dagblog - Comments for "THUD!"

You don't like the truth?

oleeb — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 05:56:10 +0000

In reply to THUD!

You don't like the truth? Sorry.

I wasn't talking about the

stillidealistic — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 02:24:46 +0000

In reply to THUD!

I wasn't talking about the spill in that last paragraph, but rather the totality of Obama's presidency and what he might be able to accomplish.
You might want to re-read the comment...

In Obama I think we may have perhaps the best chance we've ever had to get this country working together. If he, with his skill set and personal story can't get us working together, I think we are doomed.

Hahaha! I'm pretty sure I've

stillidealistic — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 02:17:53 +0000

In reply to THUD!

Hahaha! I'm pretty sure I've said worse! But if that's the worst you've heard me say, don't go back and look at any of my past blogs...we'll just leave it at this being the worst! :-)

At his Press Conference,

no exit — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 01:09:16 +0000

In reply to THUD!

At his Press Conference, Obama blamed the Bush administration for what he called the "cozy relationship" between MMS and the oil industry, but was then asked by CBS' Chip Reid: "you knew as soon as you came in, and Secretary Salazar did, about this cozy relationship. But you continued to give permits -- some of them under questionable circumstances. Is it fair to blame the Bush administration? Don't you deserve some of that?" In reply, Obama acknowledged:

Well -- well, let -- let me just make the point that I made earlier, which is, Salazar came in and started cleaning house, but the culture had not fully changed in MMS. And absolutely, I take responsibility for that. There -- there wasn't sufficient urgency in terms of the pace of how those changes needed to take place.

Was hiring a BP executive one of the ways that Salazar was trying to end the "cozy relationship" between Interior and the oil industry? Was automatically issuing exemptions from NEPA's Environmental Impact Study requirement a way of doing so? Of course "there wasn't sufficient urgency" in cleaning up MMS. What happened here was obvious: Obama chose one of the most industry-pleasing, industry-subservient Democrats to head the Interior Department despite what everyone knew was the pervasive corruption at that Department and its serving as an industry rubber stamp for years. And Obama got exactly what was obvious he would get by making that choice.

Of course, back in late 2008, objections to Salazar from environmental groups were dismissed as the obsolete, left-wing purity obsessions of ideologues. We were in a Post-Partisan, Pragmatic Age where such concerns were no longer valid. In fact, note how the industry representatives invoked classic Obama jargon to heap praise on Salazar: "'Nothing in his record suggests he’s an ideologue,' said Luke Popovich, spokesman for the National Mining Association. . . . industry officials praised his moderation. . . . oil and mining interests praised Mr. Salazar’s performance as a state official and as a senator, saying that he was not doctrinaire about the use of public lands."

In Obama's Washington, "centrism" and "pragmatism" mean allegiance to the corporate interests that run the government, and anyone who objects to any of that is an "ideologue" or a purist or too "doctrinaire." And, of course, as is true for every issue -- from gay rights to judicial selections, from reproductive rights to economic policy -- there were a handful of D.C. environment groups (such as the Sierra Club) who masquerade as progressive organizations but whose overriding mission was to blindly validate whatever the Democratic Party and the White House do, and they defended the Salazar pick (numerous environmental groups are now calling for Salazar's resignation).

Most amazingly, even as BP continues to spew oil in unfathomable quantities into the Gulf, this all continues now: "The Obama administration waived environmental reviews for 26 new offshore drilling projects even as the BP oil disaster spewed hundreds of thousands of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico." And just this week: MMS "approved a new drilling permit for an offshore well in the Gulf of Mexico."

In this episode one thus finds virtually every harmful dynamic of the Obama era. Indeed, this story is found in virtually every realm. Ken Salazar and Sylvia Vaca are to the Interior Department what the countless Goldman, Sachs officials are to Treasury and other financial regulatory arms of the Obama administration. The administration has taken some commendable steps to at least create the appearance of limiting lobbying influence, but the corporate ownership of the Federal Government is as strong as ever. Ken Salazar, the BP exemptions, and the very dubious excuses being offered to justify them illustrate that as much as anything.

Ah, the small tent Democratic

AdAbsurdum — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 00:56:50 +0000

In reply to THUD!

Ah, the small tent Democratic Party, that's the ticket!

Oleeb wrote his usual blog

FDRdog — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 00:41:18 +0000

In reply to THUD!

Oleeb wrote his usual blog critical of the president.

Thud!

Gee, what's next? He'll

Dogtail — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 00:03:52 +0000

In reply to THUD!

Gee, what's next? He'll apologize to Os Bin Laden for "bothering" him and tell him "they will work it out" regarding 911?

Does this man have ANY alls at all?

The entire gdamned thing could have been prevented if people had just done their jobs and everyone was not screwing everyone else in bed.

Cripe. Pathetic. Jellyfish Obama. I'll give ya a dollar if you can find this guys backbone.

Show me ONE place where I

kgb999 — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 23:17:57 +0000

In reply to THUD!

Show me ONE place where I have asked Obama to make a speech. Never happened. You are tripping, girl. I'm not "you people". I'm "me". Get your facts correct, or blow it out your ass.

I've offered tons of specifics as to what I think would help - so has every other person criticizing the response. But. I. Am. Not. The. President. We're fucked because Mr. Obama is. And he's a turning out to be grade-A asshat.

Hopefully the statements about National Guard troops aren't bullshit, because that would be a good thing and I'd be happy to see a more visible presence. I'd still love more info on it from a human who actually bothers to inform themselves about reality - which completely does not seem to apply to yourself of late - because that was the first I'd heard of it.

of course, you're right. our

Deborah in Seattle — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 20:57:53 +0000

In reply to THUD!

of course, you're right. our government doesn't seem to take the side of the people much anymore.

I don't quite get the 'thud'

matyra — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 20:43:47 +0000

In reply to THUD!

I don't quite get the 'thud' onomatopoeia. Are you making some kind of drum-beat point?