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I'm sure this could have infuriated the hardcore conservatives and Obama-haters out there, but I bet everyone else can't help but have a giggle. This guy has the ability to simultaenously enter the fray and stay above the fray.

Thanks Obama! You are surely America's greatest President.

Gallup July 28th in Presidency Approval
GW: 40%
Obama: 39%

Does public opinion determine how good a president is?

Frazzle, I didn't say he was the most gifted President. I said he was the most gifted President at making Congress look foolsh.

And I also added the caveat that I realize that Obama-haters, of which I gather you are a proud member, would not be amused.

If you are impressed by approval ratings, Congress is currently sitting at 15% as of Gallup on 7/10/14.

Can see this thread going to crazy places

COngress sucks to.

Protip making Congress look stupid is like running up and slapping the kid with the special helmet on and then running away.

Meanwhile Rome burns.

Putin laughing his chest hair off

Meh, pretty sure Putin's opinion of US politicians was cemented when GW Bush opened up about his mancrush on him.

 jasper76 wrote:
Frazzle, I didn't say he was the most gifted President. I said he was the most gifted President at making Congress look foolsh.

That isn't much of an achievement - Congress can make fools of themselves without any help

 jasper76 wrote:
Meh, pretty sure Putin's opinion of US politicians was cemented when GW Bush opened up about his mancrush on him.

Maybe that was the reason for the crackdown on promoting homosexuality in Russia

I looked into his eyes and saw his soul, and once I saw the crucifix hanging from his strong neck and falling onto his powerful, Russian chest, I knew I had found the right dictator for me.

I wouldn't go that far...

Weren't you aware of Congress' rhetoric during the GW Bush years? Just as bad... if not worse. (geez, remember the SCOTUS' case over Al Gore regarding the "hanging chad"? )

He does look like he's having fun.

Yeah, if I were in a situation with a business partner where anything and everything I tried to do, whether good or bad, was met with obstinacy and/or hostility, I wouldn't be able be able to maintain this kind of good humor.

Pfft thats my job every damn day.

Strong public speaking skills and an awareness of pop culture that makes him seem "cool" unfortunately don't equate to actual results, since the ideas he's peddling are either couched in ignorance, at best, or socialism, at worst.

His ability to impress the young generation not withstanding, this says more about the (unfortunate) state of the young generation than it does about his abilities as president.

 NuggzTheNinja wrote:
since the ideas he's peddling are either couched in ignorance, at best, or socialism, at worst.

His ability to impress the young generation not withstanding, this says more about the (unfortunate) state of the young generation than it does about his abilities as president.

I'm not in the young generation, FWIW.

Anyway, you do realize the US has been a socialist country for quite a long time, right?

 jasper76 wrote:

 NuggzTheNinja wrote:
since the ideas he's peddling are either couched in ignorance, at best, or socialism, at worst.

His ability to impress the young generation not withstanding, this says more about the (unfortunate) state of the young generation than it does about his abilities as president.

I'm not in the young generation, FWIW.

Anyway, you do realize the US has been a socialist country for quite a long time, right?

Never said you were.

And yes...that's part of the problem.

OK, I mean both the Democtratic Party and Republican Party are de facto socialist organizations. I just see alot of confusion over what the term means, glad to see you understand.

 jasper76 wrote:

 NuggzTheNinja wrote:
since the ideas he's peddling are either couched in ignorance, at best, or socialism, at worst.

His ability to impress the young generation not withstanding, this says more about the (unfortunate) state of the young generation than it does about his abilities as president.

I'm not in the young generation, FWIW.

Anyway, you do realize the US has been a socialist country for quite a long time, right?

wut?

Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, federal student loans, HUD, FEMA.

Need I go on?

 jasper76 wrote:
Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, federal student loans, HUD, FEMA.

Need I go on?

Those are social programs... doesn't make the country "socialist". Big distinction dude.

 whembly wrote:

 jasper76 wrote:
Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, federal student loans, HUD, FEMA.

Need I go on?

Those are social programs... doesn't make the country "socialist". Big distinction dude.

So programs arent part of the government? Part of the country? I didn't say or mean that the US is exclusively socialist, it is just one of many adjectives that describes our system of government.

(from Merriam-Webster) Socialism: System of social organization in which private property and the distribution of income are subject to social control; also, the political movements aimed at putting that system into practice. Because “social control” may be interpreted in widely diverging ways, socialism ranges from statist to libertarian, from Marxist to liberal. The term was first used to describe the doctrines of Charles Fourier, Henri de Saint-Simon, and Robert Owen, who emphasized noncoercive communities of people working noncompetitively for the spiritual and physical well-being of all (see utopian socialism). Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, seeing socialism as a transition state between capitalism and communism, appropriated what they found useful in socialist movements to develop their “scientific socialism.” In the 20th century, the Soviet Union was the principal model of strictly centralized socialism, while Sweden and Denmark were well-known for their noncommunist socialism.

So, how does the US not meet this definition?

 jasper76 wrote:

 whembly wrote:

 jasper76 wrote:
Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, federal student loans, HUD, FEMA.

Need I go on?

Those are social programs... doesn't make the country "socialist". Big distinction dude.

So programs arent part of the government? Part of the country? I didn't say or mean that the US is exclusively socialist, it is just one of many adjectives that describes our system of government.

Okay... but words have meaning.

At "what degree" does a country need to be "Centrally Planned" in order to be considered a "Socialist Country"?

Don't know the answer to that quesion. If a country, such as the US, is heavy with socialist programs, I think its not a bridge too far to call it a "socialist country".

But this is all academic, I'm willing to say that our country is choc-ful-o' socialist programs fully supported by all major political parties, and move on.

It will be interesting to see what will happen when the pre and intra cold war generations start dying off how attitudes in Americaland towards "socialism" change.

 jasper76 wrote:
Yes, words do have meaning. The US is a socialist country.

Republicans and Democrats both fully support socialist programs, hence they are de facto socialist organizations.

It's somewhere in between socialist vs capitalism.

Which way does the pendulum swings?

If anything, we're trending towards the Euro model.

:shrug:

 whembly wrote:

Okay... but words have meaning.

They do indeed, and I will be very happy the day that america learns what socialism is. And when they put the letter 'u' back into all those words...

At "what degree" does a country need to be "Centrally Planned" in order to be considered a "Socialist Country"?

Zero? One does not require central planning to be a socialist country.

This thread feels like bait.

 SilverMK2 wrote:

 whembly wrote:

Okay... but words have meaning.

They do indeed, and I will be very happy the day that america learns what socialism is. And when they put the letter 'u' back into all those words...

At "what degree" does a country need to be "Centrally Planned" in order to be considered a "Socialist Country"?

Zero? One does not require central planning to be a socialist country.

<whembly: HAL... what does Central Planning Means?>
<...>
<...>
<ding!>
<HAL: Centrally Planned Economy. Definition of 'Centrally Planned Economy' An economic system in which economic decisions are made by the state or government rather than by the interaction between consumers and businesses.>
<whembly: thanks HAL!>

*HAL = Google

 Ahtman wrote:
This thread feels like bait.

I'm always accused of being a troll-baiter.

Has the world gotten so grim that people of differing opinions can't open communications with one another to try and see how other people think?