Putin: Ph34r Sarah Palin

[akdiver 3]

FWIW, the last time a sitting senator was elected president was way back in 1960. Almost 50 years! Since then, most of the people elected president were either a state governor, or a sitting vice president. Nixon is the exception - and he was a former vice president.

Now, the interesting thing is that this year, we have two senators running, and barring some really good fortune on the part of the libertarians, one of these guys is going to become president. So, we already see, it is an unusual election year.

For the first time, a black man has a real chance of becoming president. Unusual year.

For the first time, a woman had a real chance of becoming president. Unusual year.

For the first time, the GOP has a woman on its ticket. Unusual year.

Given all of the unusualness of this election year, I would venture a guess that we can't really predict what will happen with any kind of tight confidence interval.

Edited September 2, 2008 by akdiver

[mox 298]

Given all of the unusualness of this election year, I would venture a guess that we can't really predict what will happen with any kind of tight confidence interval.

Agreed. Although if the latest polls are right (and I know they are often wrong) the people are not impressed with McCain's pick. For the first time Obama is polling at 50%, a full 8 points ahead of McCain. Even if McCain can close that gap with a convention bump, convention bumps aren't typically sustainable. If that gap widens it would not surprise me to see Palen drop out of the race "to spend more time with her family."

On a more serious note, the McCain and Obama teddy bears are out. Finally the political season is well and truly underway.

[akdiver 3]

On a more serious note, the McCain and Obama teddy bears are out. Finally the political season is well and truly underway.

I like how the McCain teddy bear is white, while the OBama one is brown (:

[Bobalouie 0]

So McCain's strategy is criticize Obama on experience and foreign policy, then hire someone who he met once, and knows has no experience in a federal branch of government, and who's only foreign policy acclaim is she lives in a state that's a sailboat trip away from the easternmost tip of Russia?

How many idiots actually buy this?

And how many idiots would actually buy that since Obama has only four years experience (2 of which were spent campaining) in a federal branch of government and NO executive branch experience is qualified to be the number one guy?

Do you want your number 1 guy in the the white house to be the inexperienced one, or the number two guy? Thats the difference here.

Question -- did you vote for Bush?

If you did, you're being a hypocrite.

Yes, I did, much to my dismay.

And I dont think its being hypocritical. I call it learning from my mistakes. Personally, I am in a quandry as to who to vote for. Either way, I get a democrat in the white house as I see it. I dont think that Obama will be as bad as the right makes him out to be, and I dont think that McCain will be as bad as the left makes him out to be.

Edited September 2, 2008 by Bobalouie

[mox 298]

On a more serious note, the McCain and Obama teddy bears are out. Finally the political season is well and truly underway.

I like how the McCain teddy bear is white, while the OBama one is brown (:

They're really not using their imagination though. McCain bear should come with plush Vietcong torture rack, while Obama bear should come with champagne glass and caviar.

Oh, and here's Sarah Palin's blog. Funniest thing I've read all week:

Well, I found the best thing out and I am so excited I could pee. It turns out that Joe Biden ran for president a long time ago, like 1983 or something, and had to leave the race when they discovered that he was a plagerist! Can you believe that!!!!!!! I cant wait to use that as a come back when we debate in a couple of months. I can totally see it now-

Joe Biden- blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah taxes Pakistan blah blah blah blah blah blah blah stem-cells apropriations blah blah blah blah blah

Me- Sorry Mr. Biden, but I wasn't listening. I don't listen to people who used to have TWO WIVES!

I can totally see his face now! Hes going to look all red and stuff when he relizes that I totally busted him in front of everyone. It is gonna be awesome! Stay tuned.

You can also get a sneak preview of her "foreign policy speech" there. Brilliant stuff.

[Bobalouie 0]

Given all of the unusualness of this election year, I would venture a guess that we can't really predict what will happen with any kind of tight confidence interval.

Agreed. Although if the latest polls are right (and I know they are often wrong) the people are not impressed with McCain's pick. For the first time Obama is polling at 50%, a full 8 points ahead of McCain. Even if McCain can close that gap with a convention bump, convention bumps aren't typically sustainable. If that gap widens it would not surprise me to see Palen drop out of the race "to spend more time with her family."

On a more serious note, the McCain and Obama teddy bears are out. Finally the political season is well and truly underway.

And some of that 8 points is convention bump for Obama.

[1HappyGuy 45]

It seems that the experience card just depends on what you think is relevant. Does a woman that was just elected as governor of a small population state whose's previous elected position was mayor of a town of 10,000 qualify as experience on the scale of the American government.

If that is the case, we have several people on the city council of my town that have way more experience. It seems that McCain is convinced he will not die or become incapable of fulfilling the office of president, so his VP doesn't matter much. I wonder, has Palin ever been to the Congress. That would be her new place of business if elected.

Just to keep this in the Russian forum, I wonder what Putin thought about when he annointed Medevedev or what ever his name is. I just call him Putin's puppet.

[mox 298]

And some of that 8 points is convention bump for Obama.

I actually read somewhere that the DNC convention experienced no bump. I'll try to find the link. What I would be most concerned about if I were on the McCain team though isn't the spread so much as the dip in McCain's polling.

[akdiver 3]

Yeah, see, the funny thing about "experience" is that it is not listed as one of the qualifications for office in the Constitution:

No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States.

Once again - all that REALLY matters to most voters is their hot button issues and the cash factor.

[IAMX 3,055]

Yes, I did, much to my dismay.

He actually had less experience than Obama when he became President.

And I dont think its being hypocritical. I call it learning from my mistakes. Personally, I am in a quandry as to who to vote for. Either way, I get a democrat in the white house as I see it. I dont think that Obama will be as bad as the right makes him out to be, and I dont think that McCain will be as bad as the left makes him out to be.

I'm the opposite. Obama will be as bad as the right makes him out to be, and McCain will be as bad as the left makes him out to be.

The real problem is knowing how bad both candidates will be, people will still vote for one or the other.

[akdiver 3]

I'm the opposite. Obama will be as bad as the right makes him out to be, and McCain will be as bad as the left makes him out to be.

I think they will both be worse than anyone makes them out to be.

I'm a single issue voter. My issue is "will you support and defend the constitution?" The answer to this question, for almost every politician, is "no".

[mox 298]

I'm the opposite. Obama will be as bad as the right makes him out to be, and McCain will be as bad as the left makes him out to be.

I think they will both be worse than anyone makes them out to be.

I'm a single issue voter. My issue is "will you support and defend the constitution?" The answer to this question, for almost every politician, is "no".

Voting in any political race has always been about voting for who you consider the lesser of two evils. In the modern age that means voting your party line, but it hasn't always been that way. I've always been left of center on most issues but the very first President I ever voted for was Ronald Reagan. A lot of Democrats voted for him--twice. I've voted Democrat since then, not because of a deep abiding love for party, but because the Dem candidate has always seemed to better represent my values, although never completely. And overall I've probably voted about 20% Republican in Congressional and local races. But over the last 20 years, politics has turned nastily divisive, thank you very much Newt Gingrich's "Contract with America." Politicians are now expected to act in lock-step with party interests, rather than constituent interests. Thank you very much 2-party system.

I hate to beat the Obama drum because I know that despite the word on the streets, he is not the second coming and he does not make Chuck Norris scream like a girl and curl up in a fetal position. He's just a man, and I have no doubt that he's got his own set of baggage and skeletons. But as jaded as I am about politics, I think there is something different about him. I think if Ronald Reagen were alive today, he'd vote for Obama, and he'd have some stern words, to say the least, for the GOP. (something along the lines of "what the #### have you f*cktards done with my shining city on the g*ddamned hill?!?!") I really do believe Obama will defend the Constitution--at least to the best of his ability, he is (or will be) only one branch of government after all. It's been 20 years since I've been able to say that about any Presidential candidate.

I'm keeping an open mind though. I used to think the things about McCain that I think about Obama. When it seemed like it was going to be Clinton vs McCain, I was thinking I just might vote for a Republican for the first time in 20 years. That quickly died though, when McCain showed his true colors. I hope Obama is showing his true colors right now, but I'm not blind to the fact that he is, after all, a politician, and we could simply be in for another 4 years of same-ol sh*t, different day.

[akdiver 3]

Voting in any political race has always been about voting for who you consider the lesser of two evils.

That simply is not true. In many countries, there are several "viable" political candidates to choose from. Of course, in America, people insist on convincing themselves that they HAVE to vote for one of two parties because otherwise, they are throwing away their vote. In the meantime, the "two party system" persists because people have this attitude. It's a self fulfilling prophecy. Although I was not a Perot fan, he was valuable in that he at least demonstrated that a 3rd party candidate is viable. Hell, look at Liberman - recently voted in as an independent. You don't HAVE to choose the "lesser of two evils".

I've always been left of center on most issues but the very first President I ever voted for was Ronald Reagan. A lot of Democrats voted for him--twice. I've voted Democrat since then, not because of a deep abiding love for party

I voted for Bush I, Clinton, Dole, and the libertarian candidate since. I'll continue to vote for the libertarian guy because I don't see the other two parties representing my views any time soon.

because the Dem candidate has always seemed to better represent my values, although never completely.

Yeah, see for me, it's not even close. The Republicans are a bunch of religious abortion-obsessed nut jobs, while the Democrats are a bunch of commie bastards. They both want to use government to control and dominate our lives, they just want to go about it different ways. The result is the same. Neither party has any interest at all in actually upholding the constitution, maintaining a small federal government focused on actual national issues mandated by the constitution, while preserving state sovereignty and the associated state's right. Instead, they want to do #### like investigate drug use in baseball. #######?

I'm keeping an open mind though. I used to think the things about McCain that I think about Obama.

I used to like McCain, before he buddied up to Jerry Falwell and company and stuck his head so far up Bush's ### that he can lick Bush's teeth. Now I think he is just a dirt bag.

In this election, I truly believe there is no lesser of two evils. One is just as bad as the other, they're just bad in different ways.

Edited September 2, 2008 by akdiver

[KGSodie 0]

"what the #### have you f*cktards done with my shining city on the g*ddamned hill?!?!"

I think there's a haiku, or some iambic pentameter, or something somewhere in this quote....

[akdiver 3]

One more thing to add - after almost 250 years, I think it's time to dissolve the government and start over.