I have received this e-mail from three different people this month so I thought that I would share.
Quote of the Day........"My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you'll join with me as we try to change it." -- Barack Obama
I did some research and this article claims that Obama did not say this. I don't know if it is true or not but I do know that I got a good laugh out of it.
The e-mail continues with these statistics:
A little over 16 MONTHS ago:
1) Consumer confidence stood at a 2 1/2 year high;
2) Regular gasoline sold for $2.19 a gallon;
3) The unemployment rate was 4.5%.
Since voting in a Democratic Congress that promised to change things in 2006 we have seen:
1) Consumer confidence plummet;
2) The cost of regular gasoline soar to over $3.50 a gallon and congress refused to vote for policies to increase our production;
3) Unemployment is up to 5% (a 10% increase);
4) American households have seen $2.3 trillion in equity value evaporate (stock and mutual fund losses);
5) Americans have seen their home equity drop by $1.2 trillion dollars;
6) 1% of American homes are in foreclosure.
It looks like America voted for change in 2006, and we got it! Remember it's Congress that makes law not the President. He has to work with what's handed to him.
I am not going to give the rest of the e-mail because it goes on and on and I am not here to offend anyone. Like I said, I just got a good laugh out of it.
9 comments:
Interesting statistics. Change is not always good....sometimes change is just change.
Very hand-picked stats, but funny. All of these effects take a lot of time to come about - more than 16 months! It's like blaming Bush for 9/11, for example. The mortgage crisis was a natural consequence of the home-buying/lending hysteria that occurred before that. Housing prices soared so unrealistically, they had to normalize at some point. Otherwise, how can Joe Schmoes ever afford a house again? I guess Dems would argue it's unfettered capitalism that needs to be regulated and people need bail-outs - not that I necessarily agree, but it's a valid point of view.
The oil prices increase because of strife in the Middle East, but possibly even more because the consumption in India, China, and other places has skyrocketed. They are trying to adapt luxurious high-energy-consuming lifestyles like Americans (the nerve!). I agree drilling in Alaska would solve major problems in the short term and environmentalists need to concede this point until we develop better energy sources for the long term.
Thanks Tamara for the chance to think out loud!
Let's not forget that one of the largest factors contributing to the general decline of American Morale in the 16 month span that these statistics refer to, is the decision that the Bush administration made to invade Iraq. This was a policy decision that Bush made while the republicans were still in control of congress. Not that it mattered which party was in control of congress, because I am of the opinion that no one could stop the trainwreck of an administration that Dub has plagued this country with since he has been in office. I'm also pretty sure that there is no policy that Congress (democratic or republican) could have passed that would have had such a detrimental impact on every aspect of our society as Bush's quasi-unilateral decision to get revenge. The most ridiculous part is that we now control the oil, but we still can't control the prices. What a joke. I do get a good laugh out of these stats, but not the kind like someone just told a funny joke. It is more like the kind where I just suffered a compound fracture and it hurts so bad that all I can do is chortle a little bit about how screwed I am. Because seriously, as long as we are locked into this tired old bi-partison political machine, I am screwed, and so is everyone else who lives here.
Tami, for all you Bush hating friends, tell them to watch Bush's speech on Sept 20, 2001. He promised he would not forget and would not stop. Everyone else has forgotten and have wanted to leave when things got bad, he is the only one to stayed the course, and has paid the price of public hatred. Your friends will mock this, let them mock. They are living in a free nation and a safe nation, because the man they so quickly attack has sacrificed this public image and I for one am greatful to him. In 1864 when Lincoln ran for reelection he was accused of most of the same things, remember his war cost 600,000 deaths. Every argument made agaisnt Bush was made against Lincoln, he paid the initial price, history has judged him correctly, my professional opinion (Ph.D. in american history) is that history will judge Bush fairly as well. I do not agree with everything President Bush has done, but I say God Bless the President, and just hope our next president has the moral courage to follow his own will not bend to public pressure the way Clinton did.
This is so true, finck (sorry, dr. finck). Any one who criticizes Bush automatically hates him, and does not wish God's blessing on him.
Also, Civil War and this Iraq war: the only difference is the time period, otherwise, it's pretty much the same (motivation, justification, etc.) and thus Bush will definitely be vindicated by history.
God Bless the President (capitalized for proper bumper sticker usage), as you say. But not President Clinton, obviously.
I would be, without a doubt, reading the Koran in a madrassa if not for Bush, so all you haters can just remember that next time you go freely read your New Yorker magazine, or freely burn your flags or smoke your marijuana cigarettes.
Just as I expected. Mock away.
Watch Bush's presidential debates from his first term (any of them). His most recurring criticism of the Clinton administration was "nation building," Something Bush promised would not occur if he were elected. What happened there? It isn't about morals it is about pride. Maybe I'm a total retard, but the argument about fighting the insurgents Iraq keeping us safe (since it is being fought overseas), is missing quite a bit of supporting data. If we are so safe by keeping troops in Iraq, give us back our constitutional rights that were quickly taken away by the executive branch in the name of war powers. I don't care who is in office, when the executive branch pushes the line of checks and balances, it is wrong. Since we are talking about mocking, lets talk about who the rest of the world is mocking. Its us. We are the butt of the joke because we have a rogue president piloting a runaway executive branch. Bending under public pressure is one thing. Carrying out the will of your constiuency is another. Putting one's personal agenda above the wishes and demands of one's constituency seems more like moral turpitude than moral courage. And the left wing liberal east coast zealots aren't the only ones who think so, unless 67% of the country is an east coast liberal zealot Moral courage is to stand up and do something when your government is doing something that you know is wrong, instead of just having blind patriotism and getting in line with lemmings. The reason that the Nazi regime was so powerful was because of their blind nationalism. Having said all of that. I think that we have a great country. But I think that we are polishing the brass on the titanic if we allow the status quo to continue; we are all going down.
Just as I expected. No actual rebuttal.
We live in a free nation because of Bush? Might need some objective references there. Cause and effect aren't linked a priori in that statement.
I do not know you Scott, but I have had a change of heart about what I said, or at least my tone. I forgot this was not my forum but my sisters whom I respect and so have dedided to end a debate. I apoligize to you and tami. I am passionate and see everything historically.
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