President coming around

[Plane]

http://news.msn.com/world/obama-us-misjudged-iraqi-army-militants-threat

"I recognize the contradiction in a contradictory land and a contradictory circumstance," Obama said in an interview aired Sunday on CBS' "60 Minutes." ''We are not going to stabilize Syria under the rule of Assad," whose government has committed "terrible atrocities," Obama said.

"On the other hand, in terms of immediate threats to the United States, ISIL, Khorasan Group — those folks could kill Americans."

     What do you do when  you discover that being a police force , meddling in foreign governments, making acts of war part of the daily decision routine , is not optional, no better choice than acts of war are being offered.

       What do you do when the game eliminates other moves?

        Do you admit that most of your criticism of your predecessor was ill informed?
        Do you return to the Nobel Prize committee the award and prize money?


         Much more important , do you continue to denigrate and disassemble the greatest military force in the world because it is no longer necessary to be first all the time?   

         It is laughable to call President Obama a warmonger , in truth it is just more laughable to call presidents like Ronald Reagan or George Bush 41 and 43 warmongers.

       It isn't  so simple as being such a pacifist that you never go to war, a president that loves peace is thoughtful and reasonable about war , using it when it is good for preventing worse , and preserving a credible threat that can sometimes be used instead of war.

       President Obama is turning into a better president , after a six year training period, he is not so naïve as he started .


        I wonder if there couldn't be a sort of training for preparing a cadre of candidates for presidents so that we could have them vetted and tested and still have a choice before any of them has to actually take office?

     When President Obama was first elected , it seemed as if his lack of practical experience was viewed as  a positive feature, sometimes we are voting for the lesson we as an electorate need to learn.

[Xavier_Onassis]

 I wonder if there couldn't be a sort of training for preparing a cadre of candidates for presidents so that we could have them vetted and tested and still have a choice before any of them has to actually take office?'

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There is a really dumb idea, as it limits the candidates that we can vote for by requiring them to pass some sort of test determined by some commission that would be composed of people that were not chosen by the people.

What we need is major campaign finance reform.

[Plane]

I wonder if there couldn't be a sort of training for preparing a cadre of candidates for presidents so that we could have them vetted and tested and still have a choice before any of them has to actually take office?'

===========================================================
There is a really dumb idea, as it limits the candidates that we can vote for by requiring them to pass some sort of test determined by some commission that would be composed of people that were not chosen by the people.

What we need is major campaign finance reform.

What you have just described already happens.

Campaign finance reform would also do this , because there would be a commission not chosen by the people choosing who was a worthy candidate to fund.

I would not empower any commission to choose candidates, this is a function of party, and I would not want parties to the be the exclusive  doorway .

Why not have a school open to all? No need for a commission of choosers , graduate as many as can handle the training . This would not become a requirement , just a convincing item on the resume.

Only a few graduates would go on to become president , but the training could be good for other leadership roles , so no waste.

[Xavier_Onassis]

That sounds like Plato's Republic.

I do not think that the problem is that there is inadequate expertise in the presidency: after all, capable advisers are all over the place.

The problem tends to be one of ego.

FDR was an excellent leader, but he could never be elected now, as his paralysis could never be kept secret. Neither could Lincoln's fits of depression. or JFK's back troubles.

the parties are far more mean spirited now than since before the Civil War.

The Governor's race here in FL is hideously awful, with nothing but lying negative crap on both sides. They are wasting millions making asses of themselves.

It is bad here, but far worse in Central FL where the undecided voters are.

[Plane]

  FDR did not keep his disability secret.

    My father knew all about it, and FDR was the first president he voted for.

[Xavier_Onassis]

There were NEVER photos of FDR in a wheelchair or being carried to his car.

Any reporter that wrote a story or took such a photo was barred from the White House in particular and the government in general.

That would never happen now.

[Plane]

  This is more true of Kennedy than it is for FDR.

    Kennedy made a point of looking healthy , which he really was not.

   

http://ideas.time.com/2013/07/12/the-myth-of-fdrs-secret-disability/
 in 1937 Luce’s Life magazine disregarded White House rules and published a photo of Roosevelt in a wheelchair. It was shot from a distance, and the figures are not identifiable, but the caption clearly states, “The President is here shown on his way to visit a sick cabinet member at the old-fashi.........

This time article does a good job of explaining how the Secret Service and the White house forbade filming the President in his wheelchair , but how practically everyone knew all about it anyway.

    So it is a half truth.

[Xavier_Onassis]

The pictures you show were never run in the newspapers during FDR's lifetime.


The point is not about FDR then, it is about how a person as qualified as FDR with his infirmities, could not be nominated or elected now.

[Plane]

The pictures you show were never run in the newspapers during FDR's lifetime.


The point is not about FDR then, it is about how a person as qualified as FDR with his infirmities, could not be nominated or elected now.

True , Life Magazine was not a newspaper.

Why are we less tolerant of infirmity now, than we were seventy years ago?

[Xavier_Onassis]

I do not think that as individuals we are less tolerant of infirmities of people we know.

However, imagine what a pusillanimous scumbag like Rove would do with a presidential candidate in a wheelchair.

CRIPPLED Government!  CRIPPLED  Foreign Policy!  CRIPPLED Candidate!

Do you want the United States of America to be a CRIPPLED COUNTRY?

There may be a BEAR in the woods, Do you think it is time to trust your safety from that BEAR to a CRIPPLE?!!

[Plane]

  Kennedy decided for himself to hide his infirmity.

   When  Carl Rove was helping run a campaign against triple amputee Max Cleland he did not do as you suppose and pretty much ignored this potential issue.

    Indeed , was it really a potential issue?

     I voted for Max Cleland once and against him once , he was a triple amputee both times.

     Perhaps politicians have an unwarranted low opinion of the voter. 

[Xavier_Onassis]

Cleland was indeed attacked for his lack of limbs.

It is not just physical deformities, it is ANYTHING that can be used, will be used. Photographs of people at events turn into accusations of bribery and corruption.
Negative campaigns are more effective with uninformed voters, and most voters are uninformed.

Only 36% of the American adults surveyed were able to correctly name the three branches of government in a recent poll.

[Plane]

   Democrats want the votes , but do not respect the voter.

Only 36% of the American adults surveyed were able to correctly name the three branches of government in a recent poll.

  Heck.

    Don't we have a president who can't tell where these branches are divided?

[Xavier_Onassis]

Republicans want money, and don't respect anything except huge campaign donations.

I have zero use for their worthless hides.

[Plane]

Republicans want money, and don't respect anything except huge campaign donations.

I have zero use for their worthless hides.

So far this year , the Republicans are not spending as much as the Democrats.

Although the Democrats do say that they are the party of the little man , they attract as many fat cats as they need.