Things That Make You Go Hmmm...
Anyone’s who’s been even semi-conscious for the last seven years knows this country is headed in the wrong direction. Some of us have watched with horror, at first pinching ourselves and then desperately slapping each other with the fruitless hope that it’s all been a nightmare and we will wake up in the hospital to be informed that Al Gore’s finishing up his second term and we’ve been in a coma since 2000, having been hit by a bus when we rushed into the street, delirious with joy over Al’s win…sorry I drifted off into my favorite daydream there for a minute. Where was I? Oh yeah, the country’s a freaking mess and when I’m not pretending that it isn’t really true (cause I haven’t mastered the art of completely fooling myself, which would make me a Republican), here are a few of the things I wonder about:
Why is it that being a “tax and spend” democrat is supposedly a bad thing, but being a cut taxes and spend and spend and spend republican is ok? I’m no economic genius, but isn’t it better to spend an income you actually have, then to cut your income and then spend ten times more (like a spoiled, drunken, frat boy-- but I digress)?
Why is it that another country having a fanatical, religious zealot leading it is a bad thing, but America having a fanatical, religious zealot leading it is a positive, moral good?
Why is it that Saddam was “an ok” guy when we supported him, while he gassed the Iranians during the Iran-Iraq war, giving him weapons and military know how, but a “bad” guy when we couldn’t capture Osama and wanted an enemy to attack?
Why was it wrong for Saddam to imprison his enemies without trials, torture them, lie to the U.N. and ignore the will of the Iraqi people, but it’s patriotic and good for the Bush administration to do the exact same things?
Why was it a horrible, evil, tragedy when terrorists attacked the U.S. and killed 3000 American civilians, but it’s perfectly ok that America attacked a country (Iraq) that did nothing to us and just unfortunate collateral damage that we’ve killed tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians?
Why is it morally justified to spend billions upon billions on an unnecessary war, but a wasteful handout to spend billions feeding, educating and insuring your own country’s citizens? (For that matter why is it the right thing to do for the Iraqi’s, but the wrong thing to do for our own countrymen?)
Why is it wrong to allow gays to marry, serve in the military, adopt kids etc., but right to collect the same amount of taxes from them as we do from heterosexuals who are allowed to marry, serve, adopt etc.? Why are convicted murderers, pedophiles, drug dealers etc. legally allowed to marry, but law abiding gay people aren’t?
Last but definitely not least, the thing I wonder about the most: What will be left of America; land of the free, beacon of opportunity, fairness and hope for the world, when our leaders get done imprisoning and torturing the untried, bombing and killing those they “think” a threat, and silencing dissent with more lies, propaganda and self-righteous declarations of who’s a real, patriotic American and who is not?
Why is it that being a “tax and spend” democrat is supposedly a bad thing, but being a cut taxes and spend and spend and spend republican is ok? I’m no economic genius, but isn’t it better to spend an income you actually have, then to cut your income and then spend ten times more (like a spoiled, drunken, frat boy-- but I digress)?
Why is it that another country having a fanatical, religious zealot leading it is a bad thing, but America having a fanatical, religious zealot leading it is a positive, moral good?
Why is it that Saddam was “an ok” guy when we supported him, while he gassed the Iranians during the Iran-Iraq war, giving him weapons and military know how, but a “bad” guy when we couldn’t capture Osama and wanted an enemy to attack?
Why was it wrong for Saddam to imprison his enemies without trials, torture them, lie to the U.N. and ignore the will of the Iraqi people, but it’s patriotic and good for the Bush administration to do the exact same things?
Why was it a horrible, evil, tragedy when terrorists attacked the U.S. and killed 3000 American civilians, but it’s perfectly ok that America attacked a country (Iraq) that did nothing to us and just unfortunate collateral damage that we’ve killed tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians?
Why is it morally justified to spend billions upon billions on an unnecessary war, but a wasteful handout to spend billions feeding, educating and insuring your own country’s citizens? (For that matter why is it the right thing to do for the Iraqi’s, but the wrong thing to do for our own countrymen?)
Why is it wrong to allow gays to marry, serve in the military, adopt kids etc., but right to collect the same amount of taxes from them as we do from heterosexuals who are allowed to marry, serve, adopt etc.? Why are convicted murderers, pedophiles, drug dealers etc. legally allowed to marry, but law abiding gay people aren’t?
Last but definitely not least, the thing I wonder about the most: What will be left of America; land of the free, beacon of opportunity, fairness and hope for the world, when our leaders get done imprisoning and torturing the untried, bombing and killing those they “think” a threat, and silencing dissent with more lies, propaganda and self-righteous declarations of who’s a real, patriotic American and who is not?
posted by Leo at 2:00 AM
7 Comments:
Once again, a great post. I wonder the same things myself.
Hmmm....
I resent that you feel the need to go around crushing other leftys dreams.
Now that you have brought all of these nasty little things to mind, I am off to throw myself in front of a bus, and wake up and be informed that Al Gore has just finished his second term, a new democrat is president, and my nephew is home from Iraq.
A girl can hope can't she!
As for the tax issue, it's the Democrats' fault. Rather than educate people as to WHY there are taxes, they talk into the Republicans' framing. Taxes are government using the common wealth for the common good, the foundation a republic is built on. Without government providing for our needs, we'd have no road system, no libraries, no schools, no internet, no satellite system that governs all of our financing. Our entire infrastructure was set up as a result of the same system that Republicans win elections railing against. In essence their argument is that the greatness of America is its number one problem
Raven, thanks. I'm glad we're on the same wavelength.
Jenn, hope springs eternal! Go back to sleep and I'll wake you when Bush has retired-hee. Thanks for the comment.
Brad, the democrats are great at talking into the republicans framing, as you put it, on most of the issues. If the democrats would ever get even half as good as the republicans are at political spinning, they'd rule the country indefinitely, since democratic ideals do actually benefit the common man. Alas, I don't think I'll live to see that happen. Thanks for your input.
You have laid it out perfectly. The propaganda and the reality are totally different. We justify what we do by saying someone else did it worse. Did they? I don't see how.
One thing I would like to add to your list is how does wearing our soldiers out in a needless war help keep America safer? They say the Dems are soft on defense, yet under this administration our soldiers have been worked to death and are pretty much as stretched as they can get. Have our defenses ever been in worse shape?
Great post Leo and great point pissed off patricia... There's not much to add, you have covered everything very well.
P.O.P., you make a great point, our military is stretched to the limit which certainly is not good for this country's defense. Thanks for the good input.
Let's Talk, good to see you. Thanks for all the support.
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