If I had the political hack who came up with that question in front of me, I'd punch him in the throat. What the hell kind of question is that? It's a bullshit one is what it is. I heard this one the other day and I stopped to actually consider it, and for a monet, I was suprised at the answer.
For myself, I might have to say "Yes, my life is better in some ways than 8 years ago".
- I have a home.
- I own my own business and it is profitable.
- I own a vehicle that isn't at constant risk of falling apart.
And yet they get away with asking it. Look how the question is crafted. "Are YOU better off?".
It's almost clever. And it might work on some people. Dumb people, sure, but it might work. Joe Blow might just look at his life and say 'Hey, I have a wife and a kid now, I got a promotion and we live in a nice new house. Things ARE better for me now. I should vote to keep the status quo!".
The tactic might have worked if things weren't so monumentally fucked up now. Because even though I and others might be doing okay, most Americans aren't. I haven't had my job shipped overseas. I don't have a kid fighting in a pointless war. I can still afford gas and food. Does that mean my overall life is better?
But I can't really ask "Could my life be significantly better if someone else had been President for 8 years?" That's just wild speculation, isn't it? But if I may, hell yes I think my life would be much better, and so would the lives of many other people. Yes, it's hypothetical, but I don't think I'd lose much money of that bet.
The real question to ask (and the one the Republicans sure as hell aren't asking) is:
"Do you think the country is better off than 8 years ago?" I bet I know the answer to that question.
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The underlying key point here is that, in effect, McCain is acknowledging that, if elected, his presidency would indeed be "four more years" of Bush-style policies.
And like the majority of Americans, I didn't want "four more years" last time.
Perhaps this year we will not be inundated by Republicans claiming a return to "family values" as the McCains VP choice has an unwed pregnant teenage daughter. Of course the party is Ok with that since they are "planning" to marry. Bunch of hypocrites!
Brother Noomsee
Pretty easy to answer that question.
8 years ago I was in New Zealand with American Dollars that could purchase just-barely short of two NZ Dollars. I then moved on to Bangkok for a week and then to Australia for two months, where my American Dollars purchased just a few cents less worth of their Aussie Dollars. I could afford to buy half of a used car with an SCA acquaintance and feed it with what I had thought to be outrageously priced gasoline (around $1.40/gallon) for a trip up and back down their entire Eastern seaboard.
Could I do that NOW? Sure... - with close to TWICE the American Dollars to spend, I could.
An East Texan gave me the proper phrase for this situation on a trip back in '91. "That dawg jus' don't hunt now.."
Screw 'em both. I'm still "throwing my vote away" and voting my moral justification reasons for Ron Paul.
Cheers!
Good thorough ideas here.I’d like to suggest taking a look at such as something like cheeseburger. What do you think?
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