Yeah Pat if your out there. Could you please explain to me, just what this means the Dems getting the house back? I mean, I know it's a good thing. Was in the Clinton yrs. I just got interested in politics a lil too late... I know I've always tried to stand the moral high ground, without letting a bj get in the way.... but sincereley, what chips do we have now against, those Republican bastards... The greed mongors...?????

It must be good, if Rummy stepping down, immediately is a happenstance. I'm truely looking forward to the future... I'm somewhat optimistic, about the reversal of damage in Iraq.... ( not to have my head in the sand... The damage is done.... ) I save leave, and have a diplomatic relationship with them only...... not to be a cop out, but "Aye we made a misstake"...... Aren't you glad we're gone now, type of deal... Don't look back... Is this unrealistic thinking on my part..

Sincerely/ Rob

Well, here is my read,

Disengagement from Iraq is an ugly situation and this election relieves the Republicans of full responsibility of whatever happens.

The quasi “American Presence” in the Middle East free of most international scrutiny is what the Republicans and their base constituency want. They will acquiesce if pressured here and the Iraqi situation will become more international in flavor. The republican pundits and the ministers of the Christian God will preach against this and whether International or not it is still going to be ugly so by the end the ugliness will be diluted into both parties (or so the Republicans hope). IN the end, Jihad will still exist and an ugly incident will rekindle the hawkish mood and the I told you so’s will fly and the Republican pundits will sit smugly saying this is your alternative to Bush and if we had been allowed and stuff like that! Let’s face it, if the Democrats don’t develop a politically viable alternative to blundering force and flag / cross (star of David is firmly with the cross now) waiving and are pushed into a pissing match on patriotism and defending America to get elected as happened with Johnson and Vietnam it could get uglier still!

The Republicans exorcisized their morality demons of the past years and they are on the road to recovery for the next election (this election was lost anyway and they are l;ooking at the above argument).

Anyway you look at it, there is still plenty good money to be made on the Global scale no matter what party holds Congress!

On another front:

A social agenda is brewing, so we will have two years of battling health care cost proposals. The population is aging and everyone is watching their health care insurance and prescriptions skyrocket. It is ripe, it is a “traditional” democratic victory in the making, and the next two years are a preamble waiting for a Democratic Executive.

Rummy already was making other plans and as a favor to his friend GW he stuck around until the election was done.

That is my read, maybe someone has a different but I think the Republicans new a loss was coming and are looking to their tomorrow more than their yesterdays for they have no stake in preserving what they have done and they don’t feel there is a solution that will damage them in the long run and they are betting on the outcome of any uncontrolled “world” events to favor them politically no matter the outcome in Iraq.

Not that I am paranoid or schizophrenic or anything like that!
Maybe somebody who is more astute politically has a better read on all this?

well i'm no expert and i hope Pat answers.....i enjoyed your views, PS, as always...

...as for the House...the Dems really wanted it, perhaps even more than the Senate....as the House is more involved in committees and investigations, and although Nancy Pelosi, the likely- new- speaker -third in line- for Presidency- just in case....said "impeachment is off the table"... there is a civilian movement to at least take a look at what crimes have been committed particularly re: civil rights...and perhaps consider some reminding of the White House that they are not above the law.... depending on what investigations find...

i think that whatever the questioning into the past brings....the fact is that there is now more accountability on the White House to answer to the Reps... and eventually all of Congress...one of the important checks and balances that the Constitution mandates to keep any branch from doin' anything they please.....which some of us feel has been goin on alot recently...

and as PS said, there's a domestic agenda that needs attention....Pelosi has promised, in her first 100 hours, to get the minimum wage up over $7.00....it hasn't been raised in i think, 12 years!!! or something awful like that... there's alot of interest in straightening out the Medicare prescription program, etc.....

...and then everyone's got to figure out how to get out of Iraq without leaving them as bad off as they are today....that's a challenge but there are some ideas like a new kind of government, based on a tribal council which would fit the tribal aspects of Iraq...


...i did alot of national calling this election and was really horrified by the amount of hostility and divisiveness in our country....across the country....
imo this is due to the violence in 2 war fronts and the atmosphere of fear
and pitting citizen against citizen against immigrant against....etc.... tactics of fear and hate that have been used to convince folks that what the government is doing is right and okay... one kind of leadership...i don't care what party it comes from... the leads to nothing but more hate and fear... and is unnecessary...

...so my wish is that the new Congress will work in a healing way....that we may disagree with others....but not hate them for what they believe....

TX PSBeaty and kj, for shedding some light, on what's going on in the political world... You've both made more sence than what I'm trying to understand on T.V. ( no I'm not watching Fox network) LOL

I think instead of trying to understand it all, I'm just gonna fade out. I'm always up for a good cause, and will celebrate when our troops come home. I think I'll turn off the T.V. and forget about this war for a long while...

No more orchestrated song and dance ( Todd Rundgren )

Feed the suirrels, or something more constructive....

Peace out/Rb

In a nutshell, it comes down to smart states and red states.

Look, McCain's coming McCain's coming, I can't believe it took him so long. He is made for the Independent vote! Groomed for it for years!

sorry, i am just politically cynical. to me, polticians are contestants in a con game and labels are just flavors of the month. Maybe I should just feed some squirrels!

Hey buddy would you like to buy a watch real cheap
here on the street!

squirrels are natural comedians...
but i don't think they wear watches.

"hello fat ass!" "right back atcha!"

How about going to some peace vigils? Like Yogi said, "It ain't over 'til it's over!" And it ain't over!

I saw Biden and Levin on the Stephanopoulis show today and they talked of creating a confederation of states in Bahgdad instead of a strong central government. of course this would be lead by an International effort including Syria and Turkey and Iran. Meanwhile Cokie Roberts discussed how the Republicans excorsized some of their demons but how they sacrificed more seats than necessary by Rummy delayed parting of course they questioned whether this was a blessing or a curse as now the Dem's shoulder more responsibility.


I wonder if this confederation will be founded on redefined borders?

I wonder if anything will alleviate the secular hatred that is and has been the hallmark of Iraq?

I wonder if any troup withdrawals will occur before the next election?

I wonder why these people don't want to live in peace?

But then again, I wonder why kj is surprised by the hostility and divisiveness in this country?

We who live in Red States need two things. 1. A hug from KJ at least once a year (I missed that this year.) 2. For KJ to live in Boston and not completely know about the divisiveness and evil and hatred out here. I will settle for 2. It keeps me going.

works for me!

oh,Ceashel, I missed your hug, too....you have one of those big 'ol Texas hugs that embraces the whole world together... too bad it isn't universally taught in Texas...or Kinky would be governor....


oh, and PS, Ceashel is right again....i'm not surprised that there is divisiveness and hostility in this country....only how deep it goes.... first....it's so different in the Northeast...i was talking with a woman in VA when i was calling for Jim Webb....she told me her only problem with him was that he was lukewarm on stem cell research.....up here, the conservatives support stem cell research...not one campaign word about it.... compared to where alot of where y'all are....Mitt Romney was too conservative for the ultra-conservatives (couldn't have gotten re-elected to deliver the mail)....

so it's geographical ignorance (we do have hostility here, too...witness the Boston drivers)....but also I telephoned in the last Presidential election and it was very different...people were much more available to listen and discuss ...just a whole different experience...so i do believe that fear and loathing
have heaped more negativity on this country... and we have to ask our politicians to move on their agendas and say no to using hatred to win.....okay not realistic, but otherwise what's gonna change?....

as for Iraq, i read Joe Biden's developing plan (sign so many petitions i get emails from alot of Congress now)....and thought it had some merit....beyond the question of how it was any of our business anyway to get involved in Iraq (among several other places, remember the Contras??)....where does this crazy idea that a democratic form of government is good for everyone no matter their culture come from?....sure civil rights, citizen empowerment and freedom are....but is there only one way to do that?....Iraq has always been a tribal nation....meeting them where they're at seems like a start....

however, in the last week, listening to many who have been studying solutions for settling the situation, it is discouraging....so much damage has been done....my wish is that our government attempt some kind of diplomatic resolution....otherwise i'm concerned about a repeat of Viet Nam...just pulling out one day....what a nightmare week that was...some of you must remember it...

well KJ, I live in the red part of a blue state and of course being from the south, well i guess it is different up there in Mass. Maybe that will give more insight on why I carry on so about things that are so divisive like that coral ridge kennedy person, who to me, preaches a pulpit hatred and inventive patriotic mythology that would have the US in an Iraq type secular strife if he had his way. I am afraid there are many in the US who would pull guns and open a civil disagreement with violent acts given the chance. Much of the family value rhetoric (which of course sounds good, I mean what American is opposed to a strong family) is thinly veiled disapproval and hate mongering for those who think of a family as anything but a working man and a woman with babes at her feet preparing to raise them as if the date were 1806 instead of 2006 with a good dose of intolerance in the home schooling as a new generation dawns.

I am serious! Every stem cell is sacred and you better believe they are ready to kill to prove it!

I am also serious when I say the Republicans stepped back and let the Dems when a few extra. It is sad to think that there is no real solution in Iraq but stepping back because if the solution is contrived it will never work. A confederation of states seems to me a good idea but one would have to redeine boundaries to make that work and you can see how well that works in Palestine. Removing our dependence on oil and taking out our vested interest in the region would help but of course that would piss off the Arabs. I mean we tacitly promised years ago to not look at viable renewable and clean alternatives. Iran and Syria want to split the damn country in two, each wanting to kill the Kurds and take the oil while the Saudi's just want it to go away and the Turks wish they had a valid claim to the oil. IN all cases there are rebels in the hills looking for oppurtunity and making alignments of convenience. The human is a simple creature.

I did see a McCain for president sticker already.

I thought it was interesting that the first thing to disappear as the race turns to the middle is gun control. It is expected that the Republicans in the south will give up stem cells I guess but that well get some fire brimstone cooking!

KJ, I hope and trust that you didn't think I meant to imply naivete (imagine the accent; it's not available here) on your part; only that you're an important part of the Blunderiteness that keeps us (sort of) sane. Speaking of which, we got the Folkslinger's e-mail today. Way cool, as they say!