It seemed to me what was more important about the legacy of Roosevelt as it relates to how he dealt with the financial crises is that he gave people hope and assurance; what he was doing may not have led us out of the Depression, or even helped at all, but the people had faith that the president was at least doing all he could. My thought is that World War 2 is what actually led us out of the Depression, as the economy was geared up for war time, unlike in the Iraq War, where we've got hundreds of thousands of troops and billions of dollars per month invested in the nation we're occupying, but our economy hasn't been transformed to focus on the war as was the case in World War 2 when everyone was called upon to do their part for the war effort, working in the factories converted to production for the war, rationing their food and cutting down on luxury expenses, etc.
Obama has talked quite a bit about getting Americans to work for their community. There's skepticism about what he can really do by calling on the people to do that, but his campaign already shows itself a prime example. His is a well oiled but viral machine of volunteers who've been stepping all over McCain on the ground game, organizing, making calls, knocking on doors, etc. His offices are filled with people and frantic. McCain's are slow and empty.
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“Tomorrow, every Fault is to be amended; but that Tomorrow never comes.”
— Benjamin Franklin
The Infinity Program— If you don't join, you're a terrorist.