Gotcha Antics

From The Stimulus and Jobs: Can the GOP Read? by David Corn:

Can we be adults here? There are no programs -- in or out of government -- that don't include some waste. In fact, all human endeavors contain inefficiencies and errors. If the stimulus package were 99 percent cost-effective, that would still leave nearly $8 billion in waste. Picking out a couple of questionable projects is gotcha antics, not serious political debate.

At this point, Republicans have nothing to fear but Republicans themselves. If unemployment stays at or near 10 percent for the coming year, the GOP might well be able to ride the ensuing anti-incumbent anger to victory in the 2010 congressional elections, perhaps even draw close to retaking the House. But the more they act like, well, jerks, the more they will undercut their own chances.

There is a system that is supposed to help the unemployed in times of need. It is a dirty word in the United States. The Republicans hate it, and a Democratic president helped destroy it. And of course it is supposed to be the most wasteful of all government programs. And on that basis alone it must be evil and destroyed according to the Republicans. Never mind that it could be helping some American citizens today. Both Democrats and Republicans.

From Welfare:

Welfare systems differ from country to country, but welfare is commonly provided to those who are unemployed, those with illness or disability, those of old age, those with dependent children and to veterans.

I don’t think that the welfare system that was in existence before Bill Clinton would have given very many benefits to Wall Street. I do think it would be providing some assistance to all the Main Streeters of America who could use a little help right now. Too bad it is no longer around when it is needed the most.

If you are thinking of voting Republican in the near future because of the unemployment situation, try to remember that they are the ones who pushed the hardest to take away your safety net.

Sometimes I think we are a nation of idiots, and that we deserve exactly what we get. Ironically, that sentence sounds like it could come from a Republican.

Say What?

Once again I’m stealing from the current Say What? at the Doonesbury site (where do they find these things?):

"We're a capitalistic society. I go into business, I don't make it, I go bankrupt. They're not going to bail me out. I've been on welfare and food stamps. Did anyone help me? No."
-- actor Craig T. Nelson

Can actors think for themselves without writers?

I’m a hard-core liberal leftist. I’ve never been on welfare and/or food stamps. I’m going to assume that Craig T. Nelson is a conservative. What does all of this say about left/right stereotypes?

Thieving Welfare Queens

Bill Maher asks us to not judge people “by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

From Real Time with Bill Maher: New Rules - Look Beyond The Candidates’ Skin Color by Nicole Belle:

…a candidate for President should not be judged by the color of his skin. And to…and to anyone who thinks differently, I say please do not reject John McCain just because he’s white. I think the recent news from Wall Street has made us all less tolerant and only reinforce the stereotype that white people are shiftless, thieving welfare queens.

Now, take a look at these pictures. Here are the CEOs of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG and the Lehman Brothers. I know the first thing that jumps out about these faces is that they all happen to be white, and they all happen to be responsible for stealing. But what you have to understand is that these whites are a product of a society that made them that way. It was the neighborhoods and the schools they went to: Harvard, Yale, the Wharton School of Business. They never learned the value of doing real, actual work and the first step to fixing that is better role models, so kids growing up white today don’t think the only way out of Westchester is corporate crime. Or a government handout or sailing. So I get it, the temptation is to look at McCain and vote against him because you don’t see an individual, you just see another typical welfare whitey.

And it’s true, he’s spent his entire life shuffling from one low-paying government job to another. Well, except those years he spent in prison. Typical! And between you and me, he’s not very articulate. Oh, he may have some street smarts, but he’s not what you call an educated man. He freely admits he’s ignorant about the economy. And apparently the only thing his white running mate knows how to do is crank out one baby after another. And now of course, her teenage daughter is pregnant out of wedlock. Because she learns it at home! But that doesn’t mean we should assume all white people are like that, just because so many of them are. I believe there is hope. I believe even the stoopiest…stupidest, greediest, laziest whites can break the cycle of dependence like this November when we finally move George Bush out of public housing.

Read more and see the video here.