I often write about my discontent with what I see as a one-party system with two factions: the Democrats, and the Republicans. And about how both parties are essentially under the control of corporatist and moneyed interests. This, of course, is a "systemic" problem with our political system.
But today, I'm not going to write about that. I'm going to focus today on comparing president Obama to members of the current Republican presidential field; on my perception of these individuals as "people," as men and women.
How can this be properly presented? One thing that comes to mind is that we, as people, are not perfect (of course); most average people have good things, and bad things about them. And if we want to live a relatively normal life, and participate in our communities, we try to do "the right thing." We try to be ethical, and empathetic towards others, and work for a living, and/or engage in productive activities.
And, of course, because we are "only human," sometimes we deal with deficiencies in our characters, and vices, and other negative traits (in the eyes of society).
What are some of those negative traits? Well, one could say that greed, selfishness, cruelty, jealousy, dishonesty, hypocrisy, laziness, are all negative traits we try to avoid or suppress. Other negative traits, can also be considered vile, like racism, homophobia, extreme religious fundamentalism or fanaticism, extreme nationalism, jingoism, ethnocentrism, demagoguery, among others.
Most reasonable people would agree that the signs of a decent society include a democratic system based on secular values (separation between Church and State), where education and intellectual pursuit are valued, where people enjoy human rights (speech, press, habeas corpus, privacy, religion, etc.), where individuals are judged by the content of their character (and not by the color of their skin, ethnicity, gender, and sexual preference--whether gay or straight). Where the rule of law applies equally to all, regardless of their station in life (whether rich or poor).
Those are the signs of an enlightened society (I would hope you agree).
And so, following on the promise left to us by the Founding Fathers, and the Constitution, we seek to always work towards a more perfect union; a task that is never-ending, of course.
And sometimes we take two steps forward, and one step back, but we aim to learn from our mistakes as a people, and as a nation, and in a constant battle of ideas, perspectives, and world views, we continue our march towards a better future, even if the road is filled with obstacles.
Within this context is that I compare president Barack Hussein Obama, the man, against each and every member of the Republican presidential field.
And it is within this context that I see the stark differences. From my perspective, and my understanding, there is still a very (very) large segment of the population that for many different reasons, are guided by a world view that embraces hate, ignorance, extreme religious fundamentalism, nativism, ethnocentrism. And then there is a very debased, vile, and harmful segment represented by corporatist interests (Wall Street, Banks, etc.), that is guided by greed, narcissism, and lust for power.
And so when I look at the president (the man), I see a man that has been married twenty years, a father of two daughters; a man that is highly intellectual; a man that speaks clearly and coherently. You can sense an inherent decency, intellectual heft, and intelligence, in this man.
And when I look at the Republican presidential field, by and large, I see debauchery, dishonesty, greed, extreme religious fanaticism, lack of ethics, hypocrisy, (transparent) demagoguery, hate, racism, cruelty. In short, a vile, clownish, and dangerous crop of very damaged individuals.
Now, I fully understand that the right-wing lurkers that may be reading these words may try to dismiss this analysis as "partisanship." But if such reader knew about my writing, he would know that when it comes to criticism of politicians (of both parties), I pull no punches. I try to give it to them, equally, and call them as I see them.
No; this is empirical stuff. It's quantifiable. So much so, that I would take on anyone who would challenge me to prove the vile nature of the Republican presidential field, from the racist-laden newsletters Ron Paul wrote and edited (himself) in the 80's and 90's, to the transparent dishonesty and flip-flopping and greed of Mitt Romney, the the huckstery, profiteering, philandering, and dishonesty of Newt Gingrich, to the lunacy, hypocrisy, and cheap and dangerous religious fundamentalism of Santorum and Bachmann.
When it comes to character, you could actually come up with objective measures, and compare these vile and defective individuals (the Republican presidential field) against the personal character of Barack Hussein Obama, and in each category, the president towers over them like a giant. And again, that's empirical.
The fact that this is not obvious to everyone is because, as a nation, we are still weighted down by a significant segment of the population that, and again, are animated by hate, anti-intellectualism, extreme religious fundamentalism, and naked greed. As in every nation, that is the challenge we have to overcome, as every sensible person who has tried to talk to a family member who is a FoxNews viewer during this holiday season has come to experienced.
And, of course, the reason that type of base, cheap, hateful, and dogmatic way of looking at the world is still with us is because that is precisely the type of sentiment corporate media conglomerates and their propaganda machines, and their lobbyist money (corrupting government) tries to perpetuate, since it takes a person of low character, low intelligence, filled with hate, and greed, to support the criminality, tyranny, and exploitation that the corporate hegemony is always trying to prop up.
And it is because these obvious reasons, that I support the re-election of president Barack Obama, and people like Alan Grayson, and Elizabeth Warren, and Senator Bernie Sanders, and congressman Raul Grijalva.
And it is because even thought I know that the struggle to eradicate ignorance, and hate, and extreme greed, and religious-fundamentalism-inspired political dogma is a very big, and multi-generational challenge, it is nevertheless the challenge we should all embrace if we believe in the promise of a more perfect union. It is our patriotic duty.
So let's gear up for the 2012 elections, and make sure we send the vile Republican party back to political oblivion so we can fix this country, remove the choke-hold of the criminal corporatist oligarchy, and help bring about a better future.
And let's keep the pressure on the Democratic party as well, so they understand that we will only support candidates that reject undue influence by corporatist paymasters.
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