Much as I despised the man's domestic policy, it _was_ Bush who led us to the "unhot" Iraq war we have right now, not Obama. And just like I said during the primaries, Obama has no intention of bringing home the troops before their job is done; he can't and he knows it. That's why we now have this plan to "re-mission" troops, leaving them in place but redifining them as "training and support" personnel (will calling troops "military advisors" fool more people this time than it did last time? ;) ). All the posturing in the election that was designed to encourage this meme of "Democrats means out of Iraq, Republicans means ETERNAL WAR!" was bullshit.
Overall, I stand by my assessments of the man from before the election: he won't "take guns away", but he'll violate the Second Amendment as much as he thinks he can get away with. He won't shit on our rights as blatantly and obviously as Dubya did, but he'll continue the liberal trend of eroding our _actual_ civil rights in favor of some imagined "right to be taken care of by the government". And he won't transparently shred the Constitution for "national security" (again, like Dubya did), but he'll continue to consolidate power in the hands of the federal government, ignore the Constitution in ways that his supporters will think are totally cool, and gradually contribute to the long-term erosion of checks and balances in our government that will ultimately destroy our free country.
Obama himself won't ruin America. But he's part of the long-term problem that will ruin America years down the line, when nobody will care anymore about this recession, or Iraq, or what any politicians thought about abortion.
The ultimate test of Obama's lasting influence on our history will be what he does to the Supreme Court. We're at a historic tipping point in American history at the moment, where we can either start to undo the unconstitutional federalization that's racked up during the last century, or run with it and destroy the foundation of our freedom. Obama's appointees to the currently-divided Court will essentially decide the fate of the Constitution. Based on who he is, and his attitude about the role of and limits to government power, it's a test I expect Obama to fail.
...
Meh. I guess that's enough doom-and-gloominess for one morning. ;)
I feel for you, old buddy. I know that you have the unfortunate position of actually having an opinion of your own that doesn't fit neatly into one of the two strictly defined political "wings". Ergo, I imagine that you must constantly find yourself into the no-man's land between Bighippiefreeloveliberalpagantree-huggin'commiepinkoLGBTpolyBDSMLefties, and ConservativeChristianbigbusinessgun-totin'familyvaluescreationistprotectionofmarriageantidrugwarmongers. An unenviable position, I'm sure. :(
The things that you say about Obama with regard to the Constitution really do disturb me, because sometimes I fear that you may be right.
For example, as a librarian, I'm always reading about issues of censorship and free speech. Naturally, I'm all FOR free speech, and will defend to the death anyone else's right to speak their mind. But I'm a little reluctant to defend the words of the KKK. Rush Limbaugh can blather all he wants, Bill O'Reilly can be an ass, but sometimes I feel like I'd be okay with never hearing some fuckhead scream "White Power" under a raised fist ever again. So which of my principles do I stand behind?
It's a similar situation when I'm torn between my defense of the Constitution of the United States and my Bighippiefreeloveliberalpagantree-huggin'commiepinkoLGBTpolyBDSMLeftiness. I believe in the Constitution as a noble document cataloging the Rights of Men. (and Womens) But a huge part of me would Love Love Love Love to live in some kind of Hippie Paradise where the poor were taken care of, and the rich were taxed into oblivion, and corporations have oversight committees way the hell up their butts and our marriages are plural and intersexed and we all sing together Goo Goo Gajoob.
Realistically, however, I know that this kind of perfect Hippie World would probably wind up being as much of a totalitarian nation as George W. Bush's UberPatriotic wiretapped Police State with torture and pre-emptive war. There are only a scant few Liberal issues that I disagree with, but rather than compromise over those issues, I'd feel a lot safer under a regime that respects the US Constitution over my Liberal pet freedoms. :(
But if I believed for one second that a Liberal Paradise would actually work, I'd actually be up on a hill somewhere defending it. (Which would be really tough, since I'd have to learn how to defend my ideals with a longbow and a sword. We wouldn't have rifles, after all) :)
Much as I despised the man's domestic policy, it _was_ Bush who led us to the "unhot" Iraq war we have right now, not Obama. And just like I said during the primaries, Obama has no intention of bringing home the troops before their job is done; he can't and he knows it. That's why we now have this plan to "re-mission" troops, leaving them in place but redifining them as "training and support" personnel (will calling troops "military advisors" fool more people this time than it did last time? ;) ). All the posturing in the election that was designed to encourage this meme of "Democrats means out of Iraq, Republicans means ETERNAL WAR!" was bullshit.
Overall, I stand by my assessments of the man from before the election: he won't "take guns away", but he'll violate the Second Amendment as much as he thinks he can get away with. He won't shit on our rights as blatantly and obviously as Dubya did, but he'll continue the liberal trend of eroding our _actual_ civil rights in favor of some imagined "right to be taken care of by the government". And he won't transparently shred the Constitution for "national security" (again, like Dubya did), but he'll continue to consolidate power in the hands of the federal government, ignore the Constitution in ways that his supporters will think are totally cool, and gradually contribute to the long-term erosion of checks and balances in our government that will ultimately destroy our free country.
Obama himself won't ruin America. But he's part of the long-term problem that will ruin America years down the line, when nobody will care anymore about this recession, or Iraq, or what any politicians thought about abortion.
The ultimate test of Obama's lasting influence on our history will be what he does to the Supreme Court. We're at a historic tipping point in American history at the moment, where we can either start to undo the unconstitutional federalization that's racked up during the last century, or run with it and destroy the foundation of our freedom. Obama's appointees to the currently-divided Court will essentially decide the fate of the Constitution. Based on who he is, and his attitude about the role of and limits to government power, it's a test I expect Obama to fail.
...
Meh. I guess that's enough doom-and-gloominess for one morning. ;)
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I feel for you, old buddy. I know that you have the unfortunate position of actually having an opinion of your own that doesn't fit neatly into one of the two strictly defined political "wings". Ergo, I imagine that you must constantly find yourself into the no-man's land between Bighippiefreeloveliberalpagantree-huggin'commiepinkoLGBTpolyBDSMLefties, and ConservativeChristianbigbusinessgun-totin'familyvaluescreationistprotectionofmarriageantidrugwarmongers. An unenviable position, I'm sure. :(
The things that you say about Obama with regard to the Constitution really do disturb me, because sometimes I fear that you may be right.
For example, as a librarian, I'm always reading about issues of censorship and free speech. Naturally, I'm all FOR free speech, and will defend to the death anyone else's right to speak their mind. But I'm a little reluctant to defend the words of the KKK. Rush Limbaugh can blather all he wants, Bill O'Reilly can be an ass, but sometimes I feel like I'd be okay with never hearing some fuckhead scream "White Power" under a raised fist ever again. So which of my principles do I stand behind?
It's a similar situation when I'm torn between my defense of the Constitution of the United States and my Bighippiefreeloveliberalpagantree-huggin'commiepinkoLGBTpolyBDSMLeftiness. I believe in the Constitution as a noble document cataloging the Rights of Men. (and Womens) But a huge part of me would Love Love Love Love to live in some kind of Hippie Paradise where the poor were taken care of, and the rich were taxed into oblivion, and corporations have oversight committees way the hell up their butts and our marriages are plural and intersexed and we all sing together Goo Goo Gajoob.
Realistically, however, I know that this kind of perfect Hippie World would probably wind up being as much of a totalitarian nation as George W. Bush's UberPatriotic wiretapped Police State with torture and pre-emptive war. There are only a scant few Liberal issues that I disagree with, but rather than compromise over those issues, I'd feel a lot safer under a regime that respects the US Constitution over my Liberal pet freedoms. :(
But if I believed for one second that a Liberal Paradise would actually work, I'd actually be up on a hill somewhere defending it. (Which would be really tough, since I'd have to learn how to defend my ideals with a longbow and a sword. We wouldn't have rifles, after all) :)
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