Why things suck in America

This, from DailyKos, is DEAD ON:

Joan McCarter last week noted that we should be expanding Social Security, not cutting it. Given that Social Security has nothing to do with the national deficit, and is in no imminent danger of insolvency, it is absurd that we are even talking about chained CPI or other means of cutting it. Given that millions of people on fixed incomes rely on Social Security for mere survival, it is more than absurd that we are even talking about chained CPI or other means of cutting it. It is, in fact, reckless. And dangerous. The political conversation should be about creating jobs, helping people keep their homes and regulating banks. But it isn't.

Given that we need economic stimulus, discussing taking money away from people who are most apt to spend it, and thus put it back into the economy, and thus help not only themselves but the businesses on whom they will spend it, is not just absurd and reckless and dangerous, it is also stupid. Discussing cutting federal spending during a still struggling recovery is stupid.Austerity is a continuing disaster in Europe, and hasn't worked anywhere, ever. Keynesian stimulus dug us out of the Great Depression. And given the record low borrowing costs, not only should we not be talking about reducing the deficit, we should be discussing taking advantage of those record low borrowing costs to expand the deficit temporarily to pay for the type of robust stimulus that dug us out of the Great Depression, and that the continuingdemand crisis demands. A robust stimulus leading to a robust recovery will then help reduce that deficit all on its own, just as the still tentative recovery already has resulted in thefastest rate of deficit reduction since World War II. And then, once the economy is in full recovery, we can worry about reducing the rest of the deficit. But no matter how overwhelming the evidence— from history, current events, and proven theory— the political conversation continues to be exactly backward.

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Numerous polls show majority support for a national ban on assault weapons. A ban on assault weapons even enjoys majority support in states with large numbers of gun owners, such as Michigan and Ohio and Pennsylvania and North Carolina and Virginia andColorado and Oregon and New Hampshire and Maine. An assault weapons ban even enjoys plurality support in deep red Texas. But the assault weapons ban won't even get a vote in the Democratic controlled Senate. The same polls show overwhelming support for universal background checks, yet even that may not get a vote in the Democratic controlled Senate. The Republicans, meanwhile, get their way at continuing to loosen or prevent gun regulation just by attaching measures to unrelated but seemingly necessary bills, which the Democrats really really have to pass, and therefore have no choice but to support. Really.

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The lessons of history are being ignored. Scientific facts are being ignored. The public will is being ignored. On some social issues, this nation is moving boldly forward. The people are leading and the politicians are following. But on too many critical issues, the people are trying to lead but the politicians are not following. On too many issues where we need political leadership, we are getting none. No one person is to blame. No one coalition is to blame. We are winning elections, and anachronistic Republican lunacy is being slowly relegated to the sewage treatment plants of history, yet we continue to get compromised, bad, and even dangerous policies. On too many issues, we cannot afford to continue getting compromised, bad and even dangerous policies. Too much is at stake. And the problems are systemic. The forces of regression hope to turn the forces of progress away from politics, through a combination of frustration and disgust leading to apathy. That is how they win. But they cannot be allowed to win.

There's more. Go read it.