I heard this this evening on Vermont Public Radio and had to share it here:

The Next Phase
Olin Robison


MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT (2002-02-08)

There is mounting evidence to suggest that we are now, some five months after the tragic events of last September, beginning slowly to move into a second stage of reaction.

Ever since that horrible morning, we have been in a period of remarkable national unity, a time during which the President and his administration have lived in an unusual criticism free zone. Even those who strongly disagree with the what the President has said and done have for the most part refrained from criticism, both out of a sense of patriotism and, in some cases, not wishing to be thought unpatriotic.

But this is unnatural in a vibrant and complex democracy, and it will definitely end; the only question is when. Many of those closest to the President are well aware of his charmed interlude, this political state of grace, if you will, and they are pushing hard to get as much of their political agenda in place as possible.

This could be seen as cynical opportunism or, if one is more favorably disposed to that agenda, a political golden moment.

It is definitely a golden moment for defense contractors, and it is roll-back time at the Justice Department, where, in the name of homeland security, conservatives have been taking back turf that had been conceded to more moderate elements during recent years.

The Democratic leadership is yet to find its voice, so far not even being able to argue publicly against the most egregiously partisan budget and tax proposals of the Bush crowd. Their frustration is monumental.

The international version of this political state of grace for President Bush began to break this week, and one senses that there is much more to come.

On Wednesday, the French Foreign Minister said what a lot of Democrats would like to say but cannot because to do so is too risky politically.

The French Foreign Minister called the US war on terrorism "simplistic." He said, "We are friends of the United States...and we will remain so. But we are threatened today by a new simplism that consists in reducing everything to the war on terrorism." He spoke for a lot of Europeans, maybe even most.

The British Foreign Minister this week tersely noted that the President's State of the Union speech and most of his other current public statements are clearly aimed at next November's election. The White House feigned indignation at this until Karl Rove, the President's Chief Political Strategist, told a television interviewer this week that the Republican strategy this fall is "to run on the war."

Such foreign criticism is going to pick up steam rapidly now. I personally wish that it would pick up steam at home as well. Lack of public debate on major issues is not a healthy state of affairs --especially if it goes on very long. It is not unpatriotic to differ with the President - especially when the incumbent crowd seizes a moment of unusual national unity to push aggressively the same agenda they would have pushed anyway.

It is time to restore the public debate.

This is Olin Robison.

--Olin Robison is President of the Salzburg Seminar, located in Middlebury, Vermont and Salzburg, Austria. Olin's commentaries are also available in audio online at the Salzburg Seminar web site at www.salzburgseminar.org.

© Copyright 2002, VPR


My feelings exactly! I never totally agree or give a lot of latitude to a President or Party!

Mark

[ 02-09-2002: Message edited by: skywalker ]</p>

Bush is doing a good job. Don't like him? Ok. Don't like his politics? NP. Don't think he's doing what needs to be done? er..um..ah..

No president's popularity lasts forever without continuing work (just ask Bush Sr.). It depends on the continual assessment of their actions, but guess what!?!?!

He is doing a good job. A job that the majority of Americans want done (he is OUR leader after all). Anyone with a better idea to handle terrorism please step forward and announce your ideas.

If the fight against terrorism was "simplistic", as the article implies, it wouldn't have come to this. Blame America and/or any other nation you want and then choose whatever reasoning you want, but the bottom line is something has to be done, and that "something" is something more than has been done previously. The answer doesn't lay with what "should have been done" 1,5,10,20,or50 years ago, but how it's handled TODAY!

Anyone else want to handle terrorism differently? By all means, step up to the plate.

[ 02-08-2002: Message edited by: Ronn_Bman ]</p>

He is doing a good job. A job that the majority of Americans want done (he is OUR leader after all). Anyone with a better idea to handle terrorism please step forward and announce your ideas.

Quite a few nations have stepped forward with ideas. But this is the problem with sharing a house with a 500 pound gorilla. Or as the old riddle has it, what does it eat? Anything it wants. And at various times in history, that 500 pound gorilla has been many different nations.

I don't think Bush speaks for every American. As an American, I think he's riding his entire popularity on the terrorism issue. Before that, I had very serious concerns about his understanding of world issues, domestic economics, and federal politics. All of these still reamin, especially after the heavy deficit budget plan he proposed.

You think he's done a good job; I don't. Only time will tell, but I sure hope a spirit of rampant nationalism doesn't try to wipe out all dissent or disagreement in the US over how our president is doing.

Well obviously not all Americans support Bush, and I would like to come out as one of his strongest non-supporters. There are other ways he could have dealt with this, yet he didn't. And he seems to be using this as an excuse to siphon money from other departments so that it can go to the military. Education? Back seat. Foreign affairs? Back seat. Energy conservation and environment? About 200 miles back. And you really can't just use his actions since September 11th to judge his presidency; he was in office before that happened. And during that time he abandoned ways to conserve energy and protect our environment in order to keep American jobs because, "...it wasn't in the interests of the American people at this time." Well I must contradict this, however, as I am an American person and I would prefer to keep breathing in exchange for a job.

Just my two and a half cents.

Skywalker long time no scrap! How you been? Been through Middlebury not impressed, liked Norwich better :D
As for the political pendulum it swings both ways, we had 8 years of piss'n & moun'n and the country didn't colapse, or the world end. Though I was rooting for that Y2K thing, well I never have any good luck. Hey anybody want to buy 25 cases of spam? :D Ride it out you guys will get you chance again then our turn, repeat, and repeat.

I bet it's colder than a polar bears butt, they're taling snow here in the heart of Dixie, who'd of thunked it?

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by John D Harris:
Skywalker long time no scrap! How you been? Been through Middlebury not impressed, liked Norwich better :D
As for the political pendulum it swings both ways, we had 8 years of piss'n & moun'n and the country didn't colapse, or the world end. Though I was rooting for that Y2K thing, well I never have any good luck. Hey anybody want to buy 25 cases of spam? :D Ride it out you guys will get you chance again then our turn, repeat, and repeat.

I bet it's colder than a polar bears butt, they're taling snow here in the heart of Dixie, who'd of thunked it?<hr></blockquote>


Hi John!

It's extremely cold here in VT lately. Doesn't help that my wood stove broke down and I only have electric heat. Brrrr.

Some people here think since I have problems with Bush, I must have loved Clinton. Well I've never said it. I just don't like the way the country is run right now. Didn't like it in the 90's much, but at least I was making money.

I can't fathom cutting taxes and then spending money we don't have, which is what is going to happen in the next budget. I always say, if you want the programs, you have to be willing to fully pay for them. Get Bush a calculator, he clearly can not do math on his own.

Wow, what a rant! ;)

Mark

I just dont understand the massive military build up? Why?

Massive...oops...i guess the Axis of Evil does deserve no less, your right...but still the numbers just don't add for me, sorry.
(Trillions of dollars...uh what is all this black op spending actually paying for?)
He just seems like a moron to me...oh a slimeball...that is how i feel when i look at him. But i dig all his sound bytes!!!

American and Bush love affair...i truly believe that the press is being told what not to run. Yes i believe that the press has stories to run that are being kiboshed by someone...yeha a conspiracy its true. Still i believe this. Not all americans love Bush so much i am sure...but the patriotism runs so deep that even though the prez is a hated fool...still is the weight of the peoples belief in a (just) cause thrown behind his beloved image regardless of who he is.

[ 02-09-2002: Message edited by: Djinn Raffo ]</p>

American and Bush love affair...i truly believe that the press is being told what not to run.

Djinn, what I keep hearing is that thanks to the languages being so esoteric and the areas of the globe involved being so sparsely populated, it's less a case of the press being told what not to run than all information being funneled through a single source: the Pentagon. One "journalist watcher" (I think that's the latest euphemism) I heard recently termed it "a daily orchestrated flower show." So everybody is basically giving the Pentagon line, whatever their inclinations to do otherwise. Whether this will change remains to be seen.

Well, I think that the media is doing their level best to stick it to Bush over Enron. What a relief, to finally have a stick to beat him with. I think he and our military are doing an excellent job, thank you. Long may the "love affair " continue!

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by fable:
He is doing a good job. A job that the majority of Americans want done (he is OUR leader after all). Anyone with a better idea to handle terrorism please step forward and announce your ideas.

Quite a few nations have stepped forward with ideas. But this is the problem with sharing a house with a 500 pound gorilla. Or as the old riddle has it, what does it eat? Anything it wants. And at various times in history, that 500 pound gorilla has been many different nations.

I don't think Bush speaks for every American. As an American, I think he's riding his entire popularity on the terrorism issue. Before that, I had very serious concerns about his understanding of world issues, domestic economics, and federal politics. All of these still reamin, especially after the heavy deficit budget plan he proposed.

You think he's done a good job; I don't. Only time will tell, but I sure hope a spirit of rampant nationalism doesn't try to wipe out all dissent or disagreement in the US over how our president is doing.<hr></blockquote>

From what I understand the USA doesnt stop those nations from doing anything that they might come up with....see what is really at the root of the problem here is plain old jealousy...all those other "great" nation's citizens who term America the "500lb Gorilla" and similar epithets are really just mad becuase their own system of government and their society has not allowed them to achieve anything of note on a global scale. They are frustrated at their inability to dominate, dictate or cajole the world to their way of thinking and thus are afraid of any nation that might actually be superior. I think it is worth noting that the populaces that really seem to be the most negative about the USA are one of two different varieties...
the first type being the one who treat their own people like dirt and have no problem sacrificeing the population for the good of themselves. The second seem to be all the one time world dominant nations, England, France, Spain those kinds of places...where they once held the world in their grasp and are now nothing but bit players in the world power structure. These nations and their vocal opponents of the USA are all feeling left out...feeling inefectual and unwanted because they no longer have their empires.


Sorry you all are feeling a bit unloved at the moment but if you recall..when you were empires..you were unloved then too....so really nothing has changed. Most of Britains colonies hated their opressors, Im pretty sure that the Inca's and the peoples of the Carribean held no love for the Spainiards who wiped out their civilizations, and of course the French are responsible for wiping out many native american communities with thier selling fabrics laced with diseases such as small pox and out right warfare (i won't even go into the wars they incited on their own continent.

I guess the USA can never live up to those great moments in history..but give us time..of course we have only been around for 200 or so years....we are barely even getting started on our quest for global domination [img]smile.gif[/img] You will all come to submit to our will and you too shall suffer the same terrible freedoms that Americans suffer under....even if it kills us to give it to you!

Hey guys lighten up, every world leader has his critics and has is...less than creditable side...for right now Bush is doing what needs to be done what should have been done sooner except for the lack of guts in the rest of the worlds leaders who should long ago have banded together to wipe out the terrorist states.

[ 02-09-2002: Message edited by: MagiK ]</p>