h22com's Blog

h22com Commented on How Obama Led Me to Rejoin ACLU by h22com

2009-03-10T21:13:13Z

Thanks for writing.
I know about the history of signing statements, I didn't go into it in more detail because (a) my posting was getting plenty long already and (b) despite it's long history I'm not sure that it was ever valid, and Bush seems to have proven that it is a tool too subject to abuse. The right forum to challenge constitutionality is the court system.

h22com recommended What's wrong with Obama? by h22com

2009-01-12T16:25:57Z

h22com Commented on What's wrong with Obama? by h22com

2009-01-13T19:16:53Z

Sad but true. If the Democrats had been tougher on Wall Street during the Clinton years, we might not be in as bad a mess as we are now.

I think that's one of Obama's mistakes, bringing back the people responsible for much of this, like Rubin and Summers. Rubin, in particular, was nearly ciminal in his use of public office for personal gain.

h22com Commented on What's wrong with Obama? by h22com

2009-01-13T19:13:56Z

I think that the argument about depressing economic activity has been disproved. We went from gas prices around $1.50 to $4.00, and all the while the economy was chugging along nicely. It was the financial disaster that brought it all down, not gas prices.
As I said in the post, gas prices are going up again anyway. The choice is this: bring them up by taxation, which will help finance all the things we need to do or
let OPEC, the oil companies, and financial speculators bring them up, and export all that wealth which could otherwise stay in this country and do some gooe.

h22com Commented on Open Letter to Senator Feinstein and the Democratic Congress by engagedbuddhist

2009-01-12T17:20:37Z

You're right about what voters wanted, but I can't share your optimism about Obama. He has hired the same self-aggrandizing Clinton economic gang that did a lot to get us in the present mess. His people seem to have no new ideas on the Middle East. He's against raising the gas tax. He against pursuing criminal investigation of the outgoing Administration.

Obama talks change, but seems to offer only more of same. I hope you're right about him, but I don't see much sign of it.