Whew. My faith in my fellow Americans, sorely tested these last years, is restored. Our democracy lives. Maybe "survives," in light of the many blows it has taken.
The evil cretins who have control of the Republican party will always be with us. When I was younger, we referred to them as "John Birchers," and the Red States were called the "Bible Belt." These people are at the end of the day our fellow Americans, and will be with us moving forward.
When their influence is on the wane, we can progess. We they are ascendent, we go backwards. Their day, for now, has come and gone.
Sure, they'll continue to blame everything on Nancy Pelosi (funny how they didn't demonize Majority Leader Reid), Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton. But their attacks won't work if Americans don't buy into their schtick.
And after this cycle, it seems clear that Americans are looking to move beyond the politics and fear and hatred that have marked our politics for the last 10 years.
A corner has been turned. We move forward from here.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Monday, November 06, 2006
What to Think...About the Election
Let it not be said ("Nay! Nay!") that I did not commit to electronic form my predictions for tomorrow's midterm elections. So, before they go into the mayonnaise jar on Funk & Wagnall's back porch, here are the Answers in Advance(tm):
1. Eppes, in Sc-5th Senate, cruises to easy election. Frank's good humor and great common sense will be evident to the 97% of voters who have either met him or seen him from a distance, up to 1/4 mile depending on visibility. A win for the good folks of the SC's 5th Senate District. And a great relief to Frank's law partner, who will now have several good days a month in the office to himself.
2. The US House of Represenatives, where the good Dems will net gain 26 seats to re-claim the majority. This will allow Republicans a good chance to blame every thing that goes wrong -- including Alex Rodriguez' lack of clutch hitting -- on the Democratic House. Soon, everything that is not Bill Clinton's fault will be Nancy Pelosi's fault. Welcome to Scape-goat Land, Speaker Pelosi.
3. US Senate -- Repubs hang on by a thread. The brave and true Dems will pick up just 4 seats here, with Tenn and Mo (as well as Ariz) staying red.
4. NY Comptroller -- Alan Hevesi beats with several points of margin Republican Non-Criminal Chris Callaghan. I heard Mr. Callaghan this morning on WNYC, and he is in so far over his head it ain't funny. I'd prefer the vaguely comeptent criminal to the hubris, naivete and incompetence of Saratoga County's proudest fiscal officer.
5. Studio 60 -- Sorry, Charile, but this show's toast. An interesting and noble effort from Mr. Sorkin, but Sports Nite it ain't.
Well, I think that's enough, don't you? Stop by tomorrow and witness the amazing accuracy of my Answers in Advance(tm).
1. Eppes, in Sc-5th Senate, cruises to easy election. Frank's good humor and great common sense will be evident to the 97% of voters who have either met him or seen him from a distance, up to 1/4 mile depending on visibility. A win for the good folks of the SC's 5th Senate District. And a great relief to Frank's law partner, who will now have several good days a month in the office to himself.
2. The US House of Represenatives, where the good Dems will net gain 26 seats to re-claim the majority. This will allow Republicans a good chance to blame every thing that goes wrong -- including Alex Rodriguez' lack of clutch hitting -- on the Democratic House. Soon, everything that is not Bill Clinton's fault will be Nancy Pelosi's fault. Welcome to Scape-goat Land, Speaker Pelosi.
3. US Senate -- Repubs hang on by a thread. The brave and true Dems will pick up just 4 seats here, with Tenn and Mo (as well as Ariz) staying red.
4. NY Comptroller -- Alan Hevesi beats with several points of margin Republican Non-Criminal Chris Callaghan. I heard Mr. Callaghan this morning on WNYC, and he is in so far over his head it ain't funny. I'd prefer the vaguely comeptent criminal to the hubris, naivete and incompetence of Saratoga County's proudest fiscal officer.
5. Studio 60 -- Sorry, Charile, but this show's toast. An interesting and noble effort from Mr. Sorkin, but Sports Nite it ain't.
Well, I think that's enough, don't you? Stop by tomorrow and witness the amazing accuracy of my Answers in Advance(tm).
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Home Stretch
The die is likely already cast. Even a fake dust-up over john Kerry's typically obscure remarks is unlikely to make a difference.
The House seems in the bag at this point. As for the Senate, it seems that it's coming down to 3 races: Virginia, Tennessee and Missouri (Webb, Ford and McCaskell). We would need to get all three to win, barring an unforeseen upset elsewhere.
Even so, no doubt a Dem victory in the House will allow conservatives a wonderful opportunity to re-load. For the last six years, everything bad has been more or less Bill and/or Hillary Clinton's fault: 9/11, recession, stock market crash, poor job growth, the coddling of North Korea, Iran and Iraq, global warming, etc. But starting next Wednesday, everything can be the fault of Speaker Pelosi and the Obstructionist House.
So, we'll have all new vitriol and all-new hyperbole. Let's remember, even if we get the White House and the Senate in 08, these clowns will continue to bitch and moan that everything we are and everything we do is wrong, un-American, etc. They did that when they were the kooky John Birchers, and they'll do that long after George W. Bush has been unanamously elected Worst President Ever. It's what they do. It's our challenge to ignore them and marginalize their impact as much as we can.
P.S. This November 7th, lucky residents of SC's 5th Senate District get the honor of casting their votes for the estimable Frank Eppes. Those lucky dogs!
The House seems in the bag at this point. As for the Senate, it seems that it's coming down to 3 races: Virginia, Tennessee and Missouri (Webb, Ford and McCaskell). We would need to get all three to win, barring an unforeseen upset elsewhere.
Even so, no doubt a Dem victory in the House will allow conservatives a wonderful opportunity to re-load. For the last six years, everything bad has been more or less Bill and/or Hillary Clinton's fault: 9/11, recession, stock market crash, poor job growth, the coddling of North Korea, Iran and Iraq, global warming, etc. But starting next Wednesday, everything can be the fault of Speaker Pelosi and the Obstructionist House.
So, we'll have all new vitriol and all-new hyperbole. Let's remember, even if we get the White House and the Senate in 08, these clowns will continue to bitch and moan that everything we are and everything we do is wrong, un-American, etc. They did that when they were the kooky John Birchers, and they'll do that long after George W. Bush has been unanamously elected Worst President Ever. It's what they do. It's our challenge to ignore them and marginalize their impact as much as we can.
P.S. This November 7th, lucky residents of SC's 5th Senate District get the honor of casting their votes for the estimable Frank Eppes. Those lucky dogs!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)