Iconoclastic

Just some random political thoughts today:

I had a friend call me last week and ask me to describe Sarah Palin in twenty words or less, ready, go. My answer flew out of my mouth before I even had a chance to think about it, “anti-Christ”. Ouch! I’ve always said I thought McCain was the spawn of Hitler and Bush, so maybe Sarah Palin is the perfect running mate…

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Did anyone else watch the debate on Friday night and find themselves board to tears?

I got home from work at a decent hour on Friday so I made a wonderful concoction of food in my kitchen, poured myself a glass of wine, and sat down with my 17 year old brother in front of the television – tuned in to MSNBC – determined to force him to become interested in politics. To take an interest in his nation, and the goings on of the world. 15 minutes in I found myself drifting off to sleep. Maybe it was the topic of the debate, because at the current moment – to be honest – I’m all talked out on the war in Iraq, and Al Qaeda, and nuclear warfare. I am infinitely more concerned with the current state of the economy and how these two candidates propose to fix the mess we are in. So after they were done talking about the economy – and had moved on to stale issues – I was literally bored to tears.

Anyone else feel this way?

It would have been much better if there was some yelling, some fighting, some compassion. That would have made me feel like the candidates wanted to be there, and wanted to win my opinion of them.

I guess with all the drama, and nonsense that has thus far surrounded the campaign – I was hoping for a WWE moment, and instead I got a little Lifetime drama instead.

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Dionne from the Washington Post says, “McCain, once the candidate of tested experience, must now battle the perception that he has become the riskier choice, a man too given to rash moves under pressure. Obama, whose very newness promised change but also raised doubts, has emerged as the cool and unruffled candidate who moves calmly but steadily forward. However one judges the first debate, it did nothing to block Obama’s progress.”

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“We deserve more than a Saturday Night Live skit for the next four years.” Steven Reynolds from All Spin Zone – The Joke That is Sarah Palin, Obama Isn’t Laughing

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http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/qq38/SpinDentist/palintongues.gif

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It is good to see major corporations taking a stand for the good of the people though:

From the Google blog:

As an Internet company, Google is an active participant in policy debates surrounding information access, technology and energy. Because our company has a great diversity of people and opinions — Democrats and Republicans, conservatives and liberals, all religions and no religion, straight and gay — we do not generally take a position on issues outside of our field, especially not social issues. So when Proposition 8 appeared on the California ballot, it was an unlikely question for Google to take an official company position on.
However, while there are many objections to this proposition — further government encroachment on personal lives, ambiguously written text — it is the chilling and discriminatory effect of the proposition on many of our employees that brings Google to publicly oppose Proposition 8. While we respect the strongly-held beliefs that people have on both sides of this argument, we see this fundamentally as an issue of equality. We hope that California voters will vote no on Proposition 8 — we should not eliminate anyone’s fundamental rights, whatever their sexuality, to marry the person they love.
Look at the language here. It is not just that the Google folks are against a measure that targets one group of individuals, but that they are out and out for gay marriage. That’s amazing for a company to come out so boldly for gay marriage, and they should be commended.

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http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/qq38/SpinDentist/JFK-Bama.jpg
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"To understand Sarah Palin, you have to realize that she is a religious fundamentalist," said Howard Bess, a retired liberal Baptist minister living in Palmer. "The structure of her understanding of life is no different from a Muslim fundamentalist."
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Did McCain really say Horsesh*t?? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1rZBmk0DYU
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Can someone please translate?
PALIN: That's why I say I, like every American I'm speaking with, were ill about this position that we have been put in where it is the taxpayers looking to bail out. But ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health-care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy, helping the—it's got to be all about job creation, too, shoring up our economy and putting it back on the right track. So health-care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans. And trade, we've got to see trade as opportunity, not as a competitive, scary thing. But one in five jobs being created in the trade sector today, we've got to look at that as more opportunity. All those things under the umbrella of job creation. This bailout is a part of that.
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http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/images/2008/09/26/olemisswinmcnameegetty.jpg
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http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/09/28/snl-spoofs-palincouric-interview/
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Ann Coulter says that the mortgage crisis is caused by “affirmative action.” That is, efforts by the Clinton administration to prevent racial discrimination in lending lead to a situation where “Instead of looking at “outdated criteria,” such as the mortgage applicant’s credit history and ability to make a down payment, banks were encouraged to consider nontraditional measures of credit-worthiness, such as having a good jump shot or having a missing child named “Caylee.”
Michelle Malkin blames “illegal immigrants,” a term she uses interchangeably with “Hispanics.”
And this is why we have the “assholes” tag.
From Jill at Feministe, The Mortgage Crisis: Blame the Brown and Black People
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