Is the Obama Team Up to the Job?
- Print print this page
- Discuss 15 comments, Blog about
Advertisement
My friends tell me I’m oversimplifying the issues. Maybe I am. Maybe the independents who put President Obama in office were not that fired up about the loss of 50 percent of their portfolios and 30 percent of their home values.
Maybe he didn’t have a golden opportunity to reinstitute sane boundaries on the financial industry that allow them to grow and prosper but don’t allow them to wreck the entire economy.
Maybe he didn’t see that pacifying dozens of warlords and creating an allied, centralized government out of a pile of rocks thousands of miles away was impossible and not worth one of our military personnel getting so much as a hangnail.
Maybe all of us who are generally worried about the rising costs of medical coverage should take comfort that the very same industries who hold sway over those costs authored the biggest cluster (of you know what) in U.S. history.
Maybe we shouldn’t worry that our president walks into meetings with nations around the globe and consistently comes out empty-handed. Maybe I’m just oversimplifying the issues, or maybe, just maybe, the man and his team in Washington are just not up to the job.
Scott Griffin
Southern Pines
More like this story
Advertisement
Comments
jamjam 2 years, 5 months ago
The resulting loss of portfolios is due to systemic risk. Until the financial market circumvents the current barrier with a new product you will continue to suffer loss. What we are seeing isn't a Presidents fault but more the problem of Capitalism. look to the federal reserve, look to the top 1%, but don't just look at one man. We need to remember that this event will repeat itself until we wake up to the truth.
JER 2 years, 5 months ago
Yes, Mr. Griffin, this is all the Obama administrations fault. Everything was fine until he was elected and he allowed the business and financial sectors to rape the economy. You remember, it all started in Jan. 2008. That was about the same time he invaded Iraq and Afghanistan. Shortly after the election, as you will recall, he told the country that he could give a flying flip about the rising health care costs and that he would take no action to control them. Yes, all the other nations now take advantage of us because Obama is our leader. It is because he has allowed all the other countries to loan us money to pay for all the stupid thing he has done in the past two years. You can sympathise with him on that, can't you? I mean do you think you can walk into your bank and dictate to them the terms that you will be repaying your home mortgage. You're lucky he didn't tell them to repossess us.
native 2 years, 5 months ago
well said , with tongue in cheek..........
OldPilot 2 years, 5 months ago
Friends are correct.
madstork 2 years, 5 months ago
Mr. Bouser.
Rape in JER message is offensive.
JER 2 years, 5 months ago
madstork: According to the dictionary I use, the word can mean "to plunder or pillage" which is exactly what I meant it to convey.
ChiefHammer: In 2012 we can see what a half term quitter governor can do. Oh, by the way, the population of Alaska, where your candidate got all that experience, is about 700,000. The population of Chicago (not Illinois, just Chicago), where Mr. Obama got his experience, is 2,800,000.
Prior to his election, I commented in this forum that if Mr. Obama was elected, a sure sign that he was doing a good job would be when he had both the Republicans and the Democrats mad at him. I still believe that.
jamjam 2 years, 5 months ago
Barrack Obama is just another figurehead surrounded by misconception and hypocrisy. Each one of us as writers represents many of the varying views. We do sometimes agree, but more to the tune that we seldom agree. I often try to understand things I disagree with, but after time I have realized that, many of you have not made the leap of faith to think beyond the words of our Fathers. I know that most you hold societies institutions close and with unwavering trust. However, I cannot take it any more, and the reasons are complicated and vary with each subject. Money was mentioned in the article, so that is what I am writing about now. Benjamin Franklin was not a big fan of King George. One reason was that King George wanted to loan the colonies money with a slight interest rate. This angered Benjamin because it ensured that the colonies would always be in debt to the bank. In 1913, this happened again; except it was American bankers and the center of debt would be the Federal Reserve. Someone said that Americans hold more faith in Money than they do God. With that said, money only exists because we believe it exists. Sure, you can hold a dollar in your hand, but its value is the paper and ink that it was made with. We were given a precious gift in our Republic. We have allowed money and power to corrupt the one thing that has given each of us the fleeting feeling of freedom. I live in a Country that embraces Capitalism as the philosophy of wealth practiced in homes and businesses. I do not think that is who we are by nature. I believe humanity to be something more than institutions and faded dogma. As long as we live by economics, we will continue to consume. Our disproportionate consumption kills another person by default. America is all about freedom, it is about the rule of law, and it is about the freedoms that all men should have. The illusion of wealth is no reason to sell ones soul.
MikeNC 2 years, 5 months ago
JER Says..."The population of Chicago (not Illinois, just Chicago), where Mr. Obama got his experience, is 2,800,000." .......What does population in Chicago have anything to do with Obama? And just what presidential experience did he recieve there?
Most had serious doubts that a non resume holder of Obama's magnitude could ever be up to the job of POTUS. But we hoped he would wisely choose a sound and capable cabinet to advise and direct him. We would be proven wrong. Upon seeing the selections he made for cabinet and staff positions...the doubt intensified. After two years in office it is obvious the man nor his cabinet have been up to the job and seem to take delight in setting back our standard of living, our standard in world affairs and how we are viewed by world leaders. If he should begin to listen to the advice of a new congress in January....we can hope for a positive change in the direction for our country......Mike
JER 2 years, 5 months ago
MikeNC: Taken in the context presented in my post, the population of Chicago is being used to show how actual interface with humans has a greater influence on how a politician gains experience in dealing with actual problems faced by actual people. In 2012, you will be given the chance to elect a POTUS who can kill wildlife and see foreign countries from her front porch.
Ross 2 years, 5 months ago
maybe the rethuglicans can get Georgie boy back for another 8 years. We all know how they solved all of the countries problems.
MikeNC 2 years, 5 months ago
JER....Your 'actual interface with humans' in your context is ridiculous. By your standard, possibly we can import a native form Seóul, South Korea with a population of around 20,550,000 ...Now that would be a POTUS qualification for ya! If Obama had been a Mayor of Chicago (A successful one); that could be a different story concerning actual worthwhile and useable experience. 'Governing' is a learned skill which requires actual experience. Many people however can be in a governing position such as Mayor or State Governor and never learn how to govern. Many just do not have what it takes to be an effective governor or leader as it's not an easy skill to master. I still do not know whether Obama is capable or not of learning this skill. Hopefully, he is. Let's face the facts...Our current president did not bring any of this experience to the White House. That in iteslf allowed people to use and take advantage of him...both leaders in his own Party and world leaders. He did not recognize such behavior in order to prevent it or know what appropriate action to take when it occurred.....when he finally figures it out or someone tells him what just happened. Governing experience is critical for such a job....and all of us suffer when a leader (Any Leader at Any Level) does not have it. Some folks, probaly like you, will not recognize that obvious fact or just will not admit it; for whatever reason people have.
I like Sarah Palin for what she is...a very wholesome person who is not afraid of letting others know exactly who she is and what is important to her. I doubt that she will even run for office let alone get the nomination. I think she has found her niche in politics and is very effective in what she does. Why so many are ready to jump on her wholesome beliefs is beyond me; other than so many Americans now accept lower personal standards of behavior for Americans......Mike
JER 2 years, 5 months ago
Thanks for your comments, MikeNC. It's funny how we all criticize politicians for being "politicians" and then criticize one when he does not act like a "politician". I certainly don't agree with every aspect of what Mr.Obama and his administration have done in the two years since he was elected our President. But the fact remains, he is OUR President and for the next two years, I'll do all I can to support his efforts to get us out of the hell hole the previous administration got us into. In 2012, I'll vote for the candidate that I think will do the best job for ALL Americans, not just the ones in my circle of friends. Maybe it will be Mr. Obama, maybe it will be someone else. That decision will be made after a lot of research and finalized as I walk into the voting booth. Anyway, hope your party can find a candidate that has just the right combination of ingredients for you to support in 2012. You ask why some people don't share your views on Sarah and point to her "wholesome beliefs". I wonder why people don't like Mr. Obama. I think he has just as many "wholesome beliefs" and, to my knowledge, doesn't kill things for sport, which is why I find Sarah less desirable. He is also not a quitter, which is why I find Sarah less desirable. His daughter is not an unwed mother that is splashed across the media as some sort of youth role model, which is why I find Sarah less desirable and question the term "wholesome" that is used to describe her.
MikeNC 2 years, 5 months ago
Your welcome JER. I reckon you and me share the same planet, but we just live in different worlds. For the most part, I'm done with it. But I will mention a couple of things. What is your definition of wholesome? What part of Sara Palin is not wholesome...the part where 'her daughter', like how many thousands of other unwed teens became pregnant or is it the part where the daughter chose to have the baby and NOT abort it? You know abort as in have the infant sliced and diced within her womb like a butchered animal. Or is the unwholesome part the act between her daughter and boyfriend that caused the pregnancy?
Was it not Obama that said he is in favor of abortion so that if one of his daughters makes a 'mistake'...she will not have to be punished for the rest of her life? You know...punished in having to have to deal with an illegitimate son or daughter. To slice and dice is preferred I guess? Is that wholesome? Do you know, of course you do, that our president is in favor of infanticide? Is that wholesome in our society?
Having a personal dislike for hunting is one thing, but to hold all others to your standard of personal opinion...is that right? Do we not have provisions for legal hunting..."Kill things for Sport" to use your words. What's ethically or morally wrong with that? What is not wholesome about that? Do you know where all the license and permit fees collected from hunters go to...right back to the animals and their management for all of us, including the animals to enjoy.
Have you ever visited a stock yard or watched the chutes in action at a slaughter house? Do you know how animals are treated and confined...all for the purpose of one day becoming food? How about a chicken or turkey farm which exists for the same purpose. How about an egg laying facility. Ever watch the cattle and chicken trucks go to market...I know you close your eyes and pretend you don't see it; so therefore it must not be real in your world. How about a fish hatchery? How about the treatment all these animals receive when being processed...ALIVE for our tables and finest restaurants. How about the treatment they receive during daily existence; slipping and standing around in their own and others feces. How wholesome is that?
Now take a free ranging wild animal. An animal who led the life God designed for it to lead. And now a hunter stalks this animal, kills it as humanely as possible, quarters it and packs it out of the bush. Then the hunter processes the animal and makes use of it's flesh, hide, etc Which type of animal was more humanely treated JER? Which animal would you prefer to have lived as? With your beliefs, I certainly hope you are a strict vegetarian...and choose not to eat eggs or fish either because of your personal standards you choose to place on others.
Let me pay the fare here so you can take a free trip back to your world...Have a nice trip... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzlG28...
JER 2 years, 5 months ago
MikeNC: ""For the most part, I'm done with it" and then proceed for another five paragraphs. Glad you didn't have something important to say. You are entitled to your opinions and beliefs. My previous comments constitute MY opinion and beliefs. If you admire Sarah and her family and how they conduct their lives, good for you. You asked why people don't feel like you do about her and I offered several reasons why I don't. Your response to my answer to your question went on and on about how stupid my opinions are. I do not hold all others to my "standard of personal opinion". You want to be a hunter, have at it. Want to be anti abortion, that is your right to not have an abortion. Want to condone unwed mothers because so many thousands (maybe it's now millions) are also doing it, that is your privilege. That is the world you find to be wholesome. A world that permits animals to be treated as you described evidently also fits into this world you live in, since I saw nothing in your response that indicates you find that treatment offensive. You were too busy trying to indicate that I want to force everyone to accept my standards while all the time forcing your opinions down my throat. You are as typical an example of the far right as can be found. You know what's best for all of us and anyone who disagrees is the enemy. Guess that's the leadership traits you learned in your years on the job in the military.
MikeNC 2 years, 5 months ago
JER....You are so wrong with your...."You are as typical an example of the far right as can be found". I want what's right for our country and her citizens and I do not care who that comes from...Democrat or Republican or from the man in the moon. And we are not getting anything positive from this administration and I will state so because it's factual...not from any 'right' or any other position...just the facts as they are easily observed by the majority of people. And the same facts are also ignored or discarded by people who's lives are dictated and strictly polarized by political allegiance and correctness...like yours seems to be. Hopefully I'm wrong about that.
If you cannot understand my feelings about animals and wildlife from what I said...you must have poor interpretation skills. But I would sure choose to be the wild and free ranging animal that happens to be killed by the hunter; than lead the poor miserable life of animals that show up on your dinner plate each day....Mike
irkim13 2 years, 5 months ago
Jer and ayone else that supports abortion. How do you feel about the son or daughter grandson or granddaughter (perhaps yours) that is murdered inside the womb by its own mother? I know the whole mothers choice thing but what about the baby itself? Does it not have a right to life? What exactly is wholesome about a mother murdering her own child out of convenience or President Obama supporting the murder of his own granddaughter or grandson?