This thread has been locked, it will not receive new replies. |
Locked on 03/13/2006 10:44:43 PM PST by Jim Robinson, reason:
Enough already!! |
Posted on 03/11/2006 4:08:48 PM PST by quidnunc
Ever since George W. Bush won the presidency by preventing Al Gore's hanging-chad attempt to steal it, liberal Democrats have become progressively infected with BDS Bush Derangement Syndrome.
Here's how I think that the contagion of BDS is now infecting a number of conservative Republicans.
If you're a guy, perhaps you have endured this unpleasant and bewildering experience. You're in a relationship and you and the lady have had some disagreements but nothing major. From your perspective things are pretty ok. Then one day you and she disagree on some minor trivial issue and suddenly, inexplicably, it escalates as she unloads on you.
It seems like the love of your life has had a personality transplant, you're facing a virago disgorging a torrent of anger, and all you can think is, "Where did this come from?"
If you're a guy, you're nodding your head in understanding. If you're a gal, you're muttering, "Men are so clueless. We give them all these hints for so long that things are bugging us, they never get the message, then when we finally can't take it any more and snap, they're mystified."
I think you get the analogy.
A relationship that suffers this trauma can survive only if both parties calm down afterwards, focus on their mutual interests and commitment, and work together to solve their grievances.
-snip-
But it's another thing entirely when Duncan Hunter (R-CA), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, goes around the bend and offers a bill to make all foreign ownership or leasing of any cargo terminal in any US port illegal. Duncan, my buddy whom I've gone quail hunting with, how could he get so nuts?
There are some 3,200 terminals in US ports. 80% of them are foreign owned or leased. Unions and government regulations have made it impossible for US shipping companies to stay in business, making them bit players in the international shipping business. (See this story in the New York Times, US Companies Weighed Anchor on Ports Long Ago.)
Duncan's bill would cause astronomical damage to the US economy, but he doesn't care because he's on a BDS rant.
-snip-
"Realize that not every muslim in the world is the enemy."
Every Rattlesnake may not be out to inject me with their venom, but in search of the kinder, gentler more tolerant Rattler, I don't intend to tolerate them too close to me.... just in case ;)
If the progress we are making in the mid east comes at the barrel of a gun, then is it really progress? Tolerating us and wanting to live side by side in peace are at opposite ends of the spectrum and seem to be unrealistic expectations. Letting our guard down and looking at the situation through rose colored glasses only gives these crazy muslims that belong to islam more of an edge on us.
Their similarity to the left is impossible to miss. One fellow today said things that could have come from the mouth of Howard Dean or Terry McCauliffe............and I assume he thought he was fooling people......
They want small government because they want to do whatever they feel like doing with no interference, but they are completely liberal in every other way.
You can identify them because they're always bragging that they're the most conservative one around :), but they never show any allegiance to conservative causes other than less spending, and less interference in their lives. Small government liberals.........that's why they use the same tactics and even language of the extreme leftists. They're on the same side.
Yeah, the 24/7 bash or find fault with President Bush is the huge tell tale sign. Stir the pot and post article after article that critize POTUS.
Old game: divide and conquer.
Ah, calling more than 80% of the public racists becuase they didn't agree with you wasn't enough...Now they have some kind of mental disorder.
Y'all really know how to make friends and influence people, eh?
"Don't question his character as much as his competency. His appointments, for the most part have been lackluster and mediocre."
Rice and Rumsfield are mediocre? The selection of Cheney as VP was a master stroke. Like or hate him Cheney has single-handily change forever the power and importance of the Vice Presidency. Remember, Bush is the only President since FDR to add seats in Congress for his party during the mid-terms and re-election. He's just brought India into our "tent". Not the workings of an incompenent.
"Right after 911 he fails to lead congress to a Constitutionally mandated Declaration of War, like the days after Peal Harbor."
Exactly who were/are we going to declare war on? Declarations of War are legal instruments to wage war against a nation-state. A terrorist organization is not a state. Further, this country has engaged in "low scale" undeclared wars since the founding. Adams waged war against the French. Jefferson waged war against the Barbary Pirates with no declaration of war. The list goes on and on. Finally, there is no comparing WWII with WoT. The nation's very survival was on the line in WWII. Until the terrorists start wielding nuclear weapons the WoT is nothing more than a bunch of knats annoying the lion. As terrible as 9/11 was it didn't diminish our power one bit. In a nation of nearly 300 million the loss of 3,000 is "nothing" [note the scare quotes, please before flaming me for this comment]. We could absorb multiple 9/11s and the nation would still survive. And would be mightily pissed off to the point that we might actually start fighting this war like a real war with no remorse or pity.
"We wait a interminable month and a half to strike back at the enemy in Afghanistan."
Logistics, my friend. You can't start a war without positioning your troops and supplies. Sorry, Star Fleet isn't circling above ready to teleport the 4th ID into Afghanistan. That we toppled the Taliban in less than three months has to be counted as a victory unrivaled in the annals of history. Remember we did that with only special forces, air power and friendlies on the ground. Russia floundered there for eight years and lost 50,000+ before leaving in defeat. Remember all the talk that we were going to be there slugging it out in the mountains of Afghanistan for years and years. Never happened did it?
"We sit 5 years later and the WTC's haven't been replaced. In WWII we had all but one of those sunken battleships back in action promptly."
You pay attention to the news at all or just make pronouncements? Anyone following the news knows that the reason that the WTCs haven't been rebuilt is because the good people of New York can't get their act together. The whole project has devolved into a name-calling mess.
"The 2nd term has been noteworthy exercise in rudderlessness. With war raging in Iraq and Afghanistan, he goes out barnstorming Social Security with the claim that if we don't fix it, it will be broke in 2042. That silly initiative falls flat on its face and political capital as well."
Give the President his due for at least bringing the subject up. We HAVE to reform/replace Social Security. Period. It will go belly up if nothing is done.
"More billions get spent on a prescription drug giveaway that is monstrously unaffordable, to pander to the old folks for votes."
Bush promised to do this during the 2000 campaign. Just fulfilling a campaign promise. Rememeber he and Gore were falling all over themselves over this. Seems a lot of voters wanted this. Blame the voters, not the President. Besides, the President can't do jack unless Congress gives his the authority/money. Blame should fall on our fine representatives in Congress, don't you think? The President isn't the king.
"Iraq is invaded successfully, and the occupation is badly administered, billions are wasted on the attempt to democratize Iraq which has scant bearing on our national security."
My question to you is what if after all our blood and money Iraq does become a democracy and friend to the United States? What say you then? Iraq could even become a full-fledged partner in the WoT. There is a reason Syria and Iran fear a democratic Iraq. The Iraqis will remember who stood beside them and who stood against them in getting rid of Saddam and the terrorists. Remember, a new American trained and equipped army is rising in the Middle East. Soon it will be kicking butt and taking names. BTW We didn't invade Iraq, we LIBERATED it.
"Racing forward comes the Harriet Myers fiasco,"
Thanks to the spoiled brats in the punditry and here at FR. Instead of allowing the President his Constitutional right to name his choice, many decided otherwise and ran over the Democrats in attacking the President and his choice. There is absolutely no proof that Myers wouldn't have made a SC justice to make us proud. Instead many decided to throw a temper-tantrum.
"then the Katrina disaster,"
Media-made up disaster, my friend. Most of the stories that came out of New Orleans shortyly after Katrina hit have been proved to have been false. Why no discussion of Mississippi or Alabama? Both those states suffered greatly and yet scarely a word about how well the Feds and local folks worked together. The Coast Guard did its job in New Orleans. The National Guard did it's job, WHEN Blanco finally got around to asking for help. FEMA is a RELIEF organization. Not a RESCUE organization. The responsibly for the Katrina disaster in LA and New Orleans falls on two people: Blanco and Nagin.
"never mind his countrymen have been tossed on the unemployment heap and had careers ruined from outsourcing"
Funny, last time I check the unemployment stats I seem to remember a 4.7% unemployment rate. 6% is considered good.
5 million new jobs in five years. Record EMPLOYMENT. An economy that continues to hum along despire record oil prices. And for all this talk of out-sourcing it turns out that the "in-sourcing" of jobs into the United States by foreign companies is greater than the out-sourcing of jobs out of the United States.
"on the heels of that comes the port-gate debacle."
See the Myers debacle above. Same thing applies here.
"Ronald Reagan performed his office effortlessly and well in his two terms, and won landslide victories to boot."
Take those rose-colored glasses off, my friend. Reagan endured the same trials as Bush currently does with a hostile media and name-calling opponenets. Surely you remember the "amiable dunce" and other names they called him. Remember Beurit? We lost 300 soldiers and turned tail and ran. Remember Iran-Contra. Remember the Bork fiasco? As great as President as Reagan was he had his ups and downs. That we remember glowing his Presidency is because the Cold War ended AFTER he had left office and we could all see that he was a big reason for our victory. The same I think will be said of Bush twenty years hence. BTW George W. Bush won more votes for a second term to the Presidency than any other President in history.
I think you can distinguish who was who around here, EV.
What on earth are you talking about?
I haven't called anybody anything.
The 80% who were against the Dubai ports deal were uninformed and reacting to the blitz of demagoguery unleashed by the MSM and their yapping MSM lapdogs.
The Bush administration was caught flat-footed and didn't react in time to counter it.
The bannee's post on this thread was hardly ban-worthy, IMO.
The bad attitude displayed by Bush loyalists on this thread and others is killing the party, my friend.
People don't take kindly to being called insane racists, know what I mean? Especially over simple policy disagreements.
In their defense of the President, too many have taken to using sledgehammers when scalpels are called for.
Jack Wheeler can go jump in a lake.
No, you haven't, but the piece you posted from Wheeler, to boil it down to its essence, says: "Conservatives who disagree with the President have a mental disorder...the same one as the Left."
To which I say, "Jump in a lake, Jack."
I'd say worse, but it wouldn't be appropriate to the forum.
It is not the Bush loyalists who are the problem in the party, my friend. Not even close.
You can't tell the freeper bashers from DU anymore. That should be a sign to you.
Many disagree.
I, and many others, understand the deal quite well, and yet still oppose it.
Just because you claim we're ignorant don't make it so.
It's the Bush loyalists who are, in their misguided attempt to protect the President, actually doing him more harm than you can imagine by calling everyone who opposes certain policies 'crazy bigots'.
You, who should know better, just did it again in your last post.
There is a big difference in disagreeing with the President and acting just like the jerks over on DU.
Calling the President "BuSHIT" "Chimp", "Cokehead", "Monkeyboy", etc. are exactly what the people on DU, DailyKos, etc. do on a daily basis. We even have some members here (long time members) who have made comments regarding the President that are worthy of a visit from the U.S. Secret Service. Although one is currently banned, the rest are not.
Then you have the members who just ooze hatred simply because the President doesn't agree with their one pet issue. And yes, for many who obsess over that issue, it is all about one thing, race.
To deny the bigotry of a person who says 'Kill all the A-Rabs' is to be willfully in error. I have seen ugly, ugly stuff around here in the past week, and not a bit of it was coming from a Bush supporter.
Amazing how I haven't seen any of that. Mods must be doing a great job.
I am surprised that a man with as much dignity as you have, EV, would defend such despicable behavior in others.
Then you, unfortunately, have blinders on.
After regurgitating all the paleo-con talking points, he was asked by Rush "So you're saying that no port facilities should be sold to Arabs, but not because they're Arabs, is that it?"
"Yes" agreed the caller, "that's exactly it!"
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