September 2, 2004, Fire-breathing... catatonia...
Well, it was... I'm not sure what! night at the GOP Convention last night; the Prez was in Queens, hob-nobbing with the firemen. You'll recall Bush promised greater aid to New York, only to not deliver it (far lower priority compared to repealing that awful death tax); of course, several (well, 6 anyway) City firehouses have been closed since 9-11, as New York spends kazillions defending us from fake terror alerts, protecting visiting foreign dignitaries (like the Republicans), and similar unfunded Bush mandates.
Which takes us to last night at the convention; I confess I didn't see or hear Miller's speech, although I did hear Cheney's speech. I could chide Miller for being a psychotic DINO, but I should more deride him for being only a semi-reconstructed race-baiting lunatic than for being a more loyal Republican than, say, Trent Lott (at least by voting record). Besides-- while the GOP has DINOs like Miller, we have RINO's like Linc Chafee of Rhode Island, and wild cards like the Sainted John McCain.
Anyway, it seemed an odd pairing, Zell and Dick. Zell delivered his speech from the manic side, while Dick delivered his from the depressive/catatonic side of the GOP bi-polar/bi-partisan spectrum.
Both of course, reflected what I said yesterday, and will say again: the Republicans got nothin'. An inside kangaroo straight with two cards missing... Zell was a fire-breathing lunatic Kerry-basher; Cheney was a calm, measured... catatonic Kerry-basher. Shorter Zell Miller/ Dick Cheney: John Kerry is a French faggot pussy who will have to ask his French overlords for permission to defend Amurka.
Anything... ANYTHING... to take away from the weakness of the economy (job growth non-existent, interest rates coming up, oil prices high, consumer confidence shot), the abuse of our overstretched military (sent off to a shooting gallery in Iraq with no exit strategy for a war whose justifications have long since ben debunked), the fact that we are no safer than we were on or before 9-11-01 (gross understatement, as OBL is still out there, North Korea and Iran move forward with nuclear weapons, and our own intelligence and defense apparatus are criminally incompetent), the uncontrollable (and unsustainable) deficit (a record... and by a lot), and a President who can't speak in full English sentences.
Fortunately, I understand Senator Kerry has started sacking the losers who gave him the worthless "wrap-myself-in-'Nam" campaign. He can allow the Republicans to disperse from New York, and then go back on full-time attack... because this election is not about John Kerry: it's about George W. Bush. Fightin' John is on the way. And I for one, can't wait to watch him give Cheney and Miller cause to up their lithium dosages.
Comments
Way to go, Dog--hope you are right. However, I wonder, since most of the mainstream media (never mind the Cable, Drudge, talk-show, punditocracy, think tanks, and overwrought blonde female wingers) commentary today seems to be about how a) the Repubs demonstrated brilliant command and control of the convention and really stuck it to Kerry/Edwards04, b) the speeches were fabulous and stirring and "brought the attack" to Kerry, c) Kerry/Edwards04 has no platform, therefore it was their fault that Bush/Cheney04 could spend the entire convention attacking them as gutless French pussies, and d) Kerry's a flipflopper with no clear idea of what to do. I always marvel at how wildly differently these things look to me than they seem to look to the TV anchors. Zell Miller looked to me like a raving lunatic (particularly after his speech, when he repeated threatened physical violence against Chris Matthews). Dick Cheney looked to me like he had absolutely nothing to say, and was getting kind of tired of repeating the same old stump speech smears against Kerry. Arnold was completely content-free, as usual--he is a textbook study in how someone can stand up and say nothing at all, at great length, and cause an audience to go wild--sort of like Richard Burton reading the phone book, I guess. The Bush twins demonstrating vividly both the childrearing incompetence of their parents and the feeble qualities of their genetic material. Laura Bush giving the usual frozen treacle. Those who included substantive comment seemed to be saying that the Constitution was a bad idea whose time had passed and that we should immediately crown W as emperor. The rest had no content, but the cosmetics weren't even good.
But, as I said, according to the networks and major papers, this was a really stellar showing.
Yuck, yuck and more yuck. Why don't we seem to have any Demos who'll go out there and just simply say: this sucked, folks. Take a good look and you'll want nothing whatever to do with these people.
Posted by mamayo at September 2, 2004 06:26 PM
What do you call union members that endorses a Republican Presidential Candidate? Morons (See Reagan).
Posted by Just Wondering at September 2, 2004 07:40 PM
MAM--
Whether true or not, my pet meme is now "the end is nigh for Bush". My take on the speeches (other than the prime time speeches, btw, the rank and file speeches were RANK; Hastert is certifiable, Frist is just offensive, the rest were forgettable... I keep listening to National Palestine Radio (NPR) for moments like Tavist Smiley baiting Newt Gingrich: Come on, Newt-- don't the Republicans OWE ALL THIS TO YOU? WHY DON'T YOU HAVE A PRIME TIME ADDRESS?
Anyway--McCain was respectful, and frankly, if I believed it wasn't sincerely KILLING McCain to endorse Bush, I might actually consider carefully his words-- because (other than the Bush endorsement) he believed every one. Giuliani is a miserable whore, who I have nothing but ill wishes for. Laura and George should be ashamed of themselves as parents, if those two cretin party girls are the product of their parenting. Ahnold just handed Kerry his killer line: worried about your job, and your family's future? You're just an economic girly-man. Cheney and Miller: two sides of the "insane" coin; other than red meat Republicans, the few remaining moderates and undecideds were turned OFF by them.
I understand the politics; think of this the way lawyers do: if the law is against you, argue the facts; if the facts are against you, argue the law; if the law and the facts are against you, just launch into merciless ad hominems against the other side. There is nothing-- NOTHING-- to recommend the Bush-Cheney team. (FOUR MORE MONTHS! FOUR MORE MONTHS!) But its not like they're giving up their nominations in favor of, say, John McCain and Richard Lugar, now is it? NO, NO, NOOOOOO!!!!
So, they try to win reelection, based on lies, misdirection and dirty tricks, and lapses of logic and appeals to raw emotion, try to convince us that if John Kerry is president, terrorists will kill our children because he is a French homosexual. Understand that logic?
Me neither, but 46% of the country seems to think it makes perfect sense.
Posted by the talking dog at September 2, 2004 08:48 PM
Shorter Zell Miller/ Dick Cheney: John Kerry is a French faggot pussy who will have to ask his French overlords for permission to defend Amurka.
Exactly.
But, you didn't mention that he will flip-flop four different ways before he actually kneels and fellates Chirac...
Posted by scott at September 3, 2004 01:43 AM
2004 Presidential Ballot:
Kerry v. Hate
The most disturbing thing about this entire debacle is that the Republicans have truly revealed their core, their soul, if you will, and it's frightening. Delegates should have run from the Gardens praying for their lives. Instead, they ranted and raved, foamed at the mouth for more...Zell and Dick couldn't satiate their appetites. According to the media/polls, half the country feels this way. I had to call my mom for a pep talk because the stark reality of hatred presented itself last evening and people cheered. Where are we? I am absolutely sick. Man I hope Bush tanks tonight....absolutely tanks.
Posted by alicia at September 3, 2004 02:54 AM
Scott--
I'm pretty sure Kerry is not only straight, but quite the ladies' man. Also, his ethnic background is Russian/Jewish and super-WASP (he's a cousin of the President). There certainly are raps on Kerry; these aren't the,, though.
Alicia--
Big time, and major league. But its not half the country; its only around 40%. But they DO feel that way-- pure hate and spite, resentment of educated people, call it what you want. And they live disproportionately in red states, which constitutionally have too much power. The robots leave town today; couldn't have come soon enough. Bush-- the man who sent men to their deaths pumping his fist and saying "feels good" had the BALLS to say "it was a hard, agonizing decision". But then, when you're lying... why stop?
We really do need to scrap our constitution: no more electoral college, no more senate rotten boroughs where Wyoming is as powerful as California. ENOUGH.
We have gone 200 plus years without people of sufficiently low character to threaten the entire system. We have arrived there. Time for a huge change.
Fortunately, when Bush loses the election (even as he might well win the popular vote), its the DARK SIDE that will push for change.
Posted by the talking dog at September 3, 2004 02:13 PM
Out of the mouth of babes, TD...my younger son responded to W's agonizing decision with, "It was agonizing because it was wrong." Oh well.
Posted by alicia at September 3, 2004 11:39 PM
TD...I am suffering from the 'S' complex...to add an 'S', as in mouths, or to delete an 'S', as in Garden (sans 'S')...it has truly been a long week. Please forgive, lest you think my IQ rivals that of our Fearless Leader...sigh.
Posted by alicia at September 4, 2004 01:54 AM