One of the greatest political speeches I have ever seen

For many, myself included, this speech by Barack Obama set aside any qualms I have about his candidacy after his pastor's scandalous sound bytes saturated the airwaves. Having studied political communications in college, I can tell you this is a simply masterful speech.

Presenting Sarah!

Give 'em hell, Senator!

Yahoo! Mail - smudgepuck@yahoo.com:
It's great to see that, after all the hootenany and blowhard comments from the Republican convention, especially from that DINO Zell Miller, that John Kerry has the stomach to strike back. Here is an excerpt from his Midnight Rally comments of last night, because the candidate has taken the gloves off and says it as well or better than I can:

"The election comes down to this. If you believe this country is heading in the right direction, you should support George Bush. But if you believe America needs to move in a new direction, join with us. John and I offer a better plan that will make us stronger at home and more respected in the world. And we need your help to do that.
For three days in New York, instead of talking about jobs and the economy, we heard anger and insults from the Republicans. And I'll tell you why. It's because they can't talk about the real issues facing Americans. They can't talk about their record because it's a record of failure.
We all saw the anger and distortion of the Republican Convention. For the past week, they attacked my patriotism and my fitness to serve as commander in chief. Well, here's my answer. I'm not going to have my commitment to defend this country questioned by those who refused to serve when they could have and by those who have misled the nation into Iraq.
The vice president even called me unfit for office last night. I guess I'll leave it up to the voters whether five deferments makes someone more qualified to defend this nation than two tours of duty.
Let me tell you what I think makes someone unfit for duty. Misleading our nation into war in Iraq makes you unfit to lead this nation. Doing nothing while this nation loses millions of jobs makes you unfit to lead this nation. Letting 45 million Americans go without health care makes you unfit to lead this nation. Letting the Saudi royal family control our energy costs makes you unfit to lead this nation. Handing out billions of government contracts to Halliburton while you're still on their payroll makesThat's the record of George Bush and Dick Cheney. And it's not going to change. I believe it's time to move America in a new direction; I believe it's time to set a new course for America.

And we have a specific plan to do just that. So tomorrow morning, John and Elizabeth and Teresa and I are hitting the road across America's heartland. From here, we'll go out and talk with Americans in towns across Ohio, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan. And because a stronger America begins at home, we'll talk about our plan to create jobs, cut taxes for the middle class, lower health care costs, and make America safer and more secure."

The Heroism of George W. Bush

Smudge's Spot
As a registered democrat, I felt it was my duty to "know my enemy." So yesterday I watched 3 hours of Republican Convention coverage on the only network to carry it on day 1 - PBS (because, you know, government-funded TV is what the GOP loves...)

I was moved by the speeches of John McCain and Rudy Giuliani. (And I'm not ashamed to admit that, when I was perched just yards away from his podium in Times Square for New Years Eve 1995, I chanted "Ru-deeeee" with the best of 'em. Then again, I was pretty tanked).

Mostly, I was suddenly aware after the speeches that Bush has saved the Nation from falling victim to the greatest evil we have ever known. It was evident in the subtext of McCain's delivery. George W. Bush is all that stands between our country and....

President Dick Cheney.

Did anyone else hear the sound of McCain's teeth gnashing when he praised Cheney (note - I have HDTV)? Did anyone else notice that Cheney was completely lacking in grace in the face of the forced compliment?

The bigger problem, however, is clearly that McCain has been pressed into service for Bush. Kerry is his friend. Bush destroyed McCain in 2000 with the same tactics he is using against Senator John Kerry, and the so-called champion of campaign reform stands beside Bush? Does whatever blackmail material Bush-Cheney has on McCain rank worse than the torture at the hands of the Vietnamese prison camp guards?

And what's even odder to me is the way the Bush campaign keeps saying "9/11" "Iraq is free" and "vote Bush" as though there is some favorable connection... Nobody in the numerous blurbs and speeches I watched had any reason to offer as to why we were better off having Bush in office post 9/11. They just mentioned the two, and moved on.

Sometimes, the word "leadership" is tossed in to bridge the gap. But nobody says what GWB (finally, a connection to NYC!) did that makes him such a great leader. I have not seen the man lead a thing in his life, and certainly not in the last 4 years. He only chirps what his handlers tell him to do.

Rudy even went so far as to suggest the Bush will "lead" the world while Kerry will ask its permission. Um, Mr. adulterer (er, Mayor), it ain't leadin' if nobody follows.

And finally, I gotta wonder. Everyone (or most everyone) has seen at least one episode of "The West Wing." We all know that it's not "flip flopping" to vote for one bill containing a certain provision and then to vote against another which, among other things (inter alia, as we say in the legal profession), contains a similar position. This is because bills in Congress do not just read "Do you want to send our troops some money, yes or no?" but rather contain numerous riders which are thrown in, things which no self-respecting democrat would vote for, but which are attached to these big-issue bills to make Dems (and yes, it works on both sides of the aisle) look bad for voting "neigh." Also, it wasn't just a price-tag bill: the provisions Kerry voted against came after the truth of the WMDs came out, and involved using the funds in ways that Bush's defense-industry backers would profit more than the troops would be helped.

And as a final note, I want to add how sad it is, that two Republicans I genuinely respected, Giuliani and McCain, got up and posutres so shamelessly. Hey, it wasn't so bad as Speaker Hastert, who seemed to be hissing merrily when he bashed Kerrey in his opening remarks, but it was fully lacking in any semblence of genuine-ness when McCain claimed to back Bush and when Giuliani turned the prime-time slot into a whoop-whoop fest with applause signs, without saying anything about why Bush should be our president. (Mind you, I'm not saying I disagree with the arguments for a Bush presidency, I'm just saying I've yet to hear one that concretely says anything except "he's a leader" and "he doesn't flip-flop.")

So that's that. Long live Bush. At least until Kerrey's inauguration. So that we never bow in supplication to President-and-Emperor Cheney.

Most Important Issue Facing Our Country Today

Smudge%27s Spot
While faced with an unbearable economy (don't believe too many stats in an election year from the administration trying to keep its job), a malicious terrorist threat, and West Nile Virus, one issue has gone largely uncovered and needs to be discussed. And if not here, then where?

That issue...

"Gigli" is NOTthe worse movie ever made!!!

Out of morbid curiosity, my wife and I popped it in last night. Let's just say the Olympics are getting tired and Netflix has run out of "must-see" films that we have yet to see.

Now, let me get this off my chest. I am not recommending "Gigli." I'm simply saying the reviews that panned it were too harsh. Bennifer overload probably contributed more to the issue than the film itself.

What's good about it? Not much. Pretty photography. Plot moves. Great cameos by Christopher Walken and Al Pacino (even if they're just playing their personas rather than characters...but the same is true for Bennifer's roles, so there you have it).

What's bad about it? Total lack of chemistry between Bennifer (no wonder they didn't last). Pervasive feel that, if I were the low level mob enforcers they play, I would do it differently. Even more pervasive feel that Ben played the same part better in "Chasing Amy" (at least as far as the romantic undercurrent is concerned). As noted above, the movie is manufactured to showcase personas instead of bringing out actual acting. But that's it.

What's not so bad? It ain't homophobic. It is not all that insensitive to mentally handicapped people (certainly other films are far worse and got criticized far less). Sure, the people do some vile things, but not gratuitously so, and no more than one would expect in an organized crime movie.

Basically, the movie deserves to be forgotten, not placed in the pantheon of "worst movies ever" like anything by Ed Wood or the Drew Barrymore/ Chris O'Donnell flick "Mad Love" (a film so bad, its title got reused by a totally unrelated movie just a few years later with no complaints).

Phew. Now that's off my chest.

buggieboy

buggieboy
My friend, your piece on "more on how to be a Republican" leaves out the primary technique to crush a candidate years before he becomes one:

Here's the strategy: propose a bill that says Jesus is our nation's lord and savior, abortion must be banned even if the mother is dead, taxes on the top 1% of wealthiest Americans should be cut entirely and shifted to the poorest 20%, and, oh, say, "we in Congress support our troops." Conduct the voting as a single ombnibus bill.

Repropose the bill after it gets shot down about 20 times.

Years later, when a distinguished Senator runs for President, attack that lefty commie godless whore because he voted against a declaration supporting our troops. 21 times!

Up and Runnin

I never kept a diary or journal for more than ten minutes, but here goes...