You Big Mouth, You!
Standing on the shoulders of giants
Heroes from the War on Terror
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Friday, August 08, 2003Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Schwarzenegger immigrated to this country without a great deal of money. He worked hard, invested wisely, got a college degree in Business, and is now very wealthy. This is every immigrant's American dream. One of the reasons that he was able to do this was the discipline he used in his body building career. The intense focus, discipline, and single mindedness that you see at the top levels of body building are precisely those qualities that make for a successful businessman. Most of us learn our concepts of discipline at home; he states that he did. He learned a valuable skill set from his father, and applied it appropriately to make himself a success as a bodybuilder, and later as a businessman. No one become this successful in business without learning how to manage well and wisely. Management skills are perhaps the most important skills necessary for the office of Governor of California, who is, after all, the chief executive of the state. Were political experience the overweening criteria for the job, the current officeholder would be infinitely more successful than he demonstrably is. In this particular instance, independence from special interests and an outsider's perspective may be among the most valuable assets that he can offer California. The sins of the father do not visit the children in our culture. Whatever Schwarzenegger's father may have been, Arnold has demonstrated through many actives that he does not share any National Socialist views on Jews. The Nazi meme is sheer bigotry directed against a man of Germanic origins, merely because of his origins. Schwarzenegger has enjoyed the company of women. He may have enjoyed the company of men. So what? He is openly pro-gay rights, hardly a disqualification for office in California. He has used drugs, some legal, some illegal. Again, hardly a disqualification for office in California. He openly talks about lessons learned, and that is what I would expect from an adult, and from a serious candidate for governor. He is a movie actor, with the face and charms of an actor. How could his physical appearance or his accent be a disqualification? Were he a hunchback in a wheelchair, looking more like Stephen Hawking, would you comment on his appearance? It's irrelevant to the issues. A significant number of Californians have exercised their legal privilege and petitioned their elected government to recall Gray Davis. Truly democracy in action. Defending Gray Davis is a little like defending Saddam Hussein. Everyone admits he ought to go, and it's difficult to justify opposing a movement to make that happen. Davis is just plain bad for California, and over half of the voters in the last election said so. No matter how you spin it, it's not about George Bush. It's about the mismanagement of the State of California by Gray Davis, and by an entrenched legislature owned by special interests. This only way it becomes about Bush is by denying the realities of the current governance of California. Is Arnold the best possible candidate for governor? Maybe not. Can he win? Probably, he only needs to get the highest number of votes if the recall succeeds. -- posted by Chuck at Friday, August 08, 2003 | E-mail | Permalink | Main | 0 comments
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