Posts by Angus Robertson
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I don't seem to remember Tea Partiers protesting against any of that. Or conservatives generally. Liberal blogs have been hitting Obama on those exact issues, but they haven't exactly been protesting in droves near the Washington Monument.
Independents decide elections. They exist in a space removed from progressive and conservative camps. They do not organise protests, because they have no set political agenda. If the government is not delivering the goods the independents will vote to change it.
When progressives staged grassroots/astroturf anti-war marches during the Bush years, independents paid attention to Democrats promising to break with the Bush/GOP agenda. And when the economy went south at the end of the Bush years they voted for change as promised by the progressive Democrats.
When conservatives staged grassroots/astroturf anti-healthcare marches, independents paid attention to Republicans promising to break with the Obama/Dem agenda.
The economy is still not good, independents are looking to see who is going to change the most. Who will change the least.
As per the link I posted above, the US economy has been growing throughout Obama's term. TARP was a Bush initiative, but was quickly tapped as "Obama's bank bailout" and has had a positive effect on the economy. (McCain has retroactively declared he would have reversed TARP, but again, that's a case of a Republican trying to exploit Tea Party rhetoric for electoral gain.)
Well yeah, the gifting of $billions to mega rich idiots who somehow have managed to lose even more than that. You say its great news that is brilliant for the economy and causes growth. Others say it is bad news and causes unemployment. It's either good policy or its not, and people can make their own judgement call.
In delivery perhaps, but not in purpose. Have a read of this article on the "Tea Party Manifesto". Small government, reducing federal entitlements, lower taxes, no universal health care, etc It's the Republican Party platform of the last twenty years liberally sprinkled with phrases like "grass roots", "decentralization", "independent", "not politics as usual", etc
The approach of the Bush era was to borrow and deficit spend an expansion of government. Amoung his greatest domestic successes was to increase the size of medicare by $500billion. This was termed compassionate conservatism and was not the same as the Tea Party Manifesto.
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The "Politicians aren't doing enough to fix the economy!" trope is trotted out every single election when Democratic candidates are incumbents, and it is almost always a lie manufactured by conservative strategists because it plays well with the uninformed.
As James Carville said: "Its the economy, stupid."
"Do something"? You mean like the TARP bailout, which actually did do a hell of a lot for the economy? Or the tax cuts Obama instituted (see that same article.)
Do something worthwhile, change something, don't behave like a continuation of George W Bush (y'know the guy who the Dems blame for getting into the mess).
TARP was created by Bush - so yes I mean exactly like that. And Obama introduced tax cuts, wow, how new and dynamic and completely different from anything Bush would have done - not. Next you'll be saying he should be congratulated for keeping up the war spending on track for a Bush timetabled withdrawl from Iraq. Or how he instituted a surge in Afghanistan, exactly like the surge Bush used in Iraq. Or how he hasn't closed Gitmo.
Continuation of Bush style politics is not the change and hope independents saw in 2008 Democrats. And whatever you might think of the Tea Party movement craziness it is change from business as usual politics.
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It's tempting to reduce all this down to the bare bones: people were angry because a black man was elected president, but knew they couldn't say as much. I think it's much more complicated than that, but that was certainly the motivation for a significant minority of those involved.
More likely their motivation is: the economy is shit so please get off your lazy, good for nothing, over paid, worthless, golf playing, self serving collective arse and do something worthwhile.
How this fury expresses itself may vary, but I was more referring to the fact that they are at opposite ends of what they are angry about.
In Europe same applies, they are angry about the economy.
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I think it's interesting to note that the fury the Tea Party brings to the, umm, party is similar, but completely opposite to what the protests and strikes in France are about.
I think you've got that wrong. In Europe there are strikes and riots and the odd lynching. In America there are protest gatherings and political reorganisation in the opposition party. The fury is not similar.
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"If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face, forever." - George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty Four
Now singing Shihad "Factory" in my head. Thanks.
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@ Hilary,
Hillary Clinton also motivates alot of Republicans and independents to vote agianst whatever she is for. Is NZ far enough away?
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Did I mention he's fucking crazy? Crazier than his dad? And that he's going to enter the US Senate this week?
America has high unemployment and low growth, independents want a change. They don't much care if its left or right wing.
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Juan Keystro insists that the measures taken would not have been neccessary if it were not for the unfair and illegitimate Australian embargo.
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Does this whole unions-display-core-incompetence-in-public thing hurt Andrew Little's chances to lead the Labour Party? Will Shane Jones be just that little bit more likely to be NZs next Labour PM?
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That seems more like what the actors say they were seeking for the previous couple of years - more certainty, just like the big producers are asking for now.
Its pretty standard practice to declare victory after an engagement. There are never any routs, only strategic withdrawls.