Pro Bush

WIth the daily barrage of newspapers articles shouting that Bush and the Republicans are at all time lows in the opinion polls, I feel compelled to defend the President. However much I hated the medicare drug plan and the campaign finance law he signed and am disgusted by his spending record and failure to veto a single bill, I still think the attacks are ridiculous. In Rolling Stone, Sean Wilentz is claiming Bush may be the worst president in history. But looking at the big picture, Bush has a decent record. The economy is strong - last quarter it grew at a healthy 4.8%. Despite all the problems and mistakes in Iraq, the new government in hanging in there. The new prime minister actually might be a good leader. The reports we have of the insurgency and of Al Quaeda suggest that they are in tatters and in a really difficult position. In addition, there are tantalizing stories that suggest we are on the verge of technological breakthroughs that may revolutionize how we get energy. In a few years we may have plug-in hybrids and flex fuel vehicles whose gas mileage is in the triple digits. Despite the worries over immigration, our problems pale beside those of Europe whose minorities aren't assimilated at all and whose religion makes them hostile to Western ideas of freedom. Our potential economic competitors, China and India, face tremondous internal problems - both have restless ethnic minorities and there is a lot of resentment between people who haven't shared in the recent economic growth and those who have. In India, there are actually Maoist guerrillas who are in the field fighting and terrorizing people So, in comparison, things are quite rosy in the US. Things are not that bad here and the future looks bright.