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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 01:36 PM
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Ego Brain
Joined: Nov 26, 2007
Posts: 560
Location: San Antonio, Texas
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I’m starting this thread in response to hackthesystem2’s challenge regarding his list of “incredible” US Presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Grant, Roosevelt, Wilson, Taft, Coolidge, other Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Reagan. I’ve got issues with a few of his selections up there, but the President whose performance I feel compelled to expound upon is Ronald Reagan.
How can I extol the glory and grandeur that was the Reagan Administration? I’ll start with his failure to implement the Mental Health Systems Act of 1980, thereby cutting Federal funding to community mental health centers and drug rehabilitation centers across the country. Thousands of addicts and mentally ill Americans joined the proud ranks of the US homeless.
Then the mighty Reagan was confronted with an air traffic controllers strike. He ordered them back to work on Aug 5, 1981. When they refused his order, he fired them all. This resulted in hundreds of home foreclosures and at least 9 suicides. It was quite a blow to the US labor movement.
Reagan’s efforts to influence Middle Eastern events faced a set back when 241 US marines were killed in a truck bombing in Lebanon in 1983. Reagan showed the US could still flex its military muscle by invading and conquering the great threat to the American way, the tiny island of Grenada, two days later. A US judge ruled that Iran was responsible for the bombing of our marines, but that didn’t keep Reagan from selling arms to Iran to illegally fund bloody wars in Central America. Reagan even sent his secret emissary, Oliver North, to Iran to deliver a Bible and a chocolate cake with the first arms shipment. (I’m not kidding. What a guy!)
Reagan showed great moral fiber in the face of public pressure by supporting the Apartheid regime of South Africa’s Botha. But Congress did pass the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act of 1986 over his veto. This prohibited US trade with the apartheid state. This must have been a great blow to Reagan, who as governor in 1967, supported California state legislation to ban the sale of arms to black people. That legislation also failed.
I could wax eloquent on Reagan’s escapades in Central America. The “secret war,” the arms shipments, the dealing of drugs for arms, the pillaging of various savings and loans to help fund the slaughter of Central Americans, US taxes paying for the torture, rape and murder of our neighbors in the isthmus that Pablo Neruda referred to as the slender waist of the Americas. But this is getting a bit long so I’ll wait and see if anyone else feels like sharing their feelings about Reagan or any of Hack2’s other favorite US Presidents. |
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Hulk Smash!
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 02:37 PM
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Ego Brain
Joined: Mar 02, 2008
Posts: 588
Location: Brooklyn, NY
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| Well, before anymore is posted in this, can we define what makes a president "good"? Are we looking for a spotless term? (which no authority on the PLANET could poop out) or someone who, for the most part, pushed the country in a positive direction as a whole? |
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"Never hate your enemies, it affects your judgement." -Michael Corleone
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 03:00 PM
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Cigaro
Joined: May 25, 2006
Posts: 2767
Location: Bucketheadland
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^^Exactly,every president must have fucked up something.If theres a persident who hasnt,i think i wud vote him the king of the world  |
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 03:11 PM
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Spammer {Warning}
Joined: Apr 06, 2008
Posts: 1914
Location: Lebanon
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George . W. Bush , BEST PREZ EVER !  |
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Must not sleep, must warn others, trust blocks creep where the dust storm hovers -Aesop Rock
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 05:15 PM
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Sugar
Joined: Feb 09, 2006
Posts: 3960
Location: In The Pantry, With Your Cupcakes
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You crazy Americans should have elected Al Friggin' Gore!
Al Gore is awesome, kayy?
The fact that he didn't win still boggles me to this day.
If he would have been leading office he woulda solved a lot of problems. |
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(\_ /) "I would like a 'bunny'."
(O.o) "What kind of 'bunny?' A semi-automatic 'bunny' or a handheld 'bunny'?"
(> <) "Whichever 'BUNNY' you think is better for shooting a guy in the head!"
(sig: Mel // avatar: Matt)
We all deserve to die.
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 08:05 PM
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Cigaro
Joined: Oct 17, 2006
Posts: 2959
Location: shootin up your world
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| This was a douche move. When I get home I will actually post |
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 08:25 PM
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Cigaro
Joined: Oct 18, 2006
Posts: 2864
Location: Michigan
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Voodoo_Blues wrote:
or someone who, for the most part, pushed the country in a positive direction as a whole?
That. |
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Add me on AIM, i don't bite^^
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 09:14 PM
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Marmalade
Joined: Jul 05, 2006
Posts: 2234
Location: In the forest of denial.
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| lol Grant a great president? Are you on crack? |
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Armenians unite, copy this into your signature if you're Armenian!
</war>
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 10:01 PM
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Cigaro
Joined: Oct 17, 2006
Posts: 2959
Location: shootin up your world
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1) First of all, I never said any of these people were my "favorites"
2) I used the term 'incredible' as tongue in cheek, an exaggeration.
3) Its funny how you only critique Reagam...hmm, pick and choose much? 
4) I swear to God, Reagan was the president I was most hesitant about putting on the list.
and:
@redsoxmb45 - Now looking back, I have no freakin clue what I was thinking when I put Grant on the list. What the hell. He was kind of a terrible president.
Anyway, now that that's cleared up: Every president has flaws, as voodoo blues pointed out. However, it is equally important to recognize his larger successes as a whole. Although he did many terrible things, he did help to bring about the end of communism in Russia, and ended a 'war' that had gone on for FORTY YEARS, which I say is quite an accomplishment- ending the threat of a massive nuclear arms race with Russia that would eventually result in a nuclear holocaust.
So, could you remove Grant from the list? I think I was a bit nuts when I typed that
Picking and choosing? tsk tsk tsk. |
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 10:17 PM
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Spider
Joined: Mar 07, 2008
Posts: 396
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I think one of our best presidents was Bill Clinton.
The economy was good... things were "remotely" peaceful,
good times Bill, good times.
George Washington was our first president, so I think that's kind of a default choice.
Thomas Jefferson was a pussy hound. (only bad thing I can remember about him) But he took part in writing the Declaration of Independence, so he would deserve that credit at least.
Abe Lincoln, absolutely one of our best. Can't deny it.
Grant helped the North succeed in the war, other than that, not much to his credit.
Teddy Roosevelt is an ok choice as well, since he was one of the first to make a huge point of not being blinded by race.
Woodrow Wilson created the League of Nations, so he'd work as good choice. (he also had a cool name, 1up for Woodrow)
William Taft, I don't remember much about him... other than he was fat, so I can't comment on that one.
Calvin Coolidge, don't know shit about him either.
Franklin Roosevelt, a good president I suppose. He helped defeat Nazi Germany, so he deserves credit for that at least.
Eisenhower, who being a general had a great deal of war initiative (bad), was only good for the fact that he supported the court decision to stop segregating schools.
Ronald Reagan, could really go either way. From what I remember learning about him, he was as good as he was bad. So, I don't know how to feel about him. |
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Posted: Apr 30, 2008 - 10:59 PM
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Needle
Joined: Oct 04, 2007
Posts: 3124
Location: Europe for fucking 12 months
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Was it W. Bush who won some poll for the worst usa president ever? have no idea, I don't like that guy...
I think that good president don't left things more fucked up than they were before his/hers term. But it's annoying when president basically haven't done anything.
And I'm too young (and forgetful) to remember anything before Mr. Clinton. And too ignorant about other ones, actually from the list "George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Grant, Roosevelt, Wilson, Taft, Coolidge, other Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Reagan" I have only heard about Washington, Lincoln, Roosevelt and Reagan, but I still don't have any idea who they were except the fact that they all were president (that's sad...)
Something that I found after research (source: wikipedia, so this MUST be the truth) these are first things that popped into my eyes
Thomas Jefferson said that ownig a slave is immoral but he owned approximately over 650 slaves during his life time.
Woodrow Wilson took America into World War I and started to spread usa democracy to overseas w. w. w.
Dwight D. Eisenhower freeways and nuclear missiles... |
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