It’s Not Enough to Cry

Published in El Universal
(Venezuela) on 9 November 2010
by Jose Gomez Febres (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Arie Braizblot. Edited by Heidi Kaufmann.
Will the Opportunity for Change in the Other America Survive? Obama Has the Final Say.


The post-midterm election debate in the United States has begun since the dawn of Nov 2. Very diverse articles and opinions have filled the print media to help us understand a result widely predicted, even when in the depths of our hearts we yearned for the American electorate to give Obama a second chance. They didn’t. The only consolation is the conservation of the Senate, by a narrow margin — far from the magical 60 [seats] that allow for the obstruction of the Republicans’ flagrant filibustering.

A tour of some of these opinions shows that Obama and the Democrats contributed to this disastrous result for change in the other America. Timothy Egan — The New York Times contributor for political and social issues in American life, who won the Pulitzer Prize in 2001 — offers an analysis of how Obama saved capitalism and lost the midterm elections in his first two years in government.

Egan’s opinion is shared by Economic Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman, who accuses a group of complainers, the “Blue Dog” members of Congress, of interposing to obstruct Obama from intensifying his activities. In Krugman’s opinion, Obama didn’t utilize enough political capital, and upon losing it, he has been blocked.

Many believe that the Democrats lost by being timid, allowing their message to be demonized [and] permitting Republicans to dictate the terms of the debate. Over the course of two years, the Democratic electorate was demobilized, while the Republicans successfully advanced an agenda that considered any leftist a thug or a socialist.

Will the opportunity for change survive in the other America? Obama still has the final say.






No basta llorar

¿Sobrevivirá la oportunidad de cambio en la Otra América? Obama tiene la palabra

JOSÉ GÓMEZ FEBRES | EL UNIVERSAL

martes 9 de noviembre de 2010 12:00 AM

El debate postelecciones intermedia en EEUU ha comenzado desde la propia madrugada del 2/11. Artículos y opiniones muy

variadas han copado los grandes medios impresos para ayudarnos a comprender un resultado ampliamente pronosticado

aun cuando en el fondo de nuestro corazón anhelábamos que los electores americanos dieran un nuevo chance a Obama.

No lo hicieron. Solo el consuelo de haber conservado la Cámara del Senado, por un estrecho margen, lejos del mágico 60

que permitía bloquear el filibusterismo flagrante de los Republicanos. Un paseo rasante por algunas de estas opiniones

muestra que Obama y los Demócratas contribuyeron a este resultado tan desastroso para el cambio en la otra América.


Timothy Egan, del equipo ganador del Premio Pulitzer 2001, colaborador del NYT en temas políticos y sociales de la vida

norteamericana ofrece un análisis sobre cómo Obama salvó al capitalismo y perdió las elecciones intermedias en sus 2

primeros años de Gobierno.

La opinión Egan es compartida por el Premio Nobel de Economía Paul Krugman quien acusa a un sector de quejosos, los

"Blue Dogs", parlamentarios que se interponían para evitar que Obama radicalizara sus acciones. En la opinión de Krugman

no se hizo suficiente cuando se disponía del capital político y al perderlo, Obama se ha atascado.

Muchos opinan que perdieron por timidez, al consentir que su mensaje fuese demonizado, al permitir que los republicanos

pusieran los términos del debate. A lo largo de los 2 años los electores demócratas fueron desmovilizados mientras los

republicanos avanzaban en una agenda que colocaba a cualquiera ubicado a la izquierda de un bárbaro, como socialista.

¿Sobrevivirá la oportunidad de cambio en la Otra América? Obama tiene la palabra nuevamente.

This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link .

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