Obama is going to be in Rio de Janeiro and I think it's only fair that he meets with me, Rio's self-proclaimed ambassador.
Now I bet you wonder, what I would ask Obama if given 10 minutes with him. Well, I have a couple of things in mind.
1. Which Brazilian kind of meat do you like the best? Personally, I'm a fan of the picanha.
2. Are you going to change visa regulations for Brazilians? The big gossip going around Rio de Janeiro is that you are. Personally, I don't believe it.
3. Do you think that making Brazilian bikinis mandatory in the US would boost morale?
4. What was your first impression of our City of God?
5. What is your stand on the immigration process for foreigners married to Americans? Personally, I think the whole process is an absolute bitch. Planning to do anything about it?
6. Which restaurants have your personnel actually let you go to? Do you need a recommendation? I have some good ones.
7. What have you seen in this country that you would like to bring back to our own?
8. Why visit Brazil, beside the whole look like a nice guy thing?
9. Which Brazilian brand of beer do you prefer?
10. What is one thing you would like Americans to learn from Brazilians?
Obviously I like to mix up the serious stuff with something that gets a giggle. I find conversations are smoother that way. Plus he is the leader of my country. I'm a bit out of my league, don't you think!
If you could ask Obama a question, what would it be?
Wow, Brazil should feel so special to have the empty suit pay a visit!
ReplyDeleteIf you had a question to ask Obama, what would it be?
Where's the birth certificate?
Oh c'mon Chris... are you drinking the Kool Aid?
ReplyDeleteI would ask how he appreciates the strong leadership shown by progressive Brazilian politicians and what lessons it might have for him and the Democrats for moving the USA forward in a liberal, humanitarian direction? No excuses!
Seriously Chris? Didn't know you ran with the crazies...
ReplyDeletehehe. I used to work in a brazilian restaurant as a bartender, and I loved the beer!
ReplyDeleteI think I'd be too in awe, absolutely starstruck to even speak or think. Adore this man, our President. I'm proud of him, I almost feel motherly about him.
ReplyDeleteI really would love to go see him speak, I just don't know if it's a great idea given my 5 year old would be with me and there's supposed to be 100,000 or more people. BUT, it is rumored he will be staying at a hotel very close to our place so...I would be happy just to feel the breeze brush my face as the entourage of cars wisks by...Very exciting. = )
I happen to like Obama and don't want to get all heavy and political on your lovely blog space (insert "Yes, a lot of people were eager for the change Obama promised and some have been let down that it hasn't happened as quickly as they hoped, but Washington is a HIGHLY complicated political system that the average layman cannot begin to understand the inner workings of and he is merely one man trying to work against that monstrous entity" point here.) --> deep breath.
ReplyDeleteBut, when I see people questioning his citizenship and/or appropriating Nazi language and imagery (?!) against him, I am like, "WHAT?"
"Yes, a lot of people were eager for the change Obama promised and some have been let down that it hasn't happened as quickly as they hoped, but Washington is a HIGHLY complicated political system that the average layman cannot begin to understand the inner workings of and he is merely one man trying to work against that monstrous entity"
ReplyDeleteAMEN!
Lol love your questions I don't have any to add... ps.. I like Obama too!
ReplyDeletewhisks...i never review!! I've become so lazy...errors all over the place.
ReplyDeleteI would love to meet him, but maybe I would just prefer a postcard from the beach? lol :)
ReplyDeleteHahaha... everybody calm down... I'm not a "birther", a warmongering neo-con, or Palin the Pinhead worshiper. I knew Jim would be reading this so I was messing with him. Sorry, my bad joke. But seriously, and I don't like mixing politics amongst friends either, but I am not exactly impressed with Obama. I was happy to see Bush the war criminal go, but to me, it looks like just another bunch of empty promises built on false "hope" and "change", but it's just "business as usual" in Washington. I'm tired of BOTH parties! As long as there's a two-party system that's controlled by offshore banksters, Wall Street and big corporations, there will never be true Liberty.
ReplyDeleteThat's my .02 worth and if some people don't like me much after this because I'm not on board the Obama-Express, then I'm sorry you feel that way.
Great move Chris!
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, and I said it during the election, there's only so much one man can do in Washington. I truly believe the man has all the intentions in the world, but he met his match when he went up against "The Man."
It's pretty damn hard to get out of a rut. Could you do it? Probably not. Give the man a break. He's making pasta with the noodles he has available.
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ReplyDeleteI would ask him when is he going to change his mind for good and support 100% full blown marriage for same sex couples.
ReplyDeleteI still thank the sweet baby Jesus every night for a Democrat President.
It is a good thing to see foaming from the mouth hipocrite Republicans limited to rants on FOX news.
We just need some time for sane people to repair the country so that the next batch of greedy Republicans can drive the us into the ditch again...
Obama makes me miss Carter... and I didn't like him very much.
ReplyDeleteRachel - he may be making pasta with the noodles he has but he trying to do it without any water in his pot.
Chris - I am right with you there. I'm not much a fan of either party - I "wear" to the libertarian side.
The country needs a serious political enema and I don't see that happening anytime in the future.
At least I am enjoying my life here now in Rio with my family.
Chris, you hit the nail on the head in both posts (Greg, you, too)! It's a very complex issue but you got the basics down in a short amount of space. Bravo, ol' chap
ReplyDeleteIn my humble opinion, kool-aid is for those who believe in the two-party system and participate in it by voting for one or the other (two sides of the same coin). It is my belief that a politician is lying when his/her mouth is moving.
If 'crazies' consider all possibilities, refer to history and then weigh the options to come to their own conclusion (however 'normal' or 'far-fetched' as it may seem to the masses), then yes, I am a crazy! ;)
As I'm sure Rachel would not enjoy her post turning into a dispute over political views, I will resign from further comments (which would likely last for days under the right circumstances and within the right platform).
Regards
Actually, I consider the crazies/kool-aid drinkers are the ones who make up/believe ridiculous lies and much more.
ReplyDeleteAs for the anti-two party systems, I totally hear you guys! Obama has my support but I'm freaking sick and tired of how things work in the US. I hate the one side or the other. And I really hate hardcore republicans!
Greg- love the water analogy even though I'm not sure I understand it lol
Eyes- I love my posts turning into any debate!
Wow, you guys covered most topics. What would I ask him??? I'd ditto some of what's been said here. Mainly, what would he take from Brazil, what lessons, and how will he implement that in the US??
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't mind chatting with him about rights of parents vs. intrusion of government - some of his "let's mandate early preschool" ideas seem far-fetched and overstepping the bounds. I'd like to get a feel for his take on homeschooling and such.
Mostly I'll sit back and watch, 'cause I feel out of touch with US politics at this point.
And I'd ask you, Rachel -- which beer do you prefer???
Well, when buying from a vendor on the street, I like Itaipava. I like that it has the little cap. For your safety:)
ReplyDeleteAt a bar I order skol. How about you Reader?
Ok, Rachel, you gave the green light!
ReplyDeleteIn Washington, there's an illusion of Democracy. A duopoly formed by the left and the right. If you're outside of that "norm", (ie. Independant, Libertarian, Green, etc.) then you're automatically disregarded and ignored -- by both the leaders of those two main parties and the MSM (Main-stream media). In front of the cameras they're mortal enemies, locked in a daily struggle of ideology. At the end of the day behind closed doors, they all gather together to drink gin and tonics, pocket money from the special interests and lobbyists and laugh their asses off at the American people. How else does someone enter politics and in 10 years become an instant millionaire? Last time I checked, the salaries that they receive are barely 6 figures. The math just ain't working out on this one!
Both parties are controlled by powerful interests. Mainly, offshore banksters (note: not bankers, but rather banksters, which denotes a criminal element), Wall Street, Big Business. Why else is Obama's top-level cabinet and advisors in his administration (that he hand picked himself) filled with more people from: Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, AIG, JPMorgan/Chase, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Bros., Bear Sterns, ex-Federal Reserve chairmen, etc. etc. than any other president before him?
Let's break down his cabinet with just a couple of key players:
Timothy Geitner -- A protege of Robert Rubin, (former co-chairman of Goldman Sachs and Citigroup) former position as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which conducts the day-to-day operations of the Fed on Wall Street. Once confirmed as treasury secretary, Geithner’s first task was to distribute the second half of the $700 billion bailout for Wall Street. Geithner, Paulson and Bernanke headed the bailout effort that funneled the first $350 billion into the coffers of the major banks, as well as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG and US Automakers.
Lawrence (Larry) Summers, director of the National Economic Council and Obama’s top economic adviser, highlights the politically incestuous character of relations between the Obama administration and the American financial elite. Summers pocketed $5 million as a managing director of D.E. Shaw, one of the biggest hedge funds in the world, and another $2.7 million for speeches delivered to Wall Street firms that have received government bailout money. This includes $45,000 from Citigroup and $67,500 each from JPMorgan Chase and the now-liquidated Lehman Brothers.
For a speech to Goldman Sachs executives, Summers walked away with $135,000. This is substantially more than double the earnings for an entire year of high-seniority auto workers, who have been pilloried by the Obama administration and the media for their supposedly exorbitant and “unsustainable” wages.
Alluding diplomatically to the flagrant conflict of interest revealed by these disclosures, the New York Times noted: “Mr. Summers, the director of the National Economic Council, wields important influence over Mr. Obama’s policy decisions for the troubled financial industry, including firms from which he recently received payments.”
Summers was a leading advocate of banking deregulation. As treasury secretary in the second Clinton administration, he oversaw the lifting of basic financial regulations dating from the 1930s.
Summers is not an exception. He is rather typical of the Wall Street insiders who comprise a cabinet and White House team that is filled with multi-millionaires, presided over by a president who parlayed his own political career into a multi-million-dollar fortune.
(to be continued due to posting limitations)
(continued)
ReplyDeleteMichael Froman, deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs, worked for Citigroup and received more than $7.4 million from the bank from January of 2008 until he entered the Obama administration. This included a $2.25 million year-end bonus handed to him within weeks of his joining the Obama administration.
Citigroup has thus far been the beneficiary of $45 billion in cash and over $300 billion in government guarantees of its bad debts.
David Axelrod, the Obama campaign’s top strategist and senior adviser to the president, was paid $1.55 million from two consulting firms he controls. He has agreed to buyouts that will garner him another $3 million over the next five years. His disclosure claims personal assets of between $7 and $10 million.
Obama’s deputy national security adviser, Thomas E. Donilon, was paid $3.9 million by a Washington law firm whose major clients include Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and the private equity firm Apollo Management.
Louis Caldera, director of the White House Military Office, made $227,155 from IndyMac Bancorp, the California bank that heavily promoted subprime mortgages. It collapsed and was placed under federal receivership.
The presence of multi-millionaire Wall Street insiders extends to second and third-tier positions in the Obama administration as well. David Stevens, who has been tapped by Obama to head the Federal Housing Administration, is the president and chief operating officer of Long and Foster Cos., a real estate brokerage firm. From 1999 to 2005, Stevens served as a top executive for Freddie Mac, the federally-backed mortgage lending giant that was bailed out and seized by federal regulators.
Neal Wolin, Obama’s selection for deputy counsel to the president for economic policy, is a top executive at the insurance giant Hartford Financial Services, where his salary was $4.5 million.
Obama’s Auto Task Force has as its top advisers two investment bankers with a long resume in corporate downsizing and asset-stripping.
It is not new for leading figures from finance to be named to high posts in a US administration. However, there has traditionally been an effort to demonstrate a degree of independence from Wall Street in the selection of cabinet officials and high-ranking presidential aides, often through the appointment of figures from academia or the public sector. In previous decades, representatives of the corporate elite were more likely to come from industry than from finance.
In the Obama administration such considerations have largely been abandoned.
This will not come as a surprise to those who critically followed Obama’s election campaign. While he postured before the electorate as a critic of the war in Iraq (yet his first action was to send 30,000 more troops - instead of a withdrawl as he promised to do) and a quasi-populist force for “change,” he was heavily dependent on the financial and political backing of powerful financiers in Chicago. Banks, hedge funds and other financial firms lavishly backed his presidential bid.
Now if that doesn't sound like sleeping with the enemy, then I don't know what else to tell you. It's time for people to wake up and break out of the left/right paradigm that has so many people trapped. If you're the type of person that votes down the line for anyone and anything just because they have a 'D' or 'R' after their name on the ballot, then you are part of the PROBLEM! Please, do everyone a favor and turn in your voter registration card.
Chris -- I WISH there was a left and a right in Washington. Sigh. There is a far-right and a center-right. The Democrats, for the most part, are afraid of their so-called liberal shadow. They are afraid if they say anything progressive out loud, like they mean it, they will lose an election.
ReplyDeleteThings like taxing the rich, abortion rights, workers' collective bargaining, environmental protections, reasonable government regulation (and on and on) are consistently supported by a majority of the US electorate -- but the Dems fall over themselves to adopt Republican positions.... (because, of course, they are being paid off by their corporate overlords)
Makes me sick. Stand up and fight! The soul-less Republicans will eat your mother for breakfast and insisit you flush the toilet after lunch. The hottest places in hell are waiting for these criminals.
But I have long since lost faith in the Democrats as a saving alternative... Sigh.
I voted for Obama, on grounds that we needed someone else in public office that wasn't a WASP. However, I am not democrat-- I really don't believe our current economic and political system in the U.S. is sustainable. This system was built by old democracy, a true democracy. And that unfortunately is gone. We became our own country (well and fought and won it) because England's Royalty was taking advantage of us. Politicians and this political system are broken-- time to replace it with something new. This is my personal opinion.
ReplyDeleteHowever, there are good politicians. There are good republicans and democrats. Not everyone is thief and criminal. I know the senator of Wisconsin Chris Larson personally. We shared an office in college for student organizations. He is not drinking with the "bad" dems and republicans at the end of the day.
Russ Feingold was an amazing senator, who voted against the Patriot Act and Iraq war. I know the point you guys are making. But there are people who are good that Republicans, I feel sorry for their ignorance of their party. But there are many more, Lena taylor and Glen Moore. There is just a lot more bad politicians the good ones. Majority wins.
I think what has gone on politically in the U.S. the past couple of years is awful. It is one reason, why I am in Brazil. I don't want my taxes going to a war over oil.
I would ask Obama why he came to Brazil?
I would want a serious response not some script that he was told to say.
I'm not sure what happened to part two of my rant above, it didn't post and now I lost all of it. Ahh well, it was getting long winded anyway.
ReplyDeleteSo I wanted to just conclude by saying that due to a corrupt two-party system, the political scene in the US is caught in a nightmarish loop. A vicious cycle. A big part of the problem, one that perpetuates this cycle are the voters that will vote straight down the party line on the ballot. As long as the person has a 'D' or and 'R' after their name they get the check mark, regardless if the politician is bad poison for the country as a whole, who is NOT a champion of the Constitution, one that will send the country down the toilet... I wish those people would do the country a favor and turn in their voter registration cards! People are too lazy to research the track record of the politician, or they just accept the spoon-fed information from either the MSM, the GOP or the DNC as gospel and vote for that person. The country has been divided by partisan politics for decades and the sheep are too blind (or stupid) to realize it. A lot of people on both sides are starting to wake up, but at a snail's pace. Too many people believe there can only be a two-party system and so they just go along with it, because they've become complacent.
I'm in no way saying I'm better than anyone else, but I'd like to consider myself AWAKE. And, therefore, do not jump on a party bandwagon. It takes more than a rock-star image and the MSM fawning over a candidate or a current president to get my vote.
Chris and Jim make some very good points about the Dems and GOP. I'm not sure it's that people are too blind or stupid to realize the divisiveness of partisan politics moreso than they've felt powerless. I know some people see Obama as just another suit playing the same game as his predecessors, but I think the ripple effect of of his election is quite valuable and powerful. 1.) It sent the message that the majority of Americans want reproductive rights, gay marriage, health care (such basic stuff that we all don't have!) 2.) It's created a climate that inspired people to want to educate themselves and demand these things. And also appear more thoughtful and sane to the rest of the world. Our identity took a terrible beating when Bush was in office and Americans were sewing Canadian flag patches to their backpacks when they travelled.
ReplyDeleteI think these things helped prompt a shift in the American psyche, where we're more motivated to want changes, simply because people feel ever so slightly more empowered... The changes are slooooow, but a step in the right direction.
Obama is too freaking conservative if you ask me, but he is still the best option we have.
ReplyDeleteThe Republicans nowadays are like the radical Sharia law muslims, really bad foaming in the mouth crazies...mostly radical religious right wing hypocrites.
Obama is as conservative as Regan, maybe more conservative than Reagan.
The fiasco of the Health Care Obama managed to approve didn't even had a freaking public option!!!!
Massachusetts has a great UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE SYSTEM created by Mitt Romney, a Republican, that is how hypocrite these people are, if a Republican creates it, they are behind it, regardless of what it is, if a Democrat creates something even more conservative than Massachusett's Health Care, he is demonized as a socialist. UGH!
Americans love to teach the world what is best for us by manipulating the democracy meaning when reality there is no democracy there. There is no difference betweeb Republicans and Democrats.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: I would agree. I am sick to death of the US taking it upon themselves to be the "policemen of the world", while behind the scenes they are installing puppet dictators and manipulating events in other countries to suit their needs. I wish to hell that we would withdraw our troops from every corner of the globe, shut down the 180+ foreign bases and bring everyone home. There's no need to be spread out so thin, wasting resources and taxpayer dollars. As our wise founding father and my personal hero said during his inaugural address: "peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.". Unfortunately, the preceding administrations didn't head his advice and now look at us. What a mess! I would love to see a non-interventionalist policy in place, which doesn't mean isolationist. People like to get those two terms confused or rather, insist non-interventionalism equates to isolation.
ReplyDeleteForgot to mention my hero's name in my post above, it is Thomas Jefferson. "Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.".
ReplyDeletePosting has been funky since yesterday here. I had to switch to Google Chrome because the 'Post Comment' button wouldn't work in Internet Explorer. I thought maybe Rachel blocked me from posting ever again due to my position on Obama. LOL!!
And I come back and see there's 28 comments...I often say three concepts control all politics anywhere.
ReplyDelete- Hegelian Dialectic
- Plato's Cave
- Bread & Circuses
I also recommend almost every documentary here http://freedocumentaries.org/ I have seen about 90% of those listed at the bottom of the page in that link plus another 30 here and there on similar subjects. It is very important that one not believe anything the MSM says unless the art of manipulation is well understood by the reader/viewer.
Just imagine the home of a bee-spider hybrid, now place yourself in the middle of it and try to escape. That's the majority of people I've met in my adult life, only without the knowledge that they are smack in the middle, they feel no need to get out. What a perfect system, eh? Needless to say, I was stuck in it, too, for most of my life.
Maybe Obama will continue finding his waffle in Rio.
ReplyDelete