Sen. Webb Compares Today's Situation to "Great Depression and World War II"

By: Lowell
Published On: 4/12/2008 5:49:53 AM

You know things are really bad when a man as smart as Jim Webb, a man who has studied history intensely, looks at the situation in the United States today and comes to the following conclusions:

The United States is in "as grave a period of national concern that we have had since the combination of the Great Depression and World War II," Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., said in Richmond yesterday.

Economic inequality, the affordable housing crisis and the Iraq war are indicators "that we are moving into a period of even greater concern," Webb said at a meeting with representatives of low-cost housing programs.

[...]

"Economic inequality is affecting how we live with such a broad range of issues in this country that we are breaking apart along class lines in a way that I don't think we've ever seen before," Webb declared.

In the face of this dismal diagnosis, what does Dr. McCain and his merry band of Corporate Crony Conservatives prescribe?  Well, let's see, there's more war, endless war -- 100 years in Iraq, "bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran" (ha, funny one John!).  There's more of the same Bush economic policies -- lax regulation of out-of-control corporations, crony capitalism, coddling of corporate criminals (remember Enron and Kenny Boy?), trade deals that are neither "free" nor "fair," huge tax breaks to Big Oil and the super wealthy and crumbs (if that) for everyone else, "addiction" to Saudi oil forever, failure to invest in the nation's physical infrastructure (bridges, roads, trains, power grids, etc.) and human capital (education).

What else do Republicans have to offer us in this "grave a period of national concern that we have had since the combination of the Great Depression and World War II?"  Well, let's see, we've got demagogic, right-wing appeals to peoples' fears, anxieties, frustrations, and anger -- the "lesser angels" of peoples' nature that Abraham Lincoln talked about.  We've got a ratcheting up of those fears and anxieties to such a degree that people barely bat an eyelash to hear that top Bush Administration officials actually sat around discussing which of various torture techniques (aka, "war crimes") to authorize.  We've got rank incompetence and breathtaking insensitivity when one of our great cities is flooded by a natural disaster of epic proportions.  We've got the aforementioned endless war but no concomitant call for sacrifice from 99% of Americans (instead, Bush stirringly urges us all to "go shopping," as if that's the best way to "fight terror").

In short, faced with the situation Senator Webb describes, we will have a stark choice in November. That's right, 7 months from now we can vote to continue along the same, misguided course that Bush, McCain et al. have placed us on. Or, we can vote to fundamentally change direction: restore America's honor in the world; stop decimating the middle and working classes while further enriching the rich; bring the nation together instead of dividing it; inspire people rather than make them more anxious and afraid; take strong action to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure; move swiftly to stave off global warming and other dire environmental problems; provide Americans with affordable and high-quality health care; ensure that this nation has the best educated workforce in the world; return to fiscal discipline and stop the vicious cycle of "borrow and spend and pass the debt onto the grandkids." The choice is obvious.

The bottom line is this: we are in tough times right now, possibly the toughest in 70 years, as Jim Webb correctly suggests. Democrats certainly don't have all the answers, that's true.  But one thing's for sure; Republicans don't have ANY answers, at least not answers that most of us can (or want to ) live with.  

Comments



bush and cheney and mccain..... (pvogel - 4/12/2008 6:57:29 AM)
Up till now, war has ALWAYS improved the economy.  Under the regime we have, this has been the first time war has damaged us

Oops! I forgot the us War of a. northern aggression
                            b> between the states.

That was a disaster for the south. The south was behind the north all the way into the 1940s



The war was bad but reconstruction was worse. (WillieStark - 4/12/2008 10:23:33 AM)
The north lost forever any moral authority it had in fighting the Civil War (and yes the South was dead wrong) by the actions during reconstruction.

When you add the agrarian nature of the Southern economy with the punitive and ridiculous nature of reconstruction to that, it is little wonder that the South struggled economically, and still does.



But back to Webb (WillieStark - 4/12/2008 10:26:13 AM)
It is this kind of position that increases my respect for Sen. Webb. It is also the kind of position and statements we should be hearing from everyone in Congress and running for president. So far, only John Edwards has come close to articulating these positions in a way that earns my respect.


Leadership: (Bubby - 4/12/2008 11:15:34 AM)
Great leaders look back and care for ALL their people.  

Just thought my Republican friends could use that reminder.



Independents will be the crucial determiner in November (Alter of Freedom - 4/12/2008 7:43:51 PM)
I know the mainstream media wishes to focus on the blue collar American political dynamic within the Primary race for the Democrats especially after OH and now in PA but come the general it will be the Independents that will drive the winner into victory lane. Independents have always seem to like McCain and thougb I am as yet convinced and am still waiting to see what else spills out of the Clinton/Obama battle it irritates me along with many independents I know when Democrats seek to continually portray America by grouping people into groups for associational logic. In 2000 no one certainly would claim that McCain and Bush were even close to being alike and yet we have a Democratic Primary where the two potential nominees are virtually indentical on most issues. Any attempt to link McCain, save the quasi-support for Iraq War which of course McCain challenged Bush contunally since 2006 any attempt to link McCain with Bush let alone Cheney will fall on deaf ears to most Independents because it simply is not so. If this so called continuation of the Bush years is so defacto in status with a McCain victory then why are not any of the Evangelical that delivered Bush to the Presidency supporting him at this point. McCain is the one Republican that most insider Democrats did not want to have to face in November if people are being honest and of course we will hear alot about linking him to the Bush Iraqi policy but maybe that is because there is very little else we can see a George Bush in John McCain. Play the card I guess and McCain with certainly check and not fold.