tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post8758081508551551658..comments2024-03-29T00:04:32.434-05:00Comments on Althouse: "So, how did President Obama do on the job? Was he a good president?"Ann Althousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01630636239933008807noreply@blogger.comBlogger101125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-84079298081738033202016-06-03T20:05:04.917-05:002016-06-03T20:05:04.917-05:00@Michael K: Yet your average American History befo...@Michael K: Yet your average American History before 1877 course would not mention the Panic of 1857, other than to hassle Buchanan and claim a need for government intervention. That event came and went quickly with orderly bad debt destruction and asset transfers from weak to stronger hands and fast growth to follow. It was just some housecleaning. It's only after, when the federal government took to intervention and interference in normal credit cycles and clearing prcesses that we've seen crack up booms and deep prolonged busts with zombie companies run by failed managers and crazy federal price manipulation interventions by people and agencies with records of serial failure, some of the latter being apparently permanent, and permanent, federal-reserve-funded, war. The central planners and intervenors know it's going to get worse too. What a joke it is to refer to stealing depositors' money as a "bail-in." The joke's on us though.JamesB.BKKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14327552035907688020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-62832734980458219212016-06-03T19:41:13.298-05:002016-06-03T19:41:13.298-05:00Next time mom comes to the prison, I'll be sur...Next time mom comes to the prison, I'll be sure to tell her that she's dumb to think I could have done a better job. And that she doesn't know how to think. And that because Obama's killed a lot of foreign moslems for apparently no good reason, as Robert Cook approvingly quotes some guy, more people would like Obama if he was all white. Right thinking people in the US are sure their fellow citizens should like the terrible stuff Robert Cook's guy described if only they weren't so racist. They are too racist to hold in esteem a president that does harmful things. And they are caught up in mass delusion by scary sounding "powerful interests," even though they have access to unfiltered information like never before.<br /><br />Robert Cook: Nonresponsive.JamesB.BKKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14327552035907688020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-61911769186198775082016-06-03T12:00:04.600-05:002016-06-03T12:00:04.600-05:00"I can prove the tax reduction claim false pe...<i>"I can prove the tax reduction claim false personally...."</i><br /><br />Perhaps you're not a member of the cohort most helped by Obama's tax policies, i.e., the <i>truly</i> wealthy.Robert Cookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06951286299515983901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-34167837418670291962016-06-03T11:56:13.685-05:002016-06-03T11:56:13.685-05:00"Barrack Hussein Obama aided those waging war...<i>"Barrack Hussein Obama aided those waging war against the USA. That is Treason."</i><br /><br />If it is, the heads of the Big Banks and the Fortune 500 have some serious prison time facing them.Robert Cookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06951286299515983901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-7504019855255219092016-06-03T11:50:34.248-05:002016-06-03T11:50:34.248-05:00Barrack Hussein Obama aided those waging war again...Barrack Hussein Obama aided those waging war against the USA. That is Treason.James Pawlakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12186313444291703809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-77616703601666723662016-06-03T10:21:06.460-05:002016-06-03T10:21:06.460-05:00Lots in the "Chris Floyd" big quote. Do...Lots in the "Chris Floyd" big quote. Does a "cut" = reduction in planned rate of growth? Bullshitty claim in each case if so. Does he got cites? I can prove the tax reduction claim false personally but why fiddle with a guy that might measure the tax take in the aggregate against the federal superstate's GDP numbrs?. Also, the opener should be, "If Obama wasn't half black ..." if that premise about his skin color was even valid. It might be the white part that's off-putting. Is that racist?JamesB.BKKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14327552035907688020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-77109843790117446972016-06-03T09:51:25.640-05:002016-06-03T09:51:25.640-05:00Dear Leader has been a terrible, devisive and dest...Dear Leader has been a terrible, devisive and destructive president....a miserable cock-sucker son of a bitch president. Nonetheless, he has been a remarkably effective president, perhaps the most effective president in my lifetime. And I go back to Truman. <br /><br />He was effective because he has intended every harm he has caused our nation. From Day One, it was his purpose. By saying that, I don't mean to say that in every instance he set out to actually cause harm. But that was the result. For example, Obamacare. Regulatory madness through the NLRB, FCC, EPA. Dodd-Frank<br /><br />In other instances, he actually intended the harm. For example, the Iran deal. Ferguson. Political acrimony. Iraq. Military reduction in strength. <br /><br />I'm pretty sure I can safely predict that a President Trump will cause considerably less harm to the US. Even if he will likely not be as effective as Our Savior, he will make things significantly better.<br /><br />-Krumhorn<br /><br /><br /><br />Krumhornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01196023921287085693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-70199368750155880952016-06-03T09:19:15.053-05:002016-06-03T09:19:15.053-05:00Curious George challenges: "Name a success.&q...Curious George challenges: "Name a success."<br /><br />I provide an answer from the always excellent Chris Floyd (http://www.chris-floyd.com/):<br /><br /><br /><i>"...if Obama wasn't black, he would be a conservative's dream. He's opened up more offshore drilling than Bush, expanded fracking, deported more people than any president in history, killed thousands of Muslims (and is currently bombing seven Muslim countries), raised military budgets, cut federal taxes to their lowest levels in 60 years, cut social programs, spent almost 8 years trying to strike a 'grand bargain' with Republicans to cut Social Security and Medicare (until this week when, in his last months in office, he's suddenly decided we should increase Social Security), worked hard to derail public healthcare in favor of a program drawn up by a conservative think-tank and first used by a Republican governor, put troops on the Russian border, beefed up US military presence in Asia to threaten China, supported right-wing coups in Latin America, gave Wall Street trillions of dollars in bailouts and credits, refused to prosecute any CIA officials for torture (despite admitting 'we tortured some folks'), jailed more whistleblowers than any other president, pushed fanatically pro-business trade treaties, and so on.<br /><br />"Yet there is a mass delusion (carefully and methodically stoked by powerful interests) that he is some kind of socialist peacenik 'surrendering to terrorists' and giving away 'free stuff' to the lazy poor (when in fact the poor and the middle class are sinking, while the rich have never been richer), etc."</i>Robert Cookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06951286299515983901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-7597779313806273352016-06-03T09:18:15.591-05:002016-06-03T09:18:15.591-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Robert Cookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06951286299515983901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-51594610241412395272016-06-03T07:47:05.087-05:002016-06-03T07:47:05.087-05:00Police stand between bad guys and offended citizen...Police stand between bad guys and offended citizens. The bad guys need them to be rough.JamesB.BKKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14327552035907688020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-31004266541012543432016-06-03T06:36:13.619-05:002016-06-03T06:36:13.619-05:00As many people have pointed out in different ways-...As many people have pointed out in different ways--Scott Adams is misapplying an old philosophical idea. That philosophical idea is that you can never know if an action you took was right or wrong because you can never know what would have happened if you had acted otherwise. (BTW: judging Obama a good or bad president is a separate question from whether it was right to vote for him--a distinction Althouse has squeezed a lot of mileage out of over the last 7 years.)<br /><br />Adams is using this idea to say you can never make an informed decision, that all decisions you make are hopelessly ignorant. But like Zeno's philosophical proof that movement in time is impossible, it is purely a thought game. However true you may believe it to be, you cannot live your life as though it were true and it's absurd of him to try to argue otherwise.tim maguirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07717622436074043099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-9308897635165721342016-06-03T01:19:29.209-05:002016-06-03T01:19:29.209-05:00"writes Scott Adams"
That's really ..."writes Scott Adams"<br /><br />That's really stupid logic. By his standard, nothing can be judged.Fenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16734571593963330215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-49802688644210287902016-06-02T23:17:47.229-05:002016-06-02T23:17:47.229-05:00@R&B
Bay Area Guy misses the good old days, ...@R&B<br /><br /><i> Bay Area Guy misses the good old days, when a cop could allow his anger to kill a citizen and not have to worry about any stigmatization whatsoever. </i><br /><br />It's a bit warped, but there is a kernel of truth buried therein. I had 2 Uncles who were NYCity cops, one in The Bronx, one in Times Square in the pre-Guiliani 70s. Both were Vietnam vets too, infantry.<br /><br />Both smoked a lot and drank too much. They were hard men. And, Yes, they had tempers and said a lot of politically incorrect harsh things. They saw a lot of shit in their 20 year careers. <br /><br />There's no easy answer for those who serve on the front lines, while the rest of us get to live in relative ease and comfort.Bay Area Guyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08342949066248487677noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-73017310280230198462016-06-02T21:45:18.928-05:002016-06-02T21:45:18.928-05:00Chuck wrote, "The time I have wasted on Scott...Chuck wrote, "The time I have wasted on Scott Adams is beginning to be a personal embarrassment to me." I share that sentiment. I have lost the respect I once had for the man. If only someone could persuade Althouse to stop hanging on, and passing along, his every blog post, acting as if it contained some deep mystical wisdom that eludes the rest of us. These Adams posts are becoming increasingly ridiculous, rather like the candidate for whom Adams seems hell-bent on being the chief apologist. <br /><br />A beloved professor of mine during my grad school days, when confronted with particularly incoherent writing in a student paper, would often write in the margin, "much too clever to be understood." That pretty much sums up Donald Trump and his "master explainer, " Scott Adams. I still hold out hope for Dr. Althouse.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-11681483226761974342016-06-02T21:02:21.083-05:002016-06-02T21:02:21.083-05:00I used to get mad at my school (No I can't com...I used to get mad at my school (No I can't complain)<br />The teachers who taught me weren't cool (No I can't complain)<br />You're holding me down (Oh), turning me round (Oh)<br />Filling me up with your rules (Foolish rules)<br /><br />I've got to admit it's getting better (Better)<br />A little better all the time (It can't get more worse)<br />I have to admit it's getting better (Better)<br />It's getting better since you've been mine<br /><br />Me used to be angry young man<br />Me hiding me head in the sand<br />You gave me the word, I finally heard<br />I'm doing the best that I can<br /><br />I've got to admit it's getting better (Better)<br />A little better all the time (It can't get more worse)walterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17818749187960350810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-87840858678973921812016-06-02T20:17:42.079-05:002016-06-02T20:17:42.079-05:00What if the question were: Is Scott Adams a great...What if the question were: Is Scott Adams a great cartoonist, or not?<br /><br />Suppose a polled majority answered, "not".<br /><br />You can bet Adams would point to his wealth and awards as extrinsic evidence he was INDEED a "great" cartoonist.<br /><br />He wouldn't need no stinkin' parallel universe to point to.effinayrighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16195111141879312800noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-60579541217278152902016-06-02T20:16:15.434-05:002016-06-02T20:16:15.434-05:00The U.S. has switched sides before, but I do not t...The U.S. has switched sides before, but I do not think it has ever happened so quickly and smoothly and without any explanation to the people of this country.Hagarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05011701168912339784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-4936153116932039522016-06-02T20:06:54.530-05:002016-06-02T20:06:54.530-05:00When will the MSM - or anyone in the "press&q...When will the MSM - or anyone in the "press" - ask the President to explain for us just how and <i>why</i> we went from fighting a "silent war" with Iran losing thousands of soldiers, to becoming allies of Iran, fighting side by side with their troops?Hagarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05011701168912339784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-80950107455175760842016-06-02T20:00:21.796-05:002016-06-02T20:00:21.796-05:00"Rhythm and Balls":
You cannot ape the ..."Rhythm and Balls":<br /><br />You cannot ape the opinions of conservatives but we can do so with your opinions. If you were not so foolish, you would wonder why that is so.Birkelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14205292523499913507noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-6901882801916262642016-06-02T19:52:55.647-05:002016-06-02T19:52:55.647-05:00Judgement, with two "e"s. What to make ...Judgement, with two "e"s. What to make of that? <br /><br />Scott Adams does make a good point about all the screeching from Democrats and National Review type Republicans about the risks and just plain badness of a Trump presidency. No one can predict the outcome. In a parallel universe, it can be fairly assured that Democrats would be carrying on the same way no matter the R nominee. That's what they do, together with fomenting envy and resentment. Talking about an observable past and thoughts about that past in connection with prediction is where Scott Adams seems to have veered from his topic and argument. <br /><br />No real job experience or "leadership" in government? Check - like Obama. Is economical with the truth? Check - like Obama. Might continue George Bush's policies and practices? Check - like Obama (who with H. Clinton doubled-down on the invasion and destabilization stuff while offering no democracy project or decent protection for USA "friends"). From this assessment, one could predict that Trump would carry on as Obama has, but that's a pretty high bar. How could one person with his followers create yet more present chaos and pathways for chaos abroad and domestically and more freedom-killing government intervention and interference domestically than has Obama? Obama's up there with Lincoln, Wilson, F. Roosevelt, Johnson, and Nixon for variants of creating or fomenting chaos and body counts abroad and killing freedom at home. Nixon gets most of the credit for empowering our mad central planning central bankers and fully ruining our money. So, Obama's done a pretty good job at being a destructive US President, likely to "garner" praise from state-connected lefty historians. Trump could do that as well, except for the toxic R that will cause the state-connected historians to see only harmful outcomes.JamesB.BKKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14327552035907688020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-77502891229168581602016-06-02T19:42:56.226-05:002016-06-02T19:42:56.226-05:00/facepalm
/facepalm<br />SGT Tedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00184808889760136366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-30096442563337201062016-06-02T19:30:48.933-05:002016-06-02T19:30:48.933-05:00Racial relations are not great; the Ferguson effec...<i>Racial relations are not great; the Ferguson effect is real -- many cops are afraid to do their jobs, for fear of being sued or stigmatized as a racist.</i><br /><br />Bay Area Guy misses the good old days, when a cop could allow his anger to kill a citizen and not have to worry about any stigmatization whatsoever. <br />Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Togetherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02059991118123693141noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-51683743856868270912016-06-02T19:28:18.829-05:002016-06-02T19:28:18.829-05:00Republicans hate him because he wasn't the kin...Republicans hate him because he wasn't the kind of drama queen that they apparently crave in a leader. Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Togetherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02059991118123693141noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-29978337454036436682016-06-02T19:09:14.589-05:002016-06-02T19:09:14.589-05:00Who knows what Scott Adams believes in?
He thinks...Who knows what Scott Adams believes in?<br /><br />He thinks Barack Obama -- who nominated Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court, and a host if legal leftists to the Circuit and District Courts -- was an historically great president. And then he suggests that Donald Trump -- whose closest thing to a realistic campaign pledge so far (since he cannot 'build the wall,' or repeal Obamacare, or cut taxes or reduce the size of the federal government by himself in any event) was his short list of candidates for the Supreme Court were mostly noted conservatives -- would also be a sound choice for the presidency.<br /><br />That is nonsensical. Nonsensical, that is, if policy and ideology are at all meaningful.<br /><br />If Adams is so keen on Obama's performance in office, one would presume that there are substantive reasons for Adams' view. Was it the passage of Obamacare? But Obama swayed not one Republican vote. Obama relied on his virtual supermajorities in Congress, which he promptly squandered in the next election.<br /><br />Is Adams happy with Obama for the conduct of foreign policy? All of which Trump believes was garbage, from our historic allies in NATO, to Japan and Korea, to the Middle East, to the TPP trade deal. Which one is right?<br /><br />The time I have wasted on Scott Adams is beginning to be a personal embarrassment to me.<br /><br />Chuckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07676108366725199186noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-10205261653910136282016-06-02T19:07:22.417-05:002016-06-02T19:07:22.417-05:00"Or does he just not have an editor or even a..."Or does he just not have an editor or even a proofreader?"<br /><br />Why does Chuck prefer the vulgar, dumbed down spelling over the traditional intelligent one?<br /><br />Where's someone to proofread "Chuck"? <br />rcoceanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17102201338319611538noreply@blogger.com