The Dark Shadow of Socialism Descends on America

First, the government took over the banks, and then it took over the automobile companies. A completely socialistic health-care system is next on the agenda for the Obama administration. These people call themselves "progressives" are really socialists bent on destroying the free market system and the American way of life. Only a handful of conservatives led by such people as Newt Gingrich, Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, and the number of others are crying out into the sending darkness that will obliterate America as we know it. Shame on us for letting this happen.

The mistakes made by the Bush administration, compounded by its free spending ways, helped lead to the perilous situation we now face. Yes, there was greed and avarice on Wall Street and elsewhere in America, but the Socialists have been patiently biding their time waiting for an opportunity to force their agenda on the rest of the American people. Freedom of choice will become a dim memory as the government becomes the "Big Brother" telling us what to do. the government will soon dictate energy policies from what we used to produce energy, to the last detail of how we use it in our homes.

The Obamaists believe that the individual citizen cannot make intelligent choices without the aid of the government. This type of thinking dehumanizes Americans and renders them little more than socially programmed robots. In the New America sex education will be mandatory in the schools. The rights of the parents will be ignored as these few who think they know what is best for us will crush us with their paternalistic approach. We will lose once and for all the opportunity to teach alternatives to the so-called theory of evolution. Evolution, as anyone with any common sense knows, is a poorly thought out theory that barely explains the history of this planet. The knowledge of the Bible will be prohibited, and lost, in our public schools.

Salaries are already being set for people in the private sector who work in banks and on Wall Street. Soon, the government will be deciding what everyone should earn, how they should spend what they earn, and what they should spend it on. They'll be telling us what foods to eat, how much to eat, and what time of day to eat. This is a mind-boggling attempt to intrude on every aspect of our daily lives that will crush the last vestiges of freedom in America. Again, shame on us for letting this happen.

Republicans Batting Zero

Not one single Republican voted for the bailout measure approved by the House Of Representatives. To be sure, there were portions of the bill which were objectionable to the Republicans, particularly since approximately $200 billion of the bill is likely to become a permanent part of the budget. But the funding for the birth-control information was deleted, which was a main sticking point in the craw of most Republicans. But not one, even one, Republican was able to vote for the bill? Sounds like a solid party line stance. To what purpose?

Congressman Boehner recently said that the Republicans can't be the party of, "No." The Republicans did come up with some counterproposals, mainly in the area of tax cuts. "Instead of a tax credit for individuals making $75,000 or less or families making less than $150,000, Republicans would like to reduce the tax rate by 5 percent on those Americans in the lowest tax brackets, from 15 percent to 10 percent and 10 percent to 5 percent." It's nice to see the Republicans focusing on tax cuts for people making moderate to low levels of income. This is certainly a change from the Bush administration era when Republican tax cuts were targeted for the wealthy. Well maybe the Republicans aren't batting zero, but they certainly aren't scoring any runs. Reducing taxes will help people, but it certainly won't turn the economy around. Nor is it certain that the Democratic sponsored legislation will either.

One potentially hopeful sign was that several Republicans had less than nice things to say about Rush Limbaugh. These comments came about the same time that President Obama told Republicans in Washington to stop listening to the right-wing talk show host. Rush Limbaugh then went on to say that "The president wants him (Limbaugh) to fail." This is all grist for Rush Limbaugh's mill because there is nothing he likes more than controversy, especially when it's about him. Rush Limbaugh is entirely about himself and gives new meaning to the words "self-absorbed."

There is some expectation that a few Republicans senators will vote for the bailout legislation. Heaven forbid! Recently Mitch McConnell, a key Republican leader in Congress, pointed out that the Republicans run the risk of becoming a regional party if they continue as they have during the Bush administration. Republicans are reputed to stand for less spending and smaller government. That's an interesting concept, because even Ronald Reagan, who said that "government is the problem not the solution" ended up with a larger bureaucracy at the end of eight years than he started with.

Bailout Battle over Birth Control

Recent reports indicate that President Obama will not support the inclusion of birth control funding in the bailout legislation. He is reported to have talked to Representative Henry Waxman, chairman of the energy and commerce committee, about having this provision removed. The Republicans assert that birth control funding has nothing to do with the bailout. While this is undoubtedly true, the inter-party wars over birth control have reared their ugly head. The connection between conservativism and birth control is tenuous at best, since the majority of Republicans are not Catholic, even though the majority of Catholics use birth control. Oh yes, the majority of Evangelicals are opposed to birth control. Is the country to be governed by the beliefs of the Evangelicals? Did Nancy Pelosi actually say that birth control funding would be stimulating? Did Boehner actually say it wouldn't be?

With so much at stake it is amazing how the both parties have gotten themselves tied up over long-standing unresolved issues. Bush is in, birth control is out; Obama is in, birth control is in. Birth control funding will happen whether or not the Republicans like it, just not in the bailout legislation. Representative Boehner recently said that the Republicans can't be the party of, "No." Well, they appear to be that on both counts. Against birth control, and against the bailout. There also appears to be a prevailing belief among the Republicans the bailout won't work and the Democrats will be left holding the bag in the 2010 elections. If the bailout doesn't work, there will be little left of the economy of the country for either party to fight over in 2010.

So much for bipartisanship. Why is it necessary for the Democrats to put things in the bill that they know will anger the Republicans and why is it necessary for the Republicans to react in a Pavlovian manner? Whether or not the bailout will work remains to be seen. At least the Obama team is coming up with an overarching plan that will address the short-term and long-term economic issues through a diverse array of legislation and other activities. This is a significant improvement over former secretary of treasury Paulson "winging it" as he went along.

In these perilous economic times we need more grown-ups. As the president said in his inaugural speech, "Now is the time to put away childish things." How many from both parties will join the president in being a grown-up is yet to be seen.

Dick Cheney to be Appointed Ambassador to Klingon Empire

In his greatest display of bipartisanship, President Barack Obama announced today that Vice President Cheney would be appointed as the permanent Ambassador to the Klingon Empire. William Shatner was reported to be upset because he wasn't consulted about this appointment. A representative for President-elect Obama said it was fitting for Vice President Cheney to fill this important post even though it was hundreds of light years from Earth. The Klingons were reportedly delighted that Cheney would receive this appointment because they greatly admire his management style and skills and approach to handling people. Mrs. Cheney said she was looking forward to living on Klingon where she could eat blood worms and other rare delicacies unavailable on this planet.

Former secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld, was considered for this appointment, but his decision to spend the rest of his life at a monastery high in the Tibetan Himalayas made such an appointment in possible. The Klingons expect that Vice President Cheney will be the helpful in their tactical negotiations with the Romulan Empire. Both the Klingons and the Romulans have had a long history of bomb first, talk later diplomacy. The Klingons felt that Cheney's background in this type of interplanetary diplomacy would be extremely useful. Vice president Cheney is also expected to provide expertise in the art of persuading prisoners of war to voluntarily tell everything they know with a minimum of damage to their central nervous system.

This is expected to be the first of many such appointments by President-elect Obama. President Bush is being considered as Ambassador to the Vulcans so that he may be able to share his advanced meditative practices. Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, is reported to be interested in being ambassador to the Borg. After working within the Bush administration for eight years, working with the Borg should be a piece of cake according to an administrative insider.

Obama Takes Control

In the face of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, President Bush has gone missing in inaction. At the same time, Secretary of the Treasury Paulsen, who at times appeared to be running the country, is doing his own thing and giving evidence that he can't wait to get out. When President-elect Obama said that there can only be one president at a time, he was obviously correct. What he didn't realize at the time was that it would be soon necessary for him to become the de facto president until he was formally sworn in. He has begun to introduce his programs, and made it clear that he expects the stimulus package to be implemented before he is sworn in. If implemented, the nation can hope the stimulus package works better than the $700 billion bailout that was supposed to unfreeze the credit markets.

Fear is pervasive in the country as a great recession is upon us. One of the most important things that Obama can do is give the people a sense that someone is in charge and there is some hope. Hope is not a solution for the problems that beset this country, but the absence of hope is desperation which will only make the problems worse. By all appearances Obama has put together an "economic team" of experts, and will not hesitate to utilize the expertise of persons in business and finance. Currently, we have Paulsen and Bernanke talking with Barney Frank and Chris Dodd, which scares the hell out of me. Barney Frank, for those who forget, is one of the people who helped turn Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loose to become financially bankrupt. While the Republicans were largely responsible for much of the deregulation that led to the current economic crisis, the Democrats were all too eager to implement a philosophy where everyone was entitled to own a home of their own. Utter nonsense! Owning a home isn't a right, it's not guaranteed in the Constitution, nor did Thomas Jefferson ever refer to it in the Declaration of Independence.

Among the things Obama needs to do is to is work with, and give direction to, Nancy Pelosi, Barney Frank, and other liberal Democrats. None of these people are capable of running the country, and collectively all of them are capable of running it into the ground. A better metaphor might be a nautical one. If the country were likened to a ship at sea, its financial and economic systems are taking on water and in danger of sinking. Responsible programs, not just any programs, need to be put in place. Someone needs to be in charge and make sure all the pieces fit together. So far Obama seems to be doing a good job. But what he has done is a drop in the bucket compared to what he will have to do. He has commendably surrounded himself with very capable people. This was the relatively easy part. Now comes the hard part of tackling the enormous problems and making things better, not worse.

Obama Wins Third Presidential Debate Handily

In baseball you get three strikes and you're out. There were three debates, and each time Senator McCain tried to get the best of Senator Obama. He didn't succeed in any instance and after three tries he too is out. McCain attacked early and often, but spent too much time attacking and too little time making his own case. McCain needed to make a case for why he would be the better candidate and what he could do that Obama couldn't. He failed to do this, and continued on what are his essential talking points which most of America could have recited with them.

The three debates gave Senator Obama a chance to display his stature and ability to assume command of this country, which has been leaderless for some time. Obama was cool, calm, and collect and responded to almost all of McCain's attacks and charges effortlessly. McCain did score a few points, but consolation points when you are behind in the polls don't matter very much. McCain initially seemed energized, but as the debate war on he appeared old and tired. 72 year old man has the wisdom and ability to run a country, but McCain is not one of them.

The attacks by Senator McCain were mostly tangential and the 700 plus point drop in the stock market only served to emphasize that there was one main issue, the economy. Trying to paint Obama as a tax-and-spend liberal is hard when the so-called conservative president for the last eight years has spent the economy into the ground while cutting taxes.

Senator McCain was clearly an angry man tonight. For much of the evening a frozen plastic smile covered his face. He sought to attack Obama whenever possible and make faces when Obama successfully countered his point. Do we need an angry man for our leader? Or do we need a leader with a more positive vision and a better sense of what America needs?

Presidential Polls: Virginia for Obama?

The latest CNN poll shows Obama with a 10 point lead over McCain in Virginia. What? Virginia goes Democratic? This hasn't happened since 1964 when Lyndon Johnson overwhelmed Barry Goldwater. Have too many Washington bureaucrats moved into Virginia and turned it against its rightful owners? That's certainly a possibility. It's also possible that independent Virginia voters have looked at the past eight years, looked at Senator McCain, and wondered if he was a solution to their problems.


Maybe Governor Palin was only speaking to large crowds of the faithful Joe six packers when she was in Virginia telling voters how dangerous it would be to vote for Obama. The most dangerous thing for the people of Virginia, and the rest of this country, is the state of the economy. You have to be a real Governor Palin zealot to not be frightened at the prospect of her being one heartbeat away from making decisions about an economy so badly damaged. Can anyone imagine her sitting down with Prime Minister Brown of England or any other European leader and being able to converse on equal terms about economic decisions? If you can, then your imagination has taken hold of you.


It seems that numbers of rural voters all across the so-called "key battleground states" have decided that they would rather take a chance with the supposedly unknown Senator Obama then with the tried-and-true Senator McCain. After what seems to be a decade of campaigning, what is it all about Obama that people really need to know that they haven't already seen. The people of Virginia and the rest of America have very little interest in the loose association that Senator Obama had with the former terrorist Bill Ayres. The McCain-Palin attack plan was a failure. Time is running out. Can Senator McCain still win? Yes, but the odds get longer each day. And clearly, the people of Virginia seem likely to give their electoral votes to the man Senator McCain tells them they can't trust.

Presidential Polls Are Wrong, Wrong, Wrong

November 1, 2008 Update
Note: to blog surfers and others who recently found this post. This post was written on September 10, 2008, when the polls showed Senator McCain taking over the lead from Senator Obama. The purpose of the post was to point out that the sampling procedures had been changed to favor a more Republican oriented response. This is a tremendous no-no in any poll or sampling procedure. If you are a Republican hoping to read that the current polls which show Obama with anywhere from a three to eight point lead are wrong, I have to disappoint you. While there is a significant difference among the polls, it is likely Obama still has a four to five point lead. There are significant flaws in some of the polls, such as one that assumes that 42% of the voters will be evangelicals, which is more than twice the percentage of evangelicals that voted in the 2004 presidential election. Besides, the election is decided on a state-by-state basis were Obama has more than enough states to give him the necessary 270 electoral votes. I'm not saying that McCain can't win, but rather that it is extremely unlikely that he will do so.

nb

According to the most recent polls (Gallup, CBS, USA Today etc.) Senator McCain has pulled out in front of Senator Obama. But as everything else in this campaign nothing is what it appears to be. Alan Abramowitz, cited in the Huffington post, said, "One reason for the dramatic difference between the two recent CBS polls is that the two samples differed fairly dramatically in terms of partisan composition. The first sample was 35.2% Democratic, 26.2 percent Republicans, and 38.6 percent independent. The second sample was 34.9% Democratic, 31.1% Republican, and 34.0% independent. That's a change from a 9 point Democratic advantage to a 3.8 point Democratic advantage. That alone would probably explain about half of the difference in candidate preferences between the two [CBS] polls."



Simply put, you cannot change the sampling populations from one poll to the next and have any consistency (reliability). Mr.Abramowitz doesn't think the overall spike in Republican sampling among all three polling firms is an accurate reflection of the electorate. He goes on to say, "Given how important polls can be in the coverage of the race, even a slight assist to McCain during a period in which he is exciting the Republican base could help him solidify a new narrative in the race, regardless of the partisan facts on the ground."


The people of this country need accurate information in order to make an informed decision about whom to vote for in the presidential election. If the polls are inaccurate, and the McCain campaign is certainly not accurate, and Obama is spending most of his time responding to "misinformation" from the McCain campaign, then the American electorate falls back to choosing someone they are most comfortable with. That's the McCain strategy. It was the Bush strategy and it got us eight years under what will go down in history as one of the worst presidential administrations. Do we want that again?

If Obama Is Moses, McCain Is the Pharaoh

I would never say or intimate that Obama is Moses, but John McCain did. Imagine that! A McCain attack ad sarcastically calling Obama "the one" and then showing a picture of Charlton Heston splitting the Red Sea. Everyone knows what happened when the Pharaoh refused to let "My people go." God sent down 10 plagues on the people of Egypt until the Pharaoh relented and let the Israelites go. When will McCain and his followers get the message and let Americans go free. Do they need 10 plagues? Maybe so, because McCain's learning curve doesn't seem to be any better then Bush's.

Hopefully McCain and his crew remember what the 10th plague was. If they don't, maybe they should rent a copy of the "Ten Commandments." While they're at it, they might actually read the 10 Commandments, the ninth of which says "Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness." Attack ads and misrepresentations of what Obama says and does are the order of the day for the McCain campaign. It has gone negative, negative, negative untill the whole campaign needs to be put in a dark room.

Notice the very negative guy (Edward G. Robinson). Does he remind you of someone?

McCain Accuses Obama of Everything

In the absence of a substantive campaign Senator McCain has been playing the accusation game. Each week, or every other day, McCain accuses Obama of something or other. It really doesn't matter what McCain accuses Obama of; one can almost fill in the blank. Examples of some of the accusations are listed below.

McCain accuses Obama of playing the race card.
McCain accuses Obama of pandering on Iraq.
McCain accuses Obama of ducking out on visit to wounded troops.
McCain accuses Obama of being willing to lose the war in order to win the election.
McCain accuses Obama of flip-flopping on the Holocaust.
McCain accuses Obama of just being a celebrity. (Aren't all politician celebrities?)
McCain accuses Obama of being soft on Cuba.
McCain accuses Obama of "doublespeak.
McCain accuses Obama of "pandering" to 65% of the voters. (What about the other 35%?)
Etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc


The main problem with this approach is that it doesn't tell us what McCain will do for the country if elected president. He doesn't even tell us why we should vote for him. In fact, the constant array of accusations may tell people why they shouldn't vote for McCain. This is a carefully planned strategy designed to wear away at the image of Senator Obama. Unfortunately for McCain it's a poorly planned strategy that will ultimately wear away his own image. There is one ultimate accusation that McCain can make that will assure his election.

McCain Accuses Obama of Being Better Presidential Candidate.

Republican Attack Ads Sink to New Level of Absurdity

The latest Republican attack ads against Senator Obama attempt to portray him as no more than a celebrity and desperately attempt to link him up with Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. These pseudo-attack ads trying to link Senator Obama to two stupor-stars of dubious intellect and reputation will likely confuse the viewers who know that Senator Obama has nothing to do with these two "young ladies." It may leave them as confused as the Republican campaign for presidency. The so-called attack ads are an insult to the people they are trying to influence, the American people. Apparently, Republican self-deception has reached the "outer limits" of what poorly put together minds can conceive.

Senator McCain who insists on attaching himself to an administration that has patented the use of self-deception, is running a campaign that is going rapidly in reverse. Other than reiterating the expected Republican pledge about not raising taxes, Senator McCain has spent much more time attacking Senator Obama's qualities than clarifying what McCain do for this country if elected president. Time is running out and it is clear that the Republican Party is getting more and more desperate. The latest attack ad is likely just a warm-up to even more vicious attack ads that will be released in September and October. By then, the Republican attack ad team will be pairing up Senator Obama with Kermit the frog and Miss Piggy. If they do, they will be giving Senator Obama a better supporting cast in Senator McCain is likely to surround himself

with.

Kermit the Frog Rumored to Be on Obama's Shortlist

Persistent rumors have begun to circulate that Kermit the Frog is on Obama's shortlist for vice presidential running mates. No one in the Obama inner circles would confirm these rumors other than to say off the record that the senator is certainly interested in going green. Attempts to locate Kermit have been unsuccessful and he is rumored to be hiding out with Miss Piggy. Efforts to contact Miss Piggy have been futile, and one reporter who allegedly got inside of her house was seen flying out the second-floor window.

There are questions about Kermit's qualifications to be vice president of the United States. However, an unnamed friend of Kermit's said, "Kermit has a demonstrated history of leadership in times of crises and has also displayed a unique ability to get along with all creatures." The animal world is naturally quite excited about such a prospect, particularly frogs and toads. Effingmeyer Toad, a state representative from Mississippi, has gone on record stating that, "Frogs and toads have the greatest possible vested interest in the quality of water in this country and can make a significant contribution to water conservation in drought stricken areas."

When Senator McCain was asked about Kermit's qualifications, he is reported to have responded, "A frog? I wouldn't put anything past Obama. That's too far liberal for anything America could ever tolerate." It is actually not known whether Kermit is a liberal, moderate or a conservative. For that matter, it's not even know whether he is a Democrat. There is no record of Kermit ever voting in any election. Nor has Kermit held any public office. These factors should not be any barrier to Kermit running as vice president in view of the qualifications and performance of many members of Congress.

Stay tuned for further rumors.

How Obama Became Acting President

"He never would have been treated as a president-in-waiting by heads of state or network talking heads if all he offered were charisma, slick rhetoric and stunning visuals. What drew them instead was the raw power Mr. Obama has amassed: the power to start shaping events and the power to move markets"

The above paragraph is taken from an op-ed piece by Frank Rich in the New York Times. Of course, as we all know, the New York Times is a highly biased source. It has been at the forefront of Democraticliberalism (one word). My own take on this is that if nature abhors a vacuum, so does leadership. Leadership has not been forthcoming from the White House, rather "mis-leadership" has been the order of the day.

read more digg story

Study shows clearly: Media has been harder on Obama

Research from George Mason University's Center for Media and Public Affairs shows clear evidence that TV news has been mostly negative toward Obama, and more negative than toward McCain. The so-called love affair between the media and Obama seems to have been more of a rumor than a fact. Does this mean if you whine now enough and long enough people will come to believe you? Let's hope this isn't the start of a new trend. Whining is bad enough, political whiningought to be a capital offense.

read more digg story

Obama Goes to the Wall: McCain Attacks Obama

On Thursday, July 24th, Barack Obama gave a speech to a crowd of 200,000 people in Berlin, Germany. The number of people that attended that speech is as noteworthy as anything Obama could have said. My opinion is that he gave a good speech, one consistent with his message of hope. I will leave it to others to debate the historical merits of his speech. A portion of that speech is presented below.

"That is why America cannot turn inward. That is why Europe cannot turn inward. America has no better partner than Europe. Now is the time to build new bridges across the globe as strong as the one that bound us across the Atlantic. Now is the time to join together, through constant cooperation, strong institutions, shared sacrifice, and a global commitment to progress, to meet the challenges of the 21st century. It was this spirit that led airlift planes to appear in the sky above our heads, and people to assemble where we stand today. And this is the moment when our nations -- and all nations -- must summon that spirit anew."

On Thursday July 22, in Rochester, New Hampshire, John McCain said, "This is a clear choice that the American people have. I had the courage and the judgment to say I would rather lose a political campaign than lose a war. It seems to me that Obama would rather lose a war in order to win a political campaign."

Joe Klein, reporter for Time magazine said of McCain's comments, "This is the ninth presidential campaign I've covered. I can't remember a more scurrilous statement by a major party candidate. It smacks of desperation. It renews questions about whether McCain has the right temperament for the presidency. How sad."

Many of those who oppose Senator Obama have said that his speeches are mostly rhetoric, empty of significant content. If Senator McCain's speech is an example of significant content, then this nation cannot subsist on it.

Obama Challenges McCain to a Basketball Game for the Presidency

In a radical break with tradition, Senator Barack Obama challenged Senator John McCain to a game of one-on-one basketball to determine who would be the next president of the United States. In view of his slight age advantage, Obama is willing to give McCain a three basket head start. The game will be refereed by Rush Limbaugh, with the Reverend Al Sharpton as backup. One of the conditions of this game is that both senators will donate all of the campaign contributions which they will no longer need to spend to the United States treasury in an effort to solve the fiscal crisis confronting this nation.

Most people view Senator Obama's age advantage as a major factor in making him the overwhelming favorite. However, McCain has said off the record that he will body check Obama off the court. Furthermore, if the game gets really physical, McCain is purported to have stated that, "I will put some major bruises on Obama." When Obama heard this he is reported to have laughed and said, "That dude will never lay a hand on me." In order to sharpen up his game Senator McCain is reportedly working out with the Boston Celtics under the special tutelage of Paul Pierce. Pierce will also be able to help the senator interpret any gang signs that Senator Obama might be inclined to use.

Senator Obama has been working out with the USA women's Olympic basketball team. His wife Michelle has been at every workout and monitoring his progress very closely. Excitement about this game has risen to a fever pitch, even eclipsing the anticipation for the Olympics. Dick Vitale has been selected as the play-by-play announcer, and Magic Johnson and Charles Barkley will provide commentary at halftime. Stay tuned for further announcements.

McCain Pins Obama to the Wall

The presidential election was all but decided when Senator McCain uttered the magical Republican incantation. What is this magical incantation? Whenever a Republican presidential candidate wants to assure his victory he states that the Democratic candidate will raise people's taxes and the Republicans will not. Thus when McCain said that Obama will raise taxes the race became essentially over. It doesn't matter whether this is true or not, because this accusation sticks like wonder glue to the Democratic candidate.

Senator Obama naturally refuted Senator McCain's statement. His campaign political team worked overtime in showing that this was not true and how Senator Obama's tax plan would be beneficial to most of the middle class. The newspapers even challenged Senator McCain's assertion. None of this will matter because as long as you are defending yourself you are climbing uphill. It's a little like responding to the infamous question that has now become a terrible cliché, "When did you stop beating your wife?" All the other issues in the campaign will fade into the background. What about Iraq? Doesn't matter. What about the economy? Doesn't matter. What about the price of gasoline? Doesn't matter.

Senator McCain will now repeat the following refrain endlessly until his victory on Election Day.

Senator Obama will raise your taxes I will not.
Senator Obama will raise your taxes I will not
Senator Obama will raise your taxes I will not.

Senator Obama Convincingly Wins Second Presidential Debate

Senator Obama gave a sterling performance in the second presidential debate while Senator McCain seemed tired and old beyond his years. Senator Obama spoke crisply and emphasized his key points while making good eye contact with the audience. Senator McCain continued his ineffective attack on Obama and repeated most of his points from the previous debate. It is questionable as to whether Senator McCain actually reads the newspapers. He was still harping on the importance of the surge and victory in Iraq when today's papers carried statements from the outgoing British commander in Afghanistan that the war was unwinnable. Message to Senator McCain: we're losing in Afghanistan.

Senator McCain emphasized his experience but talking about events that occurred during the Reagan administration, and even referring to Teddy Roosevelt, made him look out of touch with the current economic crisis. Senator Obama made a point of emphasizing the need for a lead it to be able to "look around the corner" and think about what's going to happen next as opposed to always being in a reactive state. While Senator McCain appeared to be more cordial at first, he clearly has disdain for the younger man who is now increasingly being seen as a good more commanding leader despite his lesser experience. McCain fails to see that experience in an of itself is not a recommendation for leadership.

While Senator McCain saw the provision of health care as responsibility, Senator Obama saw it as a right of all Americans. Senator McCain's emphasis on turning to the private sector for health care seems ill chosen when the financial private sector has collapsed and the health-care private sector is best known for its attempts to deny or limit to policyholders. A woman in the audience had a good question when she wondered if we should make health care more like a public utility. Unfortunately neither senator chose to address this issue.

When Senator McCain referred to Senator Obama as, "That one," he lapsed to a level of disrespect heretofore not seen in presidential debates. Senator McCain's one attempt at a "new initiative" whereby the government would buy up mortgages, turns out to be in the plan that was passed by Congress last week. If Senator McCain can't be bothered to read, then he ought to have better staff members who read what he should and remind him of what he should know. This was an evening Senator McCain needed to win in a fashion that would turn around the campaign. Unfortunately for Senator McCain, the evening turned out the exact opposite of what he needed.

Arianna and Others “Huffed” at Obama

Now that Senator Obama has all but officially been declared as the nominee of the Democratic Party, he has begun to move his political stance to the middle. In the last couple of weeks he has spoken up in favor of national security interests, indicated his interest in continuing support of faith-based social services, and voiced his objection to the Supreme Court ruling against the death penalty for rape of minors in Louisiana. This is a natural move if he wants to become the next president of the United States. The ultra liberal wing of the Democratic Party has taken exception to these moves. They want the purest of liberals to lead Democrats out of the wilderness back into power.

The headline in the Huffington Post, under Arriana Huffington’s byline, was, "Seven Things Barak Obama Should Do to Keep from Blowing It. Ms. Huffington went on to outline seven steps Senator Obama should undertake to assure his victory in the November election. Ms. Huffington's advice is well worth reading, and most of it is good common sense. However, one wonders whether she is talking as a reporter/journalist or as a presumed leader of the Democratic Party. The Huffington Post quoted Will Marshall, president of the centrist Progressive Policy Institute as saying, "I've been struck by the speed and decisiveness of his move to the center."

The Los Angeles Times expressed its concern with the headline, "Obama is shifting toward the center.” This was followed up by a statement that recent changes by Obama carry some risk that he will diminish the image he has sought to build as a new type of leader who will change how Washington conducts business. Unless I misremember my history, seizing the center is how most candidates have gone on to become president. It is likely that Obama is focusing on the broader electorate which he will need to win over in order to secure a victory in the electoral College. For those of us who have forgotten, but certainly not Al Gore, in order to become president you need to win the majority of electoral College votes, which is different then getting the most votes on a nationwide basis. In any event, it is unlikely that Senator Obama will shift so far right that he will become indistinguishable from Senator McCain, solely on political issues.

The Presidential Campaign: Hyperbole and Invective

At a time when the nation faces an energy crisis, a housing crisis, and the strong possibility of the economy slipping into recession, America needs a political dialogue from the presidential candidates that focuses on these issues and how they plan to solve them. Unfortunately what we get from most of the media is a never-ending flow of hyperbole and invective. Anytime either candidate says anything that can be taken out of context it is immediately done, so that the media has an eye or ear catching headline to attract its audience. When Senator McCain says something that can be interpreted as him misunderstanding what's going on, the "age issue" is frequently brought up. Republicans shout that "Obama is the most liberal person ever to run for the presidency." The implication being he will turn us into a quai-socialist state. News: we are one already. Obama is accused of having a plan for Iraq that will lead to a disastrous defeat for this nation and catastrophe for the Middle East. If Obama is elected, there will be US bases in Iraq for some time to come. None of this addresses the key issues that we need to hear about.

In an article in the Chicago Tribune, Mark Silva was stated the following:

“It's probably time to stipulate that John McCain and Barack Obama are good
Americans. It may also be time to acknowledge that McCain is not "confusing
the basic facts and reality'' in Iraq, as Obama's chief foreign policy adviser
has suggested, and that Obama is not "wedded to defeat'' in Iraq, as McCain's
chief foreign policy adviser has suggested. And McCain's campaign may be a lot
of things, but it's hard to believe, as Democratic National Committee Chairman
Howard Dean said on cable news TV this week, that it's "sleazy.''

Yet, in the over-the-top environment of an over-heated presidential campaign, still in the early stages of a five-month marathon, hyperbole is the stuff of headlines.
And misconceptions run so deep, and are so readily misconstrued by
opponents and sheer mischief-makers, that now the Obama campaign has launched a rumor-control Web-site which finds itself addressing the rumors that the
on-again, off-again, flag-pin wearing senator from Illinois refuses to say the
Pledge of Allegiance. See Obama pledge - from that day in June 2007 when he
presided over the Senate. “

Silva goes on to address what I believe is one of the major roots of the problem “All this is worth remembering as the surrogates of the presidential campaign step forward to say things that the candidates themselves are loath to say - and there is a reason they let other people do this sort of talking for them.”

Between the media's thirst for sensational headlines and the presidential surrogates misquoting, misstating, and generally twisting the opponent's words into a political pretzel, we end up with a lot of words with little useful meaning. All too often political campaigns end up being to quote Shakespeare "full of sound and fury; signifying nothing."