Michael Barone has a great piece on how we’re actually living in very good times, from an historical perspective – it’s funny how the little problems that are repeated daily in the media, or how little deviations in the standards to which we’ve become accustomed (easy money, low inflation, low energy prices, etc.) are blown into “Huge” problems in our perceptions.
Two weeks ago, I pointed out that we live in something close to the best of times, with record worldwide economic growth and at a low point in armed conflict in the world. Yet Americans are in a sour mood, a mood that may be explained by the lack of a sense of history. The military struggle in Iraq (nearly 2,500 military deaths) is spoken of in as dire terms as Vietnam (58,219), Korea (54,246) or World War II (405,399). We bemoan the cruel injustice of $3 a gallon for gas in a country where three-quarters of people classified as poor have air conditioning and microwave ovens. We complain about a tide of immigration that is, per U.S. resident, running at one-third the rate of 99 years ago…
YAWN! Another “Yeah, Bush!” and “Boo, critics of Bush!” article. Does nothing else except illustrates more cheerleading and acceptance of bullshit.
I love this line though: “The war began on my watch,” Bush told the class of 2006, “but it’s going to end on your watch.” Translation: “I created this mess, but you are going to have to clean it up for me.” Spoken just like a silver-spoon fed, spoiled-rich brat who has had people clean up his crap for him all of his life.
It’s not a “yeah Bush” point, it’s a point on rational expectations. Things aren’t like the 1990s now, other than economically - this is more of a return to historic norms, not of an unusual deviation from them.
That doesn’t mean anything specific with regard to particular policy disputes, but it does mean that people who are shocked and appalled that the situation isn’t like the 1990s are missing the point.
[quote]BostonBarrister wrote:
It’s not a “yeah Bush” point, it’s a point on rational expectations. Things aren’t like the 1990s now, other than economically - this is more of a return to historic norms, not of an unusual deviation from them.
That doesn’t mean anything specific with regard to particular policy disputes, but it does mean that people who are shocked and appalled that the situation isn’t like the 1990s are missing the point.[/quote]
The article was pure hype as usual. The Class of 2006 was born at the tail end of Reaganomics and grew up with Trickle Down, the Recession and the 90’s Tech boom. They can’t relate to the historical norms that were supposedly addressed.
It was just another rallying speech full of examples to excuse this administration for why things are the way they are now by saying that things are just returning to how they have historically been. The article itself is just another of the many rah, rah, go team Bush, go, articles that tries to use history to provide excuses for this adminstration. Quite a few of them can be found on the internet. It doesn’t give any great or real insight into anything. It just serves to pump up the team. However, many of us that were adults when the Class of 2006 was born can see it for what it was…more propaganda.