Obama General Discussion II

[sue4u2]

I just think it sucks that that sort of deal had to be struck at all, that the Democrats couldn't just go ahead and extend the unemployment benefits all the while telling the Republicans to shove off about the tax cuts.

But again, ideal world, yada, yada, yada. It's just frustrating to know that rich people will continue to get richer while important social services get cut (and which will thus lead to people relying more on things like unemployment benefits and other federal aid that is still left, and on and on the vicious cycle goes. Funny how the Republicans' actions inadvertently wind up causing the very things they rail against to keep going).Angela

I'm getting frustrated myself. If this keeps up, the Republicans won't have to run or worry about taking back the White House. They can just sit back and let Obama give in to their every request.

The public is at fault here, at least as much as the politicians.

This ^ is also a good point.

 

[Irvine511]

what about defense?

let's cut some of that.

 

[Canadiens1131]

If anyone is curious as to where federal spending goes, here are the Wikipedia figures sourced from the Congressional Budget Office:

There's about 100-150 Billion $ under 'discretionary spending' (instead of defence) that helps fund Homeland Security so your grandmother can be molested at the airport by someone serving parole.

Just to give you a sense of scale, the Republicans currently settling into congress were coming up with a plan to cut a laughably small $100 billion from that entire budget

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

this whole thing sucks.

 

[yolland]

Well, it's just a proposal. It's pretty normal for an Administration to play its cards close to its chest and leave the politically toxic stuff for Congress to slug out in closed sessions. I was a little surprised not to see more of the Bowles-Simpson recommendations in there, but that obviously doesn't mean they're off the table.

 

[Canadiens1131]

Depressing deficit is depressing

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

Apparently Rush Limbaugh calls her "Michelle my butt" when he talks about this issue. Nice.




Michelle Obama is depicted as overweight and binging on hamburgers in a cartoon on Andrew Breitbart's Big Government website.

The cartoon, which also appeared on Breitbart's Big Journalism site over the weekend, references Obama's campaign to encourage healthy eating and fight obesity. In it, she is drawn with a double chin and plump cheeks. She is drawn saying, "I've stepped up my efforts to control America's eating habits by telling restaurants to lower portion sizes and fat content." While she says this, she is eating one of a plateful of hamburgers.

President Obama is shown next to her, with huge ears but no excess fat, eating one of a tiny number of vegetables.

"Michelle, I want to get re-elected," he says. "What you're doing is only going to annoy a lot of people."

"Shut up and pass the bacon!" she replies.

 

[Irvine511]

but that's so weird. she's so fit -- after the first SOTU address all anyone could talk about were her sleek, toned arms.

turning her into emotional-eating-Oprah isn't even based in anything ... make her a macrobiotic shrew who tortures her poor children by denying them sugar, wheat, and dairy, like Gwyneth Paltrow or Madonna if you're trying to make a point.

but i guess, for the Breitbart audience, racist depictions of fat black women are more easily understood.

 

[kramwest1]

but i guess, for the Breitbart audience, racist depictions of fat black women are more easily understood.

Yes, big pictures and small words.

 

[BEAL]

That doesn't even make any sense.

 

[yolland]

Is it supposed to be a comment on the budget somehow...?

 

[corianderstem]

That doesn't even make any sense.

Yup.

 

[PhilsFan]

What the fuck is going on in this country?

 

[Irvine511]

is she gorging on the hamburgers of entitlements and defense?

or are those NPR hamburgers?

 

[deep]

What the fuck is going on in this country?

have you considered Canada, I hear Canadian is not a difficult language to learn.

 

[PhilsFan]

They wouldn't appreciate my Northeastern US impatience, my perpetual use of profanity, and my generally sour demeanor. Though I'm not particularly sensitive to the cold, so I could deal.

 

[BoMac]

have you considered Canada, I hear Canadian is not a difficult language to learn.

I'll consider allowing it.

 

[yolland]

is she gorging on the hamburgers of entitlements and defense?

or are those NPR hamburgers?

That may be giving it a closer reading than it deserves ...I more meant that the general idea seems to be that she represents far-left hypocrisy (plots to control Middle America's eating habits, while stuffing her face), he represents far-left fake moderation (doesn't want to alienate voters, yet he's the one eating rabbit food), her response to that is an outraged demand to "pass the bacon" which in political humor usually means $. What I couldn't figure out was whether there was some more specific intra-left debate being alluded to. As for the especial WTF-ness of aiming fat-black-***** stereotypes at Michelle Obama...I guess you're supposed to suspend disbelief (as well as all sense of dignity) on that.

 

[sue4u2]

Well, I watched CPAC over the weekend, then President Obama earlier today and the Democrats and their opinions on the budget later - on CSpan.
With all this I'm trying to find a job to keep me from living the good life on unemployment benefits. I can't afford to go see a doctor because my heart is racing I can't keep up.... which reminds me the only thing that helps is U2 and interference as long as I can keep my dial up internet connection. and the smiles won't work for me.
But it could be worse. ;-)

 

[Moonlit_Angel]

Another to you, Sue. You have my sympathy.

And how are people choosing to deal with such problems that face our nation today? By making stupid, immature cartoons. Charming.

Angela

 

[sue4u2]

Another to you, Sue. You have my sympathy.

And how are people choosing to deal with such problems that face our nation today? By making stupid, immature cartoons. Charming.

Angela

Thanks Angela. I'll get back on track. I've not been this long without a job before and this current enviroment isn't having a positive impact on hiring.
But I never give up, and choose to remain positive.

hey smilies are working again.

 

[Moonlit_Angel]

Thanks Angela. I'll get back on track. I've not been this long without a job before and this current enviroment isn't having a positive impact on hiring.
But I never give up, and choose to remain positive.

hey smilies are working again.

Yep. Unfortunately some of this is beyond your control and things happen, but good attitude to have, that's pretty much how I think as well. Things will get better eventually, somehow.

And you're welcome .

Angela

 

[mobvok]

It's hard to overemphasize how important the failure to reform the filibuster was this last month.

For all the talk of how Obama Wisely and Patiently stays above the beltway fray, keeping his eye on the distant target, ironically, I think he's really terrible at governing for the long term. Not just the rhetorical boasting about his lack of principles, but virtually every legislative road- failed liberal bills, the crisis in government and judicial vacancies- leads back to the Senate and the filibuster.

And we *just* learned over the last two years that the government could barely manage to function when one party had the Presidency, the House, and a supermajority in the Senate. That Democrats willingly embraced this awful status quo is revealing.

They don't......really care.

They want to make it senselessly and unreasonably difficult for government to work. It's not surprising coming from Republicans. This hurts a little more. But it does clarify where reasons become excuses.

 

[deep]

very good chance the GOP will win the Senate and keep the House in 2012.

so ending the filibuster was not really a good idea

 

[mobvok]

If the filibuster was repealed, then Republicans ran and won simple majorities in both houses of Congress and the Presidency in 2012 on a platform of repealing the ACA/Social Security/Medicare, they've earned it. Democrats and liberals failed to make their case/establish the stakes before the electorate. Democracy in action.

the point is not narrow partisan advantage, it's to make government work. the crisis afflicting our government is paralysis, not over activity.

this is what I mean about long term thinking: the reason ACA is vulnerable/ugly is because it made so many compromises to reach 60 votes. the WORST CASE short term is that ACA is repealed, but that means the next generation Democratic health care bill has an order of magnitude easier time making more substantive and effective changes to the health care system. Given the modest short-term tweaks ACA makes to the system, there is no great virtue in clinging to it if the opportunity becomes proportionally greater in 2014.

but it wasn't just the 60 vote threshold, it is the rules that allow a minority ceaseless obstruction at no cost, it's the absurd number of obscure government appointees that can be held up and prevented from taking office (they made tiny inroads on this point), it's the crushing judicial vacancy crisis.

I'm only hanging on to watch you go down.

 

[2861U2]

That cartoon really hit a new low. For manufactured, phony, "all-of-a-sudden-online-political-cartoons-offend-me" outrage, I mean.

 

[BVS]

The cartoon hits a new low for manufactured issues. Laura Ingram(she's by far the worse she sounds jealous when she does it), Rush, and others have manufactured this issue about how the Obamas want to take control of every aspect and Michelle wants to tell you what to eat but won't listen to her own advice. I've heard some talk shows spend up to an hour of airtime talking about the Obama's superbowl menu, or the time they were photographed eating ice cream, etc as examples of their hypocricy. The talking heads have become pathetic. And don't get me started on Breitbart, he's one of the lowest of the low.

 

[Irvine511]

That cartoon really hit a new low. For manufactured, phony, "all-of-a-sudden-online-political-cartoons-offend-me" outrage, I mean.

i didn't get it enough to be outraged. the cartoon didn't make sense. where was i outraged?

 

[PhilsFan]

That cartoon really hit a new low. For manufactured, phony, "all-of-a-sudden-online-political-cartoons-offend-me" outrage, I mean.

A new low for coherence.

 

[Canadiens1131]

I don't find anything racially charged in that cartoon. Obama has big ears, I guess, so why not make them as huge as possible.

That cartoon is just badly written and not funny, like the majority of comics page cartoons. The author is also an idiot, if you read the comments section, as well as the Obama-supporting idiots in that comment thread, and the Republicans posting in that comment thread.

I think the lesson here is that news/opinion story comment threads are the worst place on the internet to try and find intelligence.

Read this in Doug Benson's voice, "Oh, hah, look it's President Obama and he has big ears. And oh look it's Michelle Obama isn't she a tall woman and also a hypocrite. Hahaha look at her eating burgers there are so many of them."

That cartoon really hit a new low. For manufactured, phony, "all-of-a-sudden-online-political-cartoons-offend-me" outrage, I mean.

And this is you over-reacting to an over-reaction about a bad cartoon. You're part of the problem, buddy boy

Does it ever get deafeningly loud in the bile-filled echo chamber you live in?