The Tea Party, and Other Stupidness

My thesis statement for this entry is that these people are a group of dipshit morons.

I want to clarify here at the start that I have nothing against people who have an opinion that differs from mine, as long as there are logical and reasonable arguments that support it. For instance, I have had long and heated debates with a couple of friends that truly stand by the principles of conservatism (limited government, fiscal responsibility, value of the private sector, social programs feeding dependency, etc). We never end up agreeing completely, but by the end of the discussion we will have both conceded logical arguments at some point, and end up still friends to boot. These people are NOT who I am talking about.

This story from the NY Times discusses the purpose and direction of the so called "Tea Party" movement that popped up in response to the stimulus bill originally, and has since latched on to the healthcare debate. In my  view, this group is just an angry right wing extremist group that basically does all it can to disrupt progress. What really got to me today in this article was the description of their conference, which started today. Not only is it a for profit conference (charging participants 600 bucks), but they are paying Sarah Palin $100,000 to deliver the keynote address. That alone makes me hate you. To pay that idiot any sum of money to spout off her rhetoric would be a waste, but $100,000 dollars should be considered a crime. For a group of people so concerned about wasting money, this seems like the ultimate in hypocrisy. This is enraging. I cannot believe how many people in this country still think of Sarah Palin as important, let alone worth paying that much money to hear speak for a half hour. They also claim that this not about Obama, or a party line, just non biased observations about what's is going on. Undoubtedly this event will be a biased Obamabashing event, focused on defeating the Democrats at all costs. Like I said, dipshit morons.

To top it all off for me today, this clown Richard Shelby (Republican Senator from Alabama) placed a "blanket hold" on something like 70 of Obama's nominees up for Senate approval. If this isn't evidence of the partisan bullshit going on in Washington, I don't know what is! The reasoning for this rare move? Shelby is concerned that Obama is going to halt funding for a counter terrorism center in Alabama, and has concerns about a tanker contract. Look, I know republicans are concerned (obsessed) about national security, but a counter terrorism center in Alabama? WTF???!!! This crap is getting old, and I'm curious to see how much of this the American people will stand up for. Oh, and this really sounds like the very behavior that conservatives are always whining about...you know, pork barrel projects and earmarks. How is this any different? Holding appointments hostage to get what you want. I've had it with these people.

Have a good day my fellow Americans
(unless you disagree with anything in my post, in which case I hope you stub your toe or something)

State of The Union Address

View the speech on YouTube

Last night, Barack Obama delivered his first official State of The Union Address, and my general reaction was very positive. As usual, the President displayed his ability to engage an audience and deliver a well written speech.

I have to admit that I don't put much stock into the efficacy of these annual addresses from a policy perspective. The circumstances under which todays promises were made will be different tomorrow, and it is likely that all of the things that were discussed in this years address, will again be present in next years. Not to mention the fact that Congress really is the entity that has the power to change policy, and so far that hasn't worked out so well for Obama. What these really seem to have an effect on are politics, and in that respect Obama did a great job. I liked James Carville's football analogy, calling it a "first down": certainly not a touchdown, but an incremental good step.

The election in MA was definitely a setback for the Dems, and I think Obama did a little bit of damage control last night. What follows are just some bullets laying out the things I thought he did particularly well last night. I may tackle a couple of these topics in more detail at some point, but I want to keep this post about last night.

• Redirect the attention to jobs. Healthcare has been Obama's focus to this point, but I think it has become apparent that without the support of Republicans, this is going to be more difficult than hoped. Undoubtedly, people have lost some confidence in the administration over this (which I find to be pretty ignorant- like a president can just get 'er done), and jobs are certainly a chief concern across the country. I also noticed that Obama used the term "health insurance reform" last night, which I thought was interesting and appropriate. This should still be a priority, but I think success will be more likely if it is negotiated quietly while jobs and the economy take the forefront...we shall see.

• Put everyone in their place. This was my favorite thing about last night. Obama's hit list was long and comprehensive. He took the American people to task by clarifying his role in our deficit, and laid down specific steps to pay it back. He once again reiterated that he inherited a bad situation (during a crisis no less), and people should not expect miracles. He also pointed out that while he sold hope during his campaign, he never said he could do it alone...and c'mon people lets admit it- you've been no help getting this healthcare thing done. Next on the list were Democrats and Republicans. He chastised Dems for running for the hills with the largest majority in decades, and the Reps for being the party of "No". I particularly enjoyed the part when he said something to the effect of "Republicans, if it is going to take a supermajority to get anything done in this town, then you are NOT doing your job representing the people of the United States." TAKE THAT! The other highlight was when he chastised everyone (including the media) for turning every topic into a political game, and turning the business of Congress into a constant campaign. If all we care about is who wins and loses elections, we will never get anything done, and that is not the solution. He also took it to the Supreme Court, who just messed up campaign finance, allowing unlimited contributions from corporations to campaigns. Lastly, he admitted mistakes made by his administration, and kind of took himself to task in a way.
  
  
• Got specific about plans. So often, these speeches are filled with very general plans (e.g. " we have to tackle the deficit this year"). I thought he did a great job of being specific with plans in almost every aspect of his address. It is nice to know that while Republicans (and Democrats I suspect for some!) may disagree with his ideas, they at least can't say he doesn' t have any.

Before I finish, I would like to just note that the rebuttal by Bob McDonnel was a huge improvement from weirdo Bobby Jindhal (note: not hard to do). It was kind of weird having all those hand picked supporters there clapping for him, but oh well. The content was pretty standard issue, but at least not blatantly sucky and ridiculous.

A New Endeavor

I have been particularly perturbed as of late. Debate and politics regarding healthcare reform in the United States, earthquake in Haiti, Sarah Palin’s book tour…these things have been weighing heavy on my mind. More and more, I feel like venting my frustrations in a controlled, but public forum. I haven’t until now experienced a thirst for this, but for some reason, the time just feels right. My goal for this blog is to mostly just provide opinion, and hopefully have dialog with any followers I may develop. I hope to make it edgy and relevant, so expect aspects to be biting and at times controversial (as some of my opinions happen to be!). Anyway, that should do for an introductory entry. I am kind of excited about writing at you.