whos gonna be Mr president??
does it even effect us down here in Oz?
do we really care? should we care? lol
Kerry looks like Glen Robbins. hehe
http://www.axcessnews.com/images/bush_kerry_debate2.jpg


Nov 1, 2004 (AXcess News) Washington - President Bush and his Democratic Party challenger, John Kerry, campaigned in the critical, voter-rich states of Ohio and Florida before Americans go to the polls.

Both Mr. Bush, the Republican Party nominee, and Senator Kerry started their day attending Christian services - the president in Florida and Mr. Kerry in Ohio.

The senator told an African-American congregation that America's economic future depends on the outcome of Tuesday's vote, and that it is time to change course from the policies of the Bush administration.

"Countless numbers of people have lost jobs that have gone overseas. The jobs that replace them pay less than the jobs we are losing," he said. "That is the choice in this [presidential] race, my friends. It is a choice about what kind of country and society we are going to have. It is ultimately a choice about whether we are going to keep faith with the faith that we profess."

African-Americans are considered a vital component of the Democratic Party's base of support, but some public-opinion surveys suggest Mr. Bush is attracting a small, but significant, portion of the black vote, perhaps 15-to-20-percent. Kerry campaign strategists say they are counting on a large African-American turnout on Election Day, and that they expect blacks to vote in overwhelming numbers for Mr. Kerry.
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Sunday, in an interview on the ABC television network, the Massachusetts senator condemned a recent videotaped message from al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. Mr. Kerry said he would lead a more effective war on terrorism than President Bush, and dismissed polls that give the president higher ratings on questions of national security.

President Bush is trying to reinforce his image as a principled, tenacious leader. Addressing supporters at a rally in Coconut Grove, Florida, Mr. Bush accused Senator Kerry of constantly changing positions on the war in Iraq.

"A president must not shift in the wind. A president has to make the tough decisions and stand by them. The roll of the president is not to follow the latest polls," he said. "The roll of the president is to lead based on principle and conviction and conscience. And that is how I will continue to lead this nation."

Mr. Bush also defended his economic record, noting that the U.S. economy is growing once again and jobs are being created. He said John Kerry's economic program would cause government spending to skyrocket.

Partisanship between Democrats and Republicans is expected to rise between now and Tuesday. Speaking on CBS's "Face the Nation" program, Republican Arizona Senator John McCain said the nation must not remain embittered after the election.

"On November 3, we better call a truce and stop this [partisanship] and sit down together, no matter who wins, and start talking about national unity and addressing these issues. I deplore this kind of bitterness and anger. The enemy is al-Qaida, not Democrats or Republicans," he said.

But unity may be hard to achieve if, as feared, election results are delayed by legal maneuverings. Both the Kerry and the Bush campaigns are hoping to win by a sufficiently large margin that legal challenges mounted in any given county of any given state do not delay the naming of a victor, whoever it may be.

so who is winning lol

bush now
seems like that what its going to be

Bush still at about 1pm, still waiting on the swing state outcomes; Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania. Won't know much until then; just like the Aus election, most states were already gimme wins and its only the handful of marginals on which the outcome turns.

Blue

Bush leads, just though...

Close to call, two states are going to the wire, whoever wins those wins.

i didnt think Bush would be leading. its funny, its very hard to oust a current president. they always seem to be relected. people dont like change. they must like whats hes about?
same thing with our recent election.

They're saying Kerry's chances are now resting in suburbs in Ohio. Not looking good.

All this American ballyhoo which has cost over $650m for an election between 2 people for president. The result boils down to the middle American hillbilly states identifying with Bush. It is like the blind leading the blind.

For me an idiot like Bush really sums up the US for me a pretty low class uneducated mass easily manipulated by cunning religious( christian and jewish) and conservative fanatics.

hmm barneybick
well now bush gets in maybe there can be a few good years after he leaves
thats my hope

Well, it's official, Australians want Wayne Carey as American President... well that's what our poll suggests, anyway...

Time to pop the champaign. While those little conservative redneck's sit in their safe farmhouses out in the american mid-west, the well educated generally kerry supporting folk in the cities need now fear more terror threats from bush hating islamic extremists. Political power in the deciding hands of stupid people, its fantastic... I love how its like a mirror image of what happened in our election. Politics is a beautiful thing.

lol pog. yes Kerry has conceded defeat!!
bush won 51% to 48%.
its amazing how our poll is 15-4 kerry.

I'm sorry about Kerry's loss in terms of the popular vote as well as the electoral college. It's a dark day for America.

It actually makes me sick in the stomach to think Bush is president again. Americans are more stupid than I ever imagined.

It's a dark day for America.

Yes it is. If you have any American friends you should tell them personally. They might not get it.

America has had so much trouble with their elections - and they are supposed to be a model for democracy.

Indonesia, a third world country with over 200 million people spread over 22,000 islands, some very remote over a distance equal to all Australia and NZ conducted a smoother election only a few months ago.

jt

an idiot like Bush really .

You dont get the top job, by being a dumb-c%^t like yourself.
Two Ivy League degrees
An IQ of 125 - which was tested by the US airforce entrance exam

The guy is smart, just because your a hippy and dont agree what he says and the majority agree on, doesn't make him an idiot

You dont get the top job, by being a dumb-c%^t like yourself.
Two Ivy League degrees
An IQ of 125 - which was tested by the US airforce entrance exam

The guy is smart, just because your a hippy and dont agree what he says and the majority agree on, doesn't make him an idiot

It's true. According to military records, Bush has a higher IQ than Kerry.

I don't know if he is an idiot or not, but there is no doubt in my mind that Bush is a man with some major ulterior motives in just about everything he does - I never trust anyone who is untruthful in their motives.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v426/jprotzman/USC.jpg

:rofl:

just think, George jnr and George snr will have a combined total of 16 years as worlds most powerful men! not abad resume. something to tell your grandkids.lol

You dont get the top job, by being a dumb-c%^t like yourself.
Two Ivy League degrees
An IQ of 125 - which was tested by the US airforce entrance exam

The guy is smart, just because your a hippy and dont agree what he says and the majority agree on, doesn't make him an idiot

Hey mate. If he is so smart how come he cannot string a decent sentence together. His father most likely bought is " degrees" he was a failure at any type of bussines he ran and chickened out of the vietnam war not bad credentials for the "leader of the free world".
I really amazing in one way the low quality of Presidents the the Yanks keep throwing up but I suppose that says it all.

You dont get the top job, by being a dumb-c%^t like yourself.
Two Ivy League degrees
An IQ of 125 - which was tested by the US airforce entrance exam

The guy is smart, just because your a hippy and dont agree what he says and the majority agree on, doesn't make him an idiot


Moving on to another side of the subject; Osama bin ladan, like bush, is also a very well educated and trained man, they are two men with motives led strictly by a particular nature of both political and religious ideals, and most powerfully, both have an undirect responsibility for the deaths of many innocent people. I'm not trying to make any particular point, just thought you should think about these above facts.

I have a feeling this forum leans a little to the left...

Put yourself in George Bush's shoes, you've not long become president of the USA and then terrorists hijack passenger jets and crash them into major American icons killing thousands of people, do you think he should just take it with a grain of salt?
On a lighter note........John Kerry looks like a puppet if you ask me!! :lol:

Not all Christians are George Bush fans. I'm Christian and I wanted Kerry to win the election. I think America has a lot to answer for.

I have a feeling this forum leans a little to the left...

I have a feeling that there are a couple of left wing people on this forum, who like ranting and raving their opinions to everyone else, often in a rude and offensive manner. I think they have an average age of 17.

Daddy Bush probably rigged his son's military entrance.

But this is what the world should realise : Bush ain't the problem now as we all thought, its the American people.

And we should realise this : John Howard ain't the problem, its the Australian people.

We're all f***d ! Hooray for us !

I have a feeling this forum leans a little to the left...

Actually, as a very generalised statement, younger people lean a little to the left. It's the power of the Baby Boomers, reaching an age where they don't want the comforts of their lives threatened by change (once again generalised statement) that have supported the ideologies of Bush and Howard...or more so the notion of "if it ain't broke don't fix it".

Personally, I have an ever-present desire for progression and change, and certainly not for standing still or regressing, as has been occurring lately in the world on several fronts. If I felt the world was too left, I would want change in the opposite direction - it's just that at the moment everything is too right-leaning.

lol - great to see the usual know-nothing uni student morons here dismissing anyone who disagrees with their own particular niche of progressive socialism as an "idiot" or "redneck".

There were a whole number of very good reasons to vote Bush this election. Even if you don't agree with him on a lot of social issues, and I sure don't, I still strongly support his tough stance on terrorism and the general US plan for the middle east. I rejected Kerry's plans as wishy-washy, opportunistic and *too* multilateral. But these are complex, difficult issues and to dismiss everyone who went with Bush on them as "stupid" really just shows you up as the arrogant, childish little jerks you are.

Oh, every solution to every problem in the world is just *SO* obvious to you little lefties, isn't it? Ha - well, guess we'll never know .. no-one trusts the left enough to put them into power again anytime soon. Hey, you can always move to Canada or New Zealand. In fact I encourage it.

Finn if regime change in Iraq and democracy in Afghanistan isn't "progression" then wtf is? I couldn't agree less with your position. To me the left stands for stagnation, endless pointless circle-jerk discussion and regression to a totally disproved theory of socialism. The kind of "progression" i see the left standing for is totally destructive, counter-productive BS like teaching kids at schools about how white people "stole" australia from the aborigines, a ludicrous anti-americanism and anti-democracy and dangerous moral relativism.

There are a great number of intelligent, highly educated people on the right. Not saying I'm one of them, but for your own sake, don't dismiss the whole political movement as "stupid". Why not take the time to try to understand some of their points? The number of lefties I have met who could engage me in informed debate about the important issues I could count on one hand. Every other I've encountered just spewed forth this ridiculous bullshit about how Bush = Hitler or that all republicans/liberals "hate fags". Nothing could be further from the truth, and until the left learn to engage the right with something other than ideology and blind hatred, you doom yourselves to ridicule and an eternity of unelectability ...

hk

^^ Well said

"For me an idiot like Bush really sums up the US for me a pretty low class uneducated mass easily manipulated by cunning religious( christian and jewish) and conservative fanatics ."

Fair enough--for me John Howard really sums up Australia--a pretty low-class uneducated mass easily manipulated by a bunch of drones duller than a Puritan orgy and with all the moral staying power of a live-spider taco.

Even?

just think, George jnr and George snr will have a combined total of 16 years as worlds most powerful men! not abad resume. something to tell your grandkids.lol

Actually, Bush I served only 1 term as president (he was defeated by Clinton when he ran for re-election). So the total will be only 12 years, assuming Bush II doesn't die or resign.

It's true. According to military records, Bush has a higher IQ than Kerry.

That doesn't make him any more worldly or less centrist in his views. There are no shades of Gray in this administration. You are either with us or against us. And we will all see that soon.

I gotta tell u - I thought Bush Jr would've been a one-termer just like his dad. It was good education learning about how the electoral college works.

America is a country sharply divided between North and South it seems.

I gotta tell u - I thought Bush Jr would've been a one-termer just like his dad. It was good education learning about how the electoral college works.

America is a country sharply divided between North and South it seems.

It not divided by regions as much as it is by how we define "America".

"For me an idiot like Bush really sums up the US for me a pretty low class uneducated mass easily manipulated by cunning religious( christian and jewish) and conservative fanatics ."

Fair enough--for me John Howard really sums up Australia--a pretty low-class uneducated mass easily manipulated by a bunch of drones duller than a Puritan orgy and with all the moral staying power of a live-spider taco.

Even?

:eek2:

Finn if regime change in Iraq and democracy in Afghanistan isn't "progression" then wtf is? I couldn't agree less with your position. To me the left stands for stagnation, endless pointless circle-jerk discussion and regression to a totally disproved theory of socialism. The kind of "progression" i see the left standing for is totally destructive, counter-productive BS like teaching kids at schools about how white people "stole" australia from the aborigines, a ludicrous anti-americanism and anti-democracy and dangerous moral relativism.

hk

I refer to my earlier statement about ulterior motives with respect to the demonstration of "progression" in Afghanistan and Iraq. I believe that social improvement or change that may oocur in these two countries is almost a by-product of the real aim. I would tend to agree with progression in respect to Afghanistan far more than in Iraq, where a series of loosely constructed linkages were used to justify the military action. If somewhere had to be attacked to provide a feeling of "taking action" with respect to 9/11, why wasn't it Saudi Arabia, where the majority of the terrorists originated from?

At the moment the left stands for change, and that was what I was getting at, not that I will always be supportive of the idealisms of the leftist mind. I actually think that my own political beliefs are to keep bringing it back to the centre, if the country is heading too far one way or the other. However, I will never ever be supportive of government policy tied to religious idealism, when the religion involved follows it's own doctrines so selectively and excludes sections of the community unnecessarily.

As for your comment with respect to aborigines, I don't feel that the land was "stolen" per se, but to entirely ignore the issue as though everything that occurred was fair and equitable is ridiculous and flies in the face of what a 'democracy' stands for. What is the point of glossing over our history? To raise children with the arrogant notion that Australians can do no wrong? That's not the real world, so I can't see the point in trying to convince people that it is.

http://pahms.customer.netspace.net.au/gwb.jpg

Fair enough--for me John Howard really sums up Australia--a pretty low-class uneducated mass easily manipulated by a bunch of drones duller than a Puritan orgy and with all the moral staying power of a live-spider taco.

Even?

Pretty much hit the nail on the head!

lol - great to see the usual know-nothing uni student morons here dismissing anyone who disagrees with their own particular niche of progressive socialism as an "idiot" or "redneck".
..and of course, you're not doing the same, are you?

A letter to the AGE this morning neatly summed up the general ffeling about Dubya's win in two words: "Oh Shit!"

..and of course, you're not doing the same, are you?

I think someone's got a bit of pent up jealousy for uni students.

George Bush will be presiding over America during probably one of its most turbulent periods in recent history- namely the peak in world oil production and all the problems this entails. Something, sadly, 99% of the American public has little to no knowledge about. Time will tell.

It might be beneficial in the medium term to have Bush finish the dirty work. Had Kerry got in, his hands would be tied in Iraq, Middle Easter/Islamic etc anger aimed at America would drop a little but not alot. This way Bush finishes the shit he started (hopefully without even looking at Iran, Jesus Christ!!!) and the next president, regardless of party starts with a clean slate, somewhat disengaged from from certain world hot-spots.

What's 2008?

Guilliani vs Edwards?

I laugh at suggestions of Hillary Clinton. Mrs B Bush is probably more popular with the masses then her and as for those rooting for Arnie, with something like 27 ammendments in 200 years I would be amazed if that one got through. Still he is proving to be a surprisingly competent moderate republican (granted, it's early days).....

Definitely the danger with Bush this time around is that several Supreme Court spots will come up, and Bush is likely to fill them with Anti-Abortionists and other Right Wing Choices. A Lot of landmark Supreme Court decisions could be reversed.

You can almost sense that a change is in the air - not only forthe US but here as well - now that the inmates are running the asylum they've all started to flash their true colours and now there's all sorts of talk about restricting abortions in this country. I'm no political expert but if there is some sort of restriction of abortions in this country I'll guarantee you that the government will be swiftly turfed out of both houses at the next election.

If I know one thing it's not only members of the loony left who dislike having their personal freedoms restricted - and this is one of the biggger ones - check out the letters page of any paper in the last week.

"For me an idiot like Bush really sums up the US for me a pretty low class uneducated mass easily manipulated by cunning religious( christian and jewish) and conservative fanatics ."

Fair enough--for me John Howard really sums up Australia--a pretty low-class uneducated mass easily manipulated by a bunch of drones duller than a Puritan orgy and with all the moral staying power of a live-spider taco.

Even?

That is in part true, but what has been happening here "down under" in the last decade of howard 'rule' is that the Australian public has been consistently lied to, divided, and mislead more than ever in this countries political history. It seems that we have become used to what I like to call horseshit leadership. Even during the dark decades of nonstop liberal rule before the great man whitlam got in (1972), and got straight to fixing all the problems and shitglogs that are caused to a country when nothing moves forward or there is no vision in parliament, never has the public showed such little interest in sheer and obvious dishonesty in government.

Howard doesn't even have to try anymore it seems, example from last election campaign; Howard stated that he would not raise taxes, and that interest rates would remain low. It is a disgrace that anyone should think they could make such a ludacris promise, and even more disgraceful that people actually believed him.
However it is true to say that the general blue ribbon liberal supporter really doesn't have the slightest idea even for the basics, about economics, and there was a positive feedback in the community on this during our last election campaign. example; Howard and costello just love to boast about Australia's current excellence in economical performance under the biggest taxing government in our history, geeze we got a huge surplus! what a surprise, and its great to know that debt has been transfered from the government into the wallets of the middle class australian...

Also our economy is so good! yay, lets all just forget about the vital initiatives (such as floating the dollar) brought in the the previous keating labor government which if not have been done the country would have eventually ended up with an UNRECOVERABLE stockpile of debt! Its no surprise that the right side of politics has the image of the best economical managers (well here in Australia anyway), when the labor party takes the top job after the liberals several years of mindless insight and vision and progression of nothingness, they have to spend lots of money, and therefore increase government debt... Its simple ethics yet a significant portion of the australian public will never get it...

So in a very long and passionate(I get carried away) response to your statement you are very even. Some people have stated things about the intelligence and class of american people, but the reality is the Australian people aren't all that better.

It's actually worse for America, their economy is going down the toilet and Bush refuses to do anything to fish it out. Instead of injecting money into the economy, Bush is giving tax cuts to the rich and spending billions on Defense and National Security (Two areas that don't really contribute to the economy or infrastructure in any substantial way) Also America (like Australia) is keeping afloat due to high levels of debt.

For those still in the dark, Australia's economic prosperity is due to consumer spending fueled, unbeleivably, by idiots drawing on the equity in their house. Eventually these morons will either stop borrowing or worse drown in their own debt, and there you have it boom turns to bust. All the while during this boom there has been barely any spending on capital, infrastructure or development. Our farce of an economy has been completely preoccupied with property and keeping up with the joneses. Maybe we won't have a huge crash, maybe the system will correct itself smoothly, or maybe the housing boom will never end, personally though, I wouldn't hold my breath...

The IMF reckons we're doing alright...

IMF praises economy amid worries over house prices and debt
November 9, 2004 - 1:21PM

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The International Monetary Fund today gave the federal government and the Reserve Bank of Australia big ticks for their handling of the economy and the housing market.

In its annual report card, the IMF said the strong performance of the Australian economy was in large credit to the government and its exemplary record of macroeconomic and financial management.

It said there were few risks on the horizon for the economy, with most of those external factors that were beyond the control of Australian authorities.

"Executive directors commended the authorities for Australia's strong performance, with six years of Budget surpluses, falling public debt, low inflation, high and rising productivity and a long period of uninterrupted growth that has underpinned a dynamic job market," the fund found.

"They attributed this performance to the authorities' exemplary record of macroeconomic and financial management and implementation of structural reforms, carried out in a transparent economic policy formulation framework."

The fund backed the Reserve Banks' wait-and-see stance on further interest rises.

It said the bank had acted appropriately in the way it had responded to the steaming property market and the rise in household debt.

The biggest concern was the strengthening Australian dollar.

"Forward-looking indicators of economic activity point to continuing strength, albeit with some moderation, in domestic demand and there are some signs of slowing in the housing sector," it added.

"The gradual cooling of domestic demand is expected to be, at least partially, offset by a pick up in external demand and a rebound in the agricultural sector, bringing about the long awaited rebalancing of sources of growth.

"The main risk to the outlook centers on the housing market and the associated build-up in household indebtedness, but recent indicators suggest a soft landing is likely."

But the report card fell short of an A plus, with the IMF expressing some concern about Australia's burgeoning current account deficit which is likely to hit six per cent of GDP.

It said it also had concerns about the high level of private debt held by businesses.

"Directors pointed to potential risks stemming from the sustained high current account deficit and the build-up of private external debt, and advocated close monitoring of corporate and banks' balance sheets," it said.

Treasurer Peter Costello, although happy with the glowing report, said it did not mean Australia could slow its reform program.

"It (the IMF review) notes the way in which the economic performance of Australia has outperformed nearly all of the developed economies of the world over recent years," Mr Costello told reporters in Melbourne.

"Having said that, the IMF notes that it was the economic reforms of recent years that have got us to where we are now, and it's the reforms of today that are required for us to meet the challenges of tomorrow."

The IMF is also the organisation that advised Thiland to close banks in the middle of a currency crisis.

Jeez, thought you Aussies would have an affinity for a head-of-state named 'Bush'.

The problem with Bush is, all we really get over here is how much of a f#cking idiot he is in real life, so when we find out that he get's re-elected there is nothing else you can think other than "stupid f#cking seppos".

oh, and the whole war in iraq thing.
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.
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and, we heard nothing substantial about John Kerry, other than he was the "other guy", so naturally, we liked him better because his IQ is greater than that of a 6 year olds.

^ best description so far.

^^ It's rather funny that you guys should mention IQ's, when one of the points raised during the campaign was that guaged from their Military records, Bush has a higher IQ than Kerry.

New York Times link

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/24/politics/campaign/24points.html?ex=1256356800&en=50a1bcbb16e7cf21&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland

Jeez, thought you Aussies would have an affinity for a head-of-state named 'Bush'.
Canada's Head of State will bring a warmth, when visiting for Melbourne Commonwealth Games in March, 2006. :)

^^ It's rather funny that you guys should mention IQ's, when one of the points raised during the campaign was that guaged from their Military records, Bush has a higher IQ than Kerry.

New York Times link

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/24/politics/campaign/24points.html?ex=1256356800&en=50a1bcbb16e7cf21&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland

he may, but the majority of australians don't know that. We get emails showing him looking through binoculars with the lens caps on and childrens books upside down. the list is endless. John Kerry could be just as ridiculous, however, in most australians minds he remains, "the other guy".

The problem with Bush is, all we really get over here is how much of a f#cking idiot he is in real life, so when we find out that he get's re-elected there is nothing else you can think other than "stupid f#cking seppos".

oh, and the whole war in iraq thing.
.
.
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and, we heard nothing substantial about John Kerry, other than he was the "other guy", so naturally, we liked him better because his IQ is greater than that of a 6 year olds.

Which begs the question, how can an 'idiot' engender such rage. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If you were to deprive a leftist of the stupidity charge he'd be left with only, 'a breve latte, please'.

Canada's Head of State will bring a warmth, when visiting for Melbourne Commonwealth Games in March, 2006. :)

He's a girly-man. Everybody knows it.

He's a girly-man. Everybody knows it.
Hey there, its Betty Windsor. Canada and Australia have the same person as head of state.

We Yanks no nothing of Betty Windsor. We know Betty Crocker though. :)

Who is Bety Crocker?

^It's a brand name.