Friday/Weekend Open Thread

today on jobs report. The dollar is weakening. Oil goes up almost $7 in an hour to nearly $135 as investors look to hedge their bets against inflation. This is just pure speculation by traders and has zero to do with the real cost of oil. Boo/hiss.

Wal-Mart is thumping it's chest and holding their 'Wal-Mart Nation' rally complete with rock bands, rousing patriotic feelings to celebrate the Wal-Mart brand. Why does this remind me of China. Will Wal-Mart be able to infiltrate Russia? They have set their sites on expanding the Big Box store to the old Soviet Union.

It is the economy, stupid.

Here's why:

First of all, McCain's too much of an old war-horse, who'd more than likely keep us in Iraq indefinitely, and then get us into yet another war, with Iran. McCain also advocates the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which is a dangerous precedent, because it would mean reverting back to the days where women would become seriously ill and/or die from illegal, unsafe abortions at the hands of unscrupulous back-alley butchers with unsanitary practices, tools and hands, increase the welfare rolls, the number of shotgun weddings, the amount of crime and domestic violence. This country has too many problems-we don't need more. McCain would also have open borders for undocumented workers--something else we don't need. McCain has never, ever suggested cutting our miltary budget to pay for necessary programs, nor has he suggested taking the media out of the hands of the big corporations, nor has he suggested rescinding NAFTA or CAFTA, or dismantling the Department of Homeland Security or the Patriot Act. Both of the latter are real dangers to our civil liberties. McCain is also too much of a loose cannon, to boot; he's got a legendary temper, which he doesn't keep under wraps. Presidents are in contact with leaders, etc., throughout the world. How's it going to look when McCain disagrees with another world leader on something, or fails to get his way on whatever, and then McCain blows his top? In any case, this man cannot be trusted at the switch, if one gets the drift.

Obama, on the other hand, has better positions on many things than McCain does. However, he exudes a rather sleek, phony charisma, and all his talk about change, unity , hope, etc, are definitely long on rhetoric, with no real substance, coming off like a salesman. The fact that Barack Obama is a poster-child for globalization, which has been a disaster for the USA and
elsewhere doesn't help either, imo. He has also not advocated cutting our military budget to pay for necessary domestic programs, dismantling the Department of Homeland Security and the Patriot Act, or rescinding NAFTA and CAFTA, all of which have been disastrous. Nor has he suggested taking the media out of the hands of the big corporations here in the United States. Barack Obama also alienated many white workingclass voters by broadbrushing them with comments such as "they cling to guns and religion because they're bitter". While it's true that some white workingclass people do cling to guns and religion and are bitter and bigoted, this doesn't apply to all white workingclass people.

Another broadbrushing comment' " Americans can't drive SUV's, eat as much as they want, keep t heir heat at well above 70 degrees, or keep their A/C's on fullblast in the summertime ", while definitely does apply to a lot of Americans, there are plenty of Americans who're not that wasteful.
The fact that Obama addressed the fact that manufacturing jobs have gone offshore and many workingclass people have lost their healthcare, pensions, etc., as a result, is a good thing, especially because not many politicians do address these issues. However, overgeneralizing hasn't been helpful, and, if the Democratic Party is to succeed, serious attempts must be made to re-engage the interest of the bluecollar white ethnics throughout the United States. I also think, however, that some of the people that Obama has surrounded himself with are questionable; Rev. Wright, coming off with incendiary lines such as "KKK America", "Goddamn America". "The chickens have come home to roost:", exudes a much different personality than MLK did 40 years ago: MLK told the truths too, but, unlike Rev. Wright, he never, ever resorted to telling the truth in an inflammatory way.

I want a president who will dismantle the Patriot Act, close Guantanamo, and dismantle the Department of Homeland Security , because the PA and the DHS are real dangers to our civil liberties. I want a president who'll write up and implement, with all deliberate speed, an adequate, comprehensive universal health care for all Americans, whoever they may be. I want a President who'll work to dismantle the ghettoes here in tthe United States and help create integrated neighborhoods and eliminate the need for such divisive policies as mandatory school busing, which, in many instances, failed miserably and made many people even more angry, tight-fisted, fearful and suspicious of each other, and failed to achieve what it set out to do. I also want a president who'll take the media out of the hands of the big corporations. I want a president who'll really and truly be a uniter of all people of all racial, ethnic, religious and class boundaries here in the United States, and who's more real...and authentic. I want a President who'll speak the truth to people, while making people aware of where everyone, including himself has come from, without resorting to inflammatory rhetoric. This has not happened for the past 40 years, which is very disappointing to me. I also want a president who'll write up a comprehensive Universal healthcare plan for all Americans (Dennis Kucinich comes to mind here), and I want somebody who won't continue to act like the world's topcop. I want a president who'll implement the necessary 2 -state solution to the I/.P conflict.

All of the above having been said, I do not have faith that either McCain or Obama have the willingness or ability to really lead this country and change what's really necessary. Neither McCain or Obama, imho, are the right choices, and, here's a surprise for everybody: If there's a viable third-party Candidate, I'm seriously considering voting for them, or simply going to the polls and writing somebody's name in that I find more appealing than either of the two candidates we've got right now. Thanks for letting me vent, folks.

http://flyderrie-air.com/

qui tacet consentire

sure, the "jump" was big but the current "level" is not, historically speaking.

						Series Id:           LNS14000000
			Seasonal Adjusted
			Series title:        (Seas) Unemployment Rate
			Labor force status:  Unemployment rate
			Type of data:        Percent
			Age:                 16 years and over
			

Republican Maverick at Large
-4:Strongly Disagree; 0:Meh; +4:Strongly Agree