Jazz: my comments reflected where Hagel stands on issues. Again, check his voting record. His votes reflect a dramatic reflection of Republican and conservative decisions on many issues over many years. He has differed vocally and loudly on one significant issue. Its no mystery. Its Iraq. He travelled with Obama to Iraq. Obviously Iraq is a significant issue for Hagel. In fact he and McCain have acknowledged they both like and admire one another and disagree deeply on this one critical issue. Was he on Obama's short list? How would I know? Very few would. Had he been asked, considering his enormous differences with Obama, would he have considered running, who knows? In a sense he is sort of the Joe Lieberman of the Republican side. Between 2000 and at some point around 2004, McCain flirted with Democrats, agreeing on many issues. People now call him a maverick or non-partisan. Cripes he agreed with the Dems. That was it. The type of question you ask about Hagel was completely the type of question that surrounded McCain in 2004. Could he have been a running mate with John Kerry? It was floating around. I simply liked the way he phrased the issues. Foreign policy experience: Got her first passport this year; You can see Russia from certain parts of Alaska. Come on give us a break. Those kinds of responses are an insult to the intelligence of Americans.
I cannot argue with this. Some other Obama lover on the board here said "It doesn't make me an astronaut just because I can see the moon." That said, I hope that you will agree that Obama's four years of childhood in a foreign land do not give him any valid claim on foreign policy experience either. Your comments about Lieberman are valid as well. I'm only saying that Hagel's slap doesn't sting as much as it could have.
nothing really hurts if you are under anesthetic and having your brain removed. But it is always a big surprise when someone supports Mccain. Since there is no real reason to do that. lol
Well, I do think his experiences in several countries likely helps to give him a perspective that isn't available to a person who admits never having applied for a passport, much less travelled internationally, before last year. Beyond, would an honors degree from Columbia in International Relations help more than, say, being able to see Russia from one's state?
I feel sorry for you, I truly do. I don't see any reason it has to be in science, how about in History? Thats the class where I learned about it. When do Christians lie to children? Wars are started for reasons other than religion and I would say religion is the cause for war only a very small portion of the time. You are bigotry at its best.
Jazz: I'm not an Obama lover. As the primaries went forward I preferred the Dems to the Reps. I think there is a deep misrepresentation on Iraq. You can call it a lie. It doesn't get much press. I'm all for national security. I think the Iraq war is not focused on our real enemies. Its size has stretched our military ground forces to the breaking point. In fact the Joint Chiefs of Staff opposed the surge for this reason. They felt not only didn't we have the forces....that by pulling the forces from other areas we would increase risk to the US. We don't have the forces to handle Afghanistan, Al Queda is in Pakistan still safe, tho under some level of attacks now....there are problems all over the world and we have limited capabilities to deal with it. Its been a big scam IMHO. The Reps want to continue Iraq....the Dems want to get it ended. 2ndly I have felt for some time, that Rep economic problems aren't working. I felt this before this economic meltdown. I still feel it. I used to like Rep economic thinking long ago. Now I think it is twisted. Amongst the Reps I liked McCain best for stances that made him least favored by the extreme right. I like him for a lot of reasons. I don't like him on Iraq. (In fact that makes my thinking like Hagel above). I think now he is real weak on economic thinking in light of this crisis. I believe Obama will be better for America. I'm not an Obama lover though. No, Obama doesn't have much experience. Simple issue. McCain is many times more experienced than Obama. Lots of Presidents didn't have tons of experience. Harry Truman had virtually no experience and no international exposure. Talk about tough times.....he was pres during the end of WW II, dealt with the Nuclear bomb issue, faced Soviet expansion through Europe and elsewhere, faced the Korean War and had other issues. Ultimately history has liked him. On the other hand Bush 43 had no international experience....faced 9/11, led us to attack Iraq, we are still in that war, still fighting in Afghanistan, and haven't caught Bin Laden (dead or alive). I think the key is judgement. I think Obama's judgement on more issues is better than McCain's. Its my $0.02.
Good points there Earl. One thing that might be questionable is the number of guys that are veterans of the Fannie, Freddie, and Lehman heirarchy reportedly advising Obama. Those institutions have been doing stuff for a long time that I thought was ruinous (unfortunately nobody asks me... a pity, I know). By that I'm talking about Fannie/Freddie, as I've had a longtime association with that world and my wife is one of the underwriters that received pressure from Countrywide to be more "business friendly". The loose credit situation thats been taking place for about a decade has led us to the ultimate conclusion... a catastrophe, but of course the guys on top will take golden parachutes and leave the rest of us to ride the plane to the ground (which we havent hit yet unfortunately... this is the start of the descent IMO). Incidentally I dont hold either side blameless in this economic debacle... a lot of money was made all around and a lot of stupid decisions were overlooked. Everyone made money while the vehicle headed straight for the cliff, and when you have the kind of money these institutions have flowing thru them paying politicians to be your friend could come outta petty cash. Dont know how much was greed and how much was just ignorance, but the result of either one is just as deadly.
Exclusive: New Doubts Over Palin's Troopergate Claims An internal government document obtained by ABC News appears to contradict Sarah Palin's most recent explanation for why she fired her public safety chief, the move which prompted the now-contested state probe into "Troopergate." Fighting back against allegations she may have fired her then-Public Safety Commissioner, Walt Monegan, for refusing to go along with a personal vendetta, Palin on Monday argued in a legal filing that she fired Monegan because he had a "rogue mentality" and was bucking her administration's directives. "The last straw," her lawyer argued, came when he planned a trip to Washington, D.C., to seek federal funds for an aggressive anti-sexual-violence program. The project, expected to cost from $10 million to $20 million a year for five years, would have been the first of its kind in Alaska, which leads the nation in reported forcible rape. The McCain-Palin campaign echoed the charge in a press release it distributed Monday, concurrent with Palin's legal filing. "Mr. Monegan persisted in planning to make the unauthorized lobbying trip to D.C.," the release stated. But the governor's staff authorized the trip, according to an internal travel document from the Department of Public Safety, released Friday in response to an open records request. The document, a state travel authorization form, shows that Palin's chief of staff, Mike Nizich, approved Monegan's trip to Washington D.C. "to attend meeting with Senator Murkowski." The date next to Nizich's signature reads June 18. Last week a legislative panel approved a subpoena for Nizich to be interviewed by Stephen Branchflower, the prosecutor hired to conduct the Alaska Legislature's inquiry into Troopergate. The Attorney General informed the Legislature earlier this week that Nizich and other state employees subpoenaed in the matter would not submit to interviews. Nizich did not respond to a message left Friday afternoon. In Palin's court filing Monday – to stop an investigation by her state Personnel Board she earlier had requested – her lawyer, Thomas V. Van Flein, included numerous emails from her staff expressing confusion and incredulity over Monegan's planned D.C. trip. None of those emails were sent by or to Nizich, although he was cc'd on several. Contacted Friday, Monegan confirmed the travel authorization was to pursue funding for the anti-sexual-violence program. He said the travel authorization form was completed in a fashion consistent with practice, even though it showed no expenditures. The signed form approved the travel, he said, and authorized him to use a government credit card or seek reimbursement for expenses he incurred during the trip. Monegan said he didn't know why Palin's chief of staff approved a trip that confounded her other aides. "It sounds like it's a breakdown of communication internal to the governor's staff," he said. The McCain-Palin campaign did not respond to requests for comment. source
NBC Proves Palin Lied http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MF0j...uagblog.com/2008/09/18/nbc-proves-palin-lied/ It seems that everything in her speech is problematic. she chaney DO you really want four more years?
Unfortunately it's not an insult to all Americans, for many..that's all they need. America is a great and powerful nation, but the average man/woman walking the street is not very educated and can only see things as it relates to them. I would have never thought in a million years that someone with her qualifications would be taken seriously, but apparently she appeals to a certain demographic and education level. Not mine, but someones.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.... All the while ignoring that your blessed Obamessiah's thinks that his four years of living abroad in the seventies makes him a better choice than McCain. Mind if I borrow a couple of words? I would have never thought in a million years that someone with his qualifications would be taken seriously, but apparently he appeals to a certain demographic and education level. Not mine, but someones.
I don't think that he has ever said that..but he has different ideas of what will be best for all Americans. That is what it all comes down to. I don't know where this "Blessed Obamsiah" stuff comes from, sounds a little more personal than looking at each candidate for their abilities and platform, but if you want to look at it on paper: Obama was on many committees that took him abroad, such as the Senate Foreign relations Committee. I don't think that just because someone has a different opinion that yours, that you need to make those kind of religious references to how you think I feel about the candidate that I like. Can't you disagree without being insulting?
Flatly: I'm sick of the glorification of idiocy in my country; a kind of anti-intellectualism characterized, for instance, by our current President's glowing praise of achieving "C's" while in college (getting hammered, instead). Kennedy brought us to applaud excellence - and Obama does have that same ability, and appeal, to me. All else aside, I'd be proud to have someone with Obama's mind in the White House.
You know what's seriously funny? Most of those who support McCain are far from the most intelligent among us, I see this on this very forum, talking to people locally, etc.
Yes Jazz, by all means please adopt the reasoned and appropriate tones that Harold has masterfully exemplified in all of his own insults. --- The messianic reference could be associated with the fact that a democratic legislator in Tennessee compared Obama to Jesus Christ on the floor of the Tennessee house (ie - Jesus was a community organizer, Pontius Pilate was a governor). Or possibly it references the dogmatic fervor with which some supporters defend his statements that he will do things his record shows little evidence that he's ever *done*. Gives the appearance of a religious belief where things that cannot be proven are zealously believed and defended as if they are written on stone tablets somewhere. He kind of invited such comparisons with the heretofore unseen Hollywood style coronation setting at the DNC convention... he did everything but ride in on a donkey with people laying palm fronds before him. You get the impression he's more than just a junior senator to some. There's a considerable cult of personality righteously guarded by the faithful. Either way I prefer to just refer to the candidates by their names, but there's been ample evidence among some Obama supporters that their beliefs are based more on faith than his slim political record. --- LOL, c'mon grim... MOST? There are plenty of smart people supporting either side and both sides have their blithering idiots as well. Both sides have their share. Most of the Hollywood types that support Obama publicly have no achievements aside from being able to read a script and share IQ scores with garden tools. Characterizing McCain supporters as unintelligent based on some samples in this forum could be countered easily by similarly challenged supporters of Obama.
Wow! I would have never said that in public, (But it is funny) but I have noticed a lot of anger as well from McCain supporters when confronted with something that they don't like. My friends included. I can never discuss politics with my friends that are McCains supporters because all they want to do is attack and insult. They answer every question or confrontation with something cynical, or nasty about "Obama....", almost like it's some kind of personal hate, and not which candidate is best. In the last month I have been in Phoenix, Dallas and Las Vegas and it is the same...although in Phoenix they are a little more polite.
I was responding to someone else trying to make the conclusion the other way around. I find many of the truly intelligent don't support either BTW Of course their are some on both sides.