Does anyone even like the Presidential candidates?

toria, what, did your history teacher tell you that, lol… and trust me, I will stand up for what I believe in, im just waiting for the trigger event, like many other americans.

jimahl, Americans have become to complacent. no one thinks they can make a difference, people forget that everythings done by ordinary people like you and me, one person can make a difference, all they have to do is organize the masses.

mjax, theres a hole list of sh*t that needs to be done, my #1 concern is our oil dependency, we’re doing to little and its going to be to late. and are you an American living in Germany or a German

And to both Jimahl and mjax, you both are very sceptical of what I say. don’t forget, we are from different generations. no offense, but jimahl, your twice my age. which gives you much more experience and a valid opinion. but im the voice of my generation, I know what we’re capable of, you might not think so but there are plenty of people who think just like me. you won’t be in the streets rioting, we will be. just think about that for a minute.

I don’t agree with any of them so I didn’t vote.I’m not going to vote and be a part in something I never wanted in the first place.So that’s a big fat N.O.!!!

I know. its just good to think that someone will stand up soon, and we need him this year for the election. thats why I was saying we need another george washington, because we need some drastic changes and no president has the balls to do it. And I had the great deppression in mind along with the 70’s when I wrote this. And the ammo is just to protect the food

I like Obama, Clinton is ok, McCain is a useless old coot.

Piker, I see nothing in what is going on that will lead to civil unrest. If four years of bush pissing on the constitution didn’t do it, nothing will. Americans are too complacent.

thank you mjax for an excellent answer. stockpiling food and ammo…lol. oops, have to go, hordes of terrorists are climbing over my back fence. I need to get some freeze-dried snacks and my shotgun. this might be a long battle.

I like obama. maybe he has good ideas but doesnt know how to accomplish them… but it’s better than mccain or hillary who have bad ideas and know how to carry them out. because if obama gets to the white house, he will have opportunity and resources to make his ideas happen. thats my take.

kick as jimahl. but I fear violence is the only way the government will listen, it gets em scared. im not talking about blowin sht up. just rioting, I know what your thinkin, how can a bunch of thugs looting stores and throwing bricks at the cops going to help. I feel thats the only way they will listen. thousands of people can do peacful protests, but the people in power can just say f*ck you, then what. there forced to address the situation the other way

I like Obama and personaly I dont think you should bash the canidetes like this becuase there are things you can do to voice your opion instead of running away from the issues like a pu$sy @ss and stock piling food and ammunition. Stand up for what you believe in, do a better job yourself and run for d@mn presidnet or shut your f**king mouth!!! you probably dont like any of them because you are just stupid. even tho I dont like hillary or mcCain I dont think they will ruin thing you need to shut up and stop bashing things you just dont understand. ps did you even watch one of there campains on tv doubt it otherwise you would of pulled your head outta your @ss and relized what good they can do for you.

Mjax, you make a lot of good and valid points, but I think that if a dem is office with a fillibuster-proof majority in the senate, a lot can be accomplished. They should be able to do just as much positive things as Bush has done to damage this country. And much of what bush did, he did do without the consent of congress. Political firings of federal prosecutors, torture of detainees, wiretapping of american citizens. Even the invasion of Iraq was done without congressional consent. He was not in compliance with the authorization when he went to war.

To answer the question, Obviously a lot of people like both Obama and Clinton, since both of them are receiving record numbers of votes for a primary season. Obama has over 1 million separate contributors to his campaign. I would say that is a lot of peole who like him.

mjax, good answer, real good. But I wasn’t saying that the election of Clinton, Obama, or McCain will lead to a civil war, but anarchy in the near future. They are going to ruin this country because they are not going to do what needs to be done. And it has to be done now, theres no second chance for this, we are going to wait to long. alway’s have oil prices in the back of your mind, and don’t forget how ruthless people are.

Jimahl, you didn’t say if YOU liked any of em

“He was not in compliance with the authorization when he went to war.”

How so? If you read the wording of House Joint Resolution 114, Congress clearly believed Iraq had WMD and was supporting international terrorist groups, AND that Iraq was a threat to the US. According to the law, it was Congress, NOT Bush, that determined these things about Iraq and authorized the use of military force. The resolution also required Bush to declare to Congress before or within 48 hours of taking military action that diplomacy had failed. Bush did exactly that on the day as his deadline for Hussein and his sons to leave the country.

Congress, including Senators Clinton and Kerry, had the chance to stop the Iraq war dead in its tracks. Without this resolution, Bush would not have had authorization or a legal basis for using military force. The president is a powerful person, but his power only goes so far.

Anyway, I do agree that a Democratic president and Democratic majority in Congress could accomplish some things, but historically, American voters have rarely allowed one party to have firm control of both the executive and legislative branches. The American public does not approve of the job Congress is currently doing, according to polls. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a gridlocked Congress this year, or in 2010.

piker, what is it that must be done now to prevent anarchy?

As far as oil prices, toadaly correctly pointed out in another post that high cost of gas is the result of the devaluation of the dollar caused by the fiscal and monetary policies of the Bush administration.

It is possible a sharp recession in the US will cause oil prices to drop. Less consumer spending will hurt China’s export-based economy, affecting their ability to purchase oil at its current price. This might in turn cause OPEC to reduce the price of oil. Remember, OPEC is not concerned with how much oil they are producing, but how much money they are making from oil exports. They may not produce more oil to ease prices, but they may reduce prices to ensure demand is kept up.

“ I talk about it with friends and we’re just going to start stock piling food and ammunition, seriously, thats how bad we think its going to get.”

You have some explaining to do on how the election of Clinton, Obama, or McCain will lead to a civil war or the downfall of civilization.

“ What we need is for another George washington or Thomas Jefferson to stand up and tell us whats what.”

Both of these men were great leaders. But when they were in office, this country had many problems that we do not now. It’s all a matter of perspective. The “good ol’ days” ain’t always as good as they seem. Besides, both Washington and Jefferson did things while in office that many Americans today would strongly disagree with.

“ I can honestly say they all are going to ruin this country.”

None of these candidates will ruin this country. And very few of this country’s problems will be solved by the next president, no matter who that person is. I disagree that this election is even as important as many people think it is, to the future of the country. The issue that the next president will have the most direct control over is the war in Iraq. Beyond that, there is really nothing the president can, will, or should fix. The next president will not be who gets us out of recession, the next president will not improve public education, the health care system, or the cost of fuel, or really even get most of their agenda into US policy.

I wish people would realize that despite the increase in federal power, this country still has a good system of checks and balances. Nothing Bush has done-not the war in Iraq, not the tax cuts for the rich, not the Patriot Act-would have been possible unless he had the support of Congress. Those things are the fault of the entire government and political system. And that will not change with the election of Clinton, Obama, or McCain.

The next president will come and go and times will change. If they’re good, people will give the president credit. If they’re bad, people will try to blame the president. That’s how it always goes.

I dont really like any of them. I really like Ron Paul

to protect the food? who do you think is going to be breaking in to get food?

I have one word for this NO

obama is good, hillary is a liar, with bad ideas

Nope.

mjax1979, He was not in compliance with the war authorization because he was supposed to go back to the UN for another vote of the security council, and Bush knew he wasn’t going to win, so he never went back to the UN. He was also supposed to let the inspectors finish, which he didn’t. One of the requirements was to also provide proof that Saddam was involved in 9/11. Yes, many dems unfortunately went along, but none of them had the power to stop it. Remember, they had just had the 1st anniversarry of 9/11 when they voted, and the republicans used that to politically twist the arms of many dems. Shamefully too many went along.

As far control of congress and the presidency, there have been many times one party has had control with great success. Look at how successful the reps were in getting their agenda passed under bush (much to our detriment). He didn’t veto one bill until the stem cell research bill in July 2006. And no congress ever has a high approval rating, and this one is no exception. They are made up of both parties, not like the executive, so there will always be high negatives on both sides.

I don’t think it is accurate to say that the high price of oil is due mainly to the dollar’s devaluation. There is no doubt that opec has been playing with supply to inflate the cost of oil. The dollar is part of it, but I also think the inverse, that the high price of oil is also affecting the dollar, as well as the war, and also deficit spending never seen before.

Regarding oil independence, you are wrong. Oil indepence can be reduced by any president if has the will to do it. Jimmy Carter tried, and Reagan shot down everyhting he tried to accomplish. When you have a president (and vp) who comes from the oil business, is closely aligned with the saudis, and is in the pockets of the oil execs, we will never see anything move forward. But if we have a president who is not beholden to oil companies for his (or her) office, then yes, we will see a reduction. Enough for complete independence? No. But you have to crawl before you walk, and right now we can’t even crawl. There is no magic bullet. You are right it will take consumer awareness, and technology to get us to energy independence. The republicans are not offering any of that. A dem pres and congress can at least get the ball rolling.

Piker, I try to skeptical of everything I hear, so don’t take offense. I am glad to see the frustration you are feeling, because I have been feeling it for the past 25 years since Reagan was elected. It is refreshing to see young people caring about it so much. We need a lot more of that. However, I never want to see anyhting turn into violence if at all possible. But taking it to the streets in huge numbers is the right way to let politicians know we are serious, and that they only govern and the consent of the governed.

Thanks to both of you for the good conversation.