by admin | Aug 20, 2008 |
To say I was shocked when I heard that Cheney was slated to give a keynote address at the Republican convention three weeks hence is a huge understatement. Why would McCain further associate himself and the party, which he presumptively leads, with Dick Cheney, the only politician who has lower approval ratings than Bush 43 and Dan Quayle (when he was Veep)? Just one more of a myriad of mysteries about the politician that no one really knows. Ok, it’s stretching a point to say that no one knows Cheney, but if they do it’s not because Dickey-boy told them anything. He’s one of the most notoriously closed mouth politicians since “Silent Cal”…..Calvin...
by admin | Apr 10, 2008 |
I don’t know why I punish myself by subjecting my rather smallish and cluttered brain to the hours and hours of political low theatre implicit in the testimony of two of the Bush Administration most accomplished sycophants on the status of our “Mission in Iraq”. Watching these two fellows give dissembling answers or completely dodging the same simple minded questions over and over and over could drive one to drink. In fact it did. An early morning Bloody Mary and a late afternoon potion of Vitamin G (as in gin and tonic) helped me make some sense out of the whole thing. I even took the time to look in the archives of these humble writings to reread (no, I...
by admin | Feb 12, 2008 |
By this time late in the news cycle every sentient being who has even the faintest interest in politicos and their fellow travelers knows that David Shuster of MSNBC has been suspended, sacked, fired, reprimanded, savaged, or muzzled. All this at the hands of Hillary or Bill, or a surrogate or all of the above. And of course we all know the reason. In an otherwise sane, but boring dialogue with Bill Press on one of the interminable talking head shows that pass for new/entertainment, Shuster opined, “but doesn’t it seem like Chelsea’s sort of being pimped out (emphasis mine) in some sort of weird way.” Press ran for cover before the sound waves had died, but...
by admin | Jan 22, 2008 |
Not coincidentally, last week also saw the introduction of a new documentary which attempted (with some success) to unravel the many facets of this complicated man. I believe that the documentary concludes that he is neither the consummate paragon of conservative political thought that many would have him be, nor the ultimate example of political buffoonery that others believe. The truth for Reagan, as for most, lies somewhere in-between. As you will see by reading or, for some of you, rereading the posting I published in the heat of the 2008 elections, my inclination is toward the buffoonery end of the continuum. I remain, however, open to debate. In one...
by admin | Nov 23, 2007 |
As usual the Iowa caucus is receiving an inordinate amount of attention in the form of media coverage, political money, contender visits, pundit prognostications and political rhetoric in general. Unlike most of you who will read this, I have actually participated in the Iowa caucus, but even so, it may be hard to say anything about the subject that hasn’t already been said and said again. Indeed my participation in the Iowa political process dates back to 1960 and my senior year in high school in Ames, Iowa. Perhaps by virtue of the fact that I had received some local notoriety as the student body and student council president I was asked to run the youth...
by admin | Nov 14, 2007 |
There’s always more than meets the eye. As many of you intrepid readers will know, Veterans Day did not start out as Veterans Day, but as Armistice Day which was intended to commemorate the end of WWI, but didn’t. OK, let me explain. WWI was officially ended by the Treaty of Versailles which was signed by the previously warring parties on June 28, 1919, but hostilities had terminated (I guess they just stopped pulling the triggers) on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. Many of our European friends and some of our enemies had the good sense to recognize November 11 as Armistice Day well before it occurred to us. It was designated a...
