"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term....."A quote like this doesn't sound like he's going to be ready on day one to me. Looks like he's trying to weasel out of a campaign promise already.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Ready on Day One?
Remember the campaign promise? "Ready on Day One!" Did anyone catch this line in his acceptance speech last night?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
46 comments:
What were the Republicans saying when Bush was in Power... "Love it or Leave it"?
Thats right Craig, hey and if you take Mannis with you, I'll pay your plane fares!
I don't need your charity. Obama will take care of everything for me.
He was paying homage to Martin Luther King's "Mountain Top" speech. He wasn't trying to weasel out of anything, he was just setting practical expectations. His healthcare plan won't get enacted on Jan. 21, 2009; the federal debt will not get paid off in six months; etc. That said, if he doesn't make any meaningful progress on this platform by 2012, he will be out of a job.
Oh stop it. The guy isn't even in office yet, and you're criticizing.
YCF said.... "you're criticizing."
No, you've got it all wrong. I'm analyzing.
You expect for Obama to be able to solve in his first 6 months the horrendous legacy of the 8-year Bush administration?
Obama cannot cure the effects of 8 years of the worst fiscal and economic policies ever in histoy, in his first 90 days.
This country has been totally destroyed by Republican economic policies, which have been centered around debt creation, monetary manipulation, and asset inflation in combo with the complete dismanteling of our manufacturing infrastructure,in favor of a specious "globalism", to the point where we might have to nationalize part of our failing auto industry just to be able to manufacture our own military vehicles.
We sure do have a steep climb,and Americans need to get over their Disneyland entitlement mentality and their expectation of instant solutions to complex problems.
And Mannis is already trying to suggest there were mass riots last night. Oh, and we're all communists now.
Craig,
Be grateful that you live in a country where you can criticize your president.
Love it or Leave it!
Ignore Mannis. Remember his tagline "Documenting the Suicide of the West"? After yesterday, he's even more irrelevant now.
Actually, no.
Tom Mannis: Mostly Harmless.
I think the tagline for his blog should be "Documenting the Suicide of the GOP". Seems more apt to me.
Tom Mannis: Documenting what happens when you don't take your meds.
This blog is nothing but negativity. I used to read it every day because I thought it was a good critical eye on our neighborhood. But now I'm realizing it is nothing but your personal pulpit to preach angry, hateful emotion.
At some point, you have attacked everyone around you. Now you're ripping Obama before the guy has even taken office. I don't think you like anyone around you who doesn't look and think like you. The more I read your self-serving propaganda, the more I realize you are a part of the problem.
Just keep up the sniping and ugliness. Keep monitoring your scanner so you have something to complain about. The rest of us will think of constructive ways to better our community, rather than sitting on our ass being bitter and hateful.
When he said, "Ready on day one," it was in answer to McCain's "Not ready to lead," accusation. By saying, "The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term.....," I believe he is demonstrating the fact that he IS ready on day one to lead the country by first and foremost being honest with all of us.
I admit I am troubled by the pie-in-the-sky expectations of some of Obama's followers but I think the majority of us are realistic enough to know that the road ahead will be hard. It is comforting to know we now have a President who isn't afraid to be honest with us while at the same time encouraging and inspiring us all to move forward.
- PEACE -
Ever heard of NAFTA? Clinton legacy. Let's see how things develop. The republicans had their way and that lead to complete disaster. I can't wait to see what happens when the democrats control everything.
He never claimed to be able to solve all of America's problems, much less in 4 years. All he can hope to do is lay the groundwork.
In fact, the only people who have even suggested he could are conservative talking heads trying to cast him as a false messiah for their own purposes.
I've come to expect from the author of this blog a mixed bag of quality local insight and hateful, idiotic ranting, but this goes above and beyond most measures of idiocy.
Craig, the attorney disciplinary commission has charged Jay Grodner with misconduct.
https://www.iardc.org/08CH0055CM.html
here is the link
yep - here we go - I read that the people in charge were trying to tell people to lower their expectations a few weeks ago. North Coast - you drank too much kool aid - democrats have ruled Congress for quite a while now. The Dems headed up Fannie May and Freddie Mac - there's plenty of blame to go around. Hey, I wasn't an Obama fan but I hope he does wonderful things! I can't wait to start getting my checks in the mail (LOL - sorry couldn't resist)
Sorry, razldazl, but the Dems have been the majority in Congress for ONLY two years.
The collapse of our financial system was set in stone by 2005. Paul Volker and other leading economists issued warnings at that time regarding the precarious debt situation, and Volker stated that he believed we were headed for a severe financial crises. As of 2004, we had the largest overhang of public and private debt of any civilization ever to exist.
Bush and his VP Dick "deficits don't matter" Cheney made a deliberate and knowing decision to make asset inflation, debt creation, and monetary manipulation the drivers of economic "growth" for the past 8 years.
Additionally, while Clinton, in spite of his large faults, left this country with the first budget SURPLUS in 35 years, the Bushites are leaving it with the largest deficit and debt load ever in the history of any country.
Yes, the Dems have been supporters of GNMA and the GSEs Freddie and Fannie, but the Republicans have been even bigger supporters, and the Republicans have been the biggest cheerleaders for the destruction of anything resembling sane lending standards. Prior to Bush, these agencies still had some sort of standards regarding the loans they were purchased, but were enjoined to abandon all standards by Paulson and other cheerleaders for the debt racket.
And, remember, there's more than just money at stake here.
The Republicans are the party that has destroyed our constitution with the USAPATRIOT Act, and most of all the party that has aligned itself with the greatest enemy of civilization next to Islam- the Christian Right. Do we really want to be led by people who believe that the world is 6,000 years old and that dinasaurs co-existed with humans? The Republican assault on science has been horrendous, and the U. S. now stands in grave danger of losing its scientific and technological lead- to the extent that it can be said we still even do lead in this area.
Additionally, the Republican Party as it is currently constituted, is responsible for funneling most of our federal tax money away from cities like Chicago and throwing that money, instead, at wasteful development in Western and Southern states. Instead of
The Repugs have, since Reagan's decision to align the party with the Christian Jihadists, and joint decision to encourage the flight of manufacturing from our shores and its replacement as an economic driver by financial scams instead, turned their backs on their party's founding principals of individual freedom and fiscal responsibility.
I'd like to see a party rise that embraces the old pre-1912 Republican ideals of economic freedom, truly small government, individual liberties, and emphasis on personal responsibility, but until that happens, I have to vote mostly Dem, if only because they are the only answer to the vicious Christian Right, and to public policy that subsidizes and enables wasteful, obsolete suburban lifestyles that Americans will need to abandon if we want to survive the coming reduction in fuel supplies.
Personally, I'm happy to see a CHICAGOAN installed as president, if only so we can get a reasonable share of taxes this area sends to Washington, which is now being tossed at underpopulated Western and Southern states for heroic water reclamation projects so that we can have cities with 2 million or more people in them in the middle of the high desert, to the detriment of the older cities of the Midwest and Northeast, with their favorable locations in moderate climates on major waterways. We in the midwest and northeast have had to subsidize our own destruction for too long, thanks to the Republican western, southern, and rural biases. Let's start pressing for the things we want for our city, like more police and critical infrastructure repairs and enhancements, NOW.
Northcoast - the Dems fingerprints are ALL OVER the mortgage mess. Which, by the way, is a huge part of our current fiscal state.
It's not tax cuts for the "rich" or the debt that has the market down 40% in the past month. It was the avalanche set off by the mortgage mess.
Bush and the Reps spent like drunken sailors and I hated every minute of that. And it for sure is partly to blame. But the mortgage disaster is right in the lap of Frank and Dodd.
About 2 min of research will prove that without a doubt.
Considering there have been plenty of responses to the Obama slight, I'll say something else.
What in the hell is with the new banner to this web site? Really? Homeless people unconscious, falling out of wheelchairs with big "Thriller"-esque blood letters spelling out the already obnoxiously dramatic title of this blog?
Like others, I like to know when something happens around my block that I may not hear about otherwise, but get serious. This new graphic just looks like classless exploitation to me.
Sure, Ropa has it's problems, however, the last time I checked, your little graphic wasn't very indicative of life here as a whole.
northcoast says
You expect for Obama to be able to solve in his first 6 months the horrendous legacy of the 8-year Bush administration?
Obama cannot cure the effects of 8 years of the worst fiscal and economic policies ever in histoy, in his first 90 days.
Well obama was talking like he was going to fix everything overnight . hes smart though he was talking bout martin luther king jr and lincoln...AND THEN he said everything might not be fix in the firs year or even the first term. but im pretty sure his followers didnt hear that part they were mezmerize already . he won this election by been a great speaker and by having celebrities back him up ..thats what is wrong with this country people dont look at the fact they just listen to what the politicians be saying and if a celebrity endorse a candidate they go by that. americans are followers like oprah for instance companies wouldnt give away there products in her show if they knew that her audience/followers wouldnt buy there product all she has to say is i love this product and there goes her followers saying the samething. i hope obama proves me wrong but to me hes all talk . hes a rich man with a million dollar house. by the way did he help his aunt that he supposebly admires so much but for some reason she in public housing? (you guys probably didnt hear nothing about that because all the media was pro obama)he won by all those celebrities and media protraying him like a messiah
You 'nailed' it, north coast! Good job!!!
I think it was more general as in this country isn't going to be fixed right away.
Our new President elect I believe stated he was going to "get us out of the war". That will be great, someone on this blog can tell me how much the daily war costs the taxplayers.
So my point is once the day comes & the US gets out of the war, the Federal goverment will have billions of extra dollars that can be used to alleviate other areas in the goverment without haveing to rasie taxs. (you would thing with the dollars spent on the war in the goverment pocket)
How about all the surcharges that where added to produce, taxies, and other products due to the high price of gas! Now gas is about 2something a gallon a large drop from the almost 5 dollars a few months ago, but has any products gone down , have companys, airlines , taxies etc.dropped the surcharge?
Lets face it we all get shafted by the system one way or another!
i couldnt help but notice this section of the article in the chicago tribune.......
Many aldermen gathered for Wednesday's City Council meeting were happy to talk about their wish lists for the hometown president-elect.
“Obviously, the fact that you have in the White House a person who calls Chicago his home can’t hurt,” said Ald. Joe Moore (49th). “He understands the needs of the city. He knows all the key players in the city. His closest advisers, many are from the city. Clearly, Chicago is going to benefit from a very practical point of view.
“The mayor and the other members of the City Council will have the president’s ear. I think that absolutely has to accrue to the city’s benefit.”
Moore said he hopes more money will go toward public transit, housing and other particularly urban needs “that are unmet in the city of Chicago” and other big cities.......
wow if i didnt know joe moore and i read this article i would think that he actually cares about the stuff he be saying....
Being ready on Day 1 means being ready to start solving the problems on Day 1, not fixing everything on Day 1. Methinks Craig is just being provocative.
save streets and beaches:
"Methinks Craig is just being provocative.
On the streets that he thinks he knows so much about it's called HATING!
Look, let's all be honest. Congress is chock full of boobs and boneheads. I don't care which party they claim as their own.
For the past few weeks, I've been watching C-SPAN, which is (along with CNBC) THE most entertaining "show" on television.
It's long stretches of hilarity punctuated by moments of sheer crap.
For example, the other day, some committee was interviewing several "policy" analysts about the current financial fiasco. I've never seen so many windbags in one room throwing out such superflous bullshit.
The whole problem can be summed up simply:
Banks shouldn't loan money to people with bad credit. People with bad credit can't manage money. When people can't manage money, they default on their payments. When enough of those missed payments hits an apex, banks go down. The end.
I guess Congress feels more superior and "intelligent" if a bunch of charts, mathmatical equations and fancy words are put into the mix, but at the end of the day, they just show how incredibly obtuse they truly are.
We need term limits.
I don't remember Obama using these exact words....weren't they from one of Hillary's commercials. Please correct me if I am wrong /
Re: Obama as next Pre4sident - quite frankly I think we are on the brink of a whole new world and it just may be one where all people are willing to work for the benefit of the whole! These are exciting times and Obama comes from a simple backround- no strings tied who worked hard, became a community organizer and showed the Mayor yeah, the Mayor of a town in Alaska exactly what community organizing is. That is why he won!
His Presidency may prove to be one of the greatest in history! I believe he has the potential to not only be great president but a great World Leader!
I don't know if you realize when Martin Luther King was shot Robert Kennedy arrived in Indianapolis with no prepared speech about King's assanination. He told the people and implored them not to riot....he shared his pain regarding the assasination of his brother. He talked about a united country versus a divided country. No one in America wants a divided country! Not now- not 40 years ago!
Across the nation there were riots in over 186 cities. Not a riot in Indianopolis! The people shocked and hurt rearding King's death went home and prayed.
Let's all pray or breathe or whaever it is you do for the common man and get behind Obama!
It will require some sacrifice and maybe some volunteering but let not the hope die so quickly.
Craig - I am surprised by your comments! you are smarter than this!
Peace
One man's change is another man's challenge. Seems like analysis paralysis. Hopefully, more will be a bit more optimistic and do something with their lives, rather than pretending that they will get somewhere without hard work and persistence.
Chicago and Crook County are both part of the most corrupt political system in the world.That title used to belong to Mexico City. No longer. It has belonged to Chicago and Crook County for some time now. Obama is a product of that system. It is where he learned the ropes, where he was mentored. That is good enough for me. The same old corrupt, politics that have corrupted,dominated and ruined this city are now going to be applied at a national level. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Joe Moore gets a spot in the new Presidents cabinet.
Palin in 2012
re big daddy's comment: according to McCain campaign insiders, Palin didn't even know that Africa was a continent..She seriously thought it was a country and she couldn't even name the countries of North America. Yeah, Palin in 2012, REAL SCARY and REAL DUMB!!
P.S.
"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America -- I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you -- we as a people will get there. We Are the United States of America"
President-Elect Barack H. Obama
November 4, 2008
As reported by FOX NEWS: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/05/palin-didnt-know-africa-i_n_141653.html
Since whene does being "Ready" for a job mean that it has to be completed in seconds? You can be ready and up to the challenge but that doesn't mean the job won't take time. YOu can be "ready" to climb Mt. Everest but that doesn't mean you'll reach the summit in an hour. Man, where was all of this "taking everything literally" eight years ago when we needed it?
How American, Big Daddy! The comparison to Mexico? True patriotism? I lived in D.F., among the other estados. Fortunately, in the U.S. justice system, such unsusbstantiated hearsay and speculation is often unreliable, jealous, and vindictive. GBA.
Yet, many think that McCain's vacation to Cat Cay, Bahamas courtesy of Chuck Keating and his pilched personal piggy bank, Lincoln Savings and Loan, could have gotten the ex-P.O.W. indicted. It gives me deja vu on the counts cited in former Gov. George Ryan criminal complaint. The challenge that if a politician is too close to someone, they should avoid conflicts of interest.
Ultimately, Obama acted more presidential and many came to his aid and spite of the Rezko and Wright rhetoric.
There is a lot felt and said about immaturity and knee jerk acts when each crops up in a political campaign. Some cannot live it down. McCouldn't!
That said, Daddy Man (and I say that with sincere affection, because I am a daddy too), as you know, in our system of justice, attorneys and legislators are 'not' found guilty merely because they must work with 'other politicians.' Politicians unknowingly associate with those who have issues. Those who have fallen into the deep end may associate with politicians as a security blanket to thwart investigation.
Obama may prove a one term wonder if unable to compromise. I am glad that a 'socially adept brainiac' was elected as President. I bestow that descriptions with the sincerest of intentions.
Regrettably, McCain was torn apart if not tarnished by the Lincoln Bank scandal. He got to close to Charles H. Keating Junior, still remains close, and few even remember the Keating Five. McCann was near indictment, and the $190 Million Dollars that investors lost was legendary and an unheeded warning. Keating and Company, like AIG and other business concerns fleeced their assets under the so-called "business judgment act". This corporate phrase of legal art allows corporate execs to become unrepentent spendthrifts or thieves depending upon your perspective.
My information comes from the Arizona Central; the entire McCain-Charles Keating article can be found at:
http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/mccain/articles/2007/03/01/20070301mccainbio-chapter7.html
Big Daddy, do you read me? Here 'tis. We need to appreciate the history of Arizona Politics vis a vis the G.O.P.
"McCain concedes that he failed to sense that Gray and the thrift examiners 'felt threatened' by the senators' meddling."
Black said McCain probably went because Keating was close to being the political godfather of Arizona and McCain still had plenty of ambition.
"Keating was incredibly powerful," Black said. "And incredibly useful."
McCain's reservations aside, Keating accomplished his goal. He had bought some time, though the price was very high.
Short-lived reprieve
A month later, the San Francisco regulators finished a yearlong audit and recommended that Lincoln be seized. But the report was virtually ignored because of politics on the bank board.
'Gray was being replaced' as chairman by Danny Wall, who was more sympathetic to Keating.
The audit, which described Lincoln as a thrift reeling out of control, sat on a shelf.
In September 1987, the investigation was taken away from the San Francisco office, away from Black and Patriarca. In May 1988, it was transferred to Washington, where Lincoln would get a new audit.
It was a win for Keating. A battle, not the war.
Back in San Francisco, Black was fuming.
"Clearly, we were shot in the back," he would say later.
Despite the reprieve, Keating's businesses continued to spiral downward, taking the five senators with him. Together, the five had accepted more than $300,000 in contributions from Keating, and their critics added a new term to the American lexicon: "The Keating Five."
The Keating Five became synonymous for the kind of political influence that money can buy. As the S&L failure deepened, the sheer magnitude of the losses hit the press. Billions of dollars had been squandered. The five senators were linked as the gang who shilled for an S&L bandit.
S&L "trading cards" came out. The Keating Five card showed Charles Keating holding up his hand, with a senator's head adorning each finger. McCain was on Keating's pinkie.
As the investigation dragged through 1988, McCain dodged the hardest blows. Most landed on DeConcini, who had arranged the meetings and had other close ties to Keating, including $50 million in loans from Keating to DeConcini's aides.
But McCain made a critical error.
He had adopted the blanket defense that Keating was a constituent and that he had every right to ask his senators for help. In attending the meetings, McCain said, he simply wanted to make sure that Keating was treated like any other constituent.
Keating was no ordinary constituent to McCain.
On Oct. 8, 1989, The Arizona Republic revealed that McCain's wife and her father had invested $359,100 in a Keating shopping center in April 1986, a year before McCain met with the regulators.
The paper also reported that the McCains, sometimes accompanied by their daughter and baby-sitter, had made at least nine trips at Keating's expense, sometimes 'aboard the American Continental jet.' Three of the trips were made during vacations to Keating's opulent Bahamas retreat at Cat Cay.
McCain also did not pay Keating for some of the trips until years after they were taken, after he learned that Keating was in trouble over Lincoln. Total cost: $13,433.
When the story broke, McCain did nothing to help himself.
"You're a liar," McCain said when a Republic reporter asked him about the business relationship between his wife and Keating.
"That's the spouse's involvement, you idiot," McCain said later in the same conversation. "You do understand English, don't you?"
He also belittled reporters when they asked about his wife's ties to Keating.
"It's up to you to find that out, kids."
The paper ran the story.
In his 2002 book, McCain confesses to "ridiculously immature behavior" during that particular interview and adds that The Republic reporters' "persistence in questioning me about the matter provoked me to rage."
"I don't know how (The Republic journalists) would have reported the story had I been more civil and understanding or just more of a professional during the interview," McCain wrote."
Who cares about McCain anymore? He's a hasbeen and a disappointment. Besides, he wasn't even a real Republican but a RINO instead. But having said that, he was a much better choice than Obama. IMHO. But in any event, we will be doing all we can to elect sarah in 2012.
northcoast - I also follow politics very closely and I could disagree with your points all day long. At this point I am moving on - I am going to hope for the very best with a new President - I hope I don't get taxed to death and my business can grow.
Northcoast - I could disagree with each point you made and then make my own. HOwever, I am going to hope for the very best with a new President and then hope I don't get taxed out of my business.
mcl - you're just a little Obama cheerleader - aren't you? LOL
razidazirr
Yes I am and proud of it! Save your LOL for the sorry excuse of a campaign run by your losers: McPalin & Company. Doesn't know Africa is a continent not a country and can't name the countries in North America, now that's worth a real LOL!!
mcl - the campaign is now over and there was plenty of idiocy and goofball comments on both sides. I am certainly not going to have a back and forth with you on it now. As I said - I hope for the very best moving forward. LOL
Razldazlrr,
If the truth be told, the "idiocy and goofball comments" as well as the fear mongering and bigotry all came from the McPalin campaign and their right-wing supporters. That's why they LOST, make no mistake about it. Let's tell it like it is/was.
"Yes we can!"
I remember a Sun Times headline declaring something to the effect(keeping in mind bombastic 'journal-ese')that this was the best economic period
(winter 1998) the nation was experiencing in generations.
I mentioned that to someone at the time and that individual credited the Reagan-Bush administrations as visionary strategy & economic planning that created the foundation for this great prosperity.
When informed I realized the individual was applying "this for that" logic- whether that individual genuinely believed it or was disseminating possibly erroneous information due to fervently held political beliefs I cannot confirm-yet I wonder how accurate 'this for that' logic or cyclical cause and effect actually is?
I also wonder if by blindly adhering to that logic -withstanding (or blatantly ignoring) documented (inter)national economic policies in the first decade of this century-the Clinton administration should be blamed for the dire economic situation that this country is experiencing?
Another precedent that I'm curious about is the last time someone was elected to the nation's first office from Illinois the country was torn asunder. I'm not prone to superstition about a lot of things yet some might have decided long ago that electing Illinoisians might be taboo for this country.
HOW ON EARTH could anyone assert that the mortgage mess "is right in the laps of Frank and Dodd?"
That is one of the most stupid and ignorant takes on the mortgage debacle I've heard to date
Frank and Dodd only proposed a mortgage bailout- foolish and wrongheaded to be sure- but the unraveling of the tower of bad mortgages and tens of layers of structured debt based on them was well underway when they proposed their admittedly idiotic solution to this problem that is too big to solve by any government action.
The lapsed lending standards and complete disregard for risk that enabled the bubble to form was promoted by government policy going clear back to the thirties, but that received additional impetus from the Bush administration, which was trying to goose the economy by means of asset inflation- referred to as "wealth creation"- and debt creation. The Fed, led by Greedscam, goosed it along, and by 2004, everyone knew we had a titanic disaster setting up. Former Fed chairman Paul Volker, at that time, warned that a credit crisis was eminent and that the risk entailed was greater than anything he'd seen in his career.
This country has been dependent on debt creation for economic stimulus since the last great depression, but never before Bush's tenure was debt allowed to mushroom to the proportions, goosed by that administrations stated policies and by implied guarantees of bailouts when things turned sour, that it reached in the last 8 years.
Post a Comment