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Of course a public works project makes too much sense for americans to take seriously. The last time this was done, and successfully, I might add, was by President Roosevelt. It was done to help take us out of the great depression. What self respecting, populace hating, corporate butt smooching republican would want to emulate Roosevelt?
I am not enjoying watching the meltdown because I am not yet on the side lines. I am one of the millions who will get bloodied. And so I am not ready to butt my head against a brick wall trying to change the way Americans think and behave.
Sprite, Sometimes we agree, sometimes we disagree. As long as there is life in the tree, you prune it and feed it the nutrition it needs. When the tree dies, you plant new seedlings in its place.
I sense your apathy, and quite frankly it is understandable. At the same time, I would like to think there are many others of us out there who will not sit by idly and watch the tree that is the USA die. It would be a shame to let what was once the greatest nation on earth go quietly into the night. It was a country that opened its arms to allow my grandfather to settle here, and I would guess you are from immigrant stock as well. Immigrants are what made this country great. Now it is time for the Hispanic immigration to add to our national family. Although I believe in a strong immigration policy, where illegals should not be allowed to cross an unprotected border at will, we should have a policy for fair and legal immigration, which allows those who come here wanting to be participatory citizens, to be welcomed. The variations of our skin color, ethnicity, religion and culture blending into one United States of America is what makes us great. Unbridled immigration will destroy us.No doubt uncontrolled consumerism is partly to blame for causing a potential ecological disaster. New and innovative ways to deal with this have been, and still will have to be developed. Underdeveloped nations also contribute to the pollution seen around this planet. We must never forget that developing nations need technology to overcome their problems if they want to have a better life. We as a country have mandated and developed cleaner means of transportation and doing business. These technologies can be used in other countries to deliver cleaner water and air. China, Russia and Eastern Europe still burn plenty of soft coal. We still have a long way to go, and we must continue to do better.
Some of us will sit and wait while it all crumbles to the ground. Others will let somebody else do it, and there will be a few who will step up and do what is right. Rebeca, I know you do your share of self sacrificing and good. And I know it was you who was mentioned on the front page article on this site. You’re one of those few, that actually takes time out of her life to help others. It is not a political philosophy that drives people to do good. It is the character of their person, and the realization that we are all human beings, and are all entitled to that respect and dignity you spoke of.
We’re not dead yet, and while there are still some individuals left who care about what happens here in the US, or anywhere else in the world, there is hope.
Sorry to say it, but Sprite you are part of the problem! There is no immigrant hating religious fanatic right wing conspiracy theories in any of those words. You choose to see them as such to fuel your arguement and further your own personal agenda and motives.
I love my country, I love Costa Rica, and I am currently in Abu Dhabi for the next 3 years and beginning to love the middle easterners over here. The people are not the problem ( few exceptions admitted), but rather the governments of the people.
If you try to get into Costa Rica without your passport, do they give you a big hug and say come on in Amigo! Didn’t think so. The US is the largest pot of LEGAL immigrants in the world. Why do we have to be the largest of illegal?
Most Americans are religious. The constitution was developed on religious values. It says nothing about separation of church and state. It does say you can believe in whatever you want to and the gov will not stop you. It does say that the state will not promote a specific religion. Separation of church and state is a LEFT WING FANATICAL ideal to promote separatism and to keep people feeling alienated. How many buildings in Washington have a reference to God in or on them? I should be able to put a nativity scene on state property with the same right given to religious symbols of all other religions.
I could argue with you till the end of time. But what would be the point. I have a feeling you will be complaining till the day you die and yet never lift a hand to try and change anything.
Idealism is a young man’s game. Go at it. It will not accomplish what you hope, but it will nourish your spirits. The world is made up of cycles. IT IS NATURAL. Empires rise and fall and are replaced. Pruning an old and dying tree is OK and that is about all you do-gooders will accomplish..you will have a well pruned tree…ready to fall. And fall it will.
I can’t site one single example of left wing conspiracy in the history of my country. Progressive thinkers have been the ONLY catalyst for positive change. The conservatives drag their feet and hold on to their wealth and the status quo. It has been a back and forth struggle and as long as the progressive left had a slight edge, the U.S. had a chance and grew. For a long while now, the right wing has held power and this is what will eventually drag the whole shebang down. The last 8 years is a good example. We will now get a short reprieve with a less conservative government, but the damage of decades has been done. It won’t be easily undone.
Sprite, I have to disagree with your recounting of our history. Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal Democrats were not the last ones to initiate a massive, publicly beneficial, public works project. President Eisenhower and his Republican supporters were.
You need only look as far as your local Interstate highway to see it. The “National Defense Highway System” was a creation of the first Eisenhower administration. They reflected upon the difficulty the U.S. had in moving strategic materials around the country during World War II, looked at what the Germans accomplished with their Autobahn system, and saw the obvious. You can rightly blame the Interstate system for a number of unintended consequences, urban and suburban sprawl among them, but it has been an economic godsend to the United States. We are today wholly dependent upon it and ought to have brains enough to maintain it.
Much the same can be said for public water and sewer systems, schools and universities, hospitals, etc.
I stand corrected. However, Eisenhower’s motive and circumstances for this action were much different than Roosevelt’s. Was this the same Eisenhower who warned the american public about the military industrial complex? Did he make that warning before or after he initiated the infrastructure build up in support of this same military industrial complex?
The 50’s began the upswing in conservative politics in my country, I believe. Progressive movements have had a back seat since then. If we were looking at a graph chart, America’s morality and a sense of a balanced place in the world begins to downtrend just as immorality and american dominance of the world economy rises.
Change is inevitable, sometimes it’s painful and this one is certainly going to be at the very least uncomfortable in many ways, but it CAN also spur on changes that are meaningful and head us in the right direction as human beings. It’s all about the choices we all make and I’m glad that not everyone on the site feels that the changes that are currently being felt and in store for the US should become the new spectator sport around the world….
Alfred, thank you for your kind words, but I want you to be sure that what I do does not ever mean any self sacrifice on my part, I do it because it’s part of who I am. Anyone who volunteers on a regular basis knows that these activities bring us great joy and profoundly feed our souls, it’s not about recognition nor partisan politics, it’s about our own personal politics about justice, about people and about Life. Everyone can choose to help and it will never mean anything but part of living to us, not sacrifice.
The gloating I hear in various places over the “deserved” demise of a country makes me very uncomfortable. The recognition I see around the world that changes are needed and inevitable in unsustainable ways of life gives me hope. I do believe that there will be people that will step up to the plate and not only choose to hope, but choose to work towards the ideals they hope to live by within the US or anywhere else, not only now, but when (if) things get really ugly…
Speaking of morality, Gandhi said it best when he said, “you must be the change you wish to see in the world.” If you do nothing but whine, what ethical right do you have to complain about the results once all is said and done?
Rebaregon,
Our inherited genetic traits and personal experiences define all of us. Your own world view will color your opinions of others just as mine does. I am not whining nor watching with any glee the crap coming down now. I am just observing. There is no way that I or anyone else can change himself by virtue of will. We are what we are. We only reacting to the world based on our nature.
When those reactions are done en mass, we change the environment. Individuals do not make a difference except as part of a large group. I observe that there seem to be fewer good people today. I am not sure why that would be. Maybe it is just the jaded view that comes to many people after a certain time on the planet. In Costa Rica, I see a different and more positive attitude among the people tan I do here.Sprite, Has it occurred to you that you may be seeing less “good” people because you’re actually just seeing less “good” acts? Frustration and apathy can paralyze anyone. That said, people have an amazing ability not only to change themselves, but the world around them…It’s not so much (although there are exceptions) about people being a fixed good or bad, the choices we make and the repercussions those choices have (intended or not) from the time we wake to the time we lay our heads defines our contributions each day.
If Costa Rica gives you hope, then I hope with all my heart that you are able to move there real soon, but remember that in the end every human (anywhere, including CR) has faults, we all buy into selfish motives now and again and that doesn’t have to make us hopeless or any less deserving of respect and dignity…Life is a struggle and filled with suffering for sure, but isn’t it wonderful when you meet people that just remind you that Life is also good? I’m glad that meeting Costa Ricans gives you a different take on people, I know that they have been immensely important to me too….Pura Vida…
I am definitely not paralyzed by desperation. I am moving to CR. I am not using any limited energy to transform the place I live now. That would be butting my head against a brick wall. Animals, when confronted with adversarial conditions, will either fight or take flight…whichever is the most advantageous to their situation. I am able to flee and that is my plan of action for dealing with the coming S*** storm. It coincides nicely with retirement age…and I am not under any illusion as to CR or the people there. It is just that there is a definite higher sense of contentment in the air in Costa Rica that is absent here. For all its ills, the Ticos aren’t scrambling over top one another for a bigger piece of the pie.
By your own admission, you certainly have stopped acting within the US. I’d like to take up two very important biological issues that you’ve brought up. One, about our genetic makeup, our biology DOESN’T determine our destiny–otherwise every identical twin would be the exact replica of the other in every behavior and even in appearance and that’s just not the case. Two, that human animals when faced with adversity not only fight or take flight, they also “tend and befriend” Something mostly practiced and recognized by women, but that it took scientific data to make believers out of men…No matter where you are or how dire things get, you can always stretch your hand out in assistance and with compassion…
Rebeca, what I meant by sacrifice, was the giving up of your own time and resources for the good of someone else. I know that it is all joy, and may seem like we are getting more benefit than the ones we are assisting. I have been there myself and have realized the personal benefit years later. It was all worth any infringement on my “precious” time to do something for someone else. I won’t go into details as what to happened, and at the time I was not aware that I was having a positive influence. Years later I found I may have had a small part in turning someone’s life around. In fact, I completely forgot about it until I was thinking late last night, whether or not I have truly done things in my life that have been positive for other people. I took comfort in the fact that I have done a number of things, but wish I could turn back the clock 30 years or so and have back my youthful former self to do more. I don’t look for the applause or accolades either, I just do what I’m able to do. You don’t have to a be President or a great leader, you simply can be kind to someone. Even when you really don’t feel like being kind.
Sprite, Don’t blame the right or the conservatives exclusively. The truth about the current occupant of the White House is, he is not a conservative. He has spent more, passed almost every bit of legislation the liberals wanted, and is only conservative on a few issues. The few he is conservative on trouble most people, including the right.
You have to remember Lyndon Johnson, who gave us the “Great Society.” This led to the massive influx of immigrants from third world countries. The welfare state flourished under his administration, and he borrowed from the trust fund of Social Security, (a policy which still continues today, and has wiped out any reserve.) The Vietnam war was in full swing with escalation in fighting. And it wasn’t he who ended it. Nixon did. Although Nixon was deeply a deeply flawed man, Judging by todays standards, he would have never had to leave office.
Jimmy Carter almost brought us to the brink of economic disaster. Remember the “Misery Index?” High interest and inflation. He also lowered our status in the world, and he couldn’t get our hostages released form Iran. That release happened while Reagan was taking his inaugural oath.
Then there was Bill Clinton. Although he acted more like a conservative than Bush, he managed to bring some dishonor to the office. Still, Hillary blamed that on the “vast right wing conspiracy.” And in eight years he could not get healthcare reform passed. Now his wife wants another shot at it. Eight years was enough. We don’t need her throwing ashtrays at Bill anymore when he speaks up.There is enough baggage carried, and enough blame to go around. Both parties left us behind some years ago. Like Ronald Reagan used to say, and I believe it was someone else’s quote, “Public service, is a public trust.” Until our leaders come back to that kind of thinking, we will be getting the same kind of government we’ve been seeing.
This current crop of contenders for the nations highest office look like they will be about the same as has been presented to us in past contests. Almost all Washington insiders, claiming to be agents of change. When we have the guts to dump this ridiculous, circus atmosphere primary system, we may get candidates that have some real ideas.
I was going to make a comment about the DNA thing, I’ll simply say I agree totally with Rebeca. You can’t rationalize everything by only looking for a scientific answer.
Alfred, I don’t doubt that you have made a difference in another’s life, kindness has an incredibly long reaching arm and I have long believed in Emerson’s philosophy on a successful life:
“To laugh often and much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children, to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends, to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch… to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded!”
I do hope you will consider that governmental officials, no matter what party affiliation, have rarely made important (although, thankfully, some have) and wonderful differences in how we think, belief and act, that’s usually been the great honor and responsibility of people that chose to care and just refused to accept the status quo…Just as you can think of a million mistakes that liberals have made, others can point out another batch of conservative mistakes. You might also check into why the Iranians chose to release the hostages only after Reagan had been elected when they had expressed interest in doing so before the election…Also ask yourself why that particular administration later found itself in a major mess called Iran-Contra Affair and start to connect the dots. Power corrupts and you know the rest…In the end, our ability to make a difference may be because we are not ‘powerful’ by most economic or political standards, but in the most important things, the ability to change ourselves and the ability to make a difference for another — we certainly have a lot of power and with that also responsibility to live consciously and not just accept being put on mindless treadmill for any reason…
Rebeca, I was pointing out democrat mistakes and shortcomings in response to Sprite’s comment about conservatives. I am aware that both have fallen short of being above reproach. My ideology is mostly to the right, and I have found most republican candidates shifting to the left in recent years, and still being labeled “right wing conservatives.” This, I find odd. I’m sure McCain will come out of this looking like the reincarnation of Atilla the Hun before this is all over. I’m not going to jump off the roof, or leave the country, if Hillary gets elected. And if the majority of our country wants us to go in that direction, then that’s where we will head. I don’t have to like it, or support it, but for now, I’ll still live here. I just hope I’m still able to laugh often, and laugh much.
I’ll continue fight for what I believe to be right, just as everyone with their personal opinion should do. I don’t think anyone in our country has truly bad intentions in their political beliefs. There are other forms of government, and some systems work better for some nations. What works for others may not be what works for us. As you said before, it is up to the people to make the choices in their own lives to affect changes for the good. We should have the capacity to learn from one another, never close our minds to differing ideas, and have the courage to stand up for what we believe.
There have been times, mostly during this administration, when we have felt like packing it in and running straight to CR. When we finally do pick up and move, hopefully to CR, we will know that we did not abandon our country. We can remain confident that we at least tried to make a positive effort for the good of our friends and neighbors.
It has been a pleasure, as always, to exchange ideas with someone who can have a civil conversation, and appreciate someone else’s point of view. That also goes for most everyone else on this forum.
David- I completely agree that the Interstate Highway Act of 1956 was one of the most important pieces of legislation in our country’s history. However, I think you and Sprite are confusing era’s and politically leanings. The final highway bill was guided through the House and Senate by George Fallon, Hale Boggs and Albert Gore Sr., all Democrats.It passed the Senate on a vote of 89-1 and passed the House on a voice vote. I think it was more a case that politicians of that time were still capable, on occasion, of acting for the good of the country, rather than for the good of their party or their own re-election.
While today everyone accepts conservative as Republican and Liberal as Democrat the case could be made that the strongest conservative foot-draggers of the 50’s were southern Democrats. Likewise the term Liberal Republican was alive and well in the 50’s.
Anyway, just thought I’d submit that for consideration.
Thanks.
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