U.S. Elections 2008: General Elections -- Analysis and Commentary

[Xiahou]

I wonder what the RNC's "Joe Biden Gaffe Counter" is up to? Was almost 2 weeks the last time I checked...

Yeah, they're doing a pretty poor job of it. They don't even have his wheelchair gaffe in the list.

[Lemur]

The former publisher of the National Review just came out for Obama. From his essay, A Conservative For Obama:

Barack Obama is not my ideal candidate for president. (In fact, I made the maximum donation to John McCain during the primaries, when there was still hope he might come to his senses.) But I now see that Obama is almost the ideal candidate for this moment in American history. I disagree with him on many issues. But those don’t matter as much as what Obama offers, which is a deeply conservative view of the world. Nobody can read Obama’s books (which, it is worth noting, he wrote himself) or listen to him speak without realizing that this is a thoughtful, pragmatic, and prudent man. It gives me comfort just to think that after eight years of George W. Bush we will have a president who has actually read the Federalist Papers.

Most important, Obama will be a realist. I doubt he will taunt Russia, as McCain has, at the very moment when our national interest requires it as an ally. The crucial distinction in my mind is that, unlike John McCain, I am convinced he will not impulsively take us into another war unless American national interests are directly threatened.

[Crazed Rabbit]

a NATO member and key ally in the fight against terrorism

Spain? Didn't they pull their troops out of Iraq after the socialists got elected? Do they have troops in Afghanistan?

From Spiegel Online:
Spain has 742 troops in Afghanistan and
"Like Germany, Spain has consistently refused to send soldiers to more dangerous southern Afghanistan, where the Taliban is strongest and fighting at its most intense."

I guess I don't see that as a big mistake on McCain's part. Meh.

Lemur - I'm going to have to disagree with that guy's assessment of Obama. I think he's just fed up with the current GOP and looking for someone, anyone, new to support.

And is the word typos spelled "typeos"[sic]?

Sorry, but it's a bit ironic.

CR

[Strike For The South]

Comrade Biden

Communist!

[ICantSpellDawg]

The former publisher of the National Review just came out for Obama. From his essay, A Conservative For Obama:

Barack Obama is not my ideal candidate for president. (In fact, I made the maximum donation to John McCain during the primaries, when there was still hope he might come to his senses.) But I now see that Obama is almost the ideal candidate for this moment in American history. I disagree with him on many issues. But those don’t matter as much as what Obama offers, which is a deeply conservative view of the world. Nobody can read Obama’s books (which, it is worth noting, he wrote himself) or listen to him speak without realizing that this is a thoughtful, pragmatic, and prudent man. It gives me comfort just to think that after eight years of George W. Bush we will have a president who has actually read the Federalist Papers.

Most important, Obama will be a realist. I doubt he will taunt Russia, as McCain has, at the very moment when our national interest requires it as an ally. The crucial distinction in my mind is that, unlike John McCain, I am convinced he will not impulsively take us into another war unless American national interests are directly threatened.

Lodowick Brodie Cobb Allison just wants Obama so that his own name won't sound so weird in the scheme of things.

[Tribesman]

Spain under Zapaterro has been questionable. He is a die-hard anti-american socialist. His first order of business was to rip Spanish troops out of Iraq.

Was that when the Spanish troops had been sent to Iraq against the wishes of the vast majority of the electorate ?
Thats democracy Tuff , why do you hate freedom ?

They also snub their noses at our requests to block arms deals to Venezuela.

What right has america got to tell another country who it can sell stuff to ?

I would think twice about any invites. Maybe throw a few more troops into Afghanistan as a war rather than a "peacekeeping operation"?

Errrr...Spain has the 4th highest casualty figures from the deployments in Afghanistan , what more do you want from a country that you tell who they can and cannot do business with ?

[ICantSpellDawg]

Was that when the Spanish troops had been sent to Iraq against the wishes of the vast majority of the electorate ?
Thats democracy Tuff , why do you hate freedom ?


What right has america got to tell another country who it can sell stuff to ?


Errrr...Spain has the 4th highest casualty figures from the deployments in Afghanistan , what more do you want from a country that you tell who they can and cannot do business with ?

24. And thanks for those, but that was back in 2005. You aren't a real friend until your people are dying in DROVES!

Ireland hates freedom.

[Lemur]

Lodowick Brodie Cobb Allison just wants Obama so that his own name won't sound so weird in the scheme of things.

You aren't a real friend until your people are dying in DROVES!

Ireland hates freedom.

You, sir, are on a roll!

Meanwhile, it looks as though Obama's most fanatical followers aren't the only ones looking for a Messiah in strange places.

Sarah is that standard God has raised up to stop the flood. She has the anointing. You can tell by how the dogs are already viciously attacking her. But they will not be successful. She knows the One she serves and will not be intimidated.

Back in the 1980s, I sensed that Israel's little-known Benjamin Netanyahu was chosen by God for an important end-time role. I still believe that. I now have that same sense about Sarah Palin...

[Tribesman]

24. And thanks for those, but that was back in 2005. You aren't a real friend until your people are dying in DROVES!

Its 85 Tuff , can't you count ?

Ireland hates freedom.

Yep , Irish defence forces casualties on deployment to Afghanistan = 0 , because they aint dumb and can do their job in Afghanistan suffering nothing more severe than a hangover or a bout of the squits from a dodgy kebab .

[ICantSpellDawg]

Its 85 Tuff , can't you count ?


Yep , Irish defence forces casualties on deployment to Afghanistan = 0 , because they aint dumb and can do their job in Afghanistan suffering nothing more severe than a hangover or a bout of the squits from a dodgy kebab .

I guess I was talking about deaths. How many Irishmen are in Afghanistan (not including those fighting in a real mans army like the British military)?

The only thing that stands out in modern Irish action to me is that some of your guys sexually abused African women under a UN mandate. Thanks for helping to defend the free world!

Ireland is still a western European disgrace, even after all of its recent economic successes. They make the French look like BFF's. But... I guess it doesn't matter what Americans think of you guys, only what you think of us.

"God invented leftism to keep the Irish from taking over the world."

[Big_John]

get a room.

[KukriKhan]

Return to topic, Gentlemen. Country-bashing will cease.

[ICantSpellDawg]

Figured he has never had a taste of his own medicine, because nobody cares about that place unless they are doing riverdance on St. Paddy's day. Ridicule of American policy is a 24/7 affair.

[Tribesman]

I guess I was talking about deaths.

Yes , and you can't count can you . Or is it that you didn't read what I wrote ?

Return to topic, Gentlemen. Country-bashing will cease.

What ? not even to mention child rape in Okinawa Korea Iraq and the Philipines in response to this lame attempt....

The only thing that stands out in modern Irish action to me is that some of your guys sexually abused African women under a UN mandate. Thanks for helping to defend the free world!

After all there is a saying about throwing stones in glass houses , and Tuff just happens to be in crystal palace with a lorrryload of gravel .

Ridicule of American policy is a 24/7 affair.

Only because there is so much to ridicule , you really should cut back on some of them policies to give us a break .

[Lemur]

A vague attempt to drag this back to election '08:

Palin tells adoring crowd that she will “put the government checkbook online” if made VP, in the same manner that she did in Alaska. The only problem? It's already been done. Republican Senator Tom Coburn teamed up with Senator Obama and they put it into law last year.

In June of this year, Obama and Coburn introduced new Senate legislation to expand the information available online to include details on earmarks, competitive bidding, criminal activities, audit disputes and other government information.

Palin might also have noted that her running mate, John McCain, was an original co-sponsor of the 2006 transparency bill that became law.

Dude, she is so ready to be President!

[Evil_Maniac From Mars]

I'm actually finding it a little humourous that whenever a candidate makes a gaffe, the other side jumps on that candidate, and the candidate's side rush to defend the candidate. The funny thing is that it works both ways, sometimes on the same page.

[Xiahou]

A vague attempt to drag this back to election '08:

Palin tells adoring crowd that she will “put the government checkbook online” if made VP, in the same manner that she did in Alaska. The only problem? It's already been done. Republican Senator Tom Coburn teamed up with Senator Obama and they put it into law last year.

In June of this year, Obama and Coburn introduced new Senate legislation to expand the information available online to include details on earmarks, competitive bidding, criminal activities, audit disputes and other government information.

Palin might also have noted that her running mate, John McCain, was an original co-sponsor of the 2006 transparency bill that became law.

Dude, she is so ready to be President!

Here's the full excerpt:

“We’re going to do a few new things also,” she said at a rally in Cedar Rapids. “For instance, as Alaska’s governor, I put the government’s checkbook online so that people can see where their money’s going. We’ll bring that kind of transparency, that responsibility, and accountability back. We’re going to bring that back to D.C.”

Rather than try to point out the obvious, I'll just let people make up their own minds about what they think she meant.

[ICantSpellDawg]

Here's the full excerpt:Rather than try to point out the obvious, I'll just let people make up their own minds about what they think she meant.

Clear as day.

[CountArach]

Well, economically is the main effect, and the most important to people everywhere. The United States sets the prevailing standards and influences disproportionately the World Trade talks and associated organs, as well as policy decisions that have led to events like this banking crisis.

Politically, the erosion of civil liberties and disregard for international law and human rights that the recent administration has embarked on has led to copycat legislation across the globe, which affects me in my personal area of interest. I also pay taxes to the United Kingdom government, so their adherence to administration policy means I have to pay for crazed adventures like Iraq. More positively, previous administrations' support for both Irish independence and eventually for the Northern Ireland Peace Process made an enormous difference to my island's future.

Adversely, unthinking support for IRA fund-raising enabled quite a few hairy eejits to shoot at me a lot in my youth.

I'm in the exact same situation as Banquo, perhaps more so because my country's foreign policy is pretty much dictated by our American alliance - our only very tight friend in the Pacific.

Obama now leads in all the national tracking polls and there are a lot of new state polls out today. For the first time in about 10 days FiveThirtyEight gives Obama a greater than 50% chance of winning the election.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Yeah, they're doing a pretty poor job of it. They don't even have his wheelchair gaffe in the list.

I actually have an explanation for this. One of my friends on my floor interns at the RNC and sits right next to the guy that decides what goes on the gaffe counter. He says that the "higher taxes = patriotism" comment and the wheelchair gaffe don't go on because that's what Biden actually believes.

Still, that's not really the point though.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

I don't see how his answer led the author to believe that he thought Zapaterro was a South American leader. He gave a generic answer, stating that if Zapaterro is a friend he is invited, if he is not, he is not.

You're right, the McCain campaign is saying that he was referring to zapaterro. Don't see why they're snubbing him though...

Here's the full excerpt:Rather than try to point out the obvious, I'll just let people make up their own minds about what they think she meant.

If you were going to talk about how you were going to bring transparency to washington would you use an example of a bill your opponent passed?

[KukriKhan]

I'm in the exact same situation as Banquo, perhaps more so because my country's foreign policy is pretty much dictated by our American alliance - our only very tight friend in the Pacific.

Obama now leads in all the national tracking polls and there are a lot of new state polls out today. For the first time in about 10 days FiveThirtyEight gives Obama a greater than 50% chance of winning the election.

So, we have Ireland and Australia. Oh, and here's Canada's 2 cents.

Class act.

-edit-
The original column

[Strike For The South]

So, we have Ireland and Australia. Oh, and here's Canada's 2 cents.

Class act.

-edit-
The original column

Anything for a few more hits. I never thought I'd see the day where an actual journalist writes more tripe than we do

[Big_John]

So, we have Ireland and Australia. Oh, and here's Canada's 2 cents.

Class act.

-edit-
The original column

don't forget the american take!

[CountArach]

A very emotional ad released by a Democratic 527. According to MediaCurves' focus groups this has moved some opinion towards Obama (Or away from Palin rather). Any opinions on it?

And while I am at it - probably Obama's worst ad.

[Strike For The South]

A very emotional ad released by a Democratic 527. According to MediaCurves' focus groups this has moved some opinion towards Obama (Or away from Palin rather). Any opinions on it?

And while I am at it - probably Obama's worst ad.

eh the killing of wolves has to do with tourism and hunting. I would compare it to Texas Coyotes but with all the ranches and farmland down here its a different situation. I dont really care that an excess wolf population is being killed I find it disturbing that she would want to introduce a bill for a severed foreleg thats weird.

Thats not really Obama...You know this right?

[CountArach]

Thats not really Obama...You know this right?

Actually no I didn't... I was told it was an Obama campaign ad. I guess I should have checked.

I suppose that is the mark of great satire...

[Gregoshi]

Anything for a few more hits. I never thought I'd see the day where an actual journalist writes more tripe than we do

Yeah, indeed Strike. there'd be warning points a plenty being handed out by the mods if they posted that stuff here directly. Those women columnist are pretty nasty. If a man had written that Cintra Wilson column Big_John posted, he'd be flayed alive. Nasty, nasty stuff. Don't hold back Cintra, tell us how you really feel.

I'm just about to the point where I'm going to start paying attention to the candidates, but they make it soooo difficult. Their TV/radio ads are complete turnoffs and listening to their speeches for more than 2-3 minutes triggers my gag reflex. I go into this with the enthusiasm of one who is about to begin searching for the keys to the White House in a mountain of manure.

[Big_John]

Actually no I didn't...

I suppose that is the mark of great satire...

it's the mark of something....

[Banquo's Ghost]

For a little light amusement, and recognising that this may well not be original anywhere but my local pub, a friend of mine was telling me how he has now narrowed the contest to two characterisations:

McCain is the American, and Obama the Hollywood...Wax.

The former is a lightly trimmed Bush, the latter is no Bush at all.