Partisan Politics Good For America?

[Nodack]

The Cotton letter was written to inform Iran how our laws worked, that if they reached an agreement without Senate ratification it was not likely to be worth much.

Thats a nice way of putting it. It was merely a public service announcement and that was it's only intent.

Now, that's just not true. Well, the first part was...Dan did say what happened very nicely. But there was no PSA in the Republicans telling Iran that effectively any discussion they have with Obama is null and void without their approval, and by the way, Senators have longer terms and can stay in office indefinitely, whereas Obama is only in power until January, 2017.

Have you read the letter? It was a deliberate effort to tell Iran that (a) while we think Obama is being soft on you, it won't matter, because any agreement you make with him will not pass the House vote, and (b) he isn't going to be in office for long, but we will, so you should really think about what we want more than you currently are.

There is no possible way to look at this letter that doesn't make our government look incompetent and broken. I told Dan that I think the letter is a minor issue, and it is, because our government already looks incompetent and broken. But that is precisely because of stupid crap like this letter. Like him or not, Obama is the head of the Executive Branch. Half of the Legislative Branch just told a hostile foreign state that the guy they are negotiating with has no real power.

I was being sarcastic Ghost.

[Ghost]

Sorry Nodack. I didnt have enough context in that post to catch it.

[Indy]

Re Kennedy - so, he offered to help the Russians with propaganda. That might be comparable to what Boehner just did with Netanyahu - if it were just Boehner, but it was the whole house. Not anywhere close to the scale of what Nixon did with regard to Vietnam - leveraging the lives of thousands of Americans. And not really comparable to the Iran letter, signed by 47 members of the Senate. Kennedy was one senator, not the party's representation in the Senate or the House.

Why defend Kennedy in this? Or even say, "well, it wasn't as bad as it is now..."?

[OE32]

I wasn't defending Kennedy. I was simply comparing historical examples.

Edit: I get progressively less pissed off as the day goes on.

[Dan H]

I wonder if Mike Rowe could get any traction as a populist independent candidate. I'd certainly vote for him.

http://www.bb4sp.com/the-math-is-scary- ... ign=buffer

[Nodack]

Mike Rowe is a hard worker and pretty cool, but President? Did you know he used to be an opera singer? You look at the guy and watch his show and then think, opera singer? Who would have thunk?

People are living longer and financially that is a bad thing for Social Security. I do like how they are promoting IRA's and keep raising the limit. I max my IRA's out every year including SEP. When you are young and poor it's hard to think about putting money away for retirement.

[Nodack]

I stumbled upon this story.


How Corporate America Invented Christian America
Inside one reverend’s big business-backed 1940s crusade to make the country conservative again.
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/ ... TFYpXBHarU

[Dan H]

Mike Rowe is a hard worker and pretty cool, but President? Did you know he used to be an opera singer? You look at the guy and watch his show and then think, opera singer? Who would have thunk?

People are living longer and financially that is a bad thing for Social Security. I do like how they are promoting IRA's and keep raising the limit. I max my IRA's out every year including SEP. When you are young and poor it's hard to think about putting money away for retirement.

We've not been doing so good with the lawyers, why not?

[Nodack]

Good point.

[Nodack]

Congress is 41% lawyers.

25/44 Presidents have been lawyers.

[LazarusLong]

Truman was a failed shopkeeper ...

Generals were somewhat popular in the 19th century, but Eisenhower was the only one I can name in the 20th century.

[OE32]

http://phys.org/news/2015-04-partisans- ... using.html

"Most partisans treat politics like sports rivalries instead of focusing on issues"

No meaningful difference between Republican and Democrat partisans was found in the study.

[Nodack]

That is true. Politics in this country have been reduced to two teams fighting each other. The topics don't even matter. Winning is all that matters to either side now. Making the other side lose is what It's all about. The other side is half of America that supposedly is the same team.

What we have is one team divided between starters and bench players. The bench doesn't like being on the bench, they want to start. The bench is always trying to sabatoge the starters to get them demoted. The problem with this strategy is that the team always loses.

[OE32]

http://www.vox.com/2015/4/24/8489065/po ... nship-fear

This article discusses how animosity toward the opposing party, rather than enthusiasm for your own, incents political engagement. Holds true for me. But then, I also think Barack Obama's been an outstanding President.

Say, you think you understand the American electorate? Well, have I got a game for you! https://www.predictit.org/

[Nodack]

Interesting animosity article. No wonder the party's try so hard to scare everybody. I think both sides need to be a little scared of each other, but every little thing is ratcheted up to the tenth power until it becomes ridiculous.

I was reading today where Obama was a mass murderer and needed to be put on trial because he deliberately ordered the killing of those hostages with a drone.

[Dan H]

I'm glad Storify is out there, I was considering posting about this, but didn't want have to wade through hours and hours of Tweets to lay it out.

https://storify.com/smaulz/national-divorce

here is a pragmatic value to liberalism-- liberalism permits strongly-disagreeing peoples to live among each other peacefully.

@AceofSpadesHQ
if we no longer have this sort of liberalism--if the left is determined to simply "win"--then we shall no longer live together peacefully

Goes from there. Thoughts?

[Dan H]

Interesting animosity article. No wonder the party's try so hard to scare everybody. I think both sides need to be a little scared of each other, but every little thing is ratcheted up to the tenth power until it becomes ridiculous.

I was reading today where Obama was a mass murderer and needed to be put on trial because he deliberately ordered the killing of those hostages with a drone.

Code Pink? Give them credit, they're still protesting the wars. All of the other ones faded away as soon as Bush was out of office.

[Nodack]

I don't know what code pink is. There are so many sites out there and some certainly on the fringes. I was reading Politico and that's where I was reading the comments. Comments come from regular people and of course there are some out there ones.

I don't think the left or right ever wins. If we split the country in two and had all the Republicans live in one half and all the Democrats live with in the other half where they could all live in their own Utopian societies I would bet that they each split into two factions that appose each other not long after. We can't live without having some evil force we have to fight against. I think it's human nature.

[Dan H]

I don't know what code pink is. There are so many sites out there and some certainly on the fringes. I was reading Politico and that's where I was reading the comments. Comments come from regular people and of course there are some out there ones.

I don't think the left or right ever wins. If we split the country in two and had all the Republicans live in one half and all the Democrats live with in the other half where they could all live in their own Utopian societies I would bet that they each split into two factions that appose each other not long after. We can't live without having some evil force we have to fight against. I think it's human nature.

http://www.codepink.org/

[Nodack]

I see. I wonder why pink. That's a girls color. Is it all women or something?