The American Spectator

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Barr Knuckled

5.14.08 @ 12:01AM

(Page 2 of 4)

FIRST AS TRAGEDY, THEN AS FARCE
Re: Jeffrey Lord's Jimmy Carter's Second Term:

Barack Obama's echo of Jimmy Carter would be funny if he weren't running against a "moderate" Republican who appears to be channeling Gerald Ford. John McCain's position on the economy is marked by a lack of understanding of the fundamentals of monetary and tax policies and their impact on the private sector. He is as far left as Obama on environmental activism, regulation of political speech and immigration reform. In fact, the only major difference between them is that McCain will continue to fight in Iraq, while Obama can't wait to cut and run so that he can begin a "constructive dialogue" with Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, Kim Jong Il, Osama Bin Laden and a host of others whose sole interest in the U.S. is our capitulation, conversion or destruction.

Santayana's dictum that he who forgets the past will be condemned to repeat it is nowhere more obvious than in our political institutions.
-- Mike Harris

Jeffrey Lord has nailed it on the head so squarely it's almost frightening. For the uninitiated, liberalism failed in the '60s and '70s. It was repudiated in 1980, ushering in a generation of robust economic growth, a stronger military, a confident and assertive foreign policy and the end of the Soviet Union, to name just some of the hallmark accomplishments.

Pity that a new generation of Americans are falling for the repackaged liberal mantra. If Obama is elected in November, those of us who know better will have to slog through yet another long night of liberal failure. Question is: will liberals fail enough to finally put an end to their dismal philosophy once and for all?
-- Jeffrey Schmidt
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

As always Mr. Lord is on the mark. I have been trying to make this point to any one who would listen for the past 6 months, of course not nearly as eloquently or effectively. Unfortunately, coming the day after being subjected to the McCain address on "man-made" global warming and his plans to abdicate adulthood and join up with the Chicken Little crowd I can only shake my head in wonderment and disgust. I've always had a soft spot for McCain, I am humbled by his service and character in war, but with each of his "me too" pronouncements I get more and more dispirited. I was a young, struggling family man during the Carter debacle paying 18% interest for my first house loan, waiting in line for gas, setting my thermostat at 65, counting down the days on "Nightline," etc. I remember it all very, very well and it's hard for me to believe that my children and theirs will be subjected to the same "malaise," doubly so because apparently we have no real choice to make.

Where do we go from here?
-- Stuart Reed
Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan

I work for an engineering company designing hospitals. One of our favorite mottos is that once in a while our clients need to go to our competition because they think they might be better. They always come back once they see what they are like. I don't know if the country can survive the damage, but in the long term Republicans and the country will probably be better off with an Obama win. The House and Senate will go Republican in 2010 and the next three presidencies will be conservative.
-- BW Peek
Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Mr. Lord's article is a great explanation of all that is wrong with Senator Obama. Unfortunately, he underestimates the problem. Among his myriad faults, I do not think we can fairly accuse President Carter of being an acolyte of Saul Alinsky. Jimmy may have been willing to sell us out to Leonid Brezhnef, but I don't recall any evidence that he wanted to be Leonid Brezhnef, oil windfall profits taxes and other bills of attainder notwithstanding. Senator's Obama purposeful vagueness suggests that he will be all too comfortable with playing the control freak once in the Oval Office. Rest assured that pointed inquiry about such tendencies will be rejected as "distractions from the important issues". A President Obama with a Democrat majority in Congress will result in serious damage to the Republic.

There is much to lament about the upcoming election. With both contenders for the Presidency having essentially equivalent positions on the environment, the prospects for individual liberty, economic freedom, and prosperity are not bright. The policies offered by either one will end up re-creating a command-and-control economy we've not seen in the U.S. in a long time. It may be more accurate to say that Senator Obama and Senator McCain are in a contest to see who gets to serve Woodrow Wilson's third term.
-- Bud Hammons

STUDENT'S LITTLE HELPER
Re: Clinton W. Taylor's Aztec Justice:

I too might favor drug decriminalization. But that is sustainable only in a society that understands the side of liberty that demands personal responsibility. Socialism does not encourage that.
-- James Wilson

"What happens when you have students talking about federal income tax policy, saying they're not going to pay their taxes? Are they going to bring in IRS agents?" whines a faculty member at San Diego State.

Well, erhm, yes sir, that would be what anyone who believed in OBEYING THE FEDERAL LAW would do. Like it or not, the IRS is, in fact, The Boss Of You (just TRY not paying your taxes and telling the whole world about it), and the sooner you guys learn that, the happier you will be.
-- Kate Shaw
Paying Taxes in Two Countries
Toronto

Mr. Taylor is right in article about SDSU President Stephen Weber and the feds. As a former Aztec from many years ago, it was a party school then but this stuff is way over the top. Students go to college to learn, not learn to deal drugs and cover it up. I feel embarrassed to be a former Aztec.
-- William Coulter

Letter to the Editor

topics:
Taxes, Foreign Policy, Health Care, John McCain, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Business, Environment, Global Warming, Law, Military, Iraq, Israel, NATO, Socialism, Immigration, Oil, Medicare