Comments on: Dissatisfaction

By: Paul

Paul — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:15:11 +0000

@Chris: No thankya! I prefer to stay way out of politics. I’d be happy to photograph it, but prefer not to talk about it!

By: Chris Klug

Chris Klug — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:04:58 +0000

All I have to say about this is look how many comments a post about politics generated, Paul. Maybe you and I should start blogs about politics instead of photography.

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:28:56 +0000

Your photos and post highlight the double edge sword that exists with the freedoms we offer in this country Paul. Since they came up in the comments, I don’t see much difference between these guys and the cable / radio windbags. Each with a different method to spread their gospel. It still amazes me though at the amount of people they draw in. It seems to be common practice that if you repeatedly say the world is flat, you are eventually going to get some people to believe it.

I think Mr. Maxim underestimates the desire of Americans to be done with this kind of stuff. We got a peek at the more rational side during Obama’s campaign.

By: Ray K

Ray K — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:35:52 +0000

Neither side has the people in mind. The overriding fact is most of them are Lawyers and it is a contest remember they talk about Win/Lose not justice or the right way to do things unless they are on TV. Plus anything they may do won’t affect their bottom line, otherwise some of them would have to ask why some of these problems exist. I have yet to hear a why from any side of the discussion. Solve the symptoms and they get to keep a job, solve the problem and they aren’t needed any longer or they have to come up with new ones to solve.
Isn’t any different anywhere in the world the US just gets more press and is the elephant in the room.

By: Thomas

Thomas — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:57:35 +0000

@Paul M.: How does the saying go? “A good dead every day – try to educate a teabagger” Guess there’s a substantial amount of truth in that…

I can only wholeheartedly agree with Andreas. From a European perspective this out-of-proportion argumentation that seems to be dominating the political discussions in the US are a bit weird.

But of course it’s partly the same over here: more and more people enjoy a nice political discussion – without feeling the need to taint it with actual facts, background knowledge or even respect for the opinion of your counterpart.

By: Juha Haataja

Juha Haataja — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 07:06:06 +0000

Thanks for starting a highly informative discussion about politics. Populism is raising its ugly head here in Finland as well.

Nice captures, street style.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:51:40 +0000

@Paul: Unfortunately, I would have to agree with you that American politics, I’m not sure about the rest of the world, is about entertainment, shock and awe, and finger pointing. Rarely do you hear anything that amounts to a solution, a possible solution, or even something that relates to the problem.

However, I cannot call it great theater. It’s still annoying. And, again, you are right, the elections are won similar to high school elections, most popular. Never mind that the other guy/gal may actually have good ideas. Not entertaining, to me. As for Sarah Palin, we’ll, she’s just basking in her 15 minutes of fame. On the other side, I could certainly do without Nancy Pelosi. I find her … ridiculous.

By: Paul Maxim

Paul Maxim — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:31:06 +0000

Andreas: Never heard of Michelle Bachman, the congresswoman from Minnesota?!? She once urged MSNBC to do a “study” to determine which members of congress were “anti-American” and which were “patriots”. She was also very vocal about Obama’s citizenship and she’s one of the so-called “teabaggers”. All a very dangerous kind of populism. But she’s fun to watch!

Paul: In a way I suppose they are “annoying”. But to say that the whole bunch of them don’t constitute great theater is, in my opinion, missing the very point of American politics. American politics is 90% theater and 10% substance (and I think I’m being generous). Any successful American politician knows this is so. You get people to vote for you by entertaining them, not by educating them. Americans don’t give a damn about rational argument. That’s why Sarah Barracuda won’t go away and why she has a book tour coming up. She knows how to entertain. So I say we might as well sit back and enjoy the show.

As for middle of the road “solutions”? Probably not in our lifetimes…..

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:41:44 +0000

@Andreas: To those who think for themselves, issues are not nearly so black & white. Further, there always seem to people who believe them, unfortunately. While I was working the scene there was another guy matching me step for step and telling me that I and other people need to listen to what this man had to say because he was speaking ‘truth’.

@Markus: There are no simple solutions, as you know. And, it seems, most people don’t mind or even want to be told what to think. Certainly, no one wants to admit that they’ve had a hand in the problem. The problem is always ‘out there’.

@Cedric: Thanks, man! I appreciate it!

@Paul M.: I hardly find the blowhards on the right or the left entertaining. I find them quite annoying, actually, which is why I don’t follow them. Somewhere between the left wing and the right wing is a possible solution, the rest is pure bloviation and self-serving rhetoric.

By: Andreas Manessinger

Andreas Manessinger — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:40:26 +0000

Oh dear! I had never heard of Michelle Bachman