Thursday, October 30, 2008
Barack and Howard
Well, with less than a week to go before that great accountability moment otherwise know as the election, it appears Howard Dean and Barack Obama have done it. What's it, you ask? And how did they do it?
It is forcing the Republicans to reveal their true selves. To force Republicans to say all the crazy, racist, sexists, xenophobic, and otherwise bigoted and prejudiced things that they say in private or say to themselves late a night. Just as Bill Clinton's run in 1992 forced the Republicans to reveal themselves in all their ugliness at the 1992 Republican National Convention, so did Dean and Obama's strategies force Republicans in 2008 to reveal their true selves. Together Dean and Obama gave truth to the lie of "compassionate conservativism."
Howard Dean's 50-State Strategy started the ball rolling. Dean's strategy of building grassroots organizations in every state, of raising money, and funding candidates in every state was key to what looks like a win for Barack Obama. The first sign that Dean's strategy was working was George Allen's Macca moment. Allen was so pressured by Webb and by the the Dean strategy that Allen felt compelled to pander to the racist base of the Republican Party.
In the past two months we've seen an increasingly desperate and shrill John McCain and Republican Party resort to racist, sexist, xenophobic, and bigoted attacks in a futile attempt to turn back Obama. Obama pushed McCain and his Republican Party not merely by raising a lot of money, but by using that money to open field offices all across the country, especially in places the Republican Party thought was safe. Moreover, Obama spent money in safe areas--those areas he or other Democrats were sure to win--in order to shore up his base and to build morale. By forcing the Republicans to play defense, Obama and Dean forced the Republicans to go to the mattresses, to resort to desperate measures, and to return to their old race-baiting, xenophobic, and hateful rhetoric. It's who and what the modern Republican Party really is and like in 1992, American voters are rejecting the hate, the prejudice, the racism, and the whole lot of it.
Well, with less than a week to go before that great accountability moment otherwise know as the election, it appears Howard Dean and Barack Obama have done it. What's it, you ask? And how did they do it?
It is forcing the Republicans to reveal their true selves. To force Republicans to say all the crazy, racist, sexists, xenophobic, and otherwise bigoted and prejudiced things that they say in private or say to themselves late a night. Just as Bill Clinton's run in 1992 forced the Republicans to reveal themselves in all their ugliness at the 1992 Republican National Convention, so did Dean and Obama's strategies force Republicans in 2008 to reveal their true selves. Together Dean and Obama gave truth to the lie of "compassionate conservativism."
Howard Dean's 50-State Strategy started the ball rolling. Dean's strategy of building grassroots organizations in every state, of raising money, and funding candidates in every state was key to what looks like a win for Barack Obama. The first sign that Dean's strategy was working was George Allen's Macca moment. Allen was so pressured by Webb and by the the Dean strategy that Allen felt compelled to pander to the racist base of the Republican Party.
In the past two months we've seen an increasingly desperate and shrill John McCain and Republican Party resort to racist, sexist, xenophobic, and bigoted attacks in a futile attempt to turn back Obama. Obama pushed McCain and his Republican Party not merely by raising a lot of money, but by using that money to open field offices all across the country, especially in places the Republican Party thought was safe. Moreover, Obama spent money in safe areas--those areas he or other Democrats were sure to win--in order to shore up his base and to build morale. By forcing the Republicans to play defense, Obama and Dean forced the Republicans to go to the mattresses, to resort to desperate measures, and to return to their old race-baiting, xenophobic, and hateful rhetoric. It's who and what the modern Republican Party really is and like in 1992, American voters are rejecting the hate, the prejudice, the racism, and the whole lot of it.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Five Minute Hate Republican Style
Are these the "occasional nuts" attending McCain/Palin events? It seems the large bulk of the attendees are spewing hate.
The people McCain attracts to his rallies are scary. I can only imagine the emails, direct mail, and phone calls they receive from McCain and Republican connected groups planting such hateful ideas in voters' minds.
I will at least give McCain credit for keeping this kind of hate under cover until after the Republican Convention. As it is now, the mainstream media can "ignore" these "occasional nuts" when they're on a sidewalk in Ohio, Iowa, etc. but couldn't ignore it if the same "occasional nuts" were chanting their hate at the convention.
It's clear McCain and Republicans have no interest in bringing this country together. Their mission is to poison the well, to sow division, and be disruptive for the next eight years.
Are these the "occasional nuts" attending McCain/Palin events? It seems the large bulk of the attendees are spewing hate.
The people McCain attracts to his rallies are scary. I can only imagine the emails, direct mail, and phone calls they receive from McCain and Republican connected groups planting such hateful ideas in voters' minds.
I will at least give McCain credit for keeping this kind of hate under cover until after the Republican Convention. As it is now, the mainstream media can "ignore" these "occasional nuts" when they're on a sidewalk in Ohio, Iowa, etc. but couldn't ignore it if the same "occasional nuts" were chanting their hate at the convention.
It's clear McCain and Republicans have no interest in bringing this country together. Their mission is to poison the well, to sow division, and be disruptive for the next eight years.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Oh that Bush Economy
Tell me again about how Republicans are good for the economy. Tell me again how massive tax cuts for the richest of the rich leads to economic growth. Tell me again how having a "CEO" president would be good for the economy.
I sure am glad we didn't privatize Social Security like George Bush and the other idiots in the Republican Party wanted us to a few years back.
Oh, and remember the budget surplus we had at the end of eight years with a Democratic President? Remember that? Remember how Bush and Cheney talked up a recession in order to push through massive tax cuts? Well, Bush and Cheney sure got their recession. And despite the Republicans' ability to blackmail tax cuts out of Nancy Pelosi, tax cuts ain't the answer. If tax cuts worked, we wouldn't have a huge budget deficit and a stock market shedding almost 40% of its value in a year.
Tell me again about how Republicans are good for the economy. Tell me again how massive tax cuts for the richest of the rich leads to economic growth. Tell me again how having a "CEO" president would be good for the economy.
Over the last seven sessions, the Dow has lost 2,271 points, or 20.1%. Since hitting an all-time high of 14,164.53 one year ago today, the Dow has lost 39.4%.Yep, a 20% lost in a week of trading. As of the close of trading on October 9, 2009 the DJIA stood at 8,579.19. If things keep going the way they've been, we just might see a 50% drop in the DJIA in little more than a year. Yep, those massive tax cuts to the richest of rich sure are working.
I sure am glad we didn't privatize Social Security like George Bush and the other idiots in the Republican Party wanted us to a few years back.
Oh, and remember the budget surplus we had at the end of eight years with a Democratic President? Remember that? Remember how Bush and Cheney talked up a recession in order to push through massive tax cuts? Well, Bush and Cheney sure got their recession. And despite the Republicans' ability to blackmail tax cuts out of Nancy Pelosi, tax cuts ain't the answer. If tax cuts worked, we wouldn't have a huge budget deficit and a stock market shedding almost 40% of its value in a year.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Two Minute Hate
All week the McCain and Palin campaign have been turning up the hate machine. According to Dana Milbank the hate isn't just directed at Obama, but all all liberals--reporters, intellectuals, and anyone who dares to disagree with McCain, Palin, and Bush (unless of course it's McCain and Palin doing the disagreeing). Instead of debating or discussing the issues, Palin and McCain have taken to demonizing Obama and anyone who supports his candidacy.
Oh, wait, sorry that's an excerpt from Orwell's 1984 not news report from a Palin campaign stop. Sorry about that.
All week the McCain and Palin campaign have been turning up the hate machine. According to Dana Milbank the hate isn't just directed at Obama, but all all liberals--reporters, intellectuals, and anyone who dares to disagree with McCain, Palin, and Bush (unless of course it's McCain and Palin doing the disagreeing). Instead of debating or discussing the issues, Palin and McCain have taken to demonizing Obama and anyone who supports his candidacy.
In its second minute the Hate rose to a frenzy. People were leaping up and down in their places and shouting at the tops of their voices in an effort to drown the maddening bleating voice that came from the screen. The little sandy-haired woman had turned bright pink, and her mouth was opening and shutting like that of a landed fish. Even O'Brien's heavy face was flushed. He was sitting very straight in his chair, his powerful chest swelling and quivering as though he were standing up to the assault of a wave. The dark-haired girl behind Winston had begun crying out ‘Swine! Swine! Swine!’ and suddenly she picked up a heavy Newspeak dictionary and flung it at the screen. It struck Goldstein's nose and bounced off; the voice continued inexorably. In a lucid moment Winston found that he was shouting with the others and kicking his heel violently against the rung of his chair. The horrible thing about the Two Minutes Hate was not that one was obliged to act a part, but, on the contrary, that it was impossible to avoid joining in. Within thirty seconds any pretence was always unnecessary. A hideous ecstasy of fear and vindictiveness, a desire to kill, to torture, to smash faces in with a sledge-hammer, seemed to flow through the whole group of people like an electric current, turning one even against one's will into a grimacing, screaming lunatic. And yet the rage that one felt was an abstract, undirected emotion which could be switched from one object to another like the flame of a blowlamp. [. . .].WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH
Oh, wait, sorry that's an excerpt from Orwell's 1984 not news report from a Palin campaign stop. Sorry about that.