This blog printed on 100% recycled electrons.
Hunter's squawking also proves his continued inability to string together a coherent argument. Therefore...
Top Ten Reasons Jon Hunter Should Stick with
"Isn't Madison Pretty?" As Editorial Topic
"Isn't Madison Pretty?" As Editorial Topic
10
For not liking government, Hunter and his newspaper pals sure like having a monopoly on publishing government notices.9
Hunter advocates reforming Congress by electing new members this year. I assume his editorial endorsing anyone who challenges John Thune is all ready to go.8
Hunter recites the Fox-GOP mantra that "health care 'reform' means government control." Jon (and Republicans everywhere)—seriously? Come on: if the bill the House passed last weekend were a complete government takeover of health insurance, Dennis Kucinich would have voted for it.7
Hunter bemoans the fact that the government sets interest rates. Looks like his Tea Party roots are showing: I guess his preference is to abolish the Federal Reserve.6
Hunter says cap-and-trade gives the government the power to punish and reward industries. Um, Jon? Read the bill. Carbon trading is a market-based and market-tested solution that works.5
Hunter gripes about stimulus dollars growing the public sector while the private sector shrinks. But the private sector wasn't exactly an engine of growth before the stimulus. And the kids getting food on the table thanks to those stimulus job paychecks don't give a rip which sector those jobs are in.4
Hunter thinks the government is meddling with banks to force them to give loans to people who can't pay them back. The bankers were the ones making sleazy, stupid subprime loans that melted down the economy in the first place; the banks could use some regulation.3
Hunter beats the anti-regulation drum further by quoting Rep. Barney Frank on the effort to increase government regulation. Again, predatory lenders get what they deserve.2
Hunter cites polls (no links, of course) saying only 29% of Americans approve of Congress's job performance. Funny: that's the same percentage of Americans who think news organizations get the facts straight. But where is Hunter's call for replacing all the newspaper editors?1
More poll numbers from the same Pew Research Center data: 21% of Americans think news organizations are willing to admit their mistakes. 20% think news organizations are independent of powerful people and organizations. Throw the bums out, right?
Cory,
ReplyDeleteWould you like to see the MDL go away?
We are lucky to have a viable newspaper in a town the size of Madison.
original points still stand...
ReplyDeleteKudos for Jon Hunter's great editorial.
ReplyDelete#9 on your list. The fallacy of your argument is that most of SD'ans approve of Thune's stances and performance; therefore, he was not a target in this editorial.
#8. This health care "reform" is all above gov't control and wealth redistribution, and as a liberal you will most certainly love it. Reform means fixing the problems in health care and insurance, and this bill doesn't even touch portability and tort reform, two of the biggest problems. It IS all above control. Also, Kucinich didn't vote for it because it wasn't liberal enough and allowed insurance companies to survive (in his opinion) and he only wants a public option which would be total control.
6. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123655590609066021.html
http://www.heritage.org/research/EnergyandEnvironment/tst071009a.cfm
Two links that show the cap and trade (tax) scheme does not work and the cost is passed on to the very people Obama promised would see "not one penny" in increased taxes. Ha!
4. So Acorn et al forcing banks to provide loans to people the banks knew could not repay them was the fault of in your words "sleazy, stupid" subprime loan officers?
3. Barney Frank, the libs epitome of an ethical, honest, caring, "I don't recognize a pot plant" politician should be fired. The day he obeys the gov't regs that he essentially has the power to set is the day that I'll believe him on anything. After all, he didn't even see Fannie and Freddie for what they were right before the meltdown started.
2. Citizens' opinion of Congress is pathetically low. If congress were truly representative of the people, they would listen to us, instead of ramming thru legislation that the majority do not want, that they don't have time to read, and that will not address the problems but only increase gov't bureaucracy and control over our lives. The thing about news organizations we don't like is that we have a choice. We can choose a different source. We do not have a choice when truly crappy laws are passed by a Congress not willing to listen to its people, not willing to sensibly address problems instead of drafting 2000+ page bills, not reading them, and not understanding them.
Sticking with "Isn't Madison Pretty" topics is not the topic that people in Madison should be concerned about at this time. They should be concerned with exactly what Jon Hunter wrote about, and I hope every reader takes these words to heart and decides to stick up for liberty and freedom. Our veterans and soldiers have and are fighting in hell-holes across the world to protect these freedoms, and it is up to each of us to help them here at home, before it's too late. This isn't a Republican or Democrat issue - it is an American issue.
#9: Hunter made no such distinction.
ReplyDelete#8: Exactly my point: it's not real gov't control.
#6: back up: read my link first. the Clean Air Act cap-and-trade on sulfur emissions worked spectacularly. Empirically proven. The Heritage (ha!) link cites fraud and corruption in Europe from big businesses abusing the system, meaning we need more regulation, not less, right?
#4 ACORN? Irrelevant. There's a rule that says when an online discussion invokes Hitler, it's gone past rationality. I'm ready to amend that rule with the ACORN corollary: when right-wingers invoke ACORN, they've runout of ratinoal arguments.
#3: Again, Nonnie does the same thing as Hunter, invoking Frank's name to rile the conservatives who like to argue personalities instead of policies, but ignoring the actual argument. Weak.
#2: Again, Linda Mc. entirely misses the point. If low public approval is a call to action, then the numbers I cite indicate we should be as distrustful of Jon Hunter and the other for-profit media as he wants us to be of Congress... at which point Hunter's whole editorial implodes into incredible nonsense.
Cory,
ReplyDeleteYour online personality in this post is coming across as abrasive and attacking even though in person you are the opposite. Tone is a hard thing to judge on the internet.
Jon's an alright guy even though I disagree with many of his views.
Again, focusing on personality instead of the issues. Linda addresses policy as vigorously as I do, but my argument is ignored as "abrasive"? Hunter dismisses all of Congress as control freaks, and he's an "alright guy"? What gives with that double standard?
ReplyDelete"What gives with that double standard?"
ReplyDeleteBecause it is the truth that Congress are control freaks. The truth is still the truth, even if it is ugly for big-government Progressives to accept.
Cory,
ReplyDeleteAn unusually wise politician once told me "you don't make your own candle burn any brighter by blowing someone else's out." I've know you since when? Kindgergarten? When did you become so mean-spirited? You can make your political point without personally attacking Jon Hunter or anyone else for that matter.
...Linda Mc. is still the only person able to focus on the policies and not the person. Oh well....
ReplyDeleteAnd Nicole, can you quantify for me how anything written above is any more harsh or personal than the comments you usually reserve for Facebook?
ReplyDeleteI would like to add a comment to #4. These investment bankers are supposed to be the smartest kids on the block. They loaned money with no collateral to back it. Should have let them fail and thank them for showing us what not to do.
ReplyDeleteThad, a lot of the problems were caused by the bankers being essentially forced to make loans they knew were bad. Acorn et al did the coercing, harrassing, etc. So when these loans went bad, why blame soley the bankers? Blame the community organizers who forced the banks to loan them money and then turn around and blame the banks when they can't make payments. Duh!
ReplyDeleteLast anon was me; just hit the buttons too fast.
ReplyDeleteWow: ACORN and community organizers caused the recession, and not the gamblers on Wall Street? Now I've heard it all. Weren't Republicans telling us at their convention last year that "community organizers" can't get anything done? Please, Linda, put down the Limbaugh.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, and Hunter's editorial is still bunk. ;-)
Cory,
ReplyDeleteLinda hit the truth on the head. Is is still true even if it is too ugly for you to accept. ACORN used the race card and threats of lawsuits based on discrimination to push the subprime business down America's throats. And yes, Wall Street privatized the profits and the taxpayers absorbed the losses. The fault is with both political parties and the American people who allowed our political leaders to get away with the rip off.
Cory, can't we work together to end the corruption? If so, then allow the truth to be the truth. It is time to expose the crooks, and to "End the Fed".