Cheney Urges Conservatives Not To Run From Bush Administration’s Policies
Cheney Urges Conservatives Not To Run From Bush Administration’s Policies
With his approval rating hovering around 30 percent, Vice President Cheney nevertheless went to Virginia yesterday to rally conservatives around the Bush administration. The Virginian-Pilot reports that he urged state Republican activists “to promote the Bush administration’s policies during campaigns for this fall’s presidential and congressional elections.” Some highlights from his speech:
On the economy: “Republicans believe that when Americans are facing tough times, the first thing we should do is let them keep more of their own money. That is why the President proposed and signed a stimulus package with immediate, direct relief to the American taxpayer.”
On energy: “Our administration has worked with the Congress and the private sector to try to increase the efficiency of cars and trucks, to promote alternative fuels.”
On Iraq: “The work goes on — and our strategy in Iraq, with a surge of operations that began more than a year ago, is succeeding. The only way to lose this fight is to quit.”
Cheney is grasping at his last straws. Although he said, “President Bush and I look forward to helping our candidates, up and down the ticket, throughout this very important election year,” it’s not clear that conservatives really want their help. Both Cheney and Bush have been raising less money and attracting smaller crowds than they used to.
There’s good reason for conservatives to reject Bush and Cheney’s advice. After all, 75 percent of the American public disapproves of how Bush is handling the economy. Twenty-three percent of the public blames Bush for high gas prices — putting him just behind the top culprit — oil companies, at 35 percent. And on Iraq, which Cheney also touted, 67 percent disapprove of the way the Bush administration is handling the war.
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Yes, such a reality based view of the world. I am sure that Cheney basks in the glow of all those corporatists and Republican elite in the success of the Bush policy. They have succeeded in redirecting the vast amount of wealth to the hands of a few. Government has become an efficient machine for providing government contracts and loose regulation to the the rich, connected and corrupt. The Iraq War serves dual purpose by padding the profits for favored corporations while killing off the poor.
May 31st, 2008 at 2:24 pmI see his lips moving….which means he’s lieing.
May 31st, 2008 at 2:28 pmDid the audience full of people with bags over their heads give cheney any clue to how this speech was being received? Didn’t think so.
May 31st, 2008 at 2:30 pmI also urge all republicans to embrace Bush’s policies… November can’t come soon enough, and the more the Bush administration can do to link themselves to republicans running for re-election the happier my November 8th will be…
May 31st, 2008 at 2:33 pmAh, how lovely, a Cheney pic befitting this post. The Dick’s face wearing a classic snearing expression we’ve all come to know so well. I look forward to seeing that face either never again, or in the dock.
You will be called to account for all you’ve done, Darth Cheney. Mills of the gods may grind slowly, but they do grind exceedingly fine. Your heinous actions, greed, and corruption called forth the Furies, and as we know from studying our mythology, the Furies never stop their pursuit.
May 31st, 2008 at 2:34 pmWith his approval rating hovering around 30 percent, Vice President Cheney nevertheless went to Virginia yesterday to rally conservatives around the Bush administration.
Never mind that the vast majority of Americans feel this country is moving in the wrong direction. Could it be any clearer that Bush/Cheney represent only a tiny minority of people who view this country as nothing more than their oyster.
http://progressiveworldreview.com
May 31st, 2008 at 2:36 pmThis seems reasonable. Running draws attention. I would suggest a swift yet confident scamper
May 31st, 2008 at 2:40 pmOh, please…DO help them! The more you and Bush are shown in any vicinity of any gooper candidate, the happier I will be!
Keep those great policies in the public eye. Most definitely!
May 31st, 2008 at 2:41 pmCheney is in his last throes. Someone close the door.
May 31st, 2008 at 2:53 pmAfter November the world will never hear from Cheney again. His ideology and ideas killed the American spirit and divided rather than joined America in our most trying times. Cheney, Bush, and the neocons were neither conservative nor Republican. They (along with Rove) have turned the Republican brand to shite.
May 31st, 2008 at 2:55 pmI bet Hell won’t even want him.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:08 pmPlease go Cheney yourself . As progressives and the rest of the country MoveOn , dick is stuck.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:11 pmCheney is so poisonous that grass shrivels and birds fall from the sky when he walks by.
By all means, Dick, it’s time to start campaigning for the party.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:14 pmSept.11th is the day the CIA overthrew the democratically elected government of Chile ,resulting in the deaths of 30000 innocent people .
May 31st, 2008 at 3:17 pmEight months and Dick will be gone. So will Bush. Dem’s will win overwhelming majorities in both houses and a new day will dawn. You guys can rejoice and rejoice. But then who will you cuss?
May 31st, 2008 at 3:19 pmBorrowing money to curry favor with the electorate is merely base venality; doing so from foreign nations, many of whom with interests antithetical to ours, when massively in debt to those same nations is insane.
Granting huge subsidies to curry favor with mega-agribusiness
is merely base venality; doing so for an alternative that costs as much energy as is gained, all the while increasing food prices, is insane.
The only way to win is to have never started.
Dick “Dick” Cheney, our nation’s Strategic Crap Reserve.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:21 pmThose birds do not fall too far after being shooed from their cages on the ground. It is ill-advised to be within shotgun range if you are with him.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:21 pmI’m beginning to think that all loyal repuglithons proudly wear bags over their heads at all times to avoid any brush with reality. The truth is, Cheney and the veep and their cabal are NOT conservatives. They are radical right wingers who will do anything to hold onto power and money. Real conservatives know this and must renounce and refute the corporatist-theocratic wing of their party or pay the price. I repeat–Bushco is not a conservative organization. It is antidemocratic (small “d” democracy).
May 31st, 2008 at 3:23 pmCapitalism is the best, fairest and by far the most efficient system of creating wealth for all. Corporations simply put capital to work. Those who work for corporations are usually well compensated. Big business and small businesses employ tens of millions and the tax payrolls are significant. Taxes paid by those who work lead to government programs which often help the less fortunate in society. That works for me.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:30 pmIMPEACHMENT NOW or the criminals go unpunished unless they’re picked up outside the US for warcrimes. Tell 10 people to tell 10 people ect. to write their congress person to put Scott McClellan under oath and impeach !
May 31st, 2008 at 3:32 pmToday !
Sorry, Arn. Didn’t mean to stike a nerve. Apparently you know little about Nazi or Fascist ideology or you would not compare conservatives to them.
Frankly, Bush and Cheney are not true conservatives. Too much fiscal irresponsibility. Social programs, like the drug plan for the elderly, which will continue our out of control deficits.
As an independent, I don’t follow what any talking head says. Occasionally I agree with them–right and left.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:39 pmDoctor ever been to South America ? Their poverty and hopelesness is the reason you are comfortable here with your inexpensive corporate shopping habits .
May 31st, 2008 at 3:41 pmCorporate capitalism is not just .
Remember the Unions, the people who brought you the 8 hour work week ?
Freeman, Freeman, Freeman. How could you put Scottie under oath when apparently he is a bald-faced liar. Either he intentionally lied as press secretary (for years) or he is lying in his book. A man with lack of integrity like that doesn’t go very far with most people.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:44 pmWizard Cheney is trying to tell GOP candidates that there are things in Bush more than what the eyes can see.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:44 pmCheney is telling them to stick around.
But will these people believe Cheney after looking at the last two years of Bush’s political standings in US and abroad ?!!
The Vice President is right! All Republicans should continue to promote the Bush administration’s policies during campaigns for this fall’s presidential and congressional elections.
That way, after the elections, there will be a lot fewer Republicans in Washington.
Sound’s good to me!
May 31st, 2008 at 3:45 pmDoc we have had to give up the word liberal, maybe you should give up the conservative label and call yourself a libertarian . Prescott Bush had his bank confiscated by the US government for trading with the enemy during World war 2 by the US government . He was the presidents grandfather , was he a capitalist or a conservative?
May 31st, 2008 at 3:46 pmaaah… not to worry…
i’ve been listening to the “Rules and Bylaws Committee Meeting”
and reading comments on that thread at C&L… here’s the latest comment, and i can’t say i disagree:
Rico Says:
Listening to Howard Wolfson being interviewed on MSNBC this moment and explaining the Clinton strategy has convinced me that the next President of the United States will most likely be John McCain.
the committee has just taken a lunch break till 4:15… i’ve had enough… out to pot up some flowers for my deck garden…
May 31st, 2008 at 3:48 pmArn, Arn, Arn. People around the world are fleeing to the “regulated” capitalist economies of Finland, Canada, Norway, Sweden, etc…. Oh, Oh.!! Wait a minute. People from all over the world want to come here—not to those countries.
Why is that? Because they know that they can achieve more in the United States, in our capitalist system, than anywhere else in the world.
People in the countries you mentioned are taxed unmercifully. Those are essentially socialist socities and you know it. Yes, capitalism must be regulated–not strangled.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:50 pmCapitalism, like any system of commerce, only works when there is generous reinvestment. That is what American industry has forgotten.
When there is no significant reinvestment, and the only goal is maximized profits, the whole house of cards collapses. Building wealth, for wealth’s sake, will destroy any system. As it has throughout human history.
One would think that we humans would get smart eventually, but, I guess there are always a select few that think they can game the system where others have failed. They can’t grasp the simple fact that top heavy structures ALWAYS topple.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:53 pmDoc are you afraid to put him under oath ?
May 31st, 2008 at 3:54 pmSigning statements , weapons of mass destruction ,domestic spying , habeas corpus . Dcc do you even know what a signing statement is or why the American bar association said several years ago it represents the greatest threat to our constitutional democracy in a generation ?
All of which has absolutely nothing to do with the probable effect of having the arch-criminal Cheney on the campaign trail. Sorry I got distracted from the topic of Cheney’s utter assbaggery.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:56 pmEver been to Europe Doc , because your perspective is based more on propaganda then reality and I’ve been their many times.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:57 pmFor Petes sake , I absolutely agree . Doctor heal thyself .
May 31st, 2008 at 3:59 pmAlso, there is nothing conservative about Cheney and the neocons. They are reckless radicals who hijacked the name and duped many good hearted, yet misguided, people who grew up thinking anyone who said they were conservative represented their beliefs. Thankfully, all but 20 some percent have seen through their deceptions.
May 31st, 2008 at 3:59 pmCheney says to conservatives:
May 31st, 2008 at 4:00 pm“The peasants don’t like us. So? Tell them SOBs to stfu. Tell em we’ll sic OBL on them and they’ll go up in a mushroom cloud. Tell them that unless they vote for us, them gays will creep under their doors, threaten their traditional marriages, and molest their children. Tell em they’re sounding like a bunch of radical, unhinged left wing bloggers and not like the main stream 28% of us. Tell them to just trust us.”
Cheney Urges Conservatives Not To Run From Bush Administration’s Policies»
really…
May 31st, 2008 at 4:00 pmMcClellan has stated he would like to TESTIFY AGAINST Bush’s prewar policies.
#34 pete Says:
Capitalism, like any system of commerce, only works when there is generous reinvestment. That is what American industry has forgotten.
When there is no significant reinvestment, and the only goal is maximized profits, the whole house of cards collapses. Building wealth, for wealth’s sake, will destroy any system. As it has throughout human history.
One would think that we humans would get smart eventually, but, I guess there are always a select few that think they can game the system where others have failed. They can’t grasp the simple fact that top heavy structures ALWAYS topple.
You are right. Another problem we have with this country is, when people figured out how to vote for their benefit only. Not vote for what is best for the majority of people; but a small select percentage. That is when we started having even more problems.
Gramm de-regulating all the safeguards we put in place after the Depression, probably ranks first right now with today’s economic problems he help create. I agree with you also about how we should as humans be smarter than that. But you & I are nothing like them, we have a conscious, they do not. When all you love is money then that is all you will receive. What a depressing way to live; off the pain and suffering of others.
Hopefully pete, they will get paid back for all the misery they have caused.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:05 pmOh PLEASE listen to him conservatives. The more of you that go down with the ship and drown the better for mankind.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:05 pmWhen was the last time you saw people “fleeing” Finland, Canada, Norway, Sweden, etc.??
May 31st, 2008 at 4:06 pmI’m going with never…
I do see quite a few Canadians buying houses here in WA but those tend to be beach houses and such- ya see, ever since the Bush Admin.’s loony unregulated capitalism destroyed the U.S. economy those Canadians have discovered that their ‘Loonies’ just go further south of the border, down Washington way…
Damn I can’t help myself . Doc…. McClellan’s book , his making a pile of cash on it and it’s affect on the Bush Administation is only the free markets working things out .
May 31st, 2008 at 4:11 pmWho have thought even moral and ethical problems could be solved through unbridled capitalism and the free market !
Didn’t O reilly say that scotty was only writing his book for the money ? Now thats a bad thing ? Damn even fox has become a libul station , they have abandoned their guiding principle …. LOL.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:17 pmCorporate capitalism is not just? Man, I don’t know where you went to school but such a statement is assine. One person can form a corporation and there are literally millions of small corporations in this country. Those who work for themselves under a legal corporate entity are the purist form of capitalism. They excel and pay lots of taxes.
As for unions, they do very little today to protect workers. In fact, just the opposite. Manufacturing jobs have left this country by the millions. Let’s see. American automobile companies are a good example. In their death throes and American Axle has been on strike. The Big Three won’t make it. Foreign corporations are building plants throughout the South (Is that “importing” jobs?) and they aren’t unionized. Like it or not, we live in a global ecomony and free markets rule the day. Protectionism hurts us. The rest of the world doesn’t ultimately need us. We either get competitive or get stomped.
Eight hour work week? You probably meant work day. They may have brought it to you but not to me. Always work more hours than that. Of course, I probably pay more taxes also.
Have been to Mexico. Saw the poverty. Been to Haiti too. Now there is poverty. Saw poverty in north Africa and European countries. Support orpahnages in Ukraine, Haiti and Kenya. We can’t end proverty. They must end it themselves.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:18 pmDarth’s comment is the epitome of the band playing on the deck of the Titanic while the deck chairs are being rearranged and the chefs planning for the next days breakfast menu.
The Repugs are heading right for that NOvember iceberg, full speed ahead!
Heh Heh
May 31st, 2008 at 4:20 pmEvery attempt by South and Central Americans to achieve basic dignty and democracy was crushed by the CIA inorder to provide the corporations cheap resources and labor !
May 31st, 2008 at 4:28 pmWhy are the major corporations leaving the country ? Because there are no worker rights in the 3rd world and the labor can be used like slaves , no enviorental regulations are a plus too and they’ll work for less than a living wage .
May 31st, 2008 at 4:28 pmTruthSpindoctor likes to talk to himself alot, but like a zombie with a foot nailed to the floor, he spins and spins but never gets anywhere. Hilarious.But atleast Doc can afford cheap goods at the mall.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:29 pm#14 But look what Chile got freeman, a dictatorship that killed thousands of its own people. We’ve done the same thing in over 50 countries. Iran was one of the first, Mossadeq wanted to nationalize the oil and demanded more from BP, who ran the oil for them.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:30 pmDoc as for the unions ,you have either forgotten where your from or were born rich . In either case I’m sorry for you .
May 31st, 2008 at 4:32 pmYou’ve lost the proverbial canary in our present coal mine.
Hey whose oil is it anyway . Don’t stop repeating this simple mantra ….. they hate us for our freedoms .
May 31st, 2008 at 4:34 pm“Don’t give up on President Bush yet! Just wait a minute while I rearrange these deck chairs.“
May 31st, 2008 at 4:35 pmHey whose oil is it anyway . Don’t stop repeating this simple mantra ….. they hate us for our freedoms
Uhhh, are you saying any oil in the world belongs to the multi-national companies or to the countries where it resides.
Clarify this for us, please.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:37 pmMugsy,
Great minds and all…..
Check out #49 above.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:38 pmQuatamala whose bombing by the US while the CIA overthrew it’s democracy put the bananas on your breakfast table .Dulles running our policy there and his brother the CEO of United fruit are the authors of that time honored phrase….. a banana republic .
May 31st, 2008 at 4:40 pmLong live democracy in Venezuala ! Long live Hugo Chavez !
May 31st, 2008 at 4:46 pmONE WORLD ONE PEOPLE ONE DESTINY !
Cheney urged state Republican activists “to promote the Bush administration’s policies during campaigns for this fall’s presidential and congressional elections.
This is what we really got out of those policies:
On Economics- Bush administration economic policy in response to Americans facing tough times:
Another Stimulus Package: Better named, the Politicians Conscience Relief Act in lieu of true economic leadership. Or “Take Stimulus Package Number One of first Term, Shake and Re-bake”.
On Energy- Eight years since Cheney’s secretive Enron-run energy policy development. “We promoted alternative fuels by giving our friends in oil more tax breaks”. You have got to be kidding?? Eight years and that’s it? And don’t blame the democrats. You have had control of the process for the better part of the administration’s years. Blame your own inept leadership and policies that reflect only the expediency of politics.
On Iraq-Bush Administration policy- Bush: “We are learning as we go along”. Can I say more?
You know, all these WH administration holier-than-thou boys and girls ripping into McClellan, well they need to review their own legacy a bit. Eight years, and what do we have to show for it? Now to me that’s a real moral crisis.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:48 pmWhat are you trying to say here? That A Repug stole another country’s natural resources and overthrew their government? Just like happened in Iraq. So, I think you for reminding us all of that.
May 31st, 2008 at 4:53 pmDrive a stake through the heart of vampirism ,leave the dead to bury the dead , plenty of room in the grave for skulls and bones .
May 31st, 2008 at 4:53 pmCome out with your hands where we can see them, you are hopelessly outnumbered .
May 31st, 2008 at 4:56 pmCheney is a destroyer. He’s a blunt instrument. He couldn’t win an election himself if his miserable life depended on it. I hope every Republican takes his advice and further contributes to the Bush/Cheney/Rove legacy of corruption, destruction and failure. Republicans are going to lose electons by historic proportions this year thanks to the self-delusional beliefs and disastrouly incompetent beliefs, judgments and mercenary values of people like Richard B. Cheney. May he live long enough for his failings to impact his life as they’ve impacted the lives of so very many dead and maimed American soliders and Iraqi civilians.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:00 pmIn the EU, the gap between executive pay and the production line is about 60 to one on average. In the United States, it is approximately 400 to one. In both economies, professional pay is about 3 to one over production line workers. In the EU, corporate executives have no respite from taxes beyond charity at rates based on the initial investment. In the United States, charitable investments are based on current value and tax loopholes prevail.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:00 pmLooks like freeman is auguring, in from overloaded circuit from his recent posts.s.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:02 pmThe problem is not with the corporations themselves, but with the corporate mentality that has come to dominate the larger corporations and the U.S. Government under Bush as well.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:22 pmMBA’s are killing the United States with their unique combination of entitlement and irresponsibility, arrogance and willful ignorance…
US Automakers are failing not because of over-regulation and unionization but rather because of a lack of accountability and loyalty…
Bush and GM’s executives fail the United States worker for the same reason- they have no interest in hearing opposition and face no consequences when they fail… the end of the unrestrained MBA is coming to an end, however, and not a moment to soon- The U.S. can’t handle much more of this MBA “success”
Truthdoctor Says:
Corporate capitalism is not just?
One word is all that’s necessary to debunk this weak assertion: Enron.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:27 pmCorporations, per se, are not the problem. The problems come in how corporations are treated in our society, such as “individuals” with rights but no responsibilities or as the sole reason for government’s existence or as a perfect entity without the collective negatives (primarily greed) of the individuals who run them. Any one of these treatments can result in detriment to our society. Unfortunately, all three are in operation at present.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:35 pmThe U.S. can’t handle much more of this MBA “success”
What really has wrecked the American business model is the psychological acceptance of the concept of the “Golden Parachute.”
Rewarding failure has done immeasurable harm to business, and they just don’t get it. All other of business’ bad decisions can be laid at the feet of this tacit (and sometimes quite overt)acceptance of insulating management from their own bad decisions. It was all downhill from there. Encouraging employees to buy stock, while management liquidated their own awarded, and cheaply-purchased, stock, the “Captains of Industry” decided in the ’80’s that lifeboats should be apportioned from the top down, with themselves getting the best spots, in case they made an error, and hit the shoals of fiscal/economic reality.
And conservatives were just fine with rewarding these incompetents, and outright crooks. That repudiates their ideology, at the most fundamental level.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:48 pmLet’s see. Corporations are evil, corporate capitalism is unjust, the CIA is corrupt (which has been true), the U.S. has been responsible for innocent deaths in over 50 countries, unions are the salvation of working people, “big oil” is bad, etc.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:49 pmfreeman Says:
Come out with your hands where we can see them, you are hopelessly outnumbered .
Dude, you really should not be drinking and blogging, lol
May 31st, 2008 at 5:51 pmTruthdoctor must have gotten his reality-degree from Regents University.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:54 pmAbsinthe .
May 31st, 2008 at 5:54 pmLet’s see. Corporations are evil, corporate capitalism is unjust, the CIA is corrupt (which has been true), the U.S. has been responsible for innocent deaths in over 50 countries, unions are the salvation of working people, “big oil” is bad, etc.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:55 pmDo you even read other people’s posts? Can you read them? It would be helpful if you would start- ’cause you handle is backwards otherwise- should be DoctoredTruth…
Besides fighting evil all day makes you thirsty.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:00 pmAnd conservatives were just fine with rewarding these incompetents, and outright crooks.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:05 pmIt’s not just that they are fine with rewarding incompetents- it’s that those most responsible for the failure of any venture are know those least likely to accept blame for it and even less likely to suffer the consequences in any meaningful way… but what is most galling is how quickly those same incompetents will claim the credit for any success, no matter how minor…
Loyalty is a one way street in the corporate culture, success is evidence of ‘leadership’, failure is evidence of betrayal by an underling or ‘bad luck’
LOL, Run? I would say RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN from ANYTHING Bush. Bush is a Dictator, a War Monger and NO GOOD for this country and I think everyone knows it. Time for a change (and that doesnt mean McCain).
JJ
May 31st, 2008 at 6:06 pmUltimate Anonymity
#69 Enron deceived their employees and shareholders. Ken Lay would be in prison with the other officiers of the corporation is he hadn’t died. The acounting firms who cooked the books are out of business.
Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Adelphia. As I recall there are a bunch of deceiving corporate leaders in jail right now, as they ought to be. They were prosecuted by the Justice Dept of this adminstration. Corporations are now more heavily regulated. Ever hear of Sarbanes-Oxley?
Yes. Corporate executives are generally overpaid exorbitantly. But a guy responsible for a multi-billion dollor corporation with tens of thousands of employees should be paid more than a guy working there responsible for only his lunch box.
My favorite U.S. corporation right now–NUCOR. Competing in the steel industry (and that is tought). Employees gets bonuses when the company makes money, which it does. No one gets laid off. If cuts backs have to be made, everyone shares in it including the salaried and executives. No corporate jet. Executives fly commercial—coach.
Hugo Chavez? A disciple of Fidel. Isn’t Cuba prosperous?
May 31st, 2008 at 6:07 pmFidel seized power Chavez was democratically elected by people living in tin shacks without running water.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:11 pmMaybe owning an SUV isn’t all it’s cracked up to be , Doc. money isn’t everything.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:12 pmDefine poverty.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:13 pmBlessed are the poor in spirit because theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus
And doc if we can’t end poverty atleast we could get out of the way of those who are trying . No ?
May 31st, 2008 at 6:15 pmYes. Corporate executives are generally overpaid exorbitantly. But a guy responsible for a multi-billion dollor corporation with tens of thousands of employees should be paid more than a guy working there responsible for only his lunch box.
300 time more? Is he 300 times more productive? 300 times more essential?
May 31st, 2008 at 6:17 pmThe real question is how much money do you need? When does a salary cease to be a living and become a score? And a guy responsible for a multi-billion dollar corporation should be responsible for it, don’t you think?
If the guy responsible for his lunch-box were to drop it into a manufacturing press and destroy it he’d lose his job and his lunch.
But if the guy responsible for the multi-billion dollar company loses a couple billion and has to shut down a few factories, I doubt he’d even lose a minute of sleep- after all, it wasn’t his fault- it was those damn Unions! or Taxes! or maybe that Lunch-box guy let him down! Never any time to doubt himself, he’s off to Asia tomorrow to look at the new plant designs.
Where’s the responsibility?
The richest people on the Earth are often the poorest, take our spoiled president for instance.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:17 pmGet your priorities straight.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:18 pm#70. Canadian health care is the best. That is why many Canadians come to America for surgery. Frankly, health care is a mess in this country. Emergency care is available to everyone however, most of the time, in most areas.
Big Pharm is far worse than Big Oil. In this sense, they advertise medications most people don’t need. Big Mac’s are the next biggest problem. An obese country where people want to eat until they resemble a whale then require medications to cope with a multitude of ailments.
Best of all, we allow cigarettes to be sold legally, sue the cigarette companies for harming people, settle with the cigarette companies for billions, then spend most of the money in totally unrelated areas to health care. What a country!
May 31st, 2008 at 6:19 pmYa gotta enjoy the classic trolls. Do you really expect anyone to still buy the “unions destroyed the manufacturing base” crap? Here’s a newsflash for you. Unions don’t make policy decisions, management does.
Just to use the auto industry as an example, is it not likely that their problems stem from making out of date, overweight, cars of inferior quality?
Unions don’t decide to use second rate materials. Unions don’t decide to mass produce 5,000 lb SUVs which NO ONE will want when the, inevitable, gas hike comes. And I’m pretty sure unions didn’t decide to abandon alternative fuel technologies.
If you want to blame someone for the demise of U.S. automakers? Look straight at the Boards of Directors of the Big three. They’ve believed their own marketing hype and fallen behind. Heck, Diamler couldn’t even make a going concern out of Chrysler. And why? Because the heads of Chrysler, when faced with a growing fuel crisis, decide to do idiotic things like reinventing the Hemi Challenger.
While it’s true that many unions have hurt themselves by getting greedy; it’s asinine to suggest they are responsible for the culture of greed that has resulted in the suffering of America’s manufacturing base. That blame, once again, falls squarely on the CEOs and Board members who will hurt the company for the sake of a second pool on their yacht.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:19 pm*82. Yep. I’ll drink to that—if you can find milk. Chavez burst up the big farms giving land to peasants. Now food supplies are lacking. Food shortages. Robert Mugabe did the same and we can see how Zimbabwee is prospering.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:23 pmFreeman, Freeman, free man. Don’t own an SUV. Four-cylinder ‘94 Camry (30 mpg, hwy). Wife has a van, gets 22+.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:25 pmHey in Chile where I spent the winter many make under 10$ a day and the food prices are higher than in the US .Oh and the dollar lost 10 5 of it’s value against the Chilean pesos in the 2 months I was there.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:27 pmBesides I don’t believe your post on land reform in Venezuala is remotely accurate.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:28 pmdoc
May 31st, 2008 at 6:30 pmSUV. Four-cylinder ‘94 Camry. Wife a van,
Which waod in this sentence represents something valuable.
People over profits ! Was jesus a communist ?
May 31st, 2008 at 6:32 pmFree man. Since you are quoting Jesus. The poor you will always have with you.
#84 & #85. You will never end poverty by just giving people food, money, etc. Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach him to fish and he can eat the rest of his life.
Education, opportunity, and the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s self is essential. A job is the best answer to poverty—not a government give. A job at a real business, not a government “make work” job that produces nothing. Sometimes you have to go where the jobs are. It helps if you can bring a fews skills along with you.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:33 pmLay not up your treasures where moth and dust doth corrupt , for where a mans treasures are there lies his heart also .
May 31st, 2008 at 6:34 pmJesus
# 97 I agree that as with many things it isn’t erely black and white , but intention is key and as solomon said in the song of songs what good is any of it …without love !
May 31st, 2008 at 6:38 pmLove God above all THINGS and your neighbor as your self .
The poor you will always have with you.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:38 pmBut do you think that Jesus meant that there was nothing to be done about poverty so just ignore it?
Isn’t it more likely that he meant that one should never forget the poor among us?
That seems a much more likely sentiment to me…
Ah, the old saw about letting the poor taxpayers keep more of their money. Since Cheney’s administration has further gutted the safety net, that may be a good idea.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:39 pmteaching people to fish only results in overfishing.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:41 pmYour argument however does not take into account 60 years of overthrowing democracies ,political assassinations and death squads . It’s a bit difficult to pursue affluence while you’re being murdered and tortured .
May 31st, 2008 at 6:42 pmGot history ?
#90. Competition. The world is catching up with us. American consumers demand the lowest price. Why else do we import $billions each month of consumer goods when we can buy American made at a higher price? Manufacturing left us because items can be produced elsewhere cheaper. Go to three or four clothing stores and look at the labels. Multitudes of countries with cheap labor. Not just China.
Textile manufacturing ain’t coming back! Same scenario with autos.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:42 pmFunny how conservatives always demand accountability from schools, unions, the Democratic Party, you name it, but when it comes to themselves or corporations, or the war-profiteers in Iraq, there is nothing but silence…
May 31st, 2008 at 6:42 pm#100. belac, you are absolutely right! We are to help others. I guess what I am trying to say is we should not just try to help them for a day. Teaching someone to read is much better than reading to him.
Gov’t programs should empower people. Give them tools, skills, education,opportunity.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:47 pm101. The poor should keep more of their money. No taxes below the poverty line. Some states tax food. State income taxes on the poor are crazy also.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:50 pmJesus was not a free market capatalist doc and I contend that wealth can not be measured in dollars but in peace of mind , friends and family.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:50 pmGotta go .love is the only reason , not points in a bank account or a BIG television .
Peace
Right … stay on message … doc , bye.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:52 pm#103 Freeman. We as a country are not bad. Done some bad things, yes. We defeated Germany and Japan. Then set about helping them rebuild. Democratic, self-governing countries at last count. Two of the top three ecomonies in the world. Completely destroyed then rebuilt. The Germans and Japanese armies were butchers prior to the war. Now our friends. What a country. I’m proud to be an American. History?
May 31st, 2008 at 6:55 pmWhat the heck are you talking about, doc. Do you know? Maybe I can help you out. You seem to have confused “capitalism” with “corporatism”. And “regulation” with “socialism”. Here’s a quick lesson.
Capitalism, in it’s purest form, isn’t even a system or doctrine. It is the natural result of commerce whether it’s regulated or not. People invest capital in a product or service and sell it at a profit. Capitalism even drives communist economies.
Corporatism, on the other hand, is the doctrine which allows, (If I may use this example), the oil industry to collect a disproportionate benefit from the occupation of Iraq without assuming a proportionate share of the cost. Rampant corporatism brought down Rome, and most other societies before and after. It’s the same force which causes Kingdoms to starve when the King has a full vault.
Regulation is not a limit on business practices or profits, It’s legal protection from criminal or predatory practices. Socialism is quite different.
Socialism is government control of the daily operations of industry. While it’s foreign to American free enterprise, there are some good arguments for “socializing” certain industries. Energy is one of those industries. There are two good reasons.
One, to prevent the rape of wealth such as that taking place right now. It’s usury at best.
The other is for the inevitable, safe, implementation of future nuclear technologies. In short, if and when we resume building nuke plants someone is going to need to insure that nuke plants are not being run like American car plants. There is no public or private organization in America today that I would trust to do it right.
BTW, Socialism is, also, not synonymous with communism or fascism. Please don’t insult us with suggestions to that effect.
May 31st, 2008 at 7:02 pmAnd here’s some help with “competition”. In a competitive market the largest share will go to the best, most innovative, most competitive product.
The company which gets the largest market share can afford to hire the best people in any workforce, foreign or domestic. Any successful company makes a serious investment in it’s workforce. Oddly enough, relative labor costs are surprisingly similar in wildly different economies.
As I stated earlier, I’m fully aware of the disasters caused by greedy unions/officials. But labor cost isn’t a legitimate complaint when a company is not investing in making the best product.
Just to go completely off topic. It’s quite possible that the new reality of fuel costs will, eventually, cause a resurgence of domestic manufacturing. It’s up to “Free Enterprise Capitalists” to develop domestically produced crap that’s slightly better than, increasingly expensive, imported crap. Will they rise to the challenge or whine about “libruls” and fall farther behind?
May 31st, 2008 at 7:21 pmBTW doc, I don’t know where you live but there are many local stores with American made clothing. You can’t blame me if you choose to wear imported junk.
May 31st, 2008 at 7:24 pmTruthdoctor Says:
Arn, Arn, Arn. People around the world are fleeing to the “regulated” capitalist economies of Finland, Canada, Norway, Sweden, etc…. Oh, Oh.!! Wait a minute. People from all over the world want to come here—not to those countries.
Why is that? Because they know that they can achieve more in the United States, in our capitalist system, than anywhere else in the world.
Trolldoctor, trolldoctor, trolldoctor…..it sounds as though you haven’t been to Europe lately….or at all.
Yes, the US has a lot of immigrants, but so does Europe as anyone who has been to any major European city, London, Paris , Berlin, Frankfurt would know. Canada also has a large immigrant population. As for Finland, Sweden and Norway; as I seem to remember the ARTIC CIRCLE goes through them which might be the reason they don’t attract as many immigrants, or support large populations for that matter. Although Sweden has taken about 35,000 Iraqi refugees vs about 700 for the US.
And yes, Mr. Troll I do know the good the US has done…I was given a tour of the Nazi death camp outside of Munich by the official photographer who lost family members there. I know the feeling of being proud to be an American, but history also shows America has a dark side which needs to also be acknowledged.
And yes you have accomplished your goals which is to divert the thread from the original subject of Dick Cheney, who a majority of Americans, at least here in NYC(remember 9/11 MR Patriot?), think is a POS and to waste my time.
May 31st, 2008 at 7:38 pmTruthdoctor Says:
Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach him to fish and he can eat the rest of his life.
Unless the ocean is so acidic from industrial pollution that the fish are already dead. Then they should just make some delicious “bootstrap soup.”
How inane.
May 31st, 2008 at 9:51 pmWhy isn’t there more coverage of oceanic “dead zones”
June 1st, 2008 at 12:07 amIf I never lay eyes on this poor excuse for a human being again, it will be too soon.
June 1st, 2008 at 2:27 amOr what, He’ll do something totally unheard of and violent.
Like shooting someone in the face !
June 1st, 2008 at 2:41 am>Eight months and Dick will be gone.
But we’ll always have the itching to remember. Oh wait, I’m thinking of V.C. not R.C…
June 1st, 2008 at 5:24 amTowards Cheney impeachment hearings:
http://www.WexlerWantsHearings.com
And please pass the word around the net about WexlerWantsHearings because 237,000 isn’t nearly enough and because the millions who want Cheney out aren’t going to learn about it on the evening news.
June 1st, 2008 at 1:03 pm@ Truth doctor
Quote
Arn, Arn, Arn. People around the world are fleeing to the “regulated” capitalist economies of Finland, Canada, Norway, Sweden, etc…. Oh, Oh.!! Wait a minute. People from all over the world want to come here—not to those countries.
Unquote
You have no idea what you are talking about. If you did, you would know that people are flocking to those countries, and all the other original 15 EU countries,mainly from Africa and SW Asia, and for the same reasons as the Mexicans are crossing the Rio grande – because the wages are higher, and the benefits are better.
As a typical head in the sand shitkicker, you think the world does not exist outside of the USA.
The reason we don’t get many Mexicans/Hispanics in the EU is that it has harder to swim the Atlantic than the Rio Grande
June 2nd, 2008 at 2:58 amHey, you gotta give Cheney some credit; he is, after all, the only vice president since Aaron Burr to actually shoot a lawyer. Sometimes I crack myself up…
June 3rd, 2008 at 12:41 amIf what Truthdoctor(ing) said was true about people only buying the cheapest goods, how would Fair Trade work? I know – he’s gonna go on about ‘liberal guilt’…
Pat
June 3rd, 2008 at 9:50 am