... the water in a Moka Express comes close to boiling. Steam begins to form and pressure in the lower chamber begins to build. Eventually, the pressure builds up to a point (about 2 atmospheres) where the near-boiling water is forced up through a funnel into the coffee grounds and into the collection chamber. And there you have Italian Moka.
Okay, I will admit that perhaps this is a corny analogy, but I think it applies to the Democratic primaries right now, and eventually to the final presidential race. Obviously, I have continued to watch C-Span, and have been seeing more and more candidates speak. I am beginning to think that C-Span must have a liberal bias, because I see far more democrats speak than republicans, but I won't worry too much about that. I know that by far I prefer Senator McCain to Governor Huckabee, and if I had to pick one of the two right now I'd know exactly what I would do.
The real question for me, and I guess for the rest of the nation, if C-Span is assumed to broadcast only what we care about, is which democrat to rally behind. As I've said before, I've seen Hillary, Bill, Michelle, and Barack several times. Despite researching the issues and seeing the speeches, as well as reading the "propoganda," I am having an extremely difficult time selecting "the one I'd pick right now if I had to" candidate.
At odds:
1) The economy, stupid. Let's be honest, the American economy is in terrible shape. I know what I would do: let big business and Wall Street hang out to dry. Any living entity has to evolve to survive, and our government has a gross history of bailing out big business when things get tough. This relieves them of the duty to get better or shut down. If we let the big banks and hedge funds and insurance companies and pension plans suffer for their stupid mistake with CDOs, they'd learn to take a closer look at the securities they seem to think are near "riskless." Divorced from this issue, there is the American consumer to think about too, and something has to be done that will restore consumer confidence and get us a little bit of breathing room to get back on our feet and start saving. Jobs have to be created so that we can buy some consumer goods and keep the economy motoring forward.
2) Energy Innovation. Fossil fuels are antiquated technology. I will go on the record and admit that I don't believe in "man-made global warming." At the same time, I do believe that we are foolishly reliant on foreign resources, we are grossly inefficient, and that innovation will help to drive the economy forward (see item #1). America is supposed to be the world's industrial leader, but how can we continue to claim this title if we fail to lead the world in innovation? Evolution is critical to survival, and if we can develop a competitive edge in clean energy, and sell our services to nations like China and India, perhaps we can close that trade gap?
3) The American Ideal. This is hard to put my finger on. I've noticed recently that there is something missing from the public discourse, and I think that something is an optimistic, energetic, and nationally cohesive vision of the future. I'm not saying that everyone has to adopt the same moral compass, but I think that there is a bevy of values which are distinctly American. Some of these values are hard work, independence, goodwill toward neighbors, innovation (see item #2), and charity. I think at that the next president should be a person who can inspire all of these United States to exemplify these values.
People all around me are pumped up about Barack Obama. To be honest, I think that most of it has to be the fact that he's our senator, because I cannot see anything exciting about that man. I've spoken about the enthusiasm I see coming from his wife, but as for the man himself, what's the big deal? So who do I have to turn to? Hillary Clinton? When I see her speak, I get a little excited for the future, but certainly not fired up. I guess the Obama campaign has inspire me to type up two entries thus far, so maybe that's where the passion is? I just can't swallow that.
What it should boil down to is public policy. But to be honest, I can't completely get behind left-wing policy. I cannot shake this idea that both Clinton and Obama would throw away a lot of taxpayer dollars on social programs that I'm not yet sold on. Their energy policies are similar, as are their proposed tax policies. They disagree on the war, and I learn toward Hillary's position but the reality of an Obama total pull-out is slim to nill. LBJ said the same thing about Vietnam and it took until the Ford administration to get us completely out. Let's not also forget that only Congress has the power to declare war, and so while Obama would be the Commander-in-Chief, if Congress disagrees, and it might likely do so, he won't be successful in that objective.
Things are getting hot and the pressure is building. (Do you like how that analogy just came full circle?) As I pass through the tight funnel of the democratic race, I think that the coffee that will work for me might be Obama. He's not exciting, but he brings a fresh face and fresh ideas to the White House. He probably won't be successful in accomplishing everything that he wants to, but if people are so excited about what he says (even if I'm not ) then maybe it will bring fresh air and fresh excitment to politics.
But, dammit, I think Hillary would do a better job.
Okay, I will admit that perhaps this is a corny analogy, but I think it applies to the Democratic primaries right now, and eventually to the final presidential race. Obviously, I have continued to watch C-Span, and have been seeing more and more candidates speak. I am beginning to think that C-Span must have a liberal bias, because I see far more democrats speak than republicans, but I won't worry too much about that. I know that by far I prefer Senator McCain to Governor Huckabee, and if I had to pick one of the two right now I'd know exactly what I would do.
The real question for me, and I guess for the rest of the nation, if C-Span is assumed to broadcast only what we care about, is which democrat to rally behind. As I've said before, I've seen Hillary, Bill, Michelle, and Barack several times. Despite researching the issues and seeing the speeches, as well as reading the "propoganda," I am having an extremely difficult time selecting "the one I'd pick right now if I had to" candidate.
At odds:
1) The economy, stupid. Let's be honest, the American economy is in terrible shape. I know what I would do: let big business and Wall Street hang out to dry. Any living entity has to evolve to survive, and our government has a gross history of bailing out big business when things get tough. This relieves them of the duty to get better or shut down. If we let the big banks and hedge funds and insurance companies and pension plans suffer for their stupid mistake with CDOs, they'd learn to take a closer look at the securities they seem to think are near "riskless." Divorced from this issue, there is the American consumer to think about too, and something has to be done that will restore consumer confidence and get us a little bit of breathing room to get back on our feet and start saving. Jobs have to be created so that we can buy some consumer goods and keep the economy motoring forward.
2) Energy Innovation. Fossil fuels are antiquated technology. I will go on the record and admit that I don't believe in "man-made global warming." At the same time, I do believe that we are foolishly reliant on foreign resources, we are grossly inefficient, and that innovation will help to drive the economy forward (see item #1). America is supposed to be the world's industrial leader, but how can we continue to claim this title if we fail to lead the world in innovation? Evolution is critical to survival, and if we can develop a competitive edge in clean energy, and sell our services to nations like China and India, perhaps we can close that trade gap?
3) The American Ideal. This is hard to put my finger on. I've noticed recently that there is something missing from the public discourse, and I think that something is an optimistic, energetic, and nationally cohesive vision of the future. I'm not saying that everyone has to adopt the same moral compass, but I think that there is a bevy of values which are distinctly American. Some of these values are hard work, independence, goodwill toward neighbors, innovation (see item #2), and charity. I think at that the next president should be a person who can inspire all of these United States to exemplify these values.
People all around me are pumped up about Barack Obama. To be honest, I think that most of it has to be the fact that he's our senator, because I cannot see anything exciting about that man. I've spoken about the enthusiasm I see coming from his wife, but as for the man himself, what's the big deal? So who do I have to turn to? Hillary Clinton? When I see her speak, I get a little excited for the future, but certainly not fired up. I guess the Obama campaign has inspire me to type up two entries thus far, so maybe that's where the passion is? I just can't swallow that.
What it should boil down to is public policy. But to be honest, I can't completely get behind left-wing policy. I cannot shake this idea that both Clinton and Obama would throw away a lot of taxpayer dollars on social programs that I'm not yet sold on. Their energy policies are similar, as are their proposed tax policies. They disagree on the war, and I learn toward Hillary's position but the reality of an Obama total pull-out is slim to nill. LBJ said the same thing about Vietnam and it took until the Ford administration to get us completely out. Let's not also forget that only Congress has the power to declare war, and so while Obama would be the Commander-in-Chief, if Congress disagrees, and it might likely do so, he won't be successful in that objective.
Things are getting hot and the pressure is building. (Do you like how that analogy just came full circle?) As I pass through the tight funnel of the democratic race, I think that the coffee that will work for me might be Obama. He's not exciting, but he brings a fresh face and fresh ideas to the White House. He probably won't be successful in accomplishing everything that he wants to, but if people are so excited about what he says (even if I'm not ) then maybe it will bring fresh air and fresh excitment to politics.
But, dammit, I think Hillary would do a better job.
