My right leaning friends love to talk about how great Ronald Reagan was. In direct opposition to that opinion, I’m sure that many of the problems we see today were started during the Reagan administration. Many of us that are not fans, mockingly refer to him as “Saint Reagan.”

In his first inauguration, Reagan famously said,

“Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem”

Typical of today’s Republicans, he over simplified the message and provided a simplistic and unrealistic idea. While it is true that government isn’t always the only or best solution to every problem, it is not true that government doesn’t solve and/or decrease the severity of our problems.

Reagan greatly escalated the “war on unions” when he fired the air traffic controllers.

He pushed deregulation and the false notion that a “free market” is going to somehow protect consumers and the public.

He popularized the chest thumping, “ugly American” aggressiveness that the conservative right so loves.

You can track the rise in the wealth gap to his Presidency.

But as the linked article below points out, he really kind of resembled Peter Sellers character “Chauncey Gardner” from the fantastic 1979 movie “Being There.”

His lack of engagement isn’t really all that surprising if you paid attention to his speeches, rare press conferences, Presidential debates, and general demeanor. He always

http://www.salon.com/2015/12/27/behind_the_ronald_reagan_myth_no_one_had_ever_entered_the_white_house_so_grossly_ill_informed_2/