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OK, let's try to put it in terms that are not politically partisan, that is, not in terms of Repub and Dem ideologies.
What did America learn, or what did we ALREADY KNOW and was CONFIRMED, that DOES NOT WORK due to G.W. Bush's presidency:
* Don't underregulate the banks and Wall Street. We now know that Wall Street is quite willing and able to TORPEDO the entire American economy with its antics.
* Make sure there is always investment taking place to maintain America's transportation infrastructure. (Remember the bridge collapse in Minneapolis.)
* Don't use torture as a fundamental technique to get information. The evidence gained is suspect and doesn't fly in court. Use of torture also guarantees that captured US soldiers and personnel will be tortured by others.
* There is no "war" on terrorism. America needs to fight specific terrorist groups that have shown themselves capable of and are funded sufficiently for seriously hurting our country. We don't need full military operations to fight those persons, but rather Special Forces AT THE MOST and ALONG WITH the COOPERATION OF THE LOCALS. The latter factor was not sufficiently developed by Bush to successfully root out Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
* Don't call a police action a "war." The "war" in Iraq ended when Saddam Hussein's army surrendered. Since then, the US military has been engaged in policing Iraq's interior to assist the Iraqi police forces in gaining civil control of their own country. And the only reason that Al Qaeda is in Iraq today is because the American military showed up to kick out Saddam Hussein then had to stick around to police the country. Al Qaeda is there because WE'RE THERE.
* Avoid doing "nation-building." However if the US is going to do "nation-building," it needs to be prepared to pay the price in casualties and money. The cost of "regime change" that the US imposes on another country depends on the political system to be imposed. It's definitely going to be more EXPENSIVE to impose democracy on a nation that has never had democratic institutions before. Replacing a dictator with another is much more cost-effective.
* Don't allow foreign intelligence to be manipulated for political purposes. The President must be skeptical about the veracity and reliability of foreign intelligence that would lead to waging war. And the Congress must be much more skeptical than in the past about the costs/benefits of waging the next war. The President must ensure that dissenting voices on intelligence matters are allowed to be heard in the White House.
* Make sure to invest the nation's capital in transitioning out of dependence on oil and gasoline for America's transportation needs. The extent of America's use of oil is flat-out UNSUSTAINABLE. The costs of transitioning out of oil are going to be high and must be spread out over as many years as we can get, starting NOW.
Last edited by ParkTwain; 11-13-2008 at 10:18 AM..
That putting your trust into a party thinking they will do what they say is a set up for a letdown.That besides party affiliation the fact is there are bad politicians in any political party.
And that wanting laws passed right after a disaster is the worse time to do so because it is ruled with emotion and the want to "do something",common sense is not used and the legislation is not thought out long term.
What did America learn from the G.W. Bush presidency?
We learned that if we don't have Oprah, a gazillion dollars, and all the liberal networks on our side....chances are we will be stuck with Obama for 4 years.
We learned that for less than $10 per person, you can build a disinformation media that can convince rather a lot of really gullible people of just about anything. Of course, it wasn't the Bush administration that actually originated any of that. The tobacco companies did a lot of the refining of the basic techniques, and then those were taken over by the Fundie Christians, who used them to help take over the Republican Party. Appears to be something of a short-term strategy though, as -- like cigarettes -- the Republican Party seems to be on its way out...
Last edited by saganista; 11-13-2008 at 04:06 PM..
I don't know about the rest of you, but I learned that if a presidential candidate uses fear and scare tactics to get votes, it soon wears off and loses its effectiveness. Constantly scaring us, reminding us every day how frightening the rest of the world is, and how vulnerable we are? It loses its punch.
Like smelling manure ... at first, it's awful. After awhile, it stops stinking.
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