1. Hubris born of success

2. Undisciplined pursuit of more

3. Denial of risk and peril

4. Grasping for salvation with a quick, big solution

5. Capitulation to irrelevance or death

Right now, the GOP is at stage 4. And, considering recent reports about the conservative ideology, it's entirely likely that they (the GOP) won't enter stage 5, but rather rebound to stage 1.

The Democrats are clearly at stage 3. Warning signs within the administration are prevalent, but there are enough positive signs that can be cheery picked and enough ambiguous signs that can be spun positive to give the appearance that things are good and getting better. A perfect example of this is Obama’s completely unsupportable claim that his stimulus spending has “saved or created” 150,000 jobs and that additional stimulus spending will save or create 450,000 more jobs in his second 100 days in office. All Economists worth their salt (IE not having a political agenda) agree that there is simply no way to prove this assertion.

My point??

Simple...

The Democrats are well on their way to stage 4. In other words, barring any major upheaval that favors the Democrats (First Contact?? :D ), it's entirely likely that we will see a complete roll-reversal in Congress after the mid-term elections.

And THAT is the nightmare (yet all to real a possibility) scenario I was painting for you above. A government that is so enmeshed and has so much control over the private sector and said government with Republicans in control.

In short, acquiring all that centralized power is NEVER a good idea.. Because while it is all fine and dandy and roses and whine when one's political friends are in power, there will come a day when that power must be acquiesced. And, if it is acquiesced to one's political enemies, the minority party finds themselves in a world of hurt.

The Republicans learned this lesson already.

Soon it will be school daze for the Democrats.

Remember, you heard it here first...

Michale.....

Um, when did I ever suggest Republicans should be in control? They've already governed you into the sewer, so why do you hate America? Democrats want freedom of choice, Rethugs freedom to choose their brand of "freedom". If you think the government is in total control of your life, you just aren't living properly.

So, you would be happy with a completely socialist and nationalized country with REPUBLICANS in control??

WOW.. Who woulda thunked that!?? :D

Time will tell who is right and who is not on these issues..

I just marvel at how the Left screamed and cried about government control when it was the GOP...

But now that it's Democrats, everyone around seems to be pleased as punch..

Which indicates to me that ya'all really don't give a rip about a government in total control of their lives.. As long as it's a government that is ideological approved of..

Me?? I think that minimum government control is infinitely preferable..

Michale.....

I disagree with all your "points", but I give up. You seem totally set in your ways and beliefs. I did notice you didn't attempt to rebut my case on healthcare...perhaps you've reconsidered?

I kind of hope you're right about your nationalization fixation...your country would be so much better if it emulated Sweden. (And yes, I've been there and it is simply great).

THAT is a false equivalency. In reality, the world would stop spinning on its axis, hard-core republican heads would explode, and Democrats would scratch their heads and think, "the Republicans are doing the right thing NOW? Couldn't they have foreseen the present implosion?"

Ahhhh My mistake.. I thought you meant the comparison between all the other interferences in the private sector by the government.

As for your claim that Democrats would concede that Republicans would have been doing the right thing (no pun intended) I beg to differ. If Bush had nationalized banks and auto companies etc etc, the hysterical Left would have gone completely into orbit.. And the "normal" Left probably would have been right behind them..

Unless I've missed something, the government hasn't "taken over" the banks and Wall Street. Ditto the auto companies.

You have definitely missed something..

The government is the majority shareholder and Obama is de-facto CEO of AIG and GM.

http://www.clipsandcomment.com/2009/03/16/no-one-at-white-house-realizes-president-is-de-facto-ceo-of-aig/

drbseconomicblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/obama-administration-and-gm.html

Plus the Administration has de-facto control over many other smaller lending institutions.

They have been forced to step in and bail out the incompetence, greed and stupidity of the infallible leaders of the private sector.

And where is it in the US Constitution that states the President must take over control of failing businesses and re-write the bankruptcy laws on the fly to serve political contributors?

I have read the US Constitution a LOT and I don't recall ANYTHING in that document that says the government can take over failing businesses with taxpayer's money.

Perhaps you can point that out to me where it says that..

I realize you immensely enjoy being a contrarian, but have you noticed that on this site, with its thoughtful and intelligent fans, 95% of the time you're barking your mantra solo? Is it possible, gasp, that you may be WRONG?

Oh of course.. There is the slight (VERY :D) possibility that I am wrong.. But I see no evidence to support such a claim. How many trillions of dollars will be borrowed and spent before the LOGICAL and RATIONAL thought occurs??

"Hmmmm... Maybe we should STOP DIGGING!???"

I am shocked (REALLY SHOCKED) to see that no one here has a problem with such gross, arbitrary and continuing with such blatant government intervention in every aspect of Americans and their lives..

We're well on the way to nationalized banks and nationalized auto companies. Next up is nationalized healthcare.

At what point in time would YOU start worrying about all this?

And, consider this...

If Democrats continue all this wild spending and get absolutely NOTHING to show for it but more debt and less productivity, you KNOW that the American people will vote them out and re-install the GOP, probably with a super-majority..

Do you REALLY want the government running the banks and the auto companies and the health care if that government is DOMINATED by Republicans??

Because that is exactly where we are headed...

You do have many interesting slants, and I'd enjoy meeting you, having a few beers and thrashing out our differences face to face. I'm actually semi-articulate in person. :)

That would be fun... :D

Michale....

2. What would the Left had said if it was the Bush Administration who had taken these actions??

Granted, that last question is rhetorical as we all know what the reaction from the Left would be.

MAJOR BALLISTIC FEAR-MONGERING HYSTERIA…

THAT is a false equivalency. In reality, the world would stop spinning on its axis, hard-core republican heads would explode, and Democrats would scratch their heads and think, "the Republicans are doing the right thing NOW? Couldn't they have foreseen the present implosion?"

Unless I've missed something, the government hasn't "taken over" the banks and Wall Street. Ditto the auto companies. They have been forced to step in and bail out the incompetence, greed and stupidity of the infallible leaders of the private sector.

If you had a decent healthcare system, this wouldn't matter; but you sure as hell don't.

And the government can do better??

Yes, they can. Most of the industrialized world have government-run healthcare, and no leader in their right mind would think of moving to your American system. When I was an adolescent 40 years ago I became aware of how an illness could financially destroy an American family; and though I've had a life-long respect for the U.S. and almost all of the Americans I've met and gotten to know, wild horses couldn't drag me to live in a country where such a cosmic roll of the dice could shatter a life/lives.

I realize you immensely enjoy being a contrarian, but have you noticed that on this site, with its thoughtful and intelligent fans, 95% of the time you're barking your mantra solo? Is it possible, gasp, that you may be WRONG?

You do have many interesting slants, and I'd enjoy meeting you, having a few beers and thrashing out our differences face to face. I'm actually semi-articulate in person. :)

You're getting really tiresome with your false equivalencies. "Taking over" banks, Wall Street, and Auto Companies…

""If we do not fix our healthcare system, America may go the way of GM; paying more, getting less, and going broke"
-President Obama

You were saying something about "false" equivalencies???

Michale.....

You're SUCH an extremist…heh heh.

hehehehehe :D

Nope.. Just one of those (apparently) rare individuals who doesn't believe that the answer to every problem is another bloated bureaucracy...

Call me silly...

Michale......

In what way are the equivalencies false??

Who screwed themselves with their greed and short-sightedness.

No argument from me on that..

But is the government any better? And regardless of THAT, what part of the US Constitution gives the executive branch the right to take over banks and auto companies? To dictate to the private sector things like pay and bonuses and such.

Let's call a spade a spade.

Nationalization.

If you had a decent healthcare system, this wouldn't matter; but you sure as hell don't.

And the government can do better??

As I understand it, Obama doesn't want to take over the system, he just wants to make sure EVERYONE can afford to have fair coverage.

Yea and the government just wanted the Auto Companies to be "better". The government just wanted the banks to do a better job.

What happened? After the government threw BILLIONS of dollars at them to get "better", the government took them over.

Please point to ANY evidence that would indicate that the current administration can do a better job at healthcare.

I have posted several articles about the healthcare issue in the previous commentary.

This is simply the latest example in a string of examples of the government trying to exert control in the private sector arena.

Michale.....

scene of a l.a. laker dunking a basketball. freeze frame mid-dunk, with a voice-over, "the lakers should not be allowed to play basketball. after all, they could take over the league, and then all the other teams would fail."

scene of a pittsburgh penguin moving toward the goal with the puck. freeze frame, with a voice-over, "the penguins should not be allowed to play hockey. after all, they could take over the league, and then all the other teams would fail."

scene of ted kennedy lying in his hospital bed. he says, "do the past two scenarios seem kind-of silly? well that's exactly what the insurance companies and their allies in congress are telling you about a public option for health care.
maybe they think you don't deserve the choice..."

cut to the hockey player who fakes a shot and passes to a teammate, who then scores.

cut to the basketball player who unfreezes and completes his dunk.

cut back to ted kennedy, close-up, "...or maybe they just can't handle the competition."

You're getting really tiresome with your false equivalencies. "Taking over" banks, Wall Street, and Auto Companies...Who screwed themselves with their greed and short-sightedness. If you had a decent healthcare system, this wouldn't matter; but you sure as hell don't. As I understand it, Obama doesn't want to take over the system, he just wants to make sure EVERYONE can afford to have fair coverage. Yeesh.

You're SUCH an extremist...heh heh.

I can answer that...

Because it is becoming obvious to all that this current government seems to believe that "reform" means "take control of"..

Everything that the government has wanted to "reform", they ended up simply just taking over control..

Banks.... Wall Street.... Auto Companies....

Now healthcare....

I'll ask again.

1. Does ANYONE think that the US Government having control of all these PRIVATE industries is a GOOD thing??

2. What would the Left had said if it was the Bush Administration who had taken these actions??

Granted, that last question is rhetorical as we all know what the reaction from the Left would be.

MAJOR BALLISTIC FEAR-MONGERING HYSTERIA...

Michale.....

...Stan

Frankly, I'm getting sick and tired of all the Canada-bashing when it comes to our "horrible" healthcare system.

Just kidding!...about the Canada-bashing, I mean.