-10
The US Electoral System has to be the most absurd electoral system in the world, to start with you have to be a multi-millionaire to stand for the presidency and the same applies to be elected to the Senate; there is no affective government opposition party, furthermore; candidates from the same party must compete against each other publicly in order to be nominated as the preferred Presidential candidate, as is the case of Obama and Hilary Clinton putting each other down while the opposition look on in delight.
I hear talk of, "The land of the free and the home of the brave," to me that is just delusional hype for the ordinary American people who allow the rich to send their children to war when the rich know there is absolutely no chance of their children putting their lives on the line. The Bush Presidency has sent the credibility of the United States plummeting and it will take more than a few years to regain some of the prestige the country once had and most certainly it will never happen if the Bush clone McCain becomes President.
anton wrote:-10
The US Electoral System has to be the most absurd electoral system in the world, to start with you have to be a multi-millionaire to stand for the presidency and the same applies to be elected to the Senate; there is no affective government opposition party, furthermore; candidates from the same party must compete against each other publicly in order to be nominated as the preferred Presidential candidate, as is the case of Obama and Hilary Clinton putting each other down while the opposition look on in delight.
I hear talk of, "The land of the free and the home of the brave," to me that is just delusional hype for the ordinary American people who allow the rich to send their children to war when the rich know there is absolutely no chance of their children putting their lives on the line. The Bush Presidency has sent the credibility of the United States plummeting and it will take more than a few years to regain some of the prestige the country once had and most certainly it will never happen if the Bush clone McCain becomes President.
Thanks for sharing. We care what you feel about our system.
No, really.
mysteryman wrote:5
And I will give the dem candidate a 5 also.
We wont know till the votes are counted, so both candidates have a 50-50 chance.
yep, and it largely hinges on who the VP running mate will be. For the first time ever, I'm equally split between the two nominees. Having Hillary on the ticket will swing me towards McCain. Having Huckabee on the ticket will swing me towards Obama. Having both of them on the ticket will cause me to vote Libertarian, regardless whose name is on the ballot.
I didn't know that McCain was considering Hillary for a running mate (and Obama choosing Huckabee... now that's just silly).
anton wrote:-10
The US Electoral System has to be the most absurd electoral system in the world, to start with you have to be a multi-millionaire to stand for the presidency and the same applies to be elected to the Senate; there is no affective government opposition party, furthermore; candidates from the same party must compete against each other publicly in order to be nominated as the preferred Presidential candidate, as is the case of Obama and Hilary Clinton putting each other down while the opposition look on in delight.
I hear talk of, "The land of the free and the home of the brave," to me that is just delusional hype for the ordinary American people who allow the rich to send their children to war when the rich know there is absolutely no chance of their children putting their lives on the line. The Bush Presidency has sent the credibility of the United States plummeting and it will take more than a few years to regain some of the prestige the country once had and most certainly it will never happen if the Bush clone McCain becomes President.
If we want your opinion on foreign policy, we'll give it to you. Oh, that's right; that's
exactly what we did. So much for your superior system, Howard.
ehBeth wrote:Today, 5.5.
Who knows what tomorrow will bring.
after re-reading nimh's polls thread, I might have to move that up a bit. which annoys me greatly
McCain recently commented that Bush is a good man, but that he (McCain) had better judgement. It occurred to me that McCain has set a very low bar for himself.
I think that McCain will run away with the election. It may not be a huge margin but the security-safe-papa-protect-us voters will be out in huge numbers. The war is being "calmed," the economy is top interest and who understands it so this is exciting our molecules but resolving and residing nowhere. We will vote for stasis.
I could be wrong....but I was the one in late 2002 marching against the war, predicting disaster, pronouncing our worst foreign policy debacle ever.
And I was wrong...right?
Lots of time left and several of the factors evidently in play in the public debate make it difficult for me to predict with confidence. However overall I think it likely that Obama will win. My estimate is 60 - 40 for Obama.
I wish I had your optimism. I am inspired by him so far. He will have to flesh out in substance the form that we have seen. One of our parties must field a candidatee who can see beyond the next few years although our system does not encourage far-sightedness.
He is certainly inspiring, however, I wish there was more in his record to give me confidence in his potential to carry out the things he says.
Besides, I'm a Republican and will very likely vote for McCain, who I know well and trust.
Interesting that, though our views differ, we both have doubts about the likely success of our candidates.
"The Republican blitz unleashed against Democratic frontrunner Barack Obama last week showed just how bitter, dirty and ugly the 2008 presidential campaign is likely to be.
After Obama said he favored direct negotiations with Iran, Venezuela, and Cuba, and dismissed any potential danger from Iran as `tiny,’ Republican candidate John McCain accused him of being `reckless’ and `inexperienced.’
`The threat the government of Iran poses is anything but tiny,’ thundered McCain - the very same supposedly experienced McCain who mistakenly claimed Iran was supporting Sunni fighters in Iraq.
Neoconservatives blasted Obama as unpatriotic for not wearing an American flag on his lapel. The Israel lobby accused him of being insufficiently pro-Israel. Evangelical Christian groups flooded the internet with claims Obama was a closet Muslim.
Republicans just can’t seem to stop invoking both facts and myths of World War II to promote their foreign policy. If World War II must be dredged up, a more appropriate reference would be Nazi leader Hermann Goering’s famous formula for fascism:
“All you have to do is to tell them (the people) they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.”
That is what happened to Obama last week. In spite of the fact that most Americans want out of Iraq and are against attacking Iran, the Republican attack media is still able to tar anyone who opposes war-mongering as traitorous and cowardly.
McCain is an able, savvy domestic politician, but his absurd claims about Iran bring into question his understanding of foreign policy.
Republicans are again playing to the least educated Americans by frightening them with fairy tales and outright lies. Iranian mad mullahs determined to shower A-bombs on Memphis and Des Moines have replaced Saddam and his Drones of Death.
Should the US talk to enemies? Of course. Diplomacy is one of three primary tools of statecraft long with military and economic power. Only arrant fools do not make use of it. Just because the Bush administration largely relied on military power in foreign policy does not mean this Soviet-style approach need continue.
McCain should be reminded that hysteria is not a viable foreign policy, even if it is election silly season. He is wrong to keep promoting the image of America as a spinster atop a chair, screaming in fear of a Muslim mouse called Iran. This is unworthy of the great United States.
If anyone is being reckless and inexperienced in foreign affairs, so far, it seems to be John McCain. His fear-mongering over Iran and publicly singing `bomb, bomb, bomb Iran,’ and his plans to directly confront Russia and China at the same time while the US is bogged down in Iraq and Afghanistan, should make Americans pause for a lot of thought. "
Copyright Eric S. Margolis 2008.
I can't wait for the debates between McCain and Obama. I think that McCain will be slaughtered. This mandates that he pick a very good running mate who can somewhat make up for his failings.
What do you all think of this guy as a McCain VP?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cohen
I'm thinking more Romney.
Ooh, I hope so! (Romney.)
Polls have shown that he drags McCain down further than anyone else (if I remember right, will look it up on request). That means it's very unlikely he'll get the nod -- but one can hope.
To most voters (in the US) appearance is reality which leaves McCain with 3 weaknesses;
The economy
Iraq
Change.
It seems to me pretty clear that McCain loses on all three in the voters agenda; I guess he's hit the trifecta.
