March 3, 2012
OMG
Our hopes for peace were rising--no more fighting in Iraq, and Afghanistan is almost done--but before we can uncork the bottle of good stuff Obama races to AIPEC to assure the extreme right-wing Israelis that they can count on him if they decide to bomb Iran! Are you kidding me? This nation would risk blood and treasure because right-wing nuts like Benjamin Netanyahu want us to? How about calling on Israel to give up its nuclear stockpile as a way to get negotiations started? Think about it. Romney, Gingrich and Santorum have promised to bomb Iran if elected. Not to be outdone, Obama says, "I will bomb them before you can." Only Ron Paul says no to another war.
In what can best be described as bar talk, President Obama said, "I don't bluff." Really, Mr. President. "I don't bluff"? How about something like, "I don't participate in pre-emptive strikes against any country." How about saying that Israel damned well better not bomb Iran, and, if they do they are on their own.
I think we have all had just about enough of the GOP war on women. What is going on? Listen to the presidential candidates "explaining" why it violates the First Amendment to provide health care for women. Rush, the intellectual leader of the GOP, calls a strong young woman a "slut" and a "whore" because she wants contraceptives covered in health care. Who speakes up? None of the Republican candidates. Romney: "I would not have used that language"! Whoa Nelly!
Meanwhile, the federal judge who de-humanized women and African Americans with his awful email, has asked for a review of his conduct. Review my eye! This is crazy. Impeach him now! There is no time to waste.
Wisconsin Dems air first anti-Walker TV spot in the effort to defeat Walker and it is, to say the least, disappointing. At a time when Democrats could explain why they offer a much better alternative or go beyond the public union issue at the heart of the uprising, they had a Chicago firm produce a confusing comparison of Walker with Watergate.
Feingold was on Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, and other national programs, but did not have enough time to let the country know that in Wisconsin we plan to defeat the Koch brothers' money with a grassroots campaign. Russ did make it clear last night that he has no interest in running for governor.
The Tin Cup Brigade will lead the way.
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No Ed she wants us to pay for her contraceptives so they are free. No one has a right to any thing that obligates others. For instance you have a right to free speech like this blog. No one has a obligation to pay for you to have this blog to exercise that free speech. Ms. Fluke has not been denied access to any health care or contraceptives. She doesn't want to pay for it. She thinks you, me and everyone else should be obligated to pay for it. Why? The 2nd Amendment says i have a right to bare arms. When can i expect my check for a brand new Glock
-SW | Waukesha, WI | March 3, 2012
SW, not sure how you feel obligated to pay for a student's private health plan at Georgetown or which part of the transactional nature of paying for health insurance in order to receive coverage you don't understand.
As for the right to bare arms, you're going to want a holster - or at least a sweater.
-SMinor | Franklin, WI | March 3, 2012
Here's a suggestion: let's nuke Waukesha county instead if Iran.
It's too bad about Feingold's retreat. Fighting Bob would have gone down fighting as long as he had a breath in his body, because his loyalty was to the people more than anything. Mr. Feingold is made of different stuff, I guess.
So, the Wis. Democratic Party leadership remain as clueless as they've been for a decade or more . . . no wonder the neo-fascists found an opening and blasted through.
As for President Obama, he's quite correct when he says "I don't bluff." He doesn't "bluff." He just caves in. Capitulates. Appeases. Surrenders. Backs down. Sells out.
President Obama's never going to mention the uprising in Wisconsin or Ohio, though looking at his record, that isn't as surprising as ex-Senator Feingold's silence about it. You who have re-inspired the whole country won't even get a nod of appreciation from the President.
His pusillanimous leadership so demoralized his strongest supporters, and so disappointed the muddled middle of the electorate, that he forfeited control of Congress in his first mid-terms. Where's the spirit of Harry Truman when it's really needed?
Yet Mr. Obama seems to expect every voter who has been ignored and too often betrayed by his administration, to hustle out to the hustings and re-install him in office for another four years of kow-towing to Wall Street and the military-industrial-police power structure.
After all, the prospect of Romney or Santorum or a similar zombie making the next Supreme Court appointment ought to propel us into the arms of the "lesser evil" choice. But there is no reason to be enthusiastic . . . and no excuse for allowing one's self to be deluded any longer.
It may be that the uprising in Wisconsin isn't what "democracy looks like." Maybe it's what "the last gasp of democracy" looks like. But if the rank-and-file citizens persevere, in spite of every sell-out from the discredited Democratic leadership, you can be sure that millions of other Americans are rooting for you. And if you manage in spite of the colossal odds against you to throw Walker out, then you won't owe anything to Obama or any other poseurs and fakers from the sorry old, bought-and-sold Democratic Party.
-Oliver Steinberg | St. Paul, MN | March 3, 2012
Never realized the 2nd Amendment was really about fashion. As for me, I prefer a little sleeve.
-Pooroldlady | Mondovi, WI | March 3, 2012
SW:
Do you think health insurance should pay for a vasectomy? What irritates you and others is that contraceptives relates to sex and many feel sex is wrong. Women's health issues are perhaps more complex than men's. Contraceptives have other uses than simply affecting fertilization. The pill is a prescribed drug and should be covered by any insurance plan. If you are worried about costs to everyone else in the insurance pool, a prevented pregnancy costs us less than the same pool paying for neonatal care. What if that newborn is a preemie or needs to be in an ICU for 6 months. That costs us a heckuva lot more than preventative care.
By the way, have you actually read the second amendment? It is ambiguous at best and does not necessarily cover all the gun rights people enjoy today. Talk about legislating from the bench. Well, here we have a fine example.
I'd keep your "bare arms" covered at least until the weather warms a bit.
-Pietr Haikuu | Hurley, Wisc. | March 4, 2012
SW writes that "No one has a right to any thing that obligates others." Isn't this how insurance works? Everyone chips in to help others when the needs arise. Most folks are quite healthy and rarely reap any reward from a health insurance policy. There are those who are always sick and need the help.
I guess, SW, your argument just doesn't fly with more reasonable people. Just a guess, I bet you are one of those rare people who never takes a handout come tax time. I bet you pay sales tax with every online purchase, too.
There is something to be said about "free". I would worry more about "hypocrisy".
-Maria Caliente | Middleton, WI | March 4, 2012
SW is just plain wrong.
Ms. Fluke did not issue a statement that she was entitled to free contraceptives.
Ms. Fluke told about a friend of hers who had ovarian cysts which are often treated with drugs that are also used for contraception. I know, because both my wife and teenage daughter received the treatment for endometriosis and ovarian cysts.
What Ms. Fluke was saying is that if you ban contraceptives from an insurance plan, women are not covered for these drugs when used to treat serious conditions. And they are used extensively for a wide range of maladies.
I just cannot fathom any man saying his wife, his daughter, or his mother can get coverage of hundreds of medical treatments BUT NOT CONDITIONS TREATED BY HORMONE DRUGS. This is the definition of misogyny (in the dictionary the word misogyny appears with SW's picture next to it).
SW is completely misinformed. When you get your facts so wrong, SW, you really aren't entitled to an "opinion". You have a habit of doing this, I used to think you were just stupid, I'm now thinking you are malevolent.
-Tim | Barron WI | March 4, 2012
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