Under the surface, what disturbs you the most about this Administration?

[kentuck]

Is it the unpredictability? Is it the tendency to see war as the solution to every problem? Is it the total disregard for our Constitution and our laws? Is it the cruelty of their programs to the poor and least fortunate amongst us? Is it the dishonesty and the lies and the inability to tell the truth? Is it the uncertainty about whether our country will ever recover from this assault upon our liberties and our institutions? Is it the hardship they have placed upon our children and our grandchildren with the huge transfer of wealth to the most wealthy? Is it the hypocrisy they exhibit as they profess to be Christians? Is it all of the above and more?

[uppityperson]

1. the arrogance coupled with greed.

they care for no one, no thing, unless it can get "them" more right away. They care for no law, unless it can get them more right away. It is all of it. Inhumanity, greed, arrogance, cruelty, pain.

[tiptoe]

2. Totally criminally fraudulent & traitorous-- elections;911;Plame;wmd;war

The world needs have "them" exposed, before America will be forgiven.

"They" will continue to manipulate the law, constitution, and democratic-elections and promote hatred for America in order to incite terrorism, fear and war...to keep power, prevent exposure, and make "hate-profits".

Other than that and war-crime-murders of innocent peoples, the military-industrial-complex is fine.

Hopefully, Americans, someday again, will have the Presidents and Congressmen they elected.

[Stargazer99]

3. All of the above-multiple choices

[lvx35]

4. Wow you hit some of the big ones.

I think its lack of regard for the republic that bothers me most...In fact, it is that they seem to be evil that bothers me even more than that. By evil, I mean that I cannot see what benifit they see for their action - its as if they are TRYING to destroy everything. If it were conservative bumbling around trying to manifest their "minimal government" ideas, I would feel compassion for their failures...But they go against everything they say. Its a celebration of contradiction, a celebration of using every evil "as a means to an end" with no actual "end" in sight.

[kentuck]

6. I know what you mean...

It's so discouraging because we cannot understand it. It is irrational and insane in some undefinable way...

[lvx35]

12. I think they thrive on that.

What with all the secrecy and covering, even on meaningless issues. Its almost like its sadistic...

[kentuck]

16. It does seem to be that way...

Sadistic in almost a revengeful manner - as if they were done terribly wrong in the past and they are now seeking revenge...

[lvx35]

18. hehe. Maybe it was all that "free love" in the 60's they missed out on.

but unfortunately I wasn't born then either, so its sad I have to take the brunt of their vengence.

But seriously, I think you hit on something there. I think it may be that they percieve the situation that way, as if they themselves are victims. In fact I think I would be willing to bet money on that. That's VERY insightful.

[Ino]

36. I've always thought that about Rove

I can just see him in high school -- intelligent, but socially inept & universally disliked -- spending all his time plotting revenge. He's taking it out on all of us, on the whole world. Now he's universally HATED, but that's all right with him. He has the last laugh.

[ananda]

50. Definitely all of the above and more!

What's most disturbing to me, also, is the public's tolerance of it.

[tiptoe]

23. It's Neocon "creative destruction" -- using, e.g., deliberate negligence

for purposes of creating chaos -- or letting chaos develop through inaction -- in order to exploit opportunities for re-organizing society and social programs.

And you've sensed the inappropriateness of the term "incompetence" to describe what seems to be intentional acts: For purposes of making argument for replacing government/public programs with privatized programs, it is advantageous for the controlling administration to deliberately make government agencies look bad, slow, inefficient in performance -- e.g. FEMA during Katrina, IRS with customer refunds, etc -- than actually have them solve problems efficiently (like they used to under previous administrations).

Just remember, these agencies are "BUSH-FEMA", "BUSH-EPA", "BUSH-IRS" and "BUSH-FDA"...and you can expect these strategically-underfunded programs (-- an intended consequence of Norquist's radical fiscal policies implemented via treasury-draining, never-ending-money-pit wars like Iraq and treasury-starving, persistent annual tax-cuts for the rich --) to perform as garbage: It's how they are meant to perform...in order to argue and legislate for privatization of their functions. (The Iraqi war has nothing to do with democracy for Iraqis, especially if what's currently going on in America with implementation of HAVA and the "cramming...down the throat of American Democracy" secret vote-counting on highly-hackable electronic voting machinery also reflects the respect and intentions Neocons have for democracy everywhere else in the world.)

When Bush tells Mike Brown "You've done a heckuva job, Brownie!"...he actually means it. The total screw-up of government address of the Katrina disaster is exactly the kind of chaos-opportunity the fraudulently-elected Bush mal-administration seeks -- not to solve, but to exploit.

Scum. Criminals. Sick.

[mwb970]

42. If they *wanted* to destroy America, what would they do differently?

I can't think of anything they've missed. Staggering debt, wars without end, hatred from the entire world - they've done everything I can think of to ruin our once-great nation.

I guess the overall evil is what bothers me the most, along with the seemingly total disregard for our Constitution. In what sense are these people "American"?

[Eric J in MN]

5. The Jose Padilla case, in which Bush claimed the right

...to label any of us "enemy combatants" and imprison us for the rest of our lives without trial.

The Bush administration and its big allies think that Bush should have limitless rights, and everyone else should have no rights.

[CoffeeCat]

13. That stuff scares me the most...

It feels like the Bush Administration has built a framework for doing some pretty awful things.

That's what scares me the most about this administration--the framework of anti-civil rights, anti-freedom laws that trap American citizens.

Like you said--the Padilla case demonstrates that anyone can be labeled an "enemy combatant" and that we can be imprisoned indefinitely, without a trial.
That's scary stuff.

Furthermore, the Patriot Act also states that if a person is taken into custody, the government does not have to inform family or the media of the
person's whereabouts or the crimes with which they are charged. Someone can just disappear and the government isn't required to tell anyone why
they were taken or where they are. In addition, we would have no right to an attorney, a fair trial or due process of law. And the laws, as they
are written now--allow the pResident to decide what is torture. He decides how torture is defined. So we can also be legally tortured.

You just wonder where they are going with this framework? Why would they have made legal such horrid actions?

[Ghost in the Machine]

7. The fact that they exist.... what a waste of oxygen..

I can't wait to see them all hung for war crimes.

[CoffeeCat]

8. Guantanamo...

I am sickened and saddened by the existence of Guantanamo.

America has no business operating a prison off of our shores--and away from scrutiny or media coverage.

It's downright frightening and sickening.

Most of the detainees haven't been charged with a crime--although they've been held for years. That's so unAmerican, it's revolting.

Guantanamo is dangerous and it is a pre-cursor to a concentration-camp situation. No government should EVER be allowed to
operate a prison like this, under such secrecy and so far removed from rule-of-law and public scrutiny.

I am so terribly ashamed that there is such a thing as Guantanamo, and that this perversity is being operated on my dime--and in my name.

[murielm99]

9. They try to rule us with fear,

but I fear them. I fear that they would be happy to start a nuclear war that could involve the whole world. I can see * wanting to use the nuclear "toys" at his disposal, just because they are there and they are his.

I am disturbed by their sense of entitlement. They think only they have a right to rule this country. It killed them when Clinton won twice, and left office as a popular President. Their sense of entitlement is so strong that they probably don't think it is wrong to steal elections. It is only wrong to get caught. They are entitled to do what they want, regardless of the Constitution.

[Historic NY]

10. Trust.........

I now no longer believe anything unless I can verify it independently.

[JohnnyLib]

27. I second this response.

and recall the term "a cancer on the Presidency."

[Lindacooks]

11. The lies. And the fact that they know they lie, and try to hide it

by naming their ill-conceived projects the exact opposite of what's intended, like "Clear Skies Initiative" that increases pollution, and "Healthy Forests Initiative" that promotes clear cutting.

[kentuck]

14. Deception with malice aforethought...

That is very disturbing.

[Lindacooks]

15. That's it, exactly.

Thanks for putting it so succinctly!

[lvx35]

19. totally, that's what I was saying...

Or "bringing democracy" to Iraq when the democratic majority in Iraq would vote for our exit in a heartbeat.

[Virginian]

17. My fear is that they will find a way

To retain power, even after this term of office is over.
Then we would have to put up with all of the above for who-knows-how-long.

So, the shredding of the Constitution and the protections and rights it gives to the citizens is my fear.

Checks and balances is gone.

Freedom of the press is gone.

Unlawful search and seizure is gone.

The "rights of all citizens" is reverting to be "the rights of all white male citizens."

[InkAddict]

26. What a bigoted statement

I happen to know some white male >40s, VietNam Era vets who have evidently lost the right to fair employment in this country. Demographics can be deceiving - sometimes white males come to have zip codes in areas of "ethnic non-diversity" and it costs them everything.

[lvx35]

29. I gotta say, you underestimate the arrogance of these guys.

If you think they have a social concern so broad that it includes the well being of all white males, you have seriously over-estimated this crowd. They care for nothing but a very very small slice of the "elite" which they have defined. If you think that elite stretches to include white males like Micheal Moore, you are seriously mistaken.

[mwb970]

43. Rich, white, straight, Christian men.

These are the five qualifications to be "in" with the Bushies. Violate one and you still might be OK. Violate two and you no longer exist for them.

[Virginian]

49. Jeff Gannon n/t

[lvx35]

82. AGain, you are making it broader than it is.

its a really narrow slice of hyper rich people with power, nothing else matters. Watch Micheal Moore's 9/11 movie and see Bush with the Saud family Utra-rich, Arab, Muslim, and some of them with questionable sexual orientation....Yet Bush is holding hands with them. Its only the first thing that matters to bush, though poor whites might convince themselves that Bush cares about them.

[Faux pas]

20. All of the above, but I think the fact that they aren't held

accountable for ANYTHING that kills me. They are truly evil.

[Cobalt-60]

21. Where do I begin?

They're part of a long line of rotters extending back into the mists of pre history.
But this bunch has gone over the top.
Torture is one of those things against I have been trained to lock and load since birth.
Its practitioners stand next to child molesters on the moral spectrum.
For the very first time in my life a Republican stooped far enough to make me ashamed to be an American.
These *ssholes were cheer leading for torture in the open.
I've got to consider anyone who treats Americans like cattle to be an enemy of the State. Yeah I',m looking at you Cheney.
I could go on.
There's the way they've subverted Evangelical Christianity to the point where it is neither. A formerly vigorous sect of Christianity now bends over at the Republican Party's command.
Perhaps it's packing the country with illegals to provide cheap labor for your corporate masters, and then claiming it was the Democrats' fault.
Maybe it's the insulting attempts to terrorize. The only people in America trying to generate fear are them.
But enough. Let's hear your reason, and YOURS...

[Chipper Chat]

22. The utter hippocracy of it!

Bush's taking out another country's leader to create "democracy" while reversing democracy and freedom here at home. Disgraceful and dishonest.

[electropop]

69. hippocracy (hip AH crah see), n.

1. A government of horse's asses.

[azurnoir]

24. Their ability to do all

of the above and talk and obfuscate their way out of it explain it away and have people, even those that don't like them swallow or become indoctrinated to at least some of the BS without even realizing it.

[Golden Raisin]

25. The overt/visible SNEERING.

The smirking/sneering/arrogance/disdain exhibited by Bush, Cheney, Rove, Delay, etal.

My other top contenders:

o The innocent lives cruelly snuffed out (Iraqi & American)
o Torture (Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo, etc.)
o The destruction/rape of our Constitution & system of checks & balances.

[raccoon]

61. Yes! Yes! "The overt/visible SNEERING"

They don't even BOTHER to pretend to make nice.

[Not_Giving_Up]

28. I think what gets me the most is that they think

that Jesus is going to come swooping from the sky and carry them away from all of this. For them, the more horrid the conditions are on Earth, the closer they are to their eternal happiness...It's the fundie version of the 71 virgins.

[enigmatic]

30. cocksure arrogance

It really does sicken me to see it. They know that they can do whatever they want, and are assholes about it.

[ima_sinnic]

31. their total and unimaginable lack of conscience, and their greed

-- they think nothing of dropping bombs, of destroying entire cities--shit, entire civilizations, merely to control their resources and enrich their own wallets. Human life means nothing to them; it is as though the citizens they are bombing (or allowing to drown and starve after a hurricane) are ants. The suffering and horror they have created defies imagination; to look at its totality--lives ruined, entire families murdered, pain, nightmare, mental illness, children maimed and living in a constant state of warfare (no childhood for them)--one would have to run screaming into a madhouse -- all for their own twisted version of "wealth," "entitlement," and especially POWER

And the way they so callously lie about it and manipulate the consciousness of the populace--human decency means nothing to them, they have not a shred of decency or of feeling for the preciousness and uniqueness of life. They have no emotions of love and compassion yet they twist those emotions in others to fulfill their own ends. They are evil incarnate, I truly believe that. Look at the shocking prevalence of pedophilia among them. It is as if they were a separate and alien species altogether.

But there is really nothing new about them, either. Unfortunately "their kind" has been around as long as humans started walking upright. As one manifestation is put down, another springs up. The Nazis were just one page in their sorry book. All over the world, in places we hardly think about and know little about, they are sucking the joy and the life out of the world (look at people like Idi Amin, the South African apartheid thugs and torturers, Central American dictators and death squads, on and on ad nauseum).

[Swamp Rat]

32. IT'S A FUCKING DICTATORSHIP!!!

Are the ovens are warmed up yet?



Hey all you eyerab-looking folks! Get the fuck outta here while you still can!!!

[Greyhound]

33. That we let them get away with it. It is our country and therefore our

responsibility to demand that it works for us. The fraud was blatant, the SCOTUS acted in a totally partisan manner, the politiwhores were nowhere to be seen, and we let them get away with it. When all is said and done it is our shame and we will probably be damned for it.

[xchrom]

40. ding! ding! ding! winner!

indeed -- this admin doesn't bother me HALF as much as the apparent character of the american people.

i don't necessarily expect people to be aware of neo-cons or straussian politics -- but to have -- with great obviousness -- two elections thwarting the will of the people and the people to behave in such a bored attitude is enirely frustrating.

oy -- i could go on -- but enough.

[tbyg52]

87. I have never forgotten, and never will

A quote from Sandra Day O'Connor in Newsweek a year or two ago. She came right out and said that she tipped the scales for Bush because she couldn't stand the idea of putting a Democrat in the White House.

[BlooInBloo]

34. That there's nothing under the surface.

[tiptoe]

35. yep!....and the American people "get it"...

Historical Bush Approval Ratings

[JohnnyLib]

41. Wow, great chart

It goes on my bulletin board at work.

[skids]

37. Frankly the most disturbing thing...

...isn't the administration itself -- it's the rest of the country, having failed so far to expunge them.

[quiet.american]

55. Yes. n/t

[flyarm]

78. the fact that no one has been held accountable for 9/11

and the murders of my co-workers and neighbors!

and no onein this adminstration or government has been held acocuntable for their failures on 9/11

and all the lies of this adminsitration of 9/11

and that Americans themselves have not taken responsibility for the lies of 9/11
that they allow these lying, murdering assholes to stay in our white house!

and thats just my very short list!

fly

[izzie]

38. I guess forgetting what the Constitution was trying to do

Produce a nation run by the people who lived in it.

[TomClash]

39. All of the above and more

The disregard for expertise - whether its Katrina, Iraq, Afghanistan, stem cell research, environmental policy - except in politics. You name it - they hate talent.

Excellent list, by the way.

[flordehinojos]

44. yes. all of the above and more. in fact, for me, the question is,

what is there that does NOT disturb me about bush and his malodorous putrid administration.

[warrior1]

45. That they

will never give up power, no matter who wins the election.

[Libby2]

46. The total disregard for lives.

Any and all living creatures.

[Phrogman]

47. They think all Americans are stupid and fearful

They insult my countrymen.

[unblock]

48. the fact that the media lets them get away with it.

i simply accept my enemies as who they are, i don't think or pretend that my words or thoughts will change them. the bfee will always try their hardest to stay in power and support their ultra-rich patrons. in a way i don't blame them, they simply are.

it's the media and the rest of america that i blame. these are people and institutions that i CAN influence, and that can and should know better. they are not pure evil, they have a moral compass and an ability to distinguish right from wrong. even the right wing media should recognize that occassionally opposing shrub would have been beneficial for them in the long run, yet they chose to prop up the insanity against all evidence to the contrary.

THAT is what disturbs me most.

[debbierlus]

51. The lies

Dishonesty. Bar none.

[kentuck]

52. I have bookmarked these responses..

These are some of the most enlightening responses I have read anywhere that help to understand this current regime...

[OnionPatch]

53. The fact that so many support them

is also the main thing that creeps me out about them. There will always be the greedy, ruthless, power-hungry among us. But usually they don't gain a lot of following from the masses. It's disturbing that so many people still buy into the BS. I used to have more faith in Americans.

[benEzra]

54. Complete disregard for the Fourth Amendment (n/t)

[glitch]

56. All of the above.

Good thread.

[LibDemAlways]

57. Everything mentioned here, but what bothers me

most of all is that they stole their way in through vote fraud both times and are therefore illegitimate from the get-go.

[Gregorian]

58. CARELESSNESS.

I have identified my feeling, exactly, with the feeling I get when riding my bike, and someone with the great power to wield an automobile, only gives me the slim distance between my elbow and their bumper. Meanwhile, they could have either slowed or crossed over the "sacred" line in the middle of the road. But no, they have to make a statement, and come as close as possible.


I know I said it with lousy sentence structure. But the feeling is exactly the same as this administration. Someone with power who is careless about someone else who doesn't have power. And let me just add that as a bicycle commuter I see all Americans as little Bush's. That's right. Every single person in a car is wielding great power. And not only that, they are destroying the environment at a high rate.

Now I have to apologize. I bought a truck a few years ago. And it's a HUGE dually monster. I needed it to begin a new life. And as a result, I became one of those people. But I try to care. However, even just last weekend, when I.... end of subject.

My answer is carelessness. Fuck the rest of my story.

[Marie26]

77. Why do we buy our SUV's?

So we can rule the road & push around all the little cars. IMO, most Americans have a bit of an inner bully that finds expression in Bush's policies. There's a reason he got re-elected. W/Bush in charge, Americans can rule the road & push around all the other little countries.

[Gregorian]

86. So accurate.

But WE here care. And that's why I love everyone on DU. Thank goodness we have our separate but equal place for sanity.

I might add that I simply never use petroleum unless I absolutely have to. And I care. I yield. I slow down for bikers. I was going to say that by just being in my monster truck, I get some pretty nasty glances. And that's uncool. We need to be more open minded. Not all people in dually 4x4 9000 pound vehicles are redneck jerks.

[specimenfred1984]

59. Here's 372 Pages of More

http://www.house.gov/judiciary_democrats/iraqrept2/webf...

-- I. The Downing Street Minutes and Deception, Manipulation, Torture, Retribution and Coverups in the Iraq War

II. Unlawful Domestic Surveillance and the Decline of Civil Liberties Under the Administration of George W. Bush --

[The Wielding Truth]

91. These and ignoring the people stranded after Katrina

are some of the most outrageous sins of BushCo.

[sinkingfeeling]

60. Their drive to fascism.

[lonestarnot]

62. Huberis, fascism, warmongering, theiving economy depletists, slave

laboring, mother fuckers, contract favoring special liars and theives. That about covers it.

[spanone]

63. The total disregard for the Constitution of the United States.

[Nimrod2005]

64. Arrogance and ignorance: A Dangerous combination....nt

[Jimbo S]

65. Arrogance

- free speech zones

- loyalty oaths

The my way or highway mentality. If you don't agree with them, well then tough shit, you don't count. If you have an opinion, they don't care about it.

[badgerpup]

66. It's that high-level government is the most effective way for them

...to accomplish their goals of accumulating more and more wealth and power.
The fact that the average citizen is adversely affected by most of their antics is a non-issue.

They've treated the country like a cash cow. They have absolutely no regard for the people who happen to live here unless they are the wealthiest 1%, in their little circle and part of their club; in fact it's obvious they resent everyone else who lives here.

We just get in their way, but there are enough of us that we could cause some problems if we finally got mad enough to actually DO something. So, they pretend to respect the boundaries, and pretend to throw us a sop now and then, wrapping themselves in the flag and waving the bible, because they truly believe in NOTHING but money and power.

Yeah, for me it's the evil that they do, the hypocrisy and the way they've pissed in the well for everyone else.

[kentuck]

67. Good description..

They've pissed in the well..

[electropop]

68. It's the election fraud.

The rest of their crimes can be eventually punished, and much of the damage eventually repaired, but only if we can vote the bastards out. That's why the rigged election systems are so scary.

[earth mom]

70. All that AND the KILLING they've done to get what they want.

1. 9/11 LIHOP/MIHOP
2. Iraq War
3. Katrina

and whatever's next....

[AzDar]

71. They are patently Un-American. n/t

[BurtWorm]

72. On the contrary, I'm most appalled by the Bushists' total PREDICTABILITY

You can safely predict that they will almost always fuck up.

No joke.

[Beelzebud]

73. Their disdain for the American people.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

74. Climate Change

What disturbs me most is the administration's attempts (mostly successful so far) to shamelessly use the tragedy of 9/11 to elevate the executive branch above the rule of law, suppress and restrict public information about the government (for "national security reasons" ), and to create a wholly undemocratic climate where attempts by reporters (or anybody else inside or outside the government) to seriously question or challenge them invariably results in them being accused of being "unpatriotic," "terrorists," "terrorist-sympathizers", or "Al-Queda candidates."

[undeterred]

75. Total lack of interest in the American people

It's like we aren't even here. Or we're just an obstacle to their world-conquering agenda.

[Marie26]

76. It's how they seem to

channel and maximize the worst aspects of the American psyche.

[Cleita]

79. The total disregard for our Constitution and laws. I think that

they have committed treason and should be put on trial.

[EstimatedProphet]

80. The smugness

The assumption by this administration that they are entitled to rule, that they are the only ones who should be allowed to make decisions, and the rest of us should just shut up and mind our places.

[ms liberty]

81. Their use of religion and patriotism to divide Americans...

Their disregard for the Constitution and the Bill of Rights

Their lies, their secrecy, and their belief that they are above the law

Their waste of American lives in an unnecessary war, and their waste of American resources and money

All of the above from everyone else...it's almost impossible to boil it down to one thing, but one above all others is the most worrisome: their misuse of religious beliefs and their pandering to religious extremists of the Christian variety. That is the one item that has allowed them to get away with much of their crimes. It's also the one thing that has allowed them to erode our constitution and our civil rights. It's extremely dangerous to mix religion and politics, and they don't seem to care that they're playing with fire.

[Jed Dilligan]

83. It's what they HAVEN'T done yet.

Two more years, and there's no way they don't plan to go out with a bang.

[Kolesar]

84. They are the energy industry & so transparent to me

[QuestionAll...]

85. culling. nt

[blm]

88. That they're evil FASCISTS.

,

[butterfly77]

89. All of the above and...

his arrogance and the way he pats peoples backs and the fact that he thinks he is clever, the decider and that he thinks that he doesn't have to answer to anyone.

[BeHereNow]

90. Is this a trick question?

Clearly, what should frighten any person with a brain that
thinks even part of the day is this fact :
They are satan worshippers.
What other explanation can there be for the havoc they have
unleashed on the world?
BHN

[Crewleader]

92. lies and more lies

and using the media like it's another branch of government to sell whatever crap they are saying!

And all of the above kentuck...

[citizen snips]

93. If I had to choose one issue

it would have to be this Administrations pro corporate agenda.

[alfredo]

94. Their total disregard for the people they took a solemn oath

to protect and represent.

[dweller]

95. Selection 2000

for everything else that we have witnessed, are witnessing, or will witness, stems from that.

that decision in December was the gutshot that this country has slowly bled itself to death from ever since.

dp

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

96. Their Seemingly Endless Power To Do Whatever They Choose With No Regard To

law or ramifications.

[Nikki Stone 1]

97. Their ability to do EVIL with complete self-righteousness

It's the Ayn Rand mentality I think.

[aaronbees]

98. They're malevolent, lying killers....

Sums it up for me.