What has done GW Bush Done Right?

[PuppetMaster]

Has he done anyhting correctly or intelligently?
The economy is in ruins as he stands to break the charts in deflation, unemployment and poverty levels.

Someone serious needs to lose their job over the War in Iraq. As it has turned into an absolute disaster.

What sucks even more is that there is NO democrat candidate worthy of consideration. Last elecetion had two HORIBLE candidates and the next one looks to be the same exact way.

Where the hell is Ross Perot? Cause I would vote for him over these assholes in a second.

[adios]

"The economy is in ruins as he stands to break the charts in deflation, unemployment and poverty levels."

The USA has had 7 straight quarters of positive GDP growth coming out of the recession. There isn't a doubt that it will be 8 straight quarters and in reality only some catastrophic event will prevent it from being 9. I haven't heard one economic forecast that doesn't predict 2004 will be a year of at least decent economic growth ( >= 3% GDP). Some economists are predicting GDP might grow by as much as 7% in this third quarter of 2003. Unemployment is at historically lower levels. If you don't believe that check the data. Although the median income has dropped slightly the last two years and poverty has upticked slightly it's nowhere near record levels. All inflation indicators indicate a very slight amount of inflation in the economoy. The Fed has mentioned deflation as a concern going forward and not as something they're trying to deal with. Interest rates at which consummers and businesses can borrow at are at very low levels which in my mind is a good thing. Sorry your statement is BS.

"Someone serious needs to lose their job over the War in Iraq. As it has turned into an absolute disaster."

That's ridiculous. Check out my post about titled What Iraqis Want.

"What sucks even more is that there is NO democrat candidate worthy of consideration."

What's your criteria?

" Last elecetion had two HORIBLE candidates and the next one looks to be the same exact way."

No just one.

"Where the hell is Ross Perot?"

Please.

"Cause I would vote for him over these assholes in a second."

No comment.

[Cyrus]

He extends life -- by being funny. Laughter is healthy.

He educates us and he prepares us for the big, bad world -- by being extremely powerful and dangerous.

He is trying his best -- and thus informs us about human folly.

/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

... Meanwhile, back at the ranch: The President of the United States has formally declared that there is no connection between the 9/11 attack and the Saddam Hussein regime. And the world will soon hear US-endorsed Chief Inspector for the UN Mr David Kay announce that nothing of substance on Weapons of Mass Destruction (http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2003/s954155.htm) has been found in Iraq yet. You would expect that with two out of three reasons for invading Iraq gone up in smoke, the American administration would be shamed into some sort of apology, but Washington is full of people that have made careers out of such "yet's".

[Chris Alger]

“Check out my post about titled What Iraqis Want.”

You should check out the actual poll results at http://www.taemag.com/docLib/20030905_IraqpollFrequencies.pdf instead of the just positive spin by Karl Zinsmeister that you posted. You’ll find a decidedly mixed picture about “What Iraqis Want.”

Which is hardly surprising, given Zinsmeister’s overall take: “This new evidence on Iraqi opinion suggests the country is manageable” and that “the mass of citizens living along the Tigris-Euphrates Valley are likely to make reasonably sensible use of their new freedom.” In other words, foreign rulers in the U.S. will be able to “manage” those to whom they have given “new freedom.” If the past is any indication, Iraqis using “reasonable sense” means to follow U.S. orders and allow their public resources to be privatized by a self-perpetuating pro-U.S. regime, more like Iran under the Shah (and what usually follows) than Hong Kong under the British.

For example, Zinsmeister wrote: “Perhaps the ultimate indication of how comfortable Iraqis are with America’s aims in their region came when we asked how long they would like to see American and British forces remain in their country: Six months? One year? Two years or more? Two thirds of those with an opinion urged that the coalition troops should stick around for at least another year or more.”

What Zinsmeister doesn’t point out is that more than 2/3's also want the U.S. out within a year.

Here are the actual results:

7. Given a choice, would you like to see the American and British forces leave Iraq in six months, one year, or two years or more?
6 mo: 31.6%
1yr: 34%
2+ yrs: 24.5%
NS: 9.3%

Similarly, Zinsmeister makes it seem as if most Iraqis look to the U.S. as their model for a future government (as if that was in the cards). “Asked to name one country they would most like Iraq to model its new government on, after being offered five possibilities—neighbor and fellow Baathist republic Syria, neighbor and Islamic monarchy Saudi Arabia, neighbor and Islamist republic Iran, Arab lodestar Egypt, or the U.S.—the most popular model by far was the U.S. The U.S. was preferred as a model by 37 percent of Iraqis selecting from those five—more than neighboring Syria plus neighboring Iran plus Egypt, all put together. Saudi Arabia was in second place at 28 percent.”

The actual results suggest that Iraqis far prefer Arabic models to that of the U.S.:

5. If you were asked to name one foreign country you would like Iraq to model its new
government on, which one of the following countries would you choose?

Syria: 11%
Saudi Arabia 16%
The United States: 21.5%
Iran: 2.8%
Egypt: 16.5%
Other: 14.2%
None/NS: 20.2
Total: 92.2
Missing: 7.2

Other questions show that most Iraqis believe the U.S. will probably “hurt” Iraq and that the U.S. and G.B. should not set up Iraq’s future government, and that democracy in Iraq is unlikely to work.

6. Should America and Britain help make sure a fair government is set up in Iraq, or should
they just let Iraqis work this out themselves?

America and Britain help: 31.5%
Iraqis alone: 58.5%


4. Which of the following statements, A or B, comes closer to your view? A: Democracy can
work well in Iraq. B: Democracy is a Western way of doing things and it will not work here?

A: 38.2%
B: 50.2%

16. Over next five years will The United States will

Help Iraq: 35.3%
Hurt Iraq: 50%

17. Over next five years will The United Nations will

Help Iraq: 50.2%
Hurt Iraq: 18.5%

Among the question not asked:

Has the involvement of the U.S. in Iraq since 1990 been mostly good for Iraq or mostly bad?
Should Americans who kill Iraqi civilians be put on trial?
What is your opinion of how well the American occupation forces are treating Iraqis?
What is your opinion of President Bush?
What is your opinion of Paul Bremer?

[brad]

problem is that all this data is manipulated

(eg, adjusting inflation for 'better' products, so an appliance costing 140 today and 130 last year is counted as 0 or 1% inflation because of 'improvements')

, which brings up shades of enron, a.a., etc.

ask most people is they are better off today most say no, most say bills like energy, phone, etc. are much more.


however it still might be true because all growth is overseas with wall street profits.

[Stu Pidasso]

[ QUOTE ]
The economy is in ruins as he stands to break the charts in deflation, unemployment and poverty levels

[/ QUOTE ]

If I remember correctly, the last recession began under Bill Clinton and ended under GW Bush.

[ QUOTE ]
Someone serious needs to lose their job over the War in Iraq. As it has turned into an absolute disaster.


[/ QUOTE ]

Its a phenominal success. Complete victory in a matter of days. Most of the Iraqis want us there. If they didn't you would see a much, much higher casualty rate from the insurgents.

[ QUOTE ]
Has he done anyhting correctly or intelligently?


[/ QUOTE ]

If there is any part of the world that could be considered broke, its the middle east. At least George W is trying to fix that part of the world instead of just trying to manage it.

Stu