1.) We are in Iraq because this is a war on terrorism, not a war on ONLY AL-QUEDA. Saddam Hussein offered a 'scholarship' of $25,000 to the families of any successful homocide bomber. Despite the harboring of Al-Queda, the pay-offs to the French to alter their position on sanctions AND firing on coallition forces for 12 years straight, he was, in fact, a horrible person responsible for the deaths of millions of Iraqis. In short, he was terrorising the Iraqi populace, and that is reason enough.
2.) I'd like to see the quote where President Bush says the arts have nothing to offer. SHOW US, please. The No Child LEft Behind act requires far more than standardized teaching for tests, but also includes funding and standards for how teachers address each individual childs needs within the classroom. My wife and I are extremely familiar with this because our son, who is ADHD and functionally autistic, would NOT have been educated properly without federal guidelines put into place by the No Child Left Behind act.
3.) The constitutional amendment does not take away anything from homosexual couples, but strengthens traditional marriage for hetrosexuals. Nowhere in the amendment does it state that homosexual couples cannot be granted the same rights as married couples, it only defines marriage as a hetrosexual union. I know this is difficult to understand for alot of people out there, but to me this is so ridiculous its not even funny. Why does marriage have to be changed? Cant homosexuals come up with their own name for a union and their own traditions? I think they can.
4.) The Assualt weapon ban didnt actually ban weapons, but imposed federal guidelines on how those weapons can be used. Were looking at the difference between a 6 round clip and a 12 round clip. There is not a single gun available now that wasnt legally available while the ban was in place. In other words, it was feel good fluff that didnt actually protect police or the public.
5.) The real question is, will he approach Congress to have abortion banned? No, he wont. Remember, Congress makes law, judges interpret the law. Bush has said repeatedly he will appoint Supreme Court judges (if the oppurtunity arises) that are Constitutionalists - they interpret the Constitution as it is written. This is the correct view of how to appoint judges, as they do NOT make law.
6.) Sure, please do say more, publicly in front of thousands of people or the pressure of a multi-million TV audience. I will be surprised if you can, as only 10% of Americans have excellent public speaking skills. Most people, even many famous actors, feel extreme stress and pressure when speaking in front of an audience. Jumping on the President for an accent and difficulty with public speaking is the same as jumping on 90% of Americans, and is unfair.
7.) Sorry to hear about your mother, everyone was hit hard by 09/11. On 09/10/2001, I had over 350 ongoing projects going with my clients. Mind you, my clients are Nextel, AT&T, Cingular, T-Mobile and other telecomm companies. EVERY SINGLE PROJECT WAS PLACED ON HOLD. For over 11 months not a single new or existing was worked on, and in telecomm alone 100,000's of people were laid off. Thats ALL because of 09/11. The only way we survived was by getting tax cuts and working our asses off at Wal*Mart. Luckily, my industry has recovered now. I took my tax cuts from 2003 and started up my own home design business. Little by little I have regained my former clients. If your mother hasnt found a better job its probably because economic recovery is slow and does not effect all areas at the same rate. Right now we have the lowest unemployment in over 20 years, which is pretty darn good for a country in which over a million people lost jobs due to a homeland attack. I wont even go into the Clinton recession, but I will say everyone reading this should be thankful we arent living in a DEPRESSION. The President got on the same page as The fed, and between tax cuts and Greenspans expert handling of the rate, we are back on track to prosperity.
8.) The President has little to do with the price of gas, although all Presidents are ultimately blamed for it. In fact, it is commonly recognized that we are at or have passed what is called "The Oil Peak", where we have used 1/2 of all the available oil resources within the Earth. Economists and oil experts agree that the price of oil, per barrel, will probably stabilize around $40 a barrel, about twice of what we saw in the 90's. Here's the best part: You would think that since we have been using oil on a global scale since the early 1900's, we would have almost another century since we are only halfway through the global supply. Yet it doesnt work like that. The less oil we have available, the deeper we have to go to drill, and the more expensive it becomes. Demand for oil during the last 2 decades equals the demand for the previous 70 years, so at best we have another 10-20 years of oil flowing out of the ground, then its over. Think about that.
9.) I dont think the war on terrorism is fun. BTW, we either kill them over there or they kill us over here. THIS IS A WORLD WAR. Why dont people understand this?
10.) Everyone got a tax cut, and this Democratic line of class warfare doesnt even play. The rich pay the majority of the taxes, so if you give an even percent tax cut to all Americans, which is fair, the rich, who PAY MORE than the middle class, will recieve a larger per dollar savings. Its simple math. Joe Rich pays $10,000 in taxes, I pay $1,000. We get a 5% tax cut. Joe Rich gets to keep $500 dollars, I get to keep $50. Who is getting screwed? Joe Rich, who is still paying over $8,000 more in taxes than I am. I dont understand thisjustification of stealing from PEOPLE just because they have been more successful financially. That is unfair and reaks the ideal of all men being created equal. Obviously class jealousy on the part of those that have not been as successful throws that out the window.
This is a prime example of why I am thankful we are not a democracy, but a Republic with an electorate. People seem, by and large, to vote with their feelings instead of with the truth, which would make the Presidency nothing more than one great big popularity contest. If I had a say, we would indeed revert back to only allowing landowners (regardless of sex or race or any other defining factor) to vote in the electorate. If you arent smart enough to own land, your vote should NOT count.
But thats just me.
