Peter D

I am no fan of Bush, but those 8 years weren't bad for me and many other people.

FulThrotl

there is an interesting book that is out of print, but still available on
the net:

The Glory and the Dream
William Manchester
1800 pages
"A Narrative History of America, 1932~1972"

it's a good read. i didn't really understand my parents, and some
of the things they did, until i read this book. above all else, it is an
evenhanded and balanced look at american culture, from the bottom
of the depression, until the openings of the watergate investigation.

in 1932, hoover became the first president to have a telephone installed
on his desk, and to have more than one secretary.

if you were to pay a call on the united states secretary of state, odds
are that he would meet you at the door.

the united states was a banana republic.

in sixteen years, we had survived a depression, fought a two ocean war,
and built a floating navy that exceeded the number and tonnage of our
enemies and allies *combined*.

in six years, we had built more than half of the ships afloat,
more than 75% of all the ships built between 1939 and 1945 were built
by us. it's a hell of a story.

nothing like it has ever occurred in so short a time.

and this particular book gives a very evenhanded recounting of the
events. i recommend it strongly.

before you tar FDR with "he coulda, shoulda, woulda" realize that what
he started with when sworn in makes what we are looking at today
look like easter egg rolling on the white house lawn.

InPhase277

It's not personal "bad" that matters for the last 8 years. I did well myself. But in that time our Nation has lost standing, respect, credibility, and has gone broke. We have lost the lives of our service men fighting an ill-defined war with no end.

I don't want to get started, but it's not that Bush and his team made "bad decisions", as if they made the innocent mistakes of misjudgment and short-sightedness. No. It seems to me that the people running the country for the last decade did these things deliberately. McCarthy was right; there are foes of America right here in our own government, that have been waiting patiently in the shadows and around the corners for the opportunities to rip us apart from within. They have been there for years, and found a vehicle in the Bush administration.

And guess what? They didn't simply fold up the plan and call it quits on January 20. They are still here...

macmikeman

I paddled over to here and spent the day at the only place I know of on planet earth where I could escape and not have to hear, see, or experience the coronation of our new fearless glorious wonderful leader. Move over Kim Jong-il, there's a new kid in town....

sherman

Where are all the atms???

sherman

Were those other friends of yours named Exxon /Mobil ????