A Moment of Truth

After an hour-long speech tonight in which John McCain pretended to be everything that he is not, and went against the tone and the talking points of everyone in his party throughout the past two and a half days, and after days of Republicans acting as though they are the party of feminism, compassion for special needs children, and bipartisan love, it was nice to finally hear a Republican say what he (or she; I don't want Pat Buchannan or Laura Ingraham to call me sexist) actually meant:

Rep. Lynn Westmoreland [R] Georgia said:

"Just from what little I've seen of [Michelle] and Mr. Obama...they're a member of an elitist-class individual that thinks they're uppity." 

Asked to clarify that he used the word "uppity," Westmoreland said, "Uppity, yeah."

Wow... Wow... I can't wait to hear how a 58-year-old Georgia native tries to explain that he didn't know what that word meant, or better yet, deny its racial connotation (I'm also curious as to how two people can be a member of an individual).

I don't think I want any part in that whole "We are all Georgians" stuff anymore.

It sucks when they do it to you, doesn't it?

I was listening to Laura Ingram on the radio today. She and a conservative pundit guest were talking about the way that the DailyKos and other leftist blogs and "fringe media" were digging up dirt on Sarah Palin, and that the mainstream media was then reporting it. I agree that some of the things these liberal groups are bringing up are rumor and innuendo, and are probably unfair. But, um, didn't conservatives invent this trick? I think what they're really pissed off about is that liberals finally figured out how to smear Republican politicians in ways similar to those created by Newt Gingrich and Rush Limbaugh during the 1990s. To quote my former elementary school students: "They started it."

Disclosure: I live in Oklahoma

As a resident of the Sooner State, I have the fine pleasure of being able to pick up a copy of the nation's worst newspaper, the Oklahoman, any time that pleases me. And I have the opportunity to read thoughtful editorials about the perrils of NBA players hanging out in college towns, positive remarks about the Republican VP nominee whose name I'm not mentioning for at least a day's beneficial ties to energy interests, and an editorial with the shocking revelation in its subtitle: Poverty devastates children.

So it's no surprise when I come across an opinion article with a snappy headline like "Glass warfare: Census data fills us with hope.

Get it? It's like class warfare, but with 'glass' instead. Like the glass is half-full or half-empty. Very clever, but I do think that the writer missed an opportunity to subtitle the article "Census data fills the glass with hope" and really hammer home the pun. But I digress.

According to the unamed writer(s) of this editorial:

"Lumping people into groups that need more government help or into groups that need to surrender more money to the government is a favorite tactic of liberals."

Even though people in Oklahoma are poorer and less healthy than most others in the nation, liberals are using their oldest trick in their elitist academic playbook: trying to get the government to waste money. Liberals just love it when they're able to put a wrench in government efficiency. They try to use fearmongering and label Americans as "poor" or "black" to make people think that they are disadvantaged. With their pessimistic disposition and hate for America, liberals will not stop until the government has spent all of its money on forced abortions and free medical marijuana.

The writer(s) then says:

"Grouping eliminates the need to consider people as individuals who have different reasons for living in poverty, some of their own choosing. The same holds true for statistics showing Oklahomans as being among the least healthy. Individual choice is a major component."

(Stopping my sarcasm for a moment and being serious)
I would contend just the opposite. Grouping makes it easier to blame people for living in poverty and choosing to be unhealthy. It makes it easier for us to disassociate from the realities of peoples lives and people's problems. I normally cringe at anecdotal evidence, but the conservative belief that increased economic growth statistics and data based on mean incomes that are driven up by the richest people deny the true stories of people. If T. Boone Pickens makes another 500 million dollars this year, that'll probably make the economic statistics of Oklahoma citizens look a little stronger.

But I work with people who are Oklahoma citizens. They have trouble making ends meet. And they don't choose to be poor, neither in terms of health or finances. I hate anecdotal evidence, but let's get real for a minute. If conservatives want to make the argument that we're all doing better economically right now, that's an argument that they will lose.

Cant...Take it... Any...More!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just realized that I've done four consecutive posts about Sarah Palin. Then I was looking at my favorite website, realclearpolitcs, just cruising around looking for some established writers to make fun of, and I realized that 12 out of 17 articles were about Palin. As a self-proclaimed crusader against unoriginal thought, I owe it to myself, to my readers, and to God and my country to stop now. I will not be posting anything else about Sarah Palin. As my previous post noted, there really is nothing to say when her supporters are so obviously spewing bullshit talking points and her opponents are spewing bullshit sexist points that they're supposed to not stand for.

No more Sarah Palin. Until at least tomorrow. My head's going to explode.

Don't you realize that she was commander in chief of the Alaska National Guard?

According to Steve Schmidt, John McCain's senior advisor:

“Gov. Sarah Palin is an exceptional governor with a record of accomplishment that exceeds, by far, the governing accomplishments of Sen. Obama. Her selection came after a six-month long rigorous vetting process where her extraordinary credentials and exceptionalism became clear. This vetting controversy is a faux media scandal designed to destroy the first female Republican nominee for vice president of the United States who has never been a part of the old boys' network that has come to dominate the news establishment in this country. Sen. McCain picked his governing partner after a long and thorough search."

I have no joke.

McCain and Palin: Vigilante Justice

In the wake of the revelation that Sarah Palin is about to be a grandmother, I was really disappointed that the media did not cover Palin and John McCain's trip to the Gulf Coast. It's very notable that a senator from Arizona and that the Governor of Alaska decided to take over FEMA for the weekend, and then patrol the streets of the French Quarter with sniper rifles, looking out for looters. I'm not sure how no images of this were produced.

Who Can't Relate to Hunting Moose, Snowmobile Racing, and Hockey?

If there's one thing that I have learned from the last few days of Sarah Palin coverage, it's that Republican's kick ass at staying on message and following talking points. If Barack Obama had chosen someone of Palin's stature to be VP, James Carville, Paul Begala, and plenty of other surrogates would not be able to keep their horror on the inside. But not the Republicans. They can sit there and say with a smile that Palin's stewardship of the Alaskan National Guard and record as a reformer by allowing a Target to move into Waisalia (don't care enough to check the spelling on that) makes her fit for command.

But my favorite argument being floated by Republican surrogates is the idea that millions of women can relate to Palin. Um. I guess a lot of people have fucked up families, and I guess a lot of mothers have to work and take care of kids, but really? Millions of mothers hunt? Millions of mothers take their kids to hockey practice? The NHL can't even get a contract on network TV. Not even millions of women have kids in Iraq; less than 1 percent of the population serves.

All of these middle-class suburban moms are supposed to feel connected to a woman who happily sends her kid to war (when their financial situation could clearly prevent it) and has a daughter who was knocked up by a hockey player? Maybe the truly hardcore Republican moms at the convention this week are feeling Sarah Palin, but it seems to be a bit of a miscalculation to believe that independent suburban moms can identify with this.

Have you heard the news?

Apparently, there is this woman named Sarah Palin who wants to be Vice President. I don't think she's ready to be president. Why hasn't anyone mentioned this? And why hasn't anyone yet emphasized that she's a heartbeat away from the presidency? It's a good thing I'm here to point these things out; if it wasn't for the blogosphere, we would have to rely on cable news and newspapers, and we'd never be privied to such original ideas and investigative journalism.

Some brilliant advice

Many have recently called for a change in David Axelrod's strategy of ignoring disaffected voters, refusing to reassure them, and doing all that he and the Democrats can do to stress Obama's inexperience and "exotic" background. Axelrod has consistently stayed on message, recently stating that he thinks it is important to remind bitter white voters that Obama may or may not be a Black muslim, may raise their taxes, and may propose internment camps for people of European Heritage.

Fortunately, Rep. John Lewis of Georgia dropped some pearls of wisdom at the convention last night:

"Barack Obama has got to appeal to the people who are still disaffected [and] has to reassure those people they will be included and that there's room for them under the Democratic tent. Make them feel at home."

Let's hope that Axelrod and other Democratic strategists listen to Lewis, and instruct Obama to have bitter whites from Ohio and Pennsylvania over to his house for punch and pie, and remind him to hide his Koran.

A lousy soundbite

According to Democratic Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell:

"[Obama] is a little like Adlai Stevenson," Rendell said, referring to the cerebral Illinois governor who lost two presidential races in the 1950s. "You ask him a question, and he gives you a six-minute answer, and the six-minute answer is smart as all get out, it's intellectual. . . . But it's a lousy soundbite."

It's a good thing Rendell is there to provide such good soundbites.