Sunday, November 14, 2010
Open Mouth - Open Mind
Looking for another reason to NOT lump Chris Matthews in with Olbermann and Maddow? Hows about look no further than to Mr. Matthews' reaction to that just released report from Obama's deficit commission. Instead of immediately dismissing it as being cruel, extreme, heartless, etc. (basically what his colleagues, Maddow and Olbermann, did), Mr. Matthews praised it for being balanced and helpful. It seems, folks, that, yes, in spite of that sometimes partisan outer-skin of his, this fellow is at least willing to consider ideas and approaches that fail to pass muster with a rigid ideology. Who knows - maybe that crazy son of a bitch SHOULD have run for the Senate this year. I mean, really, could he have been any worse....
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13 comments:
I did'nt see the damn thing,but Sarah Palins new show on TLC had over 5 million viewers last night.
That alone must frost some liberals asses.
For the most part, I have no problem with a political commentator taking a basic partisan line. From my point of view, O'Reilly and Olbermann can make important points on issues at times although they usually cross the line. Matthews is a good man and I believe he honestly looks at the issues from a reasonable position.
As for the deficit commission, if both left and right really give a damn about the country our path back to healthy economy is going to hurt like Hell. Which means massive cuts and raised taxes, anything short of both is bullshit. Of course, I feel we need to chunk this "free trade" bullshit. Nothing is going to get better until we have real jobs that pay a decent wage. Sending jobs to China because that allows cheap products for consumers over here is slitting our own throats.
I heard it was a good show. The scenery alone must be extraordinary.
You're right, double b. Neither party wants to admit that this is going to be damn painful. And, yes, it IS going to take both - cuts and revenue. To say that it isn't is simply flat out dishonest.
I agree with BB in regards the "free trade" bullshit. Unfortunately most of our politicans (both parties) disagree... although when the Democrats put forward a bill to curb outsourcing... the Republicans killed it.
The only "massive" cuts we need are to the military budget. That was in the report. There are some good ideas in it -- but most are really bad.
If keeping an open mind means seriously considering implementing bad ideas... forget it. My mind is closed to courses of action which have been proven to not work.
We don't need to raise the SS age, it should be lowered. Because it would lower unemployment.
Other than cutting the military budget, and seriously cracking down on fraud, I can't think of any other reductions in spending we should make. Call my POV "flat out dishonest" if you like Will...
The wealthy are going to use this "debt crisis" to institute austerity measures a-la Greece.... and further the transfer of wealth from the middle class to the upper class in the process.
The Democrats should REJECT any and all Republican offers of "compromise". The Republicans aren't interested in compromise, what they want is capitulation. Democrats can not, and should not work with them. If you can't see that Will I think you are flat out deluded.
I did NOT see the Palin show. I have ZERO interest in ever watching. Howver, my ass is not frosted. Rusty thinks that every single person who tuned in did so because they are Palin supporters? Considering her low approval rating, I doubt it.
wd, I don't know if these 2 rump organizations (err, I mean political parties) will ever be able to work together or not. But when somebody like Mr. Rendell comes forth with an attractive compromise, yes, I am definitely going to give him some credit for it......News-flash, wd, it isn't just the wealthy who are concerned about this debt crisis (14 trillion and counting). A lot of individuals are worried. And, I'm telling you, if your only 3 proposals are a) tax the rich, b) cut defense spending, and c) LOWER the retirement age, you're probably not going to get much in terms of traction in this very important debate.
You forgot my other proposal.
Crack down on fraud. Fraud in Meidcare and other entitlement spending programs. Fraud in military contracting (much of which should be eliminated, in any case), and fraud committed by the wealthy avoiding their taxes.
If we were to do these things -- the punishing of the middle class and poor you're so eager to engage in would be totally unnecessary.
Mr. Rendell's proposal (which I understood) isn't attractive -- it's bowing to pressure from the Right. The Republicans won't accept anything less than complete capitulation anyway.
Tax cuts for the wealthy aren't stimulative and will ADD to the debt. I don't understand how this argument is gaining any traction. Especially with anyone who isn't wealthy -- which I assume includes you?
News flash for you Will, the wealthy (those who want these cuts) are NOT concerned about the so-called "debt crisis" (I haven't a clue why you're implying I think they're the ONLY ones concerned).
I'm all for cracking down on fraud, wd. Remember how I said that I'd personally carve Mr. Obama's likeness on Rushmore if he were able to minimize the fraud that is currently running rampant through the Medicare system? And I agree with you that there's a lot of waste and fraud in the Defense Department, too......I'm anxious to punish anybody, wd (let alone a group to which I am a member). I'm only being cognizant of the reality that we're all going to have to make some sacrifices in order to get ourselves out of this mess. Painless solutions - they are only the reality of the far-left and far-right.
"We simply can't afford to extend tax cuts to people making a million or more." That statement indicated to me that you DIDN'T understand Mr. Rendell's proposal. As for my compromise, I only proposed that we raise the threshold from $250,000 to $300-400,000. My reasoning for this is that this way we pretty much hit ALL of the small businesses AND, yes, take away that idiotic Republican talking point (you know, the one about taxing small businesses?)......Mr. Rendell (and myself, for that matter) isn't bowing to conservative pressure. He's simply trying to reach a compromise so that something can get passed. As it stands now, all of the tax cuts will expire (which may or may not be a bad thing) UNLESS something is passed. Mr. Obama said that he wouldn't raise taxes on the middle-class. Unless some sort of compromise can be reached, he can pretty much throw that little promise from the choo-choo.
"We simply can't afford to extend tax cuts to people making a million or more." That statement indicated to me that you DIDN'T understand Mr. Rendell's proposal.
OK, then -- what I wrote wasn't what I meant. I should have said "we simply can't afford to extend tax cuts to people making over 250k OR to people making 250k to a million -- as proposed by Senator Rendell".
Excuse me, Ed Rendell is the Governor of Pennsylvania... so what he believes we should do doesn't really matter... seeing as he has no say at all in the decision. In any case, the Congressional Republicans have already indicated that they will reject any and all compromise offers. I strongly believe the Democrats should do the same. Let all the tax cuts expire and make sure the American people know who to blame.
Here's the way that I feel about it, wd. While I don't think that the President should necessarily telegraph anything, I do think that if he does put forth a reasonable counter-offer (like mine, like Governor Rendell's, like Senator Warner's), and the Republicans reject it, then it's going to be them, the Republicans, with the egg on their face - not the President.
The President putting forth MY proposal. LOL
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