For a Minute I Was a Fan....

Over the last six years I have had ample opportunities to express my dissatisfaction, frustration, and at times anger with our President. At issue in most of these cases was not only my disagreement with the policy advanced by the Administration, but also by the way it was presented. This White House has been smug, secretive, and condescending. The President himself seems to epitomize these attitudes, often spewing nonsense that leaves the audience questioning the intelligence of their fearless leader.

More than the many "Bushisms" (there are now three full books of funny, flipped, or down-right stupid remarks made by Bush) it is his disingenuous delivery that makes one feel like they are watching a high school play. To his supporters this is the essence of his leadership style. Strong, decisive, and not afraid to say what is on his mind, and absolutely unrelenting when questioned. Through five plus years of Bush 43, he had never admitted making an error, never backed down from a previous statement, and never claimed responsibility for a blunder. Instead he surrounded himself in the insular cage of the West Wing. That small group of advisors for which outsiders were banned. Press conferences were choreographed, interviews were pre-screened, and even ordinary citizens had to sign pledges of allegiance to the President simply to attend a "public" event.

However, over the past few months that has began to change. The steel curtain around the West Wing has been lowered and the President has began to answer questions. This is not such a novel concept, but one that the Administration long resisted. So what prompted the change you ask? Legacy. A President's second term is about creating, cultivating, and leaving a legacy to the country and to the world. With a little over two years remaining on his contract, Bush sees his popularity at an all time low. His political agenda is in shambles (social security, immigration, etc), his party is surrounded by scandal (Abramhoff, Delay, Libby), and his legacy as a man of action, a man of the people is quickly slipping away. Yes, drastic times call for drastic measures, and that is what we saw this past week from the White House.

Bush went on television and shocked almost everyone with his mea culpa. Admitting for the first time that mistakes were made in the handling of the war. Specifically admitting the damaging effects of the Abu Graib scandal. That's not where it stopped though. He admitted that one of his biggest regrets was his attitude and language at the beginning of the war. Saying that it was a mistake to say "Bring em' on" and "We will get them dead or alive". He even went as far as saying that he should have been more sophisticated in his rhetoric. All the while he delivered his self admission with a true genuineness that even this liberal Democrat had to applaud. It seems that there has been some evolution and growth in the White House over the past few months. Bush has come not only to realize, but to publicly say that the leader of our country has a responsibility to be mature enough to admit his mistakes and to show that he has learned from them.

I do not anticipate that I will ever see eye-to-eye with the President's ideals and policies, but for the first time I felt like the President was actually speaking to me. This press conference was not designed for the blue blood elites, for the neo-cons, or for the religious right. No, this time we got to see our President stand up and speak to all of us, to admit to us that mistakes had been made. Is there much more that we can and should expect of our President? Absolutely. But for a few minutes (and I am sure this will change tomorrow) I have to say I was a fan.

It's Your World Too...

As many of you know I consistently listen to talk radio. Yes, I know that this is the bastion of conservative thought and one of the driving forces behind the resurgent conservative revolution of the past few years. And, yes, I am still a liberal minded Democrat, who holds the Bush Administration in the strongest of contempt. So why then do I listen? The answer is simple, I am a liberal. See to me, being a liberal does not mean that I support communist, want to kill babies, or believe our tax rates should rival those in Europe. No, being a liberal means that I can keep an open mind and hear more than one side of an issue. It seems that this is increasingly becoming a mind-set that Americans try to avoid. Why should I turn on Fox news when I can watch CNN? Why should I buy the New York Times when Rush Limbaugh tells me everything I need to know? Why should I read the entire ballot when I can just vote the party ticket???

It is an unfortunate by-product of the two party system I suppose, nonetheless, a very scary evolution. What happened to critical thought, why do we not take the time to educate ourselves? I can attribute this lack of action by the citizen public to two main reasons; laziness and complete and total apathy.

Yes, I said it, we as Americans are overwhelmingly lazy. We are a push button society. We believe in instant everything, automatic vehicles, nanny's, housekeepers, and personal assistants. We prefer diet pills to working out, email to actual conversation, and have found a way to accomplish virtually anything from our own couch. So why should we take the time to involve ourselves in the political process? It takes effort, we would have to be educated on the issues, read about the candidates, and analyze different ideas. Yes, being politically active takes some initiative, and at minimum a desire to understand the world around you.

The second problem of the American politic is not nearly as easily solved as the first; apathy. I see and hear examples of this almost everyday. In fact most of my friends and family cannot understand why I want to be so engaged in the political process. It is not that they don't understand politics, it is that they really don't believe that they can have any effect on policy. It is the ownership principle: people care about things that they have ownership in. If you want evidence to support this theory, simply drive down your own street. Which houses have the nicest lawns, the freshest paint, and the most colorful flower beds? I would be willing to bet it is not the rental houses.

Our selfish human nature tells us to take time, pay attention to, and work to improve things that we own. There is nothing wrong with this attitude, except when we fail to realize the true scope of our dominion. It is people like me and you who make up the local school boards, city councils, state legislatures, and ultimately the congress of the United States. And here is the scary part; those people are making decisions that do effect your life! Let me say it again, politics effects you, each and every one of you! From how much you pay in taxes, to where you can live, who you can marry, and what country you may be asked to fight against, politics effects you. To sit back and say that you cannot affect what goes on in the world around you is choosing to be the ultimate victim. Revolution after revolution has proven the power of the people. It is easy to sit back and complain when you are not a part of the process. This is the epitome of Monday night quarterbacking. So next time things aren't going the way you would like you only have one question to ask yourself: Was I too lazy, or did I just not care?

The News...it's a Sad Thing....

So I have been less than faithfully in posting everyday like I committed to doing, so I am going to get back to it. Thanks to all of you who have been complaining about the lack of my mindless dribble to read...Okay here we go.

I suppose that one of the reasons why I have not been writing much is that frankly I cannot stand to watch the news. You would think that in this era of 24 hour news channels that I would be able to find plenty of things that infuriate me, make me laugh, or that I want to give my spin to. The problem is that for every hour of programming on the news channels there is about 2 minutes of actual news. Now I can be as sentimental as the next guy (yes for those who know me you know this isn't true), but I have had it up to my neck in human interest stories.

Yes, I know it is great to profile cancer survivors, to talk about the kid who sold lemonade to help hurricane victims, and show the whole world the good work that the local church is doing, but come on, enough is enough. Lets take today for example; today's leading stories on CNN, ABC, NBC, and Fox News were: 1) Barbaro-will the horse make it with a broken leg? And 2) The seven year old boy who swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco. Now, yes it is sad that a horse broke it's leg, and it is quite impressive that a seven year old swam across a bay (what the hell were his parents thinking?), but should these be the two leading stories?

How about we talk about the congressman who is being investigated for taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes? Maybe we should be hearing more about a nation run by the most extreme of radical Islamists who refuse to abandon their nuclear program? Or perhaps the Attorney General taking on the first amendment by saying that his office will prosecute reporters who publish classified information. Are these not more noteworthy stories?

Here is a thought; we are in a war. Yes I know it is difficult to remember that at times but we have tens of thousands of troops fighting. Putting their lives in danger everyday. See, this war is different from any other that we have ever had. During the World Wars the entire country rallied around, industry changed over to support the war, Rosie the Riveter was born, people bought war bonds, contributed to the USO, and read every single piece of news they could find about the war. During Vietnam we were engrossed in the war. The controversy and protest kept America's attention. Even during the first Gulf War I remember coming home and doing nothing but watching news coverage, hour after hour.

So what has changed? We have become a microwave nation. Our attention span last only as long as there is nothing new to focus on. We have to have everything instantly, and grow tired of news as quickly as we do a stale piece of gum. The problem is that we see the stories daily, but we fail to understand their importance, and almost never take any action as a result of what we have seen. We find out that we are being wiretapped without warrants and there is a two day uproar. Scientist tell us that climate change is happening quicker than we anticipated and that it could have dramatic effects; 24 hour news cycle. No weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, North Korea has the bomb, Hamas takes over; two day stories at most. Where is the resolution? The public outcry? The action by our elected officials? It is not there, because these are not popular issues.

Now if you want to see action, then expose a breast during the SuperBowl and instantly you will have hearings in both the Senate and House. Why? It is sexy, its exciting, people want to know about it. Yes I know I am painting a sad picture. That of a nation that is out of touch with what is important. And yes, there are many of us out there who strive to keep up with current events, to understand the world we live in, and to even try to help shape it. But this group is a minority, and that my friends is a sad thing.

Response to Jim on Ward Churchill

Jim,
There is no doubt that Ward Churchill is a very controversial figure. I consider myself a liberal Democrat, and even I have been appalled by many of his public statements. However, as a campaigner for the First Amendment, I believe that he has a right to say what he would like and express his opinions regardless of how unpopular they may be. On the issue of the tax payers paying him to write a book. Well, this is nothing new in academia. Many professors who are employed by public colleges and universities use their tenure as an opportunity to fund their research and write books. The thought here is that generally these people are working for a public institution making less than they would earn in the private sector. They choose to teach so they can utilize the resources of the university to further advance their studies. I do not have a problem with this system, outside of the fact that I believe that it does not necessarily encourage the "best and brightest" in any given field to pursue a career in teaching. Instead it gives opportunity for those who prefer to live in the world of academia to continue to do so.
Now, where I do have a huge issue with Ward Churchill is in the accusations of academic fraud and plagiarism. If these accusations are true, which it appears based on the recently released peer reviewed report that they are, than Mr. Churchill should be disciplined accordingly. The only circumstance in which the tax payers will have to pay his attorneys fees is if he is able to prevail in a court battle. Which, based on the evidence already released, seems highly unlikely.