I just logged on to see if I had any drafts started for future blog posts.
I don't.
See, I realize I haven't posted here in a few days and was hoping I started a draft sometime this past week that I could wrap up and post tonight.
But alas, there are no drafts. So this will have to suffice until I can write something with a little more substance. I've got topics to discuss, but I'd rather compose them slightly better than stream-of-consciousness format.
So, I'll try to post something halfway readable this weekend. And update the songs of the week, too.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Who Will Replace the Village Idiot?
So you probably know what this post is going to be about from the title (it will be about politics for those just joining us). I'll wait a few seconds for those who don't venture into these topics to click onto another website.
Still reading? Then let us continue.
President Bush's approval ratings are abysmal, and they're steadily falling. Congress' approval ratings are comparatively high, and they're climbing. It's obvious that, on the surface, polled Americans are looking for change, and for now they're seeing it in the newly-elected Democratic congress. Unfortunately for us, this change is largely symbolic and the change in congress is going to do little to reverse our course. The President still retains veto power, and the margin of error for the Democrats is as small and fragile as the slim voting majority they currently enjoy. Voting on tenuous proposals to set a deadline for troop withdrawal from Iraq isn't going to win them any Republican converts, and the Democratic fence-sitters are not going to be too keen to show a backbone and vote for a time line, even considering the current political climate and constituent's apathy towards the President's party.
It would thus appear that a vote to set a deadline for troop withdrawal will not pass congress, and even if it were to reach Bush's desk, he'd veto it. It would be a symbolic move, but a wasted effort. When this measure fails, a new bill will be introduced that will systematically attempt to limit specific areas of funding for training troops here in the U.S. and will result in currently deployed troops remaining abroad for much longer. This bill, while perhaps a logical follow-up, will have even less of a chance to succeed than the initial proposal to set a clear troop withdrawal deadline.
It would appear as though the current administration is dead set on "running out the clock" on the Iraq war. They haven't found bin laden, and won't. They got Saddam Hussein and killed him, but the U.S. (and global) community didn't react with the same elation as Bush & Co. We're still waiting for a solution, or even just an acknowledgment that yes, we did screw up, things are FUBAR, and there is no good solution. But we won't get any of that except from the Democratic presidential hopefuls.
This is why it is very important to be listening to the soapboxing and the minutia of the Democratic candidates' words. Now is the best time, before the inscrutable "tag lines" and slogans become commonplace, before the TV attack ads run rampant, and before the candidates and their staff have much of a chance to refine their canned answers on "the issues".
Who will replace the village idiot? It's too early to know who will win the primary and general elections, but it's not too early to listen to what they say and determine who should replace the idiot.
Still reading? Then let us continue.
President Bush's approval ratings are abysmal, and they're steadily falling. Congress' approval ratings are comparatively high, and they're climbing. It's obvious that, on the surface, polled Americans are looking for change, and for now they're seeing it in the newly-elected Democratic congress. Unfortunately for us, this change is largely symbolic and the change in congress is going to do little to reverse our course. The President still retains veto power, and the margin of error for the Democrats is as small and fragile as the slim voting majority they currently enjoy. Voting on tenuous proposals to set a deadline for troop withdrawal from Iraq isn't going to win them any Republican converts, and the Democratic fence-sitters are not going to be too keen to show a backbone and vote for a time line, even considering the current political climate and constituent's apathy towards the President's party.
It would thus appear that a vote to set a deadline for troop withdrawal will not pass congress, and even if it were to reach Bush's desk, he'd veto it. It would be a symbolic move, but a wasted effort. When this measure fails, a new bill will be introduced that will systematically attempt to limit specific areas of funding for training troops here in the U.S. and will result in currently deployed troops remaining abroad for much longer. This bill, while perhaps a logical follow-up, will have even less of a chance to succeed than the initial proposal to set a clear troop withdrawal deadline.
It would appear as though the current administration is dead set on "running out the clock" on the Iraq war. They haven't found bin laden, and won't. They got Saddam Hussein and killed him, but the U.S. (and global) community didn't react with the same elation as Bush & Co. We're still waiting for a solution, or even just an acknowledgment that yes, we did screw up, things are FUBAR, and there is no good solution. But we won't get any of that except from the Democratic presidential hopefuls.
This is why it is very important to be listening to the soapboxing and the minutia of the Democratic candidates' words. Now is the best time, before the inscrutable "tag lines" and slogans become commonplace, before the TV attack ads run rampant, and before the candidates and their staff have much of a chance to refine their canned answers on "the issues".
Who will replace the village idiot? It's too early to know who will win the primary and general elections, but it's not too early to listen to what they say and determine who should replace the idiot.
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