Obama knocks it outta the park

The park references everyone is making has got me thinking, does anyone else think that having the speech outside drained off some of the energy and gravitas?

You know, the "outta the ball park" analogy would have worked soooo much better at the old Mile High!

Oh, well. The fireworks looked better above Field@MileHigh anyway.

I wish I could share your enthusiasm. Obama's speeches continue to be frustrating for me. For everything he gets so very right (the need to re-establish international moral standing, the need to provide government support for the needy, etc.), there's at least one thing he gets so very very wrong (the borderline racist phobia of outsourcing, nonsense about "trade deficits", half-hearted support for gay rights, placing the blame for healthcare on insurance companies rather than frivolous lawsuits).

It's always so much worse when it's your own party messing up...

ArchaeGeek: you either work in the service industry, where robotics have yet to replace warm bodies, or you are in upper management in an insurance company.

1: the 'benefits' of globalization of work distribution only accrue to the lowest bidder. It only works (for us) if everybody in the world competes at the same cost of living base. Outsourcing targets most heavily the information and manufacturing industries. The home workers, almost by definition the bulk of our Middle Class, lose their jobs, and have nowhere to move to other than down in scale since the sideways jobs are also disappearing out of the country, and upwards is limited by the 'natural' pyramid of management hierarchies. Also ultimately self-defeating, as is rapidly becoming apparent, as the policy at the end results in the loss of the consumers who are supposed to be buying those products they used to make, because with no good jobs they no longer have any disposable income for those products.

2: 'frivolous lawsuits'. I assume you are talking about malpractice. I am not aware of much activity directly against the insurance industry itself, other than some egregious denials recently showing no awareness of human sensibilities whatsoever. I assert malpractice lawsuits are a consequence, not a driver, of the way health insurance is structured in this country. Also I assert that the total cost of malpractice settlements (in the relatively rare cases where they are settled) is a vanishingly small portion of the HI revenue. Face it, America is around 40th rank in the world in terms of the effectiveness and availability of health care to the average citizen. Over 30% of the charges are lost in management overhead in the insurance companies, money which does not go towards actual health care. At least another 20% goes to gross profit margins, again to the insurance companies, and again not contributing to actual health care. And all this so that money can be moved around through middle-men before being paid to the health workers and suppliers themselves. None (or little) of which exists in Universal or Single Payer systems. There is no ethical or moral justification for the profit motive when it comes to health or education. Both are investments in the future of the country, both are to the benefit of all citizens (even if non-citizens can participate).

The neocons have no ethical alternative. Their position is to let the 'free market' do its thing, but then behind the scenes let the profiteers in that market pay the politicians so they - the profiteers - can write the legislation that exempts them from taxes and liability etc. It is utterly insane and only the massive inertia of the US economy has let them get away with it for so long, but now even that is seriously faltering.

So, don't waver, there is no other choice at this time. Not voting for Barack is a vote to continue with McSame. Not voting for your local Democrat is a vote to give Congress back to the neocons.