*decides she doesn't want to know, actually*
[in reference to the Faramonster and his whipped-cream, if you must know.]
Bush is not a fascist. We are not living in a totalitarian regime. The catchphrase 'war on terror' is not being used to subtly remove our civil liberties and make us all thralls. The movies Revenge of the Sith and V for Vendetta were not cautionary tales to the American people warning them of the dangers of their evil leader. Bush does not have the One Ring on his finger
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/77tongue.gif)
It can be taken too far. People always forget that the president of the US doesn't have nearly as much power as everyone seems to think he does. Regardless of who was President, 9/11 was going to lead to changes in security at airports. Period. That's just the way life works. Only an increasing price of oil turns Americans off to driving SUVs. Etc.
In all honesty, if you want to know why people voted for Bush, this is the last place to ask that question. Well, not the last place, but still a foolish one. As far as I know, I am the only one here who voted for him and is comfortable with my decision to do so. I respectfully acknowledge that no one has pounced on me for doing so, and that has to count for something. People here can be very polite [even if it is tough on their poor tongues!
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/77tongue.gif)
If this thread is meant as an analysis of what Bush did "right" (politically-speaking), then it can be applied to what the Democrats need to do in 2 years to take the White House. I think such things can be discussed reasonably, as tactics and strategies, without painiting anyone as a monster. It is also disingenious (has that word been used on this thread yet? I like it!) to suggest that the only reason people cast their votes is that they are manipulated into doing so. Certainly, there is plenty of spin and manipulation going on. But that isn't the whole story. No amount of spin is going to make nel vote for a candidate who has made racist remarks in public, regardless of his platform. (At least, I think that is true - I'll let her clarify if I'm putting words in her mouth.) In other words, you can fool some of the people some of the time....but you can't fool everyone.
I do not approve of all of Bush's policies. But neither do I disapprove. He has done what I expected him to do (more or less) when I tried to help elect him the second time. (I should clarify further that my state is not red; so don't worry, my vote did not help elect him at all.) He did not abandon Iraq by prematurely pulling out and leaving the place in ruins. A start. I was very distrustful of what Kerry would have done in his place. Seeing as how my sister's boyfriend didn't make it back from Iraq until spring of '06, this issue was not theoretical to me, but very personal. But his friends died over there, and I wanted them to have accomplished something with their sacrifices.
I am a teacher, a secondary science teacher, to be more precise. NCLB means that I was not able to be hired by my local public school system, because I am not yet certified (I will be in May). Again, this affects me personally, but I didn't mind - I think it is only right that teachers are required to know what they are doing, and encouraging would-be teachers to go through a certification program is very worthwhile. I got a job at a non-public school, and life is good. Also, it means that more schools in my state are moving to a physics-first curriculum, to allow biology to be taught (and tested) in the 10th grade. Teachers involved in these programs assure me that they are very good, and that it is helpful to the kids to introduce them to science this way. I am sceptical, because I don't think they're ready for real physics yet, but I don't see it as a bad thing. In short, NCLB has its drawbacks (and the definition of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and failing schools is one of them). But I think that the legal basis for such things is slim, and it will fall apart before 2012 when it would really kick in. Regardless, Bush won't be president then
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/77tongue.gif)
And he has appointed 2 Supreme Court Justices.
So, no, he's not a genius, and no he's not our best president ever. I'm not in love with him. But I do think he has done a reasonably good job as president. Invading Iraq was stupid, yes. He underestimated the task, just as Clinton underestimated the resistence in Kosovo [though Clinton was wise enough not to involve ground troops...]. Americans apparently think superior force means we automatically win, without even fighting, or something. Overwhelming force does work, but your opponent doesn't necessarily give up...they just find a sneakier way to fight you. Hopefully, we get that now. Anyway - I understood why we invaded Afghanistan, and felt that as lousy as war is, we at least were getting rid of the Taliban. And, well, Al Quaeda did attack us, so it was...understandable. (There is a difference between understanding and approving, of course) Iraq, not so much. We could have found a way to stop buying their oil, and that would have had a very dramatic effect on, well, the world. There had to be other ways to resolve that conflict and oust Saddam. There had to be...
3000 soldiers are dead. This is not something to be ignored, or to take lightly. In Baltimore City, in 2006, there were 275 murders. In 2005, it was 269. 278 murders in 2004. 271 in 2003. When the War in Iraq started, I tracked the homicide rate in the city and the death toll of coalition forces in Iraq in our local paper. They were about the same. Baltimore is roughly the same size as Baghdad, IIRC. Obviously, the death toll for the war eventually increased. The mayor of Baltimore was just elected governor of the state of Maryland. Apparently...the death toll here wasn't blamed on him.
There are lots of ways people die, and there are lots of ways the government is involved. I think there is too much evil in the world to focus on it all at once, but I find that when people find something horrifying, their immediate reaction is "why doesn't anyone care about this? Why aren't they doing anything about it?" It may be that everyone is focusing on another dilemma. It would be...foolish...to assume that focussing on one dilemma over another means we are all blind and callous. It would be more realistic to say that we all evaluate the same information in different ways.
Not all of us think that what Bush has done makes him a horrible, unspeakable monster. Likewise, not everyone who voted for him is pleased by his choices and decisions. I am truly sorry that some people are so dissatisfied with him that they'd rather not be an American. I am sure some people are truly sorry that I am so jaded and cynical about politics at such a young age. That's...just the way things are.
My politics can be summed up as, "Come, Lord Jesus!" or, alternatively, "nuke DC."
Cross-posted with Lord M and an entire page of other people, including, but not limited to, V, Griffy and the Watcher