Sherry Reding: www.drudgereport.com

Note: The Drudge Report mainly links to other locations, and as the link is no longer on the front page, I am not sure if this is the correct one. It is the correct picture. http://biggovernment.com/publius/2010/04/12/obama-bows-to-chinese-leader-hu/

RT: This guy needs to go NOW. Go where? BACK TO KENYA (his “home country”)!!

Sherry Reding: Agreed

Peter Opdahl: http://opdahls.com/2010/04/14/protocol/

Sherry Reding: Exactly …. that was THEN. This is NOW. It is not appropriate to bow to communist leaders nor to a mayor of a state, for crying out loud!

LM: Sherry I’m sure he was just trying to “fit in” lol

Peter Opdahl: Sherry – Why isn’t it appropriate? A bow doesn’t have to be deferential. It can be a sign of respect, a gesture of humility, or in many cases just a simple greeting or acknowledgement. Why assume subservience from a man who obviously has great confidence in himself and the power of the world’s greatest nation behind him?

Sherry Reding: LOL Peter…. you mean arrogance, right?! The man is full of himself and he’s making our country look incredibly ridiculous. He is definitely not making brownie points with U.S. citizens by bowing down to communists.

Peter Opdahl: So, bowing now equals arrogance? Hmmm… President Obama is many things, but I would never have thought him arrogant. Naive? Yes. Idealistic? Absolutely! Ultra-confident? He and every other President damn better well be! Arrogance I don’t see.

But to get back to his bowing, while he may not have made you happy with his bowing to President Hu … Jintao, and I’ve already criticized him for it, the only people who are up in arms are the rather radical right and far right. The middle and left, making up the majority of the country, just doesn’t care. Based on that, I think that you’re straining when you say that ‘Americans’ are upset.

Sherry Reding: Sooooo…… Are you calling me a ‘right wing extremist’ now? LOL That’s perfectly fine if that’s what you think of me…. I know where I stand and I’m against President Obama and his policies. I find it awfully strange that someone in his position has been able to get away with so many things that any other president would have been long gone by now. I’m against socialized medicine. I was actually just at a NAMI meeting last night and this came up – IF my son would have had the proper care when he was younger – I TRULY believe he wouldn’t be where he is today. You see, we were a Navy family – we used the Navy facilities. 25 years ago, they did not believe in allowing children or adults to have the same Pediatrician, GP, etc. You never knew what you’d get. My son had serious developmental problems and his needs were brushed under the rug. As he got older, the school jumped in – they at least knew he needed special attention and quite frankly, couldn’t believe that the Navy docs didn’t do anything about my son’s special needs. The earlier you catch it, the more apt the problem can be fixed, ,so to speak. So THAT – what me and my children went through when it came to military facilities and doctors is a PERFECT example of what socialized medical care is like. You don’t know what you’re going to get and people with serious needs are thrown on the back grill, so to speak.

I’m the type of person who looks at the ENTIRE picture when it comes to choosing a commander in chief. Obama had questionable and serious problems from the get go. Did he choose to ‘answer’ those questions re: his relationship w/ Jeramiah Wright? Did he choose to answer his relationship with William Ayers? He is a smooth talker, I’ll give him that. So is Satan – puts up a great act, schmoozing folks to get them on his side. Do I think Obama is Satan? No, of course not. But to compare him – lots of similarities. He doesn’t give me any reason to believe what comes out of his mouth. People want facts. People want truth. People don’t want a communist dictator leading this country! I am certain – if you were to take the time to sift through the health care bill, you would see that there are MANY outrageous and scary things that were slipped in on purpose because they knew no one would take the time to read 2200 page bill.

I have two children (adult) children with special needs. I’m against socialized medicine. Been there, done that. Look where it’s gotten my children. Their lives could be a lot different right now if they would have had the proper medical care from proper medical specialists. As for BO and bowing – I don’t know why he bows to communists. I find it odd and strange and disturbing. But then again, a lot of things that he’s doing/done I’ve felt the same way. I do not like the guy. He rubs me the wrong way. I have the right to voice my opinions of him and when I see things that are eerily creepy – like for instance the video of the school children chanting and singing along with their teacher – it verifies my feelings …. people are blinded by his ability to give a ‘good’ speech, or ‘confidence’ that they cannot get past that part about him. People are worshiping him like he’s some sort of God and that is NOT right. And when I see things that are happening that are similar to those things that have happened in socialistic countries – happening HERE in the US – it’s frightening.

You like him. I don’t. There are plenty of others who feel the same as I do. I’m not going around saying he’s a Nazi or comparing him to Hitler. When he begins to implicate progressive movements into this country which was founded on and has a constitution – to set up his ‘own’ agenda by disregarding our constitution. There is something seriously wrong with that picture. He is not on the peoples side. He has shown that on many occasions. He is out for the limelight, and the glory of being in charge like any other narcissist. He has his nose up in the air every time he’s on television – which is every day. Smug. Bad attitude. Childish and immature with ‘blaming’ Fox News for his set backs. Is he bipartisan like he said he would be….. NO, he is not. It’s his way or no way. That seems like dictatorship to me. If he wants to continue to ignore the majority when it comes to not enjoying his policies – he’s going to be a ‘one hit wonder’. And where he’s standing in the polls these days, he will last only one term – if he’s not impeached first.

Peter Opdahl: Sherry, I never called you extremist. I pointed out that most of the reaction to President Obama’s bow came from right-of-center, with reaction increasing the further right one went. That’s a pretty good assessment of reality I believe, but please feel free to point out facts where I am wrong. Please do not, however, put words in my mouth. If you ever learn anything about me you will learn that I don’t label — Life is much too complicated for that.

You’ve mentioned your children before and I’ve told you my situation with health care. I feel for you and your family — believe that. I confess, though, that I don’t understand the system that you think that we should have. You say that you tried socialized medicine and it didn’t work for you. What do you propose the alternative should be? Based on what I understand of you and your children’s situation, I would imagine that a purely free market system would perhaps have been even less likely to have provided what your family required. If you say “Yes, that’s true, but I still believe that a free market system is best,” then that’s an intellectually consistent argument that I can understand. I don’t think that is what you are saying though. You, me, and I would wager most Americans are not happy with their health coverage. Being dissatisfied with a situation is one thing. Proposing a solution is another.

A democracy also always needs an opposition to keep it honest, to keep it working for the people, and to provide alternatives to what the majority has proposed. The opposition is burdened, however, with the burden of proof. In order to keep the majority on its toes and sensitive to the minority, the minority needs to be credible, factual, consistent, and, above all, rational. Emotions can drive an argument, but they can never win it. I got involved in chatting with you because you were accused of intellectual dishonesty (The “*sshattery” comment.). I thought that the comment was rash, because you do seem driven and very concerned about where the USA is going. The more I hear, however, the more I wonder where you are driving. Getting rid of someone or something — whether it is President Obama or anyone/anything else — never fixes a problem. Fixing the problem involves getting rid of the problem and simultaneously providing a solution. (Look at us in Iraq and Afghanistan right now. We got rid of a couple of problems, but we have yet to provide solutions and find ourselves in a bind because of it.)

I don’t see any ideas for solutions coming from you. Outrage I see and can to some extent understand. Outrage needs to drive you to find a solution. That solution needs to be grounded in fiscal, political, and historic reality. Unless we can get that into the conversation, it’s rather a waste of everyone’s time, don’t you think?

Sherry Reding: Yeah, it’s a waste of time. You’re right, Peter. Have a good day.