The Best We Can Get
A group known as Republicans for Biden is launching a campaign to urge anti-Trump voters (especially Republicans) to vote for Harris. Consider. This means that we don't vote for positions, policies, or principles, since the Democrats by definition are opposed to Republican versions. No, this means we vote against someone. Which, of course, has been the case for most of the 21st century, hasn't it? From the "Never Hillary" folks to the "Never Trump" folks and everything in between, we've been voting against rather than for anything for decades. Which gives some insight into the dismal politicians and twisted minds of the American people.
A Follow Up
Sarah Jones, a senior writer for the Intelligencer, offered "A Socialist's Case for Kamala Harris" last month. A real Bernie Sanders fan, Sarah will settle for Kamala ... specifically for her socialist positions. Sarah believes Harris is the best option for things like universal healthcare, free college education for all, student-debt forgiveness for all, and, of course, expanded death to preborn babies. If you're planning to vote on policies and principles, keep Harris in mind ... as one to oppose. But if it's just, "I hate Trump," well, you make your bed and you lie in it.
Strange Turn of Events
Since Ivy League schools are far left, it is a bit of a surprise that 5 Columbia University students and graduates have filed suit against pro-Hamas government individuals whose support for Hamas forced the shutdown of Columbia in the pro-Palestine demonstrations last semester. The suit includes AOC and Ilhan Omar among the names being sued. I guess there are Columbia students who don't appreciate "Death to America" and "Death to Jews" being chanted at their school under the protection of antisemitic government leaders. Go figure. Looks like Harvard will get a little of that, too.
Political Dad Joke
It looks like Kamala Harris has hit a Walz in her search for a VP. (Sorry.)
California Humanitarians
California is the closest thing we have to a "sanctuary state" with most of the big cities embracing illegal aliens, so it seems odd that the governor is promising to remove funding from cities and counties who do not clear homeless encampments. They clearly care about people who enter this country illegally and clearly don't care about babies before they're born, so I guess people who are homeless fall in the latter category in California.
Back to the Bee
The Bee is reporting that Trump is concerned that if he beats Harris in a debate the Dems might put up someone good this time. (Of course, the rest of the media is all pretty sure that she's the savior of the world.) VP-to-be Walz has clarified that he has never been to Iraq, but he has been to Minneapolis, which is essentially the same thing. He has a point. And a new video out from the Trump shooting is raising suspicion because it seems to show a Secret Service agent adjusting the Trump shooter's scope. Okay, perhaps that's too far.
Must be true; I read it on the Internet.
17 comments:
Regarding the choice of Walz as Democratic running mate: I was surprised that my state’s governor (Shapiro) was on the short list for Harris’s VP. Perhaps she wanted to reward him for heading up the state that almost took out Trump? ;)
The abject stupidity of Republicans voting for Demokrats instead of Trump is beyond my comprehension. I only vote Republican regardless of the candidate because every time we had Demokrats in office we get more wars and more socialism, let alone more perversion in government
Don't know why Blogger's comment section changed. Now I have to open a second window to have the post present when I comment. Even on the other six days of the week, I like to see it while I comment to help my aging mind stay focused on what the point of the post actually is. This is harder on Saturday when there's multiple posts in the "News Weakly" round-up of stories. Anyway...
The Best We Can Get
In a self-governing nation...one ruled by the consent of the people...the candidates we get are what we've given ourselves.
Any vote for someone is because of the alternative a vote against the alternative at the same time. Thus, even if we are enamored with a candidate and the potential his candidacy hopes to realize, we're still also voting against the candidate with the inferior policies. Of course, now and then we do indeed vote against one side primarily as opposed to being enamored enough with the other to vote for him. I did this in both campaigns against Obama. I did it again to vote against Hillary. Then in 2020, after having established himself as worthy, I vote for Trump and will be doing so now. He has a positive track record...and not by a little bit. He actually cares about the state of the nation, as opposed to what too many choose to believe. That others don't see this amazes me given how obvious and proven it is. That truly is dismal. It implies that contrary to what so many say, so many do indeed demand a perfect person in order to vote for someone.
A Follow Up
This sounds like you're planning on voting for Trump in November. Is this true? If not, are you simply voting against him AND Harris by not voting or voting third party or write in?. To vote for someone with no chance is not voting for anybody, but only letting others decide which of the two with any potential will eventually win. That, too, is dismal.
Strange Turn of Events
Recently in an exchange with someone I won't name, the subject of Harris having sued a university and Trump being sued for the same reasons led me to do a little research given Dan's...OOPS!...this unnamed person's history of not doing any before making a claim. In doing so, I came upon an article about the Trump University "scandal" and the author pointed out how these days, there are so many graduates of Ivy League schools who never find work their chosen field of study...lesbian basket weaving, feminist studies, etc., as well as many with degrees in actual THINGS...being unable to find work. They have as much right to sue those Ivy Leaguers as did the former students of Trump U and whatever college Harris sued.
So I'm good with students suing their schools if the schools aren't doing what they've promised to do for the students. It's really about time, and I hope it goes beyond this particular issue to compel universities to reform.
Political Dad Joke
Shame on you.
California Humanitarians
Are there any Democrat governors who do better than Newsome?
I understand not wanting to vote for Trump, but to side with Harris as spite? Sounds a lot like cutting your nose off to spite your face.
Marshal, I don't know how you can put so much faith in one man. He failed to make America great again, he merely slowed the decline because that's all he can do, with an administrative state that answers to nobody and can't be changed out every 4 years, I imagine they're just going to openly do what they did his first go round. I see no hope for this country on a political level. The only thing that will correct this nation is an Awakening. That said, yes I'm voting for Trump, but not because I think he'll fix things, nor simply to keep Harris out.
Art, I agree; I don’t like how Blogger works now either--except for the ability to reply to a specific comment (which some of us are doing, even if not consistently). I always write my comments in Word (so I have the benefit of Spell Check to catch any typos and so I don’t feel as rushed to submit it). If I need to refer to any part of the post or comments as I am writing, I copy & paste it into my Word document for reference as I write (or I can keep the post open, as you say); then I copy & paste my finished comment at the blog’s Comment section for submission. This new Blogger format makes me click on “Manage addresses” just to add my name, so there’s a second step for me, but otherwise, I have adjusted OK. (Printing out a post & its comments, which I do on occasion, does not work as well in this new format.)
David, I agree with you. I think it is a sad reality that there has been a discouraging amount of “spite” displayed during political elections, going back a long time.
I have never understood the slogan, “Make America Great Again.” Honestly, as an avid U.S. history buff/student (with a good general knowledge of our country’s societal trends), I can’t say when “America” was ever “great” (and I’m thinking back all the way to Colonial times). I always wonder to what time period in the U.S.A.’s existence Trump is referring! (I also wonder if Trump knows that “America” refers to all the North, Central, and South American countries and is not a proper term for the U.S.A.) This nation has always had serious economic, social, political, etc., faults and shortcomings. It is very much a "work in progress," and even when advancements and corrections are made in one area of our society, worrisome changes and setbacks take place in another. Trump didn’t create this reality, and neither can he fix it. I agree with David that realistically there is no hope for MAGA.
David...I don't know what you see in terms of me putting "so much faith in one man". As it's really more a matter of hope than faith, I can hope and have faith in God that my selection is most likely to push the nation on a course more likely to result in more benefit to more Americans than the alternative. Did Trump fail to make America great again? He succeeded in making it greater than it was during Obama's two terms, and it was certainly greater than it's been since Trump's second term was stolen from him. "Make America Great Again" is just a slogan encapsulating his intentions as president...to make America great again. We were definitely heading in that direction under his presidency and weren't prior to it and haven't been since. We will again should he be granted the opportunity again come November.
No president can do anything alone. I'm hoping along with his election will be the election of more GOP Congressmen and Senators who are more conservative and eager to make American great again, too. The rest is up we the people.
Lorna...To understand the slogan, one might wish to ascertain for one's self how "great" is defined. Perhaps you've done that as regards this nation. I certainly have my own ideas, too, as certainly most others do. What I can say, however, is that it's great compared to all others. It's great in what it offers as a body of land, i.e. resources, scenery, and the like. It's great in terms of its founding documents and what they affirm and provide contrasted with other nations. Trump was certainly referring to the years previous to his first term, and now, to move forward from the degradation of the nation brought about by Biden's. This also implies that we could have been greater in the past at some points than others. It does NOT mean "perfect", nor does it have to. A better slogan might be, "Make America Greater"
As to whether or not Trump understands we're not the only "America", I wonder if you think he doesn't and why would you? He's not the only person who uses the term as shorthand for the United States of America. The people of this nation have been referred to as "Americans" by tons of politicians and others. We refer to our culture (such as it's become, sadly) as "the American way of life", or "American culture".
It's not up to any one person to fix what ails us. It's supposed to be a group effort by virtue of a government by consent of the people. But he's willing to assert he intends to be our leader in making the nation great and that anyone believes there's no hope for us is to self-identify as the problem. It's a bad and rather suicidal attitude.
Maybe if he'd had consecutive terms he could have had more progress, but he is going to be spend a lot of time undoing what Biden broke.
How is identifying the problem as not political but cultural being part of the problem? How is it helping to bandage the wound when you haven't removed the bullet? You can't actually fix the problem until you properly identify the cause. Plenty of presidents have had agreeable an Congress, and yet we never see any major change, in either direction. But if you have an undereducated and morally bankrupt culture, of course there is no hope for anyone to fix the problem.
Also, we're in this economic crisis because of Trump's initial poor reaction to COVID, compounded by Biden's.
You keep accusing us of wanting a perfect person for president. How about just a morally decent one that actually believes in his ideals and holds to them? Or is that too much to ask?
Art, I agree that our country is “great” in many respects compared to others and that we have precious freedoms and opportunities. “Make America Greater” is a better notion than MAGA--as it looks forward rather than backwards. To my (idealistic) mind, striving to improve our nation’s conditions is the default job description/objective for any public servant, regardless of political party. (Yes, I am politically naïve. :)
I know that “America” and “American” are common “shorthand,” but as I commented elsewhere recently, I like to use words properly.
In any event, I appreciate your thoughtful reply. Personally, I don’t hold the exact same persuasions you do, but I can tell that you have formed your convictions through careful and informed personal consideration--just as much of the rest of us have done.
Lorna, I think that making America great again is the conservative view that wants to hold onto the good things that made America great. The progressive view is that America has never been great and that we can't hold onto anything from the past in order to make America greater.
Lorna, just as an FYI, if you look up the word, "America," it will universally refer to the United States. To refer to "North and South America," they use "Americas" in its plural form. It appears to be globally accepted that "America" is simply short for "the United States of America," and no one (or, nearly no one -- obviously you are an exception) understands it as anything else. According to all the sources I found, "America" as a reference to the USA is the proper use of the word except where context requires clarification (like when a Canadian refers to a "US news source" rather than "American" because they are part of North America).
I appreciate the helpful clarification, David. I guess I could not say that I am fully “progressive” (from your definition), and I would certainly also hold the “conservative view” as you defined it. In reality, I believe I fall someone in-between “conservative” and “progressive,” which is why I mostly stay out of politics (and discussions of it!)--because there doesn’t seem to be a comfortable middle ground!
I will concede to that in general, Stan, although I don’t think it is “universal.” I have heard people from Central & South America express resentment about how Americans use that word for themselves, as if we are the only real Americans; they see it as part of our national conceit. A sketch from Foil Arms and Hog (an Irish comedy troupe) makes this clear in a funny way. Just search for their video at YouTube, “What Is America?” for a humorous take on this (“Bye Bye Guatemalan pie” :). (Even the comments at that video express this thought.) But yes, I use it casually. It struck me as a bit “ignorant” to see that in Trump’s slogan, since he was President of the “United States of America,” not “America.” I realize he is using it casually as well. In any event, I mentioned it only as an “aside;” it’s not his biggest flaw IMO.
Also Marshal, I'm not even sure this country is even worthy of saving anymore. Even the church is embracing the sexual revolution. Us pro-lifers praised the overturning of Roe, but nothing has come of it, and it even seems as if the nation has become more pro-abortion since then. We now simply let the unwanted-born to die with no even attempt to save them. Even the most radical states with the most restrictive laws on abortion, allow abortions to happen and are being fought against to reduce what few restrictions they have. Maybe America was great for a time, but with our prosperity has come decadence that has corrupt even our core values. We have an education system dedicated to teaching our youth to hate America. It has been said that our system of government will only work in a moral society. We've proven ourselves to be an immoral society that embraces moral relativism, even in the church. Does that mean I want to see this country burn? No, but I don't know that it deserves to continue, nor do I believe that it can as it has, and that there is nothing any politician can do to stop it. Only the Church, embracing the Great Commission, and God causing a change in hearts, can save this country. Anything short of divine intervention will only be a delaying of the inevitable.
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