Campaign 2008

[NoCalMike 0]

Isn't the theme of tonight's debate going to be foreign-policy anyway?

 

If so I really hope Obama brings up and outright harps on the recent studies that suggest ethnic-cleansing and the mass exodus of Iraqis from Iraq is what is responsible for the drop in violence in Iraq, because everyone with half a brain already knows that McCain's script is going to be as follows:

 

"I was asking for the surge three years ago"

"Islamo-facism"

"Bush was wrong initially, then came around and did the surge"

"Muslim Extemists"

"Less violence now"

"Evil"

"Surge worked"

"No attacks since 9/11"

"McCain for President in 2008"

 

"P.S. No option off the table for Iran, can't let them go nuclear, and Arrghh those damn russian aggressors, we'll take them on too"

 

And unfortunately it seems that Democrats are seemingly willing to go along with the status quo that the media has been pushing that "Well if there is less violence, it MUST mean the surge worked"

 

I really am hoping Obama doesn't roll over on this point.

[At Home 0]

Trickle-down hasn't raised working peoples' wages.

Whether it objectively has or not is irrelevant, as long as some kind of arguement can be made that it has. You can always find some kind of numbers or statistics to back up your claim, no matter how ludicrous the claim may be. And some people will believe the claim, for a variety of reasons. Maybe they agree with your reasoning. Maybe you just happened to catch their ear at the right time. Maybe it's one of those cases where it's a claim they'd never heard before, but kinda makes sense once it's been proposed to them. There's all kinds of ways to manipulate people into believing propaganda, and doesn't require them to be so stupid that they can't properly dress or feed themselves, which seems to be how you view the poor Republican demographic.

 

This is the worst point anyone has tried to make on this entire board.

[snuffbox 0]

It's hard to argue against stuff like paycheck stubs. You know, reality. That's how arguments like Jingus' there come about.

[At Home 0]

"See, that's your point, but I can use numbers to back up any point that I want to make. Some people will even agree with that point."

[SuperJerk 0]

Enjoy.

 

 

 

[Jingus 0]

It's hard to argue against stuff like paycheck stubs. You know, reality. That's how arguments like Jingus' there come about.

You keep saying that overwhelming stupidity must be the only reason any non-wealthy person would vote Republican. Which is an extraordinarily hyperbolic statement. And the only point you keep using to back this up is the tax cut. Is it truly so impossible for you to understand that the tax cut just might not seem that important to some people? That they might consider other issues to be more vital than getting a couple extra bucks on their paycheck?

 

Shit, I'm not even a fucking conservative, I'm just trying to explain to you a little bit of why they might believe what they believe. Some of you guys seem to regard the viewpoints of the Republicans the same as you would someone who claims that the sky is red or that 1 + 1 = 3. Since I'm not affiliated with either side, I try to do what I can to explain to each of them the things about their opponents which seem inexplicable. I do the same thing to the other side at the Pit, for example pointing out all the things I find mind-bogglingly awful about a certain Alaskan hockeymom. Yeah, sometimes I go off on weird tangents, cuz I'm a rambling scatterbrained motherfucker like that. But I don't understand this atmosphere of outright incomprehension and instinctive loathing which some of you have for the rightwingers. I'm not fond of them either, but, once again, saying the only reason why anyone poor would vote Republican must be because they're incredibly stupid? Dude, the world ain't that simple.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

That video is so much better when you mute it and play hip-hop instead.

[The Niggardly King 0]

Fuck, it feels weird that I brought this up... since I don't give two shits about money.

[NoCalMike 0]

It's hard to argue against stuff like paycheck stubs. You know, reality. That's how arguments like Jingus' there come about.

You keep saying that overwhelming stupidity must be the only reason any non-wealthy person would vote Republican. Which is an extraordinarily hyperbolic statement. And the only point you keep using to back this up is the tax cut. Is it truly so impossible for you to understand that the tax cut just might not seem that important to some people? That they might consider other issues to be more vital than getting a couple extra bucks on their paycheck?

 

 

I would tend to think it is a pretty important factor because it is the one point republicans seem to use every single election cycle, "Those stinkin' liberals will raise YOUR TAXES, YOUR YOUR YOUR YOUR TAXES" It is the one constant theme. And then on top of that when they interview "people on the streets" the first thing a lot of republican voters tend to say is "well, I don't want more of my money taken" which seems to me that the one constant message the republicans are getting across (dishonestly, mind you) is that the democrats want to raise "YOUR" taxes. Maybe not "All" republican voters hold that in a high regard, but I feel comfortable and honest saying "most"

[SuperJerk 0]

This National Review Online article about Mrs. Palin is getting quite a bit of press.

 

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MDZiM...MWMyYTUxZDkwNTE

 

No one hates saying that more than I do. Like so many women, I’ve been pulling for Palin, wishing her the best, hoping she will perform brilliantly. I’ve also noticed that I watch her interviews with the held breath of an anxious parent, my finger poised over the mute button in case it gets too painful. Unfortunately, it often does. My cringe reflex is exhausted.

 

Palin filibusters. She repeats words, filling space with deadwood. Cut the verbiage and there’s not much content there. Here’s but one example of many from her interview with Hannity: “Well, there is a danger in allowing some obsessive partisanship to get into the issue that we’re talking about today. And that’s something that John McCain, too, his track record, proving that he can work both sides of the aisle, he can surpass the partisanship that must be surpassed to deal with an issue like this.”

 

When Couric pointed to polls showing that the financial crisis had boosted Obama’s numbers, Palin blustered wordily: “I’m not looking at poll numbers. What I think Americans at the end of the day are going to be able to go back and look at track records and see who’s more apt to be talking about solutions and wishing for and hoping for solutions for some opportunity to change, and who’s actually done it?”

 

If BS were currency, Palin could bail out Wall Street herself.

 

And with that, the right-wing rebellion begins. Wall Street Republicans are going to be exceeding pissed at McCain for dicking over the bail-out, he already looks like a jerk for not taking a coherent position on the economy, people are beginning to question Palin's qualifications, and well...most Republicans never really liked him anyways. It will take an awesome performance tonight to turn this around. If McCain still has a chance of winning, we'll know by the end of the weekend based on reactions to the debate.

[Anakin Flair 0]

anybody watching the debate tonight?

[bobobrazil1984 0]

First 10 minutes, I'm not all that happy with Obama, he sounds awkward. McCain is coming across better

[At Home 0]

And with that, the right-wing rebellion begins.

 

Despite many GOP headliners, such as Ben Stein, dismissing the ticket after the convention?

[bobobrazil1984 0]

I think Obama has done better in the direct exchanges between teh two, but McCain's initial answers are better. Stupid Lehrer cut them off just when it got fun when they started arguing

[At Home 0]

Obama is doing a good job at outlining specifics.

 

[Nightwing 0]

How the hell does this CNN "Audience Reaction" thing supposed to work? And seriously, do we really need to see the a slight bump when McCain says "dividends"?

 

And as someone who is just getting here, did I miss anything particularly important?

[Anakin Flair 0]

Obama seems to stutter a bit more, but McCain wasted a minute and a half on pleasantries in his first questions, and has seemed a bit dodgy onsome issues.

[BigPoppaKev 0]

Have they answered a direct question yet? They seem to be just reading their scripts to a T. I want some back and forth without Lehrer interrupting them.

[At Home 0]

This question "major changes as a result of the financial crisis" is the low point so far. McCain suggested a spending freeze on everything but defense, veterans' care, and "several other" places, and Obama almost went around it completely. Although Obama's response to the spending freeze proposal was a good burn though: "[McCain] is using a hatchet here instead of a scalpel."

[The Ghost of bps21 0]

Obama laid out some bulletpoint plans...but I'm not sure he was answering a question. Lehrer is getting annoyed.

[Anakin Flair 0]

Why do we want more nuclear power plants? Especially since nobody wants to store the waste?

[Nightwing 0]

How are you going to "rule" the United States? Odd term to use there. o.0

 

McCain talking about the strategy succeeding. Let's see how hard Obama can hit him on this...

[The Truthiness 0]

Did Obama just mentioned orgy and swallow in the same sentence?

[At Home 0]

Obama is ruining McCain here on Iraq. Awesome.

[Nightwing 0]

They really need electroshock collars to prevent them from interrupting each other.

[The Ghost of bps21 0]

Obama just bitchslapped him and McCain goes right back to painting his campaign like a hallmark movie.

[At Home 0]

The anecdote about meeting the troops was lame bullshit. Yuck.

[naiwf 0]

McCain hasn't answered a single question that was asked yet. This debate is killing me.

[Nightwing 0]

Obama's points on Afghanistan are the hardest-hitting yet. It dispels the idea that he's the "cut-and-run" guy that the Republicans would like him to seem to be. As mentioned above, his outlining of points versus McCain's anecdotes are winning this for him.

 

Biggest plus? He's not saying "Check it out at BarackObama.com". Thank God.

[Ketamine Disaster 0]

McCain is getting Nixon'd here. He won't even budge on anything...Obama calls him out on outright lies, and he just continues on to his next point as though nobody said anything. It's pretty entertaining.