Raining on the parade
Twenty-nine percent.
Great waves of joy have washed over the Progressive population during the past 48 hours, in reaction to a Harris Interactive poll that now puts George Bush's approval rating at a dismal 29%. Surely, the celebrants argue, this is a sign that the populace as a whole has finally seen the light, and recognizes at last the dangerous incompetence of an Administration which has consistently defiled the tenets of our American democracy.
Surely this is a sign that the vast majority of the nation now understands what half of us have known in our hearts since the stolen 2000 election. Surely this is a sign that sweeping changes are on the way come November, and that, ironically, Bush's nightmare presidency has united us in a rejection of the neo-con vision for America's future.
So let the party begin!
Well, maybe it's just me, but I don't feel quite like dancing yet. Even if those "signs" are true, it saddens me that it's taken so long for the citizens of this nation to turn the corner. Where was this tough-minded evaluation of the Bush Administration when we really needed it, in March of 2003, or November of 2004? While a gullible populace and press swallowed the Rovian sales pitch of "fear and war" with mindless obedience all these years, tens of thousands have died around the globe - to mention just one of the disastrous consequences of George the Younger's reign.
This belated awakening of the masses is of little consolation to the families of those victims - and certainly means less than nothing to those whose lives have been needlessly cut short as a result of this Administration's reckless foreign and domestic policies.
Moreso, I wonder if there's really been any awakening at all. A closer examination of these poll results reveals, when broken down by party affiliation, that 67% of Republicans give the President positive marks for the job he's doing overall. Sixty-seven percent!! Sorry, but that doesn't indicate a shift in the intelligence of the voting public, or a recognition of the gross malfeasance of the Crawford Cowboy and his cronies. Sixty-seven percent... my God, who the hell are these people?
Realization? Unity? Seeing the light? Hardly, kids.
I hate to be a party pooper. I really do. But I continue to see an America divided into two ideologically incompatible camps, split down the middle, irreparably fractured. There still is no real acknowledgement on the Right of the Bush Administration's terrible wrongs, no matter what undeniable evidence exists of its crimes.
In that sense, I'd like to share a reader response I received to my essay yesterday concerning the outright lies we've been fed by this White House. Naturally, with the true "courage" shown by most Conservative blog trolls, it was posted anonymously. Sadly, the rabid, head-in-the-sand tone of the comment only serves to support my point:
Oh, I'm sure that the Harris poll does indicate some genuine erosion of support for the Bush White House among Republican voters. But I'd be willing to bet that it's not for the same reasons that intelligent and informed citizens of the U.S. have opposed this President from the start.
Undoubtedly, any drop in Conservative numbers is due to a perception that Bush simply hasn't gone far enough with his anti-democratic game plan. Disappointment that we're not already bombing Iran and Syria. Anger that homosexuality itself hasn't been made a felony by federal statute. Sadness that Mexican immigrants can't legally be shot on sight. Fury that women still have any contraceptive rights whatsoever. Outrage that the Ten Commandments aren't yet printed on the flag. Horror that Democrats haven't been rounded up en masse and sent to Guantanamo indefinitely.
Again, I'm sorry to rain on the parade that Harris' 29% would appear to inspire. And if "Anonymous" is representative of those who continue to pledge allegiance to the Ruling Party, I'll admit that I have no idea how to repair the rift that exists in our voting population.
But, if a separate Washington Post/ABC News poll (that shows 63% of Americans in favor of the NSA spying program) is accurate, maybe that rift isn't really worth repairing. Maybe the U.S. is simply no longer a recognizable place, unconcerned with protecting the rights and ideals that once made this nation great. Maybe a spoiled and lazy citizenry, Democrat and Republican alike, has gotten precisely the government it deserves.
And maybe it's time to seriously investigate those real estate prices in Bora Bora after all...
Great waves of joy have washed over the Progressive population during the past 48 hours, in reaction to a Harris Interactive poll that now puts George Bush's approval rating at a dismal 29%. Surely, the celebrants argue, this is a sign that the populace as a whole has finally seen the light, and recognizes at last the dangerous incompetence of an Administration which has consistently defiled the tenets of our American democracy.
Surely this is a sign that the vast majority of the nation now understands what half of us have known in our hearts since the stolen 2000 election. Surely this is a sign that sweeping changes are on the way come November, and that, ironically, Bush's nightmare presidency has united us in a rejection of the neo-con vision for America's future.
So let the party begin!
Well, maybe it's just me, but I don't feel quite like dancing yet. Even if those "signs" are true, it saddens me that it's taken so long for the citizens of this nation to turn the corner. Where was this tough-minded evaluation of the Bush Administration when we really needed it, in March of 2003, or November of 2004? While a gullible populace and press swallowed the Rovian sales pitch of "fear and war" with mindless obedience all these years, tens of thousands have died around the globe - to mention just one of the disastrous consequences of George the Younger's reign.
This belated awakening of the masses is of little consolation to the families of those victims - and certainly means less than nothing to those whose lives have been needlessly cut short as a result of this Administration's reckless foreign and domestic policies.
Moreso, I wonder if there's really been any awakening at all. A closer examination of these poll results reveals, when broken down by party affiliation, that 67% of Republicans give the President positive marks for the job he's doing overall. Sixty-seven percent!! Sorry, but that doesn't indicate a shift in the intelligence of the voting public, or a recognition of the gross malfeasance of the Crawford Cowboy and his cronies. Sixty-seven percent... my God, who the hell are these people?
Realization? Unity? Seeing the light? Hardly, kids.
I hate to be a party pooper. I really do. But I continue to see an America divided into two ideologically incompatible camps, split down the middle, irreparably fractured. There still is no real acknowledgement on the Right of the Bush Administration's terrible wrongs, no matter what undeniable evidence exists of its crimes.
In that sense, I'd like to share a reader response I received to my essay yesterday concerning the outright lies we've been fed by this White House. Naturally, with the true "courage" shown by most Conservative blog trolls, it was posted anonymously. Sadly, the rabid, head-in-the-sand tone of the comment only serves to support my point:
Wake up. Your boy, Clinton, that gutless, lying, philandering, race-baiting, partial-birth-murder-approving, Chinese-and-Castro-bought-and-paid-for, class-envy-rhetoric-spewing, fake-tears-crying, con man snake rapist, did nothing while we were murdered around the world. Osama got the idea for 9/11 when the gutless Arkansas trash had us cut and run in Somalia. Tawdry and trivial? Are you serious? You liberals will always let that trash slide. -AnonymousOuch. It makes me wonder if we can ever find common ground on which to agree.
Oh, I'm sure that the Harris poll does indicate some genuine erosion of support for the Bush White House among Republican voters. But I'd be willing to bet that it's not for the same reasons that intelligent and informed citizens of the U.S. have opposed this President from the start.
Undoubtedly, any drop in Conservative numbers is due to a perception that Bush simply hasn't gone far enough with his anti-democratic game plan. Disappointment that we're not already bombing Iran and Syria. Anger that homosexuality itself hasn't been made a felony by federal statute. Sadness that Mexican immigrants can't legally be shot on sight. Fury that women still have any contraceptive rights whatsoever. Outrage that the Ten Commandments aren't yet printed on the flag. Horror that Democrats haven't been rounded up en masse and sent to Guantanamo indefinitely.
Again, I'm sorry to rain on the parade that Harris' 29% would appear to inspire. And if "Anonymous" is representative of those who continue to pledge allegiance to the Ruling Party, I'll admit that I have no idea how to repair the rift that exists in our voting population.
But, if a separate Washington Post/ABC News poll (that shows 63% of Americans in favor of the NSA spying program) is accurate, maybe that rift isn't really worth repairing. Maybe the U.S. is simply no longer a recognizable place, unconcerned with protecting the rights and ideals that once made this nation great. Maybe a spoiled and lazy citizenry, Democrat and Republican alike, has gotten precisely the government it deserves.
And maybe it's time to seriously investigate those real estate prices in Bora Bora after all...
posted by Bob P @ 2:00 PM
1 Comments:
Anonymous from your Friday post might want to take a look at this.
;-)
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home