I really feel comfortable describing only my rough ideas and initial impressions these days, because things are changing so fast and moving at breakneck speed. Complete analysis to form an actual opinion becomes such a laggardly endeavor.
I do know one or two things with certainty, though. One, I am finding myself almost disgusted at times at how often and by whom President Obama gets criticized because so much of it is either obvious political gain ploys from the Right and tedious trivially ridiculous nitpicking on the Left. I wish both sides would institute the rule that if it is not very important and reasonably fair, then STFU, will you please?
Put another way, I should think that the same rules begging civility towards Palin should also apply to Obama. Just this week alone, I've counted more than a dozen instances on cable news where the talking head demanded civility for one and then denegraded the other to no end. And those dozen-plus examples were on both sides of the political spectrum.
I'm dumbstruck by the realization that the Congressional GOP is now doing exactly what they pointed out that the Congressional Dems did. And, speaking as an Independent and one of those vast numbers that both parties need to get elected, the GOP was not elected in the midterms to behave this way. They were elected to handle economic matters, not to further restrict abortion in half a dozen bills and measures and increase costs by codifying the IRS as the abortion police.
The only reason I am not going balistic over this is that I'm holding out hope that this is the only way that Speaker Boehner has found to form a coalition to handle the budget-cutting, and that the Senate will never pass the so-called abortion police bill. It is entirely possible to my mind that Boehner's been faced with an ultimatum that certain conservatives have to have some social concessions (thinly and duplicitously veiled as cost-cutting measures) before they join the budget cutting party.
It's still perilous. At some point, independents like me will want to see some action in the economics department and so far, nada. I know that for myself, I'm gearing up to have to write some letters pretty darn soon.
On the other hand, it's all for show as long as the two houses of Congress are in the majorities they are, unless Senate GOP'rs can pick off some Dem allies.
And on the offchance that it does pass, when the 2012 campaigning starts and your Congressional incumbent brags about cutting NPR and Planned PArenthood, make him or her explain why they installed the IRS as the police for abortion deductibility...and why the bill had not one word exempting miscarriage D&C's. And watch them squirm. By that time, if I know the IRS, they will surely have lumped it as just another kind of abortion you'll have to prove you got due to rape, incest, or threat to your life. That your fetus's heart quit beating on its own...not a good enough reason for an allowable deductible D&C, apparently. Oh, the fools rush in to fill any vaccuum, don't they?
Last post, I was down on Trump. And I still am, except that I feel the need to add that he does make for great TV. Not his show. HIM. He really stirred it up on the View, and I loved it. If I could wish one bad thing on
Obama, it would be for him to come to royally regret not getting his birth certified by the Senate just like McCain did. He could have avoided all this crap had he only done so. I can just hear Whoopie screaming, Why should he? No white man ever had to do that! Well, McCain's pretty white, and Trump missed a golden opportunity to shut it down with that, in my opinion. He's not quite as sharp as I thought he was, but his potential for bringing up all kinds of crap is pretty big. Good TV.
And finally, Charlie Sheen. What a difference a few days make. CBS wants to talk about him coming back now, he has a comedy tour booked, and he's arguably more popular now than before the meltdown. I love it, and predicted as much if you will recall. I'm also very thankful that the TV talking heads quit booking all the Dr. Drews. The impending predictions of my death are greatly exxagerated, blahblahblah, or something like that. They have the figurative egg on their faces now.
