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You DO seem to be complaining that self identified progressives ARE complaining about the direction, or lack thereof, from the Obama Administration. Helen used the word "exasperation".

As the Dutch said while fighting the Spanish: "It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Tue Aug 31st, 2010 at 11:09:44 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I'm not telling anyone not to be exasperated -- I'm asking what good your tactic of criticizing him personally is doing.  I didn't say a thing about 'self identified progressives.'  I said the articles linked to, as I pointed out, is nothing more than assertions leading to only one conclusion -- that Obama is "choosing" not to get things done.  I'm asking, again -- what people who support this sort of thing are hoping to accomplish?  Claiming you haven't technically assigned him a motive is disingenuous when you're asserting he's choosing not to do the right thing.

Maybe we can eventually make language a complete impediment to understanding. -Hobbes
by Izzy (izzy at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 31st, 2010 at 11:39:31 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Well, perhaps this doesn't make you at least wonder. The need for narrative is strong. If Team Obama doesn't supply a credible narrative, others will. The identity of some of those "others" exasperates others of those "others", as does the identity of some of those Team Obama accepts into their dressing room. (The "Cat Food Commission" is the name "professional leftists" have given President Obama's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, which originally was to feature Pete Peterson as the opening speaker and has Alan Simpson as a commissioner. But you cannot blame the Brits for being disgusted/alarmed, as they have had years of similar treatment at the hands of Nulabor.

As the Dutch said while fighting the Spanish: "It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Wed Sep 1st, 2010 at 12:08:33 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Yes, the need for narrative is apparently so strong that my asking a question, which still hasn't been answered, is seen as blaming the brits, asking for cheering, and slamming progressives, all of which you've accused me of instead of answering my question -- assuming you're absolutely right (for the sake of discussion), what good is stating versions of "Obama is wrong/bad" over and over doing?  I'll ask again - how is that helping us get towards our goals?

Maybe we can eventually make language a complete impediment to understanding. -Hobbes
by Izzy (izzy at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Sep 1st, 2010 at 12:38:17 AM EST
[ Parent ]
How is supporting him helping us to get towards any goal I see as worthwhile? Just because he is president I should support him? You could have asked me the same question about LBJ. The opinions of those who voted for him in '08 should matter to him. It is more than just the "professional leftists" that he has to worry about.

If space aliens abducted Obama and his entire administration and they were never heard from again that might put us further down the road to accomplishing goals that are vital to our survival than Obama seems likely to accomplish in the time that remains to him. At least there would be the possibility of a real leader emerging.

As the Dutch said while fighting the Spanish: "It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Wed Sep 1st, 2010 at 12:57:53 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Just because he is president I should support him?

There you go filling in your narrative for me again -- where did I say you should support him (or, below, stay silent)?  Are the only choices either supporting him or making personal attacks?  

Maybe we can eventually make language a complete impediment to understanding. -Hobbes

by Izzy (izzy at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Sep 1st, 2010 at 03:27:57 AM EST
[ Parent ]
I'm asking what good your tactic of criticizing him personally is doing.

Criticizing Obama is not a TACTIC. It is an unavoidable reaction to what I and many others see as an ongoing disaster. Ask most of the US House of Representatives who are up for reelection in November just how much help they expect Obama to be to their reelection or if any one or anything, other than money, from the Obama White House would help them. Could you get a candid answer, most, including the Blue Dogs, would probably say: "Not much, but I am glad for the money". Others might go so far as to say: "Please don't make a public offer of the possibility of an Obama campaign appearance! I don't want to embarrass us both."

There is no obligation of loyalty on my part to Obama or the Democratic Party. I have been a registered Democrat since 1964 and have, I believe, always voted for Democratic candidates, not out of principle, but as a tactic. Since 1965 I have become accustomed to being in strong disagreement with the policies of Democratic Presidents. It is not my role to fall in line with the leadership. There role is to decide if my vote and the votes of people with similar views are worth accommodating. In truth, there is no party that has really represented my views. There have only been occasional candidates that came close, such as Eugene McCarthy and George McGovern.

I am becoming more and more convinced that the only way forward is via a political realignment into a Reform Party that has as its prime objective dismantling the financial capture of Washington DC by the financial elites and fundamental reform of campaign finance. There are dangers in this approach, as the paleocons, such as Paul Craig Roberts, and the libertarians, such as Ron Paul, have very different social agendas. But we are, I fear, approaching the point at which the danger of the current system is even greater.

The effectiveness of Obama's political leadership has been such that the Democrats may well loose the House in November and loose ground in the Senate. The economy will continue to deteriorate and may well experience another collapse before November 2012 that is worse than that of October '08. Blaiming all of this on Bush will not cut it by then and we could well have a new Republican President with a Republican majority in both houses. We could then be reduced to hoping that there would even be future elections.

As the Dutch said while fighting the Spanish: "It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Wed Sep 1st, 2010 at 10:57:05 AM EST
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