Guys, I gotta say- I am truly depressed right now.

[BeHereNow]

While I love DU and have depended on you guys for nearly a decade now,
as far as some voices of sanity in the wilderness- some of what I have been
reading just makes me so sad. And hopeless.

I no longer entertain the notion that we can salvage this country-
I think it is clear to some that the global elite have won, often with
the complacency of some our citizens, who simply are ignorant, not necessarily stupid,
that continue to vote against our best interest.

It is appalling to me that people like Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachmann
can even be considered as viable candidates for the Presidency of the United States of America.

I mean, why not just elect Kim Kardashian and get it over with?

The rich have neared completion of completely separating and isolating themselves
from the rest of us. The middle class is a sick and dying bird, pushed out of its shabby
nest by those who will not miss its song in the morning.
As a matter of fact- they can't wait to cut down the tree where the nest was built
for their personal gain.

Sorry to be so dark, but I don't see any of it getting better in our
lifetimes.

And I am truly depressed.

BHN

[ChiciB1]

1. I've Felt This Way For Much, Much Longer! It's All TOO Much & That

HOPE has turned into HOPELESS WITHOUT CHANGE! It's actually gotten worse for me and mine.

[BeHereNow]

4. I hear you- it has gotten worse for everyone I know.

I do not blame Obama though- I don't think he ever
had any power to begin with, other that our overwhelming votes for him.

I think he was "allowed" to be our President, and I don't envy his life right now.
He will be known as a failure through no fault of his own.
By design, by design.

BHN

[ChiciB1]

9. Well, Here's Where We Disagree. I DON'T Feel Obama Has Been A Very

strong leader. For SURE, he was dealt a horrible hand, but he knew it was bad from the get go. I simply can't support how he has compromised so very much and have gotten to a point where I have little faith in his bargaining powers.

Too many pretty little speeches that hold very little weight. But, we can agree to disagree.

[BeHereNow]

12. I think his intentions were good, but once he arrived-

He was promptly admonished by the true PTB.

I would hope he believed he could effect change, but
I would consider him naive to actually believe it for very long.

He'll take the money, write some books and that will be his blip
in history as the first Black President.

BHN

[SammyWinstonJack]

71. He'll be a very wealthy failure and I doubt he'll be bothered in the least about his failed

"leadership" as President.

And I DO blame him.

[kentuck]

2. I fight the same depression BHN...

I think much of it has to do with the disaster of the Bush years and the perspective that we have that maybe others, many here, do not see the same way? We saw an urgency. We needed to correct the damages done to our country, our economy, and our Consitution. We are sort of like the vulture sitting on an old dead juniper branch out in the desert, "Patience, my ass! I wanna kill something!"

Instead, we act as if nothing happened in the last ten years. It's politics as usual. When we know better.

[BeHereNow]

7. "When we know better..." Yes some of us do.

Others do not.
No insult to some of the recent members, but I think those of us who have
been watching this for ten or more years, have a different perspective.
And it is through those eyes that we see just how serious this has become.
Hard to discuss it with people who have just arrived at this dance.

BHN

[kentuck]

18. How could they have been lost for so long?

We do see it thru different lenses, I agree.

[BeHereNow]

23. And it's futile to try and explain-

Either you own the lenses, or you don't.
When I think of so many of the things we used to discuss here-
PNAC and the Rebuilding America's Defenses paper- remember that crazy shit?
And Andy Stephenson's never ending work-
what happened to the in depth research, collaboration and unity?
I miss it, and I'm glad some of you are still here.
I'd go stark raving mad other wise.

BHN

[kentuck]

29. I remember.

Anymore, it's hard to get a handle on where people are at?

[KoKo]

77. Sadly..."...in depth research, collaboration and unity"

was deemed "conspiracy" and banned. It did not fit the party's new image.

Yes...I understand where you are coming from...and it's hard to deal with. To see all that work and enthusiasm banished or labeled conspiracy because "unity" is more important and "moving forward" and ignoring history is considered progressive.

Still the "truth" will out and our country eventually will be the better for it. So, that's my hope that things will get so bad that the only way out will be massive reform. You can only keep the sewer lid on for so long if the tunnel is filled and ready to blow.

I'm renting a lot of movies from better days and cooking more.

[Maccagirl]

3. K&R

:;(:

[RagAss]

5. Hey..."Be Here Now" ....never lose sight of that profound phrase you chose as a handle here !

[BeHereNow]

10. I am HERE NOW- that is why I am so depressed.

I have no delusions about the present or the future,
and am fully cognizant of the past that has brought us to this point.

BHN

[RagAss]

11. Don't go to the future in your mind. Our fight is in the here and now always.

[BeHereNow]

14. Sorry, I couldn't disagree with you more.

When the writing is on the wall and the road map for the trip is in concrete,
only a fool would not take notice and PREPARE.

BHN

[RagAss]

22. The writing on the wall was written in the past....win the moment.....

Peace !:hippie:

[librechik]

6. me too

wish I could cast a hopeful light, but can't. Better just try for personal happiness--the world is circling the drain.

[xiamiam]

48. yep but there was a bright spot for a second when i saw snoop shaking his head..very cool..thanks

moment of relief..as long as ya dont dwell on it

[NC_Nurse]

8. You are not alone. The fultility of trying to turn around this corrupt plutocracy is

dawning on many of us. I hope something changes, but I'm not counting on it.

[RagAss]

16. When it happens it will happen in weeks...not decades or years.

[The Big Vetolski]

82. Bingo! Most successful revolutions, peaceful or otherwise, tend to

triumph in a relatively short amount of time. Oh, there can be movements and simmering discontent for years or even decades, but real change usually comes FAST. That's just a historical fact.

[BeHereNow]

90. Welcome to DU TBV

Thanks for stopping by this thread.
So many great posts here.
I love the folks on DU.

BHN

[lumberjack_jeff]

13. When you're chewing on life's gristle...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlBiLNN1NhQ

[BeHereNow]

17. Hysterical!!!! Thank you so much for that!

Your post is what keeps me coming back....
BHN

[rbnyc]

24. +1 (nt)

[Lost-in-FL]

36. And always look on the right side of life... !!! LOL!!!! nt

[Mnemosyne]

59. One of the best songs evah! Thanks! n/t

[DemReadingDU]

83. +++

[Walk away]

15. I'm with you on this one.

I told the woman behind the counter at the drug store that I hated the United States. She almost plotzed! Sorry but I am pissed about health care. I think I've paid enough in income and property taxes to feel any way I want to about this country and I feel seriously unhappy.

[SammyWinstonJack]

72. I hate this greedy country and so wish I had enough money to blow this pop stand.

Canada looks good to me.

[Horse with no Name]

87. And I feel like I have paid enough to have a few things MY way

Why does ALL of my money have to support the visions of republicans instead of what I envision myself?

[rbnyc]

19. Kim Kardashian...

...would probably do better than Sarah or Michelle.

It is depressing. I've posted similarly to you. Then I've been back trying to get people involved in yet another uphill battle, full of excitement and optimism.

Two things:

It ain't over til it's over.

Stop and take care of yourself along the way.

peace

[BeHereNow]

26. Very important to take care of yourself- agreed.

Sometimes a hot bath and a glass of wine can do wonders.
I also go to visit the horses near my house- they are wonderful listeners.
BHN

[femrap]

32. Mother Nature and her creatures

are such great comfort. I told someone the other day: "If you're not depressed, you're not paying attention." I feel the same way, but I consider my outlook to be a realistic one and I try not to let myself fall into depression or sadness.

Sometimes I hope that the Hopis and Mayans are correct and this world will face a shattering shift in its paradigm in the coming years. Globalization has to end and it will.

I wish I had a horse nearby. Give him/her a carrot for me. Thx.

[BeHereNow]

38. You got it! Apples, carrots and peppermints.

Food for the Horse Gods and Goddesses.

BTW- I've been contemplating the Hopi, Mayan and Kogi prophecies frequently these days.

I think it only just that Mother Earth give a good shake to rid herself
of the fleas.

BHN

[femrap]

63. I love that....

'a good shake to rid herself of the fleas.'

I've long thought that she would turn on her axis...a shrug of sorts...and off the greedy beings would fly.

I really do think the paradigm will shift from competition to cooperation.

[ChiciB1]

66. Had To Go Out For A While Tonight & Just Checked Back In Here... "femrap" I

have a magnetic bumper sticker that says the very same thing about being depressed and not paying attention stuck on my fridge. Put it there so it wouldn't get stolen off my car

I live in Florida and THAT should be reason enough not to run around town with it on my car. Wasn't thinking when I bought it, should have bought a "sticky" one, but it's serving a purpose anyway!

Still, depression hangs around a lot since I've been around long enough to have seen so MUCH BETTER!

What's worse is how helpless we feel because we can't seem to find a way to have our voices heard, no matter how hard we try! It's really infuriating.

Well, time to read my current book for now. Been doing a lot of that lately just to keep my mind off of what's swirling around us these days!
:shrug:

[femrap]

80. I, too, have been around

for a long time and remember when things were 'MUCH BETTER.'

I don't think we've seen the worst yet...I see an increase in the Police State so maybe it's good that our voices aren't heard. lol.

I seem to waver between Depression and Acceptance. All I can do is take care of what happens to me locally....the Federal Gov't is beyond my efforts. Campaigns have become a distraction and a Circus. Sure, I vote...but I realize it's all lies. It's a choice between the lesser of 2 evils. It's the Banksters and CEOs/Board Members who call the shots.

We're some sort of sick Fascist system now.

I just hope that when the anger inflates that people realize who the enemies are....the Banksters and the Multi-national Corporations. They do such a great job of 'dividing and conquering' the people into hating each other.

I should get back to reading fiction so to escape...I do watch old game shows for an hour a day...lol!

Take care!!!

[justabob]

51. horses

*are* excellent listeners. I am glad you have access to them. I want a pony..... hahahahaha

Take a break. Really. This stuff will make you crazy. Go on a news black out, or gray out.... do stuff for you and your family. Paint, cook, play music, take your camera for a walk, feed another part of your soul for a minute. Even given the great peril we are indeed facing, there is only so much you can do. I got really really depressed over the incessant parade of outrages a couple of years ago. I had to pull back. I severely restricted my news intake- went from reading hundreds/thousands of articles a week to reading only a handful, and was very selective about the subjects. It was hard at first, but it had to be done. The fury, outrage, terror, helplessness, and head banging frustration that accompanied every news item was too much. I highly recommend taking a break, even if only a short one.

[Autumn]

58. That is the best thing in the world to do. I spend a lot

of time talking to my horses and grooming them. They listen to every word I say and when I am so discouraged they will nudge me and just tell me they understand. Best therapists a loaf of 7 grain wheat bread and a jar of apple butter can buy.

[xiamiam]

53. lol..thats funny but most likely true..she should throw her hat in the ring as well..why not..nt

[Curmudgeoness]

20. Oh poop. Now I am depressed too.

We all feel this way, at one time or another. What you have to do is click away from the really depressing posts and find the posts that will give you hope. There are so many people who are fighting the status quo, and those wonderful people give me hope to go another day. But remember that we all have to take a break sometimes and regroup. This is your time.

[stuntcat]

45. :D

aw, nice! I need someone to punch me and tell me this every day LOL

love the Huxley quote! I was thinking just yesterday how the scariest monster in some other alien's most gory horror film might look just like us.

[Curmudgeoness]

64. I won't punch you, but I would be willing to kick you in the ass.

We all need a kick in the ass every now and then.

And all I can say about the aliens is that if their gory horror creatures don't look like us, they may very well act like us. Poop again, that is being a downer again!

[villager]

21. I wonder what the silent unreccers of this thread have in mind?

Are they being ultra-Panglossian, with this being the best of all possible worlds?

If they disagree, and are brimming with optimism - since all the conversation in this thread is respectful, why don't they say so?

Meanwhile, I think the rich think they've isolated themselves from the "fallout" of their vicious policies -- but I truly think some surprises are in store for them. Of course, the rest of us will necessarily be involved, too, whether we want to or not...

[BeHereNow]

35. You and I have been here long enough to know what time it is.

The trolls on DU know better that to try to derail my threads.
So being the keyboard coward warriors that they are- they
hit the unrec button instead.

Who cares?

I know who my friends are here.
And they usually show up on my threads-
and that is what matters to me.

Thanks for being my friend all these years Villager.

BHN

[villager]

96. You are quite welcome, BHN...

...and thank ya, back! ;-)

[PurityOfEssence]

25. Hey, at least your perception's intact.

Why not go all the way and have Paris Hilton for President. Hey, that could even be her slogan: go all the way with Paris...

[BeHereNow]

27. LOL! Good one POE.

Thanks for stopping in on this thread- I'm really glad to know you are
still in our trenches... I really miss some DUers.
BHN

[Missy Vixen]

49. Paris is smarter than we all thought

She made a video a couple of years back smacking down O'Reilly, if I remember correctly.

She's also smart enough to know she probably wouldn't want the job.

[bluestate10]

28. I am going to have dinner with a red wine to wash it down. Tomorrow will happen. nt

[Randypiper]

30. It is important to vent

but please don't dwell there.

[Gregorian]

31. The middle class shares some blame for the economic situation.

I spent many years using what cash I had to build up what little I have. Today I was in the realtor's office, and it is now apparent that the place I'm selling is going to have to be lowered in price to where I won't make much off of the massive effort I put into it. I consider myself lucky in that I still can drop before I actually lose money. But didn't take advantage of the silly loans that were out there. I was conservative in my approach. And yet the market is going to pull me down with it anyways. The rich played their role. But the people who took the leap into properties and loans they knew they couldn't pay back are equally as guilty.

I'm saying this because I am also pretty depressed right now. And because we need to be careful who we blame for the mess we're in. We often need to look more carefully at what really happened. I was shocked all during the mid 90's on to see such amazing buying and building. More than shocked. I cannot begin to express my dismay. I had a dream. I am grateful that right now I'm not bankrupt.

Which brings me to another subject. I have looked at the dark side for most of my life. It's time for me to begin living with gratitude. Things are bleak, but let's be grateful for what we have. We have Obama. And I will never forget what life was like under Bush.

Well that probably accomplished nothing. But I had to get it out.

[BeHereNow]

39. It's important to share what you can, and you did!

Thank you for reminding me to live with gratitude.
You accomplished a great deal with that remark, and
I thank you.

BHN

[DemReadingDU]

84. Appreciate this thread

Many of us have opened our eyes, connecting the dots. I have tried to share info with family and friends but they are too busy with other priorities to listen. I finally realized that only they can open their own eyes. Oh well, maybe I will be able to help them understand at some later time.

[Lost-in-FL]

33. ...

“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” -Albert Camus

[TBA]

85. And freedom is ....

just another name for nothing left to lose ...


That is where I am.

[oregonjen]

34. This is what brought me to DU...

http://www.progressiveaustin.org/hell2pay.htm
Will Pitt's "Hell To Pay"

[BeHereNow]

40. Loves me some Will Pitt too.

He came to a DU gathering several years ago-
He was on a book tour and some of us met up to attend
his presentation and then we went for drinks after-
He is a gem.
BHN

[Poll_Blind]

37. Maybe it isn't salvagable. But that doesn't men that you, personally, don't have options.

Let me put it this way: You're driving and you come to a train crossing. No trains. Good. So you start to cross and the engine dies. You can't start it, no matter how you try. Then, you hear a whistle in the distance: A train is coming. You can't push the car off the tracks, you can't stop what's going to happen from happening.

At some point you're going to stop thinking about that car and start thinking about you. As in, what do you do to prevent from getting hit by that train. Never forget that you aren't stalled on the tracks, the country is. It's a terribly depressing thought but it could be much worse. Start planning for how you're going to take care of you. As bleak as the outlook might be for the country, you might take some solace in recognizing that you're aware of the dire nature of a situation and probably quite a bit ahead of most folks. Plan accordingly.

The country is mostly done for. But at least you can start making preparations to make sure you're safe and fed along with your loved ones as things continue to spiral down the tubes.

I think it's probably fair to say that almost nomatter what situation you're in BHN, you're probably in a better situation than most people are in the world. In most of the rest of the world, they're tied to the chair of a locked car and their government has pushed them on the tracks for the train to hit. May seem like cold comfort. May seem like not a big difference. But once you actually see that mother barreling down the tracks, I think it'll be a lot clearer.

I'm very fucking angry about the situation the country is in but I'm also looking at options to keep my family safe and fed should the worst happen. It's going to hit a whole hell of a lot harder if you don't start thinking about that eventuality now. I'm happy that I'm doing that. It's how I cope without being about to change the other, bigger, stuff.

PB

[BeHereNow]

41. Great contribution PB, Thanks.

I have done as much as I can to prepare- moved assets out of fiat,
stock up on non perishables and so forth-

I think what makes me so sad is worrying about
other people who are being reduced to nothing-
Elderly, children, young adults who see NO future.

It's just so unfair.

What on earth is to become of them?

BHN

[kentuck]

73. Wise words.

Thanks.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

42. I've been passed depressed for quite awhile now.

[BeHereNow]

43. I know dear one- several of us have. I just needed to say it.

Hearing from you, and others on this thread, has brought me joy though.
Some how it really helps to know I am not alone.
I've been really reclusive lately aside from a couple of gigs which were
fun, but honestly, I couldn't wait to get back home again.
I feel safe here with my fur people.
They are a great comfort to me these days.

BHN

[stuntcat]

55. ahh fur people..

Animal extinctions and general Earth-rape are the things that broke me. Now spending time with people is getting harder, it's like they're living in a different world from me. Maybe if I watched tv more then I'd understand them.

Anyway I was thinking today of what things I need to concentrate on to be happy. Animals everywhere are in more and more trouble but I always have these I live with and they're just happy little critters, and sooo in love with me.
And the animals I feed outside, even if it's just sparrows and squirrels, they have no clue how messed up the rest of the century is, they won't be here anyway, it is very nice to watch them :)

[stuntcat]

46. since the early 00's for me

There are big things coming up that can't be changed anymore. By 2030 we'll be wishing it was like the nice 'n easy year 2011 again.

[BeHereNow]

50. Wow- that is a powerful video. Have you heard about the doc...

"The Last Mountain?"
http://thelastmountainmovie.com/
I can't wait to see it.

Sometimes I feel like such a fool for recycling everything.
Like an ant trying to keep my anthill together while
elephants are charging into my field.

The fracking, the mountain top destruction- it is overwhelming to
think about and never a word about it in the MSM.

BHN

[stuntcat]

57. yes! The Last Mountain.

I saw it a couple of weeks ago in DC. I went to some anti Mountaintop removal protests before so when I found out about this film I had to go. It is surely worth seeing if a theater close to you shows it.

I remember from when I worked in an office building how much waste there is, just from one building. And now, if we're out at night, I see big buildings with lights left on all night on every floor. Yet I still turn my lights off and separate all my trash!.. it's just funny.
A few years ago I was sinking with depression and I decided to just laugh instead of cry, like the lyrics of the Joni Mitchell song "laughing and crying's the same release", so now I try to remember to laugh a lot, even if it ends up being a sorta ironic or bitter laugh. That is the only way I'll make it through the next few decades without losing it :D

[SammyWinstonJack]

74. Joni Mitchell "Big Yellow Taxi"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKRThOEPl7Y&feature=fvst

[Lorien]

81. I''m afraid that you're quite right about that

unless there really is a Great Awakening and revolution...but given how plugged in Americans are to the M$M I have little hope for it.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

44. I think that those of us who remember the REAL hope and change of the 1960s

are especially depressed.

I remember when everyone felt, "Yes, we have problems, but we're solving them. We can, and we will!"

Then LBJ got tangled up in the Vietnam War, and to make matters worse, two of the most inspiring leaders of the left, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, were assassinated within two months of each other, not so coincidentally after they had started questioning the American economic system.

(King's assassination is especially suspicious: How did James Earl Ray, a drifter with a criminal record on the lam after escaping from prison, end up on a FIRST CLASS flight to London, which is where he was arrested? Remember, first class to London costs about $12,000 NOW--I priced it just for fun the last time I went-- and international air travel was even more expensive in real terms then.)

I am very much pondering my options. All the time. What happens in the next few years will not be pretty.

[BeHereNow]

47. We are in complete agreement. The 1960s were the last years of real hope.

There are so very many questions about certain assassinations
and WHO was behind the curtain in those days.

I think MLK, Malcolm X and certain Kennedy family members were perceived
as very real threats to the PTB who were in the picture then, and now.

And yes, I ponder too, what to do- where to go.
There is no escaping them these days with technology being what it is.

However, I do think I would rather live among people who are educated
than not.

If we are going down, I'd like to at least know some folks who
know Beethoven isn't just a movie.

BHN

[Lydia Leftcoast]

52. If I can't find a foreign haven, then I will practice what the East Germans

called "inner migration," trying to find what simple satisfactions you can in your private life. There were even people who purposely took low-status jobs so that they wouldn't have to sign loyalty oaths and wouldn't be noticed by the authorities.

[peacebird]

54. it is depressing - I had so much hope that Obama would bring sunshine back to govt policies

but instead his administration has PROSECUTED a record number of whistleblowers... He has chosen to "Look forward, not backward" and hence forever shamed our country by letting torturers (and those who authorized torture) have a free pass.

I can't help but think the world is waiting for the US to have it's meltdown like the USSR did. Get our comeuppance.

I am SO disappointed in the Obama camp, the fact they GAVE AWAY any chance for real health care reform. And now they will balance the budget on the backs of the citizens.

and it pisses me off to NO END that they keep mouthing the BS about a better educated workforce... My job was shipped to India - not due to lack of skill or education - but because a worker in India costs a fraction of what a worker in America costs. The cost of living is MUCH lower in India.

I am employed, but my former employer had me write test cases that any person walking in off the street could follow just so they could hire Indian workers at less cost.

[Demoiselle]

56. I'm with you, BeHereNow.

I've been really worried ever since the "election" of 2000. I hope we're wrong, and will be the first to dance the dance of joy when proven wrong...but...in the meantime...I avoid almost all the news shows. It's easier to read lousy news than listen to it...

[scarletwoman]

60. No, it's not going to get better in our lifetimes. Which means it's time to put our energy into

figuring out how best to survive the descent. Bid a fond and regretful farewell to our earlier assumptions about how our lives as U.S. citizens ought to be, and let them go.

Life in this county, and on this earth, is not going to be how we would have preferred it to be. And for the time being, a lot of things are going to be truly more awful than we could have imagined.

Yet, here we are. And there is always something positive to do, even if it's nothing more dramatic than smiling at a stranger you pass in the canned vegie aisle in the grocery store.

Our fellow humans need our kindness and compassion more than ever. The world is in a sorry state, the forces of darkness seem to be winning - ARE winning, in fact.

Light is the only defense against this darkness. Gratitude and love make us lighter.

sw

[Blue_In_AK]

68. SW, you said what I just said only better.

As usual.

[Mnemosyne]

61. No wise words, only

:hug::hug::hug:

Just try to prepare, about all we can do now...

[sueh]

62. I know its hard to stay in the fight, but stay in. I want to give up, too, but in the end, I don't.

I have to fight the evil bastards.

[peace4ever]

65. the struggle is eternal

the elite have gone too far and sooner, rather than later the tipping point will be reached.

[Blue_In_AK]

67. It gets tiring, doesn't it?

I was so idealistic in my youth 45 years ago. I really did think we could change the world.

It sucks. I guess all we can really do is try to make our own little corners of the world better places by our presence and trust that the universe knows what it's doing.

[sofa king]

69. I couldn't be happier.

Seriously. Over the past ten years, stupid and evil have been corralled into a minority party that has already sacrificed the next election and which continues to blatantly act against the interests--all the interests--of a vast majority of Americans.

Poverty, war and economic decline has bitten so hard that nobody can afford to listen to Republican propaganda. That in turn is forcing Americans, like the original poster above, to think ethically and honestly about our nation's future.

The Supreme Court, it turns out, was exactly what some of us were saying all along: packed with bought Republican lackeys. Clarence Thomas is as good as gone, and I'm willing to bet Antonin Scalia won't be far behind.

The moment the tax cuts for the rich expire in 2013, two excellent things are going to happen: many of the richest and most sociopathic Americans are going to take their ill-gotten gains and leave, thus playing a less malevolent role in politics, and those who stay behind and start paying will solve most of the problems with our economy in less than two years, just as the Clinton tax hike did during the 1990s (also without a single Republican vote).

But only if Americans come out and vote in their own best interests in overwhelming numbers. It's not up to the President, though he's turning out to be a great President. He's already accomplished so much more than I thought was even possible. If he keeps his job and gets to work with a Democratic Congress, the second half of his Presidency will be a new golden era for our country.

It's up to us, and the mission is perfectly clear: we must destroy the Republican Party, chase them back under their rock so that we can fix this mess. They can't be treated equally or fairly, and most of us know that now. So take it to the damned booth and let's drive the stake through the heart of these evil bastards!

[Ilsa]

70. Excellent points. But I'm afraid too many people

have been brainwashed into thinking that not taxing higher income "earners" means their own bottom lines are better. That goes for individuals as well as small business owners.

[sofa king]

75. The beauty is it doesn't matter what they think.

So long as President Obama is reelected, he will veto any tax cut extension for the wealthy. Left alone, the law will expire on its own in January, 2013.

There's every indication that this time next year, the cuts will be split into two extensions, so that the middle class tax cut can be passed while the important one can be vetoed, while forcing the Republicans to take our tax cuts hostage again, this time during an election season.

They're f*&^%ed, and there is no way for them to un-f&^$%k themselves. I didn't think it was possible for a corrupt oligarchy to be torn down from the inside by using their own greed against them, but that is just what Barack Obama has done, and that's going to make him one of the greatest politicians of this century.

[liberation]

89. I don't know if you're writing this from an angle of unrealistic optimism

or sheer cognitive dissonance.


Did you completely miss the 2010 election cycle and how the Dems' triangulation got them a shellacking and forced to pass/play with a Republican budget?


Keep telling yourself that those round pieces and diagonal moves are some never seen before master chess plays. Whatever it helps I guess.

[sofa king]

97. How about the angle of an impressed legislative analyst?

I'm not some dreaming optimist. I'm a deeply cynical former Beltway insider who made a good living accurately predicting what Congress was going to do.

And now I'm predicting that the Republican half of Congress is going to get its ass kicked.

This really is a chess-move maneuver from which the Republicans cannot escape. When the Republicans "compromised" with President Obama over the tax cuts, they failed to realize that their on-the-record hostage-taking would not be able to be wiped clean prior to the next election. It cannot be wiped in the Senate at all, as long as Harry Reid sets the agenda.

Clearly, they didn't have a calendar, either, because if they'd had one they would have realized that the agreement they made set the tax cut extension to expire at the beginning of the next Congress, not the end of this one, so these guys have to run the aforementioned gauntlet of elections for their prior behavior. The President even lined up the expiration date to coincide with a 10-day Congressional recess, so that he can kill any extension by pocket veto if he wishes. He'll be a lame duck in 2013, so there is no direct fallout for a straight veto, either.

The next election will be a mandate on raising taxes for the rich, and the Republicans will have to defend that position before millions of unemployed and unsupported Americans. They're gonna get clobbered.

Which means that before this Congress even signed in, the next election was sacrificed to keep a few rich people rich.

[Capitalocracy]

76. Nothing lasts forever, my friend.

Even if we can't make significant change today because of the stranglehold money has on politics within our lifetimes, we can keep pushing and lay the groundwork for a better democracy for our children.

[Octafish]

78. We've got a secret weapon.

The Truth. Believe it or not, it's spreading to those who need to hear it. And you've helped spread it, BeHereNow!

[Karenina]

79. Not depressed, resigned.

My 50 year old prediction is unfolding in front of my eyes. I got sent to the principal's office for it and similar quips. I'm GLAD my days in this realm are numbered. The living envying the dead and all that. I grieve for our children and their inheritance...

[Horse with no Name]

86. I am right there with you

I am wondering if migrating to a more progressive state might help.

IF Wisconsin can shut down there tyranny and bring in Russ Feingold...that might definitely be a possibility.

We may be at the mercy of our states if these folks have their way--at least I want to be in a state where I am considered a person and not just an inconvenience.

[avebury]

88. K&R

I will be happy if I can just survive for my lifespan. After that it will not be my problem.

[Shagbark Hickory]

91. Answer me this; How much MSNBC do you watch each day?

[BeHereNow]

93. Zip. Nada. Mostly I read.

I do listen to Washington Journal every morning
and the calls bring me to tears some mornings.

Maybe I should walk the dog instead, eh?

BHN

[Shagbark Hickory]

94. Yes. Anything that brings tears to your eyes... for heavens sake... stop doing it.

And walk the dog.

[BeHereNow]

92. I love you guys. Really I do. Thank you for all your great posts.

You have no idea how much better you have made me feel.
:grouphug:
This thread is a strand of jewels and I feel so much gratitude
for each and every one of your contributions to it.

BHN:loveya:

[Hotler]

95. I have no hope. I see no future. n/t