mathoni
Galactic Republic Alliance
Posts: 177
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Post by mathoni on Aug 22, 2007 17:42:00 GMT -5
I got an email forwarded to me that kind of annoyed me. It was all this nasty stuff about Barak Obama, (the black guy running for President.) Now I don't plan on voting for him because of political differences, but one of the things in the email accused him of hiding the fact that he was a radical muslim. Now I had not heard that before, and it seemed to me that if it was true I would have heard it. So I checked it out and it is of course false. It really annoys me that people would spread those kinds of lies, because something like that would really kill the chances of someone being elected. Moral of my post, dont beleive it if its gets forwarded to you in a chain letter.
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Post by Katie on Aug 22, 2007 18:09:42 GMT -5
Since this seems the place to vent frustrations...
I am so tired of the name calling and the mudslinging that has become so commonplace in American politics. One of the earliest social lessons that you learn, usually in pre-school or kindergarten, is to be nice to other people. It seems that the first thing you do when entering the political arena is forget that lesson.
But the American people are guilty too. I am sick and tired of hearing people call President Bush an idiot and other such things. I have heard of one girl at my school who refuses to say the Pledge of Allegiance until Bush leaves office. What utter nonsense. A person may not like the President and they may not agree with his policies, but they do owe him their respect, both as a fellow American and human being and as the representative of their country before the entire rest of the world.
It is also my personal opinion that unless a person is prepared to take on all of the President's responsibilities and do a better job than he, then they have no business trashing his policies without providing a better alternative. I direct this to my peers. Despite my disappointment with the Bush administration (and also with the mess that Democrats and Republicans alike have made of the country), I would elect Bush over any one of my peers any time.
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Post by Taita Collins on Aug 23, 2007 3:35:53 GMT -5
Of course presidents deserve respect, but not because they are presidents, Bush lost my respect a long time ago. Presidents are responsible and representative for their country, and at the present time Bush is making America seem like a country filled with power-enlusted fools (being a non-american, I can tell you this is what he makes you look like to the majority of Europe, and that the majority of Europe indeed thinks he is a fool. I respect him for the effort that he does fill the position, but it starts and ends there. Respect for the time he invests, but otherwise I think he is making a mess of things.)
He doesn't listen to his people, he does not care about protests, he calls Afghanistan the "Youngest democracy" when there is proof of war tapes filmed by the soldiers themselves that all they to there is gather oil and money (apart from blowing things up and being blown up). As long as he runs this ridiculous war (it is for the most part ridiculous. Of course they have helped the population in some areas, but moreover they are making the situation even worse), a lot of the world's population will have no respect for him. Respect has to be earned by achievements, not just because you are the president. He is letting his troops (and ours, because our prime minister doesn't have the guts to stand up to him) and innocent civilians die in his lust for power. That's not a respectable cause.
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Post by Keeper's Assistant on Aug 23, 2007 10:40:39 GMT -5
It's the main reason why I will be moving to a small island I will own once I win the lottery and create my own little society and it's gonna rock and you're all invited to chill out sipping cocktails from coconut shells, and being fanned by monkey butlers. Damn politics and all the lies they throw up to appeal to the people and not follow through with it.
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Post by Taita Collins on Aug 23, 2007 12:15:58 GMT -5
It's the main reason why I will be moving to a small island I will own once I win the lottery and create my own little society and it's gonna rock and you're all invited to chill out sipping cocktails from coconut shells, and being fanned by monkey butlers. Damn politics and all the lies they throw up to appeal to the people and not follow through with it. Yay, count me in! XD
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Falco
Galactic Republic Alliance
Posts: 137
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Post by Falco on Aug 23, 2007 22:47:20 GMT -5
Well I was reading the times yesterday and I read that Barak Obama's wife stressed the fact that America needed to "Keep its own house together before going into others." it was something like that. She was CLEARLY referring to Hilary Clinton
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Falco
Galactic Republic Alliance
Posts: 137
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Post by Falco on Aug 23, 2007 23:13:52 GMT -5
Of course presidents deserve respect, but not because they are presidents, Bush lost my respect a long time ago. Presidents are responsible and representative for their country, and at the present time Bush is making America seem like a country filled with power-enlusted fools (being a non-american, I can tell you this is what he makes you look like to the majority of Europe, and that the majority of Europe indeed thinks he is a fool. I respect him for the effort that he does fill the position, but it starts and ends there. Respect for the time he invests, but otherwise I think he is making a mess of things.) He doesn't listen to his people, he does not care about protests, he calls Afghanistan the "Youngest democracy" when there is proof of war tapes filmed by the soldiers themselves that all they to there is gather oil and money (apart from blowing things up and being blown up). As long as he runs this ridiculous war (it is for the most part ridiculous. Of course they have helped the population in some areas, but moreover they are making the situation even worse), a lot of the world's population will have no respect for him. Respect has to be earned by achievements, not just because you are the president. He is letting his troops (and ours, because our prime minister doesn't have the guts to stand up to him) and innocent civilians die in his lust for power. That's not a respectable cause. I think that if America was there for oil we would be getting it. I know that Gas here in Texas is cheap, mainly because most of the US's oil is produced off the gulf of Mexico, but our gas prices has soared along with the British and many other countries. If you ask me most of the people who say "Bush is an idot." are just going with the masses and saying what everyone else thinks. I totally agree with Katie because I know that if someone attacked my country while I was in office I would be rolling out the nukes and tanks. As for the war in Iraq, people say that we had no right to invade them, that we're murdering their people. Tell me how many people died from Suddan's mass genocides, how many died from the gas chambers where the experimented new gases to kill troops with, tell me how many more people have to die when the Red Cross truck comes around the corner with food and Suddan's forces are right there to take the food away. They say they want to run their own country, but before they can run their own country they have to he helped along the path to democracy, America wasn't made over night, and the Republic of Iraq won't be either. I sat down with a young man the same age as me the week before last. He was of African-American decent, but would rather be referred to as Black. I asked him several questions about politics and here was our basic conversation in exchange for a meal at McDonald's (He's a homeless man that lives by the office, we help him whenever we can, buy him coffee, give him a blanket, ect.) It basically consisted of Bush being and Idiot who loves war and power and is an evil emperor. But he had no real reason to say that Bush is a bad president. And if the war is so ridiculous and isn't helping the population, apparently you haven't seen first hand what America had brought to the people. Food and water comes easy here in the states, but elsewhere they cost lives. If he had a lust for power then I think and am pretty sure that there would be no government there, that he wouldn't be standing up for the president there at the moment.
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Post by Taita Collins on Aug 24, 2007 4:23:19 GMT -5
Have you seen the War Tapes? They are actual footage shot by American soldiers that show exactly what they are doing there first hand. It shows the actual soldiers themselves saying what is really going on in Iraq and Afghanistan and they've got it on tape. I'm not saying you should back off and let the country dissolve, I'm saying the war in this way is not working. We know it's not working, because it has been going on for years and it has only made matters worse.
If Bush was a good president, he would come up with something else instead of being pigheaded and contuining this war that is never going to end as long as he doesn't change his plans. Besides that, in my opinion a president is supposed to be more than just someone that cares. He is supposed to be a good ruler, a smart person, which Bush lacks, quite obviously. He contradicts himself constantly, says things that make no sense. Of course people think he's an idiot. He's not really trying to change people's minds about him. Even if the whole country agrees on something, he would be stubborn enough to use his right as a president to do whatever he wishes. He's doing it right now.
Where was he after Katrina hit? There's dozens of proof that help came too slow for many people. He's letting his own people die in favor of his war. Is that a good president? He's supposed to run America. Of course he can use that power to help others, but at the moment he is neglecting his own people when they need him most. There's so many witness reports that there was no sign of Bush after Katrina hit, that New Orleans was completely neglected by the government. Now the dutch prime minister is a pushover himself, but he would never ignore it if a disaster struck Holland. That's the difference between a good president and a bad one, Bush needs to get his priorities straight. He can't possibly be out playing the hero in another country when he's making a mess of his own.
And by the way, sorry but since when is America a true democracy? It's not. It's far from it. It's a democracy to those that agree with the republic government. In a democracy the government leaves space for those who dissagree to practise what they agree with. America doesn't. The government brews law after law to stop personal freedom of those who dissagree with them, just to maintain their power. Bush only wants his personal opinion in the law. A good president would also allow laws that he personally dissagrees with, but that he knows are what his people want/need. He isn't some almighty being. There's a lot of things in the dutch law that I don't agree with, but I would still vote to keep those laws in. Why? Because it's not my personal opinion that should rule the country, and neither should it be Bush's.
To me, a good president is one that understands the undieing words of Voltaire (although speculations are that they aren't exactly his XD):
"I may detest what you say, but I will defend to the death you're right to say it."
Right now, if Bush dissagrees with something, it's not happening. That's not very democratic.
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Falco
Galactic Republic Alliance
Posts: 137
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Post by Falco on Aug 25, 2007 2:05:23 GMT -5
People are allowed to voice their opinions, democracy goes with the decision which is most voted upon. Its a vote that will hopefully effect the masses with a positive effect. Because we all know that since congress is on the way to cutting funding to the war, I mean Bush said no, but they're still on the road to take money away.
If you were in hostile territory and were in danger EVERY single day, you would begin to detest someone or something, focus your anger or frustration on someone on something. Now add the fact that most people focus anger on one person, you join the club, then another person sees you take out anger on that person, then there you have it. A cycle that keeps revolving around hating one person.
What would you have Bush do? Pull out of Iraq? Afganhastan? Let the terrorist win and give them momentum that they have "defeated" America? What would happen next? What happens when we have a woman elected president? We all know that people in the Middle East look down on women, its obvious. What happens when a Black Man is elected president? I know for a fact that the majority of Middle Eastern people look down on the Black and African American race, its been like that for years. All presidents have been criticized.
As for Katrina, you want someone to blame? Blame the Mayor or New Orleans who issued the mandatory evacuation a full 24 Hours before the the hurricane hit. A whole day is not enough to prepare for a hurricane touchdown. He was in charge of getting people out of New Orleans via Public Transportation, when we evacuated there were homeless people getting on the METRO buses. Before you blame Bush for the slow response blame the person who was in charge of the hardest hit city, when he should have been evacuating his own people HE was in a private helicopter on its way inland, while he issued the evacuation AFTER he landed. It is the State's job to take care of its people, when they can not then the government comes in and helps.
Bush did the right thing morally. People know that the people in the Middle East and other coutries are starving and dying everyday. But how many people bring up the fact that its a genocide there, every day people died in the Middle East to Saddam's mass graves. When you see something wrong you do what you can to fix it, thats what a good person would do. The Parable where a man was passed out on the ground and was ignored by the business man, the priest, and the rich man. In the end a commoner helped the man.
It is a bigger crime when good men have power but do nothing. We ignored the people in Iraq for years, they died slow painful deaths and we go on about our lives without caring, but when someone steps up to help them what do we do? We say "Oh he's an idiot because he's power hungry for his own war." who's war is it? Because if you ask me its Humanity's war against its ego, its a war against trying to ignore the people that died there and think about what to get next off of the clothing rack.
I know I haven't been in the army or the navy or any armed forces, but if it was mandatory I would jump at the opportunity. Not to fight in "Bush's War" but to fight for the freedom that was given to me when I joined this great country. There are few things in this world that people can take away from you, and one of them is freedom.
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Post by Hobbs on Aug 30, 2007 16:03:27 GMT -5
Unfortunately, the reason gas prices aren't dropping, thanks to the oil in coming into North America, is because the gas companies continue to find reasons to keep their prices up: "There's still a high demand" "We're being taxed unfairly" Gas prices have nothing to do with the fact that we have none. Canada has quite a lot of oil. Enough to last all of North America for the next 50 years. Alberta alone is supplying upwards to 70% of that oil. Add that to oil in Texas and the M-E and we've got enough oil for North America for likely the next 125 years. So why are gas prices to huge? Because the gas corporations want to make millions in profits.
Also, the reason people say Bush is an idiot is because of the stupid things he says, "It's not the pollution that's hurting our environment, it's the impurities in the air and water that are doing it." "The problem with the french is: they don't have a word for entreprenuer." If I said stuff like that I'd be called an idiot, so no wonder he's called an idiot.
And finally, IF Bush wanted to go into Iraq and end Saddam's tyrany, all he had to do was say so. His administration worked SO hard to find a way to link Al Qeida to Iraq, and talked about WMDs (which they STILL haven't found). If he had just said something that people would beleive, like "He's been mass murdering his own people for decades," then I'd back him up. But instead he had to lie to America, her people, and the UN and go in on her own being the worlds personal policing agency.
I know full well that the American government officially represents the people though the people generally don't feel the same way. There a many decent intelligent Americans who believe in just society, just like there are many Canadians who are complete imbiciles. Hey, we elected Stephen Harper, the man who blackmailed the House of Commons in order to keep our soldiers in Afghanistan for another 2 years.
FINALLY, I come to who should actually run the States. Now, as a Canadian Citizen, I have no say, but I have my opinion anyway. People are dying in Iraq, the Middle East, in Africa, all over the 3rd world. But let's look away from the 3rd world of the East, and look at the 3rd world of Haarlam, or South Central, or Downtown Detroit. How about thousands of homeless children in the United States of America who are thinking about where their next meal is coming from. The unfortunate teenage prostitutes all over the US. The families living under the poverty line.
How about instead of spending billions of dollars a year on your military, spend some of that on home. Isn't the responsibility of the American Government to the American People? Wouldn't you like to see that restored? I know I would, and I'm not even American.
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