhere from Andrew Sullivan to The Anonymous Liberal. Witness the harangue Paul Krugman gets with his challenges to Obama's health care policy provisions as his once loyal (?) following accuse him of shilling for Clinton because he does so. God help the bloggers who step in to echo Krugman's concerns from their own long-standing readers.
No current candidate has my unconditional support. It is very likely I will pull the lever/punch the card/touch the screen for whatever Democrat is running for President. But when I look at where the Political Compass situates all of the candidates, as compared to my own position on that 4-square grid, I am disappointed beyond measure.
For the record, Shooter. Unless you want to see a lawyer at your trial for counterfeiting, you earn an income. Only the Fed "prints" money. I'm quite willing to say that Edwards, Obama, and Clinton earned their respective incomes. And, does the name Bilal Hussein, have any meaning for you?
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unzipyourmind
[Read the article: Oligarchical decay]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Digby's piece (to which Glenn linked/quoted) would fit smack dab into the middle of your concern. If folks haven't read it, they should. It's a phenomenal piece, and there may come a time when writing like that becomes a distant memory for the youngest among you.
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sorting the independents
[Read the article: Michael Bloomberg: Trans-partisan savior]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]For those trying to ascertain the effect of Bloomberg on the independents, or where independents as a group (if the can be said to actually be a group) trend, you might want to take a look at one of Paul Rosenberg's diaries at Open Left.
http://openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=2978
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Gah!
[Read the article: Michael Bloomberg: Trans-partisan savior]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Just when I think Obama is beginning to interpret where Independents are correctly:
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/12/30/free-to-choose-at-a-price/
He does something like this:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/12/31/16617/845/728/428456
Someone needs to tell Obama that he will not get every vote there is to be had. And, there are some votes he really doesn't want, if he thinks about it. He cannot be all things to all people.
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Best Wishes to Glenn and his UT Crew
[Read the article: Michael Bloomberg: Trans-partisan savior]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Only '08 to go. One more year of the BushCo cabal. Best wishes to all in the journey to '09.
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Randomness in the World
[Read the article: Michael Bloomberg: Trans-partisan savior]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I rarely go to the front page of the WaPo. Instead I have four links that take me to specific writers. No eyeballs of mine will touch Broder - if I can help it. One of the direct links I have is to Shankar Vedantam's Department of Human Behavior. His column Monday, Vote Your Conscience If You Can, was an interesting read. Not terribly reassuring if you're "for" a particular candidate, however.
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RMP
[Read the article: Michael Bloomberg: Trans-partisan savior]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]He could either become one of our greatest or worst presidents...
I am unwilling to speculate that Obama would ever be our worst President. AFAIC, Bush has that award sewn up for what's left of my life. My only regret is that I can't cafeteria-Catholic the three candidates for what I perceive as their individual strengths. I fervently wish Obama had come in as a VP first. That opportunity may never have been there, given Clinton and Edwards, or Obama's own psychological architecture. But, it doesn't keep me from wishing...