Why George Bush Sucks

It's NOT because he lied, because he didn't.

It is because:

- Mr. Bush has presided over the fastest growth in federal spending since the great Society in the 1960s.

- Mr. Bush put the Republican seal of approval on the biggest intrusion of federal power into the classroom in history (No Child Left Behind)

- Mr. Bush and the Republican party passed the most expensive public works program ever (the 2005 highway bill)

- Mr. Bush created the largest new entitlement program since the creation of Medicare and Medicaid (the prescription-drug benefit)

- Mr. Bush rode roughshod over states' rights on issues such as assisted suicide

- Mr. Bush has expanded the federal government's power to eavesdrop on its citizens

- Mr. Bush created the Department of Homeland Security - which is more 1984ish (even the name is doublespeak) than anything else one could possibly dream up

- Mr. Bush protected the steel industry (a special interest - buying popularity) at great costs to US consumers of steel (import tariffs)

- Mr. Bush's supreme court nominees have pushed the court far to the right

To paraphrase one of the most heinous people on the planet: "Dude, where's my party?"

(much of this is borrowed from The Economist, May 31, 2008, page 38)

Andreessen Gets Integrity

Marc Andreessen's blog is well known amongst the high-tech entrepreneurial community to be well-written, insightful, and expert.

However, his occasional political posts have been, to put it mildly, sophomoric. (Perhaps they are almost as juvenile as mine).

However, his post this morning does a fantastic job of illustrating why Obama is such a great candidate to lead our country. This has nothing to do with the man's political persuasion; it is just that Obama is (like McCain) a person of great character and integrity, and that these qualities coexist harmoniously with tremendous political and leadership skills.

And we all know how rare this combination is.

(Self-serving egotists clearly are not worthy of being mentioned here.)

Ding, Dong, The Witch is Dead!

OK, OK, I'm a bit premature, but I'm so excited that the politics of character assassination are in their death throes that I just couldn't wait until March 5!

This Election: More on Integrity and Moral Courage

Lawrence Lessig has a beautiful piece on the contrasts between Clinton and Obama. It is so well done that not only are the points compelling, but the delivery of the message is compelling in and of itself.

A short summary of the presentation might be that Obama has courage, moral fortitude, and leadership, while Clinton has none. But I urge you to watch the video - it's awesome.

By the way, I think McCain compares with Obama on these character traits. If we were to have an election contest between Obama and McCain, we would, for the first time in memory, have an election between two worthy individuals.

A Brief History of the Foreign Policy of Modern US Presidents

This morning I stumbled into an amazing blog post. If you're an enthusiastic student of history, like I am, take the 5 minutes to read about the ending of the cold war, and the roles of Carter, Reagan, and Clinton.

Carter, while arguably the greatest man of the the three, was likely the worst president. Clinton presided over a booming domestic economy, but was entirely absent in foreign policy (perhaps causing his popularity) . Reagan, while ridiculed by most Europeans as a hawkish warmonger, actually played a major role in ending the cold war and liberating eastern Europe with minimal casualties to the West.

I've just finished reading Charlie Wilson's War and this too is an integral component of this story and is a highly recommended read.

Current history is fascinating. Are we transitioning from Cold War to American hegemony to a "Post-Edwardian" US role in the world all in the space of a few decades?

Got Integrity?

OK, so we're probably all fed up with politics these days, and of course we all know that the US process is just getting started.

As I think about who I'll vote for, I realize that my own most important criteria in an elected official is my perception of a candidate's integrity.

I recognize that "political integrity" is an oxymoron, so don't jump on me for being naive and idealistic.

I have to say that one candidate is by far and away at the bottom of the charts of integrity, well below even all of the other demagogic candidates. That candidate is Hillary Clinton. It is my view that few people, with the possible exception of Donald Trump, have less integrity than Hillary Clinton.

For starters, check this out:
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/01/obama-v-clinton.html

Oh, there's more, much more...perhaps this topic will come up again in the future?