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Back to the paper chase...
Jan. 29th, 2003 07:28 pm...but my heart is not in it.
I watched the SOTU last night on CBS, mostly to see what Bush was going to say about Iraq.
The first part of the speech, on domestic matters, had some nice lines in it, particularly the one that exhorted the Congress to limit increases in spending to what the average Joe could expect in his paycheck, percentage-wise.
Then there came a list of proposals for new spending that sort of made my jaw drop and underscored my conviction of there being no substantive difference between the Republicans and the Democrats as far as spending and the perception of the proper role of government is concerned.
(FWIW, I would, by the way be really interested in knowing what Hillary Clinton said to... I think it was Lieberman... early on in the speech. My lip-reading skills are a mite rusty...)
It was also interesting to see how the different sides of "the aisle" reacted to various proposals, such as the Democrats' utter indifference to Bush's call for an end to "partial-birth abortions." Such an inflexible attitude reminds me a bit of some addle-brained arguments I've heard from self-proclaimed defenders of the Second Amendment, to the effect that citizens ought to be able to own rocket launchers or howitzers, on the basis that any restriction of the right to keep and bear arms is unconstitutional. Both issues are worth separate posts; I'll just add them to my "to-do" list.
The second half of the speech hit pretty much all the high notes. I think the way Bush laid things out may have clarified much for people who've not really been paying that much attention to the debate (or whose sole source of information, God help them, is the conventional broadcast and print media). People who were convinced one way or another prior to the speech have likely not changed their minds because of it.
(Could someone explain why, if polls show between 50% and 67% approval of the President's policy toward Iraq, why nearly 100% of the people interviewed by the media express disapproval of that policy?)
* * * I've got an appointment in Durango with the doctor at a little after 3 tomorrow afternoon. Fortunately, my translation plate is clean, though I still have to do the 1099s and the state unemployment insurance return.
I'm feeling a bit puny right now. An attempt to nap didn't result in any rest, although my BP was pretty good (113/79), and I think that's part of it.
* * * I tried to respond to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bandicoot's comment to yesterday's post this morning, but LJ wouldn't let me. I tried again this afternoon, and LJ still wouldn't let me. (Anyway, bandicoot, if you read this, thanks for the info and the link!)
Cheers...
I watched the SOTU last night on CBS, mostly to see what Bush was going to say about Iraq.
The first part of the speech, on domestic matters, had some nice lines in it, particularly the one that exhorted the Congress to limit increases in spending to what the average Joe could expect in his paycheck, percentage-wise.
Then there came a list of proposals for new spending that sort of made my jaw drop and underscored my conviction of there being no substantive difference between the Republicans and the Democrats as far as spending and the perception of the proper role of government is concerned.
(FWIW, I would, by the way be really interested in knowing what Hillary Clinton said to... I think it was Lieberman... early on in the speech. My lip-reading skills are a mite rusty...)
It was also interesting to see how the different sides of "the aisle" reacted to various proposals, such as the Democrats' utter indifference to Bush's call for an end to "partial-birth abortions." Such an inflexible attitude reminds me a bit of some addle-brained arguments I've heard from self-proclaimed defenders of the Second Amendment, to the effect that citizens ought to be able to own rocket launchers or howitzers, on the basis that any restriction of the right to keep and bear arms is unconstitutional. Both issues are worth separate posts; I'll just add them to my "to-do" list.
The second half of the speech hit pretty much all the high notes. I think the way Bush laid things out may have clarified much for people who've not really been paying that much attention to the debate (or whose sole source of information, God help them, is the conventional broadcast and print media). People who were convinced one way or another prior to the speech have likely not changed their minds because of it.
(Could someone explain why, if polls show between 50% and 67% approval of the President's policy toward Iraq, why nearly 100% of the people interviewed by the media express disapproval of that policy?)
I'm feeling a bit puny right now. An attempt to nap didn't result in any rest, although my BP was pretty good (113/79), and I think that's part of it.
bandicoot's comment to yesterday's post this morning, but LJ wouldn't let me. I tried again this afternoon, and LJ still wouldn't let me. (Anyway, bandicoot, if you read this, thanks for the info and the link!)Cheers...
