It truly is a wonderful tiime to be a Republican
[I thought I'd switch this from a comment to a diary so I could raise more Cain.]
I think it is obvious to anyone giving it some thought that the Republicans are benefiting enormously by the Obama/Clinton primary battle. Every campaign has a a finite amount of money and energy. Clinton and Obama are spending their capital at a prodigious rate competing with each other, and there's absolutely no sign that Clinton will bow out before the convention in Denver. The press is spending 90% of its time watching the pie fight while the Dem candidates shoot arrows at each other; some of those arrows would cause great wailing and gnashing of teeth if they came from the McCain campaign, naturally.
Meanwhile McCain can sit back and watch the fun, ratchet up his moribund campaign contribution process without blowing that money on early ads, and watch for and exploit later any weaknesses the two Dem candidates reveal about each other. Example: the videos of the lunatic preacher at Obama's church that are making the rounds now and IMO causing some real damage.
The last poll aggregation at Real Clear Politics shows Obama leading McCain by only 1.5 points, down 65% from just two weeks ago. Rasmussen actually shows McCain ahead by a point. (The numbers for Clinton have gone up to 1.5% from 0.2% two weeks ago.) And as always, the trends are more significant than the day-to-day numbers. And those look even better for McCain, proof that he should continue to sit this out and just watch from the sidelines.
As a spectator and a conservative (at least in this context), I'm having a hard time seeing what's not to like about how this plan is coming together.
--
Despair is a bench; I'm just warming it.
--
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
- tomsyl's blog
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sitting on the edge of a recession, gas prices set to go thru the roof (saw my first 3.99/gal the other day), americans - with families and friends by the way, they don't just exist for a day on page A13 - still being sent home minus their lives and limbs, hundreds of thousands of people set up to lose their homes in the next couple of years, 1 out of every 100 jailed in the "land of the free."
glad you're having a good news cycle.
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)-o-0-o-
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )the best time to be a republican is still ahead.
Republicans in the last 50 years have flourished playing the victim. Repressed white males with college degrees will all find hope and the fund raising efforts will swell. Obviously, the fact that the enemy is a woman/black/muslim/atheist/gay/etc. has put the republicans in a disadvantage and the mainstream media is to blame for putting real americans' wants in the gutter.
And now the republicans will finally be able to blame Iraq on someone else.
Also, in about 20 years we'll a relive the forced nationwide sorrow when GWB dies. And we'll all remember how awesome he was.
Now, according to the trust-fund-jagoff in chief (the guy with the bold plan for peace in the mideast), it's thrilling and romantic to be on the front lines in afganistan.
If the concept of 'chickenhawk' still needed to be spelled out for any remaining ivy league frat boys or their suck up wannabes who still don't get it... well, our man in the white house has finally made it clear.
F*ck him and his entire legacy. He doesn't represent me, or any of the other members of my family who served in the US armed forces.
F*ck him and his coward supporters.
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| parent )when compared to the typical emotional diatribe on frat boys, chickenhawks, trust fund jagoffs, whitey playing the victim, and woman/black/muslim/atheist/gay/etc as the enemy. Heck, the idea of GWB being dead usually occupies 6-7 paragraphs alone in these types of rants. Bravo sir, bravo.
--"That Sam-I-am! That Sam-I-am! I do not like that Sam-I-am!"- Dr. Seuss
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| parent )Reheated intellectual bankruptcy--with pseudo-Kossite naughty talk to give it spice.
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| parent )Rooting out the occasional blind mule is an unexpected side benefit of this diary. Thanks for playing, but you left out "Not "God Bless America, GodD#MN AmeriKKKKa!"
I'm blinded by your enlightenment.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )He doesn't represent me, or any of the other members of my family who served
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| parent )I grew up a Navy brat.
My father did 4 tours in Viet Nam from 65-70 (approximately). He came home to see my older brother born... missed the pregnancy for the most part. He was in country and served on the so called 'swift boats' for part of his time. He was in the Navy until 1986. Recruiter at Great Lakes, then an ROTC instructor at Northwestern (not 100% about the details of this, though I know he taught there while still in the Navy).
He's an engineer, and has been working at ITT Bell and Gossett, teaching and opening offices around Asia for the last few years. He retires this spring.
I have a few other family members who were in the military also.
Also, both his parents were immigrants from Sweden. They met each other while working janitorial jobs. My family came from very little money and did modestly well for themselves, and I'm proud to have them as my ancestors.
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| parent )I jut plopped that earlier bit down coz I figured it was possibly though unintentionally misleading.
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| parent )quaint almost
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )Of course, neither did President Torture (to be distinguished from Senator McTorture by . . . okay, I dunno) back in the day, so I suppose he can be forgiven.
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )Apparently the pro-Clinton bloggers at Kos are mad and they're not going to take it anymore.
So they're going on strike. I kid you not.
Where's the picket line?
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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)and to think you just got back to work.
--"That Sam-I-am! That Sam-I-am! I do not like that Sam-I-am!"- Dr. Seuss
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| parent )Needless to say, I'm willing to cross the Whiney Blogger picket line.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )Obama will need the Clinton supporters to win a general election. Do you really want to continue marginalizing and making fun of them over and over?
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| parent )But he's been on this path long enough that no one can doubt his position and views on Hillary Clinton. Are you suggesting he mute his criticism out of loyalty to the general Dem cause? Truly, I'm curious about this because supporting (or at least not attacking) the lease candidate on the ground that someone from Party A, no matter how bad, is always better than someone from Party B is a strategy Dems usually accuse Repubs of following, and brand as partisan and cynical.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )over the top hyperbole. According to Harley, Hillary is the worst combination of Richard Nixon, Karl Rove, and a monster. Not only does he attack Hillary, he demonizes anyone who dares support her.
And i think you got it confused. It's the Obama supporters that are pulling the strategy you describe. Hillary needs to drop out of the race due to party loyalty. Hillary supporters are expected to mute their desire for the primary to finish out because, according to many Obama supporters, she doesn't have a chance to win and is harming Obama's chances to win the general. And if you disagree w/ that assessment? Prepare to be demonized.
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| parent )I doubt you'd find much demonization if you were to say, "Look, she's not mathematically eliminated, and the primary process is good for Party visibility. Let's see how this thing plays out."
It's the justification of specific lousy tactics which are the issue, generally.
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )haven't you been reading the diaries and comments here lately? BTW, just for saying that you have been shown to be infected with doubleplussungood wrongthink.
--I blame it all on the Internet
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| parent )Is that the game you wanna play?
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )it's actually the work of only one diarist/commenter that really stands out. Head and shoulders above the rest you might say ...
--I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine
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| parent )And in fairness, given what I think about the woman, her candidacy, and her campaign team...
I dunno. I'm not sure what else I'm supposed to do.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )of My DD's advertisers. Unless they pull their ads.
--Fence post turtles -- They don't get up there by themselves, some moron had to put 'em there.
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| parent )Here.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )I'm especially amused by the embezzlement of Lord knows how many tens of thousands of dollars from RNCC. Though McCain has the nomination sewn up, he's still poor as a church mouse.
This fight between Hillary and Obama looks a bit like George Foreman's last few fights. Hillary is aging visibly on the trail, and shows no sign of being able to win the nomination. Little noticed in the kerfuffle is the fact that John Edwards still has a few dozen delegates he hasn't pledged to anyone. This tussle is nothing but good for the Democrats: nobody's going to run off to McCain if either one wins, though it's becoming increasingly clear Obama is the more viable candidate.
Here's what will happen: Howard Dean has made a huge botch of this primary, behind closed doors, he will be read the riot act by both candidates, who will work this out for themselves.
Hillary will go back to the Senate, more powerful than ever, perhaps even push Harry Reid out as Majority Leader and get most of what she wants from President Obama: probably work closely with him, much as LBJ worked with Truman, carrying lots of his water. What nobody gets about Hillary Clinton: she's been involved in juvenile law forever, it's her pet advocacy.
Reid has made a hash of the Democratic agenda in the Senate, he's weak. The Dems will surely add more to their majority in the Senate. Hillary will do some horse trading in exchange for not putting up a destructive fight.
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)Michael Moorer was beating him silly until one sledgehammer punch made Foreman the oldest heavyweight champion in history.
As for Dean, I've got little use for the man, but it's hard to see how much of this is his fault, other than the decision to strip FL and MI of *all* their delegates instead of the half the Republicans did--and I have the impression that he had the support of the rest of the DNC for that decision.
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| parent )Balanced the budget, cut taxes, got every* kid in the state health care, oversaw a 50% drop in child abuse**...
Yeah, I can see where a conservative would have little use for such a man.
*>95%, work with me here
**Of course, it could have been coincidental and have had nothing to do with the innovative programs he put into place to prevent such. Because such drops happen over 10-year periods all the time.
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )And let's not count Hillary out of this fight, though that's the way to bet. A week is a long time in Washington, and Obama could yet step into a haymaker punch. Sitting around here watching Obama eating much cheeze. Who'da thunk his smiling face would be on Fox News, denying his Lord like some Doubting Thomas.
Dean is useless. He got his back up over Florida and Michigan, and made a bad situation worse. The DNC had no idea the situation would play out this way. This is a nightmare. But you can always count on the Democrats to shoot themselves in the feet.
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| parent )I guess it depends on which she wants more: some measure of political power, or the Presidency itself. I agree with you that she'd make a formidable Senate Majority Leader. The question, of course, is will she settle for that if she thinks she can have it all?
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| parent )while everyone is focused on the Democratic nomination and nobody seems to care much about what President numbnuts or his designated successor might be up to?
Enjoy, it may be your last opportunity for a while.
--GW Bush, leading contender for worst President ever.
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)The idea that a campaign has a finite amount of time and energy is silliness -- the one thing campaigns need and cannot buy is media attention, and that's hardly finite.
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )You:
The idea that a campaign has a finite amount of time and energy is silliness
The NYT:
BBQ'd ribs on the White House lawn? Maybe - anyone who's been to Sedona knows it is a great place to shop for crystal balls . . .
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent ).
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )I don't think McCain needs or wants media time right now; I'll reserve my reasons, as the memo was marked "Super-Dooper Confidential - Strabismic Eyes Only" in red ink. Sorry.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )- nice to know you're in a minority, Sparti, as opposed to those who think this is a fun thought to kick around on a Friday afternoon/evening. I'm enjoying flapping my gums, anyway. Sorry if it put you off your feed.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )or roughly half.
There would appear to be a temporary alliance of purpose between the site's conservative contributors and certain of those nominally on the leeward side, currently riding the Obama Tsunami for all its worth. Just don't expect it to last is all.
St McCain will have to reckon with whoever wins the Teutonic struggle for the Democratic nomination, what you are celebrating is the calm before the storm.
--GW Bush, leading contender for worst President ever.
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| parent )there is merely an agreement that the Clintons have character issues.
--"That Sam-I-am! That Sam-I-am! I do not like that Sam-I-am!"- Dr. Seuss
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| parent )More like one or two Scrooges trying to ruin my day. But too late; on Fridays here we call the sun over the yardarm at the crack of ten, and set the liquor cabinet time lock accordingly.
Who's this St. McCain guy? I don't remember saying anything about him one way or the other except WRT his military service. Nor do I expect anything to last - even an HRC presidency would be term-limited (unless the law's changed, of course - probably considered doable by Her Nibs) and Chelsea's too young. Also, no investment banker who grew up in Arkansas and whose father was President has ever been elected to that office, so I have statistics on my sside.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent ). . .of train wrecks, too--but I bet that it doesn't improve ticket sales for Amtrak.
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| parent )And the money part of it is the real sorrow. Obama could have buried McCain this spring, and weakened him considerably. But that's not gonna happen.
The flip side? The press are spending all their time on the Democrats right now. Senator Short Fuse is flying under the radar. But once it all shakes out, he may have money, but he'll still have some serious 'splainin' to do.
And the economy might just sink him all on its own.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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)that unites different parts of his supposed base (his CPAC speech was a good start), but somehow I doubt it.
The long term benefactor of the Dem candidate dustup likely will be Obama; anyone who thinks about it (me too) would have to admire his grace under pressure, and his refusal to stoop down to HRC's level. If the best her campaign can do is that Canadian thingee (really, who cares other than a few union PACs?) and the "monster" comment (which half the country would probably agree with if Rasmussen polled it), I'd say that's a good sign there is no there there. And I doubt anyone here questions the abilities of HRC's (actually Bill's) coterie of fixers, black-bag men, etc. when it comes to digging dirt.
At this point Obama's shown he can take a punch below the belt, then look Clinton right in the eye and say "Is that really the best you got?"
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )I think he's one speech away from clearing the decks. And that speech needs to be about his pastor, threading the needle between loyalty and being very very clear about how he feels about certain things Wright said.
It's a weird standard. Is Hillary taken to task for things that Satan said? (Kidding!) What is McCain's religious affiliation, and is he held to this standard re both his local pastor and the religion itself?
On the other hand, as mentioned elsewhere, with 13 percent of the country still thinking he's a Muslim? At least now they know Barrack has a pastor.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )Here.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )Tbogg, still funny.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent ). . .as fifty bazillion people Google "otis moss III."*
A cursory glance suggests that Rev. Moss will be a substantial improvement--but if Obama's people didn't vet him adequately before their boss just expressed confidence in the man and something pops up as a result, there will be hell to pay.
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| parent )By now we should all be aware that there's an infinite abundance of scandals of this type hanging from the neck of every public official. It's all a matter of spending the time, money & energy to blow the tiniest flaws, the faintest connections out of all proportion. And of course the cleaner a candidate's record, the more hype can be attached to the most imperceptible missteps. So chin up, Soldiers of the Elephant! Some friend of an associate of somebody who knew Obama's cousin probably once broke a law somewhere.
*I know this is gonna get me in trouble with our resident Sith Lords.
--Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes. -JH
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| parent )That line was much better before it was edited. Originally it went "I find your lack of faith disturbing. How do you find that lack of air? Huh? Huh? Not so chatty now, are ya?"
--It's not only redundant, it's also repetitive
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| parent )more than they can possibly chew. Masterfully done by Obama in every regard - tone, content and brevity. I am very impressed - they're hiding a lot of smarts and sophistication behind that "I'm sort of an ordinary guy" facade.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )For Black Jesus' sake, I hope not.
--The other day I heard that ignorance and apathy are sweeping the country. I didn't know that, but I don't really care.
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| parent )radio show at a minimum appears to be the story.
If there is anyone who can explain how all of America can transcend the racial hatred of the past in a positive manner it would be Barack Obama.
If Obama does well tonight, Republicans SHOULD vote for him now and in November in order to remove the "race card" from the national political playbook.
--Fence post turtles -- They don't get up there by themselves, some moron had to put 'em there.
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| parent )That strikes me as a fairly racist statement in of itself. I know you didn't mean it that way, but it is as a practical matter. Nobody needs to vote for any African American to prove anything or accomplish anything. To vote for someone simply because of race is the other side of the coin of voting against someone because of race.
The ONLY reason someone should vote for Sen. Obama is because they want him to be president more than the other candidates.
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )Not his race even though there is an old Vulcan saying: "Only Nixon can go to China" and no pure Caucasian POTUS can ever take away the race card.
No one else talks about race relations using the narratives and frames Obama uses. The vindication of Obama's rhetoric on race would benefit all of America for a long time to come.
Also, if the current Clinton strategy is proven successful it will be repeated. It is precisely because of Mark Penn's current strategy that Obama losing this summer or in November will ratchet up racial tensions in the future.
What Geraldine Ferraro has put into play is America's future soul. Do we, as Americans, believe these words or not:
If Clinton wins the nomination or if Penn / Clinton / Wolfson damage Obama to the point that McCain wins in November (except if perhaps Obama comes back in 2012) the vision found in the foregoing passage shall have been repudiated by the American electorate.
Do we truly desire America to adopt a "Micro-trends" narrative?
= = =
What is at stake is this narrative:
If Clinton successfully re-defines Obama as the "angry black" candidate America shall be a far more angry place in the years to come, just as we begin to face some truly monumental issues.
--Fence post turtles -- They don't get up there by themselves, some moron had to put 'em there.
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| parent )"I am my brother's keeper, I am my sisters' keeper -- that makes this country work."
No, it isn't. And if there's a hope to see the race-card gone, it's that folks like me don't believe we have any more in common with people that have our precise skin-tone than anybody else.
Piffle. Now I'm supposed to let you get your way because otherwise the fabric of society will be torn asunder? This isn't about visions, Bill, this is about policies. And I don't like a lot of the ones you want, and I suspect you feel the same about mine. And the world isn't likely to end in either case.
--The ultimate result of shielding man from the effects of folly is to people the world with fools. -Herbert Spencer
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| parent )There is no one left standing with ANY genuine policies.
After all it was George W. Bush who said: "When people hurt government MUST act."
There are so many mirrors reflecting policy positions, so much deeply nuanced maneuvering there is no "policy" left.
= = =
If we valued the Dow taking into account dollar to Euro exchange rates it would be at 8000.
As Ben Franklin said, if we do not hang together we shall surely hang separately.
True then, true now.
--Fence post turtles -- They don't get up there by themselves, some moron had to put 'em there.
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| parent )While no one needs to do anything, it's hardly racist to suggest that having our first black president would have import beyond the fact of the man himself. Same with the first woman president. Same with the first Jewish president. Same with the first president I will have voted for since 19-frickin'-96.
No, it's not a reason to vote for any one of them. But the election of any of the mentioned possibilities -- excepting I guess the last -- would say a great deal about our country by definition, and all of it good.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )Obama being black and having THIS as his message is what matters:
A white man cannot say these words and be accepted by the black community. Electing a black man who does not say these words won't solve our underlying problems.
--Fence post turtles -- They don't get up there by themselves, some moron had to put 'em there.
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| parent )If the first African American or Woman or Jew or Druid are elected president because a majority of voters thought they were the best for the job – that will say something.
If people vote instead because someone is black or whatever, then it really won't say anything particularly positive. Don't get me wrong, it could be hugely symbolic, but at the end of the day that's all it will be… symbolism.
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )Who gets to determine why Obama is popular? If it is simply because he is black, then that pretty effectively blunts his allure as the "change and hope" candidate. Hence, the efforts on the part of Hillary, her surrogates, and those on the right who would prefer Hillary as the Dem candidate to tell us that Obama is just a novelty.
--Over here on E Street, we're proud to support Obama for President. - Bruce Springsteen
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| parent )That's pretty much a given, that by the time you get down to a race between the nominees for each party, then these are the best candidates for the job. But at the end of the day we get the government we deserve and if we end up with the old white guy again this time, all it will say is that we are not very deserving.
--GW Bush, leading contender for worst President ever.
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| parent )What if Bill had said, "Democrats SHOULD vote for McCain now and in November in order to remove the "age card" from the national political playbook."?
Stamp out Ageism!!
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )just a descriptor, like Obama is black and Hillary is a girl.
It's what he represents that's the problem, more of the same.
After 2000 and 2004, electing McCain in 2008 will mean 3 strikes and we're out and deservedly so.
--GW Bush, leading contender for worst President ever.
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| parent )speeches by POTUS Obama that can be used by Republicans to counter the "race card" for years to come.
Electing Jesse Jackson POTUS will not offer than same benefit because the political rhetoric used is very different.
Not ANY black, THIS black.
A woman? Sure. Just not THIS woman.
--Fence post turtles -- They don't get up there by themselves, some moron had to put 'em there.
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| parent )What if Obama is elected POTUS and it turns out to be a one-term disaster?
What would be the consequences of that?
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )and have a much better chance of overcoming Democratic led gridlock.
If McCain wins in November because America is told Obama has an "angry black" pastor and Mark Penn and Ferraro and Karl Rove hammer that fact, then POTUS McCain will get ZERO cooperation from a Democratic Congress come 2009.
--Fence post turtles -- They don't get up there by themselves, some moron had to put 'em there.
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| parent )Well, then someone else would get elected President in 2012. If, that is, a majority of voters want him/her.
The American electoral system has proved remarkably stable since 1789; one-term Presidencies used to be pretty much the norm once upon a time; between 1837 and 1864, no one was re-elected to the office; likewise 1876-1900 (except Grover Cleveland, and he got a do-over of sorts); even in the 20th Century, we had 4 out of 17 Presidents who only served one elected term; 8 if you add partial terms.
Of course, the consequences would also depend on your definition of "disaster".
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| parent )That should knock out Republican White Guys for about fifty years. Sorry, Senator McCain.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )I keep using this as a way to procrastinate from doing something really unpleasant that I've been putting off for two days and now I'm going to waste a Friday evening dinking with. Damn, I hate this kind of stuff!
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )I found some cheat sheets for you.
--I blame it all on the Internet
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| parent )Since he wasn't a one-term president.
Jimmy Carter was a one-term disaster so he'd work. The 'killer rabbit' card is still very much in play.
Trump even.
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )What's it say on it -- "I'm just a number"?
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )The presidential age card was the first bias to be discarded. Not so much a problem. Being white is not a barrier either.
--To think is not enough; you must think of something -- Jules Renard
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| parent )What's really funny is the first time I'd heard that term it was here.
--“I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.”
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| parent )So SS is "sloshing with surpluses" according to The Nation? Are they sure she didn't mean surplices? I'm not familiar with the concept of an "SS Trust Fund" bursting out of a treasure chest like a bee-stung doubloon. Or baboon, or something. Anyway, she's wrong, right?
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )Even just saying that the person is qualified enough to vote for is actually a big deal.
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )Jesse Jackson, IMO, is an extortionist and a professional peddler of the misery of black people, but hundreds of thousands of people were voting for him for President twenty four years ago--and as far as credentials go other than not being an extortionist and a peddler of human misery Obama doesn't have him beat by all that much. Jackson had no chance of being elected President, but that didn't make him any different from, say, Dennis Kucinich today. He was a real--albeit unsuccessful and not appealing to sane people--candidate for President.
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| parent )of the misery of black people, having gotten rich enough even to afford a mistress supported by Rainbow Coalition charitable donations. IOW, he's now a playa; he got his, so he doesn't exactly have a huge incentive to make sure that they get theirs.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )Traveller
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| parent )Democrats self destructing is nothing new, but using tactics that pose an obvious danger to the long-term interests of the party (and hence the platform) is new, and I don't like it at all.
Anyone else wanna start a new party? The "pragmatic idealists" sounds about right to me =P
--Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson
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)McSame really doesn't stand a chance once we start talking about why gas costs $3.35 a gallon. By the time summer driving season comes and goes it might be even higher.
--But she's a queen, and such are queens
that your laughter is sucked in their brains. -D. Bowie
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)Try adjusting them for inflation while you're at it. (Whoops, almost forgot - he didn't get reelected. Hmmm.)
But seriously, I really don't understand why people aren't really incensed about gas prices and the way they seem to be increasing by leaps and bounds. Yesterday I filled the 13.5 gal tank of my 25+ mpg '99 Subaru and the bill was just short of $50, something I never imagined when the car was new. Yet I really haven't heard much complaining; people seem to be adding gas prices to the list that includes death and taxes. What's your experience?
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )That oil hit an inflation-adjusted record high. I believe today I heard it was at $110, and expected to hit $115 next week.
It's bad, no matter how you cut it.
--More Wagster!
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| parent )Heroin addicts don't complain or stop using when the price goes up, either.
--The other day I heard that ignorance and apathy are sweeping the country. I didn't know that, but I don't really care.
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| parent )I can't stop showing up for work if I want to stay employed, and the same is true for my wife. And since there isn't adequate public transportation where I live (not that it would be likely to be amenable to my schedule if it did exist), I drive, grit my teeth, and pay the gas bill at the end of the month.
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| parent )Our current zoning approaches are just plain silly.
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )We live where we live because it's equidistant between where we work. (It's a nice area, too.) I'll make no apologies for it, either.
Would it be nice if there was better public transportation? Absolutely. But (at least for now) there's not, so we make do. I, for one, have no complaints.
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| parent )Density = viable mass transit.
But sure, some folks are going to need to commute by car no matter what. The purpose of intelligent planning is to bring that proportion down, not to pretend that it doesn't exist.
--It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.
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| parent )The next trick is to create (relatively) densely polulated villages or cities that are walkable, human, and that people will want to live in.
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| parent )There seems to be an air of resignation over fuel prices. Whether the Democrats can turn this into anger directed at the GOP remains to be seen.
Even worse is heating oil: my stepsister just paid $4.01 a gallon for a tankful. Makes me really glad I bought enough firewood to get through the winter, and that I have a good woodstove.
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| parent )You're right, tomsyl: time was, back in the day, when a 20-30 cent/gallon rise in pump prices or heating oil in less than a years' time would get the public (and public punditry) worked up into a frenzy of inflationary anxiety - replete with loud demands for the government to Do Something About It. Usually to no avail, of course.
But some little time back, around when pump prices started to edge up over $2.00/gal, the tradition of public outrage over energy costs seems to have just evaporated like a puddle of 87-octane in the sun. Maybe it's a sign of economic "maturity" - or more likely, merely resigned acceptance. I don't know anyone who thinks gasoline/oil/gas prices are ever going to go down to any significant degree: hopefully, the rise in prices won't be too awful.
And I know what you mean about the fill-up costs: used to be you had to be driving a Winnebago to run up a $50 tab at the pump; now, I get close to there gassing up my Mini!
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| parent )...benefit to Bush's Oil Cronies.
At this level I'm not even sure it is possible for normal people to understand how the paybacks work.
But they are there.
For sure.
Traveller
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| parent )-o-0-o-
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )...that people are too busy complaining about the gawd awful housing market to get serious about complaining about gas prices. If gas prices are $3.35/gal this summer, and that is a scary possibility, then we Dems might be able to get Carter a second term come November.
It is way too early to start gloating about Hillary's kamikaze run. If she succeeds then her political scumbag skills are no match for even Karl Rove, and you guys should be very afraid. McCain couldn't beat Bush's scumbag tactics and he won't be able to beat Hillary's either. If Hillary fails and Obama gets the nod he will be a better candidate for it. Either way you guys should get busy raising money instead of gloating. This thing ain't over by a long shot.
--But she's a queen, and such are queens
that your laughter is sucked in their brains. -D. Bowie
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| parent )As I said, I wanted to provoke some discussion on this. Plus, it's a bit of a high point, no matter how brief, for the Republicans no6t to have to fend off the kind of crap the Clinton campaign is slinging. Everyone knows polls this early are meaningless and to expect the unexpected; I've caught on to that too. Nothing I've said remotely suggests I think anything's over, or that McCain has any more than a very long shot at actually winning the election.
And how do you know we aren't raising money? There'll be a lot more to what's than just direct contributions to McCain's campaign chest . . . %^>
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )McCain is pulling ahead in the battleground states, but I never put too much stock in polls, and it is only March.
--"That Sam-I-am! That Sam-I-am! I do not like that Sam-I-am!"- Dr. Seuss
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)the single most expensive & unproductive "little war" in US history, credibility on conservative issues in shreds, and an economy in the toilet as a direct result of selective deregulation (i.e. badly executed conservative policy)...
...yeah, I guess there's comfort in the spectacle of a typical Democratic primary circus.
--Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes. -JH
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)I disagree that this is a typical Dem primary circus. In fact, I've never seen one quite like it before. And judging from the sharp disagreements between some liberals here on campaign tactics and the like, neither have they.
But I could be wrong - is there a particular Dem primary race you had in mind?
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )We're looking forward to re-educating you back to the stone age!
--I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine
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| parent )I tried the old trick of using babelfish to translate your statement to Greek and then back to English, but all I got was "Anypomonoy'me you epanekpajdey'soyme behind in the age of Stones." I did in fact listen to them in the '70's, but still don't get your comment.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )if I wasn't clear. At the re-education camps you only will be allowed to use stone age technology to provide for yourselves. Don't worry, Ted Nugent will be there to offer courses (for a small fee, of course, you know how republicans are when it comes to making money) on flint-knapping and how to make a double compound bow with only some hide glue and a couple of strips of leather. Wait...Wait...I'm getting a message from Central Control through my aluminum foil headset...Oh, I see... OK, forget what I just said, apparently the re-education camps will be "Vegan Only"...
--I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine
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| parent )but never had the leisure time. (Not sure about looking for nappy flints though - sounds dangerous) This sounds like there will be subsidies in the form of stamps, cheese, I assume a little walking around money. Plus, I'll get behind on my mortgage ASAP, maybe get some sort of retroactive default, so your new guys running the country can relieve be of that burden, too.
I'm seeing light up ahead. You send me to a camp, feed me, give me entertaining, easy and faux-useful stuff to do, pay me a living wage, and pick up the tab on my mortgage, all without me having to pay any taxes, and maybe even getting back some taxes that I didn't even pay - wow. I always scoffed at the idea of a workers' paradise (which I actually would call Fat City), but now that you've explained the upside for the downside party, I am there, man.
I'm sending you a pdf of my absentee ballot so you can do what you think is best, while I adjust my glide slope and flare up for a smooth landing on the dole.
--In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
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| parent )