A question about Reagan

I with Steph. Nothing wonderful.

Let's just take where he began his presidential campaign - that little town in Mississipppi - I want to say the name of it is Philidephia but I can't be completely sure. Anyway, that is the tiny town he chose to begin his campaign.

Why?

Well, back in the day (early 60s, Phildelphia was known as the place where three civil rights workers were kidnapped and killed, their bodies dumped in an earthern damn - Schwerner, Chaney and Goodman were their names. No one has been successfully prosecuted for their deaths. This sad event is the town's only claim to fame (shame).

So, what did Reagan do when he spoke in the town? Did he talk about the sacrifices of the three young men? Did he invoke the Civil Rights movement? Did he talk about justice?

NO. HE SPOKE ABOUT STATES' RIGHTS.

Now why did he do this? To whose sense of optimism was he appealing? To whose sens of history? To whose sense of America?

My two cents -- but I got a wallet-full when it comes to Ronald Reagan.

I can not say why I do not morn his death. We are not allowed to speak badly about Reagan here. That has been made clear to us.

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I disagree with the majority of the posts but I'm going to answer this question because I feel it was sincerely asked and I will give my sincere answer.

I think Reagan was the right President for that period in the world and our country's history. In the 44 years he was in politics he never swerved from his belief that the soviet form of communism was wrong. Whether or not you can agree with that, there are very few politicians who will stand by a belief no matter its popularity. I believe that along with Gorbachev (sorry if it is spelled wrong) he helped to bring down the Iron Curtain and freed so much of the world for democracy. Whether or not you agree with that, there are thousands of people in the world who today enjoy reading the paper, listening to the radio, attending or NOT attending church, and basically make choices because of Reagan's passion for democracy. As for the United States, remember that at the end of the 70's America was hated by much of the world and not so keen on itself (in fact, Carter made a presidential address where he said something on the order of, people are unemployed, America is disliked, inflation is high, well too bad, get used to it, your expectations are too high...) (hated then much more so than today) and Reagan brought a return to pride in being American among the citizenry and helped to restore an okay view of America in the eyes of the world. Reagan also cut taxes which stimulated the economy which reduced unemployment, inflation, and interest rates. By cutting taxes he was able to generate more money for the government funding lots of programs and encouraging welfare reform. Concerning the Marines killed in Beirut he took personal and public responsibility for that. He gave a very moving speech in which he said that it happened on his watch and therefore was his responsibility and that he would take full blame. He appointed Sandra Day O'Connor to the Supreme Court. She was the first woman Supreme Court Judge. This opened the door for many women and inspired many more to dream and achieve big. While lesser known his main speech writer was a woman as well. So whether you like him, think he did a good job, he stood for his values, took responsibility for his actions, helped to create democracy across the globe, and brought hope to a lot of US citizens.

Hope that helps explain why so many people consider him to be such a great President. He is not perfect. He is human and made mistakes. He wasn't into details but into the big picture. He let his cabinet handle the details which led to problems (Iran Contra scandal etc). But all in all he helped advance women's liberation, liberated many from tyranny, and believed in himself and his country. I'm glad that I had a chance to be part of that time in our history by just being here and being alive.

Respectfully,

Jenne

He ADORED his wife. He said that his life began when he met her. He said she was his rock. That she made everything good in his life possible by being there. And it wasn't cheesy. It was real and sincere. It showed in how they looked at each other, held hands, and spoke of one another. She adored him as well. I think there are very few men in the world who are strong enough to admit how much they depend on their wives and how much they need their wives. In a time when lots of people are unfaithful and divorcing such a testament to what a marriage can be I think is refreshing and encouraging.

Respectfully again,

Jenne

P.S. he had a good sense of humor too which he retained despite being President...example: a reported once asked him "President Reagan, what do you think of Mondale's charges?" He said, "Hopefully he'll pay them." Or as he left a speech, "President Reagan, isn't there anything else you can tell us?" He said, "My suit is 4 years old." He later called the reporter personally and said, "Actually, the suit is 5 years old."

In keeping with the original post, I suppose I should revise my post (see post #3) to say that some people liked the fact that Reagan CHOSE to begin his presidential campaign in a small Mississppi town where three Civil Rights workers were murdered and instead of speaking words about their sacrifices for civil rights, spoke about the need to expand and protect states' rights - which is, in the south, a code phrase about Jim Crow, etc. Many people liked that a lot. They thought it was so clever of him.

Many other people also applaud his other CHOICES such as CHOOSING to "constructively engage" with apartheid South Africa and CHOOSING to ignore the AIDS crisis.

Then of course, there was his CHOICE to fire all the air traffic control workers who were on strike for better wages and benefits. Some people liked that a great deal. Not the air traffic control workers, of course. Not their families.

Of course, others applaud his leadership in Central America. Not, of course, the four American church women raped and thrown into a ditch in El Salvador- but Reagan's Secretary of Defense (state?) Alexander Haig pointed out that they may have run a road block and thus deserved (somehow) what they got. Not the World Court either who came down hard on the US mining of a harbor of Nicaragua. Not a few others either but they were mostly poor or eventually dead or perhaps on the left or maybe all three.

There's more (Afghanistan! Iraq! Iran! Libya! etc) - but I'll stop.

It is true. Many people admire him.

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Which wife? :

I was only four when Sr. Bush took office, so I remember nothing of Reagan. I don't know really anything about him.

-I know he liked jelly beans
-I know he made up a story about the Southside Welfare Queen
-I know his daughter hated his politics
-I know he had a wonderful relationship with his wife
-Reaganomics, "trickle down effect"
-Air traffic controllers losing jobs
-Nancy Reagan and Just Say NO (bless her heart )
-A lot of poor people and minorities dislike him

Maybe we needed better textbooks in high school, but that's pretty much all I know.

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Are you aware that he was married to someone else when he met Nancy and began an affair with her?

Thanks everyone who replied.

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That's pretty much what I grew up with. Pretty much everyone in my family is a dem (myself included).

I just am honestly trying to understand what or why some people think he was so great. My family was influenced (according to my mom and g-pap) by Reagan when the mills shut down. My dad lost his job there and I remember my mom saying that we were on the verge of losing our home and going across the street to the fire hall to get gub'ment (or however you say it) cheese. I guess in a way that's why I'm having such a hard time with this.

Sorry to blab on about my family history.

Oh, and the other thing I have to add is while watching about Reagan and hearing more about his policies, they sound almost like Bush's today. I told my mom this and she said that basically they are pretty much the same.