Separated At Birth?

Okay, okay, so Andrea Mitchell isn't quite as pasty-skinned as the Joker... and she isn't as flamboyantly dressed... but it's pretty damned close.

We Are Forced To Reap What You Have Sown

It was nice yesterday to briefly see the old John McCain, the one I used to like, the one I would've considered voting for. At Friday's town-hall-style rally in Lakeville, Minnesota, the Republican presidential nominee was forced to actually defend Barack Obama against an ugly mob that seemed about ready to form a lynching party (and doesn't that make me proud to be a Minnesotan!).

"He's a decent family man, citizen, that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues," McCain admonished his supporters in reference to Obama. "I admire Senator Obama. I want everyone to be respectful."

The mob's response? Boos and catcalls.

While I am happy that Senator McCain was willing to risk alienating his base in order to tamp the insanity down, this particular brand of madness is a direct result of the McCain campaign's actions over the past several weeks -- actions that seemed specifically designed to elicit just such a response.

Running mate Sarah Palin has been telling the GOP faithful that Obama sees America as "imperfect enough that he's palling around with terrorists who would target their own country." During her introductions at these events, it has been common practice to emphasize that Obama's middle name is "Hussein" in order to underscore his supposed otherness.

McCain himself has made his disdain for Obama quite apparent at the two presidential debates, refusing to even look at the Democratic nominee and referring to Obama as "that one." He has attempted to stoke racial fears by calling Obama a "man of the streets." And he has remained tellingly silent at other events, during which supporters have called Obama "a terrorist" and screamed "kill him" and "off with his head."

So, while it is gratifying that you have finally decided to do the right thing, Senator McCain, I think it is more than fair to point out that your supporters have merely followed your lead. We are reaping what you have sown, and the end result is a further poisoning of the American political process.

McCain's Plans For Your Health Insurance

Interesting column by Paul Krugman today in the New York Times. It includes this rather disturbing recent quote from John McCain:

“Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation.”

Doing for health care what we've done for the banking industry? Super. Sounds great.

And if you don't believe me (or Doctor Krugman) as to the veracity of this quote, you can read McCain's own words here, in the piece he wrote for Contingencies magazine.

The more rope fed the McCain/Palin ticket, it seems, the more eager they become to hang themselves.

Hilarity!

Take that, tree-hugging pussies.

A Film Worth Watching

Today I was able to finally watch the much-talked-about documentary, Taxi To The Dark Side. Not exactly the feel-good movie of the summer, it is nonetheless well worth seeing for any concerned and engaged denizen of this planet.

I know, I know: some people will call me an America-hating monster for ever letting such treasonous photons enter my eyeballs. I would beg to differ.

Certainly, it would be easy to blind myself to the harsh realities of this world. I would wish nothing more than to believe that the U.S. is an unadulterated force for good, that our actions are always true and righteous. But I am no longer eight years old; those fantasies have been left behind as surely as have my G.I. Joe figures.

The world is not a simple, easily-explained place, unless you are a mental midget. And Taxi To The Dark Side gives -- or should give -- all of us things to ponder about the nature of our nation's place in the world, about the disparity between our purported ideals and our realities, and about what has been inflicted upon the servicemen and servicewomen whom we ask to do our dirty work.

Veep Picks and Facial Tics

So, the big V.P. debate happened. Yippee. My impressions:

First of all, it seemed pretty much pro forma; nothing that was going to change any one's mind, one way or the other. Each candidate made a minor gaffe or two, and stuck to the predictable talking points.

*****

It says a great deal about the recent difficulties of Sarah Palin that her mediocre performance at this debate was hailed as a major triumph: At least she didn't have a Tina Fey-worthy moment! Never underestimate the power of lowered expectations.

*****

Do you think that, during debate prep, Palin was told to use the word "maverick" repeatedly? Good lord, she beat that word like a rented mule.

*****

Just how many of moderator Gwen Ifill's questions did Sarah Palin actually bother to answer? Certainly not too many; she was far more concerned with getting back to her prepared talking points.

*****

What was the deal with Palin's bizarre facial tic that has, quite charitably, been called a "wink?" She looked a bit like Diane Chambers of Cheers fame... Maybe this is a signal that Palin, too, needs to be "written out of the series?"

*****

Or maybe it was a signal to the far-right faithful that all this talk about reform and regulation is just talk. Wink-wink, nudge-nudge. Don't worry, oligarchs and plutocrats, once we're elected nothing will change. A nod's as good as a wink to a blind bat.

*****

One of the minor irritants in this election season is Governor Palin -- she, of the seven-figure net worth; she, who owns an airplane; she, whose RNC jacket cost more than I take home in a month -- referring to herself as "Joe six-pack." The woman's down-home appeal is about as credible as a celebrity rehab stint.

*****

But the single most telling (and frightening) moment of the evening for me was Palin's assertion that Dick Cheney is right, that the role of the Vice President is somehow constitutionally malleable to fit whichever investigation or whatever oversight you're currently attempting to dodge. The Constitution, as well as over two centuries of tradition and practice, gives the V.P. a very narrow set of duties: essentially, breaking ties in the Senate and succeeding the President, should the need arise. That's it. We don't need another "Imperial Vice Presidency." Good grief.

Dubya's Stalker Strikes Again

Gosh, I sure am glad to be represented by that woman.