That's right people, Michael Steele has spoken, and the GOP has had enough! The days of apologizing for ruining your lives is over. No more feeling sorry for you. No more regretting the terrible decisions that led to your suffering. No more. They have had it.
They've had it with you and your "problems." They've had it with your unemployment. They've had it with your medical bills. They've had it with your polluted lakes. And they've had it with your son in Iraq. The GOP is putting their foot down, they are drawing a line in the sand, and they are vowing to fight. With their dying breath, they will fight against president Obama's attempts to help you.
What is the GOP about? We used to know: Small government, low taxes, strong defense, blah, blah, blah. But since Bush took office, and until yesterday, nobody had any idea. Well now the GOP has unfurled their new platform, and their vision couldn't be clearer: Fight the Democrats.
So what are the Democrats about? People have lamented their inability to answer this question for some time, but I think that's only because the answer is so fundamental, it sounds stupid: To do what's best for our society, and our world. That, in a nutshell is the Democratic vision. Sounds pretty awful, doesn't it? Well that's the vision the Republican party has vowed to fight.
There was something noticeably absent from Michael Steele's speech the other day. He failed to acknowledge the fact that our country is circling the toilet and that somebody has to do something about it. The joke is, the GOP is still pretending that the government is the problem. And boy, if you go out there on the streets and talk to people, that's all you hear, isn't it? Those people on the unemployment line are shaking their fists at the sky. "Damn you government!!"
Back here in reality land, people are suffering. Badly. And it's not because there's too much government, and they know it.
The Democrats and Republicans have different ideas about what it means to be free. The Republicans believe that freedom means being able to make as much money as you can, and keep every cent. The Democrats believe that freedom means having opportunity, having a strong education, access to health care, a decent home, a just legal system, and a dignified retirement. Unfortunately, the Republican vision of freedom does not create the Democrat's vision of freedom (although, it may for a select few). Right now most Americans pay less taxes than anyplace in the world, and yet, they have the lowest standard of living than most industrialized nations. Over in Europe, where taxes are sky high, they get FIVE WEEKS VACATION a year. FIVE WEEKS! Most Americans barely get a week or two. What the hell kind of freedom is that? The freedom to work your fingers to the bone?
We are slowly becoming a nation like China, where government regulation is virtually non-existent, and the people are free to work twelve hours a day, seven days a week. That's the freedom the GOP is vowing to fight for.
I've really enjoyed watching Jesse Ventura make the talk show rounds, decrying torture and the Bush administration, but I take issue with his remark that the government has too much influence, and that down in Mexico he is "treated like an adult." With all do respect, Governor, most of us can't afford to spend half the year hanging out on Mexican beaches and surfing. I'm sure it's great to be "treated like an adult" when you're independently wealthy. But the rest of just want a fucking job, and those of us that have jobs just want a little time to enjoy our lives.
So Michael Steele, when you say you're vowing to fight Obama, please explain how fighting Obama is going to create jobs, how fighting Obama is going to give people access to health care, how fighting Obama is going to improve education, and how fighting Obama is going to end the war in Iraq. I'm little fuzzy on the details.