Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Pigs and Lipstick?...what?



I was reading Glenn Green’s New Heights of Stupidity, posted on Salon. He is obviously angry and just as obviously liberal, and he is quite plainly taken (in) by Obama, and he apparently believes the media and Republicans at large, though it seems he may not differentiate between the two, are treating his candidate Obama-nably (tee-hee) over the whole lipstick debacle.

While I had not previously heard the comment, nor did I care, after being bombarded from every angle on the subject, including by angry liberal bloggers, I took the time to watch Obama’s remarks or at least the portion in question. Granted, I did not see the full context of the remark, but it does not appear to me that Obama was referencing Sarah Palin…at all.

While I can empathize with Green’s angst over the media, I have to disagree with his assessment that this represents new heights of stupidity. Apparently Glenn was out camping in the remote wilderness for the past six years as the media screamed fire in the crowded theatre of US politics. Of course, the media folly previously benefited liberals; that might explain why Green failed to recognize and classify the previous heights of stupidity.

Previous media stupidity culminated into a successful Congressional coup leaving Democrats squarely in the seat of power. While that stupidity failed to derail efforts in Iraq, it did manage to marginalize all progress. That same stupidity eventually evolved into the “failed administration” platform that Obama is currently running for President on. With such distinct media victories under their collective belts, it’s no wonder liberals like Green failed to recognize the media stupidity. Ironically, they were dependent upon it.

Obama benefited immensely from the pro-bama-razzi in the primaries. He managed to quench Biden’s political thirst for the Presidency without ever really addressing him (sorry Joe, white guys are so 80’s). He even managed to beat Hillary Clinton, a formidable and determined adversary, while carrying his racist pastor and congregation on his back. After pulling out all the stops, the last media darling standing won, but did he have anything left? Is there more substance…or any substance…to Barack Obama?

Currently, the best thing that Obama has to offer voters is “You hate Bush and so do I. McCain is the same as Bush. They’re both rich and white…er…I mean Republican, and they should both be equally blamed for bad stuff that happened in the past eight years.” Obama’s main anti-Bush push is music to the ears of his devoted party-liners, and the media has tons of cliché material to support his effort, but I think he may be giving that angle too much credit.

There is a limit to the media’s influence; not everyone believes everything they see on the news. Green’s sour grapes aside, the mainstream media has backed Democrats since I was a Democrat. Republicans have known this for quite sometime, even before FOX came along and ran a story on that 800lb gorilla. So, if Barack was depending on favorable anti-Bush media to convince Republicans to punch his name on the Ballot in November, the great unifier is sorely mistaken.

Maybe Barack hoped to win the fence sitters: the swing votes. I’d like to think that the fence sitters are such, because they have not yet sized up the candidates or the issues (hint: they are going to think things through). Consequently, they aren’t so easily swayed by rhetoric, media-hype, or party-line divisiveness, so if one side is working the issues while the other is simply trying to work the crowds…oops, you lose.

The lipstick debacle may indeed be new heights of stupidity for the media; it is a dumb non-story, but even we bloggers covered it. Considering that the story and the public response to the story drives media, maybe the greater stupidity is thinking the media will “stay the course” (pro-Obama) throughout the race. Maybe the greater stupidity is calling yourself a unifier and running on a populist, hate platform thinking such a single faceted strategy would win the hearts and minds of the political masses. I’m sure the debate would be endless.

As long as we avoid the greatest stupidity in November, but don’t let me tell you how to vote.


NO-bama!
(was that my out loud voice?)

Saturday, September 6, 2008

Divide and Conquer?

Barack Obama justifies and perpetuates division.

Rather than tell all Americans that the type of hatred Jeremiah Wright preached and his congregation celebrated was wrong, and any American, white or black, harboring such vile hatred in their hearts was wrong, Barack Obama made excuses for Wright, and ultimately rejoined Wright’s non-repentant congregation.

Rather than celebrate the fact that Americans are free to vote as they choose and promote Americans voting according to their beliefs, Barack Obama postulated and perpetuated the belief that white Americans that did not or would not vote for him made their decision based on race, but he made no such assertion with regard to the incredible majority of black voters that supported him.

Rather than attempt to unify voters/Washington and continue on his alleged quest for hope and change by choosing a running mate that embodied his new call to arms or assisted him in representing a larger swath of America, Barack Obama chose for his Vice Presidential running mate, Senator Joe Biden. Biden is entrenched in Washington as a special interest Liberal and arguably one of the most venomous and divisive political figures the left has to offer, wholly unrepresentative of independents, moderates, and conservatives.

Rather than explain to Americans that personal decisions brought many of their economic woes and personal sacrifices would be the cure, Barack Obama promised to take from the “haves” and give to the “have nots.”

Rather than recognize or acknowledge the reality and responsibility of leadership and war, Barack Obama simply perpetuates the notion the US government is wrong/evil. Here in the US it’s the “failed administration/bad Republican” mantra and when echoed by complicit liberal media it makes for excellent “us/them” campaign fodder, but shortsighted and naïve individuals fail to recognize the butterfly effect that such media has with respect to international relations(unfortunately for the anti-war crowd this has historically proven more detrimental than preemptive strikes).


So, under Obama, racism by or in favor of black Americans is justified, white Americans who oppose him are racist, all Americans will be represented by a liberal agenda, all rich people are undeserving of their wealth, and international hatred of the United States is universally justified.


Aw crap, we are so in trouble.