Thursday, October 23, 2008

Your Mileage May Vary

Which, of course, is the tag line I add to most of my… ummm… “controversial” posts and/or ideas. I do this out of a sense of politeness, a written recognition that opinions are like noses, everyone has one and no two are exactly alike. (Yeah, I know… the original quote wasn’t about noses at all. But leave us not digress.) So, with the explicit understanding that your mileage may indeed vary, here’s my take on Governor Palin and the media.


I’ve sensed over the last few days that Governor Palin is being cited by a lot of folks as THE reason they won’t vote for a McCain/Palin ticket. As a matter of fact, one of my Blog-Buds is firmly in this particular camp, as demonstrated in his comments here (first comment in the thread). But… here are a couple of items I find noteworthy in this particular space. First, a few excerpts from Brit Hume’s Special Report panel discussion… specifically what Charles Krauthammer has to say (highlighted):


KRAUTHAMMER: What's remarkable about the reaction to Palin is not only the unfavorable. It's the loathing, the absolute hatred that you hear, especially from intellectuals, feminists, sort of east coast, west coast, pointy headed. And this is because —

EASTON: But some conservative women, too.

KRAUTHAMMER: But this had a pedigree. It didn't just start.

In the '80's, you had the Margaret Thatcher and Jeane Kirkpatrick who were considered because they were not liberal, they were conservative.

They were actually — it was said of them as has been said of Sarah Palin, they were not women because you couldn't be. If you were a conservative. You were, by definition, a patriarchal thug. And if you happened to be a woman, it was simply in women's threads.

EASTON: That is not true. There is a lot of respect for Jean Kirkpatrick. There was. There was a lot of respect for her.

KRAUTHAMMER: The viciousness with which she was attacked as a contradiction in terms, a conservative woman.

In Palin's case, I think what adds to it is her decision at her age with four other children to have a down syndrome child. This, too, as Joseph Epstein wrote, in feminist circles if abortion is not about this, what's it about?

And they look at her as sort of a back room — a backwater hick, who, for religious reasons, went ahead and had a child that they would never have.

Underneath it, I think, deep underneath it, I think it's a self-loathing on the part of these feminists, knowing that what she did is virtuous and a generous act that they would have never have undertaken. And her having undertaken it is an affront to them, a silent rebuke.


Keep in mind… Krauthammer is a licensed (although non-practicing) psychiatrist, so he should/would know from whence he speaks, particularly in this space. But Mr. Krauthammer only addresses one small slice of the anti-Palin pie, albeit perhaps the most vocal group in opposition to Governor Palin. But the anti-Palin mob is much deeper and wider than pissed off radical feminists. And how could your average American not be disenchanted with Alaska’s Guv’nor, given all the negative press she’s received? (Assuming, of course, one lives somewhere other than Alaska, where her approval ratings are still high, although they’re lower than they used to be. Dubya would probably kill for her current numbers… just sayin’.)


Enter Newt Gingrich. A lot of EIP readers will have already seen this video, since a lot of you watch Faux News, myself included. But Ol’ Newt is on an absolute tear in this video… ranting about the media’s coverage of Governor Palin. This video is just one of two vids… but the meat is in the first installment, which I’ve chosen to publish here. The video is about nine and a half minutes long…



Part Two is here. I’ve said this elsewhere… but when the history of Campaign 2008 is written, the media campaign against Governor Palin will go down as one of the most successful media campaigns… ever. It doesn’t really matter if it’s the truth or not… it’s whether the media’s campaign succeeded or failed. In this case, and at this point in time, when all the sticks seem to be falling in Obama’s favor… one would HAVE to conclude the campaign is successful beyond The Left’s wildest expectations.


Shame. Shame on them. My contempt for today’s media… teevee AND print… knows no bounds.

27 comments:

  1. Buck! Dude!

    If you're going to call me out, at least get it right. When did I ever say she was the reason I wasn't voting McCain? When?

    Granted, I don't think she was the best choice. I don't think she's ready for the White House. But I certainly don't hate her. In fact, I like her. I just don't want her at the helm of the country when McCain succumbs to the law of averages. (He has not had an average life. He has had the kind of life that argues for a shorter, not longer, span on this green earth.)

    This is what is pissing me off about this whole campaign--the rush of people to cubbyhole, to categorize, to stereotype. I tend to take a holistic view of candidates, of elections, of student papers, of most things. You don't like my politics these days because you don't really understand them.

    The world is not black and white. It is at least 256 shades of gray. I spend my days teaching this. Maybe that makes me part of the "liberal elite" you and Mushy despise so much. Funny. Never thought of myself that way. This election is redefining a lot of things. I believe in the things our party (Yes, our party--the Republican party. The first duty of a staff officer is to tell the boss when he's screwing up by the numbers. Only after having done so is he allowed to salute smartly and execute a doomed plan. The idea that I can't be a good Republican and vote for a Democratic candidate is idiotic. How else do you expect to get the message to the party bosses that their dog no longer hunts?) stands for. I believe in most of the things Christ stood for. These days the most vocal Republicans are almost indistinguishable from most evangelical Christians. All talk, little action. And what action there is, is concentrated on telling me how I should vote or live. Too much evangelism and too little introspection.

    Planks and motes, Bucky baby. Planks and motes.

    I still love ya' man.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Most liberal women I know are self loathing and man hating, including a few in my extended family.....they see Sarah Palin as the enemy, she is everything they are not, including successful, happy, and a babe to boot.

    {Pat Right Wing Opinion Alert}

    ReplyDelete
  3. Three things:

    1. I adore Charles Krauthammer, and for years I have agreed with him 99% of the time. BUT ... he has not been on the Palin bandwagon this year. In fact he has upset me several times lately with anti-Palin criticim. SO....this interview on Fox New is especially interesting. It seems like he has come around and is in the Palin camp, or at least willing to defend her as a conservative woman. BRAVO!

    2. Did you all see Sarah Palin on Fox News tonight? -- Sean Hannity interviewed her at length and she answered every question. She is getting better and better ... she is not afraid to take an unpopular stand, to say what she thinks about the issues and the opposition. AND ... she is bright and smart and engaged and relaxed in the limelight and very knowledgable. I find her a growing asset to the campaign and our party and to the future. Immediately following the interview, Alan interviewed Geraldine Ferraro and that old bag could not have been more nasty and critical and petty in her comments about Palin. The longer the interview went on the nastier she got. I was calling her all kinds of names ... and then I started laughing ... why was I letting someone who was herself a LOSER in her bid for the Vice presidency bother me ... and a BIG LOSER at that? Let her be a witch now .. who cares? ... she carries no cred at all with most Americans. All she is now is a dried up old LOSER prune.

    3. Speaking of John McCain's longevity. I know he has had a million injuries and a broken body and the law of averages SHOULD suggest an early demise. But -- has anyone seen his mother? She is something like 96 years old and not only going strong, but is quite a FEISTY old gal!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I agree that the media is shitting themselves over Palin. I, personally, am outraged, because if they would attack and eviscerate her, they'd do it to you or me or any of us. Just like the folks we pay to represent us, they don't work for us anymore.

    ReplyDelete
  5. they'd do it to you or me or any of us.

    Right you are, Phlegmmy -- as they have PROVED in the way they have treated Joe the Plumber, just an average American citizan who asked a presidential candidate a question, for God's sake.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Data point for you: I was all set to vote against a candidate this year, there being no one in the race that I could be for.

    Palin changed that for. Now, the net result was the same, but I feel better about having made a positive vote than a negative vote. Sure, she's inexperienced, although I don't believe either of her opponents bring much of anything worth having to the table either.

    What she brings to the table is what Obama promised to bring, and ironically enough (given that it is the only one of his lofty promises that he could have kept) he failed miserably at: a change in the class of person we elect. She is of the people in a way that none of the other candidates can even come close to. I believe our gov't is far too big, and far too driven by a class of person that believes that they are an elite class. They feel entitled to power and money. They feel that they are smarter than and superior to the rest of us. I don't get that vibe from Palin.

    McCain/Palin got my vote because of Sarah Palin. Obama/Biden got my rejection because despite their media packaging, they are just more of the same elitist crowd that believes government is the answer to all of our problems. I, on the other hand, believe our government to be the cause of our problems. McCain included.

    ReplyDelete
  7. The evisceration of Sarah Palin should make all journalists cower in shame. Obama and Biden have gotten a free pass on everything from a stunning lack of understanding of foreign policy to egregious errors on history to associations with hateful pastors and terrorists.

    Yet Sarah Palin is crucified for everything from not choosing to abort her 5th child to embracing her pregnant daughter to the clothes she wears. And just about everything in between.

    The beating of Palin has not shocked me - which is a sad commentary. It has shown me without doubt that the media has lost any shred of credibility it had. I was never a big fan of the MSM; now I could care less to listen to any of them unless there is a breaking news crisis of epic proportions. Then and only then will I listen to them, and eventually I will seek the truth elsewhere. Because they are incapable of it themselves.

    Shame on them is right Buck.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Newspapers? I don't even read the comics anymore.

    The radio? I've always held the NPR was an acronym for No Power to the Radio, but I've had to stop listening to commercial radio too. It's not that I'm uncomfortable with ideas other than my own. It's more that I get tired of the incessant dripping water torture of having political comment inserted where it doesn't belong.

    TV? Nothing on the networks, and no news cable. I was ok with sports for awhile, but the night that the halftime show was a frothing rant from that untreated syphalitic Olbermann I gave that up too.

    These media outlets have all written me off as a customer they don't want, and I have happily given them exactly that. It is unlikely that I will ever go back.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Buck - I am a middle age, conservative female, hard worker, tax payer, mother of one. I like Sarah Palin. I agree, she brings a different type of class of people into the ring. She reminds me of our country's historic presidents and politicians... those that came from humble beginnings. Those that had limited experience but had common sense and a strong character. I don't like Joe Biden. He can't control himself or his emotions. I like McCain. He has done alot for this country. I think he is deserving, not because he was captured and tortured during the war, but because he chose to fight in the war, chose to run for office, and chose to step up to the plate. He may not have all the answers, but who does. I do not like Obama because he has been too easily influenced by disreputable and radical people. I find that some of the media's role in this election to be prejudiced, biased and untrustworthy. Not just because of Palin, but because they failed to rise above the mudslinging and became participants themselves. What scares me the most is the radical comments, statements and unbelievably outrageous accusations that have been made by our fellow countrymen. I've even read about people calling for a revolution if they don't get their way! Now, I don't know about you... but I think that some of the media had a HUGE roll in causing all this controversy and unrest. They've done it not just with what's going on politically, but economically and socially. Doomsday is here,it must be true. It's in all the papers!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Just in general, Buck, I think the media are a bunch of bloated festering toads. They decide who will get coverage and deny the public information concerning those they feel aren't worthy, even though all candidates have to reach the ballot in much the same way. By the time the election has rolled around, if the two major teams aren't as they proclaimed they should be, they will spit venom at whomever they didn't anoint. After all, they know best for us.

    I could go on for hours, but I can only bang my head against a brick wall for so long without getting a headache.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I think another travesty to the election process that we're seeing again (I first noticed it in '04 - it may have been going on longer than that) is the number of polls that skew the sample set (double-digit difference between number of Democrats polled vs. Republicans polled??) to give the impression that they want. The motives are twofold: discourage GOP voters from going to vote, and to prepare the battlefield for the defeat of their candidate should the first plan fail to deliver the intended result.

    If (when) there are lawsuits, cries of stolen elections, and riots resulting from an Obama loss, I lay the blame at the feet of the polling organizations and media outlets that propagated the idea that the only way Obama could lose the election is to have it stolen from him.

    Hey, it worked with "Bush Lied" and "Selected not Elected" so why can't it work again?

    ReplyDelete
  12. This may not be the best example, but Jimmy Carter was Governor of Georgia from 1971 – 75, and before that he was a member of the Georgia State Senate for a couple of years. Hmm, he didn’t have much experience did he? Bill Clinton had more years as Governor of Arkansas (approx. 10 yrs.), but before that his experience was only two years as Arkansas Att. General. Now Obama’s experience doesn’t seem like much with six years in the IL State Senate and less than three years as a Junior US Senator. Most of that last year, he has been running for President. It seems that his whole campaign is that he has no experience and is a clean slate. So why does the “elite media” bash Sarah Palin for her lack of experience? Why isn’t she a clean slate? If you count her years (starting in 1992) as City Council, Mayor, Chairperson for the Oil and Gas Commission in Alaska, and as Governor of Alaska, she has as much time in the political arena as Carter and Clinton, and she has even more than Obama. Maybe it is not the same experience, but experience none the less.

    Thanks for posting the video of Newt. I had to wait until this morning to view it, but it was good. I continued my above rant on my blog.

    ReplyDelete
  13. LOTS to reply to today... and most of it requires more than just a "thank ya." Plus I'm off to another late start... so replies to comments will be dribbling in over the next hour or so.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Doc sez: If you're going to call me out, at least get it right. When did I ever say she was the reason I wasn't voting McCain? When?

    Mea Culpa and my apologies. I forgot that ol’ ASS-U-ME saw when I wrote that, but I was riffing off your comment about Gov. Palin’s only contribution was making the limo smell good (paraphrased).

    You don't like my politics these days because you don't really understand them.

    True, again. Politics is a subject MUCH more suited for discussion over a few beers and good cigars in a comfortable place. But given the geographical separation between us, the comments section will have to do. I AM learning more and more about your politics every day!


    Maybe that makes me part of the "liberal elite" you and Mushy despise so much.

    Au contraire. I prefer to look at you as a sort of mole in The Academy, even given the fact that you teach at a military academy… which doesn’t hold a candle to places like Berkeley, Hahvahd, or even your average state school when it comes to liberalism (if my assumptions are correct).

    The idea that I can't be a good Republican and vote for a Democratic candidate is idiotic. How else do you expect to get the message to the party bosses that their dog no longer hunts?

    Personally, I think the message was sent in the 2006 congressional elections. There are some indications the GOP even received the message, one such example being McCain claiming the GOP lost its way. Well… it DID lose its way! I further think voting for Obama sends the wrong message… in that The One is liable to think he has a mandate, removing whatever “go slow” tendencies he may have had regarding his agenda (which… none of us really know what that is, in reality). Then there are the other things… Supreme Court nominations, various foreign policy approaches (#1: Iran), taxes, etc. But this is a comment… not a post.

    These days the most vocal Republicans are almost indistinguishable from most evangelical Christians. All talk, little action. And what action there is, is concentrated on telling me how I should vote or live. Too much evangelism and too little introspection.

    Pretty much agreed in this space, too. I have REAL, serious, and lasting issues with the GOP’s social agenda, which, like you (assumption on my part), I believe is driven largely by the evangelicals. I’ll simply quote another ol’ saw to keep this short: One cannot legislate morality. The family is the proper place for creating and nurturing values (and the church plays an important part in reinforcing those values)... NOT the flippin’ Congress or the Chief Executive. That works for both sides of the wire, too.

    I still love ya' man.

    Me, too. I’m lookin’ at this as an exchange of ideas, not a war! ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Pat sez: Most liberal women I know are self loathing and man hating…

    Our experiences differ here, Pat. I can honestly say I DON’T know any self-loathing, man-hating liberal women. I count four liberal women in my extended circle, and all seem to be well adjusted, relatively happy people. It’s just their politics that are wrong. ;-)

    Sharon sez: Three things: …

    Agreed on Krauthammer, Sharon. I still think he’s not completely on board, but he IS excellent evidence of a backlash to the media campaign against Palin.

    I watched most (about 90%) of Hannity’s interview with Palin last evening and am about 80% in agreement with your conclusions. There’s still room for improvement, though. Case in point: Hannity asked her to differentiate between the two campaigns’ economic plans and Pailin gave talking-point generalities in reply… not specifics. Visualize, if you will, what Gingrich might have said in response to that question.

    I didn’t watch Ferraro. About which… I rarely watch H&C because I’m NO fan of shout-fests, running interruptions, people talking over each other, and screaming matches… in general. That sort of thing annoys the HELL out of me and rapidly bores me, too. I don’t like Hannity all that much to begin with, due to his hyper-partisan positions on damned near everything. Just my opinion, ya know. ;-)

    Your point about McCain’s longevity and his genetics is well-taken. His Mom is an excellent example, as is McCain’s own energy on the trail. I’m nearly ten years younger than Senator McCain and I wouldn’t even BEGIN to consider a schedule and work load like he’s lived these past 18 months. Going to work in the Oval Office would be something of a break in terms of intensity, IMHO. (Kinda like coming back from vacation for us workin' folks.) ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Phlegmmy sez: I, personally, am outraged, because if they would attack and eviscerate her, they'd do it to you or me or any of us. Just like the folks we pay to represent us, they don't work for us anymore.

    Sharon replies: Right you are, Phlegmmy -- as they have PROVED in the way they have treated Joe the Plumber…

    Agree with BOTH of ya! Especially Phlegmmy’s comment about them not working for us anymore. There’s a reason the NYT’s subscriptions are tanking and its stock price plummeting. Same thing for NBC’s ratings, too. I could go on…


    Dave sez: Data point for you: I was all set to vote against a candidate this year, there being no one in the race that I could be for.

    Palin changed that for.


    and

    McCain/Palin got my vote because of Sarah Palin. Obama/Biden got my rejection because despite their media packaging, they are just more of the same elitist crowd that believes government is the answer to all of our problems. I, on the other hand, believe our government to be the cause of our problems. McCain included.

    Dave… you need to read my Blog-Bud Morgan! Morgan was “on the fence” until McCain announced Palin as his veep choice. He and I had numerous (but always civil) back-and-forths about McCain all last summer. I’m a small-gub’mint kinda guy, too, in that I see gub’mint as The Problem… most of the time. I have fewer “issues” with McCain than most conservatives, though. That may be residuals from my moonbat days coming to the fore…

    Kris sez: The beating of Palin has not shocked me - which is a sad commentary. It has shown me without doubt that the media has lost any shred of credibility it had. I was never a big fan of the MSM; now I could care less to listen to any of them unless there is a breaking news crisis of epic proportions. Then and only then will I listen to them, and eventually I will seek the truth elsewhere. Because they are incapable of it themselves.

    Shame on them is right Buck.


    I still trust the WSJ, and most of the “business press” (Forbes, Fortune), to a lesser extent. The same thing goes with right-wing outlets like The Weekly Standard and National Review. But as you’ve noted, I corroborate ALL of what I read with other sources, too. “Trust” as a commodity in American life is at an all-time low, IMHO. That’s NOT a good thing.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Dave sez: Newspapers? I don't even read the comics anymore.



    These media outlets have all written me off as a customer they don't want, and I have happily given them exactly that. It is unlikely that I will ever go back.


    I haven’t written ‘em ALL off (see my last comment above)… and I spend a lot of time with C-SPAN and Jim Lehrer these days. I think there are a few outlets left that really DO strive to be “fair and balanced.” But very, very few. And although I invoked Jim Lehrer I have a REAL hard time with Gwen Ifill… and Ray Suarez, too, sometimes. ;-)

    Alison sez: What scares me the most is the radical comments, statements and unbelievably outrageous accusations that have been made by our fellow countrymen. I've even read about people calling for a revolution if they don't get their way! Now, I don't know about you... but I think that some of the media had a HUGE roll in causing all this controversy and unrest. They've done it not just with what's going on politically, but economically and socially. Doomsday is here,it must be true. It's in all the papers!

    Great points, Alison… and not just the bits I quoted above. But, regarding the above, even a casual visit to the Fever Swamps confirms what you say. I don’t claim to be a daily reader of Kos, HuffPo, or the loons at Firedoglake and the like, but I DO chase the odd link on memeorandum to those places from time to time. And what’s written there is TRULY disturbing in its vitriol and hate directed to… as you said… fellow Americans. I try and keep a historical perspective on the state of our politics and recall that there have been fist-fights on the floor of both the Senate and the House in the past. So, in one regard today’s politics are tamer than the period leading up to the Civil War (and other periods, too), but it’s still SHOCKING.

    Jim sez: Just in general, Buck, I think the media are a bunch of bloated festering toads. They decide who will get coverage and deny the public information concerning those they feel aren't worthy, even though all candidates have to reach the ballot in much the same way. By the time the election has rolled around, if the two major teams aren't as they proclaimed they should be, they will spit venom at whomever they didn't anoint. After all, they know best for us.

    I could go on for hours, but I can only bang my head against a brick wall for so long without getting a headache.


    Agreed yet again. And it’s gotta be tougher for you Libertarians, as Bob Barr gets virtually NO press at all. Interestingly, Barr DID get a ten minute (or so… could have been 15 minutes) sit down on The News Hour with Jim Lehrer last week. Didja watch it?

    Dave again: I think another travesty to the election process that we're seeing again (I first noticed it in '04 - it may have been going on longer than that) is the number of polls that skew the sample set (double-digit difference between number of Democrats polled vs. Republicans polled??) to give the impression that they want. The motives are twofold: discourage GOP voters from going to vote, and to prepare the battlefield for the defeat of their candidate should the first plan fail to deliver the intended result.

    If (when) there are lawsuits, cries of stolen elections, and riots resulting from an Obama loss, I lay the blame at the feet of the polling organizations and media outlets that propagated the idea that the only way Obama could lose the election is to have it stolen from him.

    Hey, it worked with "Bush Lied" and "Selected not Elected" so why can't it work again?


    Ooooh… GREAT points! I don’t think it’s likely Obama will lose, but… yeah… I’ve seen evidence of this line of thinking in the Fever Swamps. I’ve noticed more than a few stories to the effect of “Will your vote be counted?” on CNN lately. Yeah, I go there every once in a while, but not often.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Lou sez: This may not be the best example, but Jimmy Carter was Governor of Georgia from 1971 – 75, and before that he was a member of the Georgia State Senate for a couple of years. Hmm, he didn’t have much experience did he? Bill Clinton had more years as Governor of Arkansas (approx. 10 yrs.), but before that his experience was only two years as Arkansas Att. General. Now Obama’s experience doesn’t seem like much with six years in the IL State Senate and less than three years as a Junior US Senator. Most of that last year, he has been running for President. It seems that his whole campaign is that he has no experience and is a clean slate. So why does the “elite media” bash Sarah Palin for her lack of experience? Why isn’t she a clean slate? If you count her years (starting in 1992) as City Council, Mayor, Chairperson for the Oil and Gas Commission in Alaska, and as Governor of Alaska, she has as much time in the political arena as Carter and Clinton, and she has even more than Obama. Maybe it is not the same experience, but experience none the less.

    EX-ACT-A-MUNDO! It’s The One’s serious LACK of executive (or leadership) experience that rings my bell, first and perhaps foremost. But his political philosophy, as evidenced by his mentors and what little voting record he’s accumulated, is a close second. The One brings new meaning to the term “philosophically opposed.” In my book.

    ReplyDelete
  19. To everyone:

    What a GREAT discussion!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Sharon: This discussion is EXACTLY why I blog! And thank YOU for being a major contributor.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Great blog Buck.
    We no longer have sensible journalism in our papers and on our TVs for a very sensible, and obvious, reason: MONEY. I've been doing some watching over a few elections (well, more than a few) and have noted that the deeper a candidate's pockets are, the more that media is for them. Why do you think they feverishly report on how much a candidate has begged from contributors?
    I'm cynical because I used to peddle newspaper advertising and recognized then that if you've got the bucks (sorry) then you're my friend. I managed to get ink for a number of businesses by talking to editors. Sound callous? It was. The main driving principle of all business is "get their dollars". Why would anyone think that honesty and purity must be in the media?
    I've made my selection about whom to vote for Buck. It's on my blog.
    And no, I didn't get even one cruddy almost worthless dollar. But there is honesty in my choice.

    ReplyDelete
  22. "I’ll simply quote another ol’ saw to keep this short: One cannot legislate morality. The family is the proper place for creating and nurturing values (and the church plays an important part in reinforcing those values)... NOT the flippin’ Congress or the Chief Executive."

    Yep. And unless and until I'm convinced that the Republican party will recognize that, and STOP trying to tell me what to do with my own body (in every way, including choices about sex, reproduction, suicide, etc.), they will not get my vote.

    For the record, I also like Sarah Palin -- as a person, from what I've seen of her on TV. I just don't like her politics.

    For seemingly unbiased coverage of the election, try POTUS 08 (channel 130) on XM Satellite Radio.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Alright, in my case Palin is the reason I am voting for McCain, as you very well know.

    But I can certainly get behind what Doc said here:

    I'm tired of being told that unless I want the world to come to an end I have to vote for any idiot the old boys in the smoke-filled room put on what has always been my side of the ticket. They can kiss my ass.

    A-freakin'-men.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Well this one sure took off (unlike my jump into App State this weekend--though I did get to hold the game ball for a while, low ceilings forced us to call the jump two hours before game time--only to see clear skies by what was to have been the time on target. Grrrr.)

    I agree with most of what you said except the mandate piece. I think it'll be interesting to see what sort of mandate he does get. I'm afraid it may be a reversal of what Reagan got in '80. We'll see.

    Great discussion though.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Beyond the press, the whole campaign finance thing has me severely depressed. Two telling things for me here:

    - first, it got lost in the noise, but I thought it interesting that when Biden was telling people to gird their loins and that Obama would need their continued support, he felt it necessary to clarify that he didn't mean support in the form of contributions. Funny how the first thing he thought of was that they might mistake his point as yet another call for cash.

    - second, and related, is this whole credit card fraud thing Obama's campaign has going on. It's just one more of those things that makes me feel helpless in the face of the Obama-machine onslaught of fraud, deceit, lies, and win-at-any-cost methodology for which there will never be any accountability. All I have to fight back with is one single vote.

    I recognize that the stakes always seem high in these things, but reminding myself of that does nothing to pacify my sense of dread for an Obama/Reid/Pelosi "mandate." For a person like me that believes that we started down the destructive path of socialism decades ago, being on the edge of a no-turning-back precipice into full, unrectifiable, balls-out rush to Socialism is stomach churning. And knowing through years of observed history that they will not only get away with it (being a Democrat is never having to admit culpability, IMHO) but will manage to blame the inevitable disaster on those of us that knew better (see also: mortgage crisis) makes me grind my teeth.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Gee Lori, last I heard, there were no laws concerning who you have sex with except maybe animals and certain relatives and underaged children - which one of those do you consider a problem for you? As for reproduction, you can have a baby or not - no laws there. It is when you start killing your babies that we EC's get upset. As for suicide, well there are laws against that, but if you kill yourself, you are dead and no one is going to prosecute you. If you help someone kill themself, well, isn't that kind of like aiding someone in taking a life - murder?

    ReplyDelete
  27. Cat sez: We no longer have sensible journalism in our papers and on our TVs for a very sensible, and obvious, reason: MONEY.

    Interesting perspective, Cat, and no doubt true. But I think it goes a bit beyond the money, as well.

    Lori sez: ...they will not get my vote.

    So, Lori... does this mean you're back in the O-Camp?

    Morgan sez: Alright, in my case Palin is the reason I am voting for McCain, as you very well know.

    Yep. I knew dat. O! How I knew that!! ;-)

    Doc: Sorry your jump didn't pan out. But you must have been on the sidelines for the game? I mean, if'n you got to hold the game ball and all that!

    Dave sez: I recognize that the stakes always seem high in these things, but reminding myself of that does nothing to pacify my sense of dread for an Obama/Reid/Pelosi "mandate."

    YES. That's my biggest fear at the moment, as well. I just pray the Dems don't get that super-majority in the senate.

    ReplyDelete

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