About Us
Mission Statement
Rules of Conduct
 
Name:
Pswd:
Remember Me
Register
 

Addressing the Problems
Author: BobR    Date: 09/01/2010 11:36:50

Last night, President Obama gave his second presidential address from the Oval Office, mostly on the topic of the wars in the Middle East. There wasn't much earth-shattering there, mostly platitudes for the soldiers thrown into this war of choice, with some other topics thrown in as well. If you missed it, you can read the transcript here and/or watch the video:



After such a long deadly slog through two countries, it was hard to get too excited. For the most part, it was rehashes of things we've heard before. I won't deny that people need to be reminded that soldiers are more than just a badge of patriotism for people to wear. These are real people, often from the lower rungs of society and of races or religions otherwise avoided or criticized by the people who literally wear their patriotism on their backs (literally, in the form of flag and bald eagle imprinted shirts).

It's to be expected that an address non-partisan to a fault (e.g.: when he supported ex-President Bush's patriotism) would still be dismissed by the Republican "leadership", who find it convenient to look back in history at some times, but not others. There are also the obligatory "fact checks" that focus in on some minutia in order to find something to critique.

Obama did touch on problems at home, and how the wasting of over a trillion dollars on war in the Middle East has hurt our economy. If we could only learn from the past - war in Afghanistan drained enough money from the USSR's economy to cause it to collapse. Of course - it doesn't help when we lend money to banks for nearly zero interest, and they end up making huge profits while reducing lending that might actually help our economy. Supply-side economics? There's not enough supply in the universe to satisfy these pigs.

From the speech:
And so at this moment, as we wind down the war in Iraq, we must tackle those challenges at home with as much energy, and grit, and sense of common purpose as our men and women in uniform who have served abroad. They have met every test that they faced. Now, it is our turn. Now, it is our responsibility to honor them by coming together, all of us, and working to secure the dream that so many generations have fought for –the dream that a better life awaits anyone who is willing to work for it and reach for it.

Not touched on by Obama, however, are some of the other problems here at home that prevent the unity of purpose he'd like to see. We continue to dither over global warming while the planet slowly cooks around us. What does it say when a simple golf swing can spark a 25 acre blaze?... When hurricanes and other extreme weather wreaks havoc on our country?... When two of the worlds 9 most polluted cities are here in the U.S.? Even the scientists that global climate change deniers turn to are changing their tune, but at this point, does it make a difference? It's all about demonizing the messenger to discredit the message.

That will likely be the case for the 18% of Americans that believe the President is a Muslim (as though that would be a problem - were it even true). How can this country moved forward when there is a significant chunk that sees him one or two steps removed from the terrorists who attacked us 9 years ago? The nonsensical ravings about the Muslim community center a few blocks from the NYC WTC site are bad enough. In Redneck World, just building a mosque - period - is justification for arson. Do the miscreants who performed this deed realize that they themselves are now the terrorists?

While I appreciate the President's desire to score a "win" with the Iraq war - considering the malaise the economy remains in - I would prefer he expend his energy solving the real problems at home. Is there a solution for greed, stupidity, and hatred?

I sure hope so.

 

32 comments (Latest Comment: 09/02/2010 02:25:28 by velveeta jones)
   Perma Link

Share This!

Furl it!
Spurl
NewsVine
Reddit
Technorati