A recommended read for fans of "The West Wing"

Aaron Sorkin Conjures a Meeting of Obama and Bartlet

"They have to lie — the truth isn’t their friend right now. Get angry. Mock them mercilessly; they’ve earned it."
"You could eat their lunch, make them cry and tell their mamas about it and God himself would call it restrained."

A Sinking Ship?

Finally some of the press on Gov. Palin has made a dent in public opinion. Her favorable has dropped from about 52% down to about 42% in the past week. Let's hope the trend continues. Andrew Sullivan gives an apt description of her I think: "constant lying, religious fanaticism, spectacular stupidity, ignorance of basic facts even on energy, total unawareness of and interest in foreign policy and inability to hold a press conference." I think that pretty much covers it. I would describe her as a cross between the worst qualities of Bush Jr. and Dick Cheney.

Earlier in the campaign when it was clear that Obama would be the Democratic pick I believed the Republicans would be smart to pick a woman for the veep slot. Then when they did I thought it was indeed a clever move (see earlier post). Obama picked a running mate to help govern and McCain picked a running mate to help him get elected. While I still think this was the right idea it's beginning to look like they may have picked the wrong woman. The question is at this point will the mainstream and liberal press keep the pressure on, keep the stories coming or will they let the Roverites once again fool the swing voters convincing them the swamp land is actually a million dollar mountaintop.

Articles about the VP Republican nominee

Palin and the Republicans have been promoting Palin as a hockey mom, among other things. A hockey mom! Are they kidding?
She has an infant only a few months old, with Down syndrome no less, as well as a six year old. Palin is a ruthless, ambitious politician running for vice president – she is not a hockey mom. She and all her cronies have been singing her praises for keeping a child with Down syndrome. But how easy is that – she's not taking care of the child! What part of that don't people understand?

Below are a few good articles from the NY Times on Gov. Palin.

Fusing Politics and Motherhood in a New Way

Once Elected, Palin Hired Friends and Lashed Foes

The Palin-Whatshisname Ticket

Lawsuit Is Filed to Halt Alaska Dismissal Inquiry

The Scrutiny of Sarah Palin

Palin for President

Tired of Palin

I shouldn't be surprised I guess that roughly half of America is taken with Palin. I suppose the Democrats having Obama and Hilary as the front runners compelled the Republicans to dig up someone who would further polarize our country. Great. Just what we needed.

I received a mass email from a neighbor recently. The topic was Gov. Palin. He had received an email from someone who supposedly lives in Alaska and wrote about how great Gov. Palin is without of course actually talking about who she really is. My neighbor was so happy with it he felt compelled to share it with everyone he knows. Lucky me. So who is this neighbor X? Mr. John Q. Suburbanite with his 1 acre lawn which he gets sprayed with pesticides 7 times a year, his 2 children and his 3 vehicles. His 4 years of college and his wife with 1 to 3 years of college - white of course. Now in case you didn't know it dear reader people with 1 to 4 years of college are approximately 55% Republic. That number changes to Democrat however as you go beyond 4 years all the way to about 70% Democrat for those with a PhD. It always struck me as odd that no one seems to talk about this little gem of a fact, i.e. the more educated someone is the more likely they are to vote Democrat - seems meaningful to me. But my neighbor is a 4 year state school man and so he's a Republican and very proud of it too I might add. Now don't get me wrong I'm not an education snob. For the record I don't have a graduate degree although I do have graduate study but I don't think that grants me the position of being a snob. And also for the record I have known a few educated people who never went to college - but back to my neighbor. I think of him as a sort of idiot savant. He's great at making money but is otherwise a drain on the planet. In his 16 years of schooling he learned to make money but not to think. He believes in low taxes regardless of what that really means (he never stops to question that issue or any other). He thinks the oxygen he breaths is manufactured in a factory in Crawford, Texas. He thinks war is good for business. He and his wife think their children will turn out fine as long they take them to little league, Disneyland and vacationing at the shore. Global Warming isn't an issue to be concerned with nor are the toxins in his children's environment. His sons will go to college and be captains of industry and everything will be hunky dory as long at the government stays off his back. What a prince. He's the man who elected our current leader and he will be the man who elects President Palin.

Conservative vs Liberal

My desire for this blog originally was to if possible open a dialog between liberal and conservative thought. It bothers me to read articles and blogs where each side pounds on the other. It seems to have no point other than the person doing the writing gets to vent their frustrations. But I seriously question whether a dialog between conservatives and liberals can take place. The conservative blogs and articles I read are just too vitriolic. It really seems all they want to do is spit poison. They don't seem to have the slightest interest in a dialog or in finding the truth. I realize making such a statement is itself inflammatory which one could argue makes me guilty of burning the bridge to the other side. But it may be that liberals and conservatives can't dialog. David Limbaugh recently wrote that the Democrats are questioning the choice of Joe Biden for VP. That sounds like the liberals, always asking questions. I don't see conservatives questioning anything, at least not in public. If that is indeed so then no dialog is possible between the two sides. Upon reflection I suppose I could describe conservatives as doggedly holding on to their opinions with no interest opening their minds to new ideas or change. I see liberals as the opposite. I hope I am wrong about this because America at this point seems to very polarized in so many issues.

Obama on Letterman

Obama looked good on Letterman last night. Although he said one small thing that I don't think he should have. He used the word "hamlets" to refer to small towns in the midwest. Americans seem to want a man of the people who speaks like they do, not a professor. George Will in his Newsweek column this week talked about this subject. I agree with him (a rare occurrence) that we should expect our presidents to be extraordinary people and not one of the common people. After all America is a republic and not a true democracy. We are supposed to elect the best and the brightest to represent us in Washington. Once there they make the decisions for us. I think Obama fits this mold.

Earlier this year when Obama was running against Hilary I thought how having either an African American or a woman in office would be good for the country. But last night while watching Obama it occurred to me, now within the context of Palin in the mix, that just any woman or African American would not have the same meaning. I see now that I didn't give Hilary enough credit and after watching Obama last night, again within the context of Palin, I appreciate him even more.

Yikes!

The video shows Gov. Palin at a June 2008 visit to the Wasilla Bible Church in Wasilla, Alaska. She tells the church gathering that the U.S. mission in Iraq is a "task from God." What bothers me when I hear statements like that is that the other side in battles always say the same thing. They believe God is on their side too. And personally I've always been of the opinion that it was men who wage wars and not God.
She also says the construction of a planned $30 billion gas pipeline in Alaska is God's will. Here again I think it's people trying to make money and not God who are responsible for the development of natural resources. It sounds to me like Gov. Palin invokes God to further her own interests.

The Conservative Agents of Change

So at the RNC this week the Conservative Party, um I mean the Republicans, are making themselves out to be the agents of change. Conservative agents of change = oxymoron. What are they going to change? Are they going to lower taxes for the wealthy and for big corporations? Bush has done that. Are they going to invade a country starting a war? Bush has done that one too. Are they going to roll back environmental protections, blur the separation of church and state, and reduce funding for education and the handicapped? Hmm, Bush has done those things as well. They certainly aren't going to do the opposite of all these things because that's what the Democrats want to do so it must be they want to do more of same or is it more of the same. I guess they must be intending to… invade another planet? Fully fund all Christian Churches? Have the wealthy and big corporations pay no taxes? Eliminate all environmental laws? Have no funding for education and the handicapped? Is this what they plan?

The hypocrisy of Governor Palin

By definition a conservative is someone who values tradition, the status quo. They oppose efforts to bring about fundamental change in that order. So how does a conservative explain a woman governor or a woman VP or any woman in politics or for that matter a working woman or a woman who votes? 50 years ago there were no women governors or VP candidates and few women in important jobs. 100 years ago women were not allowed to vote and 200 years or so ago they were not allowed to own property or enter into contracts; they were second class citizens in this country. But all that has changed now and who do you suppose championed their cause and changed the status quo, conservatives or liberals? The answer is obvious. So how can a woman who is a conservative and who is anything other a stay at home mother be anything but a hypocrite? American conservatism is an ideology of convenience.