Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Gamecock]

[stevemcgarrett]

Gamecock:

Stirring, emotional speeches does not necessarily a great politician make. Liberals love to cry, don't they? Maudlin to the max at their conventions. I'm not a Republican--they can be cheesy at times too--but an independent, so you can put those "vast right-wing conspiracy theories to rest." You sound like one of his exploratory committee members.

And one more thing: his character and judgment have NOT been put to the test, nor has he held higher office very long. He indeed might yet have a bright future in politics, but he needs to earn his wings.

SarcasmKills:

You obviously know NOTHING about Powell's family life judging by your most recent statement. I suggest before you opine again that you make an ounce of effort to get informed. Even in his bestselling autobiography he stressed the importance of his family and, contrary to what your cynicism commands you to believe, not every aspiring politician puts his own ambitions first. Incidentally, many cynics blathered similarly before Ferraro was placed as the first female VP nominee in 1984.

[Gopher]

I think Powell would have made an excellent president. I think he very well could have given Clinton a run for his money and possibly won in 1996. See Stephanopoulos's memoirs on just how concerned the Clintons and their advisors were on this point. They believed he was going to run and beat them.

I think Powell has walked away from politics once and for all, however.

I have watched and listened to Obama handle questions and articulate his positions. I have found him calm and articulate. Let me remind everyone that I have come to dislike the left by watching them hypocritically foam at the mouth and tear W. Bush apart just as they complained that "a vast right-wing conspiracy" was foaming at the mouth and tearing Clilnton apart during his administration. I find them mostly full of bile, dominated by petty hatreds, and knee-jerk, sneering anti-[insert a range of things here]. No self-control whatsoever. They remind me that I am mostly sick of official Washington.

However, I have seen none of this in Obama. He projects reason and confidence. I have seen him sincerely reach for consensus rather than embrace his own personal opinion on a range of issues. He just met with the President and talked about him dispassionately and without denoucning him or personalizing the issues. That is the kind of behavior in a politician that wins my support.

He has even spoken out against the Iraqi War without sounding like an antiwar hippie moonbat, and in a way that I can respect and even agree with...

[stevemcgarrett]

Gopher:

I agree with nearly everything you said. And what people like SarcasmKills forget or don't know is that many military leaders shy away from political office regardless of family circumstances. They are reluctant to get involved where the chain of command is lax and indecisive.

I would probably vote for McCain over any of the others currently in the running, including Obama.

He still sounds like a sound byte to me, especially his comments on the war which come right from the Democratic playbook, I'm afraid. Articulating the party line doesn't cut it for me. I'm not saying he's slick like Clinton but time will tell. His African immigrant roots certainly would work in his favor in dealing with the Third World.

[Gamecock]

Actually, the big difference between Obama and the rest of the Democrats "sound bytes" concerning the war is that Obama is one of the only people sitting in Washington who has not changed his stance on the war from the very beginning. When all the other dems endorsed the war for political expediency, he stood his ground and took the unpopular stand.

I, too, have always liked McCain and wished he would have been on the ticket previously. He has always been one to speak his mind and promote common sense even when it's not politically correct. I have been disappointed in the last couple of years, however, to see him back down on certain issues (i.e. torture is what the President says it is) and fall in line with the party...presumably to get their support in '98.

You are correct Steve, stirring speeches and emotion don't make a good leader. But I would rather hear a man speak from his values and stand by them then listen all the political double-talk that has dominated both parties for the last decade.

I don't believe in vast right-wing conspiracies, in fact I respect many members of the GOP. I don't respect when either side blindly condemns someone because they are "the enemy." And it seems obvious from your derisive statements that you hate liberals and Chicago politicians (huh???). I'd think an Independent would want to look at candidates as individuals.

[Gopher]

Mcgarrett: not a few Hollywood actors' and their (per usual) righteous endorsement of Obama nearly sank him in my eyes once-and-for-all. I was not open to hearing him or anything about him for that matter.

In my eyes, Hollywood's meddling in politics (which example do I begin with? ) is just as offensive and egregious as Washington's meddling in Hollywood (McCarthyism is the obvious example).

In any case, I chanced upon a few speeches and interviews. I have since deemed Obama not only impressive, but admirable and worthy to lead America in one capacity or another as well.

It is your call, but try to clear your head of all that you think you know about him and take another look...

[TheUrbanMyth]

[stevemcgarrett]

Gamecock:

I do vote occasionally as an independent for Democrats, but not those who proudly wear the "deer-in-the-headlights" facial expressions of bonafide liberals.

Truth be told, I'm fed up with both parties: we need a viable third party desperately to break the deadlock and petty infighting in Washington.

UrbanMyth:

The bandwagon is indeed what Obama has jumped on. And he would have been riding in the front had he been elected sooner. I don't trust the guy and, sorry to say (unlike Powell and Keyes) he'd place his racial issues front and center if elected. Well, on second thought, he'd be more subtle about it than some idiot racebaiter like Sharpton or Jackson.

He has potential but not the credentials in my book. He's too young, too.

[SarcasmKills]

You are straying away from my main point.

Powell NEVER had a legitimate chance to win the presidency, and neither does Obama... are they great men? perhaps. were/are they serious threats to win? Nope.

Putting family first is obviously the right thing to do, but you know what, I still believe that if he would have had a legitimate chance to win that he would've done what's best for his country, his people and his family... to not have taken that chance, when a legitimate chance is there, and after all he had accomplished in his career, would have been a disservice to everyone..

Would I like to see Obama win, sure, why not... but I'd also like the environment to be cared for more seriously, soldiers to stop having their pay and benefits cut and for cities to stray away on the dependency on cars... it's always nice to want things... then reality smacks you in the face..

I am not anti-Powell in any way... well, maybe some minor issues bother me about him, but I can say that about almost anyone...

P.S. I did read his bio.. and while I do genuinely believe that he is a family man, the fact that he stresses it so much throughout came across to me as presenting an excuse for his not taking a chance.. what flag-waving christian is going to bad mouth a man who stresses family values?

exactly.

He gets off the hook for not going through a hopeless drawn out campaign AND he gets to spend more time with his family.

Win-win. He's no dummy.

[Gamecock]

triple post

[Gamecock]

triple post

[Gamecock]

[stevemcgarrett]

SarcasmKills:

Does anything of substance register with you? Powell's wife has suffered from depression for a very long time. His concern for his well-being predates the first Gulf War when he stepped onto the national stage. You need to read more than his bio to know that too. He is a career serviceman. Most military brass don't aspire to the White House. People like Wesley Clark are the exception. You'd know that if you'd grown up on military bases like I did.

[Gamecock]

[Gopher]