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Thursday, July 3, 2008
Bush Surveys Damage of His Presidency
I love The Onion.
Bush Tours America To Survey Damage Caused By His Disastrous Presidency
Posted by Metavirus at 7/03/2008 08:55:00 AM 0 comments
Tags: Bush , General Election , Humor , John McCain
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Active Duty Military Donates More to Obama
That Obama attracts support from some in the military is evident in dollars and cents: Among people who have donated at least $200 to a presidential campaign this election cycle, Obama has collected more than $327,000 from those identifying themselves as military personnel, while McCain has collected $224,000, according to an analysis of Federal Election Commission data by The Associated Press.
Posted by Metavirus at 7/02/2008 10:46:00 AM 0 comments
Tags: Barack Obama , Election 2008 , General Election , John McCain , Military
How Ignorant Are We?
I just came across a sharp post on Mother Jones that captures the full essence of what true stupidity and ignorance should be defined as:
Five defining characteristics of stupidity, it seems to me, are readily apparent. First, is sheer ignorance: Ignorance of critical facts about important events in the news, and ignorance of how our government functions and who's in charge. Second, is negligence: The disinclination to seek reliable sources of information about important news events. Third, is wooden-headedness, as the historian Barbara Tuchman defined it: The inclination to believe what we want to believe regardless of the facts. Fourth, is shortsightedness: The support of public policies that are mutually contradictory, or contrary to the country's long-term interests. Fifth, and finally, is a broad category I call bone-headedness, for want of a better name: The susceptibility to meaningless phrases, stereotypes, irrational biases, and simplistic diagnoses and solutions that play on our hopes and fears.
Here's a gem from the post on how informed we are about our government:
If the problem were simply that Americans are bad at names, one would not have to worry too much. But they do not understand the mechanics of government either. Only 34% know that it is the Congress that declares war (which may explain why they are not alarmed when presidents take us into wars without explicit declarations of war from the legislature). Only 35% know that Congress can override a presidential veto. Some 49% think the president can suspend the Constitution. Some 60% believe that he can appoint judges to the federal courts without the approval of the Senate. Some 45% believe that revolutionary speech is punishable under the Constitution.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Video: Obama Speech on Patriotism
This may have flew under the radar but I think that Obama's recent speech on his deep and abiding patriotism is one of the more moving and profound speeches I've heard him make.
Posted by Metavirus at 7/01/2008 09:47:00 PM 0 comments
Tags: Barack Obama , Election 2008 , General Election , Patriostism , Speeches , Video
Handwringing and Other Unproductive Things
Sorry for the lack of posts over the last few days but I have been overcome with some emotions that have been hard to put into words.
Luckily, I found a diarist on The Daily Kos that captures what I'm feeling in a way that resonates perfectly with why I've been hesitating to read the blogosphere lately and comment on it.
Please give it a thorough read and jump over to Kos and recommend it. Many kudos to PsiFighter37:
Seriously, just grow the hell up
by PsiFighter37
I've been away from my computer quite a bit recently - that's what moving your own furniture into a Manhattan apartment will do to you - but upon catching up on the news tonight, I've become convinced that the blogosphere will always let perfect be the enemy of good...or even great. Yes, it's true that Barack Obama's positioning towards the center in preparation for the general election pisses a good deal of us off. Whether it has been his unjustified remarks about FISA or Supreme Court decisions (both of which relate to constitutional law, something that he ought to know a thing or two about) or his willingness to throw anyone who goes off-message under the bus, so to speak (such as MoveOn or Wesley Clark), Obama has tacked much further from his primary positions than many of us would care.
That being said, I'm really sick and tired of people - particularly prominent bloggers who should know better - bitching and moaning about Obama's imperfections as a general election candidate.
Why?
The answer's simple: nobody's perfect. I challenge any of you to find a 'progressive' or 'liberal' politician who would be perfect to you.
Russ Feingold may have been the lone voice standing up to the first Patriot Act, but he voted for the confirmations of John Ashcroft and John Roberts.
Paul Wellstone was a strong liberal voice in the Senate, yet he voted for DOMA and the Patriot Act.
Dennis Kucinich, aside from being on the political fringe, was a lifelong pro-lifer until he decided he wanted to run for president.
Chris Dodd may do quite well on constitutional matters, but he voted for the Iraqi war, the Patriot Act, and is too beholden to the big banks and the hedge funds which he oversees from the Senate Banking Committee.
Howard Dean may have generated the first Internet-powered campaign and spoke out forcefully against invading Iraq, but he was a centrist governor who reluctantly allowed for civil unions in Vermont (and only because by a court decision, he was forced to).
Sherrod Brown is widely liked for his populist pitch, but he voted for torture in 2006.
I won't even bother to recount how many times Jim Webb or Jon Tester have disappointed us, despite getting substantial support from the local netroots scene to help them score upset victories in their respective primaries.
The point is this - and the story is quite familiar already: the netroots become enamored with a particular candidate. Said candidate does something contrary to what conventional wisdom as dictated by a small coterie of prominent bloggers agrees with. Netroots becomes angry, throws up hands in the air, pounds keyboards angrily, fills up pixels with frustration, and does very little to influence the debate. I agree with Booman that no one takes progressives seriously because...well, there isn't such a thing as a progressive. Or at least that's what many who hold candidate purity above winning with a candidate who broadly shares your views would have you believe.
While Obama's recent moves are causes for concern, they don't change the fact that he is substantially better positioned to not only win the presidency, but to be able to get progressive policies enacted - whether it's expanding health care availability to the entire population, getting us out of Iraq, protecting our civil liberties, or finding alternative sources of energy to help us ease our dependence on oil and other polluting fossil fuels. If the netroots and other activists on the left continue to get hung up on every little last 'mistake' Obama makes (and there have been mistakes; I sent an email to the Obama campaign requesting that they return my donations and that I would not be contributing any more volunteer hours after his capitulation on FISA), then it doesn't do anything to help us win more - and it makes the netroots' influence on the debate even less than it already is on a marginal level.
In short, grow the hell up. If you can't get over being disappointed by your candidate in politics...well, you're going to be disappointed virtually all the time.
Posted by Metavirus at 7/01/2008 09:28:00 PM 1 comments
Tags: Barack Obama , Election 2008 , FISA , General Election , John McCain , Wesley Clark
Monday, June 30, 2008
New Obama Ad - Dignity
Here's Obama's latest general election video. The thirty second ad, entitled "Dignity," will begin airing in eighteen states across the country today underscoring Senator Obama's commitment to being an advocate for workers and children.
Posted by Metavirus at 6/30/2008 03:58:00 PM 0 comments
Tags: Ads , Barack Obama , Case for Obama , Election 2008 , General Election , Video
Friday, June 27, 2008
McCain Continues to Take Credit for GI Bill He Opposed
As I noted earlier in the week, John McCain is a bald-faced liar when it comes to his recent attempts to take credit for the recent Jim Webb-sponsored (and Obama-supported) revisions to the GI Bill that included improved educational benefits for military personnel. McCain and Bush were vocal opponents of the legislation, falsely claiming that it would hurt overall recruitment and retention efforts. See my earlier comments here.
Here is McCain at a recent rally in Ohio "telling lies like they was truth":
Posted by Metavirus at 6/27/2008 06:44:00 PM 0 comments
Tags: Barack Obama , Distortions , General Election , John McCain , Lies , McCain File
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