Now that we are to have a new president we are all expecting changes. I expect most of those changes to be for the better, even though I realize that no president can accomplish everything he or she wants to. When Obama gave his acceptance speech at the Democratic convention in Denver he outlined a long list of goals. I wish him the best of luck in accomplishing what he can. He certainly has a full plate of challenges to deal with.
Since I will be spending a lot of time and space writing about how things go for the new administration, I have a thing or two to state going in. I do not like how we have become a polarized nation filled with people who are constantly looking for an excuse to brow beat the president at every chance they get. I like it when I read arguments based on facts and actual content when those arguments are expressing discontent. Shallow arguments make it seem to me that the people making those arguments are simply looking for a nail to hit with a hammer. It actually weakens their argument.
Having said that, let me state a few things about the outgoing president. I am not in his camp. Like many others, I am disappointed in the end result on the home front. Our economy is in sad shape and we are all feeling the pinch. Life for us is not going smooth at all. Bush has also alienated much of the European population with his foreign policy. But it would be folly not to admit that Bush has had some successes. Some of that was necessary and some was not. On the foreign front, he has done a little better. He toppled two evil regimes, and without firing a shot he put nuclear (not nucular) inspectors in Iran, Syria and North Korea. Those are positive accomplishments and deserve to be placed in his win column.
Since I will be spending a lot of time and space writing about how things go for the new administration, I have a thing or two to state going in. I do not like how we have become a polarized nation filled with people who are constantly looking for an excuse to brow beat the president at every chance they get. I like it when I read arguments based on facts and actual content when those arguments are expressing discontent. Shallow arguments make it seem to me that the people making those arguments are simply looking for a nail to hit with a hammer. It actually weakens their argument.
Having said that, let me state a few things about the outgoing president. I am not in his camp. Like many others, I am disappointed in the end result on the home front. Our economy is in sad shape and we are all feeling the pinch. Life for us is not going smooth at all. Bush has also alienated much of the European population with his foreign policy. But it would be folly not to admit that Bush has had some successes. Some of that was necessary and some was not. On the foreign front, he has done a little better. He toppled two evil regimes, and without firing a shot he put nuclear (not nucular) inspectors in Iran, Syria and North Korea. Those are positive accomplishments and deserve to be placed in his win column.
When we went to Afghanistan after 911 the entire country wanted it. When we went to Iraq shortly afterward the whole country believed that Saddam had the weapons of mass destruction. Many people changed their mind very quickly about that. We forget that he had them. It was Bill Clinton who first said Husein was dangerous and no one paid attention to his statements. He was certainly not chastised for saying it.
Time magazine even published a cover story about how dangerous he was. And he was at the time refusing to cooperate with the UN mandate for him to comply with full disclosure of his arsenal by certain deadlines. If the United States had refused to comply with UN deadlines on anything for any reason there would have been a world wide outcry filled with venomous accusations and disgust. But there was no such outcry concerning Iraq. The fact that no WMDs were found doesn't mean they didn't exist. We know he had them--because we sold them to him.
Time magazine even published a cover story about how dangerous he was. And he was at the time refusing to cooperate with the UN mandate for him to comply with full disclosure of his arsenal by certain deadlines. If the United States had refused to comply with UN deadlines on anything for any reason there would have been a world wide outcry filled with venomous accusations and disgust. But there was no such outcry concerning Iraq. The fact that no WMDs were found doesn't mean they didn't exist. We know he had them--because we sold them to him.
Anyway, we got sidetracked in Iraq and became focused on something other than what is ultimately good for us here in America. That was not good. Maybe Obama will get us back on a productive track, back to what is good for America. I certainly hope and believe he will.
So we should thank George Bush for the things he did that were right, because he did indeed do some things that were right. I am, however, still disappointed in his administration's overall performance. Like so many of us, I feel like the middle class has had to foot the bill for the agenda of the wealthy .
For some reason I trust Obama. How often can you say that about a newly elected president?
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