! ! ! Merry Fitzmas ! ! !

Patrick Fitzgerald, the District Attorney for Northern Illinois, has charged Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich with attempting to sell the Senate seat vacated by President Elect Obama.


From ABC News.


FBI: Illinois Governor Sought To "Sell" Obama's Senate Seat

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich wanted President-elect Barack Obama "to put something together…something big" in exchange for going along with Obama's choice to fill his vacant U.S. Senate seat, according to a FBI affidavit unsealed following the governor's stunning arrest.

"I've got this thing and it's f***ing golden, and, uh, uh, I'm just not giving it up for f***in' nothing. I'm not gonna do it. And I can always use it. I can parachute me there," Blagojevich said in a phone call secretly recorded by the FBI on Nov. 5, the day after the election, according to the affidavit.

Wow, Chicago and Illinois politics is known for new lows in corruption, but this is a new record.

More on the National Implications from the New York Times.

Obama’s Intervention Indirectly Led to Case


In a sequence of events that neatly captures the contradictions of Barack Obama’s rise through Illinois politics, a phone call he made three months ago to urge passage of a state ethics bill indirectly contributed to the downfall of a fellow Democrat he twice supported, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich.


Mr. Obama placed the call to his political mentor, Emil Jones Jr., president of the Illinois Senate. Mr. Jones was a critic of the legislation, which sought to curb the influence of money in politics, as was Mr. Blagojevich, who had vetoed it. But after the call from Mr. Obama, the Senate overrode the veto, prompting the governor to press state contractors for campaign contributions before the law’s restrictions could take effect on Jan. 1, prosecutors say.

Snip

Mr. Obama was an adviser to Mr. Blagojevich’s first campaign for governor, in 2002, and endorsed him again in 2006, even though by that time questions had been raised about the possible selling of state jobs. Mr. Obama has also credited one of Mr. Blagojevich’s closest confidants, Antoin Rezko, a businessman who was convicted of corruption charges this year, with helping him get his own start in politics.


It should be noted that Senator Obama is not accused of any wrong doing in this case, and that the Governor is presumed to be innocent until that presumption is rebuted in open court beyond a reasonable doubt.

The affidavit presenting the case.

Not Yours, Not Mine, OUR New President

Congratulations to President-Elect Barak Obama on a well done campaign and a solid victory!





I do hope my misgivings are misplaced, but the people have spoken, he is our President.

Let us give him all the respect and honor that goes with the office, our support when he is right and loyal opposition when he is not.

Vote this Tuesday!

Source: Catholic Vote dot Com



Listen therefore, O kings, and understand; learn,

O judges of the ends of the earth.

Give ear, you that rule over multitudes,
and boast of many nations.

For your dominion was given you from the Lord,
and your sovereignty from the Most High,
who will search out your works
and inquire into your plans.

Because as servants of his kingdom you did not rule rightly,
nor keep the law, nor walk according to the purpose of God,
He will come upon you terribly and swiftly,
because severe judgment falls on those in high places.

For the lowliest man may be pardoned in mercy,
but mighty men will be mightily tested.

For the Lord of all will not stand in awe of any one,
nor show deference to greatness;
because he himself made both small and great,
and he takes thought for all alike.

But a strict inquiry is in store for the mighty.

To you then, O monarchs, my words are directed,
that you may learn wisdom and not transgress.
Wisdom Chapter: 1-9.


It is nice to think of our leaders as the “Kings and Judges”
especially when they are from a different political party
and consider the wrath of God with unjust joy.
But this is a democracy; and at least on Election Day
we all are the “Kings and Judges,”
as servants of His Kingdom will we
rule rightly when we vote?



LINKS

Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship
Living the Gospel of Life: A Challenge to American Catholics
US Catholic Bishops Confrence.

Political Responsibility
Priests for Life

Faithful Citizenship,,
The Voter’s Guide for Serious Catholics
Catholic Answers Action

Catholic Vote dot Com

Election 2008

*** NOTE ***
This post was the top post on the blog for the 16 or months prior to the 2008 Presidential election> Graphs and links were changed as the election situation changed.

***********************

This post will remain on top until the election.
New posts below.


Vote early and vote often once



McCain v Obama - Click for full page



Real Clear Politics
Poll Averages
Horse Race Blog


Rasmussen
General Election Rolling Poll Results
Electoral College Projections
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Gallup
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Official Campaign Sites
Obama ‘08 McCain ‘08


Charles Martin is providing a center for Govenor Palin
rumor control. Founded, Unfounded and who knows. If he debunks your favorite, start another.



This is an election, the other side is not the enemy. Let’s debate issues not stereotypes . The President is not my President or your President - he will be our President.

I have gone through my old posts and added posts that deal with election issues (or what should be election issues) to the topic.

Updated 10/20/2007 - 11/04/2007 - 12/25/2007 - 02/02/2008 - 02/06/2008 - 02/07/2008 - 02/16/2008 - 03/05/2008 - 03/10/2008 - 06/01/2008 - 07/20/2008 - 08/02/2008 - 09/08/2008

Domestic Torturer Indicted

Information and Back ground from Steve Rhodes of the Chicago Tribune

Former Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge is out on bail but the story of his prosecution is just starting -- a quarter century after rumors first surfaced about torture in a South Side police station. While a new round of recriminations revs up, there are some details to be gleaned deep in the coverage that are worth pondering.

snip

* "A handful of principled men and women did stand up," the Sun-Times says in its editorial today. "Among them were five aldermen who wrote a letter last year to U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald urging him to prosecute Burge for obstruction of justice -- exactly what he now has done. Those aldermen are Bob Fioretti (2nd), Pat Dowell (3rd), Billy Ocasio (26th), Ed Smith (28th) and Helen Shiller (46th)."
That means that 45 aldermen did not sign on to the letter. Nor did the mayor.




The torture first came to light in an article in the Chicago Reader. Which for a long time was the only media bringing the issue to light. Here is their archive.


Even given the dubious history of parts of the Chicago Police Department Cmdr. Burge and his accomplices used a level of torture that was unique and uncommon. But they arrested criminals and who were convicted. The current mayor of Chicago Richard M. Dailey was the Cook County States Attorney at the time and quite willing to use the evidence even though it is believed he had reasons to suspect it’s legality. No one really doubts that the victims were professional criminals and quite likely guilty of the crimes they were tortured into confessing, but torture is always wrong and lowers the police to the level of the criminals. There has been a virtually solid stone wall for those who are trying to investigate what happened. It is a federal indictment because them Chicago political machine stood against an active investigation. It took so long that the statute of limitations is passed and the perpetrators are being tried for perjury in denying under oath that the tortured prisoners.



------------------------------------------------

This is of larger interest, because some of the War on Terror interrigations were conducted using torture. One of the candidates for President represented, as a state Senator approximately the same area as the Police Area Two where the torture occurred. Burge had been fired before Senator Obama took office but those falsely convicted were still in jail.

As best I can find in Google there is no record of Senator Obama speaking up for his constituents who were unjustly jailed. He voted for the law that required interrogations to be video taped (a good idea) which was proposed as the solution, but so did most every one else. This was seven years before the first victim was released from jail. And pro forma press releases recently. But a complete absense of the type of activiism that he know Senator Obama can accomplish when he wants to.


But this is no real surprise, Senator Obama was run by the machine for state Senator four times without primary or general election opposition, the same machine that is headed by Mayor (and former States Attorney) Richard M Dailey.


My prediections. Gitmo will be closed with much fanfare. A few Bush Admistration flunkies will be sent to jail. Torture as a means of policy will continue unabated. When Patrick Fitzgerald is replaced with a Dailey vetted Federal District Attorney the Burge case will fall through the cracks.

Save the Strawmen.

The Creative Minority Report once again brings us news found nowhere else.

In this heated election season, thousands of straw men have been created with the express purpose of being knocked down, says the spokesperson of a Strawman advocacy organization.

Save the Straw Men was created to raise awareness of the horrors done to straw men who are often created on a whim only to be intentionally knocked down and discarded


Check out this plea to Save the Strawmen

Even in these enlightened times, the mortality rate of straw men has not decreased and remains at about 100 percent. In fact, the only time straw men survive even for a short time is when the person creating them simply forgets the point they were trying to make.


Act Now!

Should Senator Obama Lose

Should Senator Obama lose the election (all fingers are tightly crossed but I don’t think it will do any good) some individuals have claimed it will lead to riots (in November?)

The Creative Minority Report takes a look at the potential for this case of mass lawlessness.



Shortly after Fox News, ABC, and CBS all declare John McCain the President-elect, the sound of martini glasses and champagne bottles being dropped all over the East coast signals the beginnings of a long and dangerous night.

snip

Dozens of rioters in loafers and tweed coats stumble off their college campuses in Ann Arbor, Michigan and begin heaving granola bars at passing SUV's.

snip

Cadres of celebrities in California drag Tiny Fey from her NBC studio and burn her at the stake because they're afraid of the real Sarah Palin.

snip

National Guard troops are called out to protect Starbucks which have been especially hard hit by thirsty looters.

snip

In a televised plea for calm, Bill and Hillary Clinton's beg liberals to calm down but unfortunately the two can't stop giggling long enough to get their message out.


To get some badly needed election humor Read the whole post.

Orson Scott Card: Would the Last Honost Reporter

Orson Scott Card is the author of the acclaimed Science Fiction Novel Enders Game and many other works. He is a life long Democrat.

He seems to rather upset at the presses coverage of the current financial crisis which inspired him to write a letter to his local newspaper the The Rhinoceros Times of Greensboro, North Carolina.

Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights?


An open letter to the local daily paper — almost every local daily paper in America:
I remember reading All the President's Men and thinking: That's journalism. You do what it takes to get the truth and you lay it before the public, because the public has a right to know.

This housing crisis didn't come out of nowhere. It was not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration.

It was a direct result of the political decision, back in the late 1990s, to loosen the rules of lending so that home loans would be more accessible to poor people. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were authorized to approve risky loans.

Snip

This was completely foreseeable and in fact many people did foresee it. One political party, in Congress and in the executive branch, tried repeatedly to tighten up the rules. The other party blocked every such attempt and tried to loosen them.

Furthermore, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were making political contributions to the very members of Congress who were allowing them to make irresponsible loans.

Snip

These are facts. This financial crisis was completely preventable. The party that blocked any attempt to prevent it was ... the Democratic Party. The party that tried to prevent it was ... the Republican Party.

Yet when Nancy Pelosi accused the Bush administration and Republican deregulation of causing the crisis, you in the press did not hold her to account for her lie. Instead, you criticized Republicans who took offense at this lie and refused to vote for the bailout!

What? It's not the liar, but the victims of the lie who are to blame?
Now let's follow the money ... right to the presidential candidate who is the number-two recipient of campaign contributions from Fannie Mae.

And after Freddie Raines, the CEO of Fannie Mae who made $90 million while running it into the ground, was fired for his incompetence, one presidential candidate's campaign actually consulted him for advice on housing.

Snip

Your job, as journalists, is to tell the truth. That's what you claim you do, when you accept people's money to buy or subscribe to your paper.

But right now, you are consenting to or actively promoting a big fat lie — that the housing crisis should somehow be blamed on Bush, McCain, and the Republicans. You have trained the American people to blame everything bad — even bad weather — on Bush, and they are responding as you have taught them to.

If you had any personal honor, each reporter and editor would be insisting on telling the truth — even if it hurts the election chances of your favorite candidate.

Because that's what honorable people do. Honest people tell the truth even when they don't like the probable consequences. That's what honesty means . That's how trust is earned.

So I ask you now: Do you have any standards at all? Do you even know what honesty means?

Is getting people to vote for Barack Obama so important that you will throw away everything that journalism is supposed to stand for?

Snip

It's not too late. You know that if the situation were reversed, and the truth would damage McCain and help Obama, you would be moving heaven and earth to get the true story out there.

If you want to redeem your honor, you will swallow hard and make a list of all the stories you would print if it were McCain who had been getting money from Fannie Mae, McCain whose campaign had consulted with its discredited former CEO, McCain who had voted against tightening its lending practices.

Snip

This was a Congress-caused crisis, beginning during the Clinton administration, with Democrats leading the way into the crisis and blocking every effort to get out of it in a timely fashion.

If you at our local daily newspaper continue to let Americans believe — and vote as if — President Bush and the Republicans caused the crisis, then you are joining in that lie.

If you do not tell the truth about the Democrats — including Barack Obama — and do so with the same energy you would use if the miscreants were Republicans — then you are not journalists by any standard.

You're just the public relations machine of the Democratic Party, and it's time you were all fired and real journalists brought in, so that we can actually have a news paper in our city.

Read the whole article

-------------------------------------

Banks loan money that is not theirs, it is the depositors. While I may choose to make a loan that is not likely to be repaid from my own money, it is irresponsible and immoral to loan someone elses money to someone who does not have a good probability of repaying. For a public official to knowingly or negligently make laws requiring this is a violation of the trust that goes with their office

In fairness we should point out there were some Republicans who supported the bad loan policies and a few democrats that opposed them. And there were other items that increased the risk.

The hit on the economy that came with the start of a recession and the massive increase in oil prices would have caused problems in any case, but with a greatly weakened financial structure caused by bad loan policy is threatening to knock down the US and world’s economy.


Remember the basics!

The Gods of the Copybook Headings With Terror and Slaughter Return!

The current financial crisis occurred because many people who should have known better, forgot the basics, which brought this little ode to mind.


AS I PASS through my incarnations in every age and race,
I make my proper prostrations to the Gods of the Market Place.
Peering through reverent fingers I watch them flourish and fall,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings, I notice, outlast them all.

We were living in trees when they met us. They showed us each in turn
That Water would certainly wet us, as Fire would certainly burn:
But we found them lacking in Uplift, Vision and Breadth of Mind,
So we left them to teach the Gorillas while we followed the March of Mankind.

We moved as the Spirit listed. They never altered their pace,
Being neither cloud nor wind-borne like the Gods of the Market Place,
But they always caught up with our progress, and presently word would come
That a tribe had been wiped off its icefield, or the lights had gone out in Rome.

With the Hopes that our World is built on they were utterly out of touch,
They denied that the Moon was Stilton; they denied she was even Dutch;
They denied that Wishes were Horses; they denied that a Pig had Wings;
So we worshipped the Gods of the Market Who promised these beautiful things.

When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "Stick to the Devil you know."

On the first Feminian Sandstones we were promised the Fuller Life
(Which started by loving our neighbour and ended by loving his wife)
Till our women had no more children and the men lost reason and faith,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "The Wages of Sin is Death."

In the Carboniferous Epoch we were promised abundance for all,
By robbing selected Peter to pay for collective Paul;
But, though we had plenty of money, there was nothing our money could buy,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "If you don't work you die."

Then the Gods of the Market tumbled, and their smooth-tongued wizards withdrew
And the hearts of the meanest were humbled and began to believe it was true
That All is not Gold that Glitters, and Two and Two make Four
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings limped up to explain it once more.

As it will be in the future, it was at the birth of Man
There are only four things certain since Social Progress began.
That the Dog returns to his Vomit and the Sow returns to her Mire,
And the burnt Fool's bandaged finger goes wabbling back to the Fire;

And that after this is accomplished, and the brave new world begins
When all men are paid for existing and no man must pay for his sins,
As surely as Water will wet us, as surely as Fire will burn,
The Gods of the Copybook Headings with terror and slaughter return!
The Gods of the Copybook Headings, by Rudard Kipling


Of course all politicians make promises as though the “Gods of the Copybook Heading” did not exist, but Senator Obama is going way beyond the normal range and seems to actualy believe he can.

An Audacious Hope

The first election to which I paid any attention was 1964, when Democrat Lyndon Johnson trounced Republican Barry Goldwater with something like 70% of the vote. The Republican Party was in complete disarray, the Democrats were dreaming of being on top forever, the pundits were wondering if the Republicans could survive as a party. Sounds sort of like this election.

You can’t carry the analogy too far because on his very best day Obama does not hold a candle to LBJ on his very worst. And “McCain: in your heart you know he's less wrong than Obama”, does not have much power to inspire. Apparently, Arizona is a nice gentlemanly place where they don’t practice the gutter politics of Texas or Chicago.

The Republicans won the Presidency in five of the next six elections.

You Don’t Know Me.

“You Don’t Know Me” by Barak Obama (spoof)




The First item on Senator Obama’s TODO list when he is elected; not the economy, not the war but . . .




We know enough.



Senator Obama for your own sake, if no one else’s; listen to her, for what is it to gain the Presidency and lose . . .


--------------------------------


Click for more information

Many After Abortion resources are in the side bar as well recourses for women with unplanned pregnancies.

See Also:
Ccause Not Harm
Who Needs a White Sheet
Election 2008 Overview (January 2008)
Criss Cross Democrats and Republicans and Abortion
We’ve Been Invaded
The Least of These
You Don’t Know Me

And my: Social Justice and Democide/Genocide Topics.

Forbes Magazine: "A Golden Age"

It seemed like it was never going to end – the rise of the economy, the increased prosperity, the bull stock market. Forbes magazine said it would be ‘recognized as a golden age of American industry.” This was in the summer of 1929, but then the US economy collapsed. From growth rates of between three and 10 per cent in per capita terms, the US economy imploded: contracting 11 per cent in 1930, another 9.5 per cent the following year, and then shrinking a further 15 per cent in 1932. Who would have thought that the Roaring Twenties would transform into the worst economic disaster of all time? Emphasis mine


Ilian Mihov, Professor of Economics, at INSEAD, suggests We should heed the lessons of the collapse of the ‘golden age’.

What is the biggest lesson from the Great Depression? In my view, it is that monetary policy and the financial sector play a crucial role in economic development. Let me put it more precisely: good monetary policy is unlikely to accelerate the speed of economic growth – after all we have more income year after year because mankind comes up with new ideas, with new products, with more efficient ways of producing output. However, bad monetary policy can easily derail economic development. It is true for rich and poor countries alike.

Why are financial markets and the banking sector so important? Banks fulfill a very important role in the economy by matching borrowers and lenders. When we deposit $100 in a bank, the bank keeps, at most, two to three dollars in its vaults (in fact the money is often in the central bank), the remaining $98 or so is lent to a borrower.

Most businesses require loans for their normal operations. When the banking sector does not work properly, businesses cannot get loans and they have to curtail their production and lay off workers. As they curtail production, they demand fewer products from their suppliers and therefore their suppliers have to reduce their output and fire workers. If manufacturers cannot sell their goods because the firm downstream does not need as many products as before, they cannot generate enough revenue to repay their earlier loans. Businesses go bankrupt and banks experience further problems as their balance sheet deteriorates due to non-performing loans. At this point, banks want to lend even less because of the uncertainty generated from bankruptcies. As they lend less, the vicious circle continues – with producers cutting production and firing workers. On the top of this, depositors start worrying about their deposits because the non-performing loans have made some banks go belly up – your bank has lent out your money to borrowers who cannot return it. Depositors start withdrawing their cash and banks have even fewer possibilities for lending as they have to hoard cash in case there is a run on the bank. If the financial sector does not work, the real economy can go into a deadly spiral and shrink by 30 per cent as during the Great Depression.

Can this happen again?

It is unlikely this will happen today. But I used to think that it was impossible. The lessons of the Great Depression are so clear and vivid that it was unimaginable that someone would risk the stability of the economy just to gain votes from his or her constituency. Are these CEOs overpaid? Should they go to jail? Maybe the answer to both questions is “yes”, but it’s important to understand that penalising greedy CEOs has nothing to do with saving the macroeconomy. Many of the issues raised by politicians recently have to be addressed, but it is a separate debate and will involve separate legislation. Emphasis mine.

As I noted in the previous post, back in the dark mists of the last century I learned this in High School Economics.



HT: Pragmatic Euphony

Explaining the Crisis.

What’s so difficult to understand?

People deposit money in banks in checking accounts (sometimes called demand accounts because they can demand it at any time) saving accounts and certificates of deposit which are payable in 30 days to 3 years though, most people expect to be paid on demand.

The bank then loans the money in a thirty year mortgages. The bank can’t demand it’s money as long as the scheduled mortgage payments are paid.

There is a recession the depositors demand their money to pay the mortgage, gas, or groceries. The bank can’t repay because the money is in thirty year mortgages.

The bank goes bankrupt and every one who does business with the bank loses. The original depositor/mortgage holder loses his savings and home.

-----------------------------------

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were created to deal with this problem. They borrow money on the bond market and buy mortgages from the banks pushing the problem back a level.

But because of the collapse of the housing market no one wants to but these bonds because the value of the houses backing the mortgages is less than the face value of the bond.

So the whole housing market crashes and even more people lose.

---------------------------------

So, as the economic back up last resort it was proposed - that the government buy the problem mortgages, giving the banks the money to pay their depositors and rescuing the system.


Then in a display on non-partisan idiocy the yoyo brains in the House of (non) Representatives vote this down. And even still more people will lose.



That’s it with about twenty levels complexity ignored. This was high school economics when I was in high school, not the college prep economics, the consumer economics for dummies that every one took.

Is there any question why the Congress had a lower approval rating than George Bush before this started?

Obama Says Bomb 'Em???

Listening to the Debate last night I heard an exchange in which sounded like Senator Obama was proposing a major escalation of the Afghanistan war by attacking into Pakistan if they did not comply with an ultmatum.


The text in question.

OBAMA: No. 3, we've got to deal with Pakistan, because al Qaeda and the Taliban have safe havens in Pakistan, across the border in the northwest regions, and although, you know, under George Bush, with the support of Senator McCain, we've been giving them $10 billion over the last seven years, they have not done what needs to be done to get rid of those safe havens.

snip

MCCAIN:Now, on this issue of aiding Pakistan, if you're going to aim a gun at somebody, George Shultz, our great secretary of state, told me once, you'd better be prepared to pull the trigger. We've got to get the support of the people of -- of Pakistan. He said that he would launch military strikes into Pakistan.
Now, you don't do that. You don't say that out loud. If you have to do things, you have to do things, and you work with the Pakistani government.

snip

OBAMA: Nobody talked about attacking Pakistan. Here's what I said.

. . . . . .

Now, Senator McCain is also right that it's difficult. This is not an easy situation. You've got cross-border attacks against U.S. troops.
And we've got a choice. We could allow our troops to just be on the defensive and absorb those blows again and again and again, if Pakistan is unwilling to cooperate, or we have to start making some decisions.



The text does not seem as clear in print as the way it sounded listening on the radio.

The clear impression I got from Senator Obama’s first quote above is that he was advocating unilateral military action into Pakistan to deal with Al Quaida.

Senator McCain’s response:

I'm not prepared at this time to cut off aid to Pakistan. So I'm not prepared to threaten it, as Senator Obama apparently wants to do, as he has said that he would announce military strikes into Pakistan.

was a response to what Senator Obama said.

Seantor Obama’s clarification seems to be saying that he was not talking about attacking Pakistan per se but aggressively attacking AQ and Taliban targets that happen to be in Pakistan. Which Pakistan would consider a major violation of it's soverinity, if not a causus Belli


Of course The US has been conducting very limited attacks against targets in Pakistan. Quietly with UAV launched weapons against targets that are clearly AQ, well away from Pakistan government controlled areas and according to some news reports with the knowledge and permission of the Pakistan government, which it is understood they will deny. These have increased lately as has Pakistani protests especially since there is a new Pakistani President.

The tenor of Senator Obama’s comments is that we should inform Pakistan that we expect of them as a client, not the help we need from an ally, to take complete control of that area or we will cut off aid and publicly launch a major air (and ground?) offensive to clear AQ and the Taliban from the border regions.

Some problems.

Like Senator McCain he made no mention that we are woking with NATO allies in Pakistan.

Pakistan is conducting military operations to regain control in that area. An offensive that would obtain the results he wants is probably beyond the short term ability of the Pakistani Army to say nothing of being political suicide to the Pakistani government.

We have troops in Pakistan. What will happen to them?


What happens to our relations with every country in the area if our public actions are those of dealing with a client rather than a difficult ally?

Afghanistan is a land locked country. You get their though Iran, Pakistan or the Russian dominated Confederation of Independent States. If Pakiastan drops out of the alliance for any reason our supply lines are at the whim of Russia’s Putin. We could be cut off from effective resupply unless we did things the way Russia wants them done.


Senator McCain’s comments sounded much more responsible considering the complexity of the situation. Certainly the comments of a person who is thinking ahead to the possibilty of winning the election, not basing policy proposals on focus groups.


Well, I am glad the printed text is not as serious as the way it sounded, but still he is saying we should take unilateral action without considering the probability of success or the opnion of our NATO allies and Pakistan.

It’s a Tie.

The three way National Stupidity Contest between supporters of both candidates and the media on the subject of pigs and lipstick is pronounced a tie. They should all be recycled to the third grade.



Can we stop the gotcha games and discuss important things. Both the candidates and the voters deserve better.

Tales of Two Campaigns

Every Campaign needs people to run the campaign while the candidate is out making speeches and kissing babies. These are critical jobs that can make or break a campaign.

And sometimes they just have bad days.



David Axelrod of Senator Obama’s campaign.

Two weeks ago to his dismay, David Axelrod of Chicago, Barack Obama’s top strategist and a man whom I have known for 30 years, discovered that while his client’s Iraq trip was a roaring success, his European speech was a failure-so much so that it was ridiculed as being eloquent but shallow despite all the media pazzaz. Why? Because his client seemed too simplistic, too innocent, too guileless, too idealistic. As one habitué of Manny’s Jewish deli here told Axelrod, “I get the idea that Putin would pat him on the head and say `there-there young man; go play with your ideals while we adults play politics the old fashioned way.”


and on

The Saddleback Back-to-Back TV Interview on Moral Issues.

snip

Axelrod was jarred out of his wits to see his client stumble around on the question as if he and Warren were engaged in casual Harvard faculty lounge banter and wind up by confessing that the solution as to when life begins “is beyond my pay grade.” Axelrod slammed his hand down on the TV table when he saw his client fumble it . . .


Obama’s Big Mistake: Not Picking Hillary. Mccain Scores With Palin Pickby Tom Roeser on his blog On the Other Hand September 4, 2008




Steve Schmidt of Senator McCain’s Campaign

It was what aides to Senator John McCain describe as probably the worst night of his campaign. As Senator Barack Obama claimed the Democratic nomination before a cheering sea of faces on national television, Mr. McCain countered with a lackluster speech in a half-empty hall, posed in front of a pea-green screen that became fodder for late-night comedy.

Steve Schmidt, a senior adviser to Mr. McCain who worked on President Bush’s campaign in 2004, could barely hide his fury in the coming days, as he announced — to anyone who would listen — that he would personally make certain the McCain campaign would never again embarrass Mr. McCain.


“Fun Steve is dead,” Mr. Schmidt said.


An Adviser Molds a Tighter, More Aggressive McCain Campaign by Jim Rutenberg and Adam Nagourney, New York Times, September 6, 2008







Read and see what happened.

Click and Smile

Badenov is Good Enough




Update 1/7/2011: This was barred from embedding during the election. Ignor the add

Election Update - August

The Democratic Convention begins Monday. It is time to look at where we are at.

It has often been commented that when it comes to a nation wide vote for anything president, all congressman, all senators, all state legislators, or even all dog catchers for the last twenty or so years the Republicans have 45% and the democrats have 45% certain, the rest is in play. This “uncommitted” 10% do not follow politics closely except after the world series in presidential election years, and usually makes their decision on what they see during the conventions and Presidential debates, often for reasons of their own rather than what the politicians and pundits say they should. The two conventions and the three debates are the critical events, and then the election itself.

The polls have been relatively stable for a long time. Averaging it out it seems that both candidates are just above the 45% minimum with Senator Obama being a point or two higher, but well with in any margin of error. Over time McCain has been gaining slightly and Obama losing slightly. The uncommitted is 7% or some days 8 %. Which way they will go is anyone’s guess but at this point I would put the edge to Obama.


Rasmussen has updated their Electoral College Projections. The last time had Senator Obama with a winning 273 votes with 38 still undecided. Now it is undecided with Ohio moving to leans Republican and Virginia and Colorado in the undecided column. Ohio, Virginia, Colorado and Pennsylvania have recently been high lighted in Jay Costs Horse Race Blog as swing states. He provides a good look at how statewide and local considerations are effecting the election. This is especially important since the Rlectoral College votes by state.

Senator Obama has selected Senator Joesph Biden to be his running mate for Vice President. A good safe choice. Senator Biden has lots of positives that will resonate with persons who will vote for Obama anyway, and lots of negatives that will resonate wih people who would never vote for Obama. Biden is to unknown to have any impact on the non-political uncommitted voters who will decide the election.




The preseason warm-ups are over, the real contest is begins Monday.

Senator McCain's Faith

Maeve Reston wrote an article in the Los Angeles Times on Senator McCain’s faith. Like or dislike him this is a good look at his hard won Christian faith. A short excerpt.


McCain is most comfortable talking about his religious awakening during his 5 1/2 years in captivity, where his connection to God grew stronger and he served as "room chaplain" for a small group of prisoners.

In his early life he was influenced by his "deeply religious" father, who relied on his faith in a long struggle with alcoholism. Prayer and church became an "ingrained part" of McCain's life at his high school, where he attended chapel every morning and on Sunday evenings, even after church, he says.

McCain says in those days, he was a self-absorbed rule-breaker who became a hard-partying naval aviator. It was not until after his plane was shot down over Hanoi in October 1967, he wrote in his memoir, "Faith of My Fathers," that he learned to "grasp" faith tightly. In solitary confinement, he prayed "more often and more fervently than I ever had as a free man."

"I was very slow in maturing," he said aboard his campaign plane. "I knew right from wrong; I knew the Bible; I knew the Nicene Creed and the Apostles' Creed and the tenets of my faith. And although I neglected them, the time came that I could fall back on them as a net, as a way of salvation, literally."

Often his faith helped him "get through another minute," he said. At the same time, McCain said, he learned to be "careful not to ask God to do things that were temporal rather than spiritual."

In McCain's first talk as chaplain, he cautioned fellow prisoners not to pray for their release -- reminding them of a parable in which Jesus was asked whether it was right to pay taxes. "He held up the coin and said, 'Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's and unto God that which is God's,' " McCain said, recalling his lecture. "The point of my talk was we were doing Caesar's work when we went into combat, so we really shouldn't ask God" for release.

That lesson guided McCain not to pray for his own personal success. "I pray to do the right thing so I won't look back in regret or embarrassment or even shame that I betrayed my principles and my faith," he said

HT: Get Religion blog

Senator Obama's Faith

From Keith Pavlischek on First Things Blog.


From the Westminster Shorter Catechism:
Q. 14. What is sin?
A. Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.

From the Baltimore Catechism:
Q. 278. What is actual sin?
A. Actual sin is any willful thought, word, deed, or omission contrary to the law of God.

From Senator Obama:
Q. Do you believe in sin?
OBAMA: Yes.
Q. What is sin?
OBAMA: Being out of alignment with my values.

H T: Against the Grain

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The quote from Senator Obama is taken from a 2004 interview with Christina Falsani, AKA God Girl, the religion editor of the Chicago Sun Times and reposted on her blog. It is a very good look at Senator Obama’s genuine and serious faith. Whether you think his comments are those of a new Messiah or deserving of Bell, Book and Candle it is a good look into the heart of the man who may well be the next president.