I think the fact that the cause of a majority of personal bankruptcy filings in the US are healthcare and healthcare-related expenses should be some indication that while our system hasn't completely collapsed, it's certainly not doing well.
And I disagree that a "liberal Republican" is an impossibility. Liberal, as I take it to mean, is open-minded, being receptive to the ideas of others, and willing to try those ideas to see how they do.
I don't identify myself as a Republican (much more Democrat, personally) but I'm happy to point out that there are some Republicans in the senate who do a lot of good "liberal" things despite their party affiliation.
The fact that the very top of the GOP leadership has been more or less hijacked by religious right reactionaries (aka 'neocons') gives the whole organization a bad name. That doesn't mean that everyone in the party goes along with their agenda or agrees with it - it just means that through a combination of extremely agressive politics, good timing, smart marketing and luck, these few individuals have poisoned the image of the Republicans to many, and in the process tarnished the images of conservative (and I mean conservative in the traditional sense - restrained) politicians who have done a lot of good.
A large country cannot function if only progressive or conservative perspectives are represented in government. It's through both the reining in of progressive ideals by conservatives, and the constant push towards progress of progressives that true bipartisanship is achieved, and that is what has historically worked best. We are in an unfortunate anomalous state right now - with a smart play by the democrats in 2004 it's very possible that could be fixed.
legionnaire
Belgium
November 2003
DEC 03, 2003 09:00 PM