This is NOT an intelligent blog. I'm just venting, as an Indiana Dem.
Every time I watch Rach talk about abortion, I want to scream. It's astonishing. Planned Parenthood is facing such unreal odds (see below for more). When I watch her discuss unions, I want to cry. It's so horrific. And when I hear her clobber Romney for saying just anything, or Perry for being a wingnut, I think of 1980. This is why I need to find SH (supporter housing) in OH, and work. Would Hillary have been better? I supported Barack ... now I think that it didn't matter.
Cutting to the chase, I recall how Reagan won the hearts of Americans, by being "charming" and having a clear vision of where the nation should go. Horrible amounts of evil were done during his administration, in the name of "freedom" and "democracy" - let's not forget the brutal rape, torture, and wholesale slaughter of opponents of U.S. Cold War allies in third world nations (e.g.: Guatemala; Angola - c.f. Jonas Savimbi/UNITA who used to cut off limbs; and/or Chile [Pinochet], and so many other examples. How about Indonesia's Suharto?).
Oh BTW, does anyone remember James Watt, Reagan's Interior Sec'y? How about his A/G, Ed Meese? Good grief.
We're facing another Reagan, in Rick Perry. The signs are clear. We believe that he's "too extreme." But what we forget is that elections are determined by a tiny fraction of the voting public, who vote on emotional issues (such as personal likeability, the economy, etc.)
Rick Perry gives a good speech, he's a vet, he's likeable (at least to folks who don't know his history), and his money machine will equal Barack's - when we add in the "independent expenditures."
It's 1980 all over again. I'm so depressed.
I've previously expressed doubt about Barack's strategy. I've wondered whether Hillary might've been a better choice. As a friend of mine once said: "When your house is on fire, you need to grab a fire extinguisher. It doesn't matter whether it will have any effect."
Frankly, I'm not sure it makes any difference. Either Barack or Hillary would've won the Presidency in '08. The Repubs would've declared "all out war" on either of them, because that's how they operate these days. (Screw the country, just mess up government in order to piss off independent, and low-information voters).
The economy would've been deadly to both Barack and Hillary, because of the effect of long-term debt (c.f. Harvard economist Rogoff) and Europe would've continued to deliver continued shocks. You can always count on Europe for more economic shocks. (Set your watch by the Europeans, they'll reliably deliver bad economic news every few months for the next few decades.)
That's why Barack's efforts to "be nice and compromise" are utterly worthless, and the GOP's goal of "slash and burn" works. They'll pin the economy on the donkey. Simple as that. They can be as rude, vicious, ruthless, and completely irresponsible as they desire.
Prediction: when Perry is elected Pres., Repubs will abolish the fillibuster in the Senate (or at least reduce the number of votes required for cloture.) We'll be bombed back to the guilded age. Americans will reliablly bow down to World Capitalism, and assume that they're personally at fault. "Company towns" will be re-established overseas.
The only way that I can make a difference is to find SH (supporter housing) in OH. I'm convinced that OH and FL will again be critical in 2012. If indeed there's any hope. (Which I'm beginning to doubt.)
Let's keep in mind that Ginsburg may retire. What then for Roe? Can you imagine what will happen if Perry replaces Ginsburg??
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P.S.: If you haven't read my diaries, that doesn't matter. Let's just say that here in Indiana, the home of the KKK during the early 20s, and a state that no one picked for Barak in '08, we just worked like dogs. We were so angry at Bush, and so frustrated. We Indiana Dems were SO PROUD that we held five of nine cong'l districts in '08. Actually the last time that Indiana delivered its electoral votes for a Dem from north of the Mason-Dixon line was 1936. It was an incredible victory. We also got all five Indiana Dems in the House to vote for the public option, thanks to a serious organizing effort by DFA (yeah, I did a little work there). Those were the days. Now, we have no statewide Dems as party leaders, and we're back to district #1 and #7. Long-term, I'm optimistic. ?Habla Espagnol?