Posted on 09/15/2005 4:52:29 PM PDT by Howlin
Edited on 09/15/2005 5:05:17 PM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]
9 P.M. EDT.
bttt
LOL!!!!
Well, in Philadelphia, they interviewed evacuees here on the late news. If I thought these people were typical, I could not in good conscience give another penny of money for relief efforts. They were shrill and disgusting in their comments. Too little, too late. Totally blamed the president on what happened there. Content to stew in the past and refused to see the potential of the future. No wonder NO had become what it was (the worst aspects of it, I mean).
I watched a rerun last night and the criticisms were way over the top hysterical. I have to say, that if it takes us against them selfishness to be a "true conservative" then I am not sure what to say.
We are all Americans. We were all hurt badly by Mother Nature. It will benefit us all to have the Gulf Coast vibrant and prosperous.
And I suspect you are right about the incognito part.
And other families are blessed to have been raised in familes that believe in government handouts. I believe government handouts do in fact exist, and that politicians use wealth transfer to obtain votes and power.
I'll just say that the worm has turned. I'm not sure what comes next except that we will continue to live through interesting times.
I saw no echoes of LBJ in that speech. The Great Society was composed of handouts that went into a black hole, encouraging its recipients to continue a life of poverty. It encouraged the breakup of families. This is a program, if administered as the president laid out, will be used to build infrastructure and help build businesses--the engine of our economy and culture which is the envy of the entire world. It implies a partnership between government seed money and individual effort to nurture the plant. I was originally educated to be a City Planner, but chose not to go there. And I can tell you that there was nothing like this that we studied from that earlier period. I'm looking forward to see how this will work out. But that inspector general is going to have to work incredibly hard. If corrupt state and local people get their hands into that pie, then it will be doomed to failure. My chief concern is the precedent it sets in blurring the responsibilities of states and the national government.
It was unbelievable to me that after the President gave such an inspiring, uplifting, heartfelt speech that the media chose to pick it apart and inject their usual vitriol into the mix. W was obviously trying to heal and unite the country for the common good and the usual suspects chose to continue the divide.
"I am very skeptical that handing over federal land (where?) . . ."
I think he may have been referring to the federal low-income housing projects in New Orleans that are now unliveable and will likely be bulldozed..
U R right. I missed that.
Most of us believe leaders LEAD, not follow, or not do what one hopes will be "popular" among the press, the voters and the global community.
Ronald Reagan was a president who seemd to keep his focus on the nation and its future (that is my passion). I believe Ronald Reagan if president today would demand equal sharing of the costs with the state and counties and even the city. I also believe he would have asked for offsets to other social welfare programs to pay for this Katrina mess. Too bad President Bush did not learn form Ronald Reagan (for that matter, neither did Bush's father).
I didn't look at his remarks on racial discrimination that way. We DO have a history of racial discrimination in this country that has had the effect over the years of gathering minorities into the inner cities into situations that has been hard for them to get out of. The reasons given for that are often not accurate, but the fact is that it happened. I believe that the president was making an historical generality then said it's time to look to the future. Immigrants who came to this country like yours did after our Civil War are truly a critical backbone of what we have become and I am forever beholden to all of you. I come from ancestors who settled here before the American Revolution and who fought in all of its wars. I also know that what the president said is right. I grew up among very prejudiced people and it took me a long time to get enough distance from them and what they taught to get persepctive on it. It's now time to look to the future. It's what people like your grandparents did. And it's time for us as a nation to do so now. Your ancestors did so immediately; now it's time for others to join them.
Don't get between a Liberal and your wallet, they'll scratch your eye's out! Blackbird.
I do have some concerns about the president's programs and you have mentioned a key one. We haven't given this level of assistance to everyone and this might set up an expectation of increased government assistance for everything that nature throws at us in the future. And when people begin to get something, they want more. I was not happy with many of the survivors of 9/11 victims.
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