Obama Bashing Accomplishes Nothing | The Source Weekly - Bend, Oregon

Obama Bashing Accomplishes Nothing

Over the past few weeks I have read with much dismay, the opinions put forth that our president is either worthless or spending too much. Those are not the exact words but they convey the overall tone. First and foremost, I moved here to Bend because of my love for Central Oregon, but what I don't love are the undertones of hate and a disbelief in our current president to be able to get people back to work.

Let's talk about spending. How much was spent on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, which were started by President Bush? Trillions. But that's ok, right? Spend. Spend. Spend. How much was spent on the world's greatest scam called the housing bubble? Hundreds of billions. But that's ok, right? Spend. Spend. Spend. And how much did Mr. Bush spend on TARP? Over $700 billion. Again, that's ok, right?


And who do you think is paying for that? Yep, all of the hard working people right here in Bend. The people that now have no jobs, have lost their businesses, their construction jobs, and have seen no rise in incomes while their retirement funds (if they could afford one) have all but vanished. But that's ok, right? Oh and by the way, you can also thank Mr. Bush for allowing over 2 million jobs to be sent overseas during all this.

So here we have a president who wants to spend money to get us out. History has shown over and over and over that when you spend big enough, it puts millions back to work. Those millions who are working do something with their money. Get ready for this, it's magic: they spend!!! And guess where they spend it? At YOUR businesses. And here's the whopper. They also pay taxes!! So the deficits that were created can be paid for. Amazing how that works.

If anyone took a few moments to have an open mind instead of finger pointing and laying blame, the president said that everything he proposed was paid for. No spending. Actually, it's cuts.

It's hard not to be defensive when all I see are the same old opinions printed that are not solving a problem. They are only doing what has stopped this president from actually getting anything done: using one-sided thinking to stop progress.

Bend needs consumers spending. It needs tourists traveling and also spending. It needs these things to grow and prosper. It needs this money so people are paying their taxes. And all of the hard-working small business owners in Bend need this spending so they can keep their doors open. Sorry, but this argument that we can't invest a little in our great nation is boloney. And the idea that we can't rally behind our President and support helping out the middle class Americans who have seen their lives decimated is also boloney.

I don't buy into this vitriol of hate and neither should you. We need to get this country back to work and back to being competitive for the long term. And that does not happen with some measly tax cuts or continued cuts in spending... there are no facts that exist which support that idea as being anything that has ever worked.

Shane Ketterman, Bend

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