John Heilemann has a good piece in New York Magazine regarding the destruction of the "Straight Talk" brand.
When the dust has settled from this election books will inevitably be written about the candidacies of John McCain and Barack Obama. Should McCain lose, one of the more interesting facets of the post-mortem is how a man beloved and shielded by the press for the better part of a decade has been taken to pieces by the very hand that fed him for so long.
Showing posts with label election. Show all posts
Showing posts with label election. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Huckabee, Oh, My God - A Response
Thanks to Crooks and Liars for this video.
As the Good Mike knows, while the Lord hath a commandment against lying, there is no commandment against spinning.
As the Good Mike knows, while the Lord hath a commandment against lying, there is no commandment against spinning.
Slate: Debunking Experience
Timothy Noah at Slate has an article debunking the myth of Hillary, She-Of-All-That-Experience.
Key Quote:
"...various colleagues have argued (see here, here, and here) that Clinton has sufficient experience under her belt to be president. I agree, but that's not the right question. The more urgent question is: Where the hell does she come off claiming superior experience?"
Italics mine. It's the key issue she has run the base of her primary campaign on. Timothy argues, as I have frequently, that being First Lady doesn't count as experience, at least not as she argues it. I'm not denigrating the position or her gender, but fast forward some years, would anyone buy that Laura Bush is an acceptable candidate because of her experience?
Key Quote:
"...various colleagues have argued (see here, here, and here) that Clinton has sufficient experience under her belt to be president. I agree, but that's not the right question. The more urgent question is: Where the hell does she come off claiming superior experience?"
Italics mine. It's the key issue she has run the base of her primary campaign on. Timothy argues, as I have frequently, that being First Lady doesn't count as experience, at least not as she argues it. I'm not denigrating the position or her gender, but fast forward some years, would anyone buy that Laura Bush is an acceptable candidate because of her experience?
Further Evidence of Why I Won't Believe in an NH Conspiracy
Ars Technica, probably one of the greatest sites for real tech analysis on the web, has a great post on why the NH Conspiracy theories need to take a rest.
Money Quote 1:
"The Internet is full of people who have four things that make them dangerous, both to would-be election fraudsters and (paradoxically) to the larger cause of election integrity: computers, intermediate math skills, a mix of patriotic and entrepreneurial zeal, and the ability to publish in the blink of an eye."
Money Quote 2:
"The larger the cloud of numbers and statistical analyses grows, the less inclined reporters will be to actually download a spreadsheet and tackle the data themselves. They're just going to report what this or that group has uncovered, especially if it's juicy."
Bloggers blogging about other bloggers blogs, still the knock against most online "reporting" being taken seriously as anything other than mass published op-ed (yours truly included).
Money Quote 1:
"The Internet is full of people who have four things that make them dangerous, both to would-be election fraudsters and (paradoxically) to the larger cause of election integrity: computers, intermediate math skills, a mix of patriotic and entrepreneurial zeal, and the ability to publish in the blink of an eye."
Money Quote 2:
"The larger the cloud of numbers and statistical analyses grows, the less inclined reporters will be to actually download a spreadsheet and tackle the data themselves. They're just going to report what this or that group has uncovered, especially if it's juicy."
Bloggers blogging about other bloggers blogs, still the knock against most online "reporting" being taken seriously as anything other than mass published op-ed (yours truly included).
Huckabee, Oh, My God.
No, really.
I tried to come up with a joke. Pretty hard actually. Some of them were even fat jokes.
But jokes are what I made about Bush being a Born Again Delusionist (I mean Christian) the first time around, and no one every took me, or them, seriously. So let's just start taking a persons superstitions, oops...religion, into account when they are running for the highest office in the land.
I tried to come up with a joke. Pretty hard actually. Some of them were even fat jokes.
But jokes are what I made about Bush being a Born Again Delusionist (I mean Christian) the first time around, and no one every took me, or them, seriously. So let's just start taking a persons superstitions, oops...religion, into account when they are running for the highest office in the land.
I will not believe in conspiracy
I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy I will not believe in conspiracy
While I believe in the power of numbers, I also know you can make them say anything, even if your analysis is good and your heart/head are in the right place. So I treat things like this with the skepticism they should receive.
When it comes right down to it, a leading primary contender COULDN'T be that stupid. Right?
While I believe in the power of numbers, I also know you can make them say anything, even if your analysis is good and your heart/head are in the right place. So I treat things like this with the skepticism they should receive.
When it comes right down to it, a leading primary contender COULDN'T be that stupid. Right?
AS sums it up for me
and succinctly at that:
"My case amounts to concerns that she would entrench a cynicism in politics that's wrong for the times, that her polarization and trust issues are insurmountable, and that eight years in a White House should be enough for any power couple."
And he's a conservative. The fact is that I do not, like many Righties and some Lefties, believe that Hillary is evil, or a criminal, or even wrong in her convictions. I think she is a person with tremendous intellect and ideals, but ultimately, is a leftover from a by-gone era of cultural struggle between two different political philosophies.
Though their ultimate expression is still in the White House, the partisan wars of the 90's are, for the most part, over. And while Hillary still tries to win old battles, Obama wants to begin his Marshall plan for American politics.
"My case amounts to concerns that she would entrench a cynicism in politics that's wrong for the times, that her polarization and trust issues are insurmountable, and that eight years in a White House should be enough for any power couple."
And he's a conservative. The fact is that I do not, like many Righties and some Lefties, believe that Hillary is evil, or a criminal, or even wrong in her convictions. I think she is a person with tremendous intellect and ideals, but ultimately, is a leftover from a by-gone era of cultural struggle between two different political philosophies.
Though their ultimate expression is still in the White House, the partisan wars of the 90's are, for the most part, over. And while Hillary still tries to win old battles, Obama wants to begin his Marshall plan for American politics.
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