Obama - The Audacity of Dope

Oh how we were all smoking the hope that Obama was offering. He was just talking dope though. Just listening to Obama made me high with the excitement of just even thinking about the possibility of real change (a more equitable and sustainable world).

Though warning bells were starting to go off during Obama’s acceptance speech with the ‘US is the beacon on the hill for the world’ BS, we so desperately wanted the Obama fairy tale to be true. The last straw was during Obama’s acceptance of the Nobel Peace Prize when he had the audacity to say that war will bring peace. Obama is talking like George W Bush. Scary.

Obama is why so many have given up on politics as a force for change. For over a generation it has been nothing but frauds, people who talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk. The examples are endless. Jean Chretien was against Free Trade, and was for creating decent paying jobs and universal daycare, but once elected jumped aboard the Free Trade train that outsourced decent paying jobs. Universal daycare was dropped like a hot potato.

Bill Clinton is now for Africa with a foundation in tow, but his free market economic policies jammed down Africa’s throat by the US controlled IMF and World Bank while he was President was devastating to Africa. Al Gore was all for the environment, but as Vice President saw the largest acceleration of environmental destruction in his country’s history. While in positions of power both Clinton and Gore did nothing to stop the destruction of Africa or the environment, yet once out of office pretend to be Saints.  

Unfortunately the days of politicians who stood up for what they believed in and pushed through progressive initiatives are done. Tommy Douglas stood up to financiers who threatened to pull the plug on Saskatchewan’s line of credit. He called their bluff. Douglas also stood up to doctors in Saskatchewan who went on strike for a month. The result was Canada’s most cherished government program, universal health care. Faced with such opposition, today’s politicians would have crumpled faster than paper from someone suffering from writer’s block.

Franklin Roosevelt in the Depression was able to convince his Democrats to push through the 1935 Social Security Act, created the Security and Exchange Commission to prevent abuses of the stock market, and also created the Civilian Conservation Corps that provided work for 3 million unemployed workers. The Wagner Act was passed that protected unions, improved working conditions and the pay of workers. Yet Obama is being blocked on health care by members of his own party.

Obama also talked a big game on taking action on climate change. Despite scientists saying that the world needs to decrease its emissions by 25% by 2020 relative to 1990 levels, the US is only willing to go down by 3%. Obviously Obama has no intention of leading the world on this issue. Action on climate change is deemed too costly, yet there is money galore to escalate the war in Afghanistan.

Did I mention the trillion dollar bailout to the financial players who caused the meltdown while the millions of workers who lost their jobs were given crumbs? Obama is the same old crap in a different package.

Canadian Government of Business

The Canadian government (both Harper’s Conservatives and Martin’s and Chretien’s Liberals) have been an embarrassment to the world on the issue of climate change. Despite signing the Kyoto protocol, Chretien did nothing to stop Canada’s emissions from increasing. After leaving office he consulted with a Calgary law firm who worked on behalf of oil and gas companies. Harper and Prentice are doing everything possible to protect Canada’s fossil fuel industry and are even rumoured to be lobbying to have the tarsands exempt from any possible emission targets. The tarsands are the largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world. We are looking like asses to the rest of the world.

City Council Stink Breath

2009 was the year of inaction on council. In March the living wage policy was easily defeated. Despite endorsing and publically saying he was in favour, Alderman John Mar voted no. Can you say two faced? I have no respect for politicians who say yes to everyone they meet.

The low point of the year though was the Plan It Calgary debates. Alderman Joe Connelly held a fundraiser for suburban developers right before the vote on Plan It. Connelly made a mockery of democracy. Now this scum bag is thinking of running for mayor in 2010. I hope he does and gets slaughtered like the pig he is. This is the guy who hands out ALDERmints with his www.tellJoe.ca website on them. He isn’t even the only Joe on Council either. This has halitosis written all over it.

Though Plan It Calgary passed, it has no targets, no teeth, the result of which will be continued suburban sprawl, terrible public bus service, and energy hog homes. Thanks to suburban developers and the fiscal hawks on council, the billion dollar subsidies to the suburbs and the environmental nightmare here in Calgary will continue.

I don’t even want to talk about the proposed pesticide bylaw.

Thank goodness 2009 is almost done.