>. . . But I can't
>help but think that the right has scored a tremendous
>victory in turning all political discourse into the
>politics of blowjobs. . . .
True.
>If we "stand by" Clinton we get
>to defend blowjobs in office, if we "dump him" then we
>have validated blowjob politics as a viable tool of the
>right to use against liberals/lefties who manage to get
>elected.
If he's dumped I think the debate goes back to issues, which would be a good thing. The question is how much of it rubs off on the elections this year.
> We are going to have a difficult time finding
>a "liberal" candidate who doesn't and never has done
>drugs, doesn't get blown by the wrong people, doesn't
>cheat on his taxes, and who has never taken a dime from
>s.o. with his/her hands on a business deal, isn't
>married to s.o. who has been, shall we say "aggressive"
>in business (cf. Ferraro), who looks good in a tank and
>wasn't governor when a black rapist was paroled (cf.
>Dukakis).
Perhaps not, but the issue is really whether we can have one who isn't so easy to catch because his/her behavior isn't so flagrant. Here the answer I'd say is yes. BTW, Wellstone is the cleanest baby you've ever seen. Note also that the bad guys had Barney Frank right where he wanted them, but he beat them and is in better shape than ever.
>That's an exiguous universe. If the world is
>at a point where every liberal gets the Clinton
>treatment and every rightwinger's peccadilloes are
>ignored, then we are at a point where liberal reform is
>impossible. Which might in fact be the case.
It has occurred to me, in the same vein, that Republican control over extensive areas of the State is enabling them to delegalize the Democratic Party, for all practical purposes. If this is what comes to pass, then I would start agreeing with Louis much more often.
>. . .
>2. It was suggested that I am a reactionary sell
>out. . . .
Moral assaults usually come from hypocrites who lack substantive arguments, among other virtues. I shouldnt' worry about it.
> . . .
>4. Max asked "what else" could be done besides Tobin
>taxes. May I point out that the GT recommends more
>equal distribution of purchasing power (propensity to
>consume). Worldwide minimum wage, worldwide GINI
>coefficient policies, might be a good place to start.
Min wage is in play now. Equalizing purchasing power via taxes is not. It's worth talking about, but the prior argument that has to be sold is stimulating consumption. Third, the connection of either of these to the global financial events seems weak.
>Note that bourgeois environmental reformism is
>redistributive to the extent A) that it fosters
>investment that might not otherwise occur and B)
>provides benefits for all classes, sometimes more for
>the poor than for the rich (simply because the poor are
>more numerous). But if you have a broken leg and can't
Most research concludes the contrary. The net benefits tend to be regressive. But what does this have to do with responses to the global financial situation?
>see a doctor I'm not sure what good it does to be
>breathing ozone-free air. I suppose it helps "at the
>margin." But it's the case that in US electoral
>politics you have to get to the middle class, which
>deals more favorably with the environment than with the
>poor.
>
>Oh yes, and Max--you can socialize means of production
>gradually without going to full central planning. You
Sure, but the whole is much different than a set of the parts. Planning an economy is light-years from running an enterprise, even a very large one.
I don't have a problem with public enterprise. A fair part of my time is devoted to the privatization issue. Gas and water socialism is fine with me.
>know, an oil company here, a utility there. Put the
>profits into something useful. Why should OPEC driven
>rents realized by domestic companies (of whatever
>nation) "at the margin" go into more oil exploration?
>Why not put 'em into something useful like friendly
>fuels. (Note: separate topic: why state-owned
>companies are a problem for the state).
O.K. by me.
>But as I used to tell people when I was writing about
>the oil industry: you can't nationalize the oil
>industry without first nationalizing the goverment.
Taxing it should be sufficient.
MBS