"F***ing Republicans!"

What Does "Change" Really Mean?
By Cenk Uygur
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/16571

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So often I run into people who have no earthly idea what the Republicans have done to them. Not to the country at large, but to them. They don't realize that when George Bush declared war on Iraq, he took money out of their pockets by wasting the taxes they pay every month and by greatly increasing the price of oil. They don't know that when Bush runs the deficit up, that weakens the dollar and makes the cost of gasoline go up. Before Bush came into office he promised to "jawbone" <6> the Saudis in to lowering the price of oil; instead the price has more than quadrupled under his watch. Every time Americans go to the pump, they should think, "Fucking Republicans!"

How will they think that or know any of these things if the theoretical opponents of the Republicans don't tell them?

John McCain authorized this war. John McCain allowed Bush to run up these enormous deficits with his irresponsible tax cuts for the wealthiest sons of bitches in the whole country <7>. That isn't class warfare, that's true. And they are sons of bitches because they lobbied to make it happen. They weren't innocent and unexpected benefactors of Republican largesse. The Waltons spent millions on Republicans in order to get billions in tax breaks in return. <8> Those sons of bitches drove up the deficit that weakened the dollar that caused inflation and took money out of your pocket. And they did it to get even richer. Now, is the leader of our party going to let them get away with it? Is he even going to tell the American people how they are being robbed?

There is a real anger in America. There is a real thirst for change. But it isn't about an esoteric, feel-good bullshit change. It's about real change so that the people who have been picking our pockets can stop robbing us. Obama needs to tap into that anger, and direct it to where it belongs. Tell us how you're going to change the country. Tell us why the country needs to be changed. And then tell us about how John McCain participated in this highway robbery for decades. He made a living off a Republican infrastructure designed to rob from the middle class and give to the rich. And now are you going to let him get away with it?

Finally, the American people need to understand in crystal-clear fashion that if they vote for John McCain they will get the same exact Republican policies that have been fucking them for the last eight years (if not a lot longer). McCain voted with Bush 95% of the time last year - what leads you to believe he won't follow 95% of his policies the next year? A vote for John McCain is a vote for a continued ass-fucking. Right now, the American people clearly have not gotten this message. How will they ever get it if Obama doesn't tell them?

“Choice depends on the freedom to choose; if you’re shackled in debt, you don’t have the freedom to choose . . . People in debt become hopeless, and hopeless people don’t vote. So they will say ‘everyone should vote’, but I think if the poor in Britain and the United States turned out and voted for people who represented their interests, I think it would be a real democratic revolution. They don’t want it to happen. So keeping people hopeless and pessimistic . . . see, I think there are two ways in which people are controlled; the first is to frighten them, and secondly, demoralize them.

“An educated, confident and healthy nation is harder to govern. And I think there is an element of thinking in some people, we don’t want people to be educated, healthy and confident, because they would get out of control. The top 1% of the world’s population has 80% of the wealth; it’s incredible that people put up with it. BUT . . . they’re poor, they’re demoralized and they’re frightened, and perhaps the safest thing to do is to take orders and hope for the best.” - Tony Benn, formerly 2nd Viscount Stansgate, former Member of Parliament.

How do we SELL the notion of Change?

I mean, the general idea really speaks for itself; not only does the government have to change, not only does corporate America have to change, but the people as a collective do as well.

I guess I'm just not that optimistic that the people of this country, based on the fact that they elected bad actors as governors and presidents, gave enough votes to an over-fortunate failure like Bewsh to steal two elections and STILL show that McClown is not that far behind Obama in polling, will hold up their end of the bargain to drive that vision to it's reality. I know it's not just as simple as saying "we're selfish"; again, it goes back to the whole "frightened" and "demoralized" quote above. People can't conceive what they haven't experienced and many are too busy trying to make ends meet and keep their head above water to actively care about what has to be done to set America on the right track again.

I think it simply starts with observing the world around you. That piece of it isn't really that time-consuming or difficult to do. See, think and listen.

Can this world, your world, afford 28 MORE years of "business as usual"?

"A journey of a thousand li starts with a single step." - Lao Tse

I thought that they weren't, and that was their problem ...

Todays gas prices courtesy of the Fucking Republicans