Today on The View, Elisabeth Hassselbeck displayed what doctors would call Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). She is in pure survival mode, gasping and grasping at anything she can to make sure Barack Obama does not become president.
She is exhibiting symptoms that many are feeling. They are absolutely panicked that the world as they know it (a world where George W. Bush is president) is coming to an end.
I think they should relax. Get all panicked if Obama wins. You all (McCain supporters) are worrying yourself needlessly. Get all crazy tomorrow if president-elect Obama is reality.
Today, just enjoy it.
Showing posts with label barack obama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label barack obama. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
I wish Jeremiah Wright would shut the hell up
Barack Obama's former pastor is at it again. Today on a radio broadcast of one of his sermons he said "...God will destroy America and God should destroy America"
I totally understand what so many on the right have been saying for months now. That Barack Obama sat in the pew of this man is indefensible.
I am so glad I heard this today. It puts it all in perspective for me. In fact, I may change my vote due to the disgusting things this man represents and that Obama listened to for so many years.
What?
Huh?
Oh my God! You mean to tell me that was not Jeremiah Wright I was listening to? It was who?
A man by the name of Laurence White, you say?
Who is Laurence White?
He was the featured speaker today on the radio broadcast of Focus on the Family in a sermon entitled "For Such a Time as This". And he said that God SHOULD destroy America if abortion continues. In context, that is pretty appalling but taken out of context and people could question Dobson's patriotism, his associations and his affiliation with the Republican party.
I wish our side would fight as nasty as their side and take out an ad highlighting this and saying that Sarah Palin, by associating with James Dobson, believes God should destroy America.
Furthermore, at this years so-called "Values-Voters Summit", hosted by The Family Research Council and perennially primped choir boy Tony Perkins, a choir sang the song "WHY should God Bless America" sung to the tune of "God Bless America". The words were:
And these people have the audacity (that's a Jeremiah Wright word) to say that liberals are the ones who are unpatriotic.
What point in time would they prefer we as a country return to?
This is the key difference between liberals and conservatives:
Conservatives envision America as she was. Liberals envision America as she could be.
I'll take the latter. Every. Single. Time!
I totally understand what so many on the right have been saying for months now. That Barack Obama sat in the pew of this man is indefensible.
I am so glad I heard this today. It puts it all in perspective for me. In fact, I may change my vote due to the disgusting things this man represents and that Obama listened to for so many years.
What?
Huh?
Oh my God! You mean to tell me that was not Jeremiah Wright I was listening to? It was who?
A man by the name of Laurence White, you say?
Who is Laurence White?
He was the featured speaker today on the radio broadcast of Focus on the Family in a sermon entitled "For Such a Time as This". And he said that God SHOULD destroy America if abortion continues. In context, that is pretty appalling but taken out of context and people could question Dobson's patriotism, his associations and his affiliation with the Republican party.
I wish our side would fight as nasty as their side and take out an ad highlighting this and saying that Sarah Palin, by associating with James Dobson, believes God should destroy America.
Furthermore, at this years so-called "Values-Voters Summit", hosted by The Family Research Council and perennially primped choir boy Tony Perkins, a choir sang the song "WHY should God Bless America" sung to the tune of "God Bless America". The words were:
Why should God bless America?
She’s forgotten he exists
And has turned her back
On everything that made her what she is
Why should God stand beside her
Through the night with the light from his hand?
God have mercy on America
Forgive her sin and heal our land
The courts ruled prayer out of our schools
In June of ‘62
Told the children “you are your own God now
So you can make the rules”
O say can you see what that choice
Has cost us to this day
America, one nation under God, has gone astray
Why should God bless America?
Shes’s forgotten he exists
And has turned her back on everything
That made her what she is
Why should God stand beside her
Through the night with the light from his hand?
God have mercy on America
Forgive her sins and heal our land
In ‘73 the Courts said we
Could take the unborn lives
The choice is yours don’t worry now
It’s not a wrong, it’s your right
But just because they made it law
Does not change God’s command
The most that we can hope for is
God’s mercy on our land
Why should God bless America?
She’s forgotten he exists
And has turned her back on everything
That made her what she is
Why should God stand beside her
Through the night with the light from his hand?
God have mercy on America
Forgive her sins and heal our land
And these people have the audacity (that's a Jeremiah Wright word) to say that liberals are the ones who are unpatriotic.
What point in time would they prefer we as a country return to?
This is the key difference between liberals and conservatives:
Conservatives envision America as she was. Liberals envision America as she could be.
I'll take the latter. Every. Single. Time!
Friday, October 24, 2008
Is Oprah going to North Carolina for Obama ?
I know, I know! I read way too much into things. But on today's Oprah, when she was highlighting all the wonderful (?) things that the Kindle can do, she said that she "asked" the Kindle "when do the leaves change in North Carolina? When are they going to be the best color?"
Could Oprah be traveling to North Carolina to stump for Obama the last week of the election? What do you think? The race is tight in NC and Oprah might be just what Obama needs to win the once solidly red state.
Could Oprah be traveling to North Carolina to stump for Obama the last week of the election? What do you think? The race is tight in NC and Oprah might be just what Obama needs to win the once solidly red state.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Mark Green, bin Laden and the election for the presidency of the United States
The other day Mark Green, former mayoral candidate and public advocate for New York City, wrote in the Huffington Post that an “October Surprise” might materialize in the form of Osama bin Laden injecting himself into the elections here in the United States. I have written before about an October Surprise by Bush concerning the capture of bin Laden. But the scenarios that Green lays out in his article are just as ( and maybe more) likely.
I have often thought how bin Laden and Bush needed the other (or the ideological equivalent of “the other”) in order to achieve their respective goals. Without one or the other playing the role of agitator, the other loses the warrior status among the people they lead.
A militaristic-by-default United States helps bin Laden by ensuring that whatever he does, be it video showing he is alive or a terror attack here or abroad, the United States will overreact and over extend its reach. Bin Laden’s goals are further advanced by a United States that excessively retaliates and, in pure panic, responds without regard to consequences.
If, by appearing on video tape or, God forbid, another attack here in the United States, bin Laden gets the United States to respond with “decisive action” rather than deliberative action, he knows that the decisive action will surely include collateral damage. Collateral damage, of course, is just a nice way of saying “innocent civilians killed”. Every time the United States' responds militaristically and collateral damage occurs, the terrorists are ensured new recruits to their cause.
Conversely, the Bush administration, as well as their Republican ideologues running for office, benefit when bin Laden moves from the periphery to the center of the American psyche. Though an appearance by bin Laden or an attack on US soil by the Taliban does reinforce that bin Laden has not been captured “dead or alive”, it also reinforces something far more significant. It reinforces the idea, falsely to be sure, that Republicans are best at fighting the “war on terror” and are tougher in their response. If bin Laden magically appears on our television screens just before an election, as he did in 2004, it reminds the public at large that he is still a terrorist that needs to be dealt with. And a scared public tends to believe the Republicans are the best at dealing with such a terrorist.
That is why the recent line of attack by Sarah Palin could devastate the Obama campaign. The attack, void of fact, thoroughly debunked and done in a vacuum, will not be effective. But, should bin Laden appear, Palin’s assertion that Obama “pals around with terrorist”, becomes fatal. The parasitic claim does not need to be true in order to spread and become fatal. It simply needs a secondary host from which to feed. And that secondary host is bin Laden.
So what are we to do to blunt the effectiveness should an attack or video tape materialize in the next few weeks? I echo Mark Green’s suggestion that we get ahead of the curve and make it clear, through our voices via conversations with friends as well as posts such as this, that we fully expect bin Laden to inject himself in this presidential race just as he did in 2004. And we need to make sure that people understand that bin Laden has been on the loose now for over seven years after two wars, countless lives and a trillion dollars later and he has still not been caught. And all those efforts were done under a Republican administration that took their eye off the target and made the world a far more dangerous place.
Just as we need to keep telling people that the Republicans failed us economically, we need, also, to tell people that their ideas have failed us militaristically. And that if McCain were to win, his flair for drama and his tendency to overreact would be devastating to this country. We also need to highlight that if something were to happen to McCain, the control of our military would be in Sarah Palin’s hands. And Sarah Palin, no doubt, would be more than willing to hasten her vision of eschatology.
Start talking about these scenarios people. Otherwise if or when they happen, we as progressives will be left flat footed and the result will ensure a McCain / Palin victory.
I have often thought how bin Laden and Bush needed the other (or the ideological equivalent of “the other”) in order to achieve their respective goals. Without one or the other playing the role of agitator, the other loses the warrior status among the people they lead.
A militaristic-by-default United States helps bin Laden by ensuring that whatever he does, be it video showing he is alive or a terror attack here or abroad, the United States will overreact and over extend its reach. Bin Laden’s goals are further advanced by a United States that excessively retaliates and, in pure panic, responds without regard to consequences.
If, by appearing on video tape or, God forbid, another attack here in the United States, bin Laden gets the United States to respond with “decisive action” rather than deliberative action, he knows that the decisive action will surely include collateral damage. Collateral damage, of course, is just a nice way of saying “innocent civilians killed”. Every time the United States' responds militaristically and collateral damage occurs, the terrorists are ensured new recruits to their cause.
Conversely, the Bush administration, as well as their Republican ideologues running for office, benefit when bin Laden moves from the periphery to the center of the American psyche. Though an appearance by bin Laden or an attack on US soil by the Taliban does reinforce that bin Laden has not been captured “dead or alive”, it also reinforces something far more significant. It reinforces the idea, falsely to be sure, that Republicans are best at fighting the “war on terror” and are tougher in their response. If bin Laden magically appears on our television screens just before an election, as he did in 2004, it reminds the public at large that he is still a terrorist that needs to be dealt with. And a scared public tends to believe the Republicans are the best at dealing with such a terrorist.
That is why the recent line of attack by Sarah Palin could devastate the Obama campaign. The attack, void of fact, thoroughly debunked and done in a vacuum, will not be effective. But, should bin Laden appear, Palin’s assertion that Obama “pals around with terrorist”, becomes fatal. The parasitic claim does not need to be true in order to spread and become fatal. It simply needs a secondary host from which to feed. And that secondary host is bin Laden.
So what are we to do to blunt the effectiveness should an attack or video tape materialize in the next few weeks? I echo Mark Green’s suggestion that we get ahead of the curve and make it clear, through our voices via conversations with friends as well as posts such as this, that we fully expect bin Laden to inject himself in this presidential race just as he did in 2004. And we need to make sure that people understand that bin Laden has been on the loose now for over seven years after two wars, countless lives and a trillion dollars later and he has still not been caught. And all those efforts were done under a Republican administration that took their eye off the target and made the world a far more dangerous place.
Just as we need to keep telling people that the Republicans failed us economically, we need, also, to tell people that their ideas have failed us militaristically. And that if McCain were to win, his flair for drama and his tendency to overreact would be devastating to this country. We also need to highlight that if something were to happen to McCain, the control of our military would be in Sarah Palin’s hands. And Sarah Palin, no doubt, would be more than willing to hasten her vision of eschatology.
Start talking about these scenarios people. Otherwise if or when they happen, we as progressives will be left flat footed and the result will ensure a McCain / Palin victory.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
John McCain gets all transparent
Just after I finished posting about John McCain’s lack of transparency he does something completely transparent. He said he is suspending his campaign until congress come's up with some sort of solution for the impending economic crisis on Wall Street. Oh, and he wants to postpone the debates as well.
Wow! This man doesn’t even want to be seen within 48 hours of President Bush on TV. The president will address the nation tonight.
And it immediately ends the bad press McCain has been receiving and allows him a breather. Whew!
That’s pretty darn transparent!
Wow! This man doesn’t even want to be seen within 48 hours of President Bush on TV. The president will address the nation tonight.
And it immediately ends the bad press McCain has been receiving and allows him a breather. Whew!
That’s pretty darn transparent!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Bush's October Surprise: Surprise!
If it is true that the Bush administration is deliberately agitating the hornet’s nest that is Pakistan by escalating US military operations in the northwest area of that country, the question is, why now?
It has long been assumed that Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman Al-Zawahiri are in the northwest area of Pakistan or even in adjacent Afghanistan. And while what seems to be a renewed interest in the area is a welcome development, one must cautiously look at the motivating factors behind the administration’s actions as well as the possibly destabilizing consequences such actions might produce.
Bush has had seven years to catch bin Laden, “dead or alive”. After saying bin Laden was the most important person in the war on terror, the administration did an apparent about-face and said that he didn’t matter all that much. The shifts (reversals, really) of the administration are troubling but, as anyone who has followed Bush closely through the years can tell you, they are not surprising.
What is surprising is how Bush -- as well as his hopeful successor McCain -- has moved closer to Obama’s positions with everything from Iran to Iraq to Afghanistan to, most recently Pakistan. Those “shifts” in policy are not meant to be noticed. In fact, as McCain proved with the “Change” slogan, they are meant to be owned without acknowledging that the mantra was stolen from the opponent in the first place.
But the focus on Pakistan while ignoring its democratically elected government in Islamabad is even more cynical than slogan stealing and even more dangerous than saber rattling. It is Bush’s last stand and the intent could not be any clearer. Bush is prepared to use the full force of the United States military in an extraordinary display of theatre to tilt the November elections.
This is his “October Surprise”. Bush thinks that in the last hour of his presidency he can run out and become a hero by catching bin Laden, a man Bush has been uninterested in catching for seven years. And he thinks that the big catch will ensure his party’s victory in November.
Is he that cynical? Does he think Americans are that stupid?
The better question, will it work?
It has long been assumed that Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman Al-Zawahiri are in the northwest area of Pakistan or even in adjacent Afghanistan. And while what seems to be a renewed interest in the area is a welcome development, one must cautiously look at the motivating factors behind the administration’s actions as well as the possibly destabilizing consequences such actions might produce.
Bush has had seven years to catch bin Laden, “dead or alive”. After saying bin Laden was the most important person in the war on terror, the administration did an apparent about-face and said that he didn’t matter all that much. The shifts (reversals, really) of the administration are troubling but, as anyone who has followed Bush closely through the years can tell you, they are not surprising.
What is surprising is how Bush -- as well as his hopeful successor McCain -- has moved closer to Obama’s positions with everything from Iran to Iraq to Afghanistan to, most recently Pakistan. Those “shifts” in policy are not meant to be noticed. In fact, as McCain proved with the “Change” slogan, they are meant to be owned without acknowledging that the mantra was stolen from the opponent in the first place.
But the focus on Pakistan while ignoring its democratically elected government in Islamabad is even more cynical than slogan stealing and even more dangerous than saber rattling. It is Bush’s last stand and the intent could not be any clearer. Bush is prepared to use the full force of the United States military in an extraordinary display of theatre to tilt the November elections.
This is his “October Surprise”. Bush thinks that in the last hour of his presidency he can run out and become a hero by catching bin Laden, a man Bush has been uninterested in catching for seven years. And he thinks that the big catch will ensure his party’s victory in November.
Is he that cynical? Does he think Americans are that stupid?
The better question, will it work?
Monday, September 22, 2008
Memo to Steve Schmidt: Accusations must be backed up with evidence
Steve Schmidt, a top McCain strategist, accused The New York Times of being "totally, 150 percent, in the tank for the Democratic candidate" Barack Obama.
I know this kind of media bashing works. I come from a family that believes this crap. But, my God, is this the best the McCain camp has? I know it has been a bad week for the senator but please try a little harder.
Tucker Bounds needs to be let go before he has an aneurysm, Steve Schmidt needs to start providing some evidence for his claims and Palin needs to hold a press conference. Is that too much to ask?
Republicans are really bad at losing. They cannot accept that their ideas are stale and their concepts flawed. So what do they do? They blame the media. They always have and they always will. It's in their blood. And it would be really funny in a sad sort of way if it were not for the fact that it works.
I have a sneaking suspicion that Schmidt is also trying to blunt something potentially devastating that has yet to be revealed. Call it a hunch, an Alaskan size hunch. Only time will tell.
I know this kind of media bashing works. I come from a family that believes this crap. But, my God, is this the best the McCain camp has? I know it has been a bad week for the senator but please try a little harder.
Tucker Bounds needs to be let go before he has an aneurysm, Steve Schmidt needs to start providing some evidence for his claims and Palin needs to hold a press conference. Is that too much to ask?
Republicans are really bad at losing. They cannot accept that their ideas are stale and their concepts flawed. So what do they do? They blame the media. They always have and they always will. It's in their blood. And it would be really funny in a sad sort of way if it were not for the fact that it works.
I have a sneaking suspicion that Schmidt is also trying to blunt something potentially devastating that has yet to be revealed. Call it a hunch, an Alaskan size hunch. Only time will tell.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
700 billion bailout to rescue Wall Street: Bush cements his legacy of failure
First off I should repeat my joke from yesterday, since I am determined that it make it on Letterman by the end of this week.
Q:How many zeros are in 700 billion?
A: 12, if you count Bush!
(David Letterman et al. can use the joke as long as they say attribute it to Jon-Marc McDonald. I'm a riot!)
Now I know that a 700 billion dollar bailout is the kind of story that causes a great many Americans to shrug their shoulders. Though the number is staggering, the story does not have real world application that they can relate to like, oh I don't know, selling a plane on eBay or telling the big boys in Washington thanks but no thanks.
But unlike the eBay and "bridge to nowhere" stories, the proposed 700 billion dollar bailout of Wall Street is actually true. And its consequences will be felt from Washington to Wasilla. Though the bailout might not warm the cockles of ones heart the way a former POW and a hockey mom do, people better start paying attention to what the bailout means not only to them, but future generations as well.
Let's get down to brass tacks for a moment. The bailout that the president has proposed is at a cost of $2,333.00 for each and every man, woman and child in this country. That's the price tag for which even babies born yesterday will be responsible! And, to make matters worse, it's nothing more than a glorified version of rearranging the deck chairs while the Titanic that is Wall Street sinks.
That's right. Two thousand three hundred and thirty three dollars. 2333 . That is how much this bailout will cost each American alive today. Let that sink in!
Got that? A man who cut taxes during wartime, wanted to privatize social-security (by turning it over to Wall Street, I might add), and spent more time on the Terri Shiavo dramedy than he has speaking to the American people about this impending crisis now wants everyone of us to pony up 2,333 dollars to clean up his deregulated mess.
Let lesser individuals fiddle with the Neverland fantasy that is Sarah Palin. Let them hitch their wagon to the falling star of space debris that is the McCain/Palin ticket. It is time for those of us who love this country to take a stand, fight like hell and make sure that Barack Obama is the next president of the United States.
What can we all do? A lot! And we all better start doing so quickly!
First, make sure you are registered to vote. Then, make sure all your like-minded friends are registered. Then go quickly (today kind of quickly) to the Obama website and find the campaign office nearest you and pick up a sign and bumper stickers. If there is not one near you, make your own signs. Plant them in your yard, slap them on your cars (I don't care if you think bumper stickers are tacky), put them everywhere.
After that, begin the hard work. Talk to everyone you know and explain to them why Obama is the right choice. Study where he stands on the issues, what his plans are and how he intends to fix our broken country.
Also explain to them why McCain is the wrong choice. Explain to them why the reckless pick of Sans-a-Blink Sarah automatically disqualifies McCain for the office he seeks. Study where he stands on the issues (which you might have to do on a daily basis as he tends to change his mind...or forgets where he stands...on the issues as frequently as he soaks his dentures).
And finally, above all else, don't lose hope. We all have witnessed the smears McCain has thrown at Obama and we have seen those smears tilt the polls. But we have also witnessed Obama weather each and every temporary drop with nerves of steel. Borrow a lesson from his playbook. Keep your eyes on the prize and don't give up. Stay focused.
We're almost there. This "long, national nightmare" is almost over. Fight for this harder than you have fought for anything in your entire life. The stakes are too high to be a passive observer!
Q:How many zeros are in 700 billion?
A: 12, if you count Bush!
(David Letterman et al. can use the joke as long as they say attribute it to Jon-Marc McDonald. I'm a riot!)
Now I know that a 700 billion dollar bailout is the kind of story that causes a great many Americans to shrug their shoulders. Though the number is staggering, the story does not have real world application that they can relate to like, oh I don't know, selling a plane on eBay or telling the big boys in Washington thanks but no thanks.
But unlike the eBay and "bridge to nowhere" stories, the proposed 700 billion dollar bailout of Wall Street is actually true. And its consequences will be felt from Washington to Wasilla. Though the bailout might not warm the cockles of ones heart the way a former POW and a hockey mom do, people better start paying attention to what the bailout means not only to them, but future generations as well.
Let's get down to brass tacks for a moment. The bailout that the president has proposed is at a cost of $2,333.00 for each and every man, woman and child in this country. That's the price tag for which even babies born yesterday will be responsible! And, to make matters worse, it's nothing more than a glorified version of rearranging the deck chairs while the Titanic that is Wall Street sinks.
That's right. Two thousand three hundred and thirty three dollars. 2333 . That is how much this bailout will cost each American alive today. Let that sink in!
Got that? A man who cut taxes during wartime, wanted to privatize social-security (by turning it over to Wall Street, I might add), and spent more time on the Terri Shiavo dramedy than he has speaking to the American people about this impending crisis now wants everyone of us to pony up 2,333 dollars to clean up his deregulated mess.
Let lesser individuals fiddle with the Neverland fantasy that is Sarah Palin. Let them hitch their wagon to the falling star of space debris that is the McCain/Palin ticket. It is time for those of us who love this country to take a stand, fight like hell and make sure that Barack Obama is the next president of the United States.
What can we all do? A lot! And we all better start doing so quickly!
First, make sure you are registered to vote. Then, make sure all your like-minded friends are registered. Then go quickly (today kind of quickly) to the Obama website and find the campaign office nearest you and pick up a sign and bumper stickers. If there is not one near you, make your own signs. Plant them in your yard, slap them on your cars (I don't care if you think bumper stickers are tacky), put them everywhere.
After that, begin the hard work. Talk to everyone you know and explain to them why Obama is the right choice. Study where he stands on the issues, what his plans are and how he intends to fix our broken country.
Also explain to them why McCain is the wrong choice. Explain to them why the reckless pick of Sans-a-Blink Sarah automatically disqualifies McCain for the office he seeks. Study where he stands on the issues (which you might have to do on a daily basis as he tends to change his mind...or forgets where he stands...on the issues as frequently as he soaks his dentures).
And finally, above all else, don't lose hope. We all have witnessed the smears McCain has thrown at Obama and we have seen those smears tilt the polls. But we have also witnessed Obama weather each and every temporary drop with nerves of steel. Borrow a lesson from his playbook. Keep your eyes on the prize and don't give up. Stay focused.
We're almost there. This "long, national nightmare" is almost over. Fight for this harder than you have fought for anything in your entire life. The stakes are too high to be a passive observer!
Friday, September 12, 2008
The Sarah Palin strategery: Make 'em forget the question
"In what respect, Charlie"
Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
In the sixth grade, at Chesterbrook Elementary in McLean, Virginia, I learned something about how to get out of trouble. It happened when my teacher, Ms. Smits, pulled me aside after class and asked me if I was helping a classmate cheat on his spelling test.
I was, in fact, helping my classmate Mike cheat. Mike was a cool kid. I was not. And I thought that helping him cheat on a spelling test would earn me the affection of the elusive Chesterbrook glitterati.
However, when Ms. Smits asked me if I helped Mike I panicked and started rapidly talking. I went around in circles, babbling about nothing and at one point, out of nowhere, pointed out that I was left-handed.
Ms. Smits looked at me with a mixture of sympathy and concern. It was clear that she did not comprehend a word I said. And instead of asking me to repeat myself or to explain it again she said “Jon-Marc, there is nothing wrong with being left-handed”.
And she left me alone and never asked about the cheating again.
In many ways I feel like that is what is going on with Sans-a-blink Sarah. The one thing she knows is that she does not know much. But when confronted she spews nonsense and throws in words like “Islamic extremists” and “reformer” and just before she’s done running down the clock she reminds us that she is, above all, a woman who took on the “good ‘ole boys”. She never settles on an argument because she has no idea what the argument is. But instead of saying as much, she believes that rambling on and on will fool us and leave us feeling that our questions, whatever they were in the first place, were answered.
The problem is, this is not sixth grade. Hell, this isn't even Wasilla. The job for which she is essentially applying requires more than platitudes pulled from the back-room of a stale campaign of a once honorable man.
But what it requires of us is to not accept her skirting of the truth. Otherwise we will be just like Ms. Smits and forget the question. “Sarah, there’s nothing wrong with being a woman”.
When we forget the question, we forfeit the prize.
(For Jon-Marc McDonald's baking blog, Bake it 'Til You Make it, click here )
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Today, remember them. Tomorrow, remember what you are fighting for!
"Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
There seems to be growing momentum around the country for Barack Obama to get mad. I mean balls-to-the-walls, bare-knuckled, white hot rage.
The thinking goes that if Obama continues to play nice, and McCain keeps dragging this campaign into reality TV sophistication while flat out lying about his opponent, the "swift-boating" will work and we will wake up in November, shaking our heads and wondering what went wrong...again.
When John McCain accused Obama of wanting to teach sex-ed to kindergartners that should've been the last straw.
Many believe there is some danger in getting angry, especially for a candidate like Obama. While McCain could get angry (and has) and that is seen by many as being indicative of his leadership ability, if Obama gets mad the potential is that the public will see nothing more than an "angry black man" full of residual rage and bitterness.
Bull shit!
There is far too much at stake! Since the press will not do their job and, by all appearances, are in the back pocket of McCain it is time for Obama to reach deep within and unleash a righteous rage the likes of which we have never seen before.
If that takes 527s calling Sarah Palin the flat out liar that she is, so be it. If it takes at every press conference calling John McCain a once honorable man but no longer honorable, fine!
I don't mean to suggest that Obama abandon his message of hope. But hope is not relevant unless it is contrasted by despair. And despair is what eight years of Bush --who played to our basest instincts, who called upon our darkest selves, who wrapped himself in the flag carrying a cross -- has given this nation.
John McCain has become the man he once despised. And for that, he deserves not our vote nor our respect.
Fight like hell, Obama! Our nation is on your shoulders now and losing is not an option
who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;"
Isaiah 5:20
There seems to be growing momentum around the country for Barack Obama to get mad. I mean balls-to-the-walls, bare-knuckled, white hot rage.
The thinking goes that if Obama continues to play nice, and McCain keeps dragging this campaign into reality TV sophistication while flat out lying about his opponent, the "swift-boating" will work and we will wake up in November, shaking our heads and wondering what went wrong...again.
When John McCain accused Obama of wanting to teach sex-ed to kindergartners that should've been the last straw.
Many believe there is some danger in getting angry, especially for a candidate like Obama. While McCain could get angry (and has) and that is seen by many as being indicative of his leadership ability, if Obama gets mad the potential is that the public will see nothing more than an "angry black man" full of residual rage and bitterness.
Bull shit!
There is far too much at stake! Since the press will not do their job and, by all appearances, are in the back pocket of McCain it is time for Obama to reach deep within and unleash a righteous rage the likes of which we have never seen before.
If that takes 527s calling Sarah Palin the flat out liar that she is, so be it. If it takes at every press conference calling John McCain a once honorable man but no longer honorable, fine!
I don't mean to suggest that Obama abandon his message of hope. But hope is not relevant unless it is contrasted by despair. And despair is what eight years of Bush --who played to our basest instincts, who called upon our darkest selves, who wrapped himself in the flag carrying a cross -- has given this nation.
John McCain has become the man he once despised. And for that, he deserves not our vote nor our respect.
Fight like hell, Obama! Our nation is on your shoulders now and losing is not an option
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Fogey dust and Palin's Pearls of Special Needs...Forgetting Andrew Sullivan for a moment
I am going to get off the one-track Andrew Sullivan coverage for a moment. I would note, however, that though he is back to what appears to be regular posting, most of the posts don't include his usual commentary. But moving on.
There is a phrase -- actually, it's a theory -- called the "Willing suspension of disbelief". In very simple terms it basically means that humans often suspend their disbelief of something in order to be entertained.
This phrase (or theory) is often used with movie goers. A movie goer watches a fantastical movie while willingly suspending their disbelief that what is occurring on the screen is actually real. The theory goes that if one were to watch a movie without the suspension, they would not enjoy the movie simply because they would be analyzing how unbelievable it all is.
As children, my cousin and I felt we were growing too old for cartoons. We did not want to be perceived as children any longer. But secretly deep within, we still liked them. So what did we do? We watched the cartoons while loudly decrying their unbelievability. "The smurfs are in no way real. Little blue people. That's just stupid"... "There is no way Punky-power is real. I bet little kids think Punky power is real. They're so stupid"... "He-Man is sooooo fake. There is no way! But look at those muscles. He looks yummy"
Ok, the last one we did not say but I certainly did think it! The point is, whether we are willingly suspending or willingly not suspending our disbelief, we do it for a reason. We do so to either be entertained or, as in the case of my childhood, to feel some sort of superiority.
Enter McCain and Palin.
For the past week, especially at the Republican National Convention convention, we have been told that Palin and McCain are the agents of change that will mend the broken corriders of Washington. The Maverick and the Pit-Bull are going to fly into Washington and shake things up. They are the change that we have been waiting for.
Of course, as everyone knows, there are just a few problems with that scenario. George W. Bush is a republican, republicans have have held both houses of Washington for six of the last eight years and most, if not all, of our nations woes have been at the hands of republicans.
But instead of apologizing for it, McCain and Palin are actually asking us to willingly suspend our disbelief that they represent change. We are to believe that they are not republicans or even conservatives. And the saddest thing is that many Americans are suspending their disbelief of the campaign and republicans in general in order to be entertained. Or, and this is most likely the case, in order to not feel how badly these last eight years have hurt. They want to believe the unbelievable because they need something to believe in again.
Now, you might ask, what about Obama? He brings such freshness and hope. Why aren't Americans gravitating to him more than they are?:
The far-right has put so many pieces of untruth in the minds of voters concerning Obama that voters have been looking for permission to not vote for him. The right-wing has smeared him so much these last 20 months that the voters have a lot of doubts and they want permisson to vote for more of the same. And their permission is Palin.
Forget her record (suspend), forget her lies (suspend), forget her extreme views (suspend). Instead look at the fresh face and keep in mind her genatalia. She's a woman. That's all they want you to know.
And when you don't forget, they turn to page two of this years right-wing playbook:
When the press gets tough, have Sarah and her surrogates clutch their pearls in unison and cry. Cry so loud and for so long that that the press will do anything to quiet you, including quieting themselves.
When Obama makes a reference to a pig and lipstick, scream that he is referencing Sarah. And when the public ask "What..." cut them off and tell them to forget (suspend) that McCain said the same thing about Clinton last October as well as laughed and answered the question "How do we beat the bitch?" from a supporter earlier this year.
And when Obama uses the word "old" in any context wail that he means McCain. Old fish=McCain, old ways of Washington=McCain, old lies=McCain.
And make sure the public believes that taking on either McCain and Palin is either ageism or sexism.
If Obama says the economy has been slowing down for so long that we are, in fact, in a recession respond with: How dare he bring Sarah's son Trig into this! She chose life! Life! He is a down-syndrome child, not slow!
If Obama says the war in Iraq is not working respond with: You want to know who's not working? The executive chef to the governor of Alaska is not working. Now that's not working we can believe in!
If Obama mentions McCain's embrace of Bush respond with: How dare Obama mention John McCain's embrace. Everyone knows John McCain has trouble embracing people ever since he was a POW! He was hurt very, very badly (DON'T SAY TORTURED!) by very, very bad people. He can hardly embrace a thing. I cannot believe Obama would use John McCain's injuries as a political weapon! (Clutch pearls)
Fogey dust and Palin's pearls. That's their strategy heading into November.
In the end, though, all it really is is dandruff and plastic beads.
Will we suspend our disbelief? Let's hope to He-Man we don't!
There is a phrase -- actually, it's a theory -- called the "Willing suspension of disbelief". In very simple terms it basically means that humans often suspend their disbelief of something in order to be entertained.
This phrase (or theory) is often used with movie goers. A movie goer watches a fantastical movie while willingly suspending their disbelief that what is occurring on the screen is actually real. The theory goes that if one were to watch a movie without the suspension, they would not enjoy the movie simply because they would be analyzing how unbelievable it all is.
As children, my cousin and I felt we were growing too old for cartoons. We did not want to be perceived as children any longer. But secretly deep within, we still liked them. So what did we do? We watched the cartoons while loudly decrying their unbelievability. "The smurfs are in no way real. Little blue people. That's just stupid"... "There is no way Punky-power is real. I bet little kids think Punky power is real. They're so stupid"... "He-Man is sooooo fake. There is no way! But look at those muscles. He looks yummy"
Ok, the last one we did not say but I certainly did think it! The point is, whether we are willingly suspending or willingly not suspending our disbelief, we do it for a reason. We do so to either be entertained or, as in the case of my childhood, to feel some sort of superiority.
Enter McCain and Palin.
For the past week, especially at the Republican National Convention convention, we have been told that Palin and McCain are the agents of change that will mend the broken corriders of Washington. The Maverick and the Pit-Bull are going to fly into Washington and shake things up. They are the change that we have been waiting for.
Of course, as everyone knows, there are just a few problems with that scenario. George W. Bush is a republican, republicans have have held both houses of Washington for six of the last eight years and most, if not all, of our nations woes have been at the hands of republicans.
But instead of apologizing for it, McCain and Palin are actually asking us to willingly suspend our disbelief that they represent change. We are to believe that they are not republicans or even conservatives. And the saddest thing is that many Americans are suspending their disbelief of the campaign and republicans in general in order to be entertained. Or, and this is most likely the case, in order to not feel how badly these last eight years have hurt. They want to believe the unbelievable because they need something to believe in again.
Now, you might ask, what about Obama? He brings such freshness and hope. Why aren't Americans gravitating to him more than they are?:
The far-right has put so many pieces of untruth in the minds of voters concerning Obama that voters have been looking for permission to not vote for him. The right-wing has smeared him so much these last 20 months that the voters have a lot of doubts and they want permisson to vote for more of the same. And their permission is Palin.
Forget her record (suspend), forget her lies (suspend), forget her extreme views (suspend). Instead look at the fresh face and keep in mind her genatalia. She's a woman. That's all they want you to know.
And when you don't forget, they turn to page two of this years right-wing playbook:
When the press gets tough, have Sarah and her surrogates clutch their pearls in unison and cry. Cry so loud and for so long that that the press will do anything to quiet you, including quieting themselves.
When Obama makes a reference to a pig and lipstick, scream that he is referencing Sarah. And when the public ask "What..." cut them off and tell them to forget (suspend) that McCain said the same thing about Clinton last October as well as laughed and answered the question "How do we beat the bitch?" from a supporter earlier this year.
And when Obama uses the word "old" in any context wail that he means McCain. Old fish=McCain, old ways of Washington=McCain, old lies=McCain.
And make sure the public believes that taking on either McCain and Palin is either ageism or sexism.
If Obama says the economy has been slowing down for so long that we are, in fact, in a recession respond with: How dare he bring Sarah's son Trig into this! She chose life! Life! He is a down-syndrome child, not slow!
If Obama says the war in Iraq is not working respond with: You want to know who's not working? The executive chef to the governor of Alaska is not working. Now that's not working we can believe in!
If Obama mentions McCain's embrace of Bush respond with: How dare Obama mention John McCain's embrace. Everyone knows John McCain has trouble embracing people ever since he was a POW! He was hurt very, very badly (DON'T SAY TORTURED!) by very, very bad people. He can hardly embrace a thing. I cannot believe Obama would use John McCain's injuries as a political weapon! (Clutch pearls)
Fogey dust and Palin's pearls. That's their strategy heading into November.
In the end, though, all it really is is dandruff and plastic beads.
Will we suspend our disbelief? Let's hope to He-Man we don't!
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