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This Is What Democracy Looks Like
Today's Note From a Madman
January 14, 2008
When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Governors
Well, their test worked. The Republicans and President Bush, by both ignoring
the plight of those poor and mostly African Americans who were displaced by
Hurricane Katrina; and by "forgetting" about those who wish to come back home to
New Orleans, a city whose population used to be near two-thirds African
American, the Bushies have succeeded in removing a Democrat and installing a
Conservative Republican Governor in the Bayou State.
Yes, Republican Bobby Jindal will be the first native-Indian (as in India)
Governor and the youngest Governor in the nation (34 years old). "What does this
mean?", one might ask. It means that the GOP and other assorted Righties had
made it unattractive for now-former Democratic Governor Kathleen Blanco to want
to run again - and beat Jindal again - for the big seat in Baton Rouge. Blanco
was dogged by those on the Right ever since Katrina hit her state's shores in
2005 as the main reason her state wasn't ready to prevent, then help her poorer
constituents in the Category Five Hurricane's aftermath.
Remember, to the Righties, The Truth doesn't matter.
Blanco simply gave up on trying to get re-elected and allowed a very
conservative politico to take over. Even though Blanco had asked for President
Bush's help prior to Katrina hitting the Gulf's shores in both telephone calls
and in official, paper requests, no help came (unless you consider two FEMA
"observers" to be "help"). And when the Army Corp of Engineers strongly advised
the federal government - that same federal government headed by George W. Bush -
to make the levies around Lake rPontchatrain withstand a Category Five storm
prior to Hurricane Katrina's occurrence, all President Bush could think of was
"What's in it for me and my 'base' of 'haves and have mores'?"
So, naturally, the fault landed right on the head of Blanco. After all, wasn't
it Blanco who was at a birthday party for Senator John McCain in Arizona when
the storm hit?
Oh, that was President Bush.
And wasn't it Blanco who flew over the area and said "Tsk, tsk" as her
government-provided 747 buzzed those who might have been still clinging to
rooftops awaiting help in the days after the storm hit?
Nope! Bush again!
And now with tens of thousands still displaced and possibly never to return, the
GOP has been able to take this "Hurricane Help" provided by the Bushies and
convert it into another Governorship.
After all, as the president's Mommy (and former First Lady) Barbara Bush
informed us, the Hurricane Katrina refugees (after being rescued off those
rooftops and pulled from filthy, disease-filled water), being housed in the
Astrodome waiting for any help whatsoever, were "underprivileged anyway, so this
is working very well for them."
But more importantly, it seems to have worked out "very well" for the GOP even
more. See - no good deed goes unpunished and no bad deed, unrewarded, right?
"We have the opportunity - born of tragedy but embraced still the same - to make
right decades of failure in government,"
-Jindal, at his inauguration
And whose government failed them, Governor Jindal?
"We can build a Louisiana where our leaders and our people set the highest
standards and hold every member of our government accountable, a Louisiana where
incompetence is not a synonym for government, a Louisiana where corruption does
not hold us back,"
-Jindal
The questions I have for you, Governor Jindal are these: What would you have
done different prior to Katrina's wrath? What would you have done differently
when your pleas to President Bush went unanswered? What would you have done
differently when the Army Corp of Engineers told you that those levies aren't
going to hold up to a storm that everyone knew was coming, most likely sooner
rather than later?
And what are you going to tell those who wish to come back home to The Big Easy
in the weeks and months to come? Perhaps your answer will be, "President Bush
and I don't want you here!"
Because you don't.
-Noah Greenberg
In response to the Republican candidates for President screams, "HSA! HSA!" Pat
Thompson writes:
My husband's company instituted health savings accounts, along with a high
deductible on health insurance. So they take $100 out of his pay every two
weeks, pre-tax, and we promptly spend it to cover that month's prescriptions --
his diabetes prescription costs $450, my blood pressure meds are $200, and the
rest comes out of pocket.
Now he is retiring, and health insurance will cost more monthly than his entire
social security check. He is 62 and forced out since his company was bought. I
am 60, so there is a five year gap until Medicare, and he has three more years.
Health insurance during this period could bankrupt us. My condo property
management business has no health insurance at all. I am thinking about going to
work 20 hrs. a week for Starbucks to get health insurance.
Be wary, Pat. The Bushies and the GOP 2008 hopefuls will use you as "an example
of the senior spirit," for your willingness to go back to work.
Spin Baby, spin!
-Noah Greenberg
In response to, "I understand everyone has their biases in this election, but
Edwards has missed the mark repeatedly, as he did in 2004. And the debate, in
which he was disturbingly smug (he used to be my candidate of choice), sealed
his fate with voters. Now his only hope is to ride the sexist and racist tide to
a white man's victory over the African American and female candidates," Robert
Scardapane writes:
I think that last sentence is more than a bit over the top. Edwards has never
been either racist or sexist. I refrained from saying much about Hillary Clinton
but I think I had enough. Her campaign has been extremely dirty. In New
Hampshire, she sent out a false mailer about Obama's position on choice. Obama
has a 100% rating from NARAL yet her mailer distorted his record. Hillary's
campaign is currently trying to make it hard for Nevada casino workers to vote
in the caucuses where you need to be there at a particular time; sounds like
voter suppression to me.
We all have some quarrels with the candidates; none of them have been above
attack politics but now it's getting downright ugly. I suggest we avoid charges
of racism / sexism; otherwise, we'll end up with another Republican in 2008.
In response to, "There have been numerous studies that show even if everyone was
insured health care premiums would only go down by a small amount and most
likely would go right back up.
"Irrespective of the structure of the system, single-payer or multi-payer, the
system will fail to produce affordability unless prices are regulated," Carol F.
Yost writes:
Does this writer know what single-payer is? It means NO premiums! NO concern
about affordability because the healthcare recipients would not be paying!
That's all because there would be NO insurance companies! And everyone residing
in the US would be covered.
For full details on how the system would work--very well--and be paid for, see
www.healthcare-now.org. Support Rep. John Conyers' bill, HR 676, which already
has 80+ signatures in the House of Representatives. Really read it, because it
doesn't take long and is important, before you answer my comment. YES.
In response to, "Now I understand that we yokels shouldn't make those decisions
on our own," Pat Thompson writes:
Unfortunately so many Americans are yokels -- uninterested in politics, the
history of this county, and others, civics -- how government works, current
events, etc. until some issue affects them personally.
And then they have very superficial information gained from glimpses of the
candidates in 60 second sound bytes. How many take the time to really learn all
of their candidates' positions on various issues, in comparison to other
candidates? It really is more like American Idol. Those who have served, have
been involved for years, who have ran campaigns, and gotten elected, who know
what it takes -- I don't know for sure, but maybe they should have somewhat
more, but not too much more, say in the selection of a nominee.
1972 was really a killer; I guess something had to be done, but going too far
toward the party hack, smoke filled room conventions of the past isn't the
answer. Republicans seem to stick with "whose turn is it"? I think McCain will
wind up the nominee, and he deserves it, surely more than someone like Giuliani
or Huckabee, or Romney. Even though I disagree with his hawkish stand on the
war(s), I appreciate his going against the Republican majority who favor
torture. Now, who in the Democratic world would be our long serving, deserving
candidate??? A guy who after a year in the Senate started running for President?
There has to be some middle ground, between the latest star and the oldest hack.
I guess Biden would be the best choice.
In response to, "...even if that wish turns out to be another George McGovern,"
Pat Thompson writes:
Do you really want to see another election where the Democratic candidate wins
one state?? I think electing Nixon was such a waste of human lives -- he
promised to end the war in 1968, and never got around to it for over five years.
58,000 young men died in that war (compared to almost 4,000 so far in Iraq). And
the number of Vietnamese, both North and South, have been estimated in the
millions.
In response to, "Given that the independents are tending to vote for Obama," Pat
Thompson writes:
The Republicans have encouraged and aided the Obama surge -- because they know
they can start their usual "swiftboating" once he is the nominee. That's when
they will really start their campaign, which they used against Kerry; "he's not
quite a real American, was raised in European schools, his wife is foreign, he
"looks French" but he's actually Jewish, he didn't earn his medals, he goes
windsurfing, he was an anti-war activist", etc. etc.
Can you imagine, as Bill Maher said on Friday night, the Republicans taking
material from Obama's own book -- he was a teenage drug user, for instance. I've
already received awful forwarded emails stating that his middle name is
"Mohammed", but actually it is Hussein. Maybe I am so totally out of touch with
the "youth vote". To me, being a part of the anti-war movement in the 60's and
70's, and remembering John Kerry's active role, after he returned from Vietnam
in Veterans for Peace; well, to me he was the "youth candidate".
In response to, "Irrespective of the structure of the system, single-payer or
multi-payer, the system will fail to produce affordability unless prices are
regulated. Sorry Republicans, competition has not been effective in keeping
health care prices in check," Pat Thompson writes:
We need a complete overhaul of the medical system. For the doctor's sake as
well. After they spend more than a dozen years in school, have hundreds of
thousands of dollars in debt, they are nickled and dimed to death by insurance
companies, who make the big profits. Sicko has such a good view of health care
in Great Britain, France, etc. The doctors are employees of the government,
trained by the government, paid a comfortable salary. Hospitals are NOT FOR
PROFIT.
The rich can always get private doctors, but the vast majority of people would
be well served by "socialized medicine". Although I am realistic enough to
acknowledge that isn't happening in this country any time soon. Interestingly,
the Brits instituted their system right after they were almost destroyed in
World War II. Their country has been bombed into near destruction by the
Germans, they had lost a large percentage of their population, their economy was
in shambles -- but they were able to work out the details of a health care
system that takes care of everyone.
Truly amazing.
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-Noah Greenberg