Split Decision: FOX News Style

Meltdown - What We Have Learned, What We Should Do

1. President Bush is not respected - by anyone.
It took 7 and 1/2 years for Conservatives to finally figure this out but even they have come to realize that their poster boy for Conservatism is a complete screw up. Of course their timing could not have been worse. Republican Bush put forward his plan, with the approval of his economic advisers and could not get his party to fall in line. Now, and only now, the Conservatives say that Bush can't be trusted. So you let your man drive us off the cliff and now try to distance yourself from him? Gimme a break! Where were you for the past 7 1/2 years?

2. Conservative Economics has failed & Conservatives don't care about America.
Let's face it - Reganomics has run it's course. Like all economic ideologies, the weaknesses eventually overwhelm the strengths. Trickle down / Supply Side economics has brought us to this mess. Some may argue that it gave us 20-25 good years (I don't think so, but that is an argument that can be made). But it's over. The fact that Conservatives in the House cling to this theory despite all the evidence proves that they are blinded by ideology and put their misguided embrace of supply side economics over the good of the country. Again.

3. You can't negotiated with Conservatives.
Never have been able to, never will be. Remember, the credo of the "Republican Revolution" was that "compromise is weakness". These people are rigid ideologues detached from reality. Look over the past 30 years and I predict you will see failure everywhere Democrats tried to appease or compromise with Conservatives. It can't be done. We should all know by now that Conservatives see only what they want to see and stick with their foolish ideology no matter what the facts on the ground are. My God, this should be clear to everyone by now! Don't bother trying to negotiate with these people - they don't play well with others and they will only bring you down.

4. Holiday shows others who don't put country first.
OK, so it is a big Jewish holiday. If the Jewish members of Congress say they can't work because of it - that's fine. It's their right. But make no mistake they are putting their religion over the good of the country. Don't tell me the world is coming to an end in the morning and then take a holiday break in the evening! No person taking time off in this crisis, Jew or non-Jew (even worse because they are doing it to pander rather than for their own personally held beliefs), should be allowed to put "Country First" on any campaign literature. It's not true. You are putting your religion first. That's fine - but just admit it.

5. Pelosi has bad timing.
Her speech yesterday was a brilliant explanation of how Reaganomics and now, Bushonomics failed the American people. But she should have given that speech everyday before yesterday and everyday after. The fact that Republican policies and ideology are to blame for our current disaster needs to be understood by all Americans. Pelosi should have made that clear by now and certainly should continue to hammer that point home in the months and even years to come. However, yesterday afternoon was not a good time to do it.

6. Democrats need to go it alone.
The Democrats should now start from scratch and write a plan that will get nearly unanimous Democrat support and not worry about the Conservatives, Bush or Paulson. When Conservatives in Congress walked away from responsibility yesterday because of harsh words and a blind allegiance to a failed economic theory, it became apparent that it's time to just leave them out of the process. Their input mostly favored the wealthy anyway so to Hell with them. They had their chance yesterday and could not muster the courage to do what was necessary. They blew their last chance to cooperate. The Democrats should now put together a bill on their own that reflect their values and those, increasingly, of the majority of their country.

McCain Losing It

In more ways than I can count. Remember the other day when he claimed victory in the debate - eight hours before it even took place? Well, he's at it again. Earlier today, John McCain claimed victory and credit for the bail out bill, which failed hours later. This guy is so desperate and out of touch he is left to claim victory for events that have yet to occur. I know that conservative voters regularly ignore reality, but do they ignore time too? Let's hope that the closest McCain ever comes to victory on November 4th is declaring victory on November 3rd.

Cartoon Commentary

Too Funny

Post-Debate Analysis

It was great watching the debate last night and it's amazing to think that the election is only 6 weeks away. McCain actually looked alive and alert in his performance last night which might stop his free fall in the polls. But only temporarily. Obama was very strong throughout the debate and I think he crossed that invisible "commander in chief" threshold. I believe that the poll I am showing here is the most important sign of an Obama victory last night. If so many undecided voters have a new, positive view of him, that bodes very well for his election prospects. The fact that so few got a less favorable opinion is surprising, and also very encouraging.

In the days to come there will be a lot of post debate spin to come. The GOP is masterful of creating a new reality and count on them to push home the point that John McCain really won. Unless they succeed in convincing Americans that they did not see what they think they saw, (the Republicans are very good at that), then Barack Obama should be able to use last night's strong performance to ride a wave into the White House.

Paul Newman RIP

Paul Newman was probably the first celebrity I was ever around. I was a little kid and my dad was an extra in the movie 'Rachael Rachael'. I remember seeing Paul Newman in the distance and very clearly remembering my mom (in her early 20's at the time) and her sister ooh and ahh'ing over this Paul Newman guy. I found this quite strange but it was just kind of cool being on a movie set.

Newman did what few people do when they get rich. He gave back. He started his line of food products which resulted in millions going to charity. He was active in political causes and always seemed to be looking to help out others rather than selfishly looking to gain more for himself. Paul Newman will be missed.

The Great Debate

Tonight at 9PM

I know it's wrong so what should I do?

Let's do the time warp again

John McCain has an ad out NOW (8 hours BEFORE the debate) declaring that he has won the debate! [insert punch line here]

Hoffman Update

There has been a lot going on in the case of Rachael Hoffman. Most notably the police officers responsible for sending her to her death will NOT face criminal charges. (full coverage)

There's Nothing About Sarah

Former Sarah Palin supporter Glenn Greenwald has changed his mind.

But Sarah Palin's performance in the tiny vignettes of unscripted dialogue in which we've been allowed to see her has been nothing short of frightening -- really, as I said, pity-inducing. And I say that as someone who has thought from the start that the criticisms of her abilities -- as opposed to her ideology -- were much too extreme. One of two things is absolutely clear at this point: she is either (a) completely ignorant about the most basic political issues -- a vacant, ill-informed, incurious know-nothing, or (b) aggressively concealing her actual beliefs about these matters because she's petrified of deviating from the simple-minded campaign talking points she's been fed and/or because her actual beliefs are so politically unpalatable, even when taking into account the right-wing extremism that is permitted, even rewarded, in our mainstream. I'm not really sure which is worse, but it doesn't really matter, because with 40 days left before the election, both options are heinous.

I am suspending today's blog entry

I was going to write a long blog post today but due to the ongoing financial crisis I will not. I am going to walk to the subway in a few minutes. Out of respect for John McCain, I will NOT be chewing gum at the same time.

Comment of the Day

Yeah. This about sums it up.

One of the rhetorical devices the GOP-prepped candidates (like Bush & McCain) like to use is talking about "blinking". They often say how a leader cannot blink in the face of a crisis, how they will not blink when confronting islamic terrorism, how we must not blink in the face of monumental challenges.

Well, now McCain and his entire campaign is blinking - blinking at the press, blinking at debates, blinking at the financial crisis. And it seems to me that on 9/11/01, President Bush did nothing but blink for seven minutes. After which he massively overreacted in one of the most memorable and devastating acts of cover-my-ass in American history, causing orders of magnitude more damage to America than Bin Laden could have dreamed of.

That should show everyone what these people are: bullshit artists who cower at the prospect of accountability and responsibility.

Bail Out! McCain tries to Cancel Friday's Debate

Oh my. Even I'm embarrassed for John McCain as he tries this latest act of desperation.
UPDATE: Perhaps this is the real disaster McCain is trying to prevent.

The McCain Economic Plan

Since I posted the video of Barack explaining his economic program and in the interest of (cough - cough) fair play ... here is a video explaining McSame's strategy for economic security.

McCainâ s Economic Plan For Nation: 'Everyone Marry A Beer Heiress'

Watch Your Back, Mac

As you all know, I have long believed that Sarah Palin is a conniving megalomaniac. I also suspect that John McCain has come to realize that. (Their body language is so illustrative) Well, here is an article that seem to give more credence to my theory.

See what happens when you sell out John? Much as Dick Cheney manhandled George W. Bush (especially at first) Palin will bully McCain viciously (she already is). This lady is dangerous in more ways than I care to outline. (Although a good summary is here).

John McCain has become a tragic figure. Once an independent maverick, he sold out to Bush and then the radical right of his party. Now he stands to either lose this election or destroy the nation if he should win. No wonder he looks so lost and lonely on the campaign trail. He can't trust his running mate and the American people can't trust him.

A Grand Farewell!

Sunday night was terrific. There was a festive, not sad, air in The Stadium. The weather was surreal in it's perfection. The afternoon was incredibly sunny and only slightly warm. In the evening some clouds formed in the distance giving stunning dimension to the orange and pink sky. And the night was a perfect 72 degrees with a calm and cool breeze flowing through the stands. The pregame ceremony was incredible with legends from years past there. The house was of course packed from 6pm to about midnight. People came early and stayed late.

I should probably write a long story about the whole day and night, but time does not allow. Suffice it to say that it was really a nearly perfect end to a great Stadium. It was nice to be able to spend it with my Yankee friends who have sat together for the past 3 years. The entire evening was picture perfect!

Speaking of picture perfect, Sarah took a ton of photos and you can see them here. She wrote the captions too! (If you click on the first photo on that page, you can get a little slideshow by just clicking NEXT to see the others in a larger format. Enjoy!) Thanks hon!

These are the seat we had. Empty now. Empty forever.

A Long Goodbye

Ahhh. The weather is great, I got a full night's sleep (finally) and the Yankee festivities are about to begin. I'm not sad about the Stadium closing, at least not right now. I just feel so lucky and fortunate to have been able to see so many games there. That alone was such a thrill. Today, I actually get to walk on the field and visit monument park, which somehow I have managed to miss doing. It will be an all day affair at the ballpark. I will probably arrive about 2 and get home 10 or 11 hours later.

Classic moments at Yankee Stadium

Meet The Expert!

Sad thing is, many Americans would rather see this idiot in office than any black person.

Seeing the Light: The "Surge" did not work

A troubling new report looking at satellite imagery in Iraq finds evidence that the troop "surge" did NOT work after all.

Night light in neighborhoods populated primarily by embattled Sunni residents declined dramatically just before the February 2007 surge and never returned, suggesting that ethnic cleansing by rival Shiites may have been largely responsible for the decrease in violence for which the U.S. military has claimed credit...

"If the surge had truly 'worked,' we would expect to see a steady increase in night-light output over time, as electrical infrastructure continued to be repaired and restored, with little discrimination across neighborhoods," said co-author Thomas Gillespie, an associate professor of geography at UCLA. "Instead, we found that the night-light signature diminished in only in certain neighborhoods, and the pattern appears to be associated with ethno-sectarian violence and neighborhood ethnic cleansing."

The Final Season, The Final Game

Sunday is the final game ever at Yankee Stadium. I just found out that it will be an all day fun fest. That's gonna be great!!! And, for once, there is no rain in the forecast. I sure am glad that I didn't sell my ticket and that I don't have to work AT ALL on Sunday.

If "The Stadium" could talk, THIS is how it would say good bye.

I don't like to blow smoke, but my death is unlike any loss seen before in America. I am tangible Americana, like Independence Hall, the Alamo or Graceland. I have been about more than baseball. The first papal mass ever celebrated in the Western Hemisphere? That was me. The first overtime game in NFL history? Me. The birthplace of the "DEE-fense! DEE-fense!" chant? Of the Bronx cheer? Of the triple-decker ballpark in this country? The electronic scoreboard, the replay video board, the "Win one for the Gipper" aphorism, what it means to get Wally Pipped, the standing applause on two-strike counts, the running leap onto home plate to punctuate a walk-off homer? Me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me and me.

Person of the Day

Wick Allison

The Golden Rule

I saw this headline "Gold prices post biggest 1-day gain ever" and it made me think.

Many years ago I thought about writing a book called "The Coming Collapse of Capitalism". What stopped me was a lack of formal business education and experience. (That was back in the day when being educated and experienced meant something.) What I sensed though, was that Capitalism was falling victim to the greed of capitalists and the failure of politicians to adequately control it.

To oversimplify my thesis was that:
1. Capitalism is based on faith and only faith. Money is only paper. Meaningless really, if the public decided it was meaningless. You can't eat a dollar bill, can't build shelter with it, it can't cure illness. Capitalism is a faith based system.
2. That faith was (and is) being destroyed by the separation between the super-rich and everyone else. This separation was causing (and will cause) everyday people to conclude that the current economic system is fatally flawed and therefore, once people decide not to play the game - not to have faith that those greenbacks mean anything - then Capitalism inevitably will collapse.

The headline above brings me back to the line of reasoning I have had for a very long time. You see, I don't understand why Gold is "valuable". Sure it looks nice and is a finite resource, but much like currency, it serves no real purpose in the sustenance of our lives. It too, is a faith based currency. Of course, those who buy and sell so-called precious metals see a profit or loss, but that does not automatically mean it has real use or value. It only has value if everyone agrees it does.

I'm sure I am missing something but in times of real crisis (I always think of South Florida in the days after Andrew) what would you rather have, a bag of groceries worth $100 or a handful of gold worth $1,000. Unless someone want to try to convince me otherwise, I will maintain that faith and only faith in the fairness of Capitalism gives greenbacks and precious metals their value. Nothing else. If and when that faith is broken, so will be our economic system.

Sentence of the Day

"It's a manifestation of the contempt for knowledge, celebration of ignorance, and deification of greed that has come to define the modern conservative movement."

source

A New Week Begins

And it's going to be another long one. Here are some random thoughts:

The Yankees have just 1 week left of this miserable season. Next Sunday is the last game ever at "The Stadium". It should be a wonderful night of reminiscing and good byes. (But this makes me wonder if I want to watch it from home)

The Dolphins start the season 0-2. They looked OK the first game against the Jets but played terribly yesterday. I hope they do turn things around sooner rather than later.

I'm suffering from Palin burnout. It is really unfair to the American public and to our democracy as a whole to throw an unknown into the mix just weeks before the election. It is the height if disrespect and irresponsibility. Plus, she seems more corrupt than your average Alaskan politician and more power hungry than even Dick Cheney. She would never make it through the true vetting of a primary campaign. That's why the right wing want to sneak her in this way. God help us all if they succeed.

The economy is tanking again today. Is the American public bright enough to understand the obvious? Eight years of Bush-o-nomics have failed miserably. Pretty simple really. Simple enough for voters to connect the dots? Let's hope so.

I haven't been following the news exhaustively so I might have missed something but it seems odd to me that of the POST Hurricane Ike news is so minimal. Are there scores of dead people in the Galveston area? There must be. What’s going on there and why is there so little news. A FEMA blackout?

Mayor Bloomberg has been sending out feelers about removing the term limits for his position. I hope it works. I am against term limits and am for Mike Bloomberg. It make no sense whatsoever to me that the NYC voters lose their right to vote for a 3rd term for Bloomberg if they so choose.

Cartoon Commentary

Lipstick on a Dick (Cheney that is)

Wow! All my worst fears are correct. Take 15 minutes to read it all.

The [New York] Times interviewed more than 60 Alaskans who've encountered the so-called Barracuda, the tales were not pretty.Throughout her political career, she has pursued vendettas, fired officials who crossed her and sometimes blurred the line between government and personal grievance, according to a review of public records and interviews with 60 Republican and Democratic legislators and local officials.

Interviews show that Ms. Palin runs an administration that puts a premium on loyalty and secrecy. The governor and her top officials sometimes use personal e-mail accounts for state business; dozens of e-mail messages obtained by The New York Times show that her staff members studied whether that could allow them to circumvent subpoenas seeking public records.

There is so much more

Voter Supression - The Red American Way

If the Republicans can't win an election on the merits - they lie. When they can't win on the numbers - they change the rules. No wonder they HIDE behind the flag and bible. Otherwise this is what people would see they are doing. If you ever need to think of an example of the long term damage the conservative movement has done to our once thriving democracy, here's a nice example to cite. Sadly, it will be only 1 chapter in the fat history books of the future which explain the demise of the United States.

...White Republicans in some areas will keep eligible blacks from voting by requiring driver's licenses. Not only is this new-fangled discrimination constitutional, it's spreading. GOP proponents of the move say they are merely trying to reduce voter fraud. But while occasional efforts to stuff ballot boxes through phony absentee voting still surface, the incidence of individual vote fraud—voting when you aren't eligible—is virtually non-existent.

Y'IKE!!!!! Houston, you have a problem

Clueless in Alaska

Well, well, well Sarah Palin finally gave an interview and as I feared, she is a simple minded ideologue. She only regurgitated right wing talking points during the interview or ignored the question all together. We can see that she is getting the classic tutoring from Republican operatives, but it can not hide the fact that she has no depth to her thought process, little knowledge of even contemporary history and totally in over her head. If Republicans like Presidents who are “just like us”, they will love this dim bulb from Alaska. Those of us who want someone BETTER than we are, have a clear choice in Obama/Biden. Let’s hope, after 8 years of a cocky ideological “everyman” in the White House we have learned our lesson about electing a puppet for a political movement over that of someone who’s primary interest is the good of the country.

UPDATE: Here's a fact check of the Palin interview.

UPDATE II: Today I have been adding links to this story. I haven't changed what I have written, but since I am often (yawn) ahead of the curve, when I come across news stories that come out during the day which support the arguments I made earlier, I link them up. So, what I am saying is that you should re-read any posts here which interest you, because they may be updated with fresh citations over the hours and days after the original blog is posted.

Distorting and Distracting Republicans are Dividing and Destroying America

So the Republican are succeeding in diverting voters attention away from the important issues of the day. You can't blame them - not only do they have no answers to make things better but their "dumbing down" strategy has worked over the past 30 years almost without fail. It's deja vu all over again in 2008. This year we are being asked to get all excited about Sarah Palin while ignoring the fact that she is the most unqualified, dishonest and unimpressive candidate to take the national stage in recent memory. Therefore, the McCain team wants to talk about lipstick and other idiotic topics. The press, of course, is more than happy to follow.

I no longer have patience for this type of crap. The American people really have a stark choice to make in this election. It is crystal clear that the GOP wants to distract and divide the nation even more than it is now so they can hold on to power. It's is also clear that Obama is trying to propose real solutions to our very real problems. If the American public, once again, gets distracted and votes for the superficial, then this nation will join hundreds of others in dissolving into the dustbin of history. As I mentioned before, many of us will not stop it from happening. With democracy comes responsibility on the part of the electorate. If the American public fails again to live up to this responsibility - then democracy will have failed - and so will have the great experiment called the United States of America.

I will continue to do my part to spread the word about the serious choice we face in November. However, I may not be posting as much about politics as you would expect. We'll see. If the debate turns serious again, I will welcome a real discussion on the issues. But if the media and the GOP continue to distract and divide, I will let them. After all, a country which rewards this stuff time and time and time again does not deserve to survive and is certainly not worthy of my time, energy or efforts.

Mainstream Media Manipulated Mightily

Perhaps the biggest lie the conservative movement has succeeded in getting away with is the lie of a "Liberal Media". No need to restate my many arguments disproving this. However I do have a couple more examples to add.

First of all, bowing to the pressure by FOXNews and their echo chamber, Keith Olberman has been removed from the anchor chair on MSNBC for their election coverage this political season. Seems FOX, talk radio and the GOP thought that he was not fair and balanced. So NBC dumped them. Again, the right wing makes others play by rules they regularly ignore.

Another case in point, the secretive Sarah Palin has finally agreed to face the media. Well, only sort of. She is talking with ABC News' Charlie Gibson, but only after he agreed to limit his questions to topics the McCain campaign approved of. Sarah is sooo special isn't she?

Cartoon Commentary

What the Hannah?

We're getting some rain today.

Joe Biden: Ready, Willing and Able!

Palin: Not Ready, Willing or Able

Who is Sarah Palin? Well,that's none of your business!

We have a perfect stranger, 2 months away from being elected Vice President - 4 months away from being a 72 year old heart beat away from running this country. Amazingly, we have confirmation from McCain spokesmen that she is not ready for prime time. We know she is inexperienced, uneducated in world affairs and an extremists (funny how ignorance and extremism always go together). But now we find out that she will not answer questions from the media. Oh Sarahhhhhh, aren't you special.

Why is she dodging this most basic task of an open Democracy? Well I think it is because she is more Cheney-esque than anything else. I think she despises the media and "government in the sunshine" so, like Cheney, she will just ignore the media and do whatever she damn well feels like.

But lets give her the benefit of the doubt and assume that the McCain people are right. She is just "not ready" to face questions. Oh my F'ing God! So she is not ready to tell the public what she's all about, but will be ready to lead the world in a few months? No Way. No How. The GOP is trying to force a radical neophyte down our throats without giving the public time to learn what this person is all about.

The irony would be hilarious if it wasn't so serious. The Republicans tried to scare voters into thinking that Obama was young, inexperienced and risky. They mocked his "celebrity" and tried to say that his followers had a messiah complex. It was all BS of course but that's what they did. Yet they nominate someone younger, less experienced and much more risky and then praise her as the Messiah. Ladies and Gentleman .. "Conservatives" should not only be kept away from any positions of power but they should all be examined by psychologists. For them to hate (really, really hate) Obama for the very reasons they adore (really, really adore) Palin shows some serious mental problems on a massive scale. For them to now try to hide away this candidate to keep the rest of us from learning about her shallowness and extreme views is the height of disrespect and irresponsibility.

McCain tries to claim that he is a maverick. But sadly, it's the same old pattern of behavior from the Republican party: they do whatever they want, they force others to play by the rules they ignore and above all they are never, ever to be held accountable.

Country First my Ass!

The Palinistas Are Born!

Their New Messiah Has Come.

John McCain: A Prisoner Once Again

John McCain's acceptance speech accomplished many things. It deflated the crazed excitement of the GOP delegates created by his running mate, it reminded us all how old John McCain is and it showed us how completely he has surrendered to the far right in his party. This week's Republican convention was all about John McCain selling out.

.

Even as recently as 2000, McCain railed against the extremists in his party. He fought against the politics of division fancied by the Dobson's and Limbaugh's of his party. No more. Now he panders to them. Yes, the very people he battled against all those years ago have succeeded in breaking the man and have now absorbed him into their movement. Sadly, once again John McCain has surrendered the fight and given in to his enemies.

McCain's speech was well delivered, but didn't seem to relate to any of the real issues of 2008. It was a look back - wayyy back to his days in Vietnam. I know everyone appreciates his service back then and the sacrifices he still lives with as a result. But last night McCain missed a prime opportunity to refute Obama's charge that he "doesn't get it". The focus on his past only reinforced the image of a man far removed from everyday Americans.

While McCain last night tried to portray himself as the old maverick of years gone by, it just doesn't wash. He sold out to George W. Bush over the past 8 years and sold out to the extremists in his party just this week, seen most starkly with the selection of his running mate. John McCain may have once been a rouge inside the Republican party, but they broke him and he is now a captive of the same forces in the GOP that has lead the United States down our current disastrous path.

Palin Effect? Stocks tumble on 'Day After'

Laughable

Odds and Ends

The NFL season starts this weekend. The Dolphins are actually going to be on tv too since they play the Jets. Now if I can only get that day off.

Instant replay was used in baseball for the first time and it helped theYankees. Gosh, they need all the help they can get.

Cindy McCain fits the mold perfectly of a Republican Presidential candidate's spouse. Here is terrible picture of her that makes me laugh.

My friend Big Daddy Jeff wrote a couple thoughtful posts on the politics of the day. Read it.

This DISTURBING video should send a lesson to people who would run onto a football field and to the cops that would abuse their power.

Palin Speech

I thought the speech was good but not spectacular. She seemed like a corporate presenter but did not come across as a potential commander in chief. I think she'll get good reviews at first but the concerns will return. The one thing that really stuck out to me was the complete lack of electricity between McCain and Palin when he joined her on stage. They not only didn't seem close, they didn't seem to even like each other. John McCain seems uncomfortable with her and she seems uninterested in him. Very, very odd. Thinking about it through the lens of my Megalomaniac Theory, I wonder if she has out mavericked the old maverick. Is he having buyers remorse because she doesn't play second fiddle well. After all, McCain never did, did he?

"Letter to the Editor" ... of the day

Below is a letter that I thought was really good regarding the Sarah Palin pick. I haven't really written too much about it because it is one of those topics that I want to go on and on about but don't have the time. There is so much wrong with her as the pick. It is an insult and a danger to this country. I do want to talk briefly about an aspect of her personality that I have noticed but have not heard others talk or write about: her ambition and her ideology.

My impression is that she is a megalomaniac. Combine her "ambition over family" mentality with her "God over country" beliefs (her God, not yours or mine) and that spells D-A-N-G-E-R!! There is a now famous video where she says that she does not know what a Vice President does. Frightening, but what is even more serious is how she completes that thought. At the end she says (paraphrasing) that she will have to make sure that her powers are clearly defined and strongly implies that those powers will have to be "fruitful" to meet her expectations. This is not a throw away line. She wants power and has undoubtedly made that clear to John McCain. McCain, desperately flailing for a surprising pick, undoubtedly gave in instantly to the former beauty queen. Considering her extreme ideology and her lust for power - we have a potential disaster on our hands. You were warned here first: Sarah Palin is another Dick Cheney, if not worse.


To the Editor:

Although discussion about families of candidates may be off limits, as both Barack Obama and John McCain have argued, the news that Bristol Palin, 17 and unmarried, is pregnant does raise ... questions that should legitimately be part of the conversation about the candidates.

First, what does it say about the judgment of a parent — father or mother — who takes on tasks that will necessarily keep that parent away from family and preoccupied (at least I would hope preoccupied) with the state of our country, at a time when two of the five children in that family are in particular and poignant need of special attention? What does this say about Sarah Palin’s raw ambition?

And second, what does it say about John McCain’s judgment that he knowingly asked a parent in this situation to be his running mate, without apparent consideration for the effect that this would necessarily have on her family, and particularly on those members of her family most in need? What does this say about John McCain’s cynicism?

What does all this say about the commitment to family values so loudly endorsed by so many McCain supporters?

Ginny Blanford
link

Jerry Reed: RIP

Better Than Me

One of the reasons I like Barack Obama is that, in so many ways, he is better than I am. He has more education, more first hand experience travelling the world, more focus and certainly a better ability to rise above dirty politics than I do. I wish I could "fight fire with water" instead of "fighting fire with fire", but my patience with that is gone. I try not to play dirty, but I am certainly not afraid to play hard. After 8 years of having a president and a party who plays dirty all the time, I want a President Obama, who can show me and many others, a better way.

Barack Obama from a just-completed press conference:

I have heard some of the news on this and so let me be as clear as possible. I have said before and I will repeat again, I think people's families are off limits, and people's children are especially off limits. This shouldn't be part of our politics, it has no relevance to governor Palin's performance as a governor or her potential performance as a vice president. And so I would strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories. You know my mother had me when she was 18. And how family deals with issues and teenage children that shouldn't be the topic of our politics and I hope that anybody who is supporting me understands that is off limits.

Family Values: Preached not Practiced

Why do I say that the Conservative Movement, is now and has always been a fraud? Because the principles invoked by the leaders of the "Family Friendly" Republicans have never followed the rules themselves. Instead, they make sweet sounding appeals to REAL value centered people and smear Democrats as being against family values. All the while, they lead lives as sinful or even more so than your average American. (Limbaugh a drug addict, right wing preachers and politicians closet homosexuals, McCain affairs, etc. etc.) After a generation of conservative governing nothing has changed - abortions are up, and teen pregnancies by unwed mothers are still rampant - yet conservatives still claim to be the remedy of these social ills. Fool me .. what a hundred times!?! So-called conservatives scream and yell and point fingers, but in truth they are just fooling the most gullible and, in many cases, the most moral among us. That's why God has rejected the GOP. That's why the rest of us should too. Republicans cannot even control the sins of themselves or their families. Why in the world would we want them to try to control the morality of the rest of us?

GOD rejects GOP: Prayers Responded to with Great Clarity

It would be easy to make a joke out of the hurricane interrupting the Republican convention. However, there are some very, very serious points to make about it. First of all, let's talk about James Dobson. Dobson has many followers always ready to ask "how high" when Dobson says "jump". A few weeks ago, Dobson said he would not vote for McCain, but now says he will. No surprise there. The word of these people has never been worth anything.

My theory has been for some time that these so called "conservative Christians" are not Godly at all. They are simple capitalists using religion to manipulate people to gain money and power. If there is a God above, He knows this and has been sending us warning for years. Three years ago, I believe, Hurricane Katrina was sent as a message to lay out for all to see the weaknesses of "conservative" governance and the cold hearted reaction that initially come from politicians on the Right. It was Katrina and the aftermath that finally broke a majority of Americans out of their stupor and woke them up to the deficiencies of the "conservative movement".

But James Dobson pushed God too far a couple weeks ago when he called on Him to intervene on the Democratic convention with bad weather. Dobson suggested to his followers get on their knees, get Gods attention and pray for rain during Obama acceptance speech. It was a clear request from Conservatives directly to God. It was rejected and turned upside down!Now even if God despises the so-called religious right, He still listens. And He responds. There can be no Christian who prayed for rain in Denver that can now deny that their prayers were heard and responded to by God with Hurricane Gustov. They would not pray for a weather change if they did not know God would listen and respond. Therefore they cannot ignore the message from above. Democrats good - Republicans bad. James Dobson called on God to take sides in the United States election. He has! God wants Obama to win the election. To deny this is to deny that God has answered your prayers and sent us all a message so easily to understand. To continue to support Republicans after this clear signal is to reject the will of God. God was asked. God responded. Will you listen?