Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Hypocrisy abounds

I've seen the Palin video flying all over the internet in the past couple of days.  She bumped the republican ahead of the democrat and it's driving everyone crazy.

The Republicans were going crazy over Obama's lack of experience (and so was his current vice president) but now they're ok with Palin's?  The Democrats were ok with Obama's lack of experience, but don't let a woman with that little experience hope to get into office.  I've seen so many posts about how much experience matters from people who didn't really care a few months ago....or even now...because with their guy it's not such a big deal.  Hypocrites are on both sides of this one.  In fact I'd say that hypocrites are running this election.

Talk radio people complain about the networks - CNBC watchers complain about Fox news while they're reading their Moveon e-mails.  It's all just one side spinning the other.

Palin looked stupid in an interview - and it's all over the interweb.  I looked back on several of these sites where people are so concerned for the direction of our country.  I wanted to see in what other ways we were warned of stupid things potential candidates have said...and I'm still looking  - I went back to when Obama said we had 57 states, where he said that he lost Kentucky to Hillary because her home state of Arkansas was closer than his home state of Illinois...and I didn't see those videos.  We pick our battles and get outraged when it's the other team.  We don't mind it when our side screws up because....well because we choose to overlook those points.

One vp candidate said some stupid stuff about Russia, the other vp candidate told the country that his future boss was too inexperienced to hold the office of the President.  You'll read about one on some sites, but it'll be a rare site that shows both sides.

There is a video of Obama calling a female reporter "Sweetie" and then brushing her off - I didn't find it in the archives of these blogs.  It makes him look like a mysogynistic jerk - so we'll not show that.
He gave a speech in Israel referring to the Senate Banking Committee that he was on...only to find out he wasn't on that committee.  Oops.  I didn't see this on those same sites....

McCain didn't know if we were in a recession - and I didn't see it on the sites that would never show the Palin video.  It wouldn't make their side look very good.  He's still counting his houses and he has more of those than years spent as a POW.  I read that on a couple of sites that left off the part about Obama calling his Pastor of 20 years his mentor...and then the guy he just sort of knew because once he saw him at a TGI Fridays.

McCain "inned" himself as a washington insider who was away from "the day to day challenges that people have".  He spoke of that as a good thing...seemingly. 

So go crazy when the other guy says something dumb in one of their 73 interviews they'll do today- they'll say there are 57 states and that someone is a "typical white person" - they'll flip flop on key strategies and they'll play on their history of serving this country.  They have lots of houses and say lots of dumb things.

I just really don't think I've seen this much bitterness/jealousy/anger/vitriol in an election before.  I think Seth was right.  The University of Wisconsin tracked the national and regional commercials of both campaigns - 77% of Obama's ads were negative and 56% of McCain's were...and I keep reading about how Obama won't go negative - you can ignore facts if you really want to - we do it all the time - the bottom line is that both are more negative than positive - both are talking down the other side rather than talking about their vision for our country.

Mostly this was a post based on a challenge to use the word "vitriol"
and if you think I'm writing this based on your blog - it's not about you - and you were one of 8,746,489 weblogs that posted something negative about one side or the other last week.

I'm one of 6 who used the word vitriol - so you do the math...

17 comments:

  1. Can we all start from scratch? Let's choose four more...maybe Nancy Pelosi? She has a lot of friends right now.
    I think right now Ted Kennedy could win on a write-in vote for the Dems and Letterman could be the running mate..
    On the Republican side, Newt Gingrich and Joe Lieberman...
    There..settled.

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  2. and that's why I wear the bowtie.... oh and vote for Nader every four years for the last sixteen. It just doesn't seem right that either of these parties deserve my vote, especially this year. Don't get me wrong. I actually like both candidates this time around. But I hate both parties. It'll all be moot in about month anyway when our economy goes entirely belly-up and the FDIC declares the nation insolvent (which we already are) and negotiates the sell of our government to China. Now that's party!

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  3. Once again, I should proofread before posting.

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  4. i just priced a one way plane ticket to Canada.

    and that's just sad.

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  5. Vitriol? It's election season... it's almost impossible NOT to use the word.

    When I was in college, I worked the school paper for a few semesters. A lot of the articles we had to write were mind-numbingly dull, so we had a game to spice things up. We'd all assign words to each other that would have to make it into the final copy of the paper, and we had to do it without the editor noticing. I don't know if I was the best, but I was pretty good.

    My junior year we started doing the same thing for any paper we wrote for school. I remember wracking my brain trying to figure out ways to work in "anthropomorphic" and "technicolor."

    In one paper (I think it was an examination of interpersonal relationships in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof") I got six friends to pick flowers, then I used all six flower names in my discussion. Queen Anne's Lace, skunk cabbage, pansy, and some other ones I've forgotten.

    Ahh, good times. Anyway, pick a harder word next time.

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  6. you're crushin' on sarah aren't you, sean? be honest... you're making little doodles in your biology notebook of you and the governor living in igloos. heart shaped smoke coming from the fire...

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  7. What I like is when Republicans bash Obama, it's cool. But when a Republican VP candidate sounds like the dumbest person on the planet when asked about our economy, then we are all being hypocrites. What I like is how no Republicans are actually trying to defend her...or argue that she is really intelligent...or offer of sound evidence of her credentials...all Republicans can do is try to turn the issue around and cry to mommy that the other side is playing unfair.

    But what I really like is having the opportunity to speak at Alpha one week before the election. The title of my talk:

    "Yes, We Can...Resist Evil"

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  8. Steve,
    I have no idea why you would like any of those things? It really doesn't make sense. I would think you would hate those things.
    and obviously the point was the people who put up one side - and sound so incredibly put off...and ignore rascist, dumb or just silly sides on the other. I don't mind the discussions - the incredulousness is just so obviously one sided and sad. Her credentials are running a town and a state - the other guy hasn't run so much as a committee. You have heard people talk about her credentials - and her 130 days less experience than Obama - you just might not like them.

    it's like the fans of one team complaining because their quarterback got hurt when it was just a legal hit

    I talked about both sides here - and I honestly haven't seen blogs showing Obama or Biden's blunders. I know you like it when one side bashes Obama, but I just don't see it in the blogs I read. I know that people also thought that Obama wasn't going negative...and I really think it's because they don't want to. It's obvious and statistically proven.
    ..and that's my whole point.

    Palin looked stupid and there's no real need for the republicans to defend her interview - it was as dumb as what a lot of these guys are saying - she's just really hated right now by the left because she's helping the other team pull ahead.

    the bottom line is it comes off really bad when it's a screaming rant about one side and silence on the other. We pick and choose.

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  9. Anonymous3:16 PM

    This is completely off topic but I really like the photo at the top of this. And I'd challenge you to use the word obsequious in a blog. In context.

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  10. Sean,

    I was using sarcasm. Silly!

    And pulling ahead? Obama is back up by 4-5 points in most polls. Her appeal has already worn off because people are seeing the real Sarah Palin.

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  11. I'm just not that familiar with sarcasm Steve.
    Are you saying that this Sarah Palin is an imposter or that the one at the convention was. I like the convention one because she said funny things about bulldogs and hockey.

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  12. And...there is a big difference between saying 57 instead of 47 (you might want to talk to the current President about flubs), and NOT UNDERSTANDING THE ECONOMY AND FOREIGN POLICY.

    A flub and ignorance are not the same thing.

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  13. I would just like to point out that neither of the people you all are talking about would walk away from a debate with Ralph Nader looking like anything short of a bad inspirational speaker (no offense to any inspirational speakers). It just wouldn't be that interesting of a debate with the excruciatingly detailed discussion of specifics and all that rot. It wouldn't make for very good TV. That's why I propose Jerry Springer host the next debate so we can call it what it is....entertainment.
    The rest of us can watch as much as we can take of Ron Paul and Ralph Nader on CSPAN speaking at some bookstore while they ramble on with the nearest functioning microphone approximately six feet from their face and a mere two feet from the mouth-breather in the front row.

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  14. Fuller,
    you don't really want to tout Obama on your blog and then talk about the economy and foreign policy.
    You can go back to Ron Paul on that one...

    Dave,
    I feel like Nadar would only truly be a great leader if he was part of a Saget/Nadar ticket. I could get behind that.

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  15. Anonymous2:47 PM

    The problem with Sarah Palin's blunders is that we know so little about her. And what we know is more negative than positive. We know that she didn't parent her daughter very well. We know that she likes witch doctors and killing things. We know that she doesn't like people who disagree with her and fires them at will.

    It seems to most liberals that the Republicans didn't pick Palin because of anything about her except that she's a woman. Republicans thought "we'll get those Hilary voters all riled up". What they didn't realize is that Hilary supporters would eventually get over their loss.

    Now you're stuck with Palin. Good luck!

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