Vyan

Friday, May 16

Tbe Party isn't Broken and doesn't need "Fixing"

The Party is Changing for the Better.

It's taken me a bit of time to come to this conclusion. I've carefully considered the issue of post nomination Party Reconciliation and whether or not we may need to a Shotgun Marriage to repair the wounds that have been gouged into the Democratic Party by this Primary Season.

But I've finally realized we don't need to break out the spackle, silly putty and super glue in order to re-stitch the Democratic party back together. With Barack Obama's candidacy we ourselves are Becoming the Change that we need.

Hillary Clinton is a fine candidate, and a fine politician - but she is shown herself to clearly be a politician of the past with her use of divide and conquer, fear-mongering, crush and smear tactics.

It's time we moved away from that kind of politics, and that kind of country. It's time we embraced the future - and that future is President Barack Obama.


As thereisnospoon has handily pointed out today, this isn't about either sexism or racism.

Barack Obama will be the Democratic Nominee because he has repeatedly refused to pander to our worst instincts. He has refused to easily give into fear.

No, he didn't do the proper political thing and toss Jeremiah Wright under the Mid-town Express at the first opportunity. He let Jeremiah blow himself up.

No, he didn't immediately assume that we should show "strength" either by jumping into a ill-advised and unnecessary war, or by keeping everyone we disagree with at arms length as if simply having a conversation and attempting to find common ground (Like Kennedy with Krushchev, Nixon in China and Reagan with Gorbachev) is in and of itself some kind of grand concession and some sign of "weakness" or some silly misappropriated version of appeasment.

No, he didn't sign on with an idiotic gas-tax holiday plan, because he had the experience to know that it wasn't going to deliver the consumer savings it promised.

On each of these issues and many more he shown better judgement, and better respect for the intelligence of the American people than has Clinton. She and her campaign have deliberately pandered to ignorance, paranoia and fake outrage with "I would have walked out of that Church", "He's lucky to be a Black Man" when even they know damn well he isn't, "He's not a Muslim as far as I know..." and bragging that she "has the hard-working uneducated White Voters, that he can't get" - while he has not responded in kind. He's refused to be dragged down into that cesspool with her.

He has not stooped to her level.

Sure we need a President who is "tough", but I would prefer one who doesn't repeatedly and chronically gets "tough" about The Wrong Issues.

He has not tried to exploit our fear and anxiety or try to Bribe Us. Instead he has shown Courage and an abiding Faith in the American people and that's the kind of President we need.

We need a President who isn't going to have a "Senior Moment" over and over again between Sunni and Shia. Who knows the difference between someone (like the duly elected ruling party in Palestine) supporting you, and you supporting them. Whose idea of "Supporting our Troops" isn't to oppose bills that would do exactly that. Whose Primary campaign debts and promises aren't to lobbyists, corporations, Rangers, Super-Rangers or Cougars - but are to the American people themselves.

More than that we need a President whose idea of showing solidarity with our military families isn't to give up a golf, and then not actually give it up - we need a President with genuine courage.

For Courage is the ultimate cure for what ails us.

Courage is how we cure both Racism and Sexism. It takes courage to ignore what statistics might say about any particular type of individual, and what past experience might say - and to take them for who and what they actually are.

Courage is how we cure Terrorism. It takes courage to remove the primary power that a terrorist wields, fear of death, destruction and injury. If we can not be terrorized, their methods become useless and meaningless.

Courage is the Key.

We don't need to be afraid that the party won't heal itself, that we may have lost some of the Hillacrats forever as they wallow in self-pity over how we "beat up on their girl", yet ignore and justify all the jabs and cheap shots she and her campaign have dolled out. Let Hill court and keep the West Virginia Double-wide vote. The people who just can't bring themselves to vote for that black (muslim/anti-american) man.

If they're willing to embrace the change , embrace the future - they're welcome with us. If not we don't want 'em. We don't need 'em. Sorry but - Frack 'em.

We don't need to go begging on hands and knees for them to hold their nose and pretend to support our curly haired black-negro-man with the white mother, elitist, former food-stamp receiving, educated, school debt-having, orange-juice drinking, basket-ball playing, lousing bowling candidate. If they want to jump-ship and join the Republicans and vote for John McInsane, I'm sure Maverick and his good buddy Karl Iceman Rove will be happy to have them.

We have to realize that nominating and electing Barack Obama to the Presidency will send a shock-wave across this nation and across this world, one that will resonate for more deeply than even the passage of the original Civil Rights Act. Back then LBJ knew that Democrats would be losing the south for perhaps a generation or more. This time we might lose more than that, and we might gain far more as well.

Both in the long and the short run, it's going to be worth it.

This is the beginning of the New Democratic Party.

We have already begun the Change that Barack has spoken of, we have become that Change. Those who wish to join us and embrace that change are welcome to do so, those who do not are free to wallow in the cynicism, pandering, oppurtunism, manipulation and fear-mongering of the past.

We're done with all that, and are going This Way. Toward the Hope. Toward the Future.

Everyone else can either climb on for the ride or be left behind. I hope you can come along.

Vyan

Thursday, May 15

Olberman PWNS Bush

Wednesday, May 14

The Primary Endgame: A Shotgun Wedding?

There's only one way this ends, and it's not going to be pretty. Hillary Clinton has deliberately driven a stake through the heart of the Democratic Party, and not because she's a sportman's and refuses to leave the field of play until the last whistle, it's because she want to position herself as completely indespesible to Barack Obama in the all.

She's been more than willing to pander and try and bribe the electorate with her gas tax holiday scheme. She's been willing to bait and pander to poor, ignorant West Virginian's like these...



Listen to this Hillacrat dreck, "Obama's a Muslim - he's doesn't know the Pledge of Allegiance or the Star Spangled Banner - he doesn't believe in America the way Hillary or McCain do..."

Why is Hillary willing to win on the back of this swill?

It can all only be for one reason.

I haven't yet found any video of this, but yesterday during the Primary Coverage on CNN, former NY Governor Mario Cuomo came on-air to talk about the likelyhood of a "Dreamticket" of Obama/Clinton.

He claimed... (not an exact transcription)

Cuomo: None of the reasons against it make sense.

Host: But what the idea that Barack Obama represents a change from the politics of the past, while Clinton represents the past?

Cuomo: Ok, that almost makes sense, but do you mean the past like the (Bill) Clinton Presidency? Where we had a $1.4 Trillion budget surplus, the best economy we've had in generations, people moving out of poverty...


Let's just get one thing straight, Hillary Clinton is not BILL Clinton. Simply because they happen to be married does not mean she will be implementing the same type of policies that he did. Such an assumption would be like thinking that George W Bush, would simply be a echo of his father - George H.W. Bush's - presidency.

We've all seen how that turned out haven't we.

The problem isn't that Hillary Clinton represents the return of Bill Clinton's past - she has clearly shown through this campaign that she truly represents the return and continuation of No-Holds Barred Karl Rove Politics.

She's willing to use anything, to scratch, claw and bite her way into the White House even though for several weeks she's had no mathematical pathway to get there. In fact, she shown more than a touch of the delusional - "I can make my own reality" politics that we've seen far too much of over the last 8 years.

Yes, she won West Virginia.

But there is no good reason to hyperventilate over the delegates that Hillary picked up yesterday. In the past week Barack Obama has gained more Superdelegats (37) than are even available from that entire state (28), meaning that since the previous primaries in North Carolina and Indiana she's actually lost ground to Obama even with winning in WV.

But that doesn't matter, what matters isn't the delegate count, it's the electoral map. As of today, the current state-by-state polls indicate the Clinton would defeat McCain by 280 to 241 Electoral Votes. That is based on these numbers.



Florida: Clinton 49% McCain 41%
Ohio: Clinton 48% McCain 38%
West Virginia : Clinton 47% McCain 42%

By contrast Obama is current in losing to McCain 237 to 290, whereas just a week ago they were in a virtual tie.



Obama was already losing in Florida, Ohio and West Virginia, but now he's also losing in Wisconsin and Michigan. That's not good.

I understand that Poblana numbers show Obama potentially winning by a landslide based on high turnout from youth and minority voters. But it's also true that the youth vote also tends to be unreliable, so betting the farm on the youth is a high-risk gamble for Barack.

Yes, there are many other reasons why this November could still be Tidal Wave for Obama, but they are all theoretical - and not yet concrete or proven.

The problem is that the Electoral Map does not LIE.

As it stand right now, Barack Obama is probably going to lose in November.

In order to prevent a McCain victory in November, Hillary Clinton has forced Obama into a position where he has to somehow reach the apparently unreachable between now and then. Those poor, uninformed, uneducated, blue-collar Democratic Voters in shown in the clip above have to be persuaded to Stay with the Democrats instead of bolting for McCain.

Hillary has remained in this race, not because she has any reasonable expectation that she's going to grab some landslide of Superdelegates willing to snatch the nomination away from Obama, but simply because she - and only she - may be able to bring Florida, Michigan, Ohio and yes, even Redneck infested West Virginia into the Democratic column and guarantee victory.

She's hoping for a Shotgun Wedding in Denver, and she'll get it if...

If..

And this is a BIG if... Barack Obama is willing to toss his own ideals and the core elements of his candidacy - Hope and Change - completely under the bus. Is he willing to take on a second-in-command who would play had hard, fast and loose as Clinton has played with "He's not a Muslim, as far as I know" and "He can't get the working-class White voters", and "He's an elitist who drinks orange juice" tactics. Is this how he answers the toughness question? Does he think he can use Clinton to kill the "experience" issue the way that Cheney did for Bush? Can he keep a snake on the leash in the West Wing, only to be released when and where he feels the need to twist and arm, or Pop a Cap in somebodies ass up Capitol Hill?

Is that a Role Hillary willing to play for the next 4-8 years? White House Pitt Bull?

I'm seriously beginning to think that it is, that she isn't playing to the Supers anymore - she's trying to make this case to Barack.

The question is: Does he have the stones to resist the temptation, put his faith in the youth, strap his own campaign to his shoulders without pandering to the Hillacrats and carry it across the finish line despite the mindfield that Clinton has put in his path?

I think he might, and if he does, it will be a glorious sight to behold.

Update Ok, I've heard a lot of arguments against this idea, some have said the polls don't mean anything even though there is a Rec'd Diary right now claiming Barack has a 7 point lead nationally on McCain, except that we don't elect the president nationally we use the electoral college, and it's from the same sources that electoral-vote.com uses, Quinnipiac - but the best one I think is the following.

Something else Cuomo said was that Obama can't get Hillary's voters and Hillary can't get his - so it makes sense for them to combine forces in his mind.

What he failed to realize is that if she's on the ticket there are people who won't vote for Barack anymore - and that many of her voters who vote for her even as Veep if Barack is at the top so it's not "Win/Win" it's "Lose/Lose"!!


The point being that if Obama falls for the trick, and I don't think he will, it'll massively hurt him in the fall, not help him. We're going to have to win this without the Hillacrats.

Vyan

Sunday, May 11

SNL: Hillary Makes her Case

From SNL: There's Something about Hillary.

"Unlike Senator Obama, I have no ethical standards. Even my critics would agree that once I get the nomination, I will stop at nothing--absolutely nothing--to win. Whereas, with Senator Obama, there are some things he simply will not do. Take, for example, the race card, which he has been reluctant to play. As in, 'anyone who doesn't vote for me, is a racist.' I, on the other hand, will be happy to play the gender card and claim that anyone who doesn't vote for me is a sexist. In fact, once Senator Obama is out of the picture, I look forward to playing the race card myself. As in, 'anyone who doesn't vote for me is both a sexist and a racist.'

Now for those of you who say, 'she'll never do that, it doesn't even make sense!' I answer, 'if you believe that, you don't know me.' So there you have it: sore loser, racist supporters, no ethical standards, qualities Senator Obama simply can't match."