AClogston/Flickr
Is it a rising sun or a setting sun?
I'm not an expert on public opinion, but I think mainstream voters tend to find this kind of pessimism distasteful.
Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan said on Sunday that the U.S. is "on a path to decline," criticizing President Obama for the mediocre jobs numbers released on Friday....
To be sure, a clear majority of Americans are unsatisfied with the status quo, and most believe the nation is off track, but for those seeking national leadership to say the United States is "on a path to decline" is an awkward proposition.
Indeed, it's allowing Ryan's rivals to position themselves as the optimistic ticket.
President Barack Obama says Republicans are ''dead wrong'' in calling America a country in decline. In a spirited rally in Seminole, Fla., on Saturday, the president said the nation is still an engine of ingenuity and the envy of the world.
Vice President Biden, in his convention speech, was at his most spirited when he defended the nation's future, "Folks, there's one more thing our Republican opponents are just dead wrong about. America is not in decline. I've got news for Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan: gentlemen ... it's never been a good bet to bet against the American people. Never!"
The conventional wisdom is that Ronald Reagan and "optimism" are inextricably linked, because, the story goes, it was fundamental to understanding his entire persona.
I tend to think much of this is just hype and p.r., but the myth has endured to the point that it shapes coverage of presidential campaigns, and the media scrutinizes contenders based on their capacity to be the "optimistic" candidate. And in 2012, there apparently isn't much of a contest -- Ryan sees a nation "on a path to decline," while Obama's the "Yes We Can" guy.
The Republican agenda presents a dour vision of the future, with the elderly, low-income families, students, small businesses, and struggling communities all left to fend for themselves, while the Democratic agenda goes in the exact opposite direction.
The new CNN poll found 51% of likely voters think Obama has the more optimistic vision for the country's future, compared to Romney at 41%. If optimism matters, the president's double-digit lead should add to the GOP's worries.
Leave a Comment:
Of COURSE we're on a path to decline, but it's not inevitable. It's up to Congress to do it's job and create better fiscal policy.
Its up to us. We are the Government. Vote, make your voice heard.
Granted, I'm a broken record on this, but Paul Ryan et al. don't have a leg to stand on when it comes to commenting on the economy. Especially since Ryan is in a leadership position in his party and has stood silently by as the American Jobs Act languishes in the House.
As he should. It would likely be cheaper to just send a check to every household. For a measly trillion dollars, every household in America could get $10,000. More if it's means tested.
That would be much better than make-work jobs.
Pooper242...
You need to get a new routine. You are boring us.
Yeah Shooter - because every unemployed construction worker with a wife and three kids can get by on ten grand. You have a great plan there.
My ladies card group has signed up to work on bridge 227 over I-64. Where was the jackhammer instruction course again??
Keep in mind, folks, so-called "Shooter242" is just a bratty troll who doesn't even believe the bull@!$%# he/she/it is shoveling. Best not to respond to it.
Urban dictionary-Trolling requires decieving; any trolling that doesn't involve decieving someone isn't trolling at all; it's just stupid. As such, your victim must not know that you are trolling; if he does, you are an unsuccesful troll.
But, you're right, I'm rolling up my window. I'll stick to feeding the birds...
Even if the math is correct, there was a little part left out about how this would be over ten years. A thousand a year each, three dollars a day. Yeah, that works.
Most of the hysterical arguments about our national debt ignore simple principles like the effect of a growing economy and normal, moderate, growth-related inflation on the ratio of debt to GDP.
Meanwhile infrastructure projects aren't just about jobs. They're also about safety, quality of life, and facilitating commerce.
This could be GOP honesty. If they are elected, most of the country will decline.
Hope and Change, eh?
Is Will-i-am doing anything for this election? Romney ad Ryan are sure giving him a lot of great material to work with. "America is on a path to decline" would make a great loop. Put it over a really heavy, ominous beat. Then you could mix in some "Corporations are people, my friend." Make a video with footage taken out of Mad Max and the Terminator. That would be cool.
Ryan's right- if we take the statistics of America's place in the world, regarding infant mortality, student scores on math and science, health care, etcetera.
Big HOWEVER: What about Saint Ronnie's "Morning in America"? Have the Republicans abandoned that meme in favor of Boehner's "We're broke!"
And then there's yesterday, when Limbaugh predicted that Obama's re-election would be the end forever of the Republican Party.
Charming as the thought is, I'm not that much of an optimist. In fact, I'm more of a sunset type myself -- the USA has had a good run as empires go, doing less harm than most over the years, but it's silly to imagine that 300 million people can dominate more than seven billion over the long haul. Especially with resource depletion and climate change thrown in.
Which, strangely, I see as a GOOD thing. Our efforts as an empire have not been our best moments. When we give up the national self-image as the big badass who kicks butt around the world on little wimps who can't fight back we'll have a better chance of building a national identity that's closer to our professed (as distinct from practiced) values.
I've been leaning towards the "Sunset of Empire" perspective for a long time, it's nothing new for me -- as you can see by looking up the history of the twilightofempire.com and .org domains. Not that I've done anything with them, mind, but someday ...
FDR warns about Republican hypocrisy and sarcasm
Elect us they say,we'll cut taxes and buy each and everyone of you a couple of Cadillacs and the driving of them will cost you zero dollar at the pump.
Will car elevators come with em??
This needs to be reposted often.
FDR 1936:
Some things never change.
I think the only way that a politician can be successful with highlighting problems is if they follow it up with concrete, specific ideas to remedy the problem. No one wants to hear "doom and gloom" without being shown what the solution(s) is. So far, R & R have not shared any of the solutions, they only want to hammer symptoms.
I think this is exactly their problem. You have to spend more time describing the solution than the problem. Their solution is simply "elect us instead." That doesn't take very long to say.
And singing "America the Beautiful" is nice, but not specific enough.
Just remember, whatever Romney/Ryan say the president is doing to destroy this country is really what they will do to decimate our country if elected. It is a plan that has been worked against the people for centuries throughout the world to assume power against the people.
Reagan's optimistic persona was politically successful because it reflects what Americans believe about themselves. We're the can-do nation. We overcame the Great Depression, beat fascism, put a man on the moon, out competed the Soviet Union and have had many lesser, yet still marvelous accomplishments. Yet the GOP says we have let the old, the sick, and the poor shiver alone in the dark.
If that's what Americans believe then our best days are behind us. Obama and Biden look to be betting that an appeal to optimism and greatness of spirit will beat out fearfulness of the future. I'm betting they're right.
BTW: I'm well aware of our nations many shortcomings, historical and present. But, I would not cede any legitimacy to the GOP by agreeing with their message of American decline. In my mind it's enough to say that we aren't where we want to be and we can do better.
What people seem to be most dissatisfied with is the overwhelming political power of the rich to keep income inequality going.
Myth of Decline: U.S. Is Stronger and Faster Than Anywhere Else - Newsweek and The Daily Beast
Well, right-wingers frequently proclaim how everything is going to hell and the only way to stop the mad rush to doom is to give in and do everything their way. I remember Rachel's apparent puzzlement a while back when Ryan gave the official Republican response to one of Obama's SOTU speeches, because Ryan's was full of doom and gloom. But that's what motivates the far right: damnation and hellfire. Sure, it turns off most other people, but the Republican Party is now mostly made up of people who only talk to each other in a hermetically-sealed chamber. The party doesn't know any more how to appeal to people who aren't already on their side. Hence all the talk about decline.