first of all...
Charley missed me by -->/ /<---- that much!
the eye of the storm was 15 miles east of me. But obviously I have power again and seem to have come through ok... many others here have not been so fortunate.
now to your post.
the most telling line "His background (acedemic performance, military? vagaries, (sp) etc.) is not what presidents are made of."
Is exactly what I was referring to previously. At this point in his campaign for a second term, many were questioning Regan's "qualifications" much the same as they do GW's today (ie "Does an aging Hollywood actor have any busiiness in the white house?). Regan's hardline policy towards the Soviet was very disconcerting to many people all over the globe. Their fear of a nuclear war being started by Reagan or the Soviet's launching a preemptive strike was very high.
In hindsight it turns out reagan was the correct choice and made the correct decisions for not only the US but the rest of the world as well.
I am not saying that GW qill turn out to be another Ronald Reagan. I merely point out that there are similarities between their campaigns for a second term.
SInce you brought up Bill C. and Economic policy...
I'd like to share a little something you and others might find interesting.
The US Economy does not respond to attempts to change it's direction rapidly. Many economics courses site a significant lag between the actions of a government ( raising or lowering taxes for example ) and the US economy strengthening or weakening. Most speak of a period of 8-10 years.
If you look back through recent history you can begin to see the pattern emerge.
Nixon took the US off the Gold Standardin '71, the inflationary aspect of that action reared it's head in '78-9
Reagan's tax cuts and spending boom in the early '80's were the trigger for the growth and boom martkets of the '90's
The first Bush's tax increase and Bill C's subsequent tax increase in '92 showed up as the end of the bull market in 2001 and our current economic status.
IF this theory continues to hold true, the next bull market and strong US economy should begin to show up anywhere from late 2007 through 2010.
Unfortunately most people are unaware of these economic relationships and blame/reward the sitting president accordingly.
If you care to go back a little further, look at the economic policies imposed around the world at the end of WWI. Just in case anyone reading this is historically impaired... WWI ended in November 1919, one of the penalites imposed on Germany was a near total shutdown of it's industrial complex. At the time Germany was an industrial "superpower". 10 years later the entire world was mired in "the Great Depression".
It's eerie how this 8-10 year cause/effect lag fits.
You also site "I doubt that he can think on a global level at all."
Personally, with the complexity of global relations in the modern era, I doubt any one person can adequately grasp it all. One of the things that made Reagan so good was he knew his limitations and surrounded himself wtih people that understood his mission and had the expertise in the fields he needed to manage in order to accomplish his objectives.
I personally feel GW has done/ is doing the same thing. So far I don't see Kerry surrounding himself with the right kind of people, he seems to be choosing based on "electability" rather than a particular skill.
Enough for now, I will have more later.
Take care and be well.
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