One of my rare (hopefully VERY rare!) rants against someone on our side, against Bush.
Normally I prefer to reserve my vents for arch-right wing liar and would-be dictator, unelected "President" George Bush, and to use my other pieces in praise of our Knight-in-Shining Armor, sent to rescue us from the evil of Sauron or Vader or The Borg (Bush), John F. Kerry!
I will make rare exceptions to this policy, this being one.
In a recent message board post, this blog's owner EXCELLENTLY points out that the ultimate showdown for Dean vs. another candidate (like Kerry, my favorite, or Clark) will be between centrists and leftists.
Let me add Rational Leftists on the centrist side.
It would seem to me, that a leftist who is dominated more by their rational side than their emotional side would be much more afraid of Bush and his extreme right-wing conservatism than of any left or center candidates on the Democratic side.
As the nine or ten major candidates against Bush are all against Bush's policies as a whole, differing only on specifics, I want any one of them to be President rather than Bush. But my greatest need is not to get a specific Dem as President, but to send Bush packing.
Bush is our greatest fear, and I and at least two other people I know of have become MUCH more politically active in the last year as a result of Bush's policies. I am sure many more are to come. One just became active in the last week. When the chips are down, even though many of us are very leftist, we will not vote for the most leftist candidate. We will vote for the candidate with the most NATIONAL clout against Bush.
We will vote for John Kerry as our nominee, because we know it is Kerry that has the most national security experience, the most experience at doing what is right for Veterans, and the most principled, thoughtful methods for developing MODERATE policies that can appeal to both capitalists (tax exemptions for small business and dividends) and to progressives (more health care and education, more universally), to veterans and to peaceniks, to the elderly and to the young, to women, minorities, and small business, to the working poor and to the widows and widowers living on stock dividends.
John Kerry is the only candidate whose policies will appeal to the South (veteran's issues, originally supported Bush's war resolution until proven that we were conned), the North (stronger pro-union laws, tougher restrictions on pollution), the East (keep Bush's exemptions for stock dividends and add new exemptions for small business), the West (small business, pro-choice, 20% alternative energy by 2020, stronger health care availability especially helpful for the elderly and legal immigrants), and the Midwest (focus on wind power, which would greatly help Midwest farmers who live in the windiest states).
See?!? Dean doesn't know a thing about broad-based coalition building. Kerry does, and has been doing it at the FEDERAL level, for dozens of years. Dean has none of this experience, except at the State level.
Now, all this talk about moderation and coalition-building. Does this mean Kerry lacks backbone, that he lacks principle? Hardly! EARLY in his political career, shortly after a selfless heroic war effort, Kerry formed the Vietnam Veterans Against the War group, an anti-Vietnam war group (at a time when it was still popular to be pro-Vietnam) which later became one of America's leading organizations for Vietnam Veterans. He explains, in a logical fashion, why each of his policies has certain loopholes and restrictions. For example, he has explained that his tax plan will reverse all of Bush's tax cuts that favor only the rich, but not the ones that favor the middle class, and even add new ones, for the working poor. He explains why each cut is needed or is not needed, in order to help low-income or middle-income families or why it would only give significant help only to those making $100,000 a year or more (which he does, by the way, and his wife is extremely wealthy beyond description, so this is a VERY principled move on his part).
I have examined his tax plan thoroughly, and all I can say is: Kerry's logic checks out. His tax plan is rationally constructed, to help only those who need the help the most or who would increase hiring of other people the most. Dean's tax and foreign policy plan is illogical, and is emotionally directed against anything and everything Bush has done, regardless of who it may help or hurt or of who might be helped by placing well-thought out special exemptions for small business, the middle class, or the elderly low-income.
I agree with Kerry and Dean that 99% of what Bush has done has hurt the people. I disagree with Dean that you gain people's support by throwing out the 1% that has gone to people who needed it most. The rich, yes, they can do without the extra 10% or 20% or whatever. The middle class? No, taking 1% from them is more hurtful than taking away 20% from the rich, and I can tell you EMPHATICALLY, here in the South (and probably nation-wide, too), that 1% can and WILL cost you votes.
Dean, you are not really anti-Bush. Dean, you are really anti-logic.
JOHN KERRY is anti-Bush, is compassionate, and knows how to use logic to beat Bush and to help the people!!!
Normally I prefer to reserve my vents for arch-right wing liar and would-be dictator, unelected "President" George Bush, and to use my other pieces in praise of our Knight-in-Shining Armor, sent to rescue us from the evil of Sauron or Vader or The Borg (Bush), John F. Kerry!
I will make rare exceptions to this policy, this being one.
In a recent message board post, this blog's owner EXCELLENTLY points out that the ultimate showdown for Dean vs. another candidate (like Kerry, my favorite, or Clark) will be between centrists and leftists.
Let me add Rational Leftists on the centrist side.
It would seem to me, that a leftist who is dominated more by their rational side than their emotional side would be much more afraid of Bush and his extreme right-wing conservatism than of any left or center candidates on the Democratic side.
As the nine or ten major candidates against Bush are all against Bush's policies as a whole, differing only on specifics, I want any one of them to be President rather than Bush. But my greatest need is not to get a specific Dem as President, but to send Bush packing.
Bush is our greatest fear, and I and at least two other people I know of have become MUCH more politically active in the last year as a result of Bush's policies. I am sure many more are to come. One just became active in the last week. When the chips are down, even though many of us are very leftist, we will not vote for the most leftist candidate. We will vote for the candidate with the most NATIONAL clout against Bush.
We will vote for John Kerry as our nominee, because we know it is Kerry that has the most national security experience, the most experience at doing what is right for Veterans, and the most principled, thoughtful methods for developing MODERATE policies that can appeal to both capitalists (tax exemptions for small business and dividends) and to progressives (more health care and education, more universally), to veterans and to peaceniks, to the elderly and to the young, to women, minorities, and small business, to the working poor and to the widows and widowers living on stock dividends.
John Kerry is the only candidate whose policies will appeal to the South (veteran's issues, originally supported Bush's war resolution until proven that we were conned), the North (stronger pro-union laws, tougher restrictions on pollution), the East (keep Bush's exemptions for stock dividends and add new exemptions for small business), the West (small business, pro-choice, 20% alternative energy by 2020, stronger health care availability especially helpful for the elderly and legal immigrants), and the Midwest (focus on wind power, which would greatly help Midwest farmers who live in the windiest states).
See?!? Dean doesn't know a thing about broad-based coalition building. Kerry does, and has been doing it at the FEDERAL level, for dozens of years. Dean has none of this experience, except at the State level.
Now, all this talk about moderation and coalition-building. Does this mean Kerry lacks backbone, that he lacks principle? Hardly! EARLY in his political career, shortly after a selfless heroic war effort, Kerry formed the Vietnam Veterans Against the War group, an anti-Vietnam war group (at a time when it was still popular to be pro-Vietnam) which later became one of America's leading organizations for Vietnam Veterans. He explains, in a logical fashion, why each of his policies has certain loopholes and restrictions. For example, he has explained that his tax plan will reverse all of Bush's tax cuts that favor only the rich, but not the ones that favor the middle class, and even add new ones, for the working poor. He explains why each cut is needed or is not needed, in order to help low-income or middle-income families or why it would only give significant help only to those making $100,000 a year or more (which he does, by the way, and his wife is extremely wealthy beyond description, so this is a VERY principled move on his part).
I have examined his tax plan thoroughly, and all I can say is: Kerry's logic checks out. His tax plan is rationally constructed, to help only those who need the help the most or who would increase hiring of other people the most. Dean's tax and foreign policy plan is illogical, and is emotionally directed against anything and everything Bush has done, regardless of who it may help or hurt or of who might be helped by placing well-thought out special exemptions for small business, the middle class, or the elderly low-income.
I agree with Kerry and Dean that 99% of what Bush has done has hurt the people. I disagree with Dean that you gain people's support by throwing out the 1% that has gone to people who needed it most. The rich, yes, they can do without the extra 10% or 20% or whatever. The middle class? No, taking 1% from them is more hurtful than taking away 20% from the rich, and I can tell you EMPHATICALLY, here in the South (and probably nation-wide, too), that 1% can and WILL cost you votes.
Dean, you are not really anti-Bush. Dean, you are really anti-logic.
JOHN KERRY is anti-Bush, is compassionate, and knows how to use logic to beat Bush and to help the people!!!
posted by Anonymous at 5:13 PM
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