Plessner Chronicle Blog

Do Americans need any more evidence of George W. Bushs standing before the world —- or his place in history —- than to see him dodge accurately-thrown shoes during a press conference in Baghdad?

Except for the heavy responsibilities carried by the Secret Service —- which protects the president, vice president and their families —- one is tempted to encourage Americans to send the president a set of the oldest, most beat up, cheapest shoes in their closet.

And while we are at it, we should elect John McCain the honorary chair of this tribute, what with his seven or eight homes (I lost count). John McCain could send as many pairs of clod-hoppers as he has bedroom closets! He would almost certainly win first place in that competition.

With all the propaganda being generated by the Republicans disclaiming the irrefutable truth that George W. Bush is our worst president ever, a collection of ugly, ill-fitting, thread-bare, smelly, preferably useless, mortally-wounded shoes would validate the judgement of that courageous, decisive reporter in Baghdad, who —- come to think of it —- ought to get a trip to America to try out as pitcher for one or any of our professional baseball teams.

Now everything I have written above may be cute but, if we take it seriously, we ought to be ashamed of ourselves.

George Bush and Dick Cheney have given us a war that has killed thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians —- men, women, children , parents and grand-parents —- and thousands of our own men and women who have served so valiantly and have been neglected by this president, his vice-president and those false patriots who believe that this terrible war has been an act of high morality.

Perhaps we should give each of them a pair of those shoes as well.

Whats the big deal about Senator Hillary Rodham Clintons qualifications for the office of Secretary of State?Senator Clinton is probably one of the most recognized persons on earth. In her own career, and as the spouse of an internationally recognized former president, Mrs. Clinton has probably met dozens of leaders from nations around the world. That experience is a valuable asset in helping the Obama administration recapture the good will of both foreign political leaders and the world community as a well.Although Hillary Clinton may be weighing the choice between being Secretary of State or a leader in the U.S. Senate, no one should believe that in some way the office of Secretary of State is an inadequate reward for her many years of service. It is the first seat in the presidents cabinet and it is many times more prestigious that the position of Vice President.

National leaders the world over will eagerly welcome Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. They will want to be seen with her in their own country or at international meetings. Her experience and self-confidence will be valuable in one-on-one conversations with heads of state and in public diplomacy as she appears in other nations.

While the Obama administration will have a number of people able to deal with international issues, it is hard to believe that a president Obama who ran such a disciplined campaign will allow rivalries or competition to damage his efforts.

And whats the big deal about Bill Clintons current activities and travels? It has been reported that he gets as much as $175,000 for a one-hour speech, with most donations going to the Clinton Global Initiative, a non-profit foundation whose goal is: “fostering a shared responsibility to address major global problems”.

Some commentators have expressed concern that the former presidents personal activities might conflict with the new administrations objectives. To the degree that it is closely managed, the former presidents ability to communicate can be made a very positive asset for our America.

Isnt it interesting that two people who began their adult lives together almost broke, and who have worked so tirelessly for the common good, are now being questioned for their income, most of it coming as recognition of their considerable service to humanity. Why do they now find their wealth and income questioned, while other politicians with much greater wealth and relationships with foreign leaders, are almost never assaulted in the same way?

The first president Bush and the soon-to-be former vice president Dick Cheney come to mind. President George H. W. Bush has been involved in the Carlyle Group, a holding company with global interests (including Dunkin Donuts) and deep roots in the Middle East.

The current vice president, though not directly involved as far as we know with his former employer Halliburton, a major vendor to our military, is deeply involved with projects in Iraq and other Middle East countries. Halliburton receives billions for providing “contractors” in Iraq and elsewhere.

Although he is removed from the management of his former firm, vice president Cheney probably still benefits through deferred income from dividends and fees.

And then there is this: A few days after leaving the White House, former president Ronald Reagan flew on a corporate jet to Japan where he gave two speeches for which he was reported to have been paid one million dollars.

Barack Obama is going to assemble his administration in the same way he ran his campaign. With tremendous insight, creative energy and integrity and Hillary Rodham Clinton is entitled to the First Chair in the presidents cabinet if she wants it!

Its not such a big deal!

If Democrats believe what they are saying about Sarah Palin after her debate with Joe Biden, and if they act upon those ideas, they do so at their own peril.

Palins performance in St. Louis (where I grew up within a mile of Washington University), was exceptional, given her background and her previous appearances with Katie Couric and others. Those of us who are elitists (this author included) will see her as the completely uninformed small town mayor and small state governor that she is.

But Americans like her young parents, Evangelicals, urban small business owners, rural people and hourly workers male and female will see her as one their own and that includes one heck of a lot of voters, by golly!

And it will also diminish the hesitancy of many blue collar voters across the country and especially in the South, who are not eager to vote for a black man for president, a fact of American life that all Americans should be concerned about.

As for her cute dialect of “you betchas” and “by gollies”, Americans should remember that Strom Thurmond and other politicians of the last decade also talked like hicks and no one made fun of them.

Television is not about content, it is about appearances and in her debate performance Sarah Palin appeared smart and eager, two qualities most Americans admire.

Of course she is not qualified to become president and if, God forbid, a President John McCain should die in office, America and the world would be in even greater peril.

Of course she has little knowledge of how Washington works. Of course she is probably uninformed about anything political beyond the South end of the Trans-Alaska pipeline. And of course she has a lot of ideas about global warming and Evolution that most Americans dont share.

But one heck of a lot of ordinary Americans like a woman with spunk and that is why Democrats ought to take Sarah Palin more seriously.

P.S. And if she gets elected I may move to Alaska, dadgum it!

I spent 16 years in education never having been in a classroom with a student of color (except for two Korean veterans of the Korean War) so I remember “separate but equal” education.The historic Brown vs. Board of Education decision, in which the U. S. Supreme Court decided that separate but equal was in truth separate and grossly unequal, happened in my young lifetime. I have vivid recollections of life in Midwestern America both before and after America tried to eliminate racial segregation in public schools.My home town of Richmond Heights, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri, contained a small African-American enclave in an otherwise all-white city. High school students from that neighborhood got on their own bus each morning to be driven right past our whites-only high school to a blacks-only high school in Webster Groves, the next suburb. (I have no idea where their grade school students got their education.)

Now an ultra-conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court has advanced a process to disassemble all of that and their first, most blatant attack on our efforts to enable ALL children to get the best education possible has shown them for what they are. Read the rest of this entry »

   Right-wing talk show hosts should be losing sleep over the firing of Don Imus, one of America’s most popular, if modestly talented, morning radio personalities.

   I listen to as many of the talk radio big names as my hours on the freeway and my capacity for torture permit. I believe it my patriotic duty to tell my readers about the virulent stream of hate — almost exclusively aimed at liberals, illegal immigrants and sex offenders — that those guys put out.

   I believe that talk show loudmouths do have something to worry about. And it’s about time. Right wing talk radio thrived over a period when conservative, social values, pro-imperialism issues were at their height in the United States.
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A recent commentary on the Los Angeles Times editorial page was headlined, “What’s not to like about Libertarianism?” You only have to look at the world around you to know the answer. Plenty!

Republicans have been arguing about why they lost so badly in the November 2006 election and a lot of those Republicans — from leaders to grass-roots voters — are blaming the party’s abandonment of the philosophy of Ronald Reagan and Barry Goldwater. Smaller government and lower taxes are their mantra.

But the truth may well lie elsewhere. The party of Reagan and Goldwater, and before them of Eisenhower and Taft, has been taken over by Libertarians masquerading as Republicans. And our nation is now suffering the consequences of that subversion.

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