Sunday, April 20, 2008

The Old, the New, and the Ugly

Many have noted that the 2008 election will go down as one of the most significant in the history of the country, selecting the successor to the most grotesque abomination of a presidency the nation has ever experienced. We face a situation where a fed up population is screaming for change, and most interestingly, we witness the inertia of a huge political machine and the momentum of all of its parts. A new voice is emerging that operates according to new ideas and new principles. The nation is responding, but it's response is meeting resistance from those gaining most handsomely from the status quo.

THE OLD
Most vested in the status quo, of course, are the Republicans. Naturally their nominee is firmly rooted in the old accepted paradigms, a McBush puppet that will change nothing, address nothing, and at best, leave everything the same. At worst, he will inflict further damage to the already crumbling systems of health care, education, finance, transportation, world reputation, military, middle class (let's face it, everything). All infrastructures crumble under the brutal incompetence of the current regime. If John McCain has any new ideas regarding how this nation should address its disintegration, they are not showing up in the press. He is more of the same on a path in the wrong direction.

The Democratic race for the nomination offers far richer distinctions. Here the collision between old and new shows simultaneously entertaining and infuriating exchanges as the old machinery finds itself shocked and frustrated by something that it cannot grasp, understand, or address. The press itself is caught off guard and continues to downplay the phenomena. In 2008, we indeed witness the birth of a new possibility and the semi-organized and somewhat panicked response of those deeply invested in the establishment remaining as it is.

THE NEW
The astute, the intelligent, and I would argue, the "living" who can think and process information for themselves, those who break from the herd, those with a measure of courage and conviction, those who can take a stand against the grain, were the first to see the spark for what it was, responding to a young candidate who speaks from a place we've not heard from in far too long. Consider the title of his book, "The Audacity of Hope." Given the American Holocaust of the Bush Administration, the choice of the word "audacity" could not be improved. What can a President Barack Obama truly accomplish? No one, and I emphasize NO ONE, including Obama himself, knows the answer to that question. What anyone of even marginal intellect can discern without doubt is that President Obama will be a distinct departure from the current excremental excuse of a president.

THE UGLY
Against the voice of audacity Hillary sounds like an obsolete answering machine playing an over worn stretch of tape. "Clinging" to old campaign methods and tactics, her increasingly shrill panic attacks grate on the open minds of those not firmly entrenched in the Democratic Party's apparatus. Polls show declining trust in her honesty and integrity. The reason is clear: she is not honest. When I heard Hillary Clinton accuse Barack Obama of "elitism" I almost wretched. Our nation has been brought dangerously close to a precipice on literally over a half dozen fronts, and we are supposed to vote for Hillary because when Obama was twelve years old he played basketball with some guy who got a speeding ticket in 1995.

We are told that states voting for Obama "don't count." We are told that Michigan and Florida are being "disenfranchised" when the rules of the game were widely published front and center for all to see. The press continues to tout Hillary as if she were running even. They tell us she is more electable because she has more experience. No she doesn't.

Months ago I said the 2008 election would be one where the country gets to see its ass. The Ugly reached a new level for this cycle last Wednesday night in the ABC News meltdown of a debate. The event crystallized and painfully illustrated the bankruptcy of the most inane, insulting effort to trash a candidate. In the most watched debate so far, the nation groaned, and for George Stephanopoulos, the evening was a career changer. He will remain highly paid and highly successful, but the entire country will never look at him the same way again. The backlash against ABC was swift and severe.

Obama's growing strength is as underreported as Hillary's hemorrhaging support. By the way, on Friday President Clinton's former labor secretary, Robert Reich, formally endorsed Barack Obama, as have former Democratic Sens. Sam Nunn of Georgia and David Boren of Oklahoma. Super delegates originally behind Clinton are shifting to Obama, including Cameron Kerry (John Kerry's younger brother) and Nancy Larson (Minnesota DNC activist). How many do you think have shifted from Obama to Hillary?

The race for the presidency currently consists of the old, the new, and the ugly. It's time to get the ugly out of the way so the new and the old can enter the ring, and then it will get really ugly.

9 Comments:

Blogger The Navigator said...

Terrific post. Quintessential x4mr.

If "the machine" somehow squashes Obama, I will be depressed for a week.

Have you written Giffords to request she vote for Obama?

4/20/2008 3:02 PM  
Blogger Liza said...

The Old, the New, and the Ugly...good title.

Well, the Ugly is poised to win PA and the polls are all over the place, but Hillary is always ahead. Also, Hillary does better than Obama with last minute deciders.

Of course, Pennsylvania is the last big Clinton stronghold but I was hoping that the need to settle this nomination might swing voters to Obama. Doesn't appear to be the case.

Clinton might get double digits in PA and that, of course, means another two weeks of spin and keeping her campaign alive. Then North Carolina and perhaps Indiana wipe our her gains and it just keeps going.

I am in a fetal position. I can't take this anymore.

As for the general, the attacks on Obama will be unprecedented, guaranteed to be the worst ever.

4/20/2008 4:31 PM  
Blogger Cigar Man said...

Nav,
You can safely bet that Giffords is well aware of x4mr's sentiments regarding her vote as a SD. Note the banner in the left column of his blog with her name on it.

Liza,
I share your fatigue and sympathize. It is painful, indeed. I agree with x4mr and you. If Obama wins the nomination, we are going to see everything ugly, terrible, and horrible about this country.

x4mr,
Great post, but your exposure is heating up more than you know, and you need to be very straight with your facts. You use language that suggests you were fired. That is not accurate. What is accurate is that TREO withheld $132,500 from a small non-profit that struggled to break even, keeping the money for itself.

They thought you were Hank Rearden. When you pulled a John Galt and shrugged, they were SHOCKED. When you published "Something Else" they were mortified.

One of your "tippers" (Policon?) correctly pointed out that you are a nice, smart guy, and that is not who wields power. However, a pen in the hand of a smart mind and true heart can be mighty indeed.

Some of those that have swords can read. If you were in the city council today facing a huge budget crisis, would you vote to hand TREO two million bucks?

I know the loss of SAIAT was exceedingly painful for you, and its closure fits right in with the stupidity and incompetence Bruce Ash points to in his radio address.

Your high esteem for Vaughn (Board Chair of SAIAT) is obvious. Consider that you do him a disservice if you lead readers to believe you were fired. When those two "cementheads" tried to shoot you, Vaughn and your board shot back. The assholes were shown the door, not you.

4/20/2008 6:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The electorate is tiring of the "debates" and the general nasty, hateful, off-topic tone of the campaign rhetoric.
IMHO, the election is going to come down to people saying "Old White Guy vs Young Black Guy."
Who knows where the chips may fall?

4/20/2008 8:00 PM  
Blogger Liza said...

I think we have to accept that the right wing attack machine will be in full gear. Obama is going to need a lot of support.

On the positive side, we raised holy hell about the ABC "debate" and we affected the conversation. ABC and the right wing nuts had to go on the defensive. The blogosphere was a huge part of that.

4/20/2008 8:35 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Commentors, I feel your pain and frustration and I have a suggestion. Stop listening to the spin. ABC debate? Sheesh! I was on the Hollywood High School Debate team a loooong time ago. Our adviser would have drowned anyone who considered that a debate. So, try my cure for frustration: Stop watching and listening to the highly predictable garbage spewed on some news channels and (1) list to some Mozart; (2) read a good book or (3) take a loooong walk or (4) go out to Tohono Chul and watch spring springing in Tucson. You cannot change the outcome so save your strength and sanity for the real campaign - believe me, you/we will need it!

4/20/2008 8:52 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

There is considerable wisdom in Anonymous's suggestion that we disconnect from television, internet and blogosphere. Mozart and a good book seem excellent suggestions.

Sadly, I agree that at this moment, and in the immediate future, there is nothing we can do to affect the outcome of the campaign debacle;we're going to get who we get.

Enjoy Spring and Summer. Return to the fray after Labor Day.

4/21/2008 7:41 AM  
Blogger Liza said...

After Labor Day? Art, you must be kidding. But I am going to give it a rest until Wednesday morning.

Some of the polls in PA have tightened including the two most reliable ones, Survey USA and Public Policy (this is according to KOS, but they seem to be all over it.) This is good, but who knows? KOS thinks Hillary wins with a six point spread. That would be just fine.

Anyhow, this is a short, amusing video about How Hillary Can Win.

4/21/2008 9:47 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

A very good commentary obviously coming from someone who has seen some Clint Eastwood movies, which are curiously absent from your favorite movies at your profile. Are you telling us The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly is not one of your favorites?

Of course it is. What a great movie.

Update your profile, x4mr. I noticed you did have Unforgiven, but what about the other spaghetti westerns and Dirty Harry?

4/21/2008 10:43 PM  

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