red-eyed myopia*

Lord Bush was trying to calm the sheeple today by telling them that the economy was good, saying, "there's definitely some storm clouds and concern" but that "the underpinning is good".
Yeah, if you want to call the richest 1% the "underpinning", then King George isnt a big, fat liar, I suppose. With forty percent of America's wealth under their belt, those 3 million folks are doing pretty darn "good".

On the other hand...

Bush tried to position himself as an advocate for working families by taking aim at his favorite target: the Democratic Congress.

"The Congress cannot take economic vitality for granted," Bush said.

"The most negative thing Congress can do in the face of economic uncertainty is to raise taxes on the American people," Bush said.

The audience of roughly 80 people listened to Bush with respectful silence. Yet a line that normally gets him applause — "I'll veto any tax increase" — drew no reaction at all.

Holy crap! No reaction to tax vetoes? Let's remember something very important here about the audience (hell, any audience) when Commander Chimp was speaking: they are a bunch of ringers. Dissent is not allowed in a Bush audience, which is generally stacked with members of the Still-Delusional Third (or whatever the number is these days). Even this audience failed to applaud his "no taxes" mantra, which may just be a clear indication that America is finally waking up to the enormous hole into which it has dug itself. Or maybe not. But you have to be pretty blind not to see at least some of our economic woes.

• Record debt
• massive trade deficit
• Negative savings levels
• devaluation of our currency
• stagnant pay rates (for most of us)
• growing poverty
• gas prices (not to mention record oil profits)
• inflation (yeah, you heard me, and you know it's true)

Even trained monkeys will eventually turn on their handlers when repeatedly abused**. Of course, when pressed, Lord Bush can always rely on his true constituents, his "base". Remember, 1% = 3,000,000 people, and 40% equals a lot of hired muscle to enforce their will, should the sheep discover that they are actually wolves (ever seen "A Bug's Life"?).

Maybe it wont come to that. Let's hope so, anyway. I mean, enlightened self-interest ought to say that if you have a quarter-million dollars, and have to give up, say, as much as even half through various economic policies, you've still got $125,000,000. That's enough to live fairly comfortably on, right? Or maybe not. Certainly there are days when I wonder how I get by on .05% of that.

Still, it may be a sacrifice we'll all have to make. I'm sure ol' Dubs will wave the flag just as vigorously when a bit of economic patriotism is called for, right?

Right?

Hello...?


* i.e., rose-colored short-sightedness
** and those little bastards are a lot stronger than they look

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Hey, check out some more numbers from the Existentialist Cowboy; seems even the government knows it policies are bullshit, they just dont say it in so many words.