Oh, no.
UPDATE: this is also the McCain/Obama debate thread!
I just watched several clips of the interview Sarah Palin did with Katie Couric.
And, ohhhh…no.
Let me just put it like this: if she were a Democrat, I would transcribe these interviews in painful detail for the express purpose of mocking her, and I would say she is a moron, and 99% of my commenters would say she is a moron.
I’m sorry, just being honest here, but seriously people. I cannot possibly be the only person who is thinking this. Have you watched the clips? Am I just cranky because I had a butthurtin’ week at school? Is she smarter than she seems? Because objectively, she does not seem very smart. At all.
The reason I watched the clips was this post at The Corner. I’d been too busy all week to jack with it, but that post made me curious, and I kinda wish I’d never read it because, just, oh boy.
I try to be a truly objective person and to avoid hypocrisy even when it hurts my “cause”, and the fact is, the only reason I don’t shred this woman to bits - after watching her in action - is because she’s running against a very liberal Democrat ticket led by a racist, inexperienced socialist who has only served 147 days as a Senator, which scares me just a tiny bit more than the current Republican ticket. That is the only reason. I admit it and I own it and I don’t give a shit what anyone says about it.
I know they say that the reason we don’t get great people running for great offices is because great people don’t want to be involved in politics. But Jesus on the dollar bill, THIS IS RIDICULOUS. These four people - Obama, McCain, Biden, and Palin - not a single one of them deserves the job they’re applying for when you get right down to it. Not a one of them, not even close. McCain is the only one who I think is actually smart enough, but he’s an asshole. So you have three dummies and an asshole running for the two most important jobs on the entire planet.
Honestly. If you saw any of the Palin clips, can you in good faith and true objectivity tell me that you wouldn’t rip her up if she was a Democrat, or even just someone you wanted to defeat for whatever reason? The woman truly does not seem to know what she’s talking about.
This entire election is damn pathetic. Don’t even try to tell me it’s not. But I’m still going to vote against Obama because he’s a socialist and that’s worse than not being very smart. What a choice! God bless America, or something.
But woot! It’s Friday night and there’s a bottle of whiskey in the pantry with my name on it. Rupert will be home soon and we shall have alcoholic beverages and Italian food for dinner, and watch the Obama/McCain debate. We’re totally out of control, I tell you! I might even do some studying after that like the party animal that I am.
UPDATE: Okay so a few drinks makes me not cringe about Palin so much, and also made the presidential debate more palatable.
My favorite part? How McCain was openly laughing at Obama while Obama spoke. I don’t know if they showed the split screen everywhere but we happened to be watching NBC for some ungodly reason, and they split the screen, and whenever Obama was talking, McCain was giggling dismissively and making notes on his papers with a Sharpie. Now I feel bad for calling McCain an asshole earlier. I like him tonight.
I saw that interview and I agree that Sarah could’ve done better - but remember, what you saw was edited to fit the needs of the producers and reporters doing the story. I would bet that they where 100% objective when they put that together…yeah right…
September 26th, 2008 at 5:30 pmJournalists, college professors, and politicians. What do they have in common? They are the only people that should legitimately be making minimum wage.
No, Palin did not sound like I imagine that Aristotle would, but she sounds sixty times smarter than Barry “Slingblade” Obama.
September 26th, 2008 at 5:34 pmSigh. I really admire your lack of hypocrisy, Rachel - that can’t have been easy. I’m not quite where you are, yet, but for me, too, it ultimately comes down to I just can’t vote for a racist, socialist empty suit. This is the most pathetic election I have seen in my life time. For awhile there it was nice to forget how much I don’t like McCain, but reality is sinking in again. He still has my vote. Dammit.
September 26th, 2008 at 5:35 pmSadly, I must agree with your assessment. Charlie Gibson was a total ass, but I thought she handled that one OK. I wanted her to talk more about her philosophy for approaching a problem (ideally a conservative one) rather than trying to give solutions to the hypotheticals being asked.
I started to get squishy in the Hannity interview when she said, “we want to get in there and do reform, even if it ruffles some feathers,” five times in 30 minutes.
She should have been better prepared to handle Couric’s question about how being in eyesight of Russia provides for any meaningful foreign policy experience. That was near disaster. Couric did play gotcha with the pressing for specific reform/regulation efforts that McCain has made after taking away the efforts to reform Freddie and Fannie in 2005 as part of the question.
So, it is up to McCain to win it for himself. Hopefully the debate will expose Obama’s many weaknesses; however, we can’t expect any help from the moderator. As is the case in boxing, sometimes you have to win by KO since the judges won’t help.
September 26th, 2008 at 5:37 pmCurt’s right. Editing is everything. It can be subtle, or ham-handed, or somewhere in-between, but it has a HUGE effect on the overall presentation, or just parts of it, whatever the editor “wants.” Some if it’s almost subliminal (if the editing is skillfully done). We’ve seen magazines “darken” OJ’s complexion for the cover, and photographers make McCain look like a Zerg. It’s not much of a stretch to assume TV interview editing is just as manipulative.
September 26th, 2008 at 5:37 pmI think her brain works faster than her mouth, and her mouth only spits out maybe one thought in five.
In this regard, the press may recycle Bushisms as Palinisms.
I agree, it doesn’t look good, but one doesn’t get to be governor against the wishes of one’s own party establishment by being a moron.
From the thoughts she has verbalized, I can see she’s learning at a pretty quick clip. Think of it as a AAA call-up to the majors.
All she has to do is to relax a little, and stop thinking aloud before responding.
September 26th, 2008 at 5:39 pm“Barry ‘Slingblade’ Obama”
That’s good. That’s real good. I’m gonna hafta use that.
Anyway, Hubby and I are right this instant enjoying Mrs. T’s Bloody Marys (-ies?).
September 26th, 2008 at 5:45 pmAgree with Curt R. Will not judge Palin on the basis of this interview because of the obvious cut-and-paste job done to it; I am cynical enough at this point to suspect that some of the answers are deliberately chopped up and applied to the wrong questions. Never forget, this is the network that tried to sell us the forged documents on George Bush’s national guard service.
I am positive that if Palin had had the same mini-marshmallows tossed at her that Obama did, and she had had the benefit of the same kindly, protective editing, the resulting impression would have been very, very different. The campaign should have insisted on a live interview only.
I am content to wait until the debate with Biden next week; I am confident that she will do better. The only concern is that an overzealous campaign staff will rehearse her into paralysis.
September 26th, 2008 at 5:50 pmI agree. It hurt to watch. Hurt.
That said, Obama must be stopped.
I just hope that the October surprise is that Palin is putting on a stupid act until the debate. How freaking awesome would that be?
September 26th, 2008 at 5:55 pmRachel,
September 26th, 2008 at 5:56 pmYeah, I agree. Sigh.
Still waiting for the Palin-Biden debate before rendering judgment regarding her fitness for office. I still expect she’ll clean his clock; after all, in the land of the blind the one-eyed woman is queen.
Palin-mania was getting way out of control, anyway. It’s good for us to be more grounded about our politicians.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:01 pmHonestly? No, I wouldn’t. For several reasons.
1. This was (I believe) the first interview she’s done since the hit-piece concocted by Charlie Gibson. It’s understandable that she might be feeling self-conscious about what she says and that often tends to make a person look and sound like they’re nervous and don’t know what they’re talking about.
2. Palin supporters haven’t been touting her as some kind of intellectual ubermensch the way Obama supporters have been doing. Neither Palin nor her supporters ever claimed she was the greatest public speaker in politics today. But again, Obamanites cannot say the same.
3. I do not now nor have I ever questioned someone’s intelligence because “they don’t talk good”. I may whip out one of those “Obama Uh” YouTube clips when I find a lib crooning about what a great public speaker Obama is, but I don’t call him a moron because he fumbles his words when he’s away from a teleprompter. I have an entirely different set of reasons for calling Obama a moron, thank you very much.
4. I watched all the interview clips I could find and I didn’t hear Palin give any answers that were wrong. If she did make any factual errors then either they passed right by me or they weren’t in any of the clips I watched.
5. Remember Charlie Gibson.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:02 pmI haven’t seen the clips. Don’t want to; don’t need to.
A few terse points:
1. Bill Clinton was quite deft in front of a camera and microphone. He was good with spontaneous questions (FAR more than Obama!), and yet, who among the group would say he was a good President? I have always admired Tony Blair for his elocution, wit, and general eloquence. I would never credit GWB with being much of a speaker…not at all. But for his resolution and sureness of purpose, he’s always been my guy.
Don’t get stuck to the seat over speaking skills. There are geniuses with hearts of gold and brains the size of a Buick that stammer like idiots when interviewed.
2. We live in the media age. Before radio, TV and the Internet, all there was to gauge a candidate or politician was newsprint. What was said was all there was to go on (and the odd whistle-stop tour). You could be as ugly as Andrew Jackson and get elected. Today, everybody wants Jack Kennedy: young, sexy, eloquent…and now we have a complete ZERO like Obama, yet who has all these media qualities. Just no class, no values and no background. We are in the age of Hollywood Politicians: As long as you look and sound good, that’s all most idiots care about.
3. It was one interview, and with the prize bottom-feeder, K Couric. Editing, schmediting. I wouldn’t trust that “news” outlet to change my cats’ litterbox (and no, Rachel, my cats aren’t assholes, as they all shredded the wool Obama doll my sister gave them, and then pissed all over the remnants).
4. Sarah Palin could gargle in her own vomit on live TV, and for my money she’d still be MILES above Biden.
5. Pure and simple: She could have just had a bad day. Next interview could be dynamite.
The VP picks are very important, but this country will vote in its next president. As long as McCain puts Shimmy-Sham the Liberal Dummy in his rightful place during the debates, we need not worry about Sarah Palin.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:03 pmI agree…but only to you.
I’ll never admit it to my liberal friends! Her answers to a lot of things worry me.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:13 pmI’m hoping that Patterico’s Pontifications is right:
“Here’s my take — the McCain campaign is so concerned about staying on message and sticking with the narrative, they have tried to drill her with pre-programmed answers on a variety of subjects, rather than simply allow her to answer questions as she would if she weren’t part of a campaign team, and then deal after-the-fact with her remarks as needed.
Since she’s been part of the McCain campaign for only 3 weeks of the past 8 years, its hardly surprising that she’s having trouble spitting up the campaign’s talking points in a coherent fashion. Asking her do do so is only making her look like an idiot.”
September 26th, 2008 at 6:16 pmWhile I agree with you…remember Katie Couric’s interview with Biden the other day when he said that Roosevelt go on the ‘tv” in 1929 about the depression? Maybe Katie brings out the dumbness. Anyway, I think Biden was worse and he got a pass with the press for the most part. Take heart!
September 26th, 2008 at 6:21 pmI blame McCain. Just let Sarah be Sarah. 80% of Alaska can’t be wrong.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:24 pmAmerica is designed so that civilians run the military. America is designed so that civilians run the government. Do we believe in that design or not?
Readiness for office is a question of principles and judgment. When issues arise, POTUS listens to advice and then decides. I have confidence in Governor Palin’s principles and judgment.
It’s nice that Sen. McCain knows a lot about Russia - yet, when issues arise, a President McCain will still listen to advice and then decide, just like every POTUS who holds office.
Principles and judgment. Who has superior principles and judgment? That is the issue.
Foreign policy experience is a nice factor, but it is only part of a mix of factors. The following had little or no foreign policy experience when they became President: FDR, JFK, Carter, Reagan, Clinton, GWB.
Madeline Albright has lots of foreign policy experience. How do you like the governing principles Ms. Albright believes in? What is your opinion of her judgment? My opinion of her is low in both areas - just as my opinion of Sen. Obama’s principles and judgment is low. I thought Ms. Albright was a dangerously weak and semi-deluded Sec. of State. I think Sen. Obama obscures his true principles, and hides instances (Chicago Annenberg Challenge) where he has been called on to display judgment.
Finally, I recommend this Victor Hanson column. It’s one of the best columns I’ve read this year. It will instantly make you feel more confident about Gov. Palin. Excerpt:
September 26th, 2008 at 6:49 pmOne more thing:
While I commend Ms. Couric for doing a good job in the interview, the question everyone points to (paraphrasing): please give an extended recounting of Sen. McCain’s record as an economic reformer - was a clear gotcha question. Almost no one could’ve answered it. Palin’s best answer would’ve been:
September 26th, 2008 at 6:56 pmStarting with the fact that katie absolutly refused to use - or allow to be used - the title of Governor when addressing or referring to Gov. Palin, I’ve got the feeling that there was some pretty savage editting done to that interview. It just wasn’t done so ham-handedly as the chuck gibson interview.
And I agree that sarahcuda should be allowed to speak her own mind and from her heart. She knows what she needs to learn, and can get the mentoring she needs from experts in those areas (she’s already being mentored by H.Kissinger; and like him or not - he is the go-to guy on foreign relations.) I believe that when she gets into the debate with ol’ slow joe, she’s gonna clean his clock.
And just because she has one bad interview is no reason to talk about cutting and running; or to say how stupid she is and trying to figure a way to minimalize her contribution, now or in the future. She’s only been on the national stage for three weeks. Give her some rein and let her get her shoes broken in.
This is WAR, people!! It’s a war just as surely as if there were bombs and guns. We are in a war for the very survival of the United States of America! And the war is not lost because of one bad press conference by one of the principals. The war is lost if we lose hope and stop supporting the right people. (You may be right that none of the people running are truly qualified - but you go to war with the army that you have.)
oh. and: Fuck oprah!! (with letterman)
September 26th, 2008 at 6:56 pmRachel-
September 26th, 2008 at 7:00 pmI have an idea. In honor of the presidential debate tonight, where 2 people get to exchange views on the same stage, let there be an honest to goodness debate in your comments, instead of blocking anything that gets snarky or has an opposing view. What say you?
I’m so glad you posted this…I thought I was alone in feeling this way. I so liked her and wanted to be able to defend her, but she was craptastic and it’s just not possible. You’re 100% right, if she were a Dem, I’d be ripping her to shreds.
The worst part? I could have answered those questions better (couldn’t most of us have?), even the questions on her record and McCain’s record! What is UP with that???
*sigh*
September 26th, 2008 at 7:05 pmOK, I sat through it on You Tube. I didn’t think it was terrible, and I don’t think it was edited to switch answers between questions. It -was- obvious that the shot lingered long and lovingly whenever she appeared to stammer, and cut away abruptly when she was about to get roling, like when she was talking about how diplomacy is all about preparation - that was good stuff, but it got cut off.
I think Couric was a party to this - she would ask a question, Mrs Palin would answer it, and then Couric would drill her on some sub-point, which appeared to confuse Mrs Palin - probably (as it did me) in an I-just-answered-that kind of way. And the camera held the close-up.
Mrs Palin made two mistakes. She gamely tried to answer every question, and talked waay too much. Sometimes the answer is - in effect - I’m not sure your premise is valid, so I’m going to answer the question I wish you’d asked. Like it or not, ALL politicians do this - for good reason. Evading Bullshit questions should be SOP.
For example, she was off to a great start by answering that How does being able to see Russia count as foreign policy experience stuff with a snort and a ‘come on!’ She should have left it there. But then she tried to explain, and it got painful to watch. I was yelling at the screen, Stop Talking Now! Quit Being So Nice! This coont isn’t your friend!
But I don’t like Mrs Palin any less. She just came off as a basically good person who did a -lot- better than I would have done, and needs to take the media less seriously than they take themselves - and That’s not too hard.
September 26th, 2008 at 7:13 pmRachel - The interview as shown was disappointing. But I do wonder…how long was the actual interview? I would suspect that the most unfavorable clips were shown (not to mention some selective editing as in the Gibson interview). What can Palin do about this?
September 26th, 2008 at 7:13 pmDoes voting third party still seem completely crazy to you now? At what point does “lesser of two evils” quit making sense?
Just wondering.
Oh well, at least you have reasons for supporting who you do. Most people don’t.
September 26th, 2008 at 7:20 pmI agree that what we as viewers saw was less than stellar.
I also happen to think that “dumb as a rock” trumps “raving socialist” any day.
September 26th, 2008 at 7:28 pmOne question: How the hell do you stomach actually watching and listening to the nasty little harpy that is Ms. Couric?
September 26th, 2008 at 7:29 pmIIRC, some time ago, some TV network wanted to interview Rush Limbaugh. He agreed, but ONLY if the interview was televised live, so as to prevent “unfriendly” editing.
September 26th, 2008 at 7:36 pmLots of sodium bicarbonate.
September 26th, 2008 at 7:48 pmYes. When a third option has at least a snowball’s chance in hell of success.
Sheesh. There may be a breakdown of the two party system someday, but it sure won’t be this election.
September 26th, 2008 at 7:49 pmI agree, John. I blame McCain, too. I wrote this earlier this morning over at HotAir:
The reason Palin seems so stilted is because she is in a tight little box right now. She is speaking on behalf of someone else - McCain. It seems like every statement she makes has to point back to McCain as if to remind everyone that he’s the point of all this, not her. It’s awkward and forced and contrived.
Powerful women have to do this sometimes lest their male colleagues (and their egos) feel overshadowed. If Palin were running her own show, as she did in Alaska, where she did NOT have to play second-fiddle to anyone, she’d come across very different.
McCain needs to cut her loose, and let her be herself. His campaign is stifling her.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:05 pmOne question and I’m already considering taking up drinking. I don’t know if I’m going to make it through this debate. Obama is a lying bastard and McCain isn’t hitting back. Bitch slap the socialist weenie, for fuck’s sake!
September 26th, 2008 at 8:14 pmOH. MY. GOD. I very nearly threw my remote through my TV when Obama said “grow the economy from the bottom up.” Asshole. Asscat.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:19 pmMcCain got in a dig at Obama over earmarks. Digs are not going to work. He’s GOT to hammer his points home. STOP BEING NICE!!
September 26th, 2008 at 8:30 pmNo kidding. McCain needs to pull off the gloves and call Obama on the outright lies he’s telling.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:36 pmDid I understand Obama correctly? Did he really just say that funding for universal preschool education is a super high priority, like funding for veterans and the military????
September 26th, 2008 at 8:38 pmWouldn’t that be the best way to “get ‘em while they’re young”? Indoctrinate them young against the military and then, voila!, you don’t need to fund the military.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:42 pmI’m behind - I had to pause the debate with my DVR to get the kids sitting for dinner.
I absolutely HATE the idea of universal preschool - and I have two kids in preschool! THAT is a gravy train to free daycare and bad preschools, IMO.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:42 pmWell, I liked her on the Today Show.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:45 pmI think universal preschool is a bad idea also. Compelling everyone to go to preschool… sheeeeit. Starting at what age? Isn’t it the parents’ place to decide when their children are developmentally ready?
What’s the next step, instead of insisting kids learn to read by the end of kindergarten, will we be struggling to have them reading before they leave preschool? I think the way education (at least in my area) keeps pushing formal sit-in-the-desk-all-day schooling on children at increasingly younger ages is not a positive development.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:51 pmRachel, you are not wrong. I heard some of her this morning on the local 6:00-9:00 a.m. show before switching over to Jim Rome and sports (Yay Beavers - my boss was almost crying this morning!). I cringed. But I suppose some of the other commenters have a point - it can be hard to sublimate your natural response to your running mate’s message. This is the first time I recall the VP candidates getting so much press; usually they’re just an afterthought (and their debates not worth watching, except for Admiral Stockdale a few elections ago). I think McCain really needs to step forward and pull the focus back to the tops of the tickets.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:55 pmAmelia, the way the public schools are, you are LUCKY if your kid leaves second grade knowing now to read.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:56 pmThat’s not luck, that’s parental involvement.
September 26th, 2008 at 8:59 pmCan somebody please explain to me how the hell Obama has honored the fallen who have served? He says none of them die in vain because they are carrying out the orders of the Commander in Chief (the President) after having just said the war in Iraq was wrong. Asshelmet!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:03 pmDebate - not going to happen. I’m pretty drunk so it don’t matter. I won’t debate until the economic crisis is solved.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:13 pmDid anybody else catch that dig on Obama’s “presidential” seal? ROFLMAO!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:13 pmI feel like vomiting.
I wouldn’t care if Palin showed up to an interview naked and covered in blood and managed to say only “I eat cake”…I’d vote for her as President before voting for Obama.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:14 pmYup. McCain: “I don’t even have my own seal yet.”
September 26th, 2008 at 9:14 pm“I have a bracelet.”
“I have a bracelet, too.”
“My bracelet has more bangles than your bracelet!”
“Well, MY bracelet is made out of 24k gold!”
“MY bracelet comes with a matching necklace!”
Sheesh!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:15 pmSouth Koreans 3″ taller than North Koreans - nailed it!!!!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:16 pmThat was a very good dig. Notice how Obama completely ignored it. I think he’s embarrassed about it.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:17 pmThat was just sweeeet. Not setting his visitor schedule before he becomes president.
And I had surgery yesterday, so this is my official disclaimer that I am enjoying better living through chemistry, and am thus not responsible for my words tonight.
HEH!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:19 pm# Jess Mills Says:
Does voting third party still seem completely crazy to you now? At what point does “lesser of two evils” quit making sense?
______________
When he says we have enough conservatives on the supreme court, I’m out of there.
______________
# Rich Says:
One question: How the hell do you stomach actually watching and listening to the nasty little harpy that is Ms. Couric?
______________
I enjoy seeing alligators on TV too. But I don’t forget what they are.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:20 pmYou’re in good company 14 Karat: my dad is also just recently out of surgery and “enjoying better living through chemistry.” I’m going to call him after the debate and ask what he thinks.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:21 pmAmen on the parental involvment, hM. But a good portion of public schools fail on teaching the fundamentals of phonics, so it becomes harder and harder to teach a child to read after they have been indoctrinated in a “whole word” system. To this day, my 15-year-old sister hates reading because of the slipshod way she was taught in school, and my parents had to re-teach her completely over the course of a school year and a summer when she was 11. It was a sticky situation, the school was no help, and my mom had to kick some serious ass when all was said and done.
I’m seriously considering keeping my daughter in private schools for that reason alone.
(Sorry for the OT comment, Rachl.)
September 26th, 2008 at 9:21 pmI think McCain must be winning. My wife the liberal schoolteacher just turned it off. Downstairs I go.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:22 pm*snicker* That jab about the seal was funny.
Deanna, I can only speak for the school system I’ve taught in. The curriculum they were using called for kids half way through kindergarten be reading. I’m sure there are a percentage of kids who don’t get it by that point, and still don’t have it a grade later.
I think it is unreasonable to expect all kids to be reading even at the end of kindergarten. I don’t believe that it is appropriate for all 5 year olds to spend that much time sitting at a desk cramming sight words into their brains. Some kids can do it, others are not as mature. That’s why there’s a growing trend to wait an extra year to begin kinder, so the kids are more mature and better able to handle the material, and subsequently more likely to succeed in school.
But that’s just my opinion.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:24 pmObama: “I have a plan…”
He says this every single question segement. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, WOULD HE JUST TELL US WHAT HIS PLAN IS???
(I don’t really expect that. I’m just venting.)
September 26th, 2008 at 9:25 pmPlease tell me someone is counting the uhhhhs.
I didn’t see the beginning, so I don’t know.
Some would say that’s thinking out loud; really it’s just where he verbalizes his stupid.
I am assisting with teaching Speech Communication, so part of my job is counting the placeholders to help those who don’t even realize they are doing it. Ya know, college freshmen.
McCain needs to turn to the interrupting son of a bitch and say. “Yes, your point is noted, now would you please just have a big glass of shut the fuck up while I shoot you down?”
September 26th, 2008 at 9:26 pmImagine the historical value of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream if he’d said “I have a dream” then nothing else.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:27 pmhM,
Love/hate/love/hate Percocet. Being stoned makes me feel like a libtard: so why can’t I empathize with Uhhhbama tonight? And I’d love to know what your dad thinks … I’m a tad hazy, but the obviosity is obvious (heh).
I hope your dad’s okay, hM. You’ve been through enough lately.
hM and Deanna:
Absuhhhlutely. Y’all are geniui!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:28 pmMaybe because he’s such an ass. Poor Bambi. Somebody needs to put him out of his misery.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:29 pmhM, you are a genius. That’s hysterical.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:30 pmAmelia, re: kindergarten:
I went into kindergarten as a 4-year-old who could read. I did almost nothing my kindergarten year academically because the teacher was too busy trying to teach 30 other kids to read. (This was Seattle in the 80’s.)
My daughter will be almost six when she starts kindergarten (she has a December birthday) next school year. I’m good with that. My son has an August birthday and has a developmental delay. I’m so glad that I can give him an extra year to overcome his delays and hopefully enter kindergarten fully prepared for it. I fully support any parent wanting to keep their kid out of kindergarten for that extra year, which is why I hate universal preschool so much. Because once something becomes universal, eventually it will become mandatory. And once upon a time, even kindergarten was optional.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:32 pm“I will restore American’s standing in the world.”
I’ll make this really easy for you, Bambi:
WE DON’T CARE WHAT THE REST OF THE WORLD THINKS. WE DO CARE THAT WE ARE SAFE, ECONOMICALLY SOLVENT, AND HAVE THE SAME OPPORTUNITIES THE FOUNDING FATHERS AND OTHERS HAVE FOUGHT AND DIED FOR. FRANCE’S OPINION OF US MEANS JACK SHIT.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:33 pmI’ll second that.
Written English is a phonographic language, meaning each letter represents a sound. Teaching a phonographic language by any method other than phonics makes no sense to me at all.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:34 pmTo hM:
You are now my personal God.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:34 pm14K, they’re having a drinking game over at Michelle Malkin’s - one shot for every time Obama “uhh”s and one shot for every time McCain says “bipartisanship.” According to some commenters, they are quite smashed right now.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:35 pmI read an interesting column by Kathleen Parker today, Rachel, that mirrors what you’ve said.
Here’s a part:
September 26th, 2008 at 9:36 pmDeanna,
That is so awesome I don’t even know how to respond except to smash and snort a perc.
HEH!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:36 pmOH THANK GOD it’s over…
And did everyone catch that Obama’s father was from Kenya? And that’s where he got his name? I had NO idea! Did anyone else know that? (/sarc)
September 26th, 2008 at 9:39 pmI’m surprised I made it though. The first question, I shit you not, I was yelling at my TV whenever Obama spoke. The man is a liar. An outright liar. He’s also an economic moron if he actually believe the shit he’s spewing. Anything you can attach to the word ass, he’s it.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:42 pmHoly shit … the talking heads on NBC just said that McCain “seemed irritated at times and would scold Obama a number of times … while Obama was much more reserved about any criticism by McCain.”
WTF did I miss while I was napping? From what I saw Barry was the great Interruptor.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:43 pmBWAHAHAHA!!
September 26th, 2008 at 9:43 pmMaybe “reserved” is NBC’s code word for “no teleprompter.”
September 26th, 2008 at 9:45 pmDeanna, I agree completely.
Best of luck to the post-surgical folks.
Me too! Me too! I was disgusted.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:46 pmBambi got spanked and the media is exploring that large river in Egypt. I think it’s called “De Nile”.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:49 pmHere are a list of polls where you can vote on the Presidential debate. (Note: the list of polls is provided on Daily Kos…)
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/9/26/19044/7434/435/611793
September 26th, 2008 at 9:50 pmHee hee… Michelle Malkin’s already got the McCain media team’s first post-debate ad…
September 26th, 2008 at 9:54 pmhM,
Thanks for that affirmation. I may be a tad stoned, but I’m not totally stupid, and I’m not kidding. I taped this and skipped back several times to get that specific quote right. I will be watching this again once I am feeling more in my right mind. Heh.
Denial, indeed.
And I really do hope your dad is well, my stonerific prayers (such as they are) are with y’all.
Except, hM for “et” and “ume”.
Because he isn’t an “et” to America, and can’t “ume” he will be POTUS, cuz’ we ain’t gonna allow that to happen.
September 26th, 2008 at 9:57 pmThanks. He’s doing well. Just in a lot of pain still. Didn’t answer the phone so I’ll have to ask him what he thought about the debate tomorrow. I’m interested to hear his take since I’m sure he wasn’t yelling at the screen like I was.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:03 pmI already said this in my own way earlier, but to emphasize, I agree with this article by K Lo: Free Sarah Palin!
September 26th, 2008 at 10:05 pmOh, and I’m sure some of you would like an update about my cousin and the baby and how they’re doing.
They had the funeral (wanted it to be a small thing so I didn’t go out of respect for their wishes). In general I think they’re doing better. I visited them within the last couple days and we had a good conversation. Makes me sad that we’ve missed out on spending all the time together we could have before this happened.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:13 pmYes. Completely, unequivocally, kick-Scarlett-Johannsen-out-of-bed-in-favor-of-Helen-Thomas batshit insane.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:23 pmAbout the debate tonight:
Kissinger Unhappy About Obama
September 26th, 2008 at 10:29 pmMy wife thought that McCain crushed on the final 75% of the debate (but she hates Obama - a lot - God I love that woman). I will watch on DVR later.
New Whittle essay at NRO. It is titled “Pain.”
September 26th, 2008 at 10:32 pmI can’t stomach Katie Couric for more than a few seconds at a time, so I haven’t seen Sarah’s interview. What clips I did see seemed quite obviously set up to make her look bad. They did the old shine the light bright in her face, come at her from a below the jaw angle, and keep making it seem as though she never blinks. Why would anyone trust the liberal media to play fair…ever?
September 26th, 2008 at 10:32 pmObama’s Bracelet
September 26th, 2008 at 10:32 pmDang, and I had this long drawn out paragraph describing why I thought McCain won hands down. I think you said it all hM. Thanks for that.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:36 pmOMG Redhead -
I could hardly stand to listen after the “I haz a bracelet too” comment. I felt embarrassed for him.
He was sooo on the defensive about every subject.
McCain won. Period.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:40 pmHere’s something that kept making me bang my head against my fist (couldn’t reach anything harder):
Obama kept saying he would give tax breaks to 95% of working families. He can’t. I don’t know the numbers, but if I recall income distribution correctly, over 20% of working families pay No. Federal. Income. Tax. AT. ALL.
Last year was only the second time I have not gotten every cent I paid into Federal Taxes back at tax return time. This means that he wants to use the tax code to do even more wealth redistribution (like we didn’t already know that), and McCain should have brought this up.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:02 pmPalin - it seems to me she doesn’t do as well in a structured interrogation as she does with unscripted real life. I’m very confident she’s plenty smart enough for either of the two jobs up for grabs here. Fundamentally, her values are what matter as they will be the basis of decision making. Watching her with actual people in dynamic situations like the recent World Trade Center Visit - she does as well or better than any of the four. I saw Couric as at least antagonistic, but it had the air of a queen bee kind of thing. Where I live, the votes don’t count (Territory). Donations matter, so I have voted against socialism.
The debate - the whole thing reminds me of Jr. High Class President activities run by old kids. Everyone’s (both sides) preconception of who won is being sounded out as verified. Nov 4th is what matters. Get every non-socialist to the polls and we’ll just have to live with the results of our best efforts.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:03 pmHere’s the thing to remember about Katie Couric–she’s a pit viper that looks like Bambi. I swear I think people forget and then when she interviews them–they are taken aback that she is so vicious and yet appears kind. Can’t stand her.
Meghan Kelly said this afternoon that maybe Sarah was still super nervous on TV and that some people just panicked when that camera turned on.
Frank Luntz’s undecideds were in the tank for Obama tonight
September 26th, 2008 at 11:12 pmApparently I’m more of a party animal than you, Rachel. So much so that when I got home from work at 5pm, I ate a bowl of soup and promptly passed out until just now. Nothing says, “party girl” like going to bed at 5:30pm on a Friday night.
Sheesh.
I’m now recording the re airing of the debate from C-Span.
As for the Katie Couric piece…I didn’t see it. I refuse to watch Katie Couric. I know it’s good to see what the other side is doing but I have my limits and that is definitely one of them.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:19 pmI just looked at the interview on Youtube, and I have to agree with you about Katie being a wolf in sheep’s clothing. And I think that is what we saw on our dear Sarah’s face, having to deal with someone who so well-cloaks their real personality. If that is the worst thing someone can say about Sarah Palin then I’m all in…I still love her and her humanity.
Reminds me of the viper I interviewed with for a job many, many years ago. Apparently we attended high school together and she had a beef with the fact that I didn’t remember her or that I was more popular than her..whatever. Honestly, I have never screwed up a job interview before, had always gotten a job especially based on my interviewing skills. I knew about 10 seconds in that I was doomed, but still gave it my best shot.
Funny thing is, about a year later she came to where I was working looking for a job herself, even asked if she could use me as a reference. I said “abso-fucka-lootly NOT.” As she wandered about the warehouse (I used to be a department manager for Costco), waiting for her interview, I suggested to our security staff that she might be a potential shoplifter. Somehow she didn’t get the job.
Paybacks are a bitch.
I’m hoping that when Ms. Palin is in office she will remember those who treated her so badly. But she probably isn’t as vindictive as I am.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:36 pmDelayed by (unrelated) need to run to hardware store after the debate.
Obama was already losing when he let that, “Nyyeah, I have a bracelet, too.” fart. Love the warpspeed “||:Senator McCain is absolutely right:||” ad.
Couric interview has aspect [not] to be ignored: Jealousy. Sarah’s grasp is nearing levers of power, and she’s seven years younger than Katie. Hell, Katie is almost old enough for me. What the hell am I saying???? [smacks forehead]
September 26th, 2008 at 11:49 pmhM,
Thank you for the update on your family. They are still in my thoughts and prayers. Continue to support one another as best you can. You were all blessed with a life that brought you closer together; no words can alleviate the pain of losing that life but I am grateful that this wonderful child’s existence brought you all closer together.
Amelia in TX,
Thank you. I had a very difficult couple of days, with some unpleasant news but a tolerable outcome. I’m trying to keep it in perspective, but sometimes I just want to feel sorry for myself when the two+ years of ongoing surgeries/treatments get intolerable. Sigh.
Redhead Infidel,
Heh! I’d LOL, but my mouth hurts too damn much! Teh funneh!
My Awesome Mixed Tape #6,
Ain’t justice GRAND!! Shoplifter … what comes around … and the mighty shall fall.
Serenity,
September 26th, 2008 at 11:49 pmAt least I have an excuse for snoozing through the early part of the debate … working too hard? Why? You know, you could just slack and get the bailout, ya know!?!
God I can’t wait for the time when Sarah Palin can talk with Katie Couric after she is V.P. It will be interesting. Palin when angry is something to behold. I watched her verbally kick the S**T out of our mayor one evening. I could not hear what was said but watched the mayor melt. Damn I like that woman, even if she did scrap our ‘bridge to nowhere.”
September 27th, 2008 at 12:02 amThis is why I have a fixed policy of avoiding all political speeches, interviews, debates, etc., dating back 36 years to the time I listened to a Nixon speech and needed a tranquilizer to keep from throwing my radio through a window.
That doesn’t sound like something that would improve an unbiased viewer’s opinion of McCain.
September 27th, 2008 at 12:53 amWatch her February CSPAN interviews before the MSM malstrom.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBaEX6tfxJo
I too think she’s so guarded that it’s affecting how she comes across, but come on, she been attacked, as have her children and husband by the MSM and partisans on an unprecedented level. I’d be a little cautious too, wouldn’t you?
Oh. No you wouldn’t, you’d be ripping Couric’s face off and stuffing it up her smug ass. Never mind.
September 27th, 2008 at 1:05 amPalin obviously needs to start reading some blogs.
I felt like she stumbled over very simple questions that any of us here ( Lib Or Conservative) could have answered in our sleep. She’s got the themes down, not the specifics, and quite honestly, any trailer park jackass can spout “Freedom and democracy” all day, but also not have any idea of how to achieve either. A better answer to the foreign policy question is that her experience is similar that of former governor Bill Clinton, except that her state does border two foreign contries that she has dealt with on a State level. But no, People who have not been elected to Federal Office don’t generally have ANY foreign policy experience because as non-federal citizens, we don’t deal with foreign governments!!!!!
Couric knows this, the only reason she asked is to hurt Palin.
BUT>>>>>
Seriously, she couldn’t come up with any McCain led reforms? How about the oft cited McCain-Feingold, or the Comprehensive Immigration reform bill or the FEDERAL HOUSING ENTERPRISE REGULATORY REFORM ACT OF 2005!!! ( Which if passed woudl have kept us out of this financial mess, btw).
She is a dummy. I still love her, but she’s not going to ever cook up anything of substance in ther own head, she’ll maybe exercise good judgement and seek the advice of experts, but she’s just not on top of things.
I swear that if they let me at her for 4 or 5 days, I could lead to the places she needs to read every day ( like Rachel Lucas) to get up to speed on what’s what.
September 27th, 2008 at 1:07 amMy Awesome Mixed Tape #6:
Oh, sweet, SWEET revenge. Those are the types of moments I dream of having in my own life. I don’t typically envy people but in this case, oh I envy. I envy hard with this one.
14 Karat:
To think, this whole time I could have been sitting on the couch all day long, watching Oprah, (fuck her!), and then crying and whining about how things aren’t FAIIIIR! in order to steal from America to get the nice things I want. Unfortunately, I’m just a stoopit Rethuglican.
September 27th, 2008 at 1:19 amI didn’t see the Presidential debate tonight. I was busy watching the Phillies game. Going into tonight’s game, they were one game ahead of the Mets with three games left to play.
They won, the Mets lost, and now they’ve clinched a tie for the NL East! Go Phils!
Really, it’s not as if my vote hinged on the outcome of this debate. ; )
September 27th, 2008 at 1:57 am“Frank Luntz’s undecideds were in the tank for Obama tonight”
According to Frank Luntz, Mitt Romney was a shoe-in for the Republican nomination.
September 27th, 2008 at 2:00 amThe problem I can see here is that Rachel has been brainwashed along with so many others to believe that our Presidential candidates have to be Nobel geniuses or something. All a president has to do is delegate well, not cure cancer or win Pulitzer prizes. Palin is a good administrator and from that standpoint is qualified, not by how well she does in interviews.
Also as has been expressed by others, Palin is operating in a box. She’s been McCain-ized, not allowed to really express HER views. Also she has to defend McCain’s record. Always before she ran at the top of a ticket(city council, mayor, governor), she only had to defend her own record. This makes things doubly difficult. Also don’t forget she must be feeling a bit rattled from the 101 smears launched against her.
Another point. She’s coming form Alaska where the largest TV audience she ever had was probably 10,000 for a governors’ debate and suddenly she has to talk to 40,000,000 people at a time? That would rattle any sane person. Sarah’s only human. All that Saracuda talk simply built up too much pressure.
Para:
Sarah is no dummy. However I don’t expect someone to become a policy wonk in this cauldron she’s been thrust into. It’s just too much going on. The kind of stuff you expect her to know has to happen in a quieter environment with more time. I think in the end it comes down to values and she has them in spades.
September 27th, 2008 at 2:20 amI did, however, see a clip of the Couric/Palin interview somewhere on the internet last night. I missed it when it was on TV, since I simply pay no attention to the alphabet soup TV networks any more. If I had known about it beforehand, I would have watched it, though.
Anyway, the clip was pretty tough to watch. But not surprising. This is Katie Couric we’re talking about here. She is notorious for being all sweetness and smiles when interviewing Democrats, while treating Republicans like a prosecutor cross-examining a witness. The look on her face in some of the reaction shots was priceless. It said, “I don’t believe a word you’re saying, lady.” Which is exactly the impression she was trying to put across.
I might question Palin’s judgment in agreeing to an interview with Couric in the first place. Given the unprecedented media shitstorm she’s faced in the last month, I wouldn’t blame her if she adopted a “fuck you” attitude towards the MSM. They’re already tottering on the brink of irrelevancy; that could drive the final stake through their hearts. And it might even resonate with millions of middle-of-the-road, independent and undecided voters who must be standing there with their jaws hanging open in disbelief after witnessing the unhinged hatred that the nutroots and their MSM allies have unleashed.
This interview was edited much more skillfully than the Gibson one. It reminded me of an old Bill Whittle article, where he described editing an interview with Michael Moore. (For those who don’t know, video editing is his day job.) He said that it would have been very easy to edit that interview to make Moore appear to be a loyal, die-hard Bush supporter. The only reason he didn’t do that was that he didn’t own the rights to the footage.
As the VP nominee, she has to parrot McCain’s positions on everything. That’s just part of the job, and she’s obviously not used to doing that. Personally, I’d have a hard time endorsing his position on global warming while keeping a straight face, and without bashing a hole in the wall with my head.
Thanks, Crusader. I was going to go back through the comments and quote and respond to various commenters. Those are some very important points you made, and you saved me a lot of work.
Bottom line: I’d vote for her for President over the other three without batting an eye. But it’s good that she’s running for Vice President now. She needs a little seasoning, and she’ll get it.
Yes, one would think that a nation of 300 million people could produce better candidates than what we have. Still, which political candidates from which other nations would you prefer?
September 27th, 2008 at 3:38 amRachel,
Not to worry. The US has weathered any number of stupid presidents. They usually don’t make much of a name for themselves, don’t wreck much. The people around them smile, pick up the pieces, and things go on.
The most recent notably brilliant President that I recall was Jimmy Carter. He wrecked the military, the economy, and various and sundry other strengths of the US. Like his karmic twin, Barack Obama, Carter had trouble getting the rest of government to work with him, and not experience or understanding of how government is supposed to work. Carter was a very nice, very honest, very brilliant man. And an awful President.
Unlike Carter, Obama seems to have the morals and evasive manner of Richard Nixon, or that forgotten VP, Spiro T. Agnew. Now, that is a combination that bothers me.
September 27th, 2008 at 7:03 amWell, I’m going to with hold judgment on Governor Palin. There are many miles to go.
Reason being; although I am not up to speed on a majority of things I expect the government to know and do well for me, I could most certainly become so, were it my job, and I was getting paid for it - thereby allowing me the time to ramp up. Couple this to my personal belief that Congress is currently filled with the largest collection of dumb asses in high places my eyes have ever seen, how could I do worse? The brightest crayon in any box wouldn’t be caught dead working inside the beltway, for the U.S. Gov’t.
On a blog somewhere, someone said “nihilist”. Look up the meanings, if you are not already well versed in the meanings of the word. I have been searching for a one word term for Obama for months. MY PERSONAL OPINION: were he slightly older, he would have been a Weatherman, or perhaps a Black Panther, in those organizations’ heydays. He is a “closet” version of them now.
September 27th, 2008 at 8:12 am1) I want to see the out takes before I make judgment.
September 27th, 2008 at 8:28 am2) I don’t care, “the one” scares me more than she does and he’s at the top of the ticket.
3) Is this part of a campaign strategy? Look bad going into the debate and then during the debate cause a “Linda Blair” moment by Biden (At the beginning of the debate I want Sarahcudda to walk over shake his hand and whisper softly so that Joe has to lean over close to her mouth and I want her to say, “I am going to clean your skinny little ass so bad you will walk bowlegged for a week”).
“McCain was giggling dismissively and making notes on his papers with a Sharpie. Now I feel bad for calling McCain an asshole earlier. I like him tonight.”
well,how can he NOT laugh at him?
September 27th, 2008 at 8:42 amI think she was ok. As others haved noted, part of the problem is that she has been drilled to present McCain talking points, rather than say what she thinks and then the campaign deal with it later. So, she has to process each question to work out what she would have said and get to what she is supposed to say. She can’t be a dunderhead to do what she’s done in Alaska.
September 27th, 2008 at 8:42 amAs for McCain, the biggest dissapoinment for me was his blowing the chance to smack Obama and other democrats over the financial crisis. He had so many opportunities and just didn’t swing
September 27th, 2008 at 8:43 am“The problem I can see here is that Rachel has been brainwashed along with so many others to believe that our Presidential candidates have to be Nobel geniuses or something. All a president has to do is delegate well, not cure cancer or win Pulitzer prizes. Palin is a good administrator and from that standpoint is qualified, not by how well she does in interviews.”
seems that we had a PRESIDENT just like her,back in the 80s.Ronnie may not have been a rocket scientist,but he knew how to delegate well
September 27th, 2008 at 8:44 amBrad … explain ‘brilliant’ for Jimmy contrasted with his recent positions around Israel and the ME. I once had respect for his work in Habitat, but the body of his life work is just too misguided to look beyond.
IMO, Obama was not Presidential at all last night. You can’t get belligerent, make stuff up on the fly, change the subject, or go Street on world leaders. He did that last night when McCain outspoke him on the Georgia situation. Obama tried to change the subject. If I were McCain, I’d have said ‘name three of the important people in the Osetia region right now you poseur’. Sitting down with a man who intends to destroy a US ally is just misguided, and not consistent with US policy, and not realizing Russia has veto power in the UN drove his initial statements on how to deal with Russian aggression. Obama unscripted, which most tough decisions while President includes, is a dangerous thing.
And btw … Mac might have mentioned what people should know. Those 95% of tax filers pay very little today, and the top 5% almost all personal taxes. Sure it includes those who make excess, but most of those “rich” 250K people live in places where it takes every dime to live. Tell a guy in NYC, or LA, or any big city they have money falling out of their pockets at 250K. It’s just pathetic.
And those mean corporations … they create our jobs. Make it profitable to do business here, and bring the fucking jobs back home. Jesus, like it’s brain surgery. Drill here, loosen regulations so we can build refineries and other industries. Build the new plants with breaks on taxes so they can be operated cleanly and in compliance with environmental standards.
Mac let all the bailout economy stuff slide, rather than invite folks to fact check a few things he should’ve mention, loan programs under Clinton, contributions take by Obama from FRE, FNM, Wall Street. And he missed an opportunity to state the obvious - it isn’t all Wall Street, it was a failure of government, and greed and irresponsibility on Main Street. He should’ve named the legislation he put forward to address the problem.
Bush didn’t put a gun to anyone’s head to run up their credit cards, or buy what they never could afford. He missed the opportunity to slap the youngster around the war … how do you take seriously Obama “standing up against the war”, when he wasn’t in the Senate at the time?
McCain ended this where he needed to, but played to nice and too soft on that jackass … he doesn’t need “on the job training, HE’s ready to lead on day one. Obama is not”.
September 27th, 2008 at 8:53 amJohn: It’s too far away from election day to clean Obama’s clock yet. I am first to admit I don’t remember things for too long a time. There is much on my plate, as with just about every American.
I am sure McCain’s advisers taped the debate, are picking it to pieces (as are Obama’s) and are actually laughing themselves silly at the moment (still). The gloves have yet to come off, and I am confident the junk yard dog in them will come out in due time.
You see, what Obama and the far left stand for is not what America is about. It’s not. I am hopeful this will sink in to many more than it already has, and Obama will lose in a landslide - yes, landslide - to McCain. We need to let the man talk. He will lose the election all by himself.
September 27th, 2008 at 9:35 amSure we could have answered those questions……..on a blog.
Reading a question and carefully composing a typed response is entirely different from answering questions in a live interview. I don’t know about you but if I’m in the middle of a complex debate it sometimes takes me a good five minutes or more to craft a good, measured response to someone else’s post. I take a few moments to read through what someone else has said, type of my response, then re-read my post at least twice to make sure it sounds right. And even then mistakes still sneak up on me.
Also remember that when we answer a question on a blog we have the entire resources of the internet at our disposal. When someone asks us a question we can instantly fact-check it and cite links supporting our argument. I myself have an entire folder in the bookmarks section of my web browser labeled “politics” full of links organized by issue and by the political candidate(s) they pertain to. Sometimes when I’m bored I hop over to Michelle Malkin or Ace of Spades just to farm for new links that might someday be useful in an online argument. I have a link to FindLaw.com for checking laws, Dictionary.com for checking word definitions and looking up synonyms, Urban Dictionary for checking unfamiliar slang terms, BibleGateway.com for double-checking the context of Bible quotes, and the CIA World Factbook for general demographic info. I even have a link to a digital copies of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence just so I don’t have to remember them by heart.
(Also, as a hobby like to collect unusual wikis. You wouldn’t believe some of the crazy wikis out there.)
But take all those things away from me and I suspect I would be completely lost. Without time to prepare and research, I would probably stutter and stammer my way through that interview just like Palin did. And I think a lot of other people here would too.
September 27th, 2008 at 9:38 amI agree with John. McCain played waaaay too nice. Over at the Tigerhawk liveblog of the debate people were talking about how McCain was holding it together and Obama was falling apart and how that ultimately looked better. We were looking at “presidential” McCain, not “angry” McCain.
The thing is, I want to see the McCain who is not afraid to pull out the big guns and use them. I want to see somebody who can work with the other side but at the same time remind the other side that if they want to launch ad hominem and outright false attacks against him they’re going to have a shit storm of factual evidence of their complicity and duplicity coming back at them, no holds barred.
Maybe that’s why I would never make a good president. Because as much as I suck at memorizing things I’d memorize pages of web addresses to tell people to visit that detail assholes like Obama’s contributions to major economic and military crises. I’d also have no problem calling him a lying bastard to his face. On national television. Then I’d tell him to prove me wrong. Then I’d pull out the facts and call him a lying bastard. Again.
Same goes for people like Putin. I understand the idea of diplomacy, but for the love of God, out leaders need to grow a pair. Sometimes the best possible thing you can do is look an asshole square in the eye and say “You know what, this has gone on long enough. You’re an asshole.” No, it’s not very diplomatic and it might just piss people off, but it’s also a very effect way to remind somebody that you are keeping your eye on them. And if you have the bigger power, it also reminds them that you could kick the shit out of them if you really wanted to.
I currently know somebody who has been pushed around at work for a loooong time and he’s finally had enough. He’s about the call the asshole an asshole. It might get ugly, but ultimately the asshole will lose because the guy I know has the goods to back himself up.
Anyway, that’s what I want to see McCain do. Call the asshole an asshole and back it up with factual, you-can’t-wiggle-out-of-it-this-time-asshole evidence.
September 27th, 2008 at 9:43 amI didn’t see the interview or any of the clips but I did just get off the phone with my wacky mother who did and she is convinced Palin is a moron and only people who hate blacks will not vote for Obama.
She seemed unfazed by the fact that Biden is a bonafide idiot, Obama has no experience, a liberal track record and no plan. The only thing he has got going for him is the media con job and people like my mother who fall for it hook line and sinker.
September 27th, 2008 at 9:44 amMark, when OBie said the economic problems were systemic, I was positively drooling for Mac to slam him for the amount of money he’s taken from both GSEs and for putting their leaders on his campaign staff. If the economic problems were systemic then that must include certain legislators who were making money hand over fist on it. I’m pissed that Mac let it slide, and that he didn’t hit back at the false claim that deregulation caused this fiasco. He got better as the night wore on.
September 27th, 2008 at 9:50 amI really have to disagree strongly with this, Para. Sarah is not a dummy. She’s trying to use someone else’s words and concepts to answer gotcha questions and it showed. She just need to be allowed to be herself and answer those questions in her own common-sense words. Period.
I have some empathy for this situation. A couple of years ago, I was asked to join a panel on Fox discussing nukes. The producer of the show led me to believe the segment was going to be oriented one way, with a logical give and take. I knew my material inside and out and I still boned up for three days ahead of the live show. My head was crammed to bursting with facts and data. I was fuckin’ READY.
When the show started, the host tossed off some really shitty inane assumptions and I quickly realized that I was the sole dissenting view on the panel and had been set-up as a foil for the other panelists. The host was relaxed and chummy with the other [male] panelists and aggressive and condescending with me [the only female].
Further, the questions the Fox host asked were, in a word, unserious. My brain was flying frickin’ 10 miles a second and my mouth was trying to keep up. The other panelists were allowed to finish their generic statements (read: opinions) that a six-grader would say, and I was the only one attempting to inject facts and figures into the discussion. Each time, I was cut-off before finishing my statement. It was disconcerting and I did not have the television experience or confidence (or ill-manners) to over-talk the others.
It was a disaster. I knew my shit on this topic, but it didn’t show. That doesn’t make me a dummy, nor unqualified on the subject. I just didn’t have the experience in that live TV set-up to manipulate it to my advantage. And as the only woman on a panel about a very serious subject and as the only one who gave a shit about the FACTS, I felt the pressure. Now I know what I’d do and say in a similar circumstance.
Live and fuckin’ learn.
So I feel for Palin. She has weathered attacks on her family that would have sent me to a very dark and dangerous place already. She has singlehandedly revived McCain’s chances in November. She is not perfect and I wouldn’t trust her if she tried to be. I would like to see the McCain campaign quit HANDLING her, and cut Sarahcuda loose.
Fuck Obama.
Fuck Couric.
And fuck Oprah.
That is all.
September 27th, 2008 at 10:09 amAnd just because I can’t get over the fact that MLK, Jr. would, in all probability, be spinning in his grave to know that Bambi is what’s passing for a leader in the latter stages of his dream:
September 27th, 2008 at 10:11 amI have a saying about editing when I watch reality TV and participants say, “Oh, I was edited to look like that” and I always say, “Because you gave them enough to be edited that way.” I am not going to hold up “editing” to defend Sarah Palin in interviews.
Sarah Palin’s problem is that no one knew who she was when she was nominated, whereas we knew the other three, so to say that she was fresh meat is an understatement.