Who Won The CNN Tea Party Debate September 12, 2011?

Democrats were the clear winners of last night’s debate. Prime time now offers “adult entertainment” with these GOP-TP debates. It’s an opportunity to watch eight adults prostitute themselves for the Tea Party.

A prominent theme of the night was who had the better states’ rights record. Perry definitely was the winner for a more circular pattern of governing. Texas Big Hat Perry, who his attempting to be top states’ rights man, whined about not getting federal support for securing his border as he chastised the President for not interfering in the running of his states borders by not providing troops and money from the federal government that he is Fed Up with. Perry was ineffective at turning his education policy of state supported education for those illegal Mexicans he couldn’t keep out of Texas into the anti-discrimination of “we love your vote no matter what your last name is”.

Perry was against the ropes with the "pile on" by Bachmann, protector of little girls, and Santorum, chief breeder, for Perry’s “executive order” forcing the vaccination of 12 year old girls against the HPV virus. His song and dance about “protecting young girls” against the dreaded cancer was ineffective as Santorum correctly, but ineffectively, pointed out that cancer is not communicable and therefore there was no state interest for mandating the vaccination. Bachmann clarified Perry’s interest as she called him out for his association with Merck who makes and markets the vaccine for which he mandated the vaccination of millions of little girls and the $5,000 contribution he received. Bachmann’s fear of Perry's power was evident as she failed to even look in his direction much less into those creepy eyes. His defense of self-righteous indignation that he could be bought for a measly $5,000 fell flat, to no applause. Apparently even the TP’ers know there is more to the matter than the $5,000 contribution you can see. In a rare GOP-TP moment of “protectionism of those with less understanding of the situation”, Santorum, protecting his brood pounced on Perry with his parental insight that there should have been an “opt in” not an “opt out” because not everyone understood that they could “opt out”.

Catering to the TP outrage over the idea that people should be required to carry health insurance, just like we are required to carry auto insurance, all eight prostitutes bowed to the TP catechism to rid us of Obamacare and return us to a more self-sufficient method of letting people just die who can’t take care of themselves. Ron Paul , a physician, won the moment when he informed us that it was alright for an uninsured 30 year old to be left to die for not carrying any insurance although he could afford it. The remaining seven worshipers of TP failed to state unequivocally that they would let said 30 year-old just die however, they didn’t provide any healthcare for him.

Ron Paul was applauded for his insight that we were wasting billions of dollars building extravagant buildings in Iraq. However, he later feared for his safety as the crowd booed him to silence when he attempted to enlighten them as to the real reason behind the 9/11 attacks.

In this debate, the GOP-TP’ers soften their rhetoric a bit in the retiree state of Florida as they said they didn’t really mean we should destroy Social Security that provides a safety net for millions of retirees now, but later as they move towards trusting the unborn to save for their retirement as their “fix for Social Security”. Perry moved from his "Ponzi scheme" and a "miserable failure" characterization of Social Security to “Slam dunk, guaranteed, that program is going to be there in place for people currently on Social Security. Those individuals that are moving towards being on Social Security, that program's going to be there for them when they arrive there." Apparently all who are born as of September 12, 2011 are moving towards Social Security and it will “slam dunk” be there for them if Rick is elected.

Huntsman’s state won the prize for issuing non-driver’s license to illegal immigrants who can drive but cannot use that document for identification, unless they are driving.

Romney had difficulty distancing himself from his very effective and well received healthcare program in MA that closely resembles the current health care program, insisting that Obamacare that is a lot like his, is not really like his.

At the end of the night the GOP-TP had to evaluate which state they most want look like because if any of these folks are elected we will all be moved away from a state of grace.

No Magic Solution

It’s time to stop whining about who is responsible for creating jobs for Americans. The press and the GOP-TP’ers are waiting to pounce on the “jobs proposal” by the President as if that is supposed to cure the pervasive and increasingly embarrassing malaise in this country due to a shift in the economy. We seem to be standing like helpless children, wanting a solution to appear effortlessly and spontaneously like magic and give us back our toys, while our lives seem to get worse.

Blame seems to be the balm that temporarily heals the nasty wounds created by the loss of our “things”. The pain is real as thousands are without employment; thousands have lost their homes and many of those are homeless; thousands are hungry; and still we wait for an answer to magically materialize and save us from ourselves.

Our elected leaders seemed determined to do nothing but debate about who is to blame for this thing, this loss of our stuff. Any attempt to really solve the problem is shouted down, not out of a measure of real value but rather out of a political necessity to win at all costs. The rhetoric has escalated to the promise of a magical return to yesterday when all was well. These messengers revel in their self-proclaimed close association with a deity, as if they then transcend all others, knowing where to find the magic that cures this “boo boo”.

The media have found job security in a twenty-four hour churning of meaningless banter that feeds this malaise. Yet we, like a junkie, can’t or won’t unplug because we might miss something, something really important like that magical moment when all is well again. We’ve become dependent on the media to tell us what is happening and who is dumb or dumber. There is no good news just bad news.

The reality is that there is no magic solution; No, Michelle, the economy can’t be turned around in one quarter; No, Rick, what you say worked in Texas, didn’t and won’t again; No, Mitt, you do have to stand for something; No, Mr. President, you do have to stand up for something. In reality we have to take responsibility for being duped by the banks, the politicians, wall-street and the media. We drank the kool-aid and took the magical ride. Now we all are back in a real world.

The answer isn’t what “they have or haven’t done or can or can’t do”. We simply have to make lemonade out of the lemons we have. Americans have a rich history of leadership in innovation and creativity. Many of our successes have been the result of the necessity of our survival. The reality is that thousands of Americans are doing well; thousands are eating so much they are obese; thousands are still shopping and incurring debt; thousands are figuring out how to change their lives so that they can pick up the pieces and go on with their lives; thousands are helping others pick up the pieces of their lives; and, yes, there is a lot to do and many are suffering real pain.

How is it that we now view ourselves as poor beggars, requiring someone to hand us the magic potent that cures our malaise, lifts us up and back to yesterday when we had all of our stuff? That’s not going to happen. No matter the circumstance we have to keep moving. No one will come to your rescue, except you. Life for many could be so much better if “we” could ignore “them” and do what “we” need to do for ourselves and others and if “they” would do what “they” should be doing. There is wisdom in the old hippy bumper sticker “If the people will lead, the leaders will follow.”

Eighteen Million say “I told you so!”

Each day there are more articles being circulated entitled “Hillary would have made a better president” and “I should have voted for Hillary”. These high powered pen poised makers of a paper mache president are capitulating with rapidity as the test of the presidency of Barack Obama intensifies and he continues to disappoint his followers. Some commentators are now capable of admitting that they were so taken with his oratory that they failed to sufficiently consider his lack of accomplishments prior to his run for president.

When Hillary was defeated in the primary, the disbelief of the reality of this world was painful to endure. Hillary supporters met in groups, venting anger and pain in private safe places as we collectively worked through what had happened. Like many generations of women before us, we healed the gapping wounds of disappointment, collected ourselves and marched out to support the “winner” for the greater good of all. Hillary supporters rallied behind Obama, because Hillary not only said that was the right thing to do but she was working hard for the success of the Democrats. Her campaign magnified the hope, the pain and the disappointment, of generations of women. Many saw her grace, resilience and power, even in defeat, as a model for the next generation of women.

Now as Secretary of State, she has distanced herself from Barack Obama and yet found a useful and powerful place in which she can work productively for a country that disappointed her and a generation of feminist. She continues to be focused on her job with precision as this inexperienced orator, once so praised by all as their savior, flounders as many of us predicted.

It’s too late to elect Hillary. That bus left the station two and a half years ago. Now, the powerful commentators are bailing on Obama, just as they bailed on Hillary. They run away, not from Obama, but from their own failures. They too were weak, too weak to support a woman who was powerful and who had been tested by the political system. As the realization that Obama is weak and ineffective solidifies, as the savior’s image fades, the anger of being wrong turns outward as they look for a scapegoat for their wrong call.

So, we are doomed? I don’t think so. I wasn’t doomed before Obama and his failures certainly won’t define me. Now is not the time to throw Obama under the bus, it’s the time to understand that not only do we drive the bus, we are the bus.

For decades, I have decried the obvious, “Democrats have no backbone!” Now the staunch Obama followers are crying out “Lead us to the promise land!” He can’t. Congress can’t. It’s up to us to step up. Do we have the backbone to lead?
It takes more than, voting, contributing money and opining about the obvious flaws in our leaders to create change. We must change from the followers to the leaders. Remember the old sixties old bumper sticker “If the people will lead, the leaders will follow.” It’s time to change our focus from the lack of leadership, to creating the change we need in this country.

Abdicating our responsibility to participate in the change we want to create leaves a void for those who do have courage and a backbone to step to the front and take control. Thus, we are faced with talking heads that spew thoughtless mean spirited diatribes appealing to our base senses of fear and greed which are used as a wedge to further divide and decimate our civilization.

“They” can’t be silenced because their disruption is news; their stupidity is news; what they are not is news; and as we are beginning to realize, “the news” is the new porn industry and it sells. The news makers threw Hillary under the bus as their misogynist torrents filled the air waves, creating wave after wave of “news”. The media created Barack Obama and elevated him to his majestic throne and now they are feasting on his failures, just as some of us predicted two and half years ago. It’s not Barack Obama or the Democrats who need a backbone, we need a backbone. We are not powerless. We are powerful. We must not abdicate our leadership to those who have the backbone to stand up and speak to the fear that emboldens the speaker and seems to empower the fearful. There is no silver bullet. There is no magic pill that cures all our ills, and alas, no savior to lead us in creating the change we hoped was possible.

Each of us has the power to create what we need to live comfortably, not just for ourselves but for the rest of the world. The question is “Do we have the backbone to stand up and take responsibility for making our lives and the world a better place in which we can all live?” Can we follow the example of Hillary Clinton and go about our jobs with focus and persistence, creating the change we need? I continue to have hope.