[Tolik]

Food for thoughts!

Interesting article PING.

[Redcoat LI]

"In retrospect, it is hard not to feel sorry for Jimmy Carter."

Given his recent behavior,I feel no pity for that clown.

If only that Killer Rabbit had scared some sense into him.

[sphinx]

Good catch. One of my occasional reflections when things start looking too hopeless is that when I left college, we assumed the permanence of the Soviet empire and the nuclear stalemate, the intractibility of inflation, the impossibility of balancing the budget or reforming the welfare system, and the superiority of the Japanese economic model.

I will take our problems today over those any time. I also think, a decade from now, we will have dramatically expanded school choice and a reformed K-12 system, and the shift to an investment component in Social Security will be underway. If we could just add health care and tax reform, I'd be feeling pretty good about my generation's political track record.

[Revelation 911]

If God in His wisdom had given us six fingers on each hand instead of five, then we should have to wait 144 years to celebrate the centenary of a great man

six fingers is the dominant gene - five is the recessive - least thats what they taught us in High School

[Lyford]

Derb bump...

[MattinNJ]

Let us not forget the Miracle on Ice and the thunderous chanting of "USA, USA, USA" as a bunch of college kids crushed the Russians into the boardsin '80. That, coupled with the Iranians giving back the hostages ASAP once Reagan took office, were my first stirrings of patriotism as a young lad.

[r9etb]

Interesting post.

Sort of along the same lines, I've been thinking about the other side of this -- the rise of the Great Villains. Who is the enemy, and when will they really make themselves known?

I'm thinking in particular of the Nazis and Communists -- thoroughly brutal and psychotic organizations, and you wonder how people could possibly allow them into power. The question I have is: for the people (our parents and grandparents) who eventually had to face these enemies, what was it like to see them gain power, and at what point did they figure out they'd have to fight and win?

Will the next Great Villain be Islamic? Will it be Chinese? How does one tell?

[Arthur McGowan]

One thing irks me about this article: Calling Carter sincere. Carter is a "Christian" baby-butcher. He was the first really aggressive pro-abortion President. His judicial and other appointments were made with a rigid pro-abortion litmus test. Judicial appointees were asked point-blank: "How will you rule in abortion cases?" And his lies. Check out George Will's columns from the campaign of 1980 for an endless catalogue of Carter's gross lies.

[sionnsar]

Back home again, Deng launched the free-trading New Economic Zones.

Spent some time in one of those zones, Shenzhen, a few years ago. 25 years ago it was nothing. Now it's a more modern-looking city than any I've seen.

The Iranian revolution was, of course, an appalling disaster for that country. It was also a key factor in the implosion of the Carter presidency. In retrospect, it is hard not to feel sorry for Jimmy Carter.

I think there are some FReepers here who have posted material that has a very different take on Carter -- that his recent behavior is much more consistent with what he really was, as opposed to the image he projected, back then.

[BadAndy]

"...Carter had the misfortune to be president at time when his particular weaknesses were just those most disastrous to the nation and his plans"

This makes it sound like Carter was just unlucky. Carter was weak, it was obvious to our enemies and they took advantage of it. It wouldn't have made a difference on matter when he was president, the outcome would have been the same. This was confirmed when a STRONG president Reagan) was elected and our enemies immediately began to retreat.

BC, before Klinton, Carter was thought to be a good man who was a bad president. He kept his mouth shut, built houses and was generally harmeless. During the KKKlinton years Jimma decided to showcase his political idiocy and anti-americanism, thereby losing any respect he may have earned.

[metesky]

A clever and sincere man, filled with public spirit and the desire to do good, Carter...

Oh please!

[jpl]

I agree with everything here, with the exception of the section lauding Jimmy Carter as a fundamentally decent and honest man. I used to think that way as well, but the last couple of years have proven otherwise to me. As a failed former President, a truly honorable man would have the decency to live out his life in dignified silence, but Carter feels increasingly compelled to open his mouth and embarrass himself even further.

[happygrl]

Western civilization had turned to face its enemies, both those inside the walls and those without. The war that then commenced is not yet over. Perhaps it never will be; but it was in 1979 that we got our nerve back, picked up our discarded weapons again, and resolved to fight. This was the year it all changed, the year the ice cracked.

Chills.