Disqus - Latest Comments for chuckbutcher

Re: Is the GOP Like GM?

chuckbutcher — Thu, 14 May 2009 05:16:12 -0000

Well, you had a better product with GM than you're sticking with and switched. Oh yeah, you're a smart feller...____Chuck

Re: Mid Stream Radio

chuckbutcher — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:49:19 -0000

It's bummer when the bad old work aday world intrudes on our hobbies.

Re: Hillary Clinton - The New Joe Lieberman?

chuckbutcher — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 05:46:43 -0000

I surely don't have any particular enthusiasm for Hillary, but lies and etc don't equal the economic, social, and military consequences of McCain. Yes, I think he's somewhat more ethical than Hillary, doesn't change the argument.

If you want more war in more places, John. If you want more wrecking of the economy for the rich - John. If you want more destroyed social programs - John. If you want more of what we've had - John. He's not a maverick, he's not a moderate, he's an old GWB on steroids. He'll do the same thing GWB did with the 527s, he'll disavow and ask toothlessly they knock it off - while they do his dirty work - he won't deny it or defend the victim.

If you think he's all about honor, go back to 04 and Swiftboat, he disapproved. Loyalty to a fellow decorated vet who'd been under fire in your conflict says take the gloves off and smack hell out of them for it. Not. That right there trumps all political affiliation but...

Re: Hillary Clinton - The New Joe Lieberman?

deep_eye — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 20:27:08 -0000

I actually disagree. I would not vote for McCain but I maintain that Hillary (and Bill) back in the White House would be an absolute nightmare beyond anything McCain could or would do. They are arguably the most corrupt, dishonest, self-serving couple in the history of American politics. I disagree with much of McCain's platform, but he is no where near the level of ethical and moral depravity that the Clintons are.

Re: Hillary Clinton - The New Joe Lieberman?

chuckbutcher — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 19:38:43 -0000

I don't like Hillary. You also cannot make the argument to me that she would do more harm to this nation or even approach doing the harm to this nation that McCain would do. A vote for someone other than the Democratic nominee helps John McCain.

I've previously read the same Machiavellian analysis of Hillary's campaign goals. I will point out that no amount of rhetoric would repair Hillary's image if she ran such a campaign. She would face a nasty Primary challenge in the intervening Senate campaign and possibly lose it. The Democratic Party machine would turn its back. Such stupidity is possible, GWB has proved it, but Hillary has been around the block and has seen what happened to Joe Lieberman. Joe is a cautionary tale.

Re: Losing In Iraq

chuckbutcher — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:50:38 -0000

Kudos from ron are always gratefully received.

Re: On the Radio: Are we racists? Sexists? How about just partisans?

chuckbutcher — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 19:03:03 -0000

"If" is such a big word for two letters,
If the woman wasn't Hillary?
If the black wasn't Barack?

It seems either proposition changes the equation considerably.

Re: On the Radio: Is Every Administration a "Co-Presidency"?

chuckbutcher — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 22:23:35 -0000

Now after my third loggin and erased comments I no longer give a damn

Re: The Vetting of Obama

chuckbutcher — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 01:51:55 -0000

I see thinktwice has managed to list the Republican's accomplishments, that would be his list of ... um...none. You guys need a new act.

Re: The Vetting of Obama

chuckbutcher — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 19:56:28 -0000

Nothing else come to light in regard to Hillary? Hmmm. I don't suppose the actuality of her behaviors coming back to haunt her versus the Republican smear campaign stuff is actually new, but dredging up Starr begs for it. A persecution does not wipe away actual behavior, despite where Hillary's people think it went to. Rezko and Wright are going to cause problems, no doubt.

Re: IL 14, The Republicans and Obama

chuckbutcher — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 19:54:15 -0000

I reported twice on the IL14 story because I thought it was important, the Republicans are already down playing it publicly but you can bet that's not what is going on behind closed doors. They are already wetting their britches and Obama is figuring large in their considerations.

Obviously one district and one candidate are not an absolute predictor, but it looms large and I bet there will be significant reaction on their part. Frankly I don't think anything could do Obama more good than having the R's take him real seriously. Too bad Hillary is in their camp.

Re: The real problem

chuckbutcher — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 19:46:38 -0000

We've done our bit in Iraq, though at a pretty high carbon output, Sudan has been a bit more carbon neutral in their approach. /snark

Resources only cover so many people, if people would be satisfied with 2 children there would be a net loss in numbers over time. My guess is the more likely population control method will involve a combination of disease and bullets.

Re: Me too Steve

chuckbutcher — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 20:58:53 -0000

I would never be one to say I told you so, I did, though. I've watched Hillary across the years and anybody surprised by this was engaging in wishful thinking. She ain't tough, she's mean, she's a fighter alright, dirty is fine with her.

Re: The Donkeys Hit Florida Where The Sun Don’t Shine

adamelend — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 17:23:21 -0000

That's a really great point, Chuck, but you're ignoring the fact that the Republicans put a highly controversial property tax issue on the January 29th ballot. The DNC refusing to participate was akin to giving up a critical battle (that probably has more direct impact on the citizens of the state than who's President, actually).

Should you blame the state Republicans? Of course! But they're not on the same team as the state Dems. The DNC, however, is. They should have recognized the position that Florida was in, and penalized them as provided for in the rules. Refusing to recognize the election was certainly the DNC's right. But that doesn't make it the right move.

Re: The Donkeys Hit Florida Where The Sun Don’t Shine

chuckbutcher — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 15:45:46 -0000

Here's the legal end of it, the DNC owns the national Democratic Primary, lock stock and barrel. Within the DNC rules governing the conduct of the elections, the State Parties own the State Democratic Primary and it is their responsibility to run the election. The fact that any state has chosen to fund a Primary does not give the state ownership of the Democratic Primary. The state is, of course, free to do what it will with its money and hold any kind of vote it pleases but it has no binding effect on the (for ex) Florida State Democratic Party or the DNC. People keep insisting that the DNC punished FL, it did not, it simply stated that an illegitimate election doesn't count. Whatever else you may have voted on, you have never had a Democratic Primary. The State Party knew this and decided to play hardball with DNC rather than finding a solution, a particularly stupid move, which cut into the time available to fix the mess. Their attitude was that FL was too important to have to play by the rules, in fact was stated by them and others.

Your lying suntanned Republican snake Governor knew all of this when he signed the bill, it served their ends to interfere with and screw the Democratic Party. There is plenty of blame to go around, but DNC bears not one iota. We had the same junk going on in Oregon, the DPO threw a fit and the legs backed off. We were prepared to caucus if we had to, you were not. Your State Party made the decisions, all they had to do was refuse to participate and pull their name off the ballot and get caucuses put together. There may have been a chance your leg would back down if the State Party had pulled ITS election off the ballot.

You can all throw whatever you like at the wall to see what sticks, but the plain and simple is that by law, the Florida State Democratic Party Primary belongs to the Florida State Democratic Party and is its responsibility. No state or the feds have the right to interfere with the free association of a party, any State Party so interfered with would take it to the Supreme Court with the full backing of DNC and at least a couple civil liberties law organizations.

The reason this story gets simplistic treatment and the blame DNC crap goes on is that it takes too much time and actual reasoning to tell the story accurately.

Thanks for the invite
Chuck

Re: Dems breaking the 50% mark?

chuckbutcher — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 20:28:12 -0000

It is worth consideration as to whether those numbers hold up under either candidate.

I'd be hard put to figure out how the Republicans could have worked harder to get here.

Re: In Golf We Call It a Mulligan

chuckbutcher — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 17:58:23 -0000

Actually, it's not a Mulligan. What happened is that Florida (and Michigan) ran elections that weren't Primary Elections for the Democratic Party. I can go out and practice drives all day, that doesn't make it a game. The reason the delegates won't be seated is that a Democratic Party delegate selection process never took place.

They can follow the rules and select delegates, what they can't do is select delegates just any old way they want to. The amount of misinformation about FL, MI, and "super delegates" is amazing. The DNC is the most grassroots it has ever been and the process is actually quite transparent and clear, but the news organizations don't get Sturm und Drang if they report the actuallity. Don't buy into the BS.

Re: Let's Fix the entire thing

chuckbutcher — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 03:41:32 -0000

Just for accuracy's sake, super delegates are elected, and elected by plain ole' Democrats.

The caucus process is one of winnowing, the idea being that you must be committed to the Party sufficiently to participate in order to have a voice in choosing the Democratic Party Candidate. Note - Democratic Party, not so and so's idea of, a Democratic Party Candidate. The qualifier? Participate.

State Party superdelegates are elected by the participants, whether they're a carpenter, or a lawyer. I voted for the Party auperdelegates for Oregon - in DPO. I was selected (a no buck NE OR nail banger) by the winning Vice Chair to deliver her nominating speech and I was a major backer, how democratic is that? My slate won the across the board. I am not an easy sale and I hold to high standards and every county delegate I know is real similar to myself.

There is a very good reason delegates in Primaries are selected proportionally on both Congressional and State percentages and it has to do with selection of those delegate within the Party, who selects and where. The goal is the widest possible representation and fairest apportionment. The arcana of it is beyond a comment and probably of no interest whatever to readership at large. Participating in a County Party gives both the opportunity for full information and to participate. Don't wanna? Don't bitch, you've been invited...repeatedly.

Folks, if you want to make a difference in how things go, then you have to actually DO somerthing.

Re: Hat In Hand

chuckbutcher — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 20:45:47 -0000

If they said on Monday that the sky is orange and on Tuesday insisted that it is blue, their audience would note no disconnect.

Re: Your quote of the weekend

chuckbutcher — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 23:50:26 -0000

He forgot to mention DUII.

Re: Super Tuesday Eve

chuckbutcher — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 23:48:46 -0000

This is petty much the stand I've taken since John Edwards left. I'm pretty much not too happy with either, but one doesn't stir up quite as much kaa-kaa as the other. The rest of it is nonsense, though I'd prefer a less bellicose foreign policy. So +2 in the Obama column.

Re: Poll: Public Increasingly Uneasy About Bill Clinton Back In White House

chuckbutcher — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 02:54:13 -0000

I don't mind Bill so much as Hillary, oh I'll vote Dem in the fall, but I really don't like Hillary from my own lefty Dem point of view, not the Republican mythology. I'm not real fond of Obama, either. In fact I don't like gun banners one iota because I don't trust them with the BOR or the rest of the Constitution. Authoritarianism is what it is whether it's GWB or ... whatever Democrat. Oh yeah, I'm very much a Democrat.

Re: Pre-Super Tuesday Pre-Jitters

chuckbutcher — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 02:43:12 -0000

Damozel,
it sure would be nice if you placed the blame for MI/FL where it belonged and it sure isn't DNC. You sure can blame your legislature (Republican) and you sure can blame your State Democratic Party for going ahead anyhow. Both were told in advance of their actions of the sanction, both had alternatives, went anyhow. Went ahead because your State importance trumped the Rules. Your state party could have run a delegate selection caucus or self-financed a Primary, did neither. You let them, yes you did.

I live E of BF Egypt in OR, nowhere, small town - no really a small town and I am on first name basis with a bunch of the movers and shakers in politics in this state. I get listened to and sometimes I even get important changes made. That happens because I participate, I spend time, effort, some money and a whole lot of listening on the game. Our state party set up a fall back position when our State Leg started talking about jumping order, and then we talked them out of it. We've built a relationship that lets us flex a little muscle, a little. But we covered our butts and our voter's butts. We didn't decide that our voters could go hang because we're sooooo important.

DNC did everything including kiss your butt, what they didn't do was tell you that you OWN the Democratic Party, and that's how that one goes. I am sorry as all get out that you personally got screwed, but if you felt that strongly about it, there were alternatives and you were only left out by YOUR own choice. County Party active membership is probably less than 0.5% of registered Democrats in any county, think how few of you could have made your voices count...

Re: Who Deserves What?

chuckbutcher — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 02:25:39 -0000

I have a construction crew (more likely had) that is seriously underpaid. I know they are, because I'm getting badly hurt along with them and I've been in this business since 1974 and at one time I could make a living as a crew member. Deserve? A half million dollar house built by people making 50% of 1984 wages? So, where did the wages go? Apparently 30% of illegal aliens work construction - you don't suppose all those cheating contractors are depressing wages? You suppose the denigration of working with your hands has anything to do with it? Maybe the systematic government suppression of unions who used to drag wages up? Deserve? These folks risk their health in all kinds of weather to build for people who don't give a rat's patoot if they're alive - they should've made better choices...

Sound like class warfare? It would be if two sides were fighting...only one is and they're winning and winning and...I guess they deserve.

Re: So Tom Tancredo Thinks John McCain is a "Traitor to this Country"

chuckbutcher — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 22:32:18 -0000

His performance as a POW is an example of bravery and will. This supposed carrying forward into his Party is not supported by votes or facts in general. My respect for McCain is tempered, seriously.