Sometimes I wonder how gullible most Democrats really are and since we elected President Obama I've wondered that a whole helluva lot more than usual.  Time after time in recent years the Democrats manage, no matter what, to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, to come back with half a loaf of rotten bread when they had set out with plenty of money to get a whole loaf and each time they do most of the media, average citizens, typical active Democrats, and even bloggers are left scratching their heads as to how it could be that when the task seemed so clear, so obvious, and so winnable our President and members of Congress are so unable to keep any of the promises they make to the voters. 

How is it ya think that happens?

Well, as we all know there's practically endless speculation for all the tactical and political reasons that Democrats keep delivering these rotten outcomes when the mission is essentially a no brainer.  There's the "conservative Democrats" blocked it excuse, there's the incredibly patronizing and offensive "don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good" excuse, there's the equally offensive "the left is too idealistic" excuse, there's the "the {insert name} lobby is blocking the bill, there's the "the mean old, ominipotent Republicans will be really, really angry" excuse, there's the "we need Republican support or else it won't be bipartisan" excuse (even with overwhelming majorities in both houses of Congress), there's the "the President took that option off the table" (most famously but not exclusively any discussion of a national Single Payer health care program) and many more.  If none of the usual excuses are working there's always the relatively new but reliable lie about "you need 60 votes in the Senate to do anything" bullshit excuse.  All of this nonsense is accepted by the corporate media no matter what.  Most of this nonsense is accepted by the public to one degree or another, but none of it ever really makes sense does it?

Yeah, that's that head scratching, mysterious, nagging feeling millions of Democrats have about all this.  As a side note, Republicans don't have feelings of this kind because they don't care about anything but themselves and stopping anything Democrats might have in mind.

So why do millions upon millions of Democrats have this strange sense that something just doesn't add up about all this?  Well, one explanation is pretty simple and I believe qualifies as meeting the test of Occam's Razor and is the following: the Democrats are lying about supporting all these things.  That's right folks.  They are lying. But why would they do that?  Because they are corrupt politicians (most of them... yes folks it;s time we faced that reality together) and they lied about supporting these things just to get your support at election time.  And once elected they double cross the voters and use all these neato excuses to justify their dishonesty.

I have found over time that we Americans believe, for no apparent reason, that things that apply to other nations and political cultures for some reason do not apply to us.  We can have an openly corrupt situation right in front of us but refuse to see it for what it is.  Yet, when it happens overseas in a foreign country we take it as a given that things like naked power plays, corruption, wanton lawlessness and dishonesty among politicians happen and are to be expected.  A good example of this would be when the Republican appointees on the Supreme Court stole the Presidential election in 2000 and installed George W. Bush as President without the slightest Constitutional authority for having done so.  Anyone who points out how obviously corrupt and illegal that was is looked at askance in the media and in most "respectable" situations.  Instead of pointing out the obvious truth, everyone is expected to just keep their mouths shut and pretend what they just saw didn't happen and that everything is A-okay with what the crooks on the Supreme Court did by usurping the power of the states to conduct and be the arbiter of their own elections.  Another clear example is when the President, Vice President, the Attorney General, Joint Chiefs, and the Secretary of Defense have knowingly and deliberately sanctioned serious illegal activites, high crimes if you will, such as torture, illegal detention, illegal spying on the citizens of the United States, etc...  If this were done in any other country our press would report honestly about that corrupt and illegal regime and the people reading, watching or listening to the news would accept that the people leading that government were guilty of corruption and very serious crimes.  But not here in America where those things happen in broad daylight but our corporate media obfuscate the truth on behalf of the corrupt and criminal leaders of our government and many otherwise intelligent and skeptical citizens simply refuse to believe that "our" leaders, even leaders they despise like W or Cheney would really commit such crimes.

Now, back to the present and the situation with the tax cuts.  The Republicans recently won enough seats in the House in the midterm elections to become the majority in that chamber.  Democrats retain control of the Senate though their margin has gotten smaller.  We are told (and expected to swallow) that the only election that counts now is the midterm in which at least 30 million less people voted than did so in the 2008 elections which swept the Demcrats into power with massive majorities and therefore despite controlling only one house of Congress the Republicans virtually own Washington now and we can just forget about all that change business.  Instead, it's business as usual in the citadel of privelege and status quo imperial politics and that means more tax cuts and more dismantling of the New Deal despite the new depression and over 15 million unemployed workers whose families and lives are falling to pieces with each passing day and with another 3 million or more foreclosures expected in the coming year.

Only the die hard lunatic right wingers of the United States back the incredibly irresponsible and reckless Republican insistence on maintaining the Bush tax cuts for the rich.  The last poll I heard was about 27% of Americans back that idea.  The rest oppose the Republican idea and think taxes on the rich should rise.  So, despite majorities in both houses of Congress and an allegedly Democratic President and the overwhelming support of the American people, we are asked to believe that it's okay and acceptable for Obama and Reid to be "negotiating" yet another bad deal wherein (as usual) the Republicans get whatever they demand and the people are told to shut up and remember that it would be worse if the Republicans were in charge!  Oh really?  How so?

The storyline is that the President is oh so concerned with keeping his promise of not raising taxes on the middle class and instead preserving their tax cuts and thus in order to save the paltry (almost unnoticeable) amount being saved by the typical middle class family under the Bush tax cuts for the rich plan we are told they must capitulate on Republican demands for extending inexcusable tax cuts for billionaires and in the bargain exacerbating the deficit they claim is so important every time a dime might be spent to help an average American or, God forbid, a poor person or their family.

Now if this same scam were occuring in Argentina or Peru or Chile our media would report what was going on truthfully and our people would understand that the leaders of the Democratic Party are simply lying about this to their own constituency in order to service the people they really care about which is the wealthy and powerful or, put another way, themselves and their golf buddies.  But instead, the media obfuscates, the pundits explain how this absurd situation continues, and millions of Democrats scratch their heads and wonder how could this be happening?

Well folks, I ain't buyin it any longer.  The imminent capitulation of the Democrats from the President on down in DC is nothing more than the people being sold out once again by a pack of lying politicians who dare to claim they fight on behalf of the common people.  What a cruel and sickening fraud they are commiting upon us all and upon our people!  There is a clear strategy open to Democrats and it is one we all should loudly demand and that is: let all the tax cuts expire.  All that talk about how important it is politically for Obama to save the middle class tax cuts and thus provide the logic for the inexcusable extension of more boodle for the predatory class in this country is flat out offensive bullshit!

The average middle class family gets a few hundred dollars a year from the Bush tax cuts.  It isn't even enough worth extending for most people.  Democrats should demand that the only responsible course is to let them all expire.  "But," warn the cowardly wormtounged Democrats of DC, "the mean old ominipotent Republicans will say we raised taxes and we are afraid of them saying such mean things."  Well tough!  Time to grow a pair Democrats and do the right thing!  Tell those corrupt, stinking right wing pigs of the Republican Party to go to hell and take their Tea Party monkeys with them and ya know what would happen?  That's right.  What would happen is what always happens when you stand up to bullies: they quit bullying you.  Yep, those pathetic crooks in the Republican Party would lose and they would scream bloody murder for a while and they'd realize that the people of the country will no longer put up with their despicable rule or ruin policy (either we get to rule or we will ruin the country).

Folks, it's time to stop treating the DC Democrats like they are trustworthy or honest.  They've proven they aren't.  It is time to demand of them that they act responsibly or else.  Write, call, visit your Congressman and Senators offices and demand they refuse to vote for any bill that extends tax cuts for the rich even one day let alone two or more years!  And remember, our American system is no less susceptible to corruption and lies and lawlessness than any other.  Once you face this truth you'll no longer be scratching your head and wondering why things happen the way they do.  Our political, economic, and social leadership in this country is hopelessly and iredeemably corrupt and will only respond to citizens who forcefully demand they act in the people's interest.  Otherwise, it will just be more of the same.

No more faux negotiations.  No more lies about how we had to take bad deals and make them into law.  Just say NO!

 Addendum:

Take a moment to consider the following... 

The big "compromise" was announced today by President Chamberlain, uh, I mean Obama.

Our President proposes to dump buckets of money on the rich for the next several years but in order to distract them and get the middle class to "buy in" to this rotten proposal the typical family in America will get back approximately $1100.00 annually.  That's a little over $21.00 dollars a week.  Oh joy!  Rapture!  What a lifeline the President is throwing us!  Meanwhile the predator class gorges itself on money borrowed from China so they can then go and buy T-bills which all the little people will work until the day they die to pay back.  What a deal!  I sure am glad we elected a Democrat to the White House!