E.J. Dionne has some interesting analysis of conservative infighting and division:
For years, many of the elite conservatives were happy to harvest the votes of devout Christians and gun owners by waging a phony class war against "liberal elitists" and "leftist intellectuals." Suddenly, the conservative writers are discovering that the very anti-intellectualism their side courted and encouraged has begun to consume their movement.
The cause of Edmund Burke, Leo Strauss, Robert Nisbet and William F. Buckley Jr. is now in the hands of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity -- and Sarah Palin. Reason has been overwhelmed by propaganda, ideas by slogans, learned manifestoes by direct-mail hit pieces.
I thought it odd that Grover Norquist made a reference to "Reagan republicans" energized by Palin earlier, but in this context, it makes much more sense. Norquist uses Reagan's name as a catch-all talisman, a shorthand for the good ole conservative heyday before the American public wised up to some crucial truths (via Digby):
...George W. Bush and the GOP Congress did precisely what Reagan did: They cut taxes, mainly on the well-to-do, but they barely touched spending.I wonder when, or if, pundits or voters will internalize the fact that this is not an accident, but rather a conscious feature of conservative governance. They get into office, cut taxes on the rich and steal taxpayer money for their walthy contributors....it's no longer logical to assume that it's not intentional....
The Reagan Myth makes it difficult to make that connection and convince people that the so-called "failed" presidents are actually standard conservative politicians doing what conservative politicians always do.
Is this the year the majority of Americans wises up and realizes that they never get to be GOP cronies with their hands in the taxpayer's wallets but are, instead, the suckers perpetually taken for a ride by the modern Republican party? With reports of circular firing squads forming within GOP ranks and among McCain's top advisors, I guess we'll see.
Login Here
Spotlight



Support this site!
Keep
up with news
Advertise on Firedoglake
Send
us your tips
Make us your homepage
About Firedoglake
Advanced search


RSS/XML Feed
Good morning Christy.
I need coffee!
Happy belated birthday Christy! And a nice win for the ‘Eers last night too. An omen perhaps?
Here’s hoping! I still can’t believe we’re 5-2. But the Mountaineers of the second half last night are the team we thought we’d start the year with…so thank goodness for small favors, I suppose. *g*
Good Morning Christy,
I’ll echo TM’s comment — great win for your Mountaineers. Watched until the bitter end reveling in that marvelous comeback.
Or as I said on a thread last night, a “devine” victory.
Good Morning Christy and Firedogs,
sucked all the oxygen out of the room last Saturday when I reminded a gaggle of Republics that our current state of affairs
…is the balloon payment for your precious Reaganomics !, your 30 year war on oversight and regulation…y’all can’t govern to save your lives !”
Devine is just fabulous.
I don’t think anyone would claim that rush or shaun are “anti intilectual’ but palin certainly is.
she can definately fit the preferred politician’s description, she is with no doubT NOT an “intellectual
I wonder when, or if, pundits or voters will internalize the fact that this is not an accident, but rather a conscious feature of conservative governance. They get into office, cut taxes on the rich and steal taxpayer money for their walthy contributors….it’s no longer logical to assume that it’s not intentional….
—————
as chimpie,ad Darth say
ITs THEIR DUE
What a good commentary…and couldn’t happen at a better time to very well-deserving bunch of folks. We simple folk call it having the chickens come home to roost.
when I say “anti intellectual” I mean to say that they seem pretty smart but they are definately against anyone else who is intellectual
I hope the Republicans are routed on election day and the party thoroughly disenfranchised.
They have had eight years to steal everything that wasn’t nailed down and they have written a book full of bad checks and are getting ready to skip town.
It will take years to clean up their mess and the Average American is going to suffer during those years.
Even with all this happening virtually right in their faces though, I still talk to people who blindly vote for these people, every time.
It makes my head hurt.
don’t think anyone would claim that rush or shaun are “anti intilectual’ but palin certainly is.
——————-
Are you kiddin me?
Christy,
Don’t sell short the role that the Lake and other web operations have played in debunking the trite lies that fed the Reagan revolution. It was clear the M$M was never going to achieve a full dismantling of the lies, but now that the real info has been laid out for all, more and more of it is making its way into the regular media.
Hooray for research and truth!
I easily claim Sean is anti-intellectual. He perseverates and says untruths. I think he is pig-headed, but thankfully I have not heard his longer discourse.
smart?…………….lizard brains who repeat taliking (scream t.p.) for 100 million dollar salaries
Grover Norquist is repulsive. FYI, for those who are interested, Sarah’s giving a major policy speech now.
my terrribly constructed post, sorry sadlyes
did you see shmuckface Greenspin doing his OOPSIE i was wrong ,and Earth crumbled…..moment yesterday?
I thought she was supposed to be up lying to the lawyers in Alaska…did her schedule change?
linkeroo?
i have no idea,who the cabal is,that conjures up the lies….but they are Deusies
I didn’t watch the hearing but read some of the live blogging from selise.
Digg is open. Long live the end of the Reagan Coalition!
The Patricians have been rabble rousing the Plebeians since Reagan with demagoguery
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demagogy
one word
SCHIAVO
remember her?
“Has McCain Hastened the Demise of the ‘Reagan Coalition’?”
Brethren (and Sisteren), let us pray!
NAZI playbook ,they studied it well,right down to the torture etc
She’s on MSNBC. My remote keeps changing the channel so I cannot adequately recap. She is talking about special needs and education. From what I did hear, she believes in freedom of choice in education.
Maybe McCain is honorable after all.
I do but I surely missed his rabid opinion, thankfully.
From the “You can’t make this shit up file” -
Palin’s Makeup Stylist Fetches Highest Salary in 2-Week Period
Who was the highest paid individual in Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign during the first half of October as it headed down the homestretch?
Not Randy Scheunemann, Mr. McCain’s chief foreign policy adviser; not Nicolle Wallace, his senior communications staff member. It was Amy Strozzi, who was identified by the Washington Post this week as Gov. Sarah Palin’s traveling makeup artist, according to a new filing with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday night.
Ms. Strozzi, who was nominated for an Emmy award for her makeup work on the television show “So You Think You Can Dance?”, was paid $22,800 for the first two weeks of October alone, according to the records. The campaign categorized Ms. Strozzi’s payment as “PERSONNEL SVC/EQUIPMENT.”
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.....ek-period/
We are all going to be paying for this mess for a long, long time. Meanwhile, the finger-pointing to pass the blame along to someone else continues unabated. SIGH
I have spent a bit of coin on ammunition this last year - I’m a liberal who likes to shot his assault rifle at paper targets - but I would be happy to donate some for a good circular firing squad.
I’ll do it even though I can’t claim it on taxes.
Is the ‘modern republican party’ any different than the one fronted by the first republican president?
An.e.way … your economy is crumbling around you, even as we press these keys. Palin, McPOW, et bloody cetera, is just fluff and distraction. If you can’t solve that, nothing else matters.
didnt he set up shop outside her hospital room?( TV show)
Can’t help but wonder what all those “Reagan Democrats” in Macomb County, Micigan, are feeling today. Probably less like champs and more like chumps.
Besides routing the GOP this election, I sincerely hope that this also destroys any even modestly realistic chances for Palin to run in 2012.
Here’s to hoping for a nice impeachment of Governor Palin in Alaska after being crushed in the national election too! That would be icing on the cake.
and she looks like a cheap strumpet with noisy bangles and BasicInstinct hemlines
Apparently her oldest son and prospective son-in-law are school dropouts. I understand her two daughters’ attendance is very poor and their constant appearance on the campaign trail seems to suggest they haven’t been in class much lately. So I guess she really does give them freedom of choice in education.
imo……….she may run to the outhouse
The Reagan coalition was always a strange amalgam made up of corporatists, libertarians, the religious right, and traditional small government conservatives. It was dominated by the corporatists who threw the occasional sop to the other groups. It worked for nearly 30 years and was surprisingly robust. It took 8 years of non-stop disasters from the worst President in our history plus collapses in the housing and financial market to do it in.
I wonder if they have a tutor on the bus with them? That’s what the Edwards’ family did…
The GOP governs with the aid of an angry minority of emotional voters which is less than 50% however the GOP BRIBES whoever they can to get a majority on legislation these bribes are the wasteful spending that the GOP cannot seem to control.
Reagen, Bush, Bush 2 notice a pattern Bush is the only one to try and control spending kind of but he was the least popular and also the least emotional.
Reagen and Bush 2 were very emotional angry at welfare cheats and Iraq they both spent money big and were popular.
Well Bush 2 was popular after 9/11.
Let the Republicons run Palin in 2012. The Palin wing of the party is becoming narrower and narrower. Let her inherit the know-nothing, bigot wing of the party. As the U.S. becomes more diverse, let the Republicans become more narrow. Republicans will be out of power for generations. Better yet, the party becomes so irrelavent that it goes the way of the Whigs.
I don’t know, but we do know about the two dropouts and the fact that the elder daughter missed most of a year with mononucleosis.
And now, the finger-pointing and infighting over whose fault it is that things are in the crapper has begun…and the corporatist versus the religious right nastiness is the loudest of the bunch at the moment. This could get quite interesting after November 4th, depending on how the presidential as well as the Senate, House and down-ticket races shake out. Very, very interesting…
Ouch, bottom page of the first article, they refer to the continuous negative leaks from the campaign as:
The McCain campaign is officially in need of Depends.
For the Palin’s the bible is all the schooling their kids need!
If folks could give this a digg, I’d appreciate it…
where in bloody hell is all that money ?!?!?
**they ‘lose’ $9 Billion in unmarked bills in Eye-rack, and no one had the foresight to tuck a couple hundred million away for republic coffers ?
**Mitchell and Wilkes shell companies gave tens of millions in campaign contributions and they are pulling cash out of incumbent districts ?
**billions have disappeared down various Bush/Cheney rabbit holes, and they are car pooling to the airport ?
either some folks are going to live like Croesus in Paraguay, or they spent it all on “malt liquor and lottery tickets”
Where’s the damn money ???
NPR was just running their version of “fair and balanced” reporting and one of the comments was from a woman they had selected to represent the Republican base. Her comment was “if Obama gets to the White House there will be chaos, just chaos.”
The only way people will make sweeping generalizations like that is if they are conditioned to do it. And for the last 30 years, the Republican Party has successfully demonized all things Democratic (and democratic) for the sole purpose of winning elections with their “base” voters — men and women who, when confronted with the information that would allow them to make truly informed decisions on the issues that really affect their lives, reflexively vote based on “feelings” that are manipulated by advertising, pundits, spokespeople, and candidates who misrepresent the real interests of the modern Republican Party.
My sister-in-law is a cardiology resident at a major teaching hospital in Washington, DC. Her experience there is only now undoing years of having listened to Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity. Seeing what years of underfunding and neglect have done to the VA system (one of her rotations was through Washington’s VA hospital) made the scales start to fall from her eyes. Routinely seeing people come into emergency for cardiovascular problems, only to have to discharge them because they don’t have health insurance is another eye opener for her.
I recently described the modern Republican Party as a “zombie party” as the base is full of misplaced passion and conviction without any real leadership. Undoing the damage of the last 30 years of cultivating the low information voter is going to tremendous challenge, but one we have to undertake.
WOW!
The Stock Market is down 434 points after only five minutes!!!
and the net
I’m not a doctor, but I do know that I had mono my first year in college. I was on my mom’s couch for a coupla weeks, then it was back to school. I guess there might be better or worse cases of this condition.
Methods
Apples and oranges — mixing of incomparable quantities. For example, “our government has increased social spending by 5 billion dollars, while the previous government increased it only by 0.4 percent.” The latter sounds like less, but one cannot be sure without an absolute value.
Half-truth — making statements that are true only in a strict and relatively meaningless sense. For example, “the opposition have accused us of cutting foreign aid, but actually our government has increased foreign aid by 500 million dollars,” not mentioning that (adjusted for inflation) the allocated funds have in fact gone down.
False authority — relying on the general authority of a person who is not proficient in the discussed topic. For example, “the professor read my book, and liked it very much,” omitting the fact that it was a professor of chemistry who read a book on history.
False dilemma — assuming that there are only two possible opinions on a given topic. For example, “You’re either with us or against us…,” ignoring the possibility of a neutral position or divergence.
Demonization — identifying others as a mortal threat. Often this involves scapegoating — blaming others for one’s own problems. This is often advanced by using vague terms to identify the opposition group and then stereotyping that group. This allows the demagogue to exaggerate this group’s influence and ascribe any trait to them by identifying that trait in any individual in the group. This method can be aided by constructing a false dilemma that portrays opposition groups as having a value system that is the polar opposite of one’s own, as opposed to simply having different priorities. This method was incorporated by the Nazi regime to gain the general support of the public when it began to initiate its anti-Semitic policies.
Straw man — mischaracterizing the opposing position and then arguing against the mischaracterization.
Loaded question — posing a question with an implied position that the opponent does not have, e.g. “When did you stop taking bribes?”
Unrelated facts — bringing unrelated facts that sound in favor of the speaker’s agenda. For example, marking a vegetable or cereal product as “cholesterol free”. Since cholesterol is only found in animal products, such labeling does not actually distinguish this product from similar competitors.
Emotional appeal or personal attack — attempting to bring a discussion to an emotional level. For example, “Everyone is against me!”, “Can’t I be right just once?”, “You’re stupid!”, or just the classic retort “Shut up!”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demagogy
Have you ever noticed noticed how both Pat Buchanan and Hitler move their hands up and down when they are trying to make a point?
I thought that they were both w#cking it at first but I learned later its a Rhythmic device to get the crowd visually in time with your speaking.
Maybe Pat and Adolf had the same public speaking coach?
Wow, that must be a serious shock for her to hit that much reality head on. I know when I started working with criminal cases out of law school, I’d spent time around folks who had very little…but never in that concentrated an extent. And it was a shocker for me just how little some folks really had, and how generational and bass-ackwards so many of our policies are that perpetuate this mess.
Good Morning Christy,
You know this couldn’t be happening to a nicer group of people. :-)
They really have earned it, haven’t they?
Grandmother may not see Nov. 4th…
http://www.eioba.com/files/use.....ipos_3.jpg
no that is not a cruise ship,it is a super yacht
That is so sad.
A historic moment to say the least if Obama wins, it would indeed be a bitter sweet moment.
I remember the good old days when there would be an article explaining why the stock market dropped 400 or more points.
These days they don’t know and don’t care to tell us or even lie to us as to why.
A 400 point drop it seems is not that bad these days.
Rather than being invested in infrastructure improvement, education, healthcare, and wages for middle class Americans, it was invested in paper financial schemes and bubbles. When these collapsed, the money simply disappeared into thin air. Now Paulson and Bernanke are pumping trillions into keeping this shell game going. So it isn’t just where did the money go but where is it continuing to go.
Toot is a tremendous lady. I highly recommend “Dreams from My Father” for those who haven’t read it.
That was my experience with it in high school. Of course there were dire warnings about what could happen if you didn’t stay immobile. I remember asking what St. Vitus Dance was and deciding I didn’t care for the idea.
is that Larry Ellison’s or Paul Allen’s ???
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA Oh man, I needed this laugh this morning. From Krauthammer:
Contrarian that I am, I’m voting for John McCain. I’m not talking about bucking the polls or the media consensus that it’s over before it’s over. I’m talking about bucking the rush of wet-fingered conservatives leaping to Barack Obama before they’re left out in the cold without a single state dinner for the next four years.
I stand athwart the rush of conservative ship-jumpers of every stripe — neo (Ken Adelman), moderate (Colin Powell), genetic/ironic (Christopher Buckley) and socialist/atheist (Christopher Hitchens) — yelling “Stop!” I shall have no part of this motley crew. I will go down with the McCain ship. I’d rather lose an election than lose my bearings….
And it gets better after that. ROFL
These frauds, quacks and charlatans have to deal with their day of reckoning.
By the way, now that the market is in a freefall and the loony rightwing ideology is in tatters, are wealthy folks going to still be pumping so much of their money into the wingnut welfare coffers or are the Norquists, Dobsons and the rest going to have to start tightening their belts?
-G
It has only one helipad. Is this the economy version?
Hand him an anchor.
Bon Voyage, dude.
Don’t forget the more money they print without paying the debt the lower in value the dollar drops.
Also since stuff costs the same from other countries like gas etc and our dollar is dropping in value relative to many foreign currencies our government has to pay more for gas for police cars, school buses etc.
In other words Bush raised your taxes.
Old Charlie would rather go down with ship - that’s hilarious.
They are all so nuts. Thanks for the laugh.
hahahhaahahahaha
i think its Cindy Lou’s
Haven’t heard of that. Dare I ask?
And doesn’t the though of Grover Norquist having to economize because people aren’t sending payments his way just make you smile? Just ever so slightly…
Charles is sure proud to be a Patrician Elitist. I wonder how he would do at a Palin rally?
Charles when they ask if your not from around here…thats the time to leave.
as i said upstairs
ITs ALL ABOUT THE PARTIES and free dinners(and $$$$$) for a raainy day
Poor Grover might have to go back to wearing a cloth coat.
-G
and being a [edited by MOD] ,he is ripe for RAPTURING,no?
[Mod Note: Comment edited by Moderator. The use of slurs at FDL is not allowed. Thank you.]
might have to give up,the Bordeauxs,for RIPPLE…707
From Huff Po:
McCain’s Private Visit With Chilean Dictator Pinochet Revealed For First Time
Loves Torturers!
Who stands athwart nowadays? Sounds like an older version of having his panties in a twist, which curiously would fit. As for his bearings, I didn’t realize that “always wrong” was a position.
It makes family dinners with the rock-ribbed Ohio Republican parents very interesting indeed.:) I have to pull my partner back from the brink pretty much every time. His sister is having a tough time with reconciling where she’s come from with what she’s seeing.
Then there’s this part:
My emphasis.
Yep, we have to vote for McCain because we will be surprised by a small country somewhere trying to take us down. And McCain is the one to protect us from that? I don’t know. If the surprise it too big, he’ll need another Depends.
Sorry, Charlie. It’s too late for all fear all the time. Our financial markets are in the crapper and your boy is very high on the list of plumbers who laid the pipes. Just let him disappear into the Arizona desert so Obama can help us get our country back on its feet again.
I’m wondering what the answer du jour will be to the what do you want to be when you grow up question.
Beauty Queen or Make Up / Hair specialist.
*
This whole issue with Sarah Palin’s kids is really challenging. One the one hand, I have to think it’s fine to support an unwed pregnant daughter in a difficult situation, but on the other hand, I’m somewhat uncomfortable seeing this girl shown to the public so much. Maybe if she didn’t look so miserable.
Still, wondering what conflicting signals this is giving America’s young women.
Anybody else conflicted about this?
Here it is. Doesn’t seem so bad, now that I’m old, but as a teenager the thought was horrifying.
Ooooh, maybe we can invade Grenada again. Ahhhhhh, the good ole days…
I hope this means I won’t have to seen Karl Rove at the Georgetown Whole Foods any more. :)
I bet that does make for some awkward conversational moments. Thanksgiving ought to be a hoot… *g*
Karl Rove.
And now you understand why Republicans don’t want to educate your children.
imagine that,he sat down for a face to face,like Obie prefers
hey John ,where were your PRE conditions?
irony indeed, he doesn’t realise he lost his bearings by supporting the fascist in office
What bearings does he have. Did you read Parker’s comment. She pointed out the fascination that some men have with Palin. Shorter Parker might be “they aren’t thinking with their brain.” I don’t think Kathleen Parker will be invited back to write for the National Review again.
Hawaii is going to attack Pearl Harbor in a bid for independence.
-G
I only got the 404 message. Crazy computers. But, thanks for the effort.
I’ve been wondering when the shrill KLo rejoinder will pop up at The Corner…you know it’s coming. Honestly, considering the Dems have been the ones with the circular firing squad the last two presidential cycles, if this keeps up, I may have to buy more popcorn…
He’s a soul eater.
-G
P.S. I saw he was somewhere running up the “The market is reacting to an Obama win”.
So, all those European socialists are in fear of a European socialist?
The spin coming from the gutter is insufferable.
It IS Obama’s fault, you know.
IIRC that was Rove on Faux yesterday. Self-parody.
I’m going to remember what Obama said about New Hampshire, but there doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with living in the moment and relishing this collapse while it lasts. I’m sure the nasty conservativism will rise again, but it should be our task to try to make the collapse of laissez-faire economics, jingoism, anti-intellectualism, religious fanaticism, and demigoguery as thorough and lasting as possible.
I noticed that the SDUT (our local Rethug-owned daily rag) endorsed Insane but couldn’t even bring themselves to mention the bottom half of the ticket.. which is pretty funny if you think about it.
Wouldn’t you think that the cognitive dissonance in Rove’s head ought to be deafening? And yet, he apparently can’t hear any of it.
This shows the goofiness of the right wing. Iran which our intelligence community says doesn’t even have a nuclear weapons program gets the “apocalyptic” designation. Pakistan with a population half that of the United States and with dozens of nuclear weapons, well it’s a problem, but apparently nothing on the scale of Iran.
cripes, this is histerical, he answers every critisism of mccain with;
“he was a prisoner of war”;
I guess it never gets old
You assume Rove has a brain.
I’ve often thought that tolerance of cognitive dissonance is a precondition for a political career, particularly if one is a Republican.
Spin, baby, spin…Frank Gaffney was on some program recently and I honestly thought he might be trying to do a self-parody for a minute or two. And then I realized…nope, same old Frank Gaffney, just with less awareness of his pompous idiocy being on display.
So far the dollar drop hasn’t occurred as expected (and as is inevitable if reason and logic actually have any place in econ) and has actually gained in strength relative to other currencies.
The entire system is out of whack when you can simply print off useless paper and call it “money” and instead of shooting inflation up towards the stars, it actually retains, even grows, in actual value. WTF?
This, to me, simply proves the statement I often repeat: economics is NOT a science in any way, shape, or form - in spite of the fondest desires of economists to have it treated as such. It is actually just a mishmash of political conceit combined with mere parts of convenient social sciences: basically, whatever parts of social sciences can be cherry-picked to support any given economist’s political slant.
If you start from that basic premise, you can better understand why economists can, and so often do, get things so woefully wrong.
Grover and the others will do just fine thank you
nothing says phat fundraising like an African American Democrat in the White House - look what Big Dawg did for Limpballs
Parker, Buckley, Fein, Fukuyama (?) and the others will serve as rational beacons to the non snakehandling wing of the party (what’s left of it)
g’head splinter away mofo’s
Bill Clinton must be breathing a sigh of relief.
TOTAL bot…lizard brain
true dat
what would it mean if the brain doesn’t have a brain?
MSGOP….playing …McNutsies talking pts 24/7
I’ve been pondering that since I typed that comment. Kind of mind-boggling.
Off to chores.
Justice?
Yes, you see. George W. Bush was handed a recession by the terrible policies of Bill Clinton but the wonderful policies of George W. Bush are being washed out by the fear of potential Obama policies.
-G
these are people raised withou attatchment or caring skiiz
I have a suggestion. Saturday mornings after the election should be spent trading low fat recipes. I don’t know about the rest of you but this election has caused me to eat and eat and eat.
skillz
I could use that. Maybe we can all go on a “get healthier” plan together. *G*
yup,fill up with comfort food
In the short term, it’s still seen as a safe haven.
2 word hurdle
homemade bread
thank goodness
It will be a nice change not to need so much comfort food, won’t it?
We can all walk to work, ’cause we can’t afford gas and we can eat greens from our Victory Gardens.
All in all, we’ll be healthier.
Silver lining anyone?
The anti-intellectualism was pretty sick. Coming from the likes of Ann Coulter and David Horowitz, especially. Basically consisted of hawking lies and stupidity and engendering suspicion of every thinking person they didn’t agree with, including university professors.
Here’s for feeling sorry for people I don’t neccessarily agree with though. I feel sorry for conservative and libertarian types who thought the republicans were for small government.
Someone who is not very political almost made me choke up the other day when he/she said McCain looks like a woodchuck who’s always on the verge of tears these days. I am not a mean person. On the other hand, I believe McCain has reaped what he’s sown. And good riddance.
I despise the constant refrain that McCain showed honor and strength as a POW as if he was unique OR as if he did something, by choice, that was too hard for most people.
Factcheck time people. ALL POWs were offered early outs…so long as they signed confessions and admitted the US was wrong to attack, etc. Virtually NO POWs actually accepted early outs. As “honorable” as that fact is, there is a little known counter fact to that: if McCain (or anyone else, for that matter) accepted release as offered by the N. Viets (or any other captor since) that person faced a guaranteed Courts Martial upon getting home and would see prison time AND dishonorable discharge. What “choice” did McCain have? NONE.
There are RULES for POWs that are pounded into our heads from day one of training: you resist to the extent of your capabilities (but with the realization that everyone breaks if the “pressure” is high enough) and you do NOT accept early release if it requires a treasonous act OR if it is not also offered for ALL your fellow prisoners. You CANNOT accept release for yourself while leaving your brother’s at arms behind.
If McCain had not acted “honorably” his future would be completely dead. No political career of any kind would have been possible. Jail time would have been his reward. He did NOT act especially heroically, he acted as he did (and as ALL POWs with him did) because there really is no real choice.
I swear I didn’t see CHS and Sadly’s comments before I submitted.
*
I’m rushing around getting together stuff to put on the front porch for the Rescue Mission pick up this am.
I did that last weekend for our local food pantry. Four big bags of canned goods, flour and other bits and pieces.
I hope so. Just the thought of a McCain win sends me to the pantry!! I already have to buy more Halloween Candy but will wait until the 31st.
Come on, Toot! Hang in there you glorious woman!
that’s a great read praedor, thanx for the points you made, especially the fact that he would have faced courts marial if he took early release
you should watch the youtube on my oxdown post, it is stunning!
Has McCain Hastened The Demise Of The “Reagan Coalition?
I dunno. I think the Jesus Freaks got too outta control and scared some people away.
I truly believe that MSGOP is gonna have a comin’ to Jesus reeeeeeeal soon. :0)
Oh yeah and then there’s that. The continual scapegoating of nations that are on the “verge” of possibly maybe, maybe, just something perhaps(?) When does Venezuela get an apocalyptic designation?/s
I volunteer at the local charities where I live. One side is a clothes closet and the other side a food pantry. Donations have really dropped off not only for food but for clothing. The organization that I work for gives coupons for two outfits a month for family members and the rest of the items are sold to fund the building cost or to pay electricity or rent for hardship cases. Charities across the country are really hurting because of the recession.
I read that you were doing that.
I should have had the bags together last night but was busy getting ready for our yearly, traditional October Birthday Camping Trip, which starts this afternoon. Also, my girl is in town from DC on business, so she gets to go with us.
(She’s sleeping on the couch with our big old hound dog right now. It’s just so cute.)
Good Morning America had a taped interview of Barack and he talked about all the cards and flowers that his grandmother is receiving. He said that she is finally getting the recognition that she deserves. (wiping eyes again)
Has a whiff of “the king is dead. long live the king,” and so they all rush from the corpse to be the first to kiss the successors ring.
I’m wondering if the Dobson veto on the Veep choice fo McCain didn’t help expose that tremendously, though — especially coming on the heels of the DeLay/Schiavo overreach…
I think that’s accurate. However, I’m glad the Obama campaign decided to do nothing but show respect for that experience. Most of us don’t feel qualified to mouth off about experiences that we haven’t, and aren’t likely to, encounter. I’m okay with avoiding anything like a swiftboating where the morons not only downgraded John Kerry, but every medal ever issued by the U.S. military.
McCain’s assertions that he’s been tested, knows how to win wars, knows how to save economies, etc., are another story. If he was tested for presidential qualifications by being in the military at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis, there are millions of us qualified for being in during various wars and crises. It looks like none of it has worked for him anyway.
I think some of that may be folks giving to family rather than to charity, though. I boxed up a whole bin of clothes that were too small for The Peanut the other day and sent them, via my mom, to a cousin of ours who has a daughter three years younger. They would have gone to Goodwill or the local shelter, but the cousin is having a tough time of it at the moment and, in our family anyway, charity begins with family first. Will do the same when I clean out some of The Peanut’s drawers, too.
Those mf’rs on the other side are trying to downplay this as ‘just a broken hip’ episode when they don’t have the slightest clue about her condition. That crap hits me straight in the heart and makes me furious. The end of every life is different and complicated. Just think of all the things this woman endured and enjoyed over her lifetime. I just hope she makes it long enough to see her grandson elected President of the United States. All her years of hard work and commitment to him and her daughter would be complete satisfaction I’m sure. Then she will rest in peace.
Castro’s opinion of Silly Sarah’s intelligence level…
“Sarah Palin knew nothing at all about anything”..(Press tv)…
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail.a.....al=3510203
Christy, Last February they were almost out of food for the pantry and the local Krogers, Publix and Whole foods sent over truck loads. It was amazing. Whole Foods has been a great supporter.
Many do not understand the Illinois General Assembly of which Obama was a member. Here’s a detailed explanation of the ‘present’ vote in the Illinois legislature.
Why Vote Present?
Why indeed? *punching myself* I say no more til after the election.
Wonder how Lieberman is handling the inevitable these days. Has he decided to court Reid with more checks?
It’s fascinating to watch the mechanics of donations. The Salvation Army (for nonfood) has always been the only organized place here to donate.
A big, shiny new Goodwill is almost finished. When I asked a local SA board member what they are doing in anticipation of a dropoff in donations, she blithely said “don’t know, but you do realize we bundle and sell most of the clothes to be shipped overseas?” I almost fell off of my chair.
I really am such a naif sometimes. Will now be looking for direct donations to families……like we did when I was growing up here.
Don’t forget that Bush’s grandfather made his money from the Nazi’s. Nazi’s that were brought here after WW2 became the CIA. Some of the torture techniques actually came from the Spanish Inquisition.
The same here. The best clothes are sold overseas…often by the pound…
One of the few advantages of cognitive dissonance…
Or as Keynes is reported to have said, ‘The market can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent.’
John Boy could have done what Jeremiah Denton did. He spent eight years captive in Vietnam; four of them in solitary. When he was forced to make a film for the Vietnamese in 1966, he blinked in Morse Code…T-O-R-T-U-R-E…so that the government would know that he and his fellow prisoners were being tortured.
For his continuous resistance and leadership, even in the face of torture and inhumane conditions, he was awarded the Navy Cross.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremiah_Denton
Done. Thanks Christy.
Lieberman will do what other traitors have done and he will fare no better. So long, Joe. hehehehehe!
Israel has around 200 nuclear weapons…but that is a secret…must be…because nobody mentions it…except x-President Carter!
But the GOP pretends Iran is a threat and the corrupt MSM keeps on pushing the bull..