Politivity

Here are quotes from Barack Obama at last night’s CNBC Democrat Presidential Debate. Followed with my rebuttals.

And what we should be doing is reaching out aggressively to our allies, but also talking to our enemies and focusing on those areas where we do not accept their actions, whether it be terrorism or developing nuclear weapons, but also talking to Iran directly about the potential carrots that we can provide in terms of them being involved in the World Trade Organization, or beginning to look at the possibilities of diplomatic relations being normalized.

We do not negotiate with terrorists or those who support them.

Now, there may come a point where those measures have been exhausted and Iran is on the verge of obtaining a nuclear weapon, where we have to consider other options. But we shouldn’t talk about those options now, when we haven’t even tried what would be a much more effective approach.

How do you know if diplomacy will be effective? Did diplomacy keep Sadam Hussein from raping women and performing chemical “science experiments” on the Kurds? No. Shouldn’t we be prepared just in case diplomacy doesn’t work? Yes.

The president has to lead that diplomacy, which is why I’ve said I would convene a meeting of Muslim leaders upon taking office because I think we have to send a strong signal that we are willing to listen and not just talk, and certainly not just dictate or engage in military action.

We do not negotiate with terrorists or those who support them.

But we nevertheless have to take steps that are not only engaging Iraqis — the Shia, the Sunni and the Kurds — but also engaging Iran, Syria and other powers in the region.

We do not negotiate with terrorists or those who support them.

And finally, I think we’ve got to have a president who has the experience of standing up, even when it’s not easy, which is what I did in 2002 when i stood up against this war in Iraq 10 days before the authorization.

Obama will stand up to Bush but not terrorists or rogue leaders.

That is the kind of judgment that I’m displaying during this campaign when I go to Detroit and I say to the automakers that they need to raise fuel efficiency standards; not in front of some environmental group.

Obama will stand up to American companies but not terrorists and rogue leaders.

I’m not fearful, just as Joe isn’t, to have a debate about this with Rudy Giuliani because we’ve got the facts on our side.

Why not just give Rudy some carrots?

I have confidence in the American people.

With the exception of Bush, the military’s ability to win the war in Iraq, Republicans, and Senator Hillary Clinton.

The way to respond to swiftboating is to respond forcefully, rapidly and truthfully.

The Swift Boat Veterans were telling the truth. So, we must use force on the veterans. But not the terrorists. Got it.

I do think that we have to have more instruction in the classroom.

Last year, my daughter was taught by her public school teacher that Korea is part of China and that the Philippines are in South America. This year she was taught that it’s the President’s job to call up the National Guard (that’s a Governor’s responsibility) and that the capital of China is Beijing (it’s Shanghai). Today she walked a classmate to the nurse and the nurse had her put a paper towel on her face for no reason.

I do not want more public education. I want my taxes lowered so I can send my kids to private school!

And by the way, instituting a universal health-care system that emphasizes prevention will free up dollars that potentially then can go to reimbursing doctors a little bit more.

Cancer patients have to wait for treatment in countries with universal healthcare. Survival rates are lower. Seniors can’t get elective hip replacement surgeries. Women are discouraged from having epidurals during childbirth. One woman was predetermined to be a bad mother before her baby was born and the government was making plans to take her child away from her once born. Now the British are starting to go to India for care!

And they’re seeing better solvency, but they’ve done it on the backs of consumers.

Tax increases on the wealthy will also be carried on the backs of consumers.

We’re not taking care of kids who are alive and unfortunately are not getting health care.

That’s true. The Democrats refuse to send a reasonable S-CHIP reauthorization program to the President. Instead, they keep sending bills that expand to families making upwards $80k who can afford healthcare.

We’re not taking care of senior citizens who are alive and are seeing their heating prices go up.

But I thought the Social Security program wasn’t in crisis? And isn’t Medicare a government health care program? I thought government health care was the answer!

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Iran:

First

I am not going to speculate about when or if they get nuclear weapons.

and then

We shouldn’t be doing nothing, and that means we should not let them acquire nuclear weapons.

Why would we be concerned about a country unless we were speculating that they are pursuing nuclear weapons?

More on Iran:

First…

I want to prevent a rush to war.

and then…

We’re not, in my view, rushing to war.

Why is she spending time preventing something that’s not happening?

On Republicans

First…

I’ve been standing up against the Republicans

and then…

Let’s put together a bipartisan commission and look at how we’re going to deal with these long-term challenges.

If the Republicans are so horrible, why work with them?

On the Military

First…

I do not — and I don’t think any of us do — oppose the brave young men and women who have fought this war with such distinction and heroism.

and then…

We have to try to get the Iraqi government to understand its obligations, because there is no military solutions.

She supports men and women that she doesn’t think can get the job done in Iraq?

On the War on Terror:

First…

Now, I don’t know how you pursue Al Qaida without engaging them in combat.

and then…

I think we should get as many of the combat troops out as quickly as possible.

and then…

If we leave any troops in, like special operations, to go after Al Qaida in Iraq, I assume that we don’t want them just sitting around and watching them. We want them to engage them. That is a very limited mission.

and then…

I stand for ending the war in Iraq, bringing our troops home.

and then…

We’re going to have troops remaining there, guarding our embassy. We may have a continuing training mission, and we may have a mission against Al Qaida in Iraq.

Clinton will end the war in Iraq and bring troops home. Except when she doesn’t and leaves them there to fight Al Qaida.

On Social Security

First…

I am not going to be advocating any specific fix until I am seriously approaching fiscal responsibility.

and then…

For us to act like Social Security is in crisis is a Republican trap.

Does Social Security need to be fixed or not?

On Energy:

First…

We need to do more to investigate, as John says, and we might even have to look at the strategic petroleum reserve, which the Bush administration has been filling up beyond any expectation of need for the short term, at least.

and then…

But we also have to have a serious move toward energy efficiency and conservation.

Do we have conservation problems or not?

On Charlie Rangel’s Tax Proposal:

First…

I don’t know all the details of what Charlie is recommending

and then…

I don’t agree with all the details, but he’s on the right track to say we’ve got to do something about the AMT.

Do you know the details or do you not know all the details?

On Taxes:

First…

I want to get to a fair and progressive tax system.

and then…

I want to freeze the estate tax at the 2009 level of $7 million for a couple.

Fair doesn’t apply to the wealthy.

On Education:

We need to do more to help our families prepare their children. A family is a child’s first school.

and then…

We need to really support it through nurse visitation or social work or child care. We need to do more with the pre-kindergarten program that I have proposed.

So we’re going to support the Family, a child’s first school, with strangers from the government? And then take kids away from their families earlier to put them in public school a year earlier?

Transcript 

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Last night, during the CNBC Democrat Presidential Debate,  Hillary Clinton responded to criticism about accepting donations from special interest groups.

I’m going to take $10 billion away from a lot of these industries, starting with money from the HMOs that are getting too much out of Medicare, starting with the no-bid contracts for Halliburton; starting with the defense industry that needs to be pared down and reined in.

Sounds like stealing, doesn’t it?

Clinton did not comment on what would happen to those left unemployed by these actions.

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The war in Iraq is about terror.

If you doubt this, then you need to read Michael Yon’s Bless the Beasts and the Children. (warning: gruesome pictures)

Michael Yon is an independent journalist embedded with the armed forces in Iraq. While there he learned that:

Al Qaeda often plants bombs inside the dead bodies of the animals and people they’ve killed. They have rigged children’s bodies with explosives.

Read that again. Al Qaeda is killing the Iraqis.

Why?

Because the Iraqis are fighting WITH the Americans. The Americans say that the Iraqis are good fighters, they just need the logistical support, which is where the U.S. and allies come in.

The Iraqis are increasingly becoming disgusted with Al Qaeda. And that’s an understatement. Al Qaeda will destroy anyone who is not supportive of their extreme Islamic agenda.

A free Iraq is a huge threat to Al Qaeda. Because it means that Iran is surrounded by democracy. And that means we have a greater likelihood of using diplomacy instead of force to get Iran to behave.

We cannot back down. We cannot withdraw. Iraq is a cornerstone for fighting the war on terror. If we pull the troops, Al Qaeda wins. And none of us want another 9/11.

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UPDATE: City Journal explains the statistics.

Questions are raising over the accuracy of Giuliani’s recent radio ad on prostate cancer. In the ad, Giuliani claims that US survival rates for prostate cancer are 82% while the British have a scary 44%. These numbers come from the City-Journal, a publication of the conservative think tank, Manhattan Institute.The problem is that the British government claims that the survival rate is 74.4%.

Good news: US survival rates are actually above 90%.

Bad news: No matter which British number is correct - more men in England are dying in prostate cancer because they do not have quick access to care.

MSNBC in their “fact-checking” inquired with a doctor from Johns Hopkins. Dr. Patrick Walsh says you can’t compare death rates because many prostate cancer victims actually die of pneumonia.

In this case, it’s possible that the 44% might be true. The reason would be that patients are more susceptible to disease when their immunity system is weakened by the treatment. However, many of these patients would not have pneumonia if they had treated the cancer early and entered into remission.

Naturally, we must ask the question if US death rates are lower too. It is less likely. The reason being that men have quicker access to treatment for prostate cancer and less likely to have aggressive courses of treatment, which weaken their immune system and make them more susceptible to pneumonia.

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There’s an ad circulating on TV and the internet by the American Cancer Society. It talks about cancer patients who can’t afford health care.

You might be tempted to think “We need government healthcare so these people can get treatment.”

Think again.

In countries with government healthcare, the rate of death among cancer patients is higher. 

If the United States were to enact a government healthcare program, more Americans would die of cancer. 

The reason is that when people are diagnosed of cancer in countries with these programs, they have to wait for treatment. We all know that early detection and treatment is the key. And more Americans receive early detection and treatment than the citizens living in countries with government health programs.

We do need to work on our health system so that more people have access, but that’s not going to happen through government programs.

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For months, opponents of the war have said that the American military cannot win the war in Iraq. But this week, some have been saying that the California National Guard could have prevented the spread of the California wildfires if only they were not in Iraq. Nevermind that there are 10,000 firefighters on the scene. There are 17,000 members of the California National Guard. Only 3,000 of them are in Iraq.

Another argument against the war in Iraq is that our troops are in harm’s way for a pointless war. But bringing in the National Guard for these fires could also be construed as needless. Wildfires in Southern California are nothing new, and yet people insist on building expensive homes in this high risk area. Just as New Orleans was built below Sea Level and San Francisco rests on a powerful earthquake fault.

It would be outrageous to suggest that Americans only build in low-risk climates. Almost every location is subject to some kind of natural disaster. It would almost be as outrageous as suggesting that Al Quaida was operating in every major country in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America - except Iraq.

Technorati Tags: national guard, iraq, california, wildfires

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