Sageman's Blog

I think one point that needs to be made is that a lot of times our economy is influenced by the support we place in our president. If there is no faith in the ability of our president to perform his job then we will see that reflect on our economy.

The impact may be small but it's still there. What that means is that when elections are over in November, we will see a new president in office and the confidence we place in that president will indirectly impact our economy. Something to think about either way.

Anyone think there is any validity to this theory? What impact do you think McCain would have and what impact do you think Obama would have. Try to be ojective and not ruin the thread with rants about either please.

Now that the democratic nomination seems imminent, I was wondering who the republican bloggers feel is the biggest threat to McCain? A poll taken by CBS News/The New York Times has 48% of democrats polled feeling that Obama has the best chance of defeating McCain in the general election, down from 56% a month ago.

So who do you republicans feel would be the biggest threat to a Republican win, Hillary or Obama? Why do you feel they would cause problems for McCain's campaign?

I'm the first to admit that people get emotional over the war in Iraq. I think, along with the Vietnam War, this will go down as one of the worst conflicts in American History. Yet it will also be one of the most important conflicts we have participated in and in many ways it has taught us some valuable lessons.

The first lesson is, "Finish what you start." We left Iraq the first time with so many things unfinished, that in itself could be seen as the leading cause for the issues we are dealing with now. If we had finished the job the first time, with the support of the Middle East and the majority of the UN, it would have not cost us as much in both lives and dollars.

Because we were nearsighted the first time, we are now footing the bill for a war that is looking to bankrupt our country. Yet while the country goes bankrupt, the same business' that made money off the cold war are once again making money off this war. The leaders of these companies and the investors are the same people pushing to stay in Iraq, saying finish the job. I think their motives are suspect but I do agree, that to leave before the job is finished will hurt us more in the long run.

The second lesson we learned from this war is, "Check your sources." To many mistakes were made because politicians went off the words of their advisor's with out making sure that the information was valid. It seem's that now the whole "Weapons of Mass Destructions (WMDs)" became more of a hypothesis rather than a fact. No one with an ounce of common sense would doubt whether Saddam was working on WMDs but now we really have to ask just how major of a threat it was to us. Many would agree that taking a little more time to plan would have added to our success in Iraq.

The third lesson is, "Don't get involved in something with out knowing the social dynamics first." We tried to win "Hearts and Minds," based on the assumption that we could apply the same standards of our western culture towards a middle eastern culture. I find it hard to believe that no one ever told the leaders in charge, the Shiites and Sunnis don't like each other at all. Now we find out one of the reasons for stability in the region came from Saddam's iron hand. His tactics seem to be the only thing that kept these people from each other's throats the first time. Not condoning Saddam's actions but just point out a fact.

The fourth lesson is, "Don't spread yourself to thin." Finish one war before getting involved in another conflict. If we had spent a year or two emphasizing an end to the conflict in Afghanistan, the conflict in Iraq might have ended in a whole different way.

I guess that sums up what I was trying to say, I might have missed some things. I am for finishing the job but I'm also for getting our troops out of harms way ASAP too. Limiting the amount of troops we send over there and putting more of the job on the shoulders of the Iraqi Army should be tantamount right now. We'll have to see how things shape up but I don't see an end to this for a long time down the road.

Also remember, hindsight is 20/20. Taking that vision and learning the lessons taught will be the real victory in Iraq.

In this day and age where news is disseminated in a matter of minutes is it any wonder that opinions form just as rapidly. Seldom are all the fact's known before one of the many news personalities have formed an opinion. What is even more interesting is how these opinions waver based on public opinion. It begs the questions, does anyone wait for all the facts to come in before basing an opinion?

Its not just news personality's at fault either, it's become a trend now, where people formulate an opinion based on a few short paragraphs posted on a news website or a 2 minute news byte aired on a "Live Broadcast" about a topic, never waiting to see the whole story unfold. God forbid if it does evolve into something they disagree with, because, well then it's a conspiracy. At that point both sides level accusations that either the neo-conservatives, or liberal controlled news media, are plotting to keep the real story hidden.

It's also interesting how everyone (news reporters included) will leave out elements to bolster a more interesting or persuasive story. Few people care whether they receive all the facts, all the information, as long as there's enough there to formulate a conclusion they agree with. Then with that small bit of agreeable information people run off headlong into an argument supported by conclusions that are to them black and white.

Does anyone cares about the shades of gray, the wrong or right, the guilty or innocent? With out the gray, we find that compassion is often thrown out the window. All in all, It seems we place our Politicians on pedestals, much like the Ancient Greeks did their heroes. They are to be idolized as better than human, a sort of demi-god, and woe should any of them stoop low enough to show human foibles.

Are we to harsh on our politicians, do we forget that they are very much like us? No one bat's an eye when they know a neighbor is cheating on his wife or vice versa. In my little community people knew two of our married neighbors were cheating on each other but no one bothered to tell the innocent spouses of the transgressions. When asked why, people simply said it was no one's business.

In Europe the attitude towards politicians is different than in America. They seem to enjoy knowing their politicians are human, in fact they have a history of forgiving them for their errors, whether politically or socially. One blunder will seldom cripple a politicians career in European Countries, after all how can they be expected to be any better than anyone else?

So have we become to harsh on the politicians we have elected? Do we expect more of them than is deserved? Should they be forgiven for the failures if they simply fall into human nature? No expects the criminal to walk free or the corrupt to triumph, but should the average fault become more than average?

I'm sure most everyone who will read this knows of the recent tragedy to befall Tibet. So I beg to ask this question, "Can we in America do anything to influence the second most powerful nation in the world to free Tibet? Can we influence a nation with out going the route of Iraq?"

I think that people in America our ignorant of the true power they hold. We are all consumers and as such that gives us an enormous amount of power. Especially if you consider that China Exports almost as much to us in America as it does the rest of the world.

Is the only might America truly has at the end of the sword?

Do you think boycotting Chinese products would influence China along the path of freeing Tibet?

I have tried my best to keep on top of politics lately but the recent decision to push in favor of adding the Florida delegates votes towards the delegate count for the democratic nomination has made me curious.

Will it make a decision either way? I know that Hillary Clinton would gain another 100 or so delegates, but Obama, at the same time, will bring another 50 Delegates. This decision as a whole will not clinch the win for either candidate.

So where does that put us? We seem to have become the hotbed for election fiasco's. I beg to ask the question as to why our Florida politicians chose to push the election date to February, fully aware of the consequences behind it.  Why does it seem that even though the state of Florida has a strong democratic party it consistently fails to clinch significant democratic wins?

It seems that the democratic party in Florida is one rife with inconsistencies and in this one flaw, they manage to keep the control the state in Republican hands.

Thanks for reading.