Saturday, July 30, 2011

Just eat it!!!!!!

4 comments:

  1. Oh dear, the above turned out longer that I anticipated even though I tried to share just a few segments. Apologies for taking up too much space, but hoping this won't annoy anyone. I'll be more careful in future.

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  2. VC

    Your comment disappeared. I have NO idea why. But I'm going to repost it because it is SUPERB (and please don't apologize for the length. The box is small, but there's plenty of space below). Here it is:

    Eat and enjoy, Mr. President! You sure need the fuel for the work you're doing.

    SP, I wonder if you have been to Booman Tribune today and saw the terrific response commenter Tarheeldem made on the post 'This Weekend Was Always Coming'?

    I don't usually read the responses there as there are some perpetual 'Debbie Downers' who irritate me, but Tarheel gave a VERY thorough answer that made me think of you repeatedly while reading. It's his first comment which is timed as follows - 'by TarheelDem on Sat Jul 30th, 2011 at 11:40:59 AM EST'

    "The key problem with liberal/progressive thinking here IMHO is that change should come without struggle, conflict, and mobilization of ordinary citizens. ...
    ... What does "using the bully pulpit" mean besides speaking? Does it mean rallying one side against another? Does it mean educating? Obama has been educating so much that he has the nickname professor-in-chief. Does it mean making emotional arguments? Does it mean successfully or unsuccessfully trying to impose a different frame of reference on an issue?

    What is the judgment when a President uses the bully pulpit and the media (or blogs) immediately set about to deconstruct it and impose their own narratives on it?

    Likewise, what does "leadership" mean? Representing people in what they want to see happen or supporting them while they endure what they don't want to see happen?

    ...
    So the real metric for judging Obama's leadership ability is how he has responded to the stream of obstacles put in his way and how he has seized the opportunities presented by the elite's stupidity.
    ...
    So far here is what he has done. He has made the operation of the Congress and the limits that a President faces so transparent ...

    ...
    And now, he has finally succeeded in making the Republican's dishonest game clear. They wanted him to do their dirty work by making cuts his base hated. His response was to bend. For two years he has driven liberal/progressives nuts with what he has put on the table in the Catfood Commission and in the debt ceiling talks. How much of that has been enacted? So little that Republicans have to lie to make their case of betrayal.

    How much has he given up in this debt ceiling fight. As of yet, not one thing. The legislation has not been written.

    ...
    Something will change in American political debate after this crisis. It is too soon to say how. But this is a defining moment before the discussion of the FY2012 budget. And one that might get more people paying attention to the discussion.

    Before you can successfully use the bully pulpit, people have to be listening. They stopped listening the day he was inaugurated, thinking now everything would be OK. The woke up grouchy after the passage of the healthcare bill and stagnation in jobs in 2010.

    Have they had their coffee yet? We soon will know.
    ....

    While I apologize to the author for chopping up his comment (it was really quite thorough and IMO very meaningful) I wanted to whet your appetite, if you hadn't already read it. There is also another revealing comment by NMP regarding the compromises made by a few 'popular' past presidents.


    Sure hope this makes sense as it's hard to cut and paste in this small space.

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  3. Rhoda

    Glad you enjoyed it. That's why I posted it - we could use a few smiles!

    ReplyDelete

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