Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Will the Democrats Be Any Better?

I'm skeptical. I'm afraid the current political system in Washington DC is so out of touch with reality to effectively work on issues such as immigration, health care, education, social security, campaign reform, voting reform, term limits, corruption, poverty, minimum wage, foreign policy, and homeland security. Nonetheless, I wish the democrats well just as I wished President Bush well in 2004. Let's hope politicians work as hard for the American people as they work to obtain or protect their seats in Congress. Let's also hope our elected politicians show us some sincere bi-partisanship.

In America, unfortunately, you have to be a millionaire to run for president or senator. Will the House soon follow? Robert Byrd (D-WV) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) have spent 46 and 44 years in DC respectively, and they will probably die in office. My God, kick them out! Thank goodness there is a limit on the presidency. The American people should demand a constitutional amendment to limit terms of senators and representatives! They will not limit themselves! But they will continue to increase their pay while the minimum wage remains a joke. When I was born in 1969 the minimum wage was $1.60 and the average cost of a new automobile was $3,500. If my math is correct, the minimum wage should currently be at least $9.60.

It's refreshing to see Rumsfeld step down. I opposed the war in Iraq from the beginning, but I agree that we should try our best to leave Iraq better than we found it. It would be nice to have some outside help, but our government's hubris has left us isolated. Where is the humility? I am not yet convinced that an increase in troops will solve the problem, and I'm just as confused as most people concerning the best solution for getting out without abandoning Iraq. Perhaps the government should have made better plans before the first bombs were dropped. After all, we do elect and pay them to make such decisions and plans. So far, both democrats and republicans have proven themselves incompetent. If I'm not mistaken, they both voted to send us there, and the insurgency is clearly NOT in "the last throes."

Saddam Hussein is a criminal and deserves to be punished, but I do not agree with a death sentence. Sure, Hussein was a bully and murderer, but the United States and other Western nations enabled him for many years. The United States and other Western nations worked behind the scenes to support the rise of the Baath party (including Hussein) many years ago. The US government was aware of Hussein's reputation and influence for many years but conveniently looked the other way when it served our interests. The United States and other Western nations also supported Hussein during his 8-year war with Iran when he used chemical weapons on Iran and his own people. American companies even supplied Iraq with some of those weapons. I'm not condoning Hussein's crimes any more than I am excusing the US government's hypocrisy.

America desperately needs a strong third party, and I encourage everyone to seek alternatives to the current political system. Obviously there are no guarantees a third party would be any better, but it's worth a try. It's too early to know who the 2008 presidential candidates will be, but please, no more Bushes or Clintons! Nothing against Hillary Clinton personally, but I think she and her husband have had their time in the spotlight. Anyway, she just spent 29 million dollars to protect her seat in the senate which doesn't expire until 2012. Barack Obama would be an interesting candidate, but will his current popularity last? I was hoping that Mark Warner (former governor of Virginia) would run, but he recently dropped out before the race even started. I seriously doubt the democrats can win, but their best chance of a 2008 victory would be if Jeb Bush or Dick Cheney got the republican nomination. Cheney said he will not run, but I'm not sure I believe him. Jeb Bush hasn't said if he's running, but his job as Florida's governor will soon expire. John McCain and/or Rudy Giuliani are the republicans' best bets (right now), but I doubt the religious right will embrace them. A religious right candidate outside the republican mainstream would obviously hurt the republicans' chances, and a strong alternative to the democrats would also make things very interesting. The more the merrier.

When will America elect a minority president? I can't believe we are still asking this question. I don't know enough about the candidates' positions to have a favorite yet, but I am ready for a minority president. It's the 21st century, and I think white males have had more than enough time to run the country. Sure, they've accomplished many good things, but they've also had their share of failures. It's time to give someone else a chance to succeed or fail. By the way, did the accomplishments or failures of white males have anything to do with their skin color or gender?