Friday, 04.04.08
Evening In America
Photo by Flickr user ChazWags under a creative commons license.
That Americans are pessimistic isn't terribly surprising: The last year of the Bush Era feels like a cross between the final days of the Truman and the Carter Administrations, with a widely-disliked president presiding over an unpopular foreign war and a struggling economy -- a rare and understandably dispiriting combination. Still, the depths of the public's discouragement about America's prospects is striking, and one statistic in particular from the Times poll should be pasted on every political journalist's bulletin board: "Seventy-eight percent of respondents said the country was worse off than five years ago; just 4 percent said it was better off."
A version of the poll's question was employed, famously and to devastating effect, by Ronald Reagan in a 1980 debate with Carter. John McCain is no Carter, of course - he isn't an incumbent President himself, and he's vastly more popular than the man he's running to succeed - and it remains to be seen if Barack Obama can play a liberal Reagan. But the memory of '80 is a useful reminder, amid all the breathless horse-race coverage, of how much weight the underlying political and economic dynamics carry in Presidential politics, and of the enormous uphill climb John McCain and the GOP face this fall. The "wrong track" numbers won't necessarily determine the winner this November, but they'll be vastly more important to the final outcome than most of the things the press corps obsesses over on a day-to-day basis.
As easy as...Steve Benen thinks McCain should be easy to beat with such dispiriting numbers. But will the Democrats do it? |
Solipsistic fallacy?Mark Lacter asks why Americans are so pessimistic if most of them say that their personal finances are fairly good. |
Wallets firstRobert Pollin argues that the economy is the single most important issue of the election and evaluates the candidates' platforms. |
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Here's the biggest contradiction from the poll, one that suggests that the extent to which the media has colored Americans' perceptions of the economy:
When looking at the current state of their own finances, Americans remain relatively sanguine. More than 70 percent said that their financial situation was fairly good or very good, a number that has dropped only modestly since 2006.
And here's an angle for McCain to go on offense and talk about the role that government regulations and policies like the CRA had in stoking the mortgage boom and bust:
The poll found that Americans blame government officials for the crisis more than banks or home buyers and other borrowers. Forty percent of respondents said regulators were mostly to blame, while 28 percent named lenders and 14 percent named borrowers.
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From: Blacks4Barack.org
OBAMA PROVES WHITES NOT AS PREJUDICED AS WE THOUGHT !
" There's no way America would vote for a black president !.....America's not ready for a black president." That has historically been the sentiment and attitude shared by the majority of blacks in America due in part to the fact that we have always been under the assumption that most whites are so prejudiced that a black president in America would just never happen. But one of the most incredible things that has arisen through Barack Obamas campaign has been the vision of mass numbers of white people at each of the Obama rallys showing great love and support for this credible, intelligent, gifted, strong leader....who happens to also be black. It has been incredibly eye-opening and uplifting, and it, for the first time, shows us blacks that we have actually been wrong in our assumption that most whites are prejudiced toward us. Guess what ? Although you do have the exceptions to the rule, the fact is....most whites ARE NOT racist toward blacks. This is a very important revelation. VERY !!!
We, as blacks have held on to our injured history, which we rightfully feel was caused by whites, to such a degree that we have never had the opportunity to see or learn that the prejudiced attitudes of whites does not exist today like it had in the past. We just didn't know. We knew that a lot of whites like black music. We knew that millions of white women love Oprah, but we thought that was just a 'woman thing'. But in all honesty, we had no idea, until now, that white people of all ages....even older ones...could be as supportive of a black candidate as they have shown in great mass. We, as blacks have been wrong !
And now, to my black brothers and sisters....It's time for us to acknowledge this extremely important revelation...In other words....all whites are not prejudiced !!! In fact, MOST whites aren't ! I know, it's hard to believe because of our lifetime of thinking differently....but these are the facts. Just look in the eyes of the whites at Obama's rallys. You see a true warmth, compassion and true support for this man....who is black. What this means is that most whites have risen above the racism of old. Now, it is time for us, as blacks, to rise up as well. Of course, we as blacks will have the specific cases of injustice and prejudice as displayed through examples like Jena 6, Genarlow Wilson, Katrina and the like....and specific cases like those should be dealt with accordingly. In regards to economic, educational and criminal injustices and institutional racism....we still have a long way to go. But we must not continue to allow certain negative occurances to misdirect our minds toward thinking that these negative examples speak for the entire white race. The majority of whites of today are actually on our side !
Obama's campaign has already won by proving that whites and blacks can not only get along....but can work TOGETHER....toward a better tomorrow...for us all. And guess what my black family....America IS ready !!!
Greg Jones Visit:www.Blacks4Barack.org
Posted by Greg Jones | April 5, 2008 11:09 AM