jesshartley | In which we like the message here.

I've made no secret of the fact that I'm (in general) a social liberal and economic near-conservative. I think people should have the right to do what they want, as long as they're willing to be responsible for the results of their actions. Unfortunately, the richer/more powerful you are, the less likely that "responsible for your actions" seems to hold true.

Stocks fall but Exec Pay Doesn't (From April of this year)
Ailing WAMu pays millions to ousted/new CEOS (From September of this year)
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Economy/story?id=5876413 (notice some familiar names here?)
This coupled with the fact that CEO payouts are apparently perfectly acceptable as part of the proposed 700 BILLION dollar bailout*? Yeah, I'm thinking a bit of responsibility for actions and choices is long overdue.

* Does that seem like a really big number to you? Apparently it does to the Treasury as well, as Forbes.com quoted one Treasury spokeswoman as saying: ""It's not based on any particular data point," a Treasury spokeswoman told Forbes.com Tuesday. "We just wanted to choose a really large number."

Time for someone who's REASONABLE about what's good for those of us who are worried about keeping our house, not just those who can't remember how many houses we have? Yes.

Time to quit relying on off-shore/over-seas/other-folks to bail us out, provide our fuel, make our stuff, buy up our debt? Yes.

Time for a change? Yes.

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I believe we do need a change, but I watched the video, and his message just sounds wrong. He mentions that money didn't trickle down but pain trickled up... does that mean that it's ok as long as the middle and upper class don't feel pain? He also says he will focus on the middle class.... again, where does that leave the lower class? I'd like to see a message focusing on Americans, and not classes. Having lived on the brink of middle/lower income for so long, this message came across as insulting. Could just be bad writing.

The economy is not going to magically be fixed no matter who is president, and when it does finally get on track whoever is in office will take credit even if they had nothing to do with it. Bush has, granted, made bad choices, but the shape of the economy as it is now has been a long time coming. The bull was let loose in the china shop long ago and they're just now realizing and reacting to the damage that it caused.

I'm no fan of Bush, but we really aren't the ones who will judge whether he was a good or bad president, history will. JFK was actually shaping up to be a pretty unremarkable president, but he was assassinated and people look now upon his presidency as if they had witnessed the second coming.

My point is, in an esoteric way, don't vote Republican, don't vote Democrat, Libertarian or even Vulcan. Now more than ever, read between the lines, scrutinize what each candidate says and make your own choice, don't follow what the crowd does.

Thanks, and I approve this message

In which we like the message here.

Hey Jess, it's Jason (DP9)