Strywever's Comments (469)

“My 21-yo daughter considers RS completely irrelevant to what's really happening in the music world, along with what's left of the traditional music industry. And, frankly, so do her parents. We don't read RS to find out what's happening in music anymore, but still appreciate the articles on social issues -- which, I agree, could certainly benefit from a more diverse perspective.

I suspect the magazine will die out along with its aging audience.”

“Did the Joe you know contradict himself on a regular basis, too? Did he make proposals and then threaten to filibuster exactly what he himself proposed? Did he contradict the campaign platforms that got him elected? Did he say that specific concerns prevented him from supporting something, and then once those concerns were solidly refuted, find other concerns that prevented his support that he'd never mentioned before?”

“Huh? He's not remotely suggesting that the middle class should be taxed more -- quite the opposite. Read it again.

I'm so tired of the anti-government mantra. How about a little credit for the amazing good it's done for all of us. It isn't perfect, but no giant system that relies on thousands of imperfect individuals to operate is.”

“Interesting point of view. I wonder how people born in certain other countries feel about being "born" with rights? If the government does not recognize them, do they exist? Not in any practical sense, they don't.”

“Can't believe this blog has been up for two hours and no one has commented yet. We should all be very worried about this. As it is, corporations control far too much policy in this country. If the Supreme Court does what Mr. Green fears it will do (and he is not alone among political pundits), the line between corporations and government will be blurred into virtual non-existence.”

“I believe she said she was going to join the ranks of entrepreneurs and freelancers. One advantage of doing so is that you no longer have to worry about what any employer (current or potential) thinks -- because you are committing to being your own employer. That's why so many young people are eschewing corporate employment They prefer to maintain control over their own work lives.”

“I see. They are so weak they allow other people to determine how much integrity and dignity they have. They allow other people to somehow "make them cheat," rather than ending a relationship before moving on to another.

They sound like greedy children to me.”

“"What is a man supposed to do when his wife decides she would rather have sleep than sex? He needs to make sure she gets enough sleep and support for her role to once again have the prerequisite physical and mental energy. And if that doesn't help, he arranges counseling and invites his wife to go. And then, if it still isn't enought, he is welcome to end the marriage before starting another relationship, which is the least his assumed integrity and dignity would require.

Men who blame their wives for their own cheating are simply unwilling to accept responsibility for themselves. They are saying that their wives get to decide what kind of man they are.”

“This is one of four standard Tighty Righty "but ... but ... but" techniques -- distract and change the subject. Another tried-and-true is "the other guys do it too." Would you like to try that one?”

“Which "sensible Republicans" would those be? Republicans of all kinds have had plenty of opportunity for input to the bill, and here is where we've wound up -- they've been given just about every concession they've asked for and STILL won't play ball -- even trying to stop debate, let alone a vote. Instead of encouraging meaningful dialogue, they wasted time and resources touting false stories about death panels, the healthcare systems of other countries, and bureaucratic interference in health-care decisions that they pretend doesn't already exist.

They simply do not want a Democratic administration to succeed and refuse to do anything that might give the Dems a "win," regardless of the need or popular support even among their own constituents.

So I ask again: Which Republicans could you possibly be talking about?”

“Thousands line up for toy sales, too. Just sayin' . . .”

“In that case, the U. S. also is a "secret democracy."”

“LimBeckIty barely tolerated the reality that McCain became the Republican candidate. They won't mind discounting his campaign staffers' credibility, I predict.”

“Mr. Begala, I've always loved your writing. "Some boil. Some ass." Priceless!”

“Public financing and term limits appear to be the only solution to squeezing lobbyist influence out of our election process.”

“Our problems are not one-issue problems, nor are any of them solvable by a mere change in presidents. He's had some hits, he's had some misses, and he hasn't swung on some occasions when I personally think he should have (at least based on what I know, which is no more than the media tells me -- so not much, I suspect.) Time will tell, and less than a year is certainly not enough! We live in a far more complex society and under a far more complex economic system than any of us has the ability to understand and "fix" on our own, including the president. I imagine he feels like he spends every day standing in front of a fire hose, while we heckle, jeer, and cheer from the sidelines.”

“Coupled with term limits, I agree. Term limits will help address the quest for power at the expense of the nation, and publicly financed campaigns would eliminate the bribery that fuels the quest. (It has to come from tax revenues -- Obama was more citizen-financed than any other presidential candidate in my memory, but even that was not enough.)”

“Progressives who voted for Obama without due diligence on his voting record and previous positions are no doubt surprised to learn that he is a pragmatic centrist. His past positions and votes would have illustrated that point for anyone who chose to research him, as would several articles that were written about him during the course of his campaign.

That's exactly why I voted for him -- because he is a pragmatic centrist and, I still believe, has the potential to break the polarized, outrageously politicized "governance" that has had the country in its grip for so long.

I am willing to forego progressive "best" in the interest of more centered "better." I have no interest in continued polarized stalemates that paralyze our ability to move this country forward to meet and deal with the realities we're all struggling with, but only some of us choose to recognize. And that's whether the discussion is framed and driven by the left (toward which I lean) or the right. Someone has to give, or we will all remain deadlocked and impotent forever.

I learned in marriage counseling about "right fighting." That's what too many of us are doing -- caring more about "us" being right and "them" being wrong than we do about surviving and succeeding as a democratic republic. Each of us has to be willing to accept compromise, including better even at the expense of best, to achieve changes we can at least live with, if not love.”

“"Ben" is a nice name! :-)”

“I will add "Cinammon Bunn" to the list. I babysat for the "Bunn" family of redheads when I was a young teen, and couldn't decide whether to be amused or horrified when they named their new baby girl "Cinnamon." They moved out of state soon after her birth, but I still wonder what the schoolyard bullies made of that one.”

“In addition, CNN has policies and security resources that provide for these situations, which Dobbs certainly is aware of. Threatening phone calls are a fact of daily life for broadcast media figures, as well as most major public figures.”

“My. What a surprise.

Sheesh.”

“Exactly. The level of defensivenes in some responses to this essay is astounding. And the lack of imagination -- the inability to see how translatable the perspectives being offered are to situations other than those the women quoted operate in.

As a stay-home mom, I might decide that playing with my children is more important than having a spotless home -- as suggested by "Letting go of what you don't love." I might decide that I will make "no the starting point for a negotiation" when I lobby my child's school district to keep art in the ciriculum. Examples for career moms suggest themselves easily for the other two recommendations, as well.”

“Yep, yep, yep. Workers are just lining up to quit their jobs! Y'gotta practically lock 'em in to keep 'em from diving out the windows!

What the heck???

Humans crave community - it's part of the human condition. We spend most of our time at our jobs, so we naturally form communities of various kinds, both formally as part of our work roles and more informally.

Corporations encourage certain types of community (project teams or social volunteerism that boosts the company's public profile, for example) and discourage other types (labor unions).”

“But you're not judging, right? ;-)”