Summer Shorts

For good or bad, better or worse, I am back to my editorial rantings on "what I see, feel, hear, eat, smell, know, don't know, think I know or feel like acting like I know but don't really know about."

It has been a long month since my self-inflicted bout of silence. I felt that I was getting in too deep, sounding a bit angry and being consumed by my inherent hatred of the conservative wing of the GOP (I don't dislike the other wings of the GOP, after all, who hated the Bad News Bears?)

My seething disgust for the cons was drawing me away from rational thought and I found myself succumbing to their eternal war which evokes emotional outbursts devoid of intellectual thought--I too was becoming the demogogic diatribe, the shadow of Limbaugh only standing to his left.

Having cleaned the head and spent some time in the promised land, America, I am back and ready to set at it again with earnest.

Clunkers

Man, isn't it nice when you see the federal government actually demonstrating that there are some intelligent and America-first (read: not just Big Business but all Americans, rich and poor) people still involved?

The clunker program had it problems and of course the usual suspects were against it--although I am sure that many of them made trade-ins and received the $4500 check from the government--but, for the most part, it was a wonderful and successful program. It was precisely what our government has been void of for the past 8 years under Republican rule: creative, progressive, take-action-now thinking/governing. America will be better off for it.

Overall 690,000 cars were sold thanks to this program with Toyota leading the way. The fact that the Japanese automaker was number one in sales again demonstrates just how bad our auto industry has been over the past two decades. Chrysler, however, did finish second.

Many Republicans shouted that this was middle-class welfare (and tax cuts for the billionaires isn't welfare for the rich?). Last time I checked, though, I think the backbone of America's power was it's well-developed middle class, so what is the problem?

Also, it seems that if this $3 billion investment by the government resulted in the sales of 690,000 new cars, isn't that a stimulus to the economy? Yes, the good old cons, always against America.

Health Care

All I can say about this spectacle of neo-Nazi heckling and white-led rebel-rousing is: obstructionism, obstructionism, obstructionism.

They have absolutely nothing else to offer but fear-mongering (see GOP Scare Tactics and the 'War on Terrorism' due out soon by Eichmann, Hitler and Goring Publishing and written by Cheney and Rumsfeld) and lies: "death committees." Sweet baby Jesus, couldn't they have come up with something more Dr. Suessian like yuzz-a-ma-tuzz or grikly-gructus or diffendoofer committees? Now, that would have at least shown that they had made some progress since their last great quotable: "drill, baby, drill," not to be confused with "Seig Heil."

Sadly, our new president seems a bit overwhelmed by these tactics as they are truly overwhelming and when we have a president who actually strives to make our nation better for all (and to repair the damage of GOP control), one can get distracted. However, my good friend Paul Krugman writes on a regular basis helpful editorials and I quite often respond to the Obama's when they email letters about what they are doing.

So, yes, to the chagrin of the cons, we will pass health care legislation and we will probably increase the deficit but whereas endless tax cuts for the wealthy and endless wars against all middle-eastern nations that don't look like fat, balding white men don't lead to savings for the nation (or increased tax receipts), the savings gained from health care will eventually lead to a lowering of the deficit. Inaction will only increase the deficit and lead to our ultimate bankrupting and this is what they--yes, I said it, "they" (who you calling 'they'?)--want.

Wal-Mart

Re-energized from a lovely end-of-summer trip to New Jersey and surrounding states, I marvelled at the Wal-Mart commercials on TV.

"Live Better. Save Money." In this stylishly done ad, they show some pretty cool cats enjoying USDA steaks (read: "yo, Mexican boy, if you can't clean the carcass in 3 seconds of shit and other gorey matter, then get off the line. A little e coli is good for people.") and sitting wearing nice clothes around a stylish dining room table.

A) All of the people are thin and seem to have a modicum of intelligent thought in their heads; B) there is no 'B', I just needed my rant to seem deeper. Really, though, the whole notion that by buying--yes, buying--shit made in China (and never in America), somehow we will live better because we are saving money on that shit, makes my head spin. Call me a commie or whatever, but, I will never comprehend why and how consumption is the answer to our problems.

Granted, we need things to live and to survive. Families have needs beyond what I can imagine (having no children yet of my own) and when on a tight budget a place like Wal-Mart is helpful. I am not against that end of the bargain and I am grateful that there is such a place to keep prices in perspective for we all know that Big Business and their lobbyists (read: GOP) are evil; however, let's call it what it is: Wal-Mart kills small American businesses faster than the Chinese and rabbits can breed.

Every dollar spent in Wal-Mart is money out of our nation; it is killing a small business downtown--not that they offer much anymore (thanks to Wal-Mart). Wal-Mart, however, could lead the nation in a American small-business revival if it too decided to ensure that at least 50% (or even 60%) of everything sold there was being made in America.

Imagine, the increased prices by such a policy would be offset by the higher-wage-paying jobs. Sadly, however, when my wife and me try to buy "typical American souvenirs" for friends in Russia, we are always shocked to realize that everything you touch--even the Amish star I bought from an Amish store--is made in China!

We tried this time to buy only "made in America" souvenirs and guess what? Our bag of gifts was empty.

Well, enough for now, I am starting to sweat.

Soon, it will be time for College football (Go Knights), the World Series (Go Yanks) and the Oktoberfest ("another beer, please.").