Hard News: Yes, there is a Media3
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I sometimes think about the vagaries of popularity when I walk past homeless people on the street.
The connections in peoples minds eh! Homelessness is a lot more complicated than not being popular. And every story (if you bothered to find them out) will be definitely individual with some common elements perhaps. As for life's apparent 'unfairness' as you put it, the reasons go even deeper. I dont relish seeing the theatre of the upcoming US election. All the pomp seem's tinged with a sadness I dont know how to describe. It's probably just me
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WH,
And every story (if you bothered to find them out) will be definitely individual with some common elements perhaps. As for life’s apparent ‘unfairness’ as you put it, the reasons go even deeper.
No doubt. I can't talk about homelessness with any knowledge, but I'm sure we each know people whose lives were scarred by some kind of social exclusion. Some of the smartest people I know went into high school testing in the genius range, and somehow never really made it out. Sometimes all too literally.
All the pomp seem’s tinged with a sadness I dont know how to describe. It’s probably just me
It does seem more subdued this year. I thought Obama was wrong to raise the expectations of his presidency in the way that he did. He had a filibuster proof majority for less than two years, and it won't be easier in a second term.
Don't forget the hanging chads episode. Or the 45%+ of Americans too disillusioned and cynical to vote.
not sure that's such a good example, alll things considered
Those be dark days. Someone should dig up Al Gore's lockbox and use it to pay off the deficit.
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Rob Stowell, in reply to
He had a filibuster proof majority for less than two years
Democrats had majorities in Congress and Senate, yes. But I don't think ever filibuster proof (=60+ senate seats.) I'm not even sure that's possible in the US now, the way politics plays out over the 50 states.
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Sacha, in reply to
He had a filibuster proof majority for less than two years
and boy did they waste it
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Craig Ranapia, in reply to
Or the 45%+ of Americans too disillusioned and cynical to vote.
Sorry for riding a hobby horse again, but before we Middle Earthicans get too smug it might be worth asking how many of us would go stand in line after work on a Tuesday in winter to vote. Hell, 52.5% of electors couldn't be arsed putting a postal ballot in the mail at the last round of local body elections - but I bet every one of them will bitch their arses off when the rates go up or the storm drain outside their house backs up every damn time there's reasonably heavy rain. .
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David Hood, in reply to
He had a filibuster proof majority for less than two years
Thats one way of putting it. Times when the Democrats, if they had cooperated, would have been filibuster proof majority in the Senate:
July 7, 2009 to August 25, 2009 (Most of this time was the summer recess)
September 25, 2009 to Feb 4, 2010 (includes Christmas break)
and one other day in 2009 due to complicated and unexpected reasons. -
how many of us would go stand in line after work on a Tuesday in winter to vote.
Greatest democracy on earth my butt. Could be vastly improved with liberal application of twink and biro to a couple of lines in the constitution.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
Sorry for riding a hobby horse again, but before we Middle Earthicans get too smug it might be worth asking how many of us would go stand in line after work on a Tuesday in winter to vote.
Some of them have the further hurdle of voter ID laws whose sole purpose is to suppress their vote.
And even after reading this, I'm still completely perplexed as to why the State of Ohio is so determined to prevent early voting. WTF don't these people understand about voting being a good thing?
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WH, in reply to
Thats one way of putting it. Times when the Democrats, if they had cooperated, would have been filibuster proof majority in the Senate
Thanks for that, I was going to look up those dates but had to run out the door.
At the time it seemed that Obama mismanaged the negotiations for the health care bill, but it was probably harder that it looked. He seemed to misread the intensity of the Republicans’ opposition. Maybe he felt obliged to follow through on his bipartisanship rhetoric. That would be a credit to him had it not messed up the implementation of the rest of the Democratic agenda.
I’ve kind of come full circle on Obama, but am not sure what scope there will be for major achievements in the next four years.
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I’d forgotten there was even this short, ahm 14-week, ‘filibuster-proof’ majority, after Ted Kennedy died and before Scott Brown was elected.
But it was something less than iron-clad. Independent Bernie Sanders was a reliable vote. Independent (former Dem) Joe Lieberman, not so much. And some democratic senators (ahem, Ben Nelson, Nebraska) were pretty impossible to keep in line. -
WH, in reply to
2008 was the first time the Democrats had got near the 60 vote threshold since Jimmy Carter, but it was probably a high water mark for the Democrats. They’re probably not going to get near that again soon. There was a lot of talk about using the budget reconciliation process and amending the Senate’s rules, but the original goal of sweeping the Republicans along with the tide proved to be a bit optimistic.
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