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Put the blame where it belongs; Lorraine D’Eramo; Beaver County Times; July 21, 2010.
In previous letters, Ms. D’Eramo said Sarah Palin wasn’t “a decent mother to her special-needs son and other four children” and “agree[d] with everything letter writer Lonzie Cox Jr. wrote in his May 26 letter to the editor (‘Democrats must act like Democrats’).” I didn’t critique the second letter (“Democrats should emulate tea partiers,” 6/6/10) and it’s no longer on the Times website.
Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.
“I hope letter writer Dan Reeping feels better after his little tirade (‘Many Obama voters were stupid,’ Thursday).”
[RWC] As I wrote about a previous similar letter, what we have is a duel of knucklehead letters. Ms. D’Eramo is about to launch into her own “little tirade” by spewing a list of tired, old lefty talking points.
“The people who are really stupid are those who voted for George W. Bush the second time.”
[RWC] Nothing like name-calling to give you credibility, is there?
“I don’t think Rev. Jeremiah Wright hates America. I think he hates the corruption and sinful ways that have taken over our country. Most of us don’t agree with everything our clergy say or do.”
[RWC] Seriously? Has Ms. D’Eramo seen the videos of Mr. Wright’s sermons? Among his anti-US rants, did Ms. D’Eramo miss Mr. Wright referring to the US as the “KKK of A” and saying “God damn America?”
“Bush started the war in Iraq to show up his father and make more money for his oil buddies. Obama is withdrawing our troops. We should have stayed in Afghanistan and finished the war with the terrorists who attacked us on Sept. 11, 2001.”
[RWC] The comment about Mr. Bush says a lot more about Ms. D’Eramo than it does Mr. Bush. Does Ms. D’Eramo really believe what she wrote?
As for “Obama is withdrawing our troops,” Mr. Obama is following exactly the Bush administration plan for Iraq in place before Mr. Obama took office (VP Joe Biden believes it’s an Obama administration success story.).
“As for taxes, most people paid less in taxes this year.”
[RWC] That’s what happens during recessions. Tax receipts vary with the economy, so during a recession tax receipts go down.
“The Bush administration is responsible for the mess we are in. They’re the ones who squandered the surplus the Clinton administration left.”
[RWC] Not exactly. The budget surplus had already declined in Bill Clinton’s last budget. The primary reasons for the deficits early in the Bush administration were the recession that started toward the end of the Clinton administration, 9/11 and its aftereffects, and the insecurity caused by the uncovering of accounting scandals that flourished during the Clinton administration. Ultimately, though we eventually had record tax revenue (the tax rate cuts) and “discretionary” spending increased at a slower rate than during the Clinton administration, we got to a point where even record tax revenue couldn’t keep pace with total spending.
As for the current recession, please read my critique of “Let’s have some of the $700 trillion.”
Keep in mind Mr. Obama supported and continues to support all the programs that got us where we are. You haven’t seen Mr. Obama cut spending have you? Instead, increased spending by Mr. Obama and the Democrat-majority Congress has made Mr. Bush look almost frugal.
“How about the oil spill? Why not blame that on Obama, too? That’s like getting mad at your doctor because your car broke down.
“What happened to all Palin’s Parrots? I don’t hear ‘drill, baby, drill’ anymore.”
[RWC] Is there a mailing list that tells lefty letter-writers and bloggers what to write? I’ve seen variations on the “I don’t hear ‘drill, baby, drill’ anymore” comment in a few letters and in lefty blogs. Has Ms. D’Eramo missed all the objections to the Obama administration’s blanket drilling moratorium and that federal courts twice ruled against the moratorium in a suit brought by “drill, baby, drill” proponents?
“The economy is improving. I know that’s very disappointing to a lot of people who want to see this administration fail.”
[RWC] “The economy is improving?” Based on what? Just above Ms. D’Eramo asserted tax receipts are down, and tax receipts go down when the economy goes down. Further, if “the economy is improving,” why was Mr. Obama earlier this week begging Congress to pass a bill to extend unemployment benefits for about the eighth time?
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