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Need Statesmen- Not Politicians

A

Anonymous

Guest
Last night I watched a panel discussion on C-SPAN about the upcoming Presidential election- and what the new President can/should do...

One of the most interesting speakers was old Bill Brooks- former Chairman of the Republican Committee...He said that the Congress and President need to go back 40 years and start working together like they used to- both parties.....The parties have both catered to the far sides (left or right) of their parties and spend all their time working on those special interests and forgot about working for the people as a whole..Much of this has come about by the fact that if someone takes a position you don't agree with they are immediately labeled as a "liberal" or "rightwinger", Dem or Repub- and completely almost contemptously attacked- rather than being looked at as someone with a differing opinion...They are then attacked by the opposing party (hoping to get political value from it) , rather than working with them for a compromise for the betterment of the populace, like used to be done...

Brooks interestingly said that Republicans are going to have to get off this "Read My Lips" concept....He said in order to run government- taxes are necessary- and that there are good ones and bad ones- as well as tax money being spent for good things and for bad....

He says with the problems now facing the US he can see no way that taxes can not be raised- as our building debt alone with the slowed income could bankrupt the country in less than 10 years if we generate no new ways to start paying it off...

He went on to say that some conditions in the US are abysmal- and mentioned Health Care costs as #1- and that Liberal or Conservative- it must be handled- and he hoped thru working together on a compromise package...
#3 issue following the economy and health care he mentioned was education...He said that the US now ranks 24th in the world in people that are illiterate- with many countries that have been thought of as 3rd world countries having higher literacy rates.....
He also mentioned our failing construction infrastructure and small business as a huge problem...

Interestingly all 6 folks on the panel agreed that the Dems will control the next Senate and House- picking up seats in both- and have the edge on controlling the White House....

One thing they all also agreed on- was that if these Parties don't start working together for the people, rather than their special interest bases, the country is in dire straits....

They brought up one thing they thought was very encouraging- and that was the amount of populace involvement that Obama has been able to stir up amongst Repubs, Dems, and Independents- without directly attacking anyone- and the hope that if he is the next President he can have enough total backing across the nation to reach across Party lines...
They compared him to JFK in being able to stimulate the country...Brooks then told a story of when JFK was President and Goldwater was going to run against him...Goldwater met with JFK- and they agreed to not attack each other on any personal issues- do 16 debates in 16 cities, just on the differences of their plans on the issues- and even fly together on the same plane to save $...This didn't happen because of the assassination- and LBJ's political machines refusal to go along with it....
 

Steve

Well-known member
taxes are necessary

spending cuts are needed more and first.....

giving the current bunch of Washington politicians more money will not fix the problem.. it will just make it worse...

Maybe Washington should represent US first...
 

Steve

Well-known member
He said that the US now ranks 24th in the world in people that are illiterate-

"Increasing standards of what counts as literacy. Literacy is not something that can be defined by a static grade level, but is measured against the perceived literacy needs of individuals shaped, in part, by society and culture. For basic literacy population the higher end achievement is high school equivalency achievement. Also important is mastering the print-based needs of obtaining and keeping a sustainable job, understanding and filling out forms of various types, basic math, capacity to write a basic letter, rudimentary computer-based mastery and knowing how to access information from various print sources in home, work, community, and commercial environments. All of these pertain to the ESOL population. The higher end here would be entrance into college and obtaining a professional or entry level administrative position".
One cause of low literacy is that the ladder of what functional proficiency consists of has been raised.

"Increasing immigrant population. 31.4 million immigrants identified in 2000 census. Immigrant groups are at the lowest levels of English literacy. This includes the subgroup of refugees from African nations such as Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan, and also Afghanistan that have been war-torn for years, in which schooling was not an option for many in those Countries.

"Drop out rates and increasing numbers of students, especially in
the cities not reading at grade level. All the way through their
schooling, such students are getting further behind as they socially passed year after year, or sometimes misplaced in special education classes. Most, in fact, lack the basic literacy and numeracy skills needed to succeed in a GED program, and may lack the basic skills to succeed in a pre-GED program. This, in turn, contributes to the alarming life long gap between the educationally haves and have nots, which, in turn, help to foster generational cycles of low literacy. High drop out rates are both a symptom of low literacy and a contributory factor".

so to solve the problem.. we could raise taxes?

or actually solve it...

since the cost per student has continually increased with no "results" we must conclude that adding more money to their budgets is not a solution...

you can lead a horse to water... but you can't make him drink comes to mind here...

why waste so much of our money on unwilling students?

you can force them to sit in an over-priced classroom,... yet we can't force them to learn...

MY solution...
#1 ... set a standard.. let it be moderate to low... make it an I can read... do some math.. and write their name..or ( I'll call it the Jethro Bodine Diploma)... either a child passes and gets his JB diploma.or they get charged for the education they wasted...

why should they continue to drag the rest of the class down?

#2... No more immigrants... that way we are not discriminating... only temporary visas.. no more permanent immigration..
University student.. no more then six years...(and must be a paying full time student)
Tourist.. stays the same... visit,.. then go home..
and work.. Must be literate.. and able to speak English...Numbers would be hinged to the Unemployment index..

If Immigration is a problem then stop it... and not let it drag our literacy rates down..
 

fff

Well-known member
Oldtimer said:
Last night I watched a panel discussion on C-SPAN about the upcoming Presidential election- and what the new President can/should do...

One of the most interesting speakers was old Bill Brooks- former Chairman of the Republican Committee...He said that the Congress and President need to go back 40 years and start working together like they used to- both parties.....The parties have both catered to the far sides (left or right) of their parties and spend all their time working on those special interests and forgot about working for the people as a whole..Much of this has come about by the fact that if someone takes a position you don't agree with they are immediately labeled as a "liberal" or "rightwinger", Dem or Repub- and completely almost contemptously attacked- rather than being looked at as someone with a differing opinion...They are then attacked by the opposing party (hoping to get political value from it) , rather than working with them for a compromise for the betterment of the populace, like used to be done...

Brooks interestingly said that Republicans are going to have to get off this "Read My Lips" concept....He said in order to run government- taxes are necessary- and that there are good ones and bad ones- as well as tax money being spent for good things and for bad....

He says with the problems now facing the US he can see no way that taxes can not be raised- as our building debt alone with the slowed income could bankrupt the country in less than 10 years if we generate no new ways to start paying it off...

He went on to say that some conditions in the US are abysmal- and mentioned Health Care costs as #1- and that Liberal or Conservative- it must be handled- and he hoped thru working together on a compromise package...
#3 issue following the economy and health care he mentioned was education...He said that the US now ranks 24th in the world in people that are illiterate- with many countries that have been thought of as 3rd world countries having higher literacy rates.....
He also mentioned our failing construction infrastructure and small business as a huge problem...

Interestingly all 6 folks on the panel agreed that the Dems will control the next Senate and House- picking up seats in both- and have the edge on controlling the White House....

One thing they all also agreed on- was that if these Parties don't start working together for the people, rather than their special interest bases, the country is in dire straits....

They brought up one thing they thought was very encouraging- and that was the amount of populace involvement that Obama has been able to stir up amongst Repubs, Dems, and Independents- without directly attacking anyone- and the hope that if he is the next President he can have enough total backing across the nation to reach across Party lines...
They compared him to JFK in being able to stimulate the country...Brooks then told a story of when JFK was President and Goldwater was going to run against him...Goldwater met with JFK- and they agreed to not attack each other on any personal issues- do 16 debates in 16 cities, just on the differences of their plans on the issues- and even fly together on the same plane to save $...This didn't happen because of the assassination- and LBJ's political machines refusal to go along with it....

I don't know Bill Brooks or anything about him. But I have to laugh out loud at the number of Republicans who are now decrying the partisanship, labels, insults handed out by various people. Back when Republicans were in charge and Tom Delay, Dennis Hasteret, Duke Cunningham, etc., were running things, it was fine. If you didn't like Bush's war you were unAmerican or a coward, or a terrorist lover. If you complained about the Federal deficit, you were a liberal tax and spender.

Maybe Obama is the guy to make things better; he talks about including Republicans in his Cabinet. But I'm afraid if he's elected, he'll find out that cooperation runs only one way with the Republicans. The 28 or so Republicans who have announced they're not running for re-election are some of the more moderate Republicans in the House, most willing to work with Democrats to get things done for the country. If they're replaced by Republicans, I believe it won't be with people willing to work with the opposition. But, with luck, Democrats will have a large enough majority to overcome a veto from whoever is president.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Steve- many of those problems were brought up- and Brooks even used education as an example- the parties always choose their polarized stands and won't move on them- The Repubs always blame the teachers and teachers unions- the Dems always blame classroom size, lack of money, and inability to hire, pay, and retain enough good teachers-- when both need looking at.....

As he commented- in the last few years more time has been spent testing the students (which supposedly tests the competency of the teachers) and arguing over Darwin and Dinosaurs- than has been spent teaching reading and writing....

Just because of the huge polarization that exists in the country and especially within the parties that just breeds it more thruout the country....

While the panel was not backing or endorsing Obama- they did indicate they thought that he was the only one that could win with a huge backing of the population- and in doing so - getting a big enough mandate and backing of the populace to get something done in they years to come....

While I'm not an Obama fan- I agree with that...We don't need another closely split election (especially where one wins by the electoral vote, but loses the popular vote :roll: )....

This country needs someone to win with a large mandate to reunite and invigorate it - and I don't think McCain or Hillary can do it.....
 

fff

Well-known member
Oldtimer said:
Last night I watched a panel discussion on C-SPAN about the upcoming Presidential election- and what the new President can/should do...

One of the most interesting speakers was old Bill Brooks- former Chairman of the Republican Committee...He said that the Congress and President need to go back 40 years and start working together like they used to- both parties.....The parties have both catered to the far sides (left or right) of their parties and spend all their time working on those special interests and forgot about working for the people as a whole..Much of this has come about by the fact that if someone takes a position you don't agree with they are immediately labeled as a "liberal" or "rightwinger", Dem or Repub- and completely almost contemptously attacked- rather than being looked at as someone with a differing opinion...They are then attacked by the opposing party (hoping to get political value from it) , rather than working with them for a compromise for the betterment of the populace, like used to be done...

Brooks interestingly said that Republicans are going to have to get off this "Read My Lips" concept....He said in order to run government- taxes are necessary- and that there are good ones and bad ones- as well as tax money being spent for good things and for bad....

He says with the problems now facing the US he can see no way that taxes can not be raised- as our building debt alone with the slowed income could bankrupt the country in less than 10 years if we generate no new ways to start paying it off...

He went on to say that some conditions in the US are abysmal- and mentioned Health Care costs as #1- and that Liberal or Conservative- it must be handled- and he hoped thru working together on a compromise package...
#3 issue following the economy and health care he mentioned was education...He said that the US now ranks 24th in the world in people that are illiterate- with many countries that have been thought of as 3rd world countries having higher literacy rates.....
He also mentioned our failing construction infrastructure and small business as a huge problem...

Interestingly all 6 folks on the panel agreed that the Dems will control the next Senate and House- picking up seats in both- and have the edge on controlling the White House....

One thing they all also agreed on- was that if these Parties don't start working together for the people, rather than their special interest bases, the country is in dire straits....

They brought up one thing they thought was very encouraging- and that was the amount of populace involvement that Obama has been able to stir up amongst Repubs, Dems, and Independents- without directly attacking anyone- and the hope that if he is the next President he can have enough total backing across the nation to reach across Party lines...
They compared him to JFK in being able to stimulate the country...Brooks then told a story of when JFK was President and Goldwater was going to run against him...Goldwater met with JFK- and they agreed to not attack each other on any personal issues- do 16 debates in 16 cities, just on the differences of their plans on the issues- and even fly together on the same plane to save $...This didn't happen because of the assassination- and LBJ's political machines refusal to go along with it....

I don't know Bill Brooks or anything about him. But he's simply full of BS when he claims the Democratic Party caters to the far Left. The Dems are mainstream. Look at the polls on health care, Iraq, education, any number of things, and the Dems are racking up 50% or better from the American public. I have to laugh out loud at the number of Republicans who are now decrying the partisanship, labels, insults handed out by various people. Back when Republicans were in charge and Tom Delay, Dennis Hasteret, Duke Cunningham, etc., were running things, it was fine for Rush, O'reilly, and the other attack dogs of the Admistration, to come out and insult people. If you didn't like Bush's war you were unAmerican or a coward, or a terrorist lover. If you complained about the Federal deficit, you were a liberal tax and spender. Now that the Dems have Congress and a good chance at the White House, it's time for everyone to be nice to each other, be respectful of other's opinions, work together. :roll:

Maybe Obama is the guy to make things better; he talks about including Republicans in his Cabinet. But I'm afraid if he's elected, he'll find out that cooperation runs only one way with the Republicans. The 28 or so Republicans who have announced they're not running for re-election are some of the more moderate Republicans in the House, most willing to work with Democrats to get things done for the country. If they're replaced by Republicans, I believe it won't be with people willing to work with the opposition. But, with luck, Democrats will have a large enough majority to overcome a veto from whoever is president.
 

Goodpasture

Well-known member
What we need is for local communities to elect those people to represent them that actually reflect the standards of the community they are representing. then we need a President who can articulate a goal and has the ability to persuade the people as a whole to endorse it. Then those individual representatives can meet, compromise, and agree on programs to put those articulated goals into effect. The past 8 years has been a constant barrage of "my way or the highway" political polarization which is coming close to destroying the fabric of this country. Another president like Bush will send us back to being the third world country we emerged from under Teddy Roosevelt.
 

fff

Well-known member
Goodpasture said:
What we need is for local communities to elect those people to represent them that actually reflect the standards of the community they are representing. then we need a President who can articulate a goal and has the ability to persuade the people as a whole to endorse it. Then those individual representatives can meet, compromise, and agree on programs to put those articulated goals into effect. The past 8 years has been a constant barrage of "my way or the highway" political polarization which is coming close to destroying the fabric of this country. Another president like Bush will send us back to being the third world country we emerged from under Teddy Roosevelt.

And the Republican voters around the country are voting for John McCain as their candidate. He buys in on Bush's Iraq policy, may be even more agressive in using the US military to "bring democracy" to foreign countries, make Bush's tax cuts permanent. He's a Bush rubber stamp, if you can believe what he's saying to get the nomination.
 

Texan

Well-known member
fff said:
And the Republican voters around the country are voting for John McCain as their candidate. He buys in on Bush's Iraq policy, may be even more agressive in using the US military to "bring democracy" to foreign countries, make Bush's tax cuts permanent. He's a Bush rubber stamp, if you can believe what he's saying to get the nomination.
McCain is starting to sound better all the time. Thank you for pointing that out. :lol:
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
fff
I don't know Bill Brooks or anything about him.

He was the former Chairman of the Republican Party- back in the 60's and 70's I think.....


. The 28 or so Republicans who have announced they're not running for re-election are some of the more moderate Republicans in the House, most willing to work with Democrats to get things done for the country. If they're replaced by Republicans, I believe it won't be with people willing to work with the opposition.

That is exactly what the panel brought up...They said many of the Congressmen and Senators we're losing are actually some of those that are more statesman then politician- and those that are willing to work across the party lines and use compromise for the good of the people...That actually have disagreed with Bush's arrogant "my way or no way" ....They commented they believe many are just fed up with and frustrated with this "everyone who doesn't agree with me is evil" type partisan politics that has polarized the nation...
The type that is quite evident by many of those posting on this site.... :wink:

They mentioned that those that are now beating wardrums in Iraq- are the same ones that condemned Clinton for having troops involved in Kosovo-- and that many of those that are condemning Bush the loudest for troops in Iraq are the same ones that were the biggest backers of Clinton going into Kosovo-- with partisanship doing most of the decision making and not whats good for the US people....
 

Cal

Well-known member
Texan said:
fff said:
And the Republican voters around the country are voting for John McCain as their candidate. He buys in on Bush's Iraq policy, may be even more agressive in using the US military to "bring democracy" to foreign countries, make Bush's tax cuts permanent. He's a Bush rubber stamp, if you can believe what he's saying to get the nomination.
McCain is starting to sound better all the time. Thank you for pointing that out. :lol:
Agreed, I think I can feel alot better about supporting him now, may even donate.
 

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