Sunday Roundup

This week, rioters took to the streets of Athens, Greece -- enraged by their government's economic austerity measures. In Canada, rioters took to the streets of Vancouver -- enraged by... the loss of a hockey game. Stateside, Anthony Weiner finally stepped down, joining the ranks of the unemployed -- a category multimillionaire Mitt Romney also claimed membership in, telling a group of unemployed Floridians who had just described their struggles finding a job, "I'm also unemployed." It was a moment the New York Times labeled "awkward" -- probably not a word you want associated with your presidential run (who can forget President Dukakis, President Gore, President Dole and President Kerry?). Of course, voters will forgive the occasional awkward moment -- but moments that are awkward and disconnected from reality? Not so much. Happy Father's Day to all our HuffPost Dads!

 

 

 

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Comments

[Paolo Cozzi]

11:09 PM on 06/19/2011

I don't get the big deal about Romney's comment. I don't even particularly like the guy, but he was making a joke! And technically he IS unemployed. He never said he was poor. How about we stick to the fact that he's got the wrong ideas on the economy, or that he flip-flopped on a woman's right to choose,or any number of policy positions we disagree on, and not make a mountain out of a joke molehill.

[dogwatch]

09:08 PM on 06/19/2011

Somewhere back there we lost the connection between money on hand and the spending of money, personally and governmentally. That gap seems to cause a lot of trouble, personally and governmentally. As they say in show business. It's a riot.

[donniemichaelriggs]

07:19 PM on 06/19/2011

The only time America took to the street in a mass protest for change in Government is during the viatnam war,only because their was a draft. Now retired baby boomers only vote for the person who they think won't raise taxes. Most retired baby boomers have health care, so they are not worried about their kids future. America has come to a low point of ( I care about me and me only.) The catch is the Person they vote in office has the same view point.(cares only about personal weath).

[Inlikeflint64]

08:55 PM on 06/19/2011

They're named the "ME" generation for a reason!

[pat41]

09:15 PM on 06/19/2011

you are describing every generation and all humans. the universe revolves around each and every one of us in our own eyes.

[flossophy]

11:03 PM on 06/19/2011

I blame the entitlement society. Guess which party promotes it.

[JDINTX]

06:19 PM on 06/19/2011

Leaving out the President's ATM gaffe renders this roundup incomplete.

[Brent Hall]

05:53 PM on 06/19/2011

I am a so so Romney supporter but he really screwed up this week with his comment about "being unemployed". It does show insensativity to the plight and difficulty of many for someone with his wealth to have himself categorize himself with them. However I was surprised at those who were with him, when he made that comment. laughed. Might have been a courtesy laugh. Regardless major blunder that we will here repeated by the media for weeks and months. He will regret it.

[Fremon]

06:49 PM on 06/19/2011

How about the plight of those companies which Baine under Romney took over and were slimmed down for profitability and jobs moved overseas. Yes, we need another MBA busniness person to restore jobs to America as did Bush 2. Oh when , will we ever learn? When Bush entered office the unemployment rate was 4+% and when he gave the Clinton surplus basically to the wealthiest he led us into 10% unemployment. So much for tax cuts create jobs.

[hummering]

11:46 PM on 06/19/2011

Well, the media can have fun with Romney and some will even have fun with the President's ATM gaffe....I mean, we must have perfection because we are all so perfect, aren't we!

[KathleenQYD]

04:07 PM on 06/19/2011

I would like to clarify something for the Huffington Post readership since the media seems bent on depicting the Vancouver riots to be connected to the loss of a hockey game. I live in and love Vancouver and I can assure you, the riots that occurred here last week had nothing to do with the loss of a hockey game. Win or lose, the riots were a pre-planned occurrence. It is unfortunate that the individuals who instigated and those who took up this sad mob mentality did what they did. That said, rest assured these folks are up to this kind of behavior on a day to day basis on a smaller scale...unnoticed and probably unpunished or at least not, significantly punished. So, when people speak of and write about the riots, I invite you to get it right --- the majority of the crowd was there to cheer on a hockey team. The gutless minority found a crowd in which they could hide and take their sickening action hoping to be unnoticed as they are day to day. Thank goodness for Vancouver's citizens and technology that may begin the road to eliminating this kind of crap in our wonderful home.

[mintycat]

02:50 PM on 06/19/2011

As a Canadian, I have seen that there has really been no comment or reason for the surprising hostility over a hockey game. Few outside or inside the country would guess why Canadians normally so un-hooliganism prone would have gone so nuts over a mere hockey game. To me an expat it is shocking that such violence would erupt. My guess it was not over a game but over a very strong reaction to the US. Having the Boston Bruins win was akin to letting the US and everything it stands for right now win and Canucks normally so easy going were not going to stand for that. The policies enacted by the country do not go unnoticed elsewhere in the world. Canadians with their unique position next to the US normally act like a beneficent older cousin; to go along to get along. This is why this is so shocking at least to me. I have not seen any commentary on this unusual eruption of rage beyond that it was just a hockey game. No matter that most players in the game are mostly canuck it was the principle of the thing. Having been dragged thru the muck on Afghanistan, Iraq, the war on terror, Obama, the financial morass at least Canucks are saying no more.

[thanadar]

02:07 PM on 06/19/2011

Arianna, when it comes to your posts, I'm usually an avowed opponent. But, you are absolutely right on target with this message. Happy Fathers Day, back atcha!

[LewisWalsh]

11:48 AM on 06/19/2011

A response to chance1946 below:

The public has been led to believe that the purpose of the military budget is to equip a military for the defense of the homeland. The fact is that a good part it goes for such things as golf courses, hunting lodges, luxurious officer quarters on naval vessels and elsewhere. The better part of the the Billions of Dollars this year will be redistribu­ted upward in the form of profits to military contractor­s. War and fear of war has always been profitable for some. President Eisenhower understood this when he warned the nation of the “Military Industrial Complex."

The US now officially spends $700 billion a year on military; if all areas of associated expenditur­es could be counted, one trillion dollars would be the sum. The next highest spending country is China that spends about $200 billion. The US accounts for half of the world's military expenditur­­es while it has only 3% of the world's population­. I commend David Stockman for his honesty in seriously pointing out the necessity for military expenditure cuts. I have seen no one else with the gumption to emphasize this necessity.

[chance1946]

03:31 PM on 06/19/2011

lewiswalsh, No argument from me, your comments are right on. I would like to see Stockman help the president,as, we are in this ship tougher. Tks for your response.

[JDINTX]

06:31 PM on 06/19/2011

The cost of healthcare now amounts to 10% of the defense budget and is growing faster than the rate in the private sector. The Defense budget, as a percent of GDP, has not been this low in decades. The Chinese defense budget has risen at an average of 12.9% since 1989. Focusing on defense reductions is a misdirection from the rapid rise of social programs as a percent of the overall budget.The fact remains these programs will need major overhauls to keep from insolvency.

[LewisWalsh]

07:19 PM on 06/19/2011

Why don't you stop calling it defense, boondoggle would be a more appropriate term. I'll just let those who have read our comments judge which one of us understands the issue and which one has taken leave of sanity.

[Indigo1941]

11:39 AM on 06/19/2011

You're right, Romney is clearly disconnected.

[JEP]

11:14 AM on 06/19/2011

Maybe Romney should hire himself...

[Minolta321]

11:00 AM on 06/19/2011

I should think the left would find the riots in Greece awkward. We see now the end of the European socialism which the left has been struggling for in America and it's not a place any rational person wants to go.

[bluecatb]

11:29 AM on 06/19/2011

No, what WE saw, was the end to European Globalism and Global Greed at the expense of the people. Did they really think WE the people would bail them out, give them tax cuts by Republicans running on jobs and the same ole tax cuts create jobs lie. You haven't heard a peep of a solution in two years and long before that whenever Americans who lost their jobs overseas ask: "Where's the Republican JOBS Plan? All they have is Obama is a one termer, Obama/Romneycare refusal, Marxist, Socialist, Wall Streeter drivel and OBSTRUCTION IN THE PEOPLE'S HOUSES.
Holding the progress of the country for jobs and economic recovery, from the pit of doom their party dropped Dems in. Not saying that some Corp/banker Dems didn't take a contribution or two, but as you have seen for the last 6 years, WE the Democratic, Independent, Rejected & Pissed off Moderate Republicans, aim to get them all out. Rangle, Blanche Lincoln, and others are facing very stiff opposition to work for the people now or get out.

The right is contentbickeringabout the sameoldissues, whileRepublicans keepflushinggood legislation downthetoilet, whenitcomesto thiscountry. They dobackflips for the othernationsof globaloutsourcing.
Nothing when Bushwasin, and nothing since WEthepeople kickedemout, even when given the midterms to create jobs. They stood in the way of a job stimulus in all the southern states like secessionist, even when WE are a United States of American People.
There but for the GRACE OF GOD GO YOU.

[Indigo1941]

11:41 AM on 06/19/2011

The riots in Greece are an obvious affirmation of the people's will to govern themselves. That's not Pioneer Anarchy or Libertarian Contempt, it's democacy. Socialism is for the people!

[chance1946]

10:56 AM on 06/19/2011

Watched Cnn this morning and Zakaria, he’s the one that talks to the President. Zakaria has an excellent interview with David Stockman and Robert Reich. Advisors to Regan and Clinton. Both men of different views, but their presidents had good economic times for their presidency.. Stockman did disturb me. He said we have been over spending for the last 30 years and we are not headed into a good future. We as a country are going to have to tighten our belts and get our house in order. Cuts everywhere should be looked and plus jobs need to be created at middle class level. That is what I took away from this. We as a nation will do it , we always do.

[Jack Daniels Esq]

10:38 AM on 06/19/2011

Y'all a breath of fresh air - thanks for the camaraderie and Happy D-Day

[jcwtts1]

10:06 AM on 06/19/2011

The unforgivable sin of politics is confirming the stereotype. For Gore, "I invented the internet and was the main character in Love Story." For Kerry, "I voted for the bill before I voted against it." For Hillary, "I took sniper fire as I got off the helicopter in Bosnia." For McCain, picking Sarah Palin. These statements and actions confirmed the worst about a person. George Bush I, not knowing the cost of a gallon of milk. All of these have simple explanations. Al Gore was the engine behind getting funding for the DOD DARPA experiment in secure communications. This experiment turned into the modern Internet. No one on the committee saw the potential of it and Gore walked the bill through. Kerry, voted for a bill in committee and the GOP changed it substantially in conference. At that point he couldn't vote for the bill. Hillary was landing in what had previously been a hot zone, but thanks to the skill and professionalism of the military she was able to land in safety, secure enough in their hyper competence that she felt it safe to bring her daughter. George I had been VP for 8 and Pres for 4, he hadn't purchased anything, let alone a gallon of mil since the 70s. He had no idea what it cost nor should he have. But the reality doesn't matter, just the perception.