The Dangers of Allowing Blind Fools To Lead!....


Let me preface my Blog to say that this is an editorial I never wanted to write; it has been prompted by real reports from Russian and Saudi sources and others who seem to have a good pipeline into an adminstration that finds it's only virility in the exercise of unabashed power. It seems that fantasy, ignorance and egoism have combined to propel us on a venture that does not have a predictable end. We may be setting things in motion here that cannot be stopped or controlled. And we are dealing with people who can only start things up and don't know how to end them.

I am sending this out mostly as a warning to advise people that we need to come together to find a solution; not to condone the insanity of these actions.
Here is my Blog's latest addition:

War with Iran, Unthinkable?

Not any more!


I couldn't imagine this happening in our lifetimes.

Especially with our military so stretched out, so weak.

With not even an ability to reinforce our own troop structure.

But chutzpah rules supreme in the land of the crazies.

Why? Because we have not offered an alternative to their willingness to strut their power.

We have acquiesced again and again.

And now it may really be a possibility, as absurd as it sounds.

These people who rule now resemble madmen. If we didn't know it before, we should realize it now.

They are not interested in education, joint programs, sharing; they are warmongers of the worst kind who's only solution seems to be the unbridled exercise of might.

We have seen the enemy and it is Us as Pogo used to say.

Our failure to face up to them in the very beginning has resulted in their unwillingness to give up power but, on the other hand, to take it to the extreme.

In fact, if anything, it has only enhanced their drunken and insane manipulation of power for their own egoistic ends....

Do we have any options left?

The Media, our representatives, the Court?

Confidence doesn't brim over with these prospects.

It may in the last resort come down to the people making a final stand.

It may come to that.

Because the reality is that we have caved, and in caving, we have made it possible for them to do as they like.

Should we find the only solution in War, we will be weakened beyond imagining in every court in the world.

Everyone will hate us more than they do now; and they will do everything to get back at us.

We will become totally isolated in the world.

When dialogue ends, friction begins.

And here the dialogue has ended eight years ago.

We have a Secretary of State who doesn't believe in talking to people she doesn't like.

We have a Vice President who says, SO?.

And we have a president who sees biblical prophecy played out and the good people rising up to God and the bad people, those Arab types, being consumed by the fires of Hell.

Is there any sanity left?

In the meantime, democrat fights democrat.

God help us!

Les

Fascism Posing as Progressivism
It is getting harder and harder to read some of the messages in my email.

There are basically two streams: Total inaccuracy of historical fact and the other, the spewing of prejudices and hatreds all over the lot.

All of this is punctuated with a growing incivility.

I trace back more than fifty years of participation in liberal activism.

Never before have I seen a willingness to trash each other as I see now.

It is reprehensible.

At the same time, I have never seen before such general ignorance of facts and willingness to pass along totally biased information and treat it as true and reflecting of a liberal perspective. Hogwash!.

This only sets us back.

What's more, it seems to run totally counter to what liberalism and progressivism stand for.

On one site that I used to participate in and know the manager and many of the members, I was told in no uncertain words that we did not have to discuss issues because we should know what our positions are.

All of my life, we were exposed to issues and thought it was a liberal and progressive requirement that we debate their pros and cons so that we could amplify and improve our decision making. Not so with this self-important group with literally hundreds of so-called "informed" members.

I dropped out immediately and nobody came to me or asked why.

But it was self-evident.

I never want to add my list to a group that discourages dissent or the ability to discuss positions.

This is not Nazi Germany.

And they call themselves progressive and they are involved politically.

It is a shame to think that such a group could survive and call itself progressive.

For the rest, I would suggest major introspection.

Because when you spout unproven prejudices and biases without justification, are you not more fascist and arbitrary than anything else? And if you cannot defend your logic with argument and rationality are you any better than the people you are trying to denounce?

It is sad to see that liberalism and progressivism wear such diverse faces that mask such hatreds and biases.

It almost seems unAmerican.

Les Aaron

Race vs. Gender


If you listen to what the people have to say, nobody today is neutral: everyone has a theory that they don’t mind sharing with you.

What is rather frightening, though, is that the feelings they are anxious to express are not just disagreement or agreement, they are more like “rip out her face”==”tear out his tongue” kind of extremes.

There have been disagreements in contests before with maybe one side not agreeing with the positions of the other side.

But it is different today.

What we see expressed is not just disfavor but anger and belligerence on a scale that absolutely staggers the mind.

We see it here on our message sites, sites that normally treat disagreements with a modicum perhaps of polite disdain; but now, it’s run for the hills, the other guy is coming loaded for bear.

Nobody seems to be neutral; nobody seems to be middle of the road.

It’s the reaction to Obama’s minister saying “God damn America” and
Hillary’s three o’clock in the morning ad which seems to be more of an Alarm company commercial warning of the penetration of the voter’s household; it is Obama’s wife saying that for the first time she is proud to be an American; to Bill Clinton’s talking about Hillary and John have so much in common as patriots, inferring that Obama is not a patriot…. These represent codes to a very hypersensitive voter base.

No, we were wrong; the negativity and the racial overtones have not left us; nor has the prejudice against equality for women….

Surely, ever passing week, new charges emerge and the antagonisms ratchet up a notch.

This leads one to wonder what will happen if one of the candidates emerges after the rigors of the Convention to uphold the Democrats.

Will the damage be so severe that everyone will steer clear of “those crazy democrats” and vote for John McCain not because he attacked either Obama or Hillary, just because he had the good sense to say nothing.

The dirty work, of course, will be left to the 527’s who have already had their work done for them. It’s all been said already, all the 527 “dirty tricksters” need do is run tapes of all of the bad-mouthing that seemed to know no end in the Primaries of 07—some of the bloodiest on record.

McCain may be stupid on most things but he is smart enough to keep his mouth shut and just walk into office in January.

Then, too, the democratic party will show that it’s not incapable of running a good primary but that it doesn’t even have enough brass to get the blood-letting to stop.
It will be the end of the Party as we know it.

The Democrats will have lost by then have lost all but two elections between 1980 and now; no party with that kind of track record can go on without fundamental changes.

What is sad, is that this primary season started with such hope and such great candidates.

Next time around, the Primary should take place on one day nationally and the hell with all of the big egos around the States.

Most of them haven’t done a single thing to make this a better Primary.

We also need to toss this whole Super Delegate process and give the Primary to the candidate who’s pulled the most delegates.

End of story.
\
Something to tell our kids when they ask “Whatever happened to democracy, daddy?”

(PS. Let’s hope that this whole scenario is wrong; that the democrats pull it together and clobber the other side….and the democrats hold power for the next twenty years and find solutions to the job loss, the economy, the War, Global Warming and corruption at the highest levels!)

Les Aaron

Who is that man?


It seems that we already know as much as we are going to know about John McCain
Which leaves much of him veiled in secrecy.

Who is the real John McCain and what does he stand for?

Here’s the little we know:

He is for war….perhaps another 100 years more.

And he is against interference with the economy. Didn’t we hear that previously from a man named Hoover.

And in between those two extremes, he doesn’t seem to have much to add.

If we take him at his word, he is a Conservative—although some would never consider him from that perspective.

He has toyed with switching parties we know from the published results of Kerry’s notes.


And that he seems to like Joe Lieberman, the man who let down his party and turned against his democratic president.

Lieberman reminds me of Lord High Executioner in the Pirates of Penzance.

Or perhaps the self-appointed Grand Panjandrum of the Lieberman for President Committee irrespective of whether it has any adherents.

Beyond that, we know that McCain was a prisoner of war for five years which qualifies him for what?

And that he has been married twice and has an adopted child of Ethiopian extraction that the 527’s were trying to change into an “illegitimate black child” which of course, is entirely non relevant as well as untrue.

Aside from that, we don’t know all that much about John McCain except that he can get under the skin of members of his own party and is oftentimes shunned by the more extreme elements as not being one of them, which is at least a starting point.

This seems startling since he’s been around the halls of Congress virtually forever.


Perhaps we should know more before entrusting the future of the Nation to someone who may be by temperament completely unsuited to the task.

If McCain wants to be treated seriously like a candidate, shouldn’t he go out of his way to fill out the blanks in his dossier?

Or is there really not that much to John, a man of simple and direct tastes.

If so, it would be too reminiscent of what we already have.

And look how that journey of discovery turned out…


Les Aaron

The last candidate standing….



….When this spectacle is over, if ever, will there be anything left of the democratic party? Or will there just be a shambles? With voters flocking to become Independents?.

Increasingly, those in the know are asking that question.

And the speculation runs up and down on both sides of the issue.

The Convention is the Democrats opportunity to shine with their “togetherness,” their unity in the face of a coordinated effort by the Republicans to make them look like inept, left wing, liberal stumblers. It is the one chance to kick start what is left of the campaign and generate a positive image of a together Party hell-bent on winning for the democrats.

But it is the image of a liberal, left wing party that cannot get its act together that may emerge if this battle is allowed to go on and fester through the Convention..

Others feel that there’s nothing wrong letting the disharmony runs its course and that the contest should really be a contest settled at the Convention in a hard fought series of votes.

That side seems to be the minority wedded to the Hillary campaign.

Now, Ford is touting the idea of an open delegate and “Super Delegate” Convention where delegates will be allowed to vote as they see fit.

Is this the right way to go….or will it simply antagonize voters who have already expressed their views and believe that the voters and the numbers of existing delegates should decide the outcome….

Some question the potential impact of such a decision.

If the delegates do not have to stick to their delegates and vote their feelings at the last possible moment, will that change things? Will it also alienate the voters who have expressed their positions allowing for the election of the delegates in the first place?

Others, more blatantly think that such an idea is a train wreck getting ready to happen.

It seems everyone who is in a position to say something has a different idea.

The one thing that stuck me was Rachel Madow’s of Air America’s historical perspective that suggested that no party in such disarray going into a Convention, became the winning party in the national election.

Instead of bowing out if the remaining primaries do not vindicate her arguments about her electability, it is quite clear that Hillary intends to give no ground until after those delegates at the Convention have spoken.

By then, it may already be too late.

Les Aaron

The Day the Music Stopped…


I don’t know how she managed to do it in such a short time, but Hillary Clinton has managed to turn virtually every single thinking liberal I know against her.

Why?

Most say that it has to do with the way she is conducting her campaign.
And for her nasty, divisive assaults on the character of Barack Obama.

The polls also suggest that this is the case. Hillary’s negatives are going up in several of the polls reporting.

Those who manage Hillary’s campaign suggest that it is actually the other way around. Obama supporters have been unfairly attacking her.

And the arguments go round and round.

Who is really responsible for Hillary’s growing negatives?

Many think it is Hillary, herself; that her latest strategum of faulting Obama for his pastor, suggesting that he doesn’t have the necessary experience, his associations with criminal real estate broker, and bringing up the race question, has actually cost her more than it’s helped.

But it has actually accomplished what she clearly set out to do. That is, to raise doubts about her opponent, doubts that question his patriotism and other qualifications. In other words, to demonstrate that Obama is not what he seems.

But, for all intents and purposes, her aggressive stance may have alienated former supporters who not to be fooled, see that she has mounted a kind of Bushian campaign that says one thing and does something else.

Before, if nothing else, people felt a degree of compassion for Hillary. Certainly, after her win in New Hampshire; that of course seems like many ages after what took place in South Carolina to turn the blacks against the Clintons. But the Clintons didn’t see South Carolina the same way. In their willingness to see what they want to see, her supporters have suggested that the blacks have abandoned her because another black came along. They had no responsibility for what happened.

It’s been this kind of dual standard that has been operative all along..
For every comment about playing the game fairly and how she’s been abused by the other side, there is always a continuing barrage of below the belt charges ranging from questioning Barama’s credentials to showing him in native dress to disparage him.

But nobody seems to be falling for it these days except those who don’t read and those who can’t separate themselves from their biases.

It is one of the reason that young people, blacks and liberals are coming out to back Obama in record numbers.

People are tired of senseless character assassination and sneaky tactics that are made to look like they are the honest feelings of staff members.

This simply doesn’t fly.

Look at the statistics.

The accusations about the minister have not stuck.

Obama’s very honest speech saw to that.

And Hillary’s negatives continue to climb.

It is a serious indication that the people are fed up with such tactics.

But don’t expect any of this to slow Hillary or Bill down. They want the White House so bad they can taste it—regardless of whether it might destroy the Party per se and give the election to the opposition.

In the meantime, the media is engaged in a feeding frenzy—and this time, I must say, that Hillary’s actions have helped to chum the waters.

There is a feeling out there that anything she does will not change the numbers and the delegates who support Obama.

But Hillary, not content to give up, will see whether she can sustain the fight through the August convention.

If it comes to that, it could mean the democrats will not have enough time to regroup and raise the money from a fragmented group of democrats to mount the kind of campaign needed to win.

If that’s the case, don’t expect Hillary to win any bouquets from a growing army of disenchanted liberals who weren’t particularly crazy about her in the first place..

Les Aaron

"Winning the Battle: Losing the War"

What I said two days is now being talked about all over the media: The power of the DNC to stop the blood-letting.

Most think that Howard, however, does not have the clout to stop Hillary.

Clearly, the Clintons are spoiling for a fight; Bill as much as said so.

Anything to improve their chances--even if most agree that there is no way that Hillary can turn this around; that is, unless the Super Delegates, and all delegates, vote independently with no responsibility for following the will of the people.

Could that happen?

It could knowing the strength of the Hillary people among the insiders.



As far as street brawling, Obama said very specifically that he won't fight this kind of contest; that he won't get down to that level. Good for him!

Has Hillary elevated herself by acting like a Boxing kangaroo and then crying to everybody if she gets a body blow back?

I don't think so.

She in fact is trying to raise questions about whether Obama is not only experienced, but tough enough to do the dirty.

Does that matter? And should that be a requirement of the new politics?

Or is Hillary simply showing that she is a street brawler first? And locked into the politics of the past?

Meanwhile, the attacks on Obama go on; and, now, his supporters are getting good at giving it back.

Obama yesterday explained that the sudden flurry of verbal questions, insinuations and veiled charges coming out of the Clinton camp seemed to be to draw attention away from being sniped at at Bosnian airfields.

And the fight goes on.

With McCain getting a free pass to smash the democrats and build his own image.....

It seems very clear that Hillary wants to drag this into the Convention and have a knock down battle.

And, to put it bluntly, screw the party.

Rachel Madow of Air America said that nobody has gone into the Convention split as we are and emerged a winner in the national campaign in recent memory.

She is probably right!


But that doesn't slow Hillary down.....

She thinks she's entitled and she's going for the gold ring.

No matter what the cost.

Les Aaron

Teflon John



With all the venom that’s been passing back and forth, it’s become very easy to ignore the persistent gaff and goofs as well as the clear insights that into a McCain presidency that are more than a little troublesome.



First of all, should Mr. McCain be elected, he would be the oldest president ever to have that job. It is interesting, that there have been no statements as to his health which should be a prime concern for voters. That would include an assessment of his ability to think and solve problems, a challenge that faced Ronald Reagan during his presidency even though no republican would ever bring up the subject..



For all intents and purposes, it is easy to conclude that McCain is getting a free pass while his democratic rivals are busy eviscerating themselves in the public square.



Americans seem to love good blood sports and certainly this rivals anything put forth by Ultimate Cage Fighters. Every day, it’s a case of Hillary hitting below the belt or a swift comeback from the Obama side designed to save face and draw blood.. This week, it’s Pastors vs. trips to Bosnia under sniper fire; not to mention the sniping by Bill who is anxious to feel the grip of power again. And seems to be going into desperation phase.



Nevertheless, it should not take our mind off the fact that we are currently coming down to the wire and up til now, McCain seems to be largely unexamined as a candidate for the most rigorous job in the world, a job that requires a candidate’s position on the issues to be fully examined and laid out before the voting takes place.



In the process, we have been subjected to goofs and gaffs, inaccuracy and bad judgement on the part of the one man who seems to building a strong and resilient base among his Republican peers and cross-over voters.



Here’s just a casual list of questions that have arisen..



One might why Obama has had to go to such great lengths to explain his preacher, while McCain hasn’t even been asked about the endorsement of his pastor who is a known anti-semite and thinks the Catholic church is a cult.



Doesn’t that count? Shouldn’t John be held accountable as well for the company of preachers he seeks? Mind you, the preacher even admitted that McCain invited him in as a supporter....



The fact is that Teflon John McCain is up to his ears in questionable stuff.



For example, why has the media been so forgiving about McCain’s persistent gaffs?



On his most recent tour, he got the holiday of Purim all mixed up offending his Israeli hosts with his ignorance and in his Jordanian speech, he warned about Al Qaeda being trained by Iran and then, after being cued by Lieberman, he reversed himself,. Nevertheless, he kept making the same mistake about Al Qaeda several times during his trip. Do we ignore these gaffs and attribute that to a senior moment or the fact that John is not a detail man despite the many trips he’s made on junket to Iraq and the Middle East. And if he's not a detail man, what does that mean for us?



One may be sure that if Obama made such a gaff, it would be all over.



Obama would never live it down.



In the way of insights into McCain’s character, we’ve been picking up hints all along. The other day, he admitted that he does not favor “bail-outs” for those who have been careless about how they ran their businesses; apparently failing to understand or consider that if these businesses go “belly up,” it might be far more damaging to those who depend on the financial system for loans and credit to help them over the rough times. Clearly, a failure at Bear Sterns would have contributed to falling dominoes throughout the banking system that would hurt the average taxpayer as much or more than anyone.



John, in admitting his weakness in Economics, does no one any favors when he sputters such nonsense, making the rest of us more unsure about his fitness for the job he aspires to.



It goes without saying that John McCain, with no experience at managing a budget or governing a State, who’s only experience is as a Senator, is obviously untrained in the diverse skills needed to restore our failing systems and the prevalent neglect writ large by the regime in power. His misunderstanding of the current war in Iraq and his commitment to what is increasingly being seen as a lost cause since the government seems unable to function, makes us question his ability to analyze situations and come to intelligent judgments. It’s not enough that he is loyal to the troops and America, it is more important that his judgments be responsible to the overall best interests of an America beset by an inventory of problems, many of them deriving from the macho and inept decisions of the man he seeks to replace. This will take vision and perspective, clear thinking and sound judgment. As of now, he seems wanting in these categories.



If any country requires a vision and sound thinking, it is America in 2008. For those and other reasons, John McCain’s election would be exactly the wrong decision for America.





“Down the drain with old McCain…”







Les Aaron

it’s about winning!

Let’s get this damned thing over with and move on!

It’s damned depressing to see the Primary I’ve waited for for eight years going down in the proverbial tubes, knowing that everything will become fodder for the 527’s, but let’s get on with the damned primary already.

I can’t wait for this whole thing to be over.

And I know I have lot’s of company.

Never before have I seen so many people turned off with the process.

And I blame the panjandrums of the Democratic Party for letting this happen!

You know that everything will change before the next primary and well they should.

But for now, we need to shoulder on no matter who’s the candidate.

I don’t care at this point if it’s Obama or Hillary.

I will give them my full support.

Why?

Because I hate the Republicans more than I hate us for being so stupid.

I am getting angrier by the day and can’t wait to see the end of Pennsylvania.

I do know from my own travels that to say Pennsylvania beyond Pittsburgh and Philadelphia is heavily red necked.

I know that.

But it is also workers who have lost everything when the Republicans and the private sector lost the people the benefit of the steel industry. They took the money and ran even after government bail-outs!

Most of the towns look as if they are on the brink of becoming back lots for Hollywood ghost towns.

And it is a damned shame.

The last eight years have been without vision or hope for the people of Pennsylvania so they have their legitimate grievances.

They worked hard; struggled to put bread on the table and the Steel Industry took the money and ran. Shame on them.

And their consultant was also the consultant to president Bush and the head of the Republican Party, the man who coined the words, “Compassionate Conservative.”

Whenever did words mean so little?

Today, we are faced nation=wide with more of the same thanks to our do nothing Republican government.

It is time to get angry folks.

And to break these people’s grip on retarding growth and progress in this country.

We need fresh thinking, new initiatives and the courage to do what needs to be done to make America number one again.

This is not in Bush’s or McCain’s dialogue and we need to beat on it, if we have any hopes of change.

Keep that in mind.

Les Aaron

Ammunition


Every time I see the candidates attacking each other, I cannot help but think that off in the wings are the Gestapo of the Republican Right Wing, the Republican “dirty tricksters” who are getting the film clips ready to formulate the Blitzkrieg of 08.

Can they not be licking their chops in anticipation.

There is enough material here for several campaigns and often in the words of the pivotal players or someone very close.

How can one ignore Geraldine Ferraro suggesting that Obama is where he is because of his skin color.

Or Clinton talking about how much Hillary and John have in common, how much they love America and would be able to address the issues.

Nor can anyone exclude Clinton’s various speeches during the South Carolina campaign that denigrated Martin Luther King’s role as if to suggest that it wasn’t a black man who brought change but president Johnson.

Interspersing these remarks with shots of the over the top pastor would certainly poison the minds of anyone left who can think.

To say, the Democratic Party has allowed these outbursts to occur is unthinkable in the first place; they have imperiled the party and left only destruction in their wake.

We now have a candidate who is clearly the leader in delegates and the popular vote.

The contender, obviously oblivious to what happens to the party, has declared that she will fight right up to the Convention, makes the convention clearly a battle ground and robs it off the opportunity for the democrats to look united and come out swinging.

Strategically, the great panjandrums have failed in their quest to regain their objective: the presidency and we, the people, must suffer for their lack of courage and their inability to see the future.

Off with Dean’s head and dump the rest and maybe out of it all, we can salvage a party that seems to have rotted from the inside out.

What hopes we had have now been dashed and replaced with cynicism that seems to know no end and a party that is all but washed up.

Les Aaron

Howard’s Legacy


It is time for Howard to bone up on his resume writing.

I predict that he will not be around by next year.

The Primary has turned into a parody and ugliness has prevailed.

What was the beginning of hope has turned into bickering and bottom feeding.

Hillary’s team has helped drag the primary down into the slime and now both sides are participating.

This is not meant to be a criticism; just an observation of fact.

And where was Howard in all of this?

Surely, he should have realized that such antics could only further polarize democrats and provide the Republicans with the ammunition they needed.

As a former Dean supporter and local president of the Dean for President group and head of Dean’s Meet Up Organization in Southern Delaware, I find that Dean’s promise has not delivered.

His footprint throughout the Party is very light.

What he tried to accomplish State-wide did not work and was shallow at best.

The local party didn’t do anything before and doesn’t do anything now.

Other than his brother starting an affiliation of grass roots activists, there is not much we can point to about the reign of Howard Dean.

Certainly, he should not have let his candidates become tarnished and besmirched by race and gender issues.

He should have been a strong presence. He should have been there to advise and guide their behavior; not take a back seat that might allow for the collapse of the party once it arrived at the Convention.

Right now, it is clear that while Hillary cannot win unless Obama’s character assassination persists and turns up that Obama is related to Hitler, she will dog it out, going to the Convention intent on winning despite what might happen to the Party.

There is a point when the leader of the Party must say, “no more.” Dean has failed to do that and now whatever happens to the Democratic Party sits squarely on his shoulders.

As of now, Democrats have never been more polarized from each other.

And it seems that the Republicans have picked up all the ammunition they need to deny the Democrats the win they so badly need.
What started out full of hope and has now been transformed into disappointment and charge and counter charge.

We have seen hope evanesce and with it, our chances to take the high ground.

None of this has been lost on the 527’s who stand in the Wings ready to pounce.

This whole thing has turned into a dirty and tarnished undertaking because it has been mismanaged and allowed to run wild from the very beginning.

I hope that the next chairman and his staff will change the rules once again and not let the process get out of control; that is if the democrats ever see another Primary.

In my time as a political observer, this infinitely long event seemed to have been shaped the Grand Inquisitor rather than an astute political Houdini who understood how democratic chances would never be better and that the opportunity was ours to lose.

Balderdash!

Les Aaron

Howard, Where Are You?


What I can’t understand is where is Howard Dean in all of this.
Or the DNC.

Do the Democratic Party leaders think that this kind of display is good for the party?

What is wrong with them?

They should be holding meetings of both sides, asking the candidates to control their people and to cut out the mud-slinging.

It can only hurt the party.

And lead to a split at the Convention as I see it.

I think at this point I am ready to vote for Mayor Moonbeam….or Gary Hart….

There is too much muck already out there.

And the 527’s have been loaded down with ammunition.

Dean missed his opportunity to speak out to stop the slaughter of the innocents.

And to end the gutter edged politics that most of us are shying away from now.

We are about to duplicate what happened with the Rainbow Coalition.

People who are fed up might leave the Party forever.

We need to restore sanity to the process….

And end the bottom feeding.

It is ugly and a turn-off and if it persists, I guarantee that the only beneficiary will be John McCain.

This was our election to lose and we are doing our best to lose it.

An informed elite must come in and clean this up now!

Or dire consequences will follow.

Les Aaron

Can Anyone Survive?


Hey, I was thinking, if I were to ever run for politics, I would never survive the kind of scrutiny our candidates are being subjected to.

How can I explain that some of my friends wound up in the Big House for virtually every kind of crime including murder. How can I explain that I spent so much time on the streets without supervision.

Yes, we were a rough crowd.

We all hung out in pool rooms when we were young; we got into gang wars….and fighting was a big thing.

My friends used to carry around firearms. It got as bad as that.

After getting pulled off the streets by law enforcement enough times, and getting my head handed to me, I straightened out.

I was lucky.

A few of my professors and teachers took an interest in what happened to me.

Not everyone is so lucky.

But I am sure if I were ever to run for office, I would be blamed for having criminal friends.

Well, the truth was that I had just as many scholars as friends as bad guys, but those are the ones they will remember and use to define me.

And then they will bring up the fact that I was a trouble maker and spoke my mind around elections.

And people will remember that.

They will not remember that I wrote the scripts, carried the signs and did the heavy lifting, too.

Nobody’s an angel. If they were, the chances are that they couldn’t survive in the maelstrom of politics. The truth is that most of us are a composite of good and bad. And that if given half a chance our good sides will emerge. The sorry truth is, however, that we are perhaps judged too quickly by those who don’t have the whole picture.

So, let’s take a step back from the brink and let’s do a little introspection.

It just may be good for the soul.

And perfect for the election.

Les Aaron

Constructing mountain out of a mole hills seems to say more about us than the candidates.

It says that at least some of us are not ready to come to terms with our prejudices, our small minds, our pettiness.

That we are blindsided to the possibilities that a woman or a black man can address the mostly overwhelming challenges that face us.

What if they were to find out that God was a black woman?

Seriously, who would want the bloody job in the first place.

Anybody trying to do the right thing will age ten generations in four years...

And if they don't get a heart attack, will miss out on the joys of privacy and family.

This job is a heart attack waiting to happen.

Instead of nit picking on every little thing because we are not big enough to move to the next plateau in rational thinking, we should get down on our knees to thank anyone willing to take on this impossible monumental task that no one could ever win at.

Eight years of virtually doing nothing but destroying everything and every species on the planet is hard to counteract. In some cases, we may have already reached tipping points.

And yet we argue about race and gender.

About whether somebody has the character and experience to take on the job.

I think it is not about any of those things.

It should be about introspection that we take the time to discover who we are and whether we are capable of doing the right thing? Or whether we are so full of hatreds and prejudices that we will remain biased til the very end of our days?

The truth is that we have able candidates and we should stop poking them in the eye and judge them on one thing: Their position on the issues.

If this is too much to grasp, then simply drop out and stop spewing your hatreds.

They don't serve any purpose except to show our immaturity and stupidity.

I think many of us feel this way.....

And it needs to be expressed.

Les Aaron

Damn the Democrats for Destroying Our Hopes....





We can file away our hopes and aspirations.



There will be no “dream ticket” now.



Too much has happened; each of the candidates now seems to hate the other.



Every imaginable charge has been levied and both candidates are sullied and tarnished by race, gender and character assassination.



There was no need for that; except that the race, itself, superseded everything else.



And the DNC failed to step in to assert itself.



In short, we have done the republicans work for them while spending a 100 million dollars in the process….



By the time the Convention is over, the “winner” will limp into the arena to take on a fresh John McCain.



All the 527’s will have to do is regurgitate the charges already levied and it will be a disaster.



The DNC missed its chance to demand that the contest be kept to a fair standard.



And it may be likely that this will be the democratic party’s last hurrah.



Was it a mistake in the first place to advance a Afro-American and a woman?



Could we not imagine that this might happen?



In the end, does it point to the fact that we can not rise above our prejudices and our hatreds? That we are a besotted lot, imprinted with primitive memory of how dangerous differences can be, only if they are of pigment and sex?



In any event, democrats stayed true to their tradition of such animus that we could not help but bring each other down as the embittered party manages to promulgate a republican considered a maverick and non-conservative despite what he says.



It is a sad commentary that the notion of a two party system seems to be falling apart because the other side cannot muster a candidate that a majority of democrats can agree on. In effect, we as democrats seem to harbor an innate “death wish” that would sooner see us destroyed than take on the other side.



It is reminiscent of the Rainbow Coalition where each used their ethno-centricities to destroy the other. If anyone killed the Rainbow Coalition, it was the democrats.



It is sad that in the end, it was not the decency, fair play or character of the candidates that rose to the surface but bickering, nastiness and pettiness and so ends the story of the democratic party writ large so that everyone gets the message.



It reduces me to anger and tears.



Damn them all for treating the rest of us this way.



Les Aaron

How Many Will Die Over a Lie

4,000 dead.

Is that our legacy.

We manage to spend nearly a trillion dollars to invade a country that had nothing to do with aggression against us, kill hundreds of thousands of innocents to discover that there were no WMD, and in the process accomplish the wounding of 40,000 and the death of 4,000 American boys and girls.

That’s some accomplishment.

Cheney said “so?” when it was suggested to him that Americans don’t support the War.
Bush today said that he thinks that their sacrifice will be well earned if we win this one.
And that he carries the larger burden.

Sure, he carries the burden of sending troops to their death for a lie.

What does “winning” mean in his warped lexicon?

Does it mean win in it for the Decider?

Never mind that it was an unjustified War in the first place.

Is this the proverbial guilt trip? If we don’t win, it means that the 4,000 died in vain?

And that those who seek peace would be indirectly responsible for their deaths?

Isn’t that a case of inverted logic?

I mean shouldn’t the government that sent them into harm’s be begging the forgiveness of the mom’s and dad’s across the country. Shouldn’t they be on their knees contrite and asking for redemption? Shouldn’t they be making their peace with their maker for the sin of making war when it was not necessary.

Aren’t we simply compounding a lie when we attempt to justify it with the expenditure of more life?

What is our goal?

To listen to Bush, it is about “democracy.” What would he know about democracy; he keeps subverting it here at home. Democracy requires that we take a position on posse comitatus, it means habeas corpus, it means protecting privacy, and abiding by the Geneva conventions; not torturing people or snooping on the vast population of Americans who have nothing to do with subversion or terrorism.

He thinks we should leave Iraq a democracy..

Why?

Why is it worth 4,000 lives to build a democracy that was never even a part of Iraqi thinking or culture? Is it more a case of trying to impose our will on people who have a much more interesting history and culture than we do, who lived in peace and brought illumination to preChristian Europe.

At least, these clods should know their history of the region.

But these people are not contrite which makes you question their real motives:

Is it really about democracy or something else? Could it be that our oil-crazy cartel sees Iraq as the fourth largest reservoir of oil and we want it for ourselves?

Is that the real reason we have established permanent fortresses in this unhappy land….

The bloody oil that has already ruined our world, killed off the animals and about to end life on this planet if we don’t wise up.

And what should the punishment for that be?

Is it just that in the end, these executioners will be free to come and go as they please while so many of us are left so much the poorer.

And where are the democrats on this?

Instead of blaming each other for not being a super patriot, shouldn’t they be addressing this issue. Shouldn’t they be talking about this horror of horrors and why it is destroying us as a people?

Maybe it has become trivialized in our minds.

Maybe it has become so omnipresent that we don’t even think about it anymore.

Whatever, the day of reckoning is upon us….

And I pray that those unfeeling contentious few who thought that they were above the law will pay the price for their deeds. It is only just.

Les Aaron

4000 Dead and Democrats are Still Arguing
About Who’s the Better Patriot!

I think it’s time to get serious guys.


A couple of prime time observations:

How everyone can jump on your bones when you deliver the facts they don’t want to hear? It’s a case of killing the messenger when the numbers speak for themselves….

Once more with feeling: The numbers show Barack winning the delegates and the popular vote.

Hillary, is still trying to find a place where she leads and can razzle the Super Delegates: Uneducated women over fifty? Hispanics making under 50,000 dollars annually?

Hillary supporters seem to blind that everything Hillary does and quick to condemn anyone who speaks against her. It is okay to be a Hillary supporter; quite another to be objective about the fact that she, or her surrogates, has done things that most would consider distasteful, unfair and below the belt politics but don’t count on her supporters to look at both sides….

….Hillary supporters seem to have no tolerance for the idea that what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. In other words, it’s okay for Hillary to say or do whatever she pleases but if someone gives it back, it’s an affront to all women!....

And the accusations and bottom dealing continues while the campaign says, “Let’s keep it to the issues….”

It’s utterly incomprehensible how people can be so blind to the facts.


What is happening is that we are pulling the same kind of stuff the dirty trick boys on the right are noted for and proved so distasteful for Dean, Kerry and even as far back as Dukakis. I am surprised that Clinton would condone such behaviors considering that her husband received the same kind of attacks throughout his candidacy.. Apparently, memories are short when it comes to winning!....

It is the thing that drives us crazy.

But now, democrats are doing it to their own party.

And the 527’s of the Right have not even warmed up yet; they don’t need to. We are doing all the work for them. All they have to do is come in and pick up the pieces.

Is this the beginning of the end. The rottenness that consumes from the inside out.

If so, the Party, itself, should speak up and tell the offenders that such tactics will not fly; that they are only guaranteed to accomplish one thing, destroy the Democratic Party.

All of our elder statesmen need to come together now and rule such behavior out of bounds before it becomes endemic and taints us all.
Clearly, it seems that we have forgotten about the issues on this the Anniversary of 4,000 dead after the beginning of the sixth year in Iraq.

Bush, today, said that if we win the sacrifice will be worth it.

Will it?

What do the democrats have to say about that?

Apparently, nothing. They are too busy accusing each other of not being a patriot.
If they don’t clear this mess up, after fifty years of being a democratic progressive I am ready to pull up stakes. I don’t not want to be identified with this kind of bottom feeding.

I sure hope that the Super Delegates are smart enough to see the forest for the trees.

Because it is getting really ugly out there.

Les Aaron

The true story of what happened to Pennsylvania


We read the profiles of Pennsylvania and what they say do not adequately describe why Pennsylvania, today is hurting, why it is no longer the heartland with its plenteous furnaces belching fire and smoke and fueling the economic enterprise of this land.

Today, America has failed to remain competitive in many areas and the reasons trace back to what happened so recently in Pennsylvania when industry and government conspired to destroy our industrial base.

And when some talk about how special interests are really good for America, I think back to how special interests through greed and self interest are helping to put the last nail in America’s coffin with everybody looking on and neither smart enough to do anything about it or unawares of how corruption and greed have damaged this country..

This writer used to work with steel companies and traveled to Pennsylvania quite a lot. I think that the description of Pennsylvania as Pittsburgh and Philadelphia with Alabama in between is not far off the money.

Outside of the two major cities, it is rural country with rural attitudes.

Don't tread on me kind of country.

I worked with steel companies.

And I recall that US Steel that controlled most of the business in Bethlehem and elsewhere in the gritty towns with their big furnaces, towns that are now mostly dead and struggling to survive..

The truth is that US Steel never did bothered to show concern for the little man the American worker.. It took the profits and ran even though it knew that the Japanese were coming on board and other countries were adding the kind of automation that allowed for the production of very competitively priced, good quality steel.

US Steel was above that. They didn't need to perform maintenance; put money back into the process to make it competition proof.

No, they knew that America would not jettison its biggest steel company.

And when the inevitable happened: US Steel could no longer compete because of its own greed and wantonness, it went hat in hand to Bush's chief architect of his election plants and asked for a hand-out, the man who was until recently the Chairman of the Republican Party..

The Bush people gave them a tariff and then a bail=out funded by the American taxpayer.

What did US Steel do? Did it do what it was supposed to do? Did it perform maintenance and introduce new competitive equipment?

Hell, no. It bought Marathon Oil.

And that's what the American people got for their investment.

So, when it comes to Pennsylvania, what we see is a complicity between government and business that never should have happened.

And it didn't for the old mills in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

And it didn't for the textile plants in South Carolina.

Yes, God Bless America but God damn those who steal our future.

Les Aaron
The Armchair Curmudgeon.

“It’s Over.”


Why don’t the fair minded Hillary supporters tell her the truth, It’s Over!

I don’t get it. The word is out. There will be no replay of Michigan or Florida.

Therefore, by everyone’s considered judgment, there is virtually only three ways that Hillary can win the primary at this point.

She can win over the Super Delegates and convince them to vote for her.

Or she can hope for an outstanding win in Pennsylvania, and win big in the remaining primaries. That still wouldn’t do it but it might get the Super Delegates to come together for her.

Or three she can cause enough emotional questions about Barack, that the delegates and the voters flee from him.

In all three of these scenarios, it almost goes without saying that she cannot accomplish the above without attacking Obama’s character and his fitness for president, risking the destruction of the party.

In other words, while she is talking about keeping to the issues, there is not enough difference between them that she could accentuate that could propagate any major change in voter impressions or behavior.

We’ve already seen that. Therefore, keeping to the issues will not do it.

What will?

The Black issue? Casting doubt on Obama by casting doubt on his wife and pastor’s patriotism, their loyalty to the US?

Hillary’s supporters, like Geraldine Ferraro have already started us on this dissent into this nether world after Bill Clinton attempted in the worst way to make it look as if Obama “was not ready” casting doubt after innuendo about the man who was inspiring the nation with hope—clearly, a much better message than Hillary’s self-professed “competency”—itself very much in question..

Many of us, including myself, a former supporter of Bill Clinton who would go to the wall for him now feel used and abused. We don’t like this kind of baiting and insinuation. We don’t like the position of saying one thing and doing another.
They claim that they want to stick to the issues while they proceed underhandedly to do their darndest to raise the specter of incompetency through Obama’s preacher, his wife, his associations and innuendos that attempt to detract from the man’s character.

It is to his credit that Obama has not seen fit to swim in this cesspool of accusation, insinuation, meanness and inaccuracy. To defame one’s character earns a special place in Dante’s interpretations of the rings of Hell..

But far more dangerous is the fact that Hillary’s has willingly traded her good will and jeopardized the health of the party but driving forth these attempts to disparage and disqualify Obama.

If it works, it will be despite the will of the majority.

If it works, it will most assuredly destroy the party as we know it.

And Hillary proceeds along such a path in full knowledge of the fact that it is virtually impossible for her to win.

Her ambition is worthy of an Shakespearean drama and may reward her with the destruction of her own party; yet she’d rather chance that, than be responsible.

Egregious hardly describes it.

Les Aaron.

An Easter Prayer


Tomorrow begins Easter; for many it’s a time to take stock, a time for new beginnings.

Tomorrow, it’s likely that many of us will see their friends and family and sit down to an enjoyable meal, watch the game or just spend time with the grand-kids.
We are a wonderful nation with a wonderful tradition in that respect.

But it also just comes on the anniversary of the fifth year of the war.
This week,it is also likely that we will surpass 4,000 deaths….
So, perhaps instead of a time for celebration and rebirth, perhaps many of us would do well if we spent the time in introspection.

Oddly enough, few of us have been directly touched by the war; most of the people I know go from day to day without even giving the war a thought.
But Easter, of all occasions should evoke some thoughts about others which most of us seemingly rarely do.

Although fewer than 1% of the population has become involved through family or friends and even fewer have been called upon to serve their country, one becomes acutely aware of the impact of this war on military personnel if all they do is visit a shopping center near an active military base.

Last week, some engaged citizens stood outside Dover Air Force Base, the location of the National Mortuary to stand in protest to the War. It was a grand and needed gesture.
This week, others will stand a silent vigil.

We see the families of the young troopers at the local stores and as I am, many are tempted to ask “Is everything alright?” “How are you coming along?” We many not verbalize these questions but the message clearly comes through our eyes.
When I wear my Veterans cap, others come up to me and say “thank you” for what you’ve done.

People do care even though they may not say or do anything.
It has been a long war. And many are tired of the death and destruction not only of our own but the poor innocents caught up in this nightmare.

Longer than the War that began with the invasion of North Africa and landings on the beaches of France on D Day…..longer than the time it took hundreds of thousands of men in the Pacific to land and vanquish the enemy on foreign beaches runs this war that seems to go on endlessly as if there is no end in sight..
.
It is hard to imagine that!
Not as long as Vietnam perhaps, but long enough.
And after that war, my friends came up and quietly slipped back into society.
You were on patrol one minute and standing on the unemployment lines back in the States the next. No wonder most couldn’t adjust.
We hope that these young boys and girls will come home and be able to put their experiences behind them. It will not be easy and experience dictates that most have not been able to readjust without lot’s and lot’s of time in recuperation.

On this Holiday eve, I pray that tomorrow may see some miracle or that Bush will get a message from all of those heavenly contacts he has to end this war without having to have a macho victory that means so little in real terms.

I pray that we can walk away from this cancer that has eaten us alive and separated friends and family for so many years.

We need to put this behind us if we are ever to have our government back again.

I hope and pray for these things on a typical night when prayers are said to be heard a little clearer than they might be on an ordinary night.

And I thank God for the young and those who embrace this idea and humbly want new beginnings for all people….

Hopefully, one can pray that with the Resurrection of Jesus, there will be a resurrection of the American spirit and a resurgence of hope that before the next Easter rolls around that Iraq will be a memory from the past.

This is what I hope and pray for this Easter.

Les Aaron

Question for the Day:

If the Middle East is John McCain’s Strong Suit,

How Well Would he Fare on Any Other Subject?



Remember, he’s been to Iraq eight times and he still
can’t seem to get it right. He couldn’t even keep up
with a college blogger.

What can you conclude: Either he’s a liar, misguided, uncaring about details or simply
Out of touch, or suffering a memory disease? Or maybe a combination of the above.

None of the above might be so bad, were it not for the fact that our presidents are responsible for formulating policy.

\How do you formulate policy if you don’t understand the players,
How they evolved, and can’t arrive at a realistic appraisal of events.

What’s more, the people are going to raise more than Iraq when they address the problems de jour.

In addition to the War, the real problems we are having in this country has
To do with finance and the economy, health care and jobs, housing and honesty in business.

How is John going to deal with these things when he admits that he doesn’t understand them?
.
If John thinks he understands the Middle East, how will he address areas he doesn’t have a clue about?
.

Makes you wonder, doesn’t it.

Bill Clinton was a real policy wonk.

Even Nixon was a policy wonk.


Bush’s dad didn’t know what a scanner was.

Like father, like son—except Bush Sr. had some common sense and listened to the people who advised him….
\

To have twelve years of presidents who don’t understand the difference between up and down, is not only unprecedented, it also seems to rush us along the pathway to self destruction.

Looking at the last eight years, I’m convinced that this government is out of control and couldn’t care less.

And if it’s the people you are concerned about, the depths of our concern cannot even be calculated under this blind, willful administration.

Nevertheless, I am sure that the old republican party will stand by their man despite the fact that his lack of knowledge is appalling.

And the rest of us will suffer if he somehow manages to win either by hook or crook….

Never underestimate the republican spin machine….


Les Aaron

John's Incredible Iranian Adventure


John, shouldn't you have finished the primer, before you

started lecturing the rest of us?.



John McCain seemed to think that eight trips to Iraq makes

him an expert on the Iraq War and what it portends.



But if you are going to employ the visual symbolism and lecture the rest of us, you should not repeatedly get the connections wrong and have to be reminded by Joe

Lieberman of that fact.



Several times during this trip, John blamed the Iranians for training Al Qaeda.



And until Lieberman clued him, he never mentioned a word about terrorism in his speech.



John has consistently make it sound as if we went to Iraq to eliminate Al Qaeda.



That doesn’t exactly make us look very professionals to those who hang on our every word.



I mean it’s one thing if you can’t get the facts straight; it’s still another if you are lumping everything together and simply don’t give a crap about what anyone else thinks like your buddy Dick Cheney….



John, let me point out that Al Qaeda wasn’t in Iraq before we arrived; they only went there because we had contributed to a power vacuum. John, their base was Afghanistan—the eastern part in the mountainous areas.



You remember Afghanistan, don’t you John. That’s where we originally sent ten men to take out bin Laden and then only a month after 9/11. A case of too little, too late, John.

But of course, you didn’t have much to say about that. That was our great Panjandrum in the White House who was as anxious to get bin Laden as he was to shore up the housing market.



After all, if you end the symbol of “terrorism,” how do you continue to control the people and alter the Constitution?



What’s more, John, Iran doesn’t support Al Qaeda, it supports Hezbollah.



The fact that John & Company, on the taxpayers’ dime, also visited Israel and were very satisfied with the PLO leader’s support for peace—only the PLO leader doesn’t have the clout to do anything one way or the other. He’s out of Gaza and may already be losing his advantage on the West Bank. The fact is that they are a non-player.



Were it not for Israel’s support, Hezbollah would run things unimpeded and they are the one’s guided by Iran. What’s more, John, FYI, Hezbollah has become much more sophisticated and much more powerful with the ability to penetrate our computer screen.



You see, the rising cost of oil has created the money for support of both Iranian and Arabian causes including the reprinting of a Koran that pinpoints the West as the hated enemy.



Would these places even be able to stir up trouble if we didn’t support gas guzzlers; but that’s another matter.



I recognize that this is a lot to swallow, John; but this is supposed to be your strong suit so you should at least get the cast of characters right.



Lord knows what you plan to do about the economy, John.



I mean as an expert on the Middle East as you claim, you should at the very least know that the forces of Al Qaeda are supported by the Sunni Arabs, not Iranian Muslims who support the Shia’ and that the only reason that the Sunni’s and Shia’ in Iraq aren’t killing each other right now, is because Shia’ leader, Sadr, has declared a cease fire and the GI’s are paying off the Sunni Sheiks….



Otherwise, they’d be right back at it….



And John keep something else in mind.



When you say that the Surge is working and things are getting better, keep in mind that you are being surrounded by companies of special forces, helicopters, and State Department operatives who’s only duty is to keep you and your compatriots safe!



This is not reality, John.



And bear in mind where you go might be imperiled by your presence.



Remember what happened the last time when you visited the market and called it safe, and then within days it was literally blown off the map?



On another subject, John, I just can’t imagine what this little junket for you and your friends cost the American taxpayer just so you could get the facts so dreadfully wrong.



Les Aaron

Iraq and the Gang of Five….Some thoughts:


Five years ago, I was a senior editor of Democracy Chronicle. I was writing my own guest editorials under different pseudonyms for other liberal and progressive sites.
In these, I harped on the fact that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11; that the WTC was the work of Osama bin Laden. Prior to that, he had been linked to the Cole and the destruction of the two embassies in North Africa.

I had already personally felt Obama and the terrorists blows when my cousin was killed on the Achille Lauro.

And in the late 80’s, I used to eat regularly at the restaurant blown up by Kahane’s followers after his assassination. I knew one thing: This was not going to go away. Too bad nobody had listened to the Assistant FBI Director in the New York field office; he had the measure of what was going on in the Middle East, but Louie Freeh, the FBI Emperor was too hot to get Clinton and felt that the New York agent was not a “team player” so he took him off the case, and things started to happen faster than we could keep track of them. Remember, 9/11 came after the botched effort of 93 where the original culprits were set free. It turned out that one of them was the architect of 9/11.
We know that because he was picked up attempting a hi jacking in the Philippines where he lost his computers and our government was warned what was coming.

But we didn’t listen then either.

It is too easy to relive all of the screw-ups, all of the bad planning, all of the politicking that went on during that time and our willingness to ignore everything that was unpleasant or did not fit the rigid formulae set by Bush & Company.

So, how do we resolve it?

We make a bad decision worse by reinforcing it with something called the Surge, a fancy name for something we Blog writers urged the president to do in the beginning.
No, Rummy was too smart for that. We would cut costs and quicken the war with Shock and Awe which turned out to be more like Schlock and Flaw because we were flawed in our understanding of what our weapons could and could not do and we turned to schlock because we refused to add the manpower every general recommended (with the exception of one and he took early retirement).

Now, we see the solution as something we should have done in the first place.

But we didn’t.

So, we add a new name and rush straight ahead.

McCain thinks its working; but what does he know. He’s surrounded by a contingent of special forces and is guarded more closely than Fort Knox.

His visit is a waste of time when it comes to reality.

But lets get back to the original question: Does persistence compensate for making the wrong decisions—like going into a country that had nothing to do with war in the first place?

I don’t think so. Nor should any right thinking person.

However, Bush has the media on his side.

And they don’t want to alienate the man who is the “decider.”

And since Congress seems hog-tied, again this entire issue falls into the laps of the people.

So far, most have been docile.

But it is year five.

Our troops are drained.

There is little enthusiasm.

And our battlefield weary troops need years of R&R to recuperate.

In the meantime, who is going to be left to fight the war you started, Mr. Bush.

Or don’t you care, inasmuch as you will be doing the weeding when this comes to a head.

Then let me ask you, Mr. McCain on the Anniversary of Year Five, are you planning a Draft? If so, I think you should be obligated to tell us so we can update our passports and get our kids out of this country.

Mr. McCain, many of us come from military families. I did. And I did my service.

But it was about something I believed in.

I don’t believe in this any way you try to shake it.

And I don’t believe that our president has any real interest in resolving this war soon.

And I believe that pretty soon, everybody is going to understand what is really going on with you and Cheney and your gang of little misfits.

So watch out, Mr. Bush, the Grand Jury is never far away!

Les Aaron

Raising the Bar



Originally, wasn’t going to send out any comments because I thought it was pretty self-explanatory and I couldn’t really understand how anybody could mistake the message; but after listening to the talking heads, like Joe Scarborough, I thought I had to search out my notes .



Here’s what I had in my portfolio:



“Just listened to the full text of Obama’s speech.



Where do you file the superlatives?



My God, this guy is good!



First off, this was an intelligent speech. No pandering. No kowtowing to those who couldn’t grasp complex ideas. He didn’t make it easy. Why should he? And he reminded us whites that we have a few skeletons in our attic even if we didn’t come over on slave ships, got a good education and didn’t have to scratch around to find a job.



Yes, he was very, very good.



No shouting; no unnecessary hype. Just the facts, mam.



It was a sophisticated speech and demonstrated that he treated his listeners with respect.



And helped us to understand the mind of the black who had been subjected to all kinds of miseries and indignities that many of us had never been willing to acknowledge.



This speech used his religion to serve as an entree into all the issues that divide us and challenge us in ways that could not be missed.



As he said, if we don’t deal with them now, there will always be “other distractions” that will prevent us from dealing with them in the future. Wow! What a great thought that was; jarring in fact for those addicted to the status quo.



As he explained it, now is the opportunity to come together to solve more than black problems, an opportunity to bring us all together as a people to address the challenges of the day.



It took courage to make this speech. It was an all or nothing speech. He didn’t sugar coat the truth and no one who honestly listened to what he had to say could argue with his rationality, objectivity and willingness to face up to what lies ahead.



It was a speech that no white person could deliver.



And it raised the bar for all people.



It was honest and it laid all the cards on the table.



After Martin, I never thought any one would rise to the occasion as he had.



But Barack did.



And I also think Barack Obama laid to rest all of the doubts and issues that may have plagued some who may have felt that they did not know the character or the integrity of the man.



It was beyond doubt now.



It was in summing up, a victory not only for Obama, but a victory that sets the bar high for anyone to follow in his footsteps and helps to establish the tone for the rest of the Primaries and for the coming election.



And all without a pointing a finger or accusing anyone of unfair tactics or sniping.



Les Aaron

Broken Government and its Implications….





Again, it’s those little informal polls that provide some rare insights.



This time, I think I’m onto something big.



I am extrapolating from a very small base but check this out and see if your experience supports it….



One, there is virtually no question that all the polls support the fact that the citizens are fed up. That they are angry about the war; they are angry about the cost of oil; the cost of education; health care; the rising cost of food; the escalation in home mortgages; the fact that you need either one person working two jobs or two people working one job to keep food on the table and the bills paid.



The are angry because they have exhausted their credit card debt and there is no more equity in their homes….



They are angry because they believe that Hispanics are taking their jobs or they’re being shipped overseas….



And some people are just angry and don’t understand why.



That’s why they want change.



They want family medical coverage, lower costs for fuel, less dependency on foreign oil, less expensive food, lower rates on their mortgages and bigger tuition loans among other things.



Here’s where I’m putting two and two together:



They see Obama as an outlet for their anger and see him as the Deux Ex Machina who will be able to make it happen.



He is the safety valve for their pent up frustrations.



That’s why the statistics that are hard to understand because Obama has been able to do things statistically that few of us have ever seen before.



He is able to sweep up Independents, get “cross-overs,” and woe democrats who haven’t voted before—bringing tens of percentage points of new voters into the process….



What happens if Obama gets blocked; that he is unable to deliver the election?



Will this segment of the Electorate simply disappear?



I don’t think so.



Moreover, it isn’t clear that Hillary is able to address the same needs.



It isn’t clear that she can have the same impact on this growing segment of the voting public—the Independents, the new voters, the “cross-overs.”



It isn’t clear that they see her as part of the “solution.”



Nobody up until now, has said what that means.



If Obama is denied the vote, and there is nobody to calm the concerns of so many voters, that it will not end there; that voters will respond at last. Their frustrations cannot stay bottled up forever.



One thing seems clear, the democratic party will change.



Fat cat democrats will have reason to worry.



Democrats who sit on their haunches and don’t do anything will be among the first to go.



And it is very likely that we will see a new party altogether representing all of these repressed interests that are not satisfied.



And it may go way beyond that.



In the last few weeks, everyone I have talked to see government as broken.



And they don’t find the solution in Hillary, with her high negatives, ambiguous answers support for NAFTA, ambiguous immigration policy, job export policies and more.



And they certainly don’t see the solution with John McCain.



With nobody to represent them and conditions in the economy not likely to be resolved, there’s a very good chance that America will start acting like France or Belgium.



There is a watershed coming….



And nobody seems to see it.



Les Aaron

The Armchair Curmudgeon

Good Times for McCain….

Listen to the whole cacophony play out and you wonder how democrats can ever jell as a democratic party today.

People I’ve known for seven years via the Internet and on the outside for even longer are self-destructing, if not themselves each other.

Words of endearment and courage, are turning into mocking remarks and charges back and forth.

How much longer can such attacks go on without permanently damaging the party to a point where there will be no coming back.

Right now, the pundits are saying that it may go directly into the Convention.

At the same time, most are saying that it is virtually impossible for Hillary to win unless, as Broder said yesterday, something happens to Obama or there is some other shake out.

It seems it is Obama’s minister vs. Hillary supporter, Jerry Ferraro.

As a result, issues are being pushed into the background.

As of now, decisions re Florida and Michigan are still in the air.

And everybody is exhausted from the current back and forth.

McCain has gone to Europe to raise money in London.

And the democrats have seemed to have lost their longstanding advantage to a spate of bickering that doesn’t want to end.

So the remaining question is “Where do we go from here?”

Shall rationality surface or will this dichotomy lead us into the Convention and damage further any chances we might have for winning.

The bet makers must be having a field day.\

In the meantime, the rest of us are almost too exhausted to do much else than watch this circus being played out as the rest of the world watches spellbound.

Les Aaron

Economic Hypocrisy:

I read the Washington Post daily along with the New York Times, and although they may be considered the best and most objective news sources, I have to take issue with their views. In my view, they sugarcoat just about everything.

This don’t rock the boat philosophy does a tremendous disservice to honesty and objectivity and we need to set the record straight.

I am now particularly frosted by their treatment of the entire imbroglio we find ourselves in with the sub primes….and since they are connected in subtle and direct way to our financial health and well being, they don’t deserve to be blown off….

Admittedly, I have little nice to say about this government and its for cause.

My endless list of reasons that have topped 500 after I stopped keeping score…

I don’t claim to be an economic theorist, but having studied economics as a business major at the graduate level, I don’t know too many who’s theories seem to translate into real word economics. So, let’s begin by cutting out all of the so-called veneer of economic speak and let’s get down to the harsh facts.

All theories aside, the facts speak for themselves.

Start anywhere….and you get the picture in a hurry. The only problem: These are not discontinuous events; they are interrelated and cumulative. And what we are talking about is not brain science.

Just through observation of the facts, anyone of even average intelligence who sticks to the facts, can see that we are up to our ears in a mess that is not going to be resolved in one term despite the spin anyone puts on this…..

Fact number one: First of all, we are spending money a lot faster than it’s coming in.

That’s due to bad policy making and manipulation at the top and the convergence of tax breaks for the very rich.

If there was a modicum of serious concern for where we were headed, it would have been to this administration’s advantage to encourage new businesses and to dismantle NAFTA. Fact number two: NAFTA doesn’t work for the people; only the rich who ship jobs out.

What happens to all of these profits generated through job entrenchment? They go into Golden Parachutes; none of the increases in profit or productivity go to the domestic worker. A serious miscalculation bred through selfishness and indifference.

Fact number three: Government loses important tax revenues.

Fact number four: You don’t lower taxes on the rich during a war.

In fact, the theory that suggested such “Vodoo Economics” never worked. Moreover, Changes in the tax law have depleted tax revenues derived from the people who could afford it most….

Now, billions are being denied our tax coffers by those who could afford it.
\
Or consider the health of our overall economy. Fact number five: Today, we are a net importer with monthly losses of nearly sixty five billion dollars—most of it going to China.

We are already a trillion dollars in debt.

Fact number six: China, Saudi Arabia, Japan own most of America these days.

Not a good indicator by anyone’s imagination.

Fact number seven: Today, jobs in the US are mostly service related; they are part time and minimum wage.
They don’t have the same multiplier effect in the economy as did manufacturing jobs where one manufacturing job could translate into six jobs in the marketplace.

That doesn’t go far in meeting our indebtedness.

Fact number eight: At the beginning of the Bush economy, support for Enron helped catapult California and the rest of the economy into a deep recession. On its own, California was ahead of the French economy: Undoubtedly, what happened to California as a result of sky-high energy costs reverberated throughout the States.

Fact number nine: We never fully recovered! At that time, while Bush talked about a remarkable recovery, it turned out to be the weakest recovery on record.

Fact number ten: By removing energy and food from the Inflation index, the statisticians also miscast the real state of the economy. And by failing to consider those who simply fell off the charts when their jobs left this country, they also miscast the economic health of the workforce.

Fact number eleven: All that was remaining as a vibrant indicator of economic health was the housing market and the government failed to watch the warning signs that signaled housing was in trouble, too, until it was too late.

Greed and corruption conspired to destroy the home mortgage market bringing down some of the biggest names in investment banking.

Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Bear Sterns, Citibank—all the big names were tarnished and may not yet recover….and if they do, they will be owned by a foreign country.

Is this our legacy? In eight years, observing our country brought low by a lack of planning and corrupt practices at the highest levels?

Wouldn’t a rational person consider that treason?

It is one thing to steal a loaf of bread and have to serve ten years hard time in Mississippi, it is quite another for a government to bring down an entire country through perverse practices, neglect and downright thievery.

Let’s put the cards on the table, folks. We are being run into the ground by a legion of crooks who can’t see beyond their own greed.

The sad part: Nobody knows where this will end.



Les Aaron

Romance and Excitement in Far Off Afghanistan….


You can’t imagine this ditzoid.

In his speech, GWB told troops going to Afghanistan that they should be happy for the experience. That it would be exciting and even romantic and some other blather; he even had the audacity to say that if was a few years younger, he would welcome the opportunity.

Is this guy for real?. He didn’t even want to fly for his country when his time came up. Or did he totally forget about his record of non-service.

I can’t imagine anyone listening to that drivel and not getting nauseous—especially if they are familiar with his military records which by the way was at one time retrievable through the Freedom of Information Act.

We did a couple of articles on what really happened.

The head of one of the prominent Veterans group came on Keith Olbermann the other night and was astonished that he could call the duty in Afghanistan “romantic.”

That would be the last word he would use to describe service in Afghanistan.

Another officer in Afghanistan said that watching people starve and not being given the proper tools to do the job could hardly be called romantic.

The Veterans head said that it just go to show how out of touch he is.

In fact, on my daily back from Dover, I see the large airships bringing the dead back to the National Mortuary at Dover AFB and I have to try hard to concentrate on my driving.

Nearly four thousand Americans have already died and the counts on wounded are widely distorted at this point.

On the Anniversary of the Fifth Year of War, we shall gather in front of the Air Force Base to protest this senseless loss of life.

I wish John McCain would take the time to tour the facility or at least visit the grave of one of our heroes to compensate for the fact that our president hasn’t found the time.

Les Aaron

Primary Math



I guess we all like to fool around with things like numbers.



I thought it would be neat to try to calculate what would be the outcome of continued antagonisms by the democratic contenders spread out through the last Primary.



So, I tried to work up an equation that removed subjectivity and replaced it with constants and variables which sound so much more benign.



You know how these things work, trial and error.



First of all, I figured that we needed an expression that expressed the attacks by each. I call them OA for Obama attacks; and OH for Hillary attacks.



Then I assumed that the longer they went on, the more deleterious affect they would have on the results which would be measured by Voter Perceptions, so I set up VP as voter perceptions.



There would be a negative correlation. In effect, the more the outbreaks, the less the Voter Perceptions of the candidates which would then be also inversely proportional to what happens in the McCain Camp.



So, for starters I tried to set up some kind of mathematic equation that might express this.



I said that it was logical if VP=TOA plus TOH divided by “N” (TOAxTOH).



N would represent the number of weeks the squabbles went on.



And, thusly, there would be an inverse relationship that as the number of squabbles per week increased, the formula would result in a reduced VP.







This is not a formulae that posits a positive outcome for such displays and their cumulative impact on the Democratic Party….for the VP inversely correlates with the standing of McCain. Consequently, as the VP decreases for democrats, the result for Republicans rises.



Thusly, and quantitatively, the only long term effect of such adversity, is to magnify democratic “foot-shooting” abilities.



Wake up, Democrats.



The Election was ours to lose and we are doing our best to do precisely that even though my hypothesis hasn’t been fully and reliably tested, the mathematics can’t be too far off.



In any event, the calculus of the primaries seems to indicate that even if we remove subjectivity, if these "outbreaks" continue much longer, the voter will be redoing his own math come election time..



In my own defense, I probably should plugged in some additional variables to compensate for the fudge factor but overall one thing is clear: Hillary and Obama better lose their friends and mates til November.







Les Aaron



THE COMMITTEE FOR POSITIVE CHANGE



Check our website Blog; http://www.lesaaron.blogspot.com

What the Sub Prime Mortgage Fiasco Really Says….


By now, the fallout of the Great Sub Prime Housing Disaster has ricocheted and reverberated down through the lowest rung of the middle class.

And what’s happened?

A big fizzle. It’s like we have become so inured to bad news, we can’t seem to muster the gumption to do anything about it except to hunker down.

And hunkering down is something we seem good at it; otherwise, we would be boiling this administration in boiling oil.

Again, the Middle Class has displayed its amazing resiliency, the ability to be trod on and abused regularly and still come back for more. Like one of little Abner’s knock-down/bounce back dolls.

What must the Europeans think? B y now, they would be blowing up their governments if they had tried to pull half the stuff that our government has gotten away with..
\
Don’t think about what a Frenchman might do if the government raised the price of a loaf of bread one centime…. It would be War!

Our willingness to tolerate almost anything is probably the most remarkable thing about the average citizen who seems to be in denial about escalating costs, nonexistent policies, budget cuts for the rich, global warming and disappearing jobs.

Is it likely that we are so unthinking, demoralized or beaten that we simply buy in the message of George W. that suggests we are running into a little “rough patch?.”

But glory of glories, it doesn’t end there.

And now we are treated to how these abuses are translated at the upper level as we shockingly accept the news that not only has there been nobody out there to look out for me and for you, something much worse is going on.

We don’t have a policy to not only keep the economy on an even keel, we don’t even have a way to deal with an absence of government policy either to govern greed, self interest, corruption or just recognize plain stupidity for what it is….
.

If we had believed that those who lead us are some kind of intellectual gurus of finance and wisdom, now we know the bitter truth; they’re no smarter than we are and certainly more corrupt. .

As a result, we all suffer—at least those of us who consider ourselves “middle class”==whatever that means today.

It seems rather amazing how our learned legislators have managed to remain above the fray and remove themselves from what has been going on—giving the banks and other financial institutions free reign do their best to profit at the expense of the people.

Aside from obscene, it appears that we are one step removed from chaos where the difference is being decided by government bail-outs.


Let’s look at the ugly truth.

Merrill Lynch, one of the oldest investment firms is being bailed out by Singapore. Singapore mind you. And not from investors but the government of Singapore.

Same old, same old for Citibank who many years ago let its investors knew that we were small potatoes to them and closed most of its service branches as if thumbing their noses at the middle class. They were the purebreds going for the big bucks. Sorry suckers! Today, they are being bailed out by the government of the oil-rich Sheikdom on the Gulf Coast. And they may not come out of the arrangement intact.

And just yesterday, Bear Sterns, one of the largest private investment firms who’s executives earn million dollar bonuses and thought that the rest of us who did not qualify for such extravagant incomes had to be beneath even perfunctory consideration, had to be saved by Morgan through an agreement with the Fed. It was the ‘wink-wink’ deal of the year!.....

All because of greed and corruption in the matter of sub prime mortgages.

If one had any out doubts about where this government’s loyalties lay, they now surely know that its not with the people; otherwise, why not bail them out from these inflatable mortgages that have put more than one million homes into receivership in the last few months.

One wonders how such prestigious companies with such successful managements could have gotten themselves into such a mess and the only answer I can come up with is greed.

But to make the mess look better, instead of punishing the abusers who had little regard for the necessary supervision and monitoring needed to keep a sound economy on course, we reward them with bail=outs that come from foreign countries.

Did these companies not anticipate that the people they were giving inflatable mortgages to would not be able to pay back after the loans ballooned up?

Or did greed clutter their thinking?

And if that is the case, why are we rewarding the guilty when it’s the poor home owner who needs to be bailed out?

Were their actions not affecting every other segment of the market virtually one could almost forgive these greed merchants for what they’ve done. But they do affect so many more aspects of our economy, that forgiving them would be unthinkable.

The unconscionable mortgage decisions, not only affected people’s ability to pay, they have virtually wiped out not only the housing market but the credit markets as well and with fleeing jobs rationalized, our increasing foreign debt, and the self-aggrandizing perspective of self-centered, insensitive decision-makers, this government is going to be left poorer than anyone might have imagined.

It will, as a consequence of their disdain and negligent management, fall upon the next government, to put things back into balance—and that will be no easy task for the chances are that these very same people who have decided badly will still be around blaming democrats for everything that managed to do to bring down our country.

I am sure that Dante would have relegated a very special place in Hell for the whole pack of them…. In the meantime, the middle class, or what’s left of it, suffers on and pays the price.

Who would ever have imagined it would come to this….

Les Aaron
The Armchair Curmudgeon

One can’t vouchsafe democracy from the supine position.

The Committee for Positive Change