Romney, Santorum, Gingrich hold a balance
Republican infighting might be doing Obama's work. Newt Gingrich says Mitt Romney is out of touch, Romney says Gingrich is an insider, and Rick Santorum wants to get back to the real issues. The three represent the main factions of the party, and though they snarl and growl, they need each other.
Romney represents the party's economic core, who benefit from low taxes on capital gains, carried interest, etc. They provide the money and legislative agenda that keeps the economic elite on top. They believe those with the gold make the rules.
Santorum represents the Republicans' social conservatives, who believes our nation needs its moral and religious code. Their tolerance for returning prodigals is prodigious; their tolerance for different beliefs, less so. They provide a broad, reliable voting bloc, with God on their side.
Gingrich represents rage against the system (quite an accomplishment after decades in D.C.) Newt's supporters fear big government, socialism, regulation, immigrants, terrorists, the decline of free-market capitalism, and French. High anxiety makes them an easily motivated and directed base. They believe the American dream that anyone can make it big in America.
Wealth, faith and a dream has been a winning trifecta since the days of the Evil Empire and Morning in America. Gingrich and Santorum have their bases energized, chomping for Obama, but when Romney gets the nomination, they'll fall in line and back him. With $5 gas this summer (can you say "Hormuz"?), Obama will be in trouble.
Will the troika hold? The wealthy own the party and won't abandon it. The faithful have faith, a license to disregard facts, and will abandon neither faith nor party. Which leaves angry, fearful dreamers. Can they admit they will probably never rise from their serfdom, that "The Dream" was just a dream, nothing more? They'd sooner give up their guns.
Stuart Anderson
Otego
5-month moratorium is a cynical bluff
The five-month "M" moratorium promoted by some members of the Oneonta town board and town attorney Richard Harlem is nothing more than a cynical bluff. The state won't act during that period, so there's a de facto moratorium in effect already. What we need is the protection of the later months in supervisor Bob Wood's 12-month "W" version.
Here's the bluff: Bill Mirabito and Janet Hurley Quackenbush will vote for their five-month version, knowing full well it will do nothing to stop drilling. And then they'll claim they voted for a moratorium to protect the town. Very clever. Also deeply cynical and dishonest.
On Monday, Feb. 13, at 7 p.m., please come to the public hearing at the town hall to insist the town council adopt the only serious proposal before it, the 12-month "W" moratorium.
Peter Exton
Oneonta
