Hmmmm

I think 10 years ago I may have agreed with you. There was a time when there was some earnestness in our representatives and some common sense that transcended party. But it's just not that way anymore. I look at what the Democrats say versus what's in HR 3200 (healthcare bill) and it's obvious to me that they are either stupid or lying. Experience tells me they are lying. To our face. They lied about the phony-baloney goals of cap-and-trade as well. They lie because they know that most of us deal with the government via media soundbites and the media is in their pocket.

The Republicans are no better, they just happen to have been more inept at institutionalized lying and the media doesn't lay down for them as much. But they've been learning and once returned to power it'll be just as bad.

My point is that we cannot blindly accept on faith that these clowns are doing anything for the reasons they say they are. Everything of import is predicated on a power grab for a party or the Federal government.Everything.. It's gotten to the point that we can't even debate the issues because there are really no issues outside of the aforementioned power grab framework. Healthcare? The GOP has some excellent ideas involving tax cuts for healthcare payments and tort reform but the Dems on the committees won't allow them to be debated in committee. But if the GOP was running the show we'd see the opposite.

Gorelick, Clinton....yeah, I don't like 'em much either but it doesn't matter.

So I ask you, Kevin, and reflect on this: What's the point of you and I debating a point or attempting to engage a hard liberal like Tamar or a moderate like Mike Beane when the issues are not truly being addressed in Washington and issues are nothing more than planks to foist power grabs onto?

I would argue that Mike, Tamar, you, Marcia, me and everyone else debating issues have a lot more in common than we do with our party affiliated representatives in Washington. We may disagee but we actually care about the issues and we don't have hidden agendas.

The system is irrevocably broken. I think we've arrived at a time when we first need to fix what's wrong in DC and then can engage in honest debate and negotiation on true issues.

>Personally, I intend to vote for every single independent or 3rd party candidate on the ballot in 2010. Even Greens and Communists. I want to shrink the Democratic and Republican parties - the two party system is the real evil.
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>As frustrated as I am with the R's, I hope you reconsider. Two words: Jamie Gorelick.
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>Oh, wait...almost forgot....two more words: John Huang
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>Wait...two (actually three) more words: Yah Lin Trie
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>("Do you see a pattern emerging here, Scully?") :)
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>It's that type of thinking that helped to open the door for Clinton to sit in the White House for 8 years,...
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