5 things…

Notice: Comments that are not conducive to an interesting and thoughtful conversation may be removed at the editor’s discretion.

1. Valerie Catrow on September 26, 2008 11:29 AM said:

   FYI, CNN is reporting the the debate will be happening tonight. So maybe go pick up some funnel cake and eat it while watching the debate?
2. SnowPanda on September 26, 2008 1:08 PM said:

   AP – Republican John McCain agreed to attend the first presidential debate Friday night even though Congress doesn’t have a bailout deal, reversing an earlier decision to delay the event until Washington had taken action to address the crisis.

   It’s ON! Booyachaka!
3. bopst on September 26, 2008 3:35 PM said:

   I can not help but to feel that people supporting the McCain Pail ticket are idiots of epic proportions. McCain’s hands off, let them eat cake economic policies are directly responsible for the financial mess we are facing today. The scatological implications of trickle down economics is aberrant public policy and the mere implication that we all should be happy to accept the precious crumbs from master’s plate is offensive in the extreme. The Republican Party doesn’t want to have this debate because, as recent events have made obvious, their hands off approach has caused the mess we find ourselves in today. They are the party most committed to preserving the unfair wage superiority of the elite. With all this financial turmoil, things like gay marriage, flag pins and abortion don’t seem so important now do they. Oh, on top of this hole we are in, no one is talking about the continual cost of the Iraq War? We are in debt up to out eyeballs thanks to waging not one, but two wars on a credit card that we, the American people, are going to have to pay. How anyone can believe that McCain is a change from the past or that Palin is qualified to lead a country is beyond me.
4. Tim on September 27, 2008 11:07 AM said:

   I notice something of a trend with Mr. Bopst’s political commentary. He opens with a broad insult, throws in some vague demagoguery and then finishes with the repeated endorsement of the same candidate. He would fit in quite well with Paul Begala, Bill O’Reilly and the rest of the crowd whose job it is to repeat in obnoxious fashion the tired mantras of their respective political parties without burdening themselves with anything so trivial as insight or factual content.

   Let’s address this point by point. Firstly, McCain advocated reform in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac back in 2005 well before Obama. This came in the form of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act which identified Fannie Mae profits as illusory and predicted a meltdown. The Act never made it out of committee. Next, it is all well and good to call for regulation once things go sour but let us have details. Once the government expands, it rarely contracts – thus we must be very careful in imposing regulation that does not stymie growth. We can begin with transparency. If consumers and traders are more aware of the complete nature of the financial instruments they are purchasing, they are less likely to have to take on bad debt along with good. Perhaps Mr. Bopst would deign to stoop so low as to offer some of his own details regarding proposed solutions?

   Next, perhaps Mr. Bopst will enlighten us as to the scatological implications of McCain’s, or anyone else’s, economic policy. I suspect that Mr. Bopst’s word choice is as astute as the political substance of his commentary.

   As for continuing to maintain the elite, Mr. Bopst fails to grasp that our country’s economic policy can’t be reduced to “impoverished, virtuous widow v. gilded, wealth-addled plutocrat.” Higher taxes for corporations (even those sick, bloated, lucre-glutted oil companies) result in higher prices for us consumers. Even the internal logic of Mr. Bopst’s worldview should make this obvious. If a greedy rich man is forced to pay higher taxes, is he likely to do so out of his own profits or is he likely to pass that on to the buyers of the product that he makes? Similarly, jobs will be cut in order to maintain the same level of profitability.

   I am not suggesting that the entire country should be run purely on the basis of free market economics. I do, however, realize that these are principles that we must keep in mind when determining economic policy. The clear lesson here is that neither side has a perfect solution. This is precisely why nobody is an idiot for voting either way. These are imperfect attempts at solving a difficult problem and there are good reasons for believing each side. Mr. Obama is no more likely to bring sweeping change to government than Mr. McCain, despite his formidable rhetoric. This can be evinced by the distinct lack of change wrought in the institutions he previously served on as well as the all too predictable tone of the current political campaign despite promises of a high-minded and morally courageous shift in the way campaigns are run. I will be the first to admit that Mr. McCain is equally culpable in this regard.

   Lastly, regarding the war, I agree that it was a mistake, that it has been mismanaged and that it is heinously expensive. The issue now, however, is what we ought to do now that we are there. Here, again, reasonable people can differ as to the correct approach for the US and for the people of Iraq. None of that complexity, however, is evident in Mr. Bopst’s analysis.

   In short, things are not as simple as Mr. Bopst would have them be. You are not stupid for choosing either candidate. If you truly want change then don’t respond to each other with the same simplistic sloganeering that politicians foist on us. We are intelligent enough to realize there is complexity here, and both sides have something to offer with regard to a solution. If we all choose Mr. Bopst’s approach of picking a corner and then bellowing at the opposition, we will be deserving of the reductionist and intellectually insulting rhetoric that we receive from the candidates and most of the media. Can we put aside our prejudices and passions enough to actually engage each other? Say it with me now, “Yes, we can!”

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