If for some reason you feast on the laments of a disappointed liberal/progressive/guy-with-too-much-time-on-his-hands on the reelection of
George Walker Bush, then dinner is prepared!
Let me first say that I'm very happy that this election brought many new
voters (and many lapsed voters) into the process. You pay taxes; you get
summoned to jury duty; you register for selective service; you certainly
should vote. Voting isn't just about winning an election, it's about doing
your civic duty. People have died bringing democracy to their countries, so
a little appreciation is due, I think. Another positive aspect of this
election was the very clear 3.6 million vote margin Bush won in the popular
vote, the only poll that really matters to me. It's true that the popular
vote doesn't elect the president, but it sure helps establish legitimacy.
Even if Kerry managed to win Ohio, I would not have been confortable with his
victory. It's too much like winning a game of 8 ball by your opponent's
scratching the cue ball.
The Republicans won a very, very big victory in this election. They control
both Houses of Congress (again) and Bush will likely have to appoint a few
Supreme Court justices during his second term. And, although some might say
that the 52% victory is small, I do not. The G.O.P. victories in Congress and
in gubernatorial races are a damning repudiation of any agenda painted with
the sticky tar of "liberal." This referendum on Bush's record is a doughty
vindication of the Neo-Conservative agenda. Expect more wars, more debt,
more federal bureacracy, more privatization of federal programs, anemic job
growth and reduced taxes. Such is the 2000-2004 record of the Bush
administration. Why tamper with success? Moreover, this is what most voting
Americans have asked for.
I am not a partisan Democrat. I don't want the Dems to be in the position
that the Republicans are now in. A healthy democracy requires the
comprimize/cooperation of liberal and conversative elements. That is not
what's going to happen in the Federal government during the next four years.
It's no use crowing about the future consequences of the neo-con agenda.
That has been done in many other places more adroitly that I can here in this
humble blog. However, it is the fear of the long-term ecomonic and political
damage that pursuing an arrogant foreign policy and a ruthless domestic
policy will incur that makes me shudder. I suppose it's possible that America can unilaterially pacify all
of its enemies, real or imagined. Maybe a war born on a lie will turn out just
fine. It's possible that the looming health care crisis will be averted by
lowering taxes and privatizing Medicare. It's conceivable that the middle
class will not be dragged under the weight of rising costs of living into the
ranks of the working poor. It may well be that overturning
Rowe v. Wade, banning Gay marriages, putting God back in the classroom
and sticking the Ten Commandments in every court house will create a more
virtuous, caring society.
We'll see.
What is clear is that the next successful Democrat candidate will not come
from the North East or the Lakes states. It will have to be a Southerner or
someone from Mountains region. I can't help feeling that in some spectral way,
the Civil War is still being fought.
And now, cue the Pomp and Circumstance...
Thoughts
pudge on 2004-11-03T20:58:14
I don't care about the popular vote, because it is not a good barometer, in my opinion. People are more likely to note vote for President, or vote third party, in a state like MA or TX than FL or OH. The votes between two states are not comparable, so you can't really put them into one big pot and stir.
That said, when you win by a few million or more, it sure does tend to factor out some of those discrepancies.
I wrote in my Slashdot journal today that yes, this is a big GOP victory and a big Democrat defeat. The Democrats have had only one real victory in 10 years. The party is circling the drain. And my hope is that the Democrats either fix their party by getting a real message that resonates with voters apart from "the other guys suck," or split into two parties that can really make a difference.
Expect more wars, more debt, more federal bureacracy, more privatization of federal programs, anemic job growth and reduced taxes On the debt, Kerry had only one thing to offer people concerned about it: that the Congress would not go along with his plans. He wanted to spend even more money than Bush, with no significant increased revenues over Bush. While the prospect of deadlock may be a reason to vote for Kerry, it certainly isn't something he can brag about.
:-)
I like privatization as a general rule.
Job growth has been pretty good actually, almost 2 million in the last year, and unemployment is the same as it was when Clinton was re-elected (and so is the "discouraged" workers number, contrary to popular belief).
I like lower taxes, of course, though I hate deficits too. But I would prefer we keep taxes low and lower, and reduce spending to match. Alas, I can't have all I want.
As to war, I expect that in the short term we will see continued strife, but in the long term, the Middle East will be transformed for the better, significantly decreasing the threat of worldwide terror. I think we can all agree this is a great thing to hope for, and it is the greateast reason I supported the war.
It's no use crowing about the future consequences of the neo-con agenda. Most of what you mentioned has nothing to do with neo-cons.
A neo-con is a strange and rare animal. He is one who was a liberal in the 60s and became a "conservative" in the 80s. He believed in an aggressive foreign policy before 9/11, but is not especially socially or fiscally conservative. The average conservative today, even in Washington, only has serious intersection with the neo-con on issues of aggressive foreign policy.
I mention this not merely as a semantic point: there is a big undercurrent in Congress right now to cut spending significantly. We heard it some a year ago, but less during the election year, but I suspect strongly we might start to see it come out again in the coming years. I hope so, anyway.
History has this lesson already
phillup on 2004-11-03T21:18:12
However, it is the fear of the long-term ecomonic and political damage that pursuing an arrogant foreign policy and a ruthless domestic policy will incur that makes me shudder. History has already shown the world what happens when a super power pursues a military agenda with complete disregard for economic viability.
Unfortunately, a lot of people weren't paying attention. Especially to the part where it only took two presidential terms for it to happen...
I can only hope that the Republican base pulls this administration back into line in the area of fiscal responsibility.
But, I really don't see that happening.
jj leave while you still can
hfb on 2004-11-04T10:11:14
The america you keep hoping will make a comeback is gone and will never return. You should come visit and find yourself a nice girl over here.
This guy said it for me...
jordan on 2004-11-04T14:24:42
http://dalythoughts.com/index.php?p=2586
