Yes, we can.

[Alex]

Is that because your wife tore off the hand the first time you tried to show her how it would be?

[scaeagles]

No, but that's why I have a peg leg - first time I said "Woman, this is my foot, and it is down".....well, you can imagine the rest. Thus the pirate smilie.

[wendybeth]

Maybe we do need a woman president.

[scaeagles]

Originally Posted by wendybeth

Maybe we do need a woman president.

Well, from a war-mongering Republican stand point, that might be good - maybe Hillary would chop off Ahmahdinejad's (or however the hell you spell it) head or something.

[blueerica]

Well, I know that McCain's song is Mellencamp's "Pink Houses." What are the songs from the others?

Edited to add: I just read that McCain has Mellencamp's "Our Country" - which would be really annoying... When Edwards used it, it sucked, too. I had read earlier that it was "Pink Houses" which I love... bleh.

I should go look it up. Maybe I can vote best on best taste in campaign songs...

Edit to add II: OK, so Clinton is Celine Dion's "Taking Chances"... bleh.

[mousepod]

Originally Posted by blueerica

Well, I know that McCain's song is Mellencamp's "Pink Houses." What are the songs from the others?

Edited to add: I just read that McCain has Mellencamp's "Our Country" - which would be really annoying... When Edwards used it, it sucked, too. I had read earlier that it was "Pink Houses" which I love... bleh.

I should go look it up. Maybe I can vote best on best taste in campaign songs...

Edit to add II: OK, so Clinton is Celine Dion's "Taking Chances"... bleh.

Here's some info on the candidates' choice of music.

[blueerica]

Or something.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Originally Posted by innerSpaceman

Oh c'mon people ... don't you wanna get Bill Clinton back in the White House just to make the Republicans and Conservatives and Fundamentalists' collective blood boil? Even just a teeny bit??

No. Using this tipping point in history as a "gotcha back!" is childish, short-sighted, and destructive. As the others said, it just adds to divisiveness. We want to make America a better place, not "stick it to those jerks". Baggage, baggage, baggage.

Can we live in a world where people try to stop the cycles of divisiveness between the parties, so we can instead reach for solutions to real problems?

Yes we can.



On another note - one of my younger brothers, a registered Republican and definite conservative, has told me that if Obama got the nomination, he'd get his vote in November, despite the fact that he probably does not agree with him on a single issue. He told me that he believes in Obama's leadership, and that that's what we need now. I was shocked to hear that he'd actually vote Democrat.

[scaeagles]

I can name many a great leader throughout history that I wouldn't want as President.

Can someone answer me this - and I mean it sincerely. How are we to end diviseness when people and politicians are passionate yet on directly opposing sides of important and controversial issues? Somethings are not open to compromise. Talking? Not often. This is why I think Obama is a bit naive in his foreign policy aims. There are leaders and nations that don't want to talk, they want the destruction of America or Israel or freedom in general. Abortion is not an issue of compromise for those that believe a fetus is living and those that believe it is a complete issue of the woman's body. Even Iraq is not open to compromise. There are serious issues that people of passion and conscience on both sides cannot compromise on.

[€uroMeinke]

Originally Posted by scaeagles

There are leaders and nations that don't want to talk, they want the destruction of America or Israel or freedom in general. Abortion is not an issue of compromise for those that believe a fetus is living and those that believe it is a complete issue of the woman's body. Even Iraq is not open to compromise. There are serious issues that people of passion and conscience on both sides cannot compromise on.

I think sometimes people get focused on solutions instead of the underlying problem. Sure there are people focused on the destruction of America - is the only solution their destruction? If the real goal is not wanting people to want to destroy us maybe there are other solutions?

Abortion - If the real goal is preventing abortion, maybe we could also focus on preventing the situations where people come to contemplate abortion?

I think there is always room for conversation and a bit of "root-cause analysis" to find solutions that may not be so black and white - but that's hard work and takes longer than a 15-second sound bite to explain.

The real fact is politicians need the divisiveness to define themselves. If they want to be elected they must paint their opponent as a demon since most of us vote with our gut and not with our head, preferring to rationalize our decisions after we have made them.