Thursday, November 29, 2007

This and That

So. Didja watch the debate last night? I didn’t, for a couple of reasons. First and foremost: it was on CNN. I simply wasn’t ready for more inane YouTube questions and “gotcha” moments. Strangely enough, there weren’t all that many moments of glaring stupidity or posturing according to folks I read and trust. Second, there are still too many candidates on the platform. I don’t expect the field to be winnowed down to the “real” contenders…read that: Romney, Giuliani, Huckabee (yes, Huckabee) and perhaps, just perhaps, Thompson…anytime soon, if ever. The field will narrow after Iowa and New Hampshire, but will there be further debates after the first primaries? History sez no.

Captain Ed, among others (see memeorandum), gives the win to Huckabee. There’s an interesting column at National Review Online… written from the grave by Richelieu… that essentially bemoans the state of US politics. An interesting choice of persona, that, and not inappropriate in the least. (Just as an aside: I’ll bet the Red Eminence is very near the top of Rove’s Hero List. But underneath Machiavelli, of course.)

Further on politics… I signed up, against The-Voices-In-My-Head’s better judgment, for e-mail briefs from the Giuliani campaign. This is the first time I’ve ever made such a move and I’m thinking of signing up for other newsletters, as well, including Hillary, Silky Pony, and Barack’s newsletters (just for laughs, mind you). But I won’t sign up in the manner which I did for Rudy, coz every e-mail I receive from the campaign begins like this:

Dear Norman (Buck),

Tonight, at the CNN/YouTube debate, Americans had the opportunity to ask questions and…

So. I’m now and forever known to the Giuliani campaign as “Norman (Buck).” Which, of course, tells me no actual human beings are involved in the mailing effort. Feh.

I’m suffering from another of those intermittent and undeterminable (as far as cause is concerned) network slowdowns/outages. This latest event began sometime around 1100 hours yesterday and made life frickin’ impossible. Well, life on the inter-tubes, anyway. All the usual, customary, and reasonable “fixes” don’t work, including PC reboots (numerous), modem reboots (more numerous), and that last resort— a call to Yucca Telecom. I called Yucca around 1330 yesterday and there were no other reported performance problems. I held while the tech checked the various towers I shoot to and he came back with “everything looks fine.” I trust this particular guy and always ask for him by name when I call Yucca with (current service) issues. You can ask for someone by name when you call a service provider in a small town, and I simply LOVE that. Still and even, my issues are not resolved. Surfing, reading, and viewing YouTube stuff is dang near impossible. I shudder to think how long it may take me to put this post up…once I’m done with the material gathering and writing.

My fiber connection simply cannot arrive soon enough.

Today’s Pic: The owner of an immaculately restored P-40 Warhawk holds forth on the wonders of his aircraft to an admiring gaggle. YrHmblScrb was himself no less enthralled by this man’s knowledge (and style!) and only stepped back to snap this picture.

At a Commemorative Air Force Air Show in Brownsville, Texas. I have to admit I liked ‘em just a lil bit better when they were the Confederate Air Force.

March, 2000.

15 comments:

  1. Romney, Giuliani, Huckabee (yes, Huckabee) and perhaps, just perhaps, Thompson…anytime soon, if ever.

    The best reason I ever heard not to support my guy, came from you Buck. Something about a crappy movie (I still think DH2 was a better example of lackluster action entertainment). All the other cases against Fred, go downhill from there. Sharply. Blah blah blah he showed up late blah blah blah he had cancer blah blah blah his wife is too hot. Like listening to a teenager come up with excuses for not taking out the trash.

    But to get off the soapbox about Fred for a minute and address the election as a whole...we have got to...GOT TO...band together as voters, pin all these guys to the mat about illegal immigration, and pitch overboard -- for good -- anyone who shows the slightest bit of hesitation about enforcing immigration law and that INCLUDES permanently repudiating any proposal involving amnesty, in letter and in spirit.

    "Path to citizenship" means when you get busted, you get sent to the front of the line instead of the back of it. That's crap. Crap, I say.

    These pro-"Let'em in" people keep telling me the illegals are hard workers. You know, you can be a kiddy-diddler and a hard-worker too...they're not mutually exclusive. In fact, if you're in Mexico and you're poor, the U.S. is a stone's throw away, you got two strong healthy hard-working sons and one of them has a clean history and the other one is a pervert -- which one are you going to send? It's be just stupid to send the son who has a clean record, effectively nuking the personal history of someone who doesn't have a rap sheet to begin with. No, that isn't what's done. You send over someone who could use a new identity.

    A lot of people want me to think illegal aliens are saints. ALL of the illegal aliens. That's the only reason I've found to think such a thing...they want me to.

    Buck, I hate to say it but Thompson and Paul are the only ones that aren't "John McCain Lite." Everybody else has tried to sell us this "let'em all in" snake-oil at some time or another, in one flavoring or another. (By the way, Thompson isn't crazy like Paul.) Skullduggery's afoot, I tells ya. They're up to shenanigans.

    Fred. Hot wife, not sneaky, and not crazy.

    Having said that, I agree with you a zillion percent that we're overdue for a shake-up. But then again, having the campaign already underway before Labor Day of the previous year, is an entirely new phenomenon. And not a good one by any means.

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  2. Nope, watched Disney Channel while I did dishes instead. LOL! Sounds like it was interesting, though.

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  4. I had a bigger priority, Kansas Jayhawk basketball, on at the same time as the debate, but I clicked over to CNN during the timeouts to listen to the candidates. I thought Romney, Giuliani and Huckabee did very well. The rest were just not impressive...to me.

    I HATE that CNN allowed plants from some of the Dem campaigns in the debate. That makes me furious and to me it just means what I suspected, that CNN is so far to the left they don't care about being ethical...they wanted to humiliate the GOP candidates.

    I DO agree with you mkfreeberg on your points about illegal immigration ... and feel that the immigration issue coupled with the War on Terror/national security is the top issue in the presidential campaign...for all the reasons you said.

    I DO have a lot of pretty good reasons why I could never support Fred Thompson...but my chief reason is that I remember watching him back in 1998 during the Senate hearings on Clinton's illegal activities with the Chinese .. Thompson was chairman of the Senate Reform and Oversight Committee .... and he CAVED to Senators Carl Levin and John Glenn .... he got rolled by them and it was ugly and he had the ole deer in the headlights look ... I could just imagine he was thinking "WHA' HAPPENED?" I knew at that time I would have a long memory about this...and I hoped this was a man who NEVER would get it into his head to run for president. I think he is a lightweight who doesn't really give a darn about running for president but let someone talk him into it. I want someone who WANTS it ... I don't want another weak president in my lifetime. (Sorry for the rant)

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  5. Pat: I deleted your comment because of the slur you used. I love ya to death, Bro, but your word selection was unacceptable. You can comment about anything and everything I post as long as you don't insult people.

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  6. Morgan: Well, Fred's lapse in judgment where that movie is concerned is more than made up for with his choice of life partner (how's that for PC-speak?). He definitely demonstrated good judgment there.

    My primary issue with Fred (as previously stated) is his lack of a track record where leadership is concerned. Like Hillary, he's never so much as run a convenience store. And then I read what Towanda had to say and I think "hmmmm." Can't wait to see your answer to that!

    I pretty much agree with your points on illegals, with one possible exception, i.e., what do we do with the 12 million that are already here? We can't deport them all...that's physically impossible, not to mention all the Nazi-like photo ops that mass-deportation would engender. Al Jazeera would have a field day/week/month/year. (oh shit, the conversation's over now...Godwin and all that)

    Towanda: Well said! You can rant here any time you like!

    Jenny: Was that your viewing choice or the default (read that: kids)? ;-)

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  7. Always the default. When there are only 2 TVs in the house, and 6 people to watch them (4 of them under the age of 10), the choices I get are quite limited. In fact, with the exception of American Idol, there are no shows that I follow. Not since Friends ended. LOL! BUT, I do know every song to Hannah Montana and both High School Musicals, even put them on my iPod (because I don't have control of the music in the vehicles, either).

    Back on track here. I think all the players on both sides have their flaws. Of course, the Dems have more of them. ;o) I think it will come down to who is the lesser of the evils.

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  8. Jenny, back when my kids were young, I did a TV survey for some group. It was pretty funny - all we watched were kids shows.

    Imigration an important issue, but it is not "who will enforce it", but as Buck said, what is the answer to the 12 million already here.

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  9. You know, I tried to watch the debates. Turned to it just in time for the immigration debate from McCain. When he started harping on how the illegals all have hearts and families and dreams - I changed the channel. Gag.

    Must admit - Thompson has been my first (and only) choice, until recently. He's running an incredibly lackluster campaign. My only thoughts about that are that perhaps he's waiting to ramp up once the primaries start - you know, the way it used to be.

    Side note: Buck, it used to let me select "Other" as an identity, then I'd put in my "name" and my blog address. It's different now...fyi.

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  10. Jenny sez: I think all the players on both sides have their flaws. Of course, the Dems have more of them. ;o) I think it will come down to who is the lesser of the evils.

    {sigh} It usually does. The last time I voted for a presidential candidate without reservation was in 1984. Speaking of 1984, I doubt I'll ever see an electoral map like this one ever again (in my lifetime).

    Kris: "Lackluster" is an understatement re: Thompson's campaign. I'm thinking more like "inept." The timing issues of this season's campaign (one can't call it "this year's campaign" coz it's more than a frickin' year...) may or may not have something to do with his efforts. I'd say Fred severely miscalculated by being coy about his candidacy and declaring late. Which is another one of them straws (as in camel, back) that leads me to question his judgment.

    I dunno what to tell ya about the comments form...I don't have any control over that...short of moving to another blogging platform.

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  11. Speaking of 1984, I doubt I'll ever see an electoral map like this one ever again (in my lifetime).

    I doubt we will either. I fear that the divide between us is too great and the vastness of those who do not pay attention is too great.

    This rushing to get the primaries over so early is going to backfire. By the time the elections roll around, we will be sick of all of the candidates. I predict that votir participation will be down - as if it wasn't dismal enough.

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  12. Now that is something I would have to think of as a subject worthy of exploration. The case could be made, fantastic as it might seem, that we'll see a map that looks just like that a year from now.

    I know that sounds laughable, but I remember 1984. And in the months leading up to that election I remember a nation that was bitterly, bitterly divided. My location at the time was in the middle of Bellingham, a college town in the Pacific NW, so perhaps my perception is off. But the animosity I remember from that year was nasty. You know all the hype we have about global warming now? TRIPLE that...and change the subject to nuclear weapons blowing up the world. Change George Bush from a swaggering dope who told a "pack of lies" to invade a country, to a senile old codger falling asleep in meetings with his finger on the big red button.

    There was some real hate in that election year. Acrid, biting, visceral and noxious.

    Look how things turned out.

    I'm not saying I'll bet a large amount of money on this. I'm not saying I'd bet any. Take it for what it is...a ray of hope.

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  13. Speaking of 1984, I doubt I'll ever see an electoral map like this one ever again

    Guess where I was living in 1984? but I wasn't old enough to vote yet, so I wasn't responsible for that lone blue state.
    As for the upcoming election...I haven't decided, just hoping to push this very blue state a little farther red.

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  14. Yes I did... and forced my soon to be 18 year old to do the same. I would never say I forced my wife to do anything, but she sat and watched all the same.

    I was impressed with a couple of the no-namers... but that Paul guy was not the most well informed candidate. He was COMPLETELY wrong when he said "they attacked us because we invaded their country"... referring to Al Qaida and other insurgents. He gave the example of us having a base in Saudi Arabia as part of the problem. He missed the mark.

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  15. Morgan sez: I know that sounds laughable, but I remember 1984.

    I remember '84 quite well, too. I had put my USAF retirement papers in around election time, and I and about 1.5 million other service members (give or take a hundred thou or so) were OH-so-thankful for what Ronnie did for us after enduring four years of Jimmuh. Yeah, there was a lot of animosity and hate in the run-up to that election, but the Dems shot themselves in the foot, as they nearly always do, when they nominated Mondale. This election just might be the same if Hillary gets the nomination. You might be right, Morgan. Let us pray.

    Cynthia sez: By the time the elections roll around, we will be sick of all of the candidates. I predict that voter participation will be down - as if it wasn't dismal enough.

    I'm fairly sick of the pack of 'em already. But I WILL vote. Coz that's what we (ahem) old farts DO.

    TripleE: Don't discount the Ahnold effect. Not saying CA will ever vote Republican again, but it might. It just might...

    Sam: Good on ya where Amanda is concerned. Did she stay awake? ;-)

    And you're spot-on about Ron Paul. He gives the (small "L") libertarian wing of the Republican party a bad name. A REAL bad name...

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Just be polite... that's all I ask.