I’m so used to horrible attitudes toward abortion that I didn’t adequately react to John McCain’s debate response last night. Did you see it? Mocking the idea of "health of the mother" in hand gestures and a voice of dismissal. I don’t think I need to say anything except to thank, for probably the only time in my life, Fox News, for the best edit on YouTube. It speaks for itself.
Category: Current Affairs
WOULD YOU HIRE JOHN MCCAIN OR SARAH PALIN? SERIOUSLY
This image was just removed from the Sacramento County Republican Party website, according to its Google source. And it’s very disturbing, but I’m tired. I admit it. All these days of Jewish holiday cooking and praying * (not necessarily in that order) have left me frazzled. So maybe I’m just cranky. But when I saw this on a search for something else all the anxiety and sadness overcame me. There is hate out there – and the Republicans seem to be finding it useful.
No, the McCain supporters aren’t all like this; capable of dreaming up and posting such a terrible thing. But they’ve been ginning their crowds into a frenzy and so this "free speech" issue is becoming a life-threatening undertaking. Generating that kind of distaste so familiar to so many young people will make a big difference. How that difference plays out will depend on the stars.
I want to write so much more but it has to be tomorrow. This is a very nervous election; I and many friends get more nervous the larger the margin is. There’s lots to talk about, although where the debate ranks, not much more than has been said after But if I don’t go to sleep you won’t want to read what I write; neither of us will understand what the hell I’m trying to say. More tomorrow. For now you may want to take a look at the live blog transcript on Writes Like She Talks or the one on BlogHer.
*a post on the same subject from last year.
BLOGGING BOOMERS #89
The Boomers are back with our weekly exploration of ideas that pretty much cross every topic area – but this week the emphasis is mostly on politics and the fiscal crisis. No surprise there — and there is some stuff about Christmas trees and infidelity, among other things. It’s really good stuff so take a look.
SCARY TIMES: DO WE FACE A NEW GREAT DEPRESSION (AND DOES SARAH PALIN STILL MATTER?)
Every decision my parents ever made was influenced by the Depression. What we ate, what we wore, where we shopped, when and how we took vacations, what we "needed" vs what we "wanted" and, in their own lives, what careers they followed and where we all lived. They had been teenagers in the Depression, and although both went to college (on scholarships and several jobs at once) neither studied what they’d wanted to. I’ve talked about all this before – my mother refusing even to talk about her life then, my dad so concerned when any of us made a job change or took any professional risk.
I felt it too. I still read menus from the price to the item, skipping the ones that are too expensive. Ditto with price tags on clothes. I’ve always clipped coupons and bought things on sale, shopped at big box stores and always, always read the unit prices of things. And, as an American Studies major I took several courses dealing with the Depression. I needed to know more about it not only as a student but as a daughter.
I know that this is not the Great Depression. I know that there are more protections in place, even if too many of them have been removed in the past eight years. But the economic chaos of the past week has been scary on more than one level. Of course I worry about us, getting near retirement age. But my bigger worry is the impact such a colossal change will have on the lives of the younger people we love. Our sons, first of all, at the beginning of their careers. And all the families in this community who mean so much to us – just starting families and facing years of tuitions and outgrown winter coats and activity fees. I also think about just-retired or nearly retired "elders" so well represented by Ronni Bennett’s blog, and all the people living from paycheck to paycheck — who will be endangered by cuts in hours and devastated by the loss of their jobs.
And this is where Sarah Palin comes in. And John McCain. Because every day the level of negative language rises, the indulgent response to enraged constituents yelling things that should not be spoken in an American election or any other time: threats and bigoted characterizations and more. This kind of language is far more dangerous in a bad economy. Hitler was successful partially because the German economy had so badly frightened people, men like "Father Coughlin" (that’s his picture) preached racism and anti-Semitism on the radio during the Depression with substantial response. There other, less prominent hate-mongers too – and they had a real following. People needed someone to be angry at and were vulnerable to that sort of demagogery. It’s a very scary shadow over the economic crisis, the campaign, and the souls of the American people. NOW, go read Josh Marshall on why the ghost of Father Coughlin haunts him, too. And read this very thoughtful post about a tough electoral decision.
The consider what sort of leader allows such things – and doesn’t stand up and tell his/her supporters to cut it out? What does that say about their leadership once they’re in office?
BRUCE, BARACK AND A HOUSE OF DREAMS
This is just nice. Somebody sent it to me; you’ll like it.
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I’m leaving it for you while I’m offline for Yom Kippur. I want my country back, too
BARACK OBAMA, SARAH SILVERMAN, FLORIDA AND A COUPLE OF QUICK MEDIA THINGIES
The first one is this poster, which I found on Jason Rosenberg’s Facebook page. It’s not quite as good as "I am a community organizer" but it’s kind of cool.
The other thing is today’s New York Times story about The Great Schlep and Sarah Silverman video, which apparently has been screened more than 7 million times in the two weeks since it appeared! Basically, it urges Jewish grandchildren to lean on their grandparents in Florida to vote for Obama or risk the end of loving visits from the grand kids. Given her occasional forays into yukkiness, it’s actually pretty cute.
The Jewish Council for Education and Research, and co-executive director Ari Wallach, are creative, agile and smart and they’ve done a great job both of creating and promoting a very good idea. Even if few kids can afford to hit the beaches of Hallandale and Miami, they’ll get on the phone and make their case. And the press has loved it. If you missed the video, here it is.
Oh Oh Obama – McCain Was So Bad it Was Hard to Watch
The Ohio uncommitted focus group dials on CNN during tonight’s debate were riveting. Among other things, almost every time Obama stood up to respond the dials went up. Almost every time McCain stood up, the dials went down. If they are at all accurate McCain was having a terrible night. I would give my right (well, maybe my left) arm to be in the spin room tonight and hear what the McCain people are saying to justify this.
The big problem is that it was so uncomfortable to watch. McCain was — well — icky. You didn’t feel sorry for him you just wanted him to stop so you didn’t have to look. Obama was excellent but the thing was so hard to watch that I don’t know if it’s possible to feel good about it. When McCain says you need a strong hand on the tiller it sounded like a commercial for the other guy. I’m just kind of grossed out by pitiful McCainitude. Nobody on TV is saying what I’m seeing though; Buchanan says Obama was being presidential but he didn’t see McCain as pathetic as I did.
The Republican commentators on CNN were actually being pretty hard on McCain’s "looking to the past" and was also "condescending to voters" according to the Republican consultants. They’re being really hard on him. AND they all seem to be assuming that Obama won – "had to stand toe to toe with John McCain and surpass him — and he did." says Gloria Borger. David Gergen says he was "very presidential" BUT "he is black and the polls may not be accurate." He’s talking about the "Bradley effect" issues – people misleading pollsters because they’re embarrassed to say that they won’t vote for an African American. It will be tragic if that’s the case.
Finally, the CNN post-debate poll tonight of 38% D/ 31% R indicates a rout: 54% of independents say Obama won the debate. 30% said McCain so that’s not even all the Republicans. Oh and CBS’s poll has 59% saying Obama won.
The details tell a lot. Here’s a breakdown:
Who did best job? Obama 54% McCain 30%
Who did better on the economy? Obama 59% McCain 37%.
Who expressed his views more clearly? Obama 60% -McCain 30%
Who was more likable? Obama 65%-McCain 28%
Who would better handle Iraq? Obama 54 % McCain 47%
Your opinion of Obama: Positive went from 60% to 64%
Negatives went down — from 38% to 34%
McCain’s favorables stayed at 51% and unfavorables at 46% but he DID win one category: Who would better handle terrorism? McCain 51% Obama 46%. The results are astonishing – Obama in almost every category.
I’m still frightened about race though; I think Gergen is right. These results look great. But when you canvas in Virginia and see how people respond — the reasons they give for "not liking" Obama, you can see it; feel it. And we don’t know how many intentionally didn’t answer the door; how many are better actors and keeping their true feelings hidden. What happens with those voters will determine our future, internationally, politically, economically and racially. This time, more than usual, we’re not just electing a president here – we’re redefining our country.
Sarah Palin, Rape Kits and Birth Control
When you first heard that Wasilla, AK and its then-mayor Sarah Palin were charging rape victims for the cost of their rape kits (evidence collecting) you didn’t quite believe it, right? This video is the first of a series being produced by "The Wasilla Project" and was called to my attention by Nerdette, a sharp cookie whose blog "Not My Gal" is usually on top of these things. After I watched it I went back to this CNN version of the story:
It’s kind of slippery but, partly because I’ve been working on the issue of very scary threats to the right to planning ones pregnancies, and to actual birth control and family planning, I’ve very aware of the Palin perspective on these important life decisions. Watch both videos and see what you think. And if you want to learn more, stop by Birth Control Watch and see for yourself what informs a lot of the thinking behind Sarah Palin and that guy she’s running with.
SARAH PALIN, SARAH PALIN, SARAH PALIN AND THE DANGERS OF A DESPERATE PARTY
This photo says it all. I took it yesterday, on our second Sunday canvassing for Obama in Virginia. When I got home I decided to review the stats for this blog and discovered that no post has drawn either the traffic or comments as those I’ve written about Sarah Palin. Friends tell me the same is true of theirs. I don’t think it’s brilliant writing that’s doing it. Sarah Palin has captured a large chunk of this presidential campaign as well as either the imagination or the rage (depending on perspective) of many American voters.
The Tina Fey stuff is funny, and effective, as I’ve mentioned before. The mean stuff is plenty mean. The "middle-class hockey mom" stuff is more effective than I wish it were, especially since the Palin family is worth over $2M and they made close to $200,000 last year. None of this matters as much as it should. She draws huge crowds. She’s cute. Those who support her either believe she is a wonder of accessibility and straight talk or have twisted themselves like pretzels to find reasons to justify her presence. For me, at least, it’s kind of sad.
What makes so many people prefer a less-educated, less-experienced candidate with a limited academic past, no curiosity or sense of exploration, untrammeled ambition and not much of a history over far more capable, experienced leadership? I remember when I was a kid and my mother’s adored Adlai Stevenson ran for president in 1952 and 1956, people called him an egghead, he was accused of being too cold and not able to connect to voters. And some analysts have compared him to Obama – two Illinois candidates too smart for the room.
I don’t see it. Obama appears to me far looser and more accessible- and more well-rounded in experience and education – and he’s younger and more available to young voters; Stevenson was a different man at a very different time and he was running against the man who, at least partially, won World War II. Even so, the question really is, how far have we evolved since then? AND how much have we learned from voting for the guy we’d "rather have a beer with" when that guy was George W Bush? AND in times so very dangerous that by the time each post is replaced at the top of the que, markets around the world have gone down once more and international tensions risen – will we still, as a country, opt for the "mavericky mom" who is not, at least on paper and on the stump, capable of understanding, much less solving, our problems? (OH and that guy who’s running with her…..)
As I write this, Palin, just introduced by Joe Lieberman (%#@!!**&) to a huge Florida crowd screaming "Sarah, Sarah, Sarah", continues to draw the faithful to great emotional response. It’s hard to know if, when people go into the voting booth, this emotion will translate into votes – or the reality will hit them and they won’t be able to do it.
My other fear is that because the race is moving toward Obama, acts of desperate chicanery will be part of the election day landscape. Here are some things that are already happening;
- Republicans purging voter rolls, particularly of young first-time voters
- De-listing voters whose homes have been foreclosed – with the claim that since the voters no longer have an address, they can’t vote.
- Closing polling places in Democratic areas and intimidating officials
- Trying to keep absentee ballots from newly registered voters
- Names missing from voter rolls that affect legitimacy of absentee ballots
If you’re an attorney or law student, you can help with these things and the others that will happen.
We Americans will be tested in many ways in the next few years: economically, militarily, educationally, diplomatically and more. The first test, though, is this: As we face these challenges and all the others certain to emerge, and we think about our kids and what we want to leave for them, will we be able to take a deep breath and vote for "the smart guy" or is the phenomenon that is Sarah Palin the canary in our coal mine – warning us that our electorate is, even after W, not ready to choose the most capable and visionary, who has inspired so very many of our next generation to enter the fray, when they can elect Tina Fey light and her "old guy" running mate instead?
SARAH PALIN, JOE SIXPACK AND GEORGE ORWELL
I used to run a TV news show, and I told my staff (literally) that using the term "Joe Six Pack" in a script or interview was a firing offense. I probably couldn’t have gotten away with firing them but it made the point. I grew up just outside a mill town along the Monongahela River — it was the same town so brilliantly portrayed in The Deer Hunter — and I went to school with kids whose parents worked in steel mills and coke plants and river locks. Some of them lived in trailers. I was the Jewish Girl – a bit of an outsider but usually part of the gang – parties, sleepovers, crazy afternoons sneaking cigarettes in pine-paneled basement "family rooms."
I guess lots of those parents were what Sarah Palin called Joe Six Pack. But that’s not who they were- who they are. America is full of hard working people who drink beer. Bruce Springsteen portrays them all the time – much better than I could. They are dads and husbands and brothers and sons and they love their kids and their wives and, where I lived, the Steelers. They often don’t ever move out of their "starter houses" because that’s what they can afford. The dads that I knew sent their kids to college though – or to "the service" which paid their tuition, and the next generation did better economically – the American dream at work.
I admired these people, and loved some of them. When you spend lots of Saturday night sleepovers at girlfriends’ houses you get to know their parents. And, remembering those dads, I do NOT understand how Sarah Palin can talk about "Joe Six Pack" and still say she’s one of "the people." It’s like talking about "Polacks" and then claiming you’re Polish. The term is a colossal insult, the speaker setting herself above the folks she’s describing. For some reason, it’s painful — almost heartbreaking, to hear. I know it’s partially my rage at her for claiming some special channel to working class Americans while, it appears, cynically performing like a parody of them – much like Frances McNormand did as Marge Gunderson in FARGO. Her "Joe Six Packs" deserve better.
I was going to write about all the Orwellian rhetoric too — McCain and Palin repeatedly claiming untruths and running against things McCain himself helped to put in place. Here’s what I mean: They talk about Wall Street malfeasance when they and their party repeatedly squashed efforts to bring it under control. They talk about change when they’re fighting it and economic insecurity when their policies helped to cause it. That’s not a working class agenda, it’s just cynical pandering. Mr. Orwell would be proud. "Joe Six Pack" — and the rest of us, deserve better than that, too.