Joel Pett for February 23, 2009

Reagan’s style of “gubmint” was and is a problem…

Yup. This ‘toon hits the mark nicely.

St Reagan … a cry in the wilderness. And the right is aimlessly scurrying hither and yon for that elusive voice.

What a difference in the philosophy of the GOP. If the government is not doing an effective job in helping us get along in this society we get into a royal mess. It was said that we would never have another Great Depression because of all the checks and balances in place.

I think that;

Bad government is worse than big government

2.Good government is possible.

Reagan approached Gov’t the same way the GOP approaches schools… don’t try to make it work better, just make it work less (or not at all).

deadheadzan - but Reagan and the Bushes started dismantling the checks and balances, and removing oversight - Reagan by removing regulation, Bush II by removing regulation and putting party hacks in charge of regulating authorities (like when he put an oil company advocate in charge of the EPA). There are those – and some seem to be on this blog – who think we should just go ahead and let the free market take its course instead, in which case get used to this boom-and-bust routine, because that’s how the truly free market works!

Dead mouse ..hahah, I thought it was a dead flower..LOL.. I must say that I’m still not 100% sure what Pett is saying here…it is certainly deeper than the comments posted here so far..

I suspect he’s saying that Reagan’s small government philosophy is more popular today(flowers) than Lincoln’s message (dead mouse)….but I may be off…

Mach, note the wording on the statue’s “base”. And, the GOP is looking for a Reagan to motivate it’s “base”.

Ok Humps, I get the your point now, I just checked, and Pett is listed on the ‘Left’ here, so I figure he’s throwing mud at the ‘right’, but still.. as a cartoon this one could be interpreted in a different way like this…

Today’s citizens are yearning so much for another Reagan to save us all that they even ignore the great Lincoln’s words and installed a Reagan shrine next to his statue…..

Muchadoodoo, in other words “the masses are asses”?

And if Reagan was to come back from the dead the far right would reject him on his immigration policies alone!

I do believe that the memory of Pres Reagan has transcended reality.

Humph - right you are. Most historians today don’t consider Reagan all that effective; but he was certainly far more bipartisan than the current crew in the House and he was popular enough to be used as an image today.

It’s an interesting cartoon on many levels. Lincoln was the first Republican president. His words “Of the people, by the people, for the people” certainly represent the ideal for government. Reagan is worshiped by many Republicans, but the image does not match the reality. Reagan oversaw the greatest expansion of government programs in history. He was responsible for the greatest increase in the national deficit until Bush II. And he oversaw changes that changed “for the people” to “for the rich”.

I don’t understand the message here, either. “Saint” Reagan has been shown time and again to have been an idiot. Not only that, but an idiot with Alzheimer’s. His trickle-down, voodoo economics has led us to where we are today. No one is suggesting he be carved into Mt. Rushmore these days. (I couldn’t believe it at the time)

tigernest1, You understand it. However, there is still a large portion of the right wing base still looking for someone to meet their expectations for a new Reagan.

Indeed, a few years ago some Republicans were suggesting putting Reagan’s head on the dime – thus thumbing their noses at FDR, the “enemy of his class” architect of the New Deal.

And they did name Washington National after him – a name I refuse to acknowledge, considering Reagan did more damage to the airline industry than anyone prior to 9/11.

tigernest1, the Alzheimer’s came later but the facts are there Reagan was NOT a hands on president… he was a figurehead ( as he was as governor in California doing the bidding of the real estate cartel ).

Mr Hopson, some mighty true words about Reagan. I’ve a brother-in-law who has lived and workd in CA since the 60’s. He “just” swears Reagan had Alzheimer’s a long time before the public knew about it.

oldlegodad - you’re right, Reagan was way more bipartisan, and even reined in the more excessive members of his party to get the job done. But I thought the .22 went into the lung, not the head. He had Alzheimer’s, and we may never know for how long.

oldlegodad asked “Did the .22 in the head lead to the dementia?” No, the rumor is the blood he was given was too cool… that kick started the Alzheimer’s!

Reagan was a Whore and a Thief and a War Criminal and a Traitor who killed thousands of American Citizens by refusing to even speak the word AIDS for most of his presidency - not to mention what vile harlot Nancy inflicted on our nation with her “Just Say No” nonsense: gee, prohibition worked SO WELL the first time… moron actors.

Somehow this nation is so horribly nearsighted about the deceased leaders and this combined with a SAVAGE habit of conveying God-like status on them with ABSOLUTELY NO REGARD for what they really did while in office… makes me want to run down to the car wash with a fist full of quarters and an SOS pad.

See also Hunter S. Thompson’s eulogy for Richard M. Nixon.

“Reagan was a Whore”

actually, that was Bill

“a Thief”

that was Sandy Berger

…actually your whole list could be filled with schmucks from both parties…and while you’re busy railing against one, the other is cleaning out your bank account.

WW: Next time tell us what ya realy think about RR! ;-)

c frog 1 . ALL govt is bad

good govt is oxymorons oxymoron

peregrine, where do you live? In a cave, eating nuts and berries? If you live in an industrialized nation, you owe a lot to government: roads, clean water, readily available and nutritious food, a longer lifespan due to superior healthcare, independence from warlords thanks to the armed forces, education resources…

peregrine1963, if you want a place where there’s no government, try the mountains bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan. I’ll bet you could get a good deal on a flight.

motive, cdward - give peregrine1963 a break! He’s got his right shoe tied so now don’t confuse his as he attempts the “left”.