The Obama - Reagan Comparison

interesting

Yes, Obama gets his crowds swooning. So did Reagan. It's laughable to hear conservatives talk darkly about a "cult of personality" around Obama. The Reaganites, after all, have lobbied to name every airport, school, library, road, bridge, government building and lamppost after the Gipper. When it comes to personality cults, the right wing knows what it's talking about.
But don't worry, say Obama's adversaries, he'll collapse because voters won't trust him to handle foreign policy. He's too inexperienced and has these perilously idealistic ideas. Yes, and President Jimmy Carter's campaign in 1980 was absolutely convinced it could persuade the country that Reagan was a dangerous warmonger who could not be trusted to keep America safe.

Happy Friday!

Happy this was not true.

Leave Him Alone!

If you are not familiar with the "Leave Britney Alone" video classic then check it out first. It is a young man's plea to the public to leave his hero, Britney Spears, alone. If you are familiar with it then just enjoy this parody entitled "Leave Mike Huckabee Alone". Funny stuff!

A reminder

How Red America operates

The Natural

Barack Obama is the best politician I have ever seen. He destroyed Hillary Clinton in the debate. No matter what topic, Barack controlled the discussion and actually managed to out-wonk Hillary on health care and other issues. There was a dangerous moment where Tim Russert grilled Obama about a quote from his book seemingly praising Loius Farrakahn. Obama was stuck because he did write it - but he fought his way through with a denunciation of Farrakahn's past anti-Semitic rantings. Rev. Lou's might have softened up a little bit in old age but a lot of people don't like the Jews and Farrakahn's one of them. Obama danced some more on the follow up and then faced a surprising attack from Clinton. She's said that it would have been more principled to reject the support rather than just denounce it. At that time it looked like Obama might be trapped looking sympathetic to an anti-Semite, but he made a joke by promptly denouncing and rejecting the comments.

Before tonight's debate I knew Barack Obama was a great candidate, but now I feel he really has the wherewithal to be a great President. He knows his stuff and he's quick on his feet. I've watched virtually every debate since Ford/Carter. Bill Clinton was good at debates, but Barack last night was the best I've ever seen.

McCain Condemns Obama Smear

And good for him!
McCain says he will 'absolutely repudiate' comments by an introductory speaker who says Obama sympathizes with 'world leaders who want to kill us.'

In the homestretch it's ... Barack Obama!

The poll here (click to enlarge) shows a real surge among Democratic voters toward Barack Obama. I think with the recent flailing by the Clinton campaign, this trend will continue. I supposed if you want to be know as "tough" and "a fighter" as Hillary Clinton does, you have to take off the gloves. But her recent charges and semi-smears are really distasteful and show more desperation than anything else. Whining about a mailer, circulating photos, mocking and ridiculing Obama supporters seem to me to have little or no chance of gaining her votes.

Tonight's final Democratic Debate on MSNBC at 9PM, will give Clinton one final chance to land a punch. She seems to excel at debates so she will probably use this final opportunity to burst the Obama bubble. Chances are she'll be at her nastiest this evening so if Obama can withstand it - he may just wrap things up next Tuesday.

It wasn't a dream, it was a dream come true

A friend of mine, Danny, sent me these today. I have not seen them before but I sure do like them a lot. Hope you do too. (If not you must be once of my readers from Boston.)

Ralph? Enough Already!

Ralph Nader is running for President again. What a dumb ass. His previous runs accomplished nothing positive and yet he still goes on. While the number of people who support him are shrinking, they still present a danger to the USA. Some folks just don't get the errors of their ways or realize the damage they (even accidental) do to the nation. On the right, they call themselves "Conservatives" (you know the ones I mean - those with a list of policies ideas derived from the college republicans, talk radio and Fox News - which they believe are infallible and nonnegotiable no matter how consistently they fail). So while I'm thankful that "Conservatives" seem to be loosing their grip on power in the USA, I just hope the the lefts' version of this narrow mindedness continues to diminish in scope and influence.

Cartoon Commentary

Big Mac Attack

Here is a clip from a show this morning where Mike Huckabee goes off on the Republican establishment that wants him to leave the race before John McCain even has enough delegates to win the GOP nomination. My man Huck is, once again, right on!

10

Last night Barack Obama won his 9th and 10th straight victories. It's looking like he will take the nomination. I'm glad he is continuing to win and continuing to campaign hard in the states to come. One of the most impressive things I've noticed in this election season is just how well thought out, organized and effective Obama's campaign has been compared to all of the other candidates. I hope this indicates that he would have an effective Administration should make it all the way to the White House.

In his victory speech last night Obama reminded the audience that victory would not be easy and that change will require all of us. I like that. One of the many criticisms of the Bush Administration is that he never directly asked average Americans to sacrifice (although his policies have caused us to suffer - it's not quite the same thing). Now, of course, sacrifice for it's own sake is pointless. But to come out of the dire situation the USA now finds itself in, individual sacrifice - and effort - will be required. I certainly hope that Obama continues to talk about the work all Americans will have to do AFTER a new President takes office. Accomplishing the dramatic changes that he wants and the country needs will take all of us.

Ants

Quit yer bitchin'

Fidel Castro Steps Aside

I woke up today hearing that Fidel Castro was stepping down as leader of Cuba. I was surprised because I always figured he would stay in power until the day he died. I'm guessing he must be pretty close to death now and is trying to make the transition to a new leader go as smoothly as possible. Of course President Bush has tough words about it all - demanding (he always demands doesn't he) free and fair elections. What a sad joke.

I have thought for quite a while that we should open relations with Cuba. The only people being hurt are the Cuban people. Right wing Cuban-Americans (and the neo-cons they allied themselves with) have been calling the shots in our Cuba policy for the past generation. As far as I can tell it only succeeded in giving Castro an excuse for his poor management of the nation and some Cubans-Americans an excuse to act persecuted even while enjoying more advantages than virtually any other immigrant group in our history.

Perhaps with the changing of the guard there and (soon) here, we can brush aside all this pointless posturing and introduce a Cuba policy which does not embrace exclusion of those victimized by Fidel Castro nor favoritism to those who fled the island to live in the United States.

Say Cheese!

Obama: a Dignified Climbdown for Republicans?

There are quite a few republicans who, if not promising to vote for Barack Obama, at least are taking a look at him. What a difference from the hyper-partisanship we all have been part of for the past generation. This diary offers an intriguing explanation for this crossover appeal.

Gandhi and Dr. King always said that in a struggle with an oppressor, the most important thing is to separate the oppressor from their oppression - oppose the behavior, not the person - and try to find a way for the oppressor to "cimb down" from their perch and see the light but with their dignity fully intact. ... [Obama]is offering an emotionally powerful idea of hope and cooperation - which appeals to everyone, including Republicans. ... Hillary Clinton is not only incapable of inspiring such optimism, her baggage from the past (unfair or not as it may be) stops her from being such an inspiring figure. Obama is the Democratic Reagan. The Dems for Reagan voted not for his right-wing policies, but for his message of optimism.

Huckabee goes for (a) Broke(red Convention)!

Mike Huckabee knows that he can still win the Republican nomination only if he forces a brokered convention. With the widespread dissastisfaction for John McCain, it could actually work! It would be a longshot - but that is Huckabees' style anyway.

Cartoon Commentary

Happy Friday!

Ouch!

It's All Barack!

Another night of elections and another sweep for Barack Obama. This extends his winning streak to 8 in a row. Obama is on a roll, still gaining momentum and now leads in the delegate count. There's still a way to go but right now - it's all Barack!

Two Years Ago Today

It's snowing today in the city but nothing compared to the Blizzard of '06!

Write your own headline ....

... because this picture is too good not to!

Sugar Substitutes Not So Sweet

I have always shunned away from artificial sweeteners. I try to eat healthy but have no fear of sugar. Eaten moderately, sugar is a natural product that makes just about anything taste good. So no diet sodas for me - give me the real thing every time. Well, in addition to my reservations about the artificial nature of these sweeteners comes evidence that they actually make it more difficult to lose weight!

...A sweet taste might be a sign that "calories are coming, and I should prepare my body for the arrival of those calories." However, when the sweetness is not followed by a lot of calories, the body's digestive system gets confused, and the metabolism rate does not gear up as much the next time sweetness is tasted.

The Maine Man

Barack Obama swept the weekend contests 5 for 5 with his victory in Maine on Sunday. Coming up Tuesday are a series of primaries in the Virginia and the Washington D.C. area. Hillary is strong in Virginia, Obama in D.C. with the other states are more or less a toss up. Go Barack Go!

Reaching

While I support Barack Obama overall and would really like to see Mike Huckabee win on the Republican side, I wrote a little something the other day on my other website listing Six Reasons Why John McCain Is OK With Me, if he hangs on to win the GOP nomination.

Underdogs Prevail!

Obama and Huckabee again surprised pudits by their victories Saturday. That's my boys!

RED SPIN: Conservatism can never fail, it can only be failed

I rarely reprint someone else's blog post in whole but this one I had to. If you read or listen to many who claim to be "conservative" you will hear people so brainwashed to a set of ideas that they are convinced are absolutely perfect. They honestly think that "conservative" policies are flawless! So, whenever conservatism fails (which it always does) they will quickly slip into denial and argue that it was because the policies that their hand picked politicians implemented were NOT conservative at all! So after a generation of conservative Judges, conservative Congresses and conservative Presidents - they claim that the reason everything is a mess is because .. well because all those people they elected or appointed were not conservative after all. Huh? Their denial is more than just an annoyance, it is a strategy which has crippled our nation since at least 1980. Yet it continues...

from Digby

Somehow I don't think it actually hurts John McCain's chances of winning to have Chris Matthews' BFF Tom Delay on Hardball saying that McCain is too liberal because it's "arrogant to think man can affect the climate," and because he hasn't endorsed a right to "drive through Philly with a bazooka hanging out of the window of their Hummer." Not that he'll win anyway...Matthews: Will you vote for John McCain if it keeps the Clintons out of the White House? DeLay: I don't have to decide that right now. Do you get the feeling that the conservatives are gaming this thing? I knew that you would.They know they are going to lose. They will blame the loss on the fact that McCain wasn't a real conservative (just like Bush.) They know when to fall back and regroup. They're already playing for the next election. Everybody sing: Conservatism can never fail, it can only be failed.

Now THIS is Super!

Want more? Watch this.

Mitt Drops It

Mitt Romney is out and now is the chance for Mike Huckabee to make his move. He should, with a smile on his face, distinguish himself as the conservative alternative to John McCain. He should say that McCain is a moderate and while that's not a bad thing, Republican voters who want a conservative now have only him to vote for. It may not work, and he might want to factor how it would effect his VP chances, but what the Huck - go for it Mike.

Super Night

A Tuesday as Super as yesterday will take some time to fully understand and analyze. But here are some quick thoughts. First of all, I woke up today to find that Missouri, the state I have been pointing to as the bellwether state for Democrats, had switched from a Clinton win to an Obama win. I hope that is indicative of not only yesterday, but of the contests to come. That's to say that Clinton has strength and the traditional machine but Obama has the momentum for the future. This is the trend I am seeing right now. Obama is excelling in places that he is able to visit, spend time in and talk to the people. Early voters are trending Clinton, but those who have more time to listen to Barack are gravitating to him. This could be a very good thing in the weeks to come and is already benefiting him in the delegate count.

One the Republican side, my man Huckabee shocked the world once again by winning states all through the south. If John McCain is able to hang on to the nomination he will almost certainly be forced to choose Huck as his #2. But watch out, I still think there is a chance that Huckabee could have more surprises in store. One development I will be watching for is the abandonment of Romney by the talk show types and I wonder if they will now move to Huckabee. I bet Huck is wondering and hoping the same thing. Sure, they have slammed him in the recent past, but people forget that they also hated Romney up until it became apparent (in their mind) that he was the only choice to face off against McCain. I would not be surprised if these right wingers flipped flopped once again and jumped on the Huckabee bandwagon. Also, this is the time where Huck should start to campaign against John McCain. Huck is good at that and I'm sure he already knows what he will say to bring him down.

I'll pour over the result more today and in the days to come and try to share my thoughts as they come. On a personal note, I had so much fun watching all the returns. I was trying to watch 2 or 3 TV stations at a time, listen to the radio and serf the web. Finally about 3am I threw in the towel, put on a rerun of Frasier and fell asleep. I am just waking up now (got the morning off) and am looking forward to seeing what else has developed overnight.

Super Tuesday

Here we go! The 2nd Super Bowl of the week. I'll be glued to the TV tonight. Now, I'm off to vote for Barack Obama!

This is the first I've seen of this. While I'm not a real Dead Head, I have played one on TV. When they say they are "fired up" .. I'm sure they mean it. Rock the vote hippies!

PERFECTVILLE: POPULATION 1

If I really started writing my thoughts about how good I feel about the Giants winning last night I would go on for hours. I would talk about listening to the 1972 Dolphins on the radio as they marched to perfection. I would reminisce about watching Super Bowl VII and freaking out when Garo bobbled the blocked field goal. I would tell you about how I got to meet Mercury Morris in 1982 when he was serving time in prison and I was a young intern there. I would tell you about how my dad looked like Garo back in the 1970's and how kids at school would ask for his autograph during Father/Son days. I would tell you about the 1972 perfect season book that I have cherished all theses years and stumbled across at my parents house over Christmas (I could not bear to look at it - fearful about the Pats*). I would tell you how the 1972 championship was one of the highlights of my childhood and even my life and I would share with you just how much holding on to this record means to me. No, I won't get into all that. It would just take too much time.

CHEATERS NEVER WIN (them all)!

1972 MIAMI DOLPHINS REMAIN ONLY UNDEFEATED TEAM IN NFL HISTORY!

A Super Bowl of Cheaties

Congress Moves to Investigate NFL

Senator Arlen Spector is calling out the NFL and demanding hearings about “Spygate”. He wants to bring NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to Washington to answer his questions about the cheating scandal that has tainted this year's Super Bowl. Goodell is working hard to spin his role in the activity, but there should be no denying that the National Football League has gotten itself into a terrible situation. Certainly any Patriots* achievements this year (and perhaps during the entire Bill Belichick reign) are dubious because of the seriousness of the cheating offenses. Additionally, and the behavior of the NFL, which destroyed evidence privately while they levied record fines in front of the cameras, (and simply ignored other charges) has called into question it's own integrity.

Many are quick to dismiss this as much adu about nothing. But think about it, the Patriots* had been secret gathering and using inside information they should not have and others did not have for over a full year. Fining people does not erase their memory nor the advantage the Patriots* coaching staff retains to this day. Sure, teams have come up with new signals now, but Belichick and Co. still have an enhanced understanding of opposing teams strategies and methods of adaptations that you can't get simply by viewing legal game film. They had an unobstructed peek behind the curtain of the opposing team’s thinking and tendencies. There is a reason what they did is illegal!

It's too late now to levy what should have been the appropriate penalty, removal of the coaching staff and forfeiting of the 1 game they were actually caught red handed, but perhaps Congress can help to eventually restore the once honorable reputation of the NFL. Sadly, it just won't be in time for this Super Sunday.

Happy Friday!

I always liked pancakes as a kid but stopped eating them for years. On the rare occasions I had breakfast, I would make scrambled eggs and cheese at home or ham and cheese omelets if I ate out. It wasn't until I first moved to Las Vegas that I rediscovered the simple beauty of pancakes. They always taste good and contrary to eggs, are easy on my stomach every time. Now they sell an easy to use package so I can even make them at home. Today's video was put together by some guys using stop action video. It's pretty cool. I also have a new poll in the sidebar where you can share your breakfast preferences.