maxfield1

My own hope for Obama, and the reason I am voting for him, is that I do believe he is the most likely of the three candidates to identify the large white truck in the background as the problem.

I'm also sorry, once again, that I live in a country full of people too thick-headed to realize this would happen. I am not that smart but I lived through the 70s and 80s in Michigan and knew, as sure as I know my name, that gas prices would rise again, that we would rue our decision to "go large," in our automotive choices and that this time, our domestic automotive capacity wouldn't recover. Meanwhile, we've wasted exactly 27 years and 4 months so far with government predicated on oil as an infinite resource, which is insane.

I knew this even when Ari Fleischer was saying, "Overconsumption is the American way of life, and the American way of life is a blessed one." Yutz.

This was the conservative promise. It's time to let a liberal run things. But I don't believe a liberal can get elected in this country, so I'll take Obama and hope for the best. Because the moonbat right hasn't really come up with any solutions yet.

Mediahohoho

There is no "price fixing" with oil. The per-barrel price of the stuff is dictated by global market fluctuations. And I'll ask a rather obnoxious question: if the price is bad, why haven't we stopped consuming it? Or retail goods?

Obama didn't campaign on the basis of "decreasing our reliance on foreign oil" in PA. He did an ad where people were pumping gas into their vehicles and commenting that they would vote for Barack Obama because he "understands them" and will lower oil/gas prices. At no point was it mentioned that perhaps the large white truck behind one of the people in the commercial was to blame.

As for the strategic oil reserve, that's a potentially viable strategy for very short-term relief, but I question the value of such a decision. The amount of oil "strategically withheld" is minimal - the supply is barely enough for a few weeks of consumption. Pretty sure we won't have a Bold New Change in the world's energy economy and transportation methods by the time we blow through it. And besides - the purpose of the reserve is to serve in the event of a catastrophic supply disruption; there is plenty of oil. We're (the developed world broadly, American in particular) just using too much of it.

ADismalScience

There is a big difference between getting collective mouths off of the cock of the House of Saud, our truest enemies in the world since 1973, and never so much as now (except maybe Sept. 2001).

There are also measures that can and should be taken with the oil companies in terms of exploring whether or not they're engaged in price fixing that the present administration is never going to consider because, well, they are them.

The strategic oil reserve should be looked at as well, and to her credit, Hillary has suggested this.

But the gas tax thing is just pandering nonsense. And voters recognized it.

Mediahohoho

No way. Keep in mind he did that after campaigning aggressively in my state by promising to reduce gas prices. 2 of his 3 major PA commercials were about gas prices and vaguely promising to reduce them.

ADismalScience

Be careful: a lot of this was because people were trying to save their asses before 1994. That's more perception than reality. She met a widespread disinterest in the cost-side of the plan, and in an anti-tax era it was difficult to justify a huge federal entitlement.

ADismalScience

Mediahohoho

Remember, her health care fiasco happened with the Clintons had Dem majorities in both the House and Senate.

The One

Oh, hell no. McCain is pandering to the extreme right to rally the base. Just as Clinton attempted to pander to the extreme left regarding NAFTA, health care, outsourcing, etc.

I'm just saying that neither candidate is nearly as extreme as their pre-nomination platforms suggested. Which is a shame, because what Americans really want lives between those two processes.

ADismalScience

Mediahohoho

Dude's gonna need an ambassadorship to get outta the house.

nyphotog

Dude's gonna need an ambassadorship to get out of the house.

nyphotog

moff

I don't think the public knows or cares what they have with Obama. He's charismatic and incongruous in his policies to the extent that any belief in his candidacy's mission is equivalently justifiable. As long as you include spending truckloads of invisible money in your understanding.

ADismalScience

Mediahohoho

Also, "the Pinot Grigio wing" of the party, to me, describes the phony democrats of the DNC who have for years compromised the liberal principals that built the middle class of this country in exchange for the "deal with the devil" right-centrist politics of the Clinton-Emanuel wing of the party. Thank God their days are numbered. Real democrats drink whatever's handy.

Mediahohoho

moff

NinaHagen

That was their strength, of course. Hillary has real weaknesses with the left portion of the Democratic party. The centrist stuff the Clintons did - NAFTA, welfare reform, v-chip, budget hawking - offends the Bob Reich Left of the Democratic party. His whole Locked in the Cabinet whine was devoted to describing how the Clintons compromised Liberal ideals and lost the Pinot Grigio wing of the party.

I compare Clinton's failure to McCain's in 2001 against Bush. A centrist politician that would have had more success in the large morass between extremist portions of the country lost the nomination to the "True Believer." We all saw how well that went from an implementation perspective. If Barack wins the general by increasing the depth and committment to his liberal platform to out-extreme his next centrist opponent I have deep-rooted concern about what America will be in 2010.

ADismalScience

Mike_Jahn

Mediahohoho

Mediahohoho

WordSalad

rina

MrInBetween

FitnessMadeSimple

brendastarlet

Lodwicktologist

scroll_lock

TheHonJudgeSmails

NeverEnough

Buzz Killington

RyanB

But Hillary does tire me. Very hard.

mnemonic

TheHonJudgeSmails