Screw the platitudes! Let’s be bold!

sotuI was disappointed at last night’s State of the Union Address. I wanted bold, and what we got was tepid, with a few inspirational quotes thrown in.

“I believe when women succeed, the nation succeeds.”

“Time to do away with workplace policies that belong in a Mad Men episode.”

“With our feet set in the present and our eyes cast to the future, America will be a great nation.”

“America does not stand still, and neither will I.”

“No American working full time should be living in poverty.”

But he talked about support for the natural gas industry, which is destroying the environment wherever it “extracts” gas using the method known as fracking. I wanted to hear that fracking won’t be promoted. I wanted to hear the president propose a ban on fracking and bigger tax breaks for solar and wind power.

He talked about using an executive order to increase the minimum wage for government contractors to $10.10, which still leaves workers far short of a living wage. If you’re going to use your executive power, Mr. President, be bold. The vast majority of Americans would approve of a $15 minimum wage, which is a living wage.

Perhaps the president is so used to making timid proposals and having them shot down by Republicans that he can’t be bold anymore.

Well, Mr. President, you have two years left. You can’t run again. Show us what you have and make it good. If the Republicans want to stand in your way, fine; let the American people know that’s what they’re doing.

I’m thinking no more Mr. Nice Guy because they’ll just crap all over you no matter what you do.

We are locked in a battle for the very life of our Democracy. Corporate powers want to run things their way, which means slave wages, rape of the environment, intrusions on women’s right to control their own bodies and worse.

We must stand up. If we can’t be bold, we will lose.

 

One comment

  1. Byron says:

    I just wrote a FB status that’s the same thing. Has no one any vision? Any balls? But to be fair, we’ve been lied to so often, I wouldn’t believe anything anyway. He has no excuse not to be visionary and bold at this point in his presidency.

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