Re: SC6_State of the Union

Our President is the ultimate Mr. Magoo, mixed in with some pompous arrogance.

He fired his economic advisor, who had the temerity to predict the Iraq War would cost $200 Billion. The cost is now approaching half a trillion dollars.

He shoots messengers who bring in bad news, such as the U.S. Park Police Chief, who was fired. Her offense? Going public that staffing cuts and increased duties had eroded her department's ability to protect national icons (Statue of Liberty, etc.) under the jurisdiction of the Park Police.

The incompetence of Michael Brown, which was exposed due to a horrendous federal response to Hurricane Katrina, is the tip of the iceberg. This Administration has put a whole army of Michael Brown clones in charge of various agencies and departments. Loyalty is far more important than competence. An example is the Director of the Office of Special Counsel, which is charged with protecting federal employee whistleblowers. This clown's performance is so bad that he no longer reports the numbers of successful interventions on behalf of whistleblowers. All these clones are trojan horse disasters waiting to happen, whether in the midst of a disaster or over a long period of time.

This President is supposed to be a "Conservative". So why is it that the supposedly "Liberal" president before him left a budget surplus, while "W" continues to spend money the government doesn't have with reckless abandon?

Lastly, this Administration has been a disaster for the environment, rolling back or diluting many of the hard-won protections which have enhanced our lives. For instance, emissions controls which were fought by the automobile industry and others have given us cleaner air than we had in the 70's, even though there are nearly twice as many personal vehicles. This Administration has fought to delay or derail new standards.

I share Wizzard's view that life in the future will likely have disastrous or catastropic drawbacks because of the wasteful way we use our resources today.