Phanatics!

I offer my personal congratulations to the Philadelphia Phillies, whose win of the World Series makes the Mets look like a slightly better team than they were.

Obviously, since I'm a Mets fan, I was pulling for the Rays. Because I don't much care for either team when it comes right down to it, I watched only part of all of the games and no single game in its entirety. And I missed the final innings of Game 5 because I saw a movie instead (Rachel Getting Married is very good, if a little sad).

But I'm hearing rumors that the Philadelphia Phillies Phaithful booed the shit out of Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. And this is coming just a couple weeks after the Philadelphia Flyers Ph/Faithful booed the shit out of Sarah Palin.

Booing the shit out of people I don't like wins a lot of points here at B&E. Yes, Philadelphians, you may teeter on the edge of violence, but perhaps that's what gives you the cohones to boo the shit out of people who need booing.

And man, Bud Selig and Sarah Palin need some booing.

Voter Suppression

Nope. Still can't relax.

Voter suppression is rampant, and Talking Points Memo has a summary of a few of the more glaring cases here.

The ACORN voter fraud story is a myth and a smokescreen. There have been something like five prosecuted cases of voters actually casting more than one ballot. Doing so is a felony, so people don't.

Disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of voters by purging the rolls or intimidation, on the other hand... It's easy and, apparently, arguably OK. And yes, both major parties will do it if it suits their needs, but the Pubes are a hell of a lot better at it than the Democraps, who to their shame (and potential loss of the election) are doing and saying almost nothing about it.

There are also reports of electronic voting machines switching votes in West Virgina. A woman pressed Obama and McCain lit up. She pressed Obama again and McCain lit up again. She had to press Obama a half dozen times before Obama finally lit up. That doesn't exactly instill confidence in the process.

Why I Can't Relax

Lawyers are swarming Pennsylvania to get paper ballots at the polls that can be used if half the voting machines go down. Right now, they'll only be available if all of the voting machines go down.

President Bush has asked the (highly politicized) Department of Justice to investigate and purge up to 200,000 new voter registrations in Ohio because they aren't "exact matches" to other governmental records. So, let's say, for example, my apartment number is A4. The post office often requires that it's printed 4A. That difference could get my voter registration purged.

In Indiana, the Secretary of State (who oversees elections) is pressing for full-on prosecution of ACORN for voter fraud. In 2000, he was one of the many lawyers who descended upon Florida during that debacle, and took a lead role in stopping the recount. This is a real piece-of-work overseeing what will be a very close election in Indiana.

In Florida, Governor Crist surprisingly extended early voting hours to make it more accessible. That doesn't seem terribly Republican of him. So it's no wonder that rumors are spreading that the early votes won't count. There's no hard evidence that the votes will be lost or thrown out, but it's easy to see why people are nervous, especially in historically disenfranchised communities.

Meanwhile, the Right continues to attack ACORN. They're accusing ACORN of committing voter fraud (ACORN's only "crime" is registering poor people). And more recently, the Right has been scapegoating ACORN, because somehow it's totally their fault that the housing market collapsed.

And people wonder why I have high blood pressure.

I've Had My Eye on This Shitbird

Ted Stevens was an early favorite of mine for Dickhead of the Week awards on B&E. So it's not surprising to see him come around to Shitbird status.

Yes, as I'm sure you know by now, Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska has been found guilty on all counts of making false statements (and that Talking Points story really takes you through the whole affair if you're interested).

So now Cranky Pants Ted is a convicted felon, struggling to hold onto his Senate seat. I don't really understand what goes on up in the Alaskan part of the country, but in most states that would sink a re-election campaign.

I'm actually feeling a little bereft about the whole thing. Granted, I haven't been exerting as much energy on Uncle Teddy lately, but my early Dickhead has come to his inevitable end as Shitbird. So unless he finds redemption (and I mean real redemption, not some sort of born-again bullshit) and becomes an Anti-Dickhead, I feel very finished with Ted Stevens.

Except one last thing: Sarah Palin wouldn't say if she was still voting for him.

Guest Post - Baldy in a Battleground - Episode 12

Vote Early, Vote Often

In this battleground state, we've been able to vote early since the end of last month.

Today, I finally went to cast my vote. The cockles of my heart were warmed by the line. A two-hour wait. Democrats, waiting for two hours to vote early for That One.

We're gonna win this!

A Giant Vat of Stew

As some of you may recall, I have this ridiculous tendency to make giant quantities of food. I don't know how it happens, except that I'm usually cooking for two and many recipes are feeding families of four or more.

In an attempt to save money, I've been using this "leftover" food to feed myself and the missus during our workday lunchtimes.

But I don't know what we're gonna do with the giant fucking vat of stew I made this weekend. I found this recipe on, of all places, the lid of a jar of natural peanut butter. It sounded delicious, and because it actually seemed quite small and sensible, and because I wanted a few lunches for us, too, I was foolish enough to double the recipe. I think maybe that's where it went so wrong.

It's difficult to present scale in the photo, but that's one of the larger Le Creusets available on the market today. To give you a sense of size, the kettle behind it is about six feet tall.

Yes, it's a lot of food, the missus and I will be well fed, and by the end of the week, we will never want to look at West African Peanut Chicken Stew again.

But at least if we want to stretch it, we can serve it over rice!

Panic

So this morning, as I was doing my regular trolling of the political websites that feed me and my neuroses, I suddenly panicked. Yes, I'm concerned that the Republican Party will figure out a way to steal this election, but no, that's not what caused my panic.

As of November 5th (well, the 6th in practicality), I don't know what I'll write about to entertain the B&E readers. The election will finally be over, and so will the baseball season. Politics and baseball: those are my bread and butter topics.

My well will be dry, dear B&E readers. I sure hope you bear with me. I guess I'll need to do more research into hedgehogs.

What Stood Out This Week - 10/19-10/25

A dying grandmother, redistribution of wealth, and a self-inflicted ass-kicking. Let's see What Stood Out This Week...

The Democrat

That Barack Obama just keeps on keepin' on. The goal is all about riding the wave and relying on the ground game.

Obama's grandmother appears to be on her deathbed, so he took the last couple days off to fly to Hawaii to say goodbye. On a crass level, i.e. politically, this demonstrates his love of family and reminds racists that he's only half black.

The Republican

The John McCain campaign has pretty much run an even nastier version of the Hillary Clinton campaign. Remember Hillary's "kitchen sink" approach? Well, that's been McCain.

Robocalls tell swing state voters that Obama's still making sweet, sweet love to terrorists, that he's going to take all your money and give it to welfare recipients, and that he's downright dangerous to Americans; Palin still doesn't seem to know what the Vice President's role is; and McCain himself seems intent on pursuing this "Obama's a socialist!" line of attack.

Oh, and as I'm sure you all know by now, that young lady College Republican and McCain volunteer who claimed to be mugged, beaten, and mutilated by a large black man/Obama supporter made the whole damned thing up. Although race-baiting isn't generally my favorite tactic, I am rather impressed that she kicked her own ass. I also love that she had the audacity, not of hope, but of blaming the liberal media for making such a big fucking deal out of it.

My fear now

Thanks to my consumption of lefty media, which is not remotely healthy, I've been reading/hearing a lot about stealing elections. In 2000, obviously, it was stolen through Florida; in 2004, through Ohio. Keep an eye on Pennsylvania for this year's backdoor to Republican victory. The groundwork is being laid.

Unless Obama can win so big that the election can't be believably stolen, I'm absolutely convinced that it will be.

And on that note of paranoia, dear B&E readers... That's What Stood Out This Week.

Bloomberg Gets Extended Term Limits, No News on Lips

The City Council cleared Bloomberg to run for a third term, even though I seem to remember NYC voting twice to limit terms in office to two.

I don't have strong feelings about term limits, but I'm pretty sure I voted against them. If my representative is doing a good job, I don't have a problem with that person running for office again. In theory, an election can serve as a limit on terms.

Sure, I see the other argument, too: fresh blood, more about doing the work than saving the job, etc.

But no, I don't like that it was our City Council that decided to extend the term limits. Not one bit. Fifty-one council members overturned two referendums voted on by millions. Hell, man, I'd probably vote to extend term limits, but you didn't even give me a fucking chance.

For the record, my council member, Eric "Where There's a Camera There's a" Gioia, voted against extending term limits. Surprisingly, I haven't yet seen him on TV discussing his vote. I wonder if he's moved off of NY1 and onto the major networks.

Guest Post - Baldy in a Battleground - Episode 11

Consensus Trance

Here in this battleground state, our get-out-the-vote efforts begin officially on the 29th. We'll be contacting everyone who has self-identified as an Obama supporter and all the SuperDems that we didn't bother contacting during the campaign because they are, well, super. Every election they fly up to the polls, their blue capes just a-waving in the cool November wind. They cast their ballot for the Democratic Candidate, super-ly, and then fly off to their jobs at not-for-profits and American Apparel.

Thirty percent from these two groups of people will have already voted by Election Day, so we won't be contacting those people. Instead we'll be doing what the Republicans have historically done in this state so very well - we'll harass people into voting.

Up until this point, we've been contacting known regular/base and sporadic democrats as well as "persuadable" voters. Known/base dems are people who always vote democratic, but only in the "big" elections. Sporadics are people who vote, you betchya, sporadically. A persuadable voter is a person who has 1) recently registered, 2) voted both D and R recently, 3) not voted recently. 4) always voted R, but recently purchased How Would a Patriot Act? on Amazon.com.

Now, maybe it's just me, but I find it pretty fucking disturbing that the campaigns of the two presidential nominees have access to what books I've been purchasing on Amazon.com. I know it's just marketing as usual, but does this bother anybody else?

Everyone I've encountered on the campaign trail gets all Tom-Cruise-talking-about-Katie-Holmes about it, calling it wonderful, amazing, sensational. Sure, we're the good guy, and sure, we're using this information to get people to vote for the right candidate, but does this mean that the $20 I gave Obama went to purchasing my consumer history?

Hell, I would have told him for free.

The other day I read a bit about Consensus Trance. Charley Tart is a professor who writes on the subject. He says, "Together, human groups agree on which of their perceptions should be admitted to awareness (hence, consensus), then they train each other to see the world in that way and only in that way (hence, trance)."

Sounds like politicking at it's finest to me.

You Got Your Politics in my Baseball! You Got Your Baseball in my Politics!

Is it delicious? No, it's fucking stupid.

Now I'm a big fan of that place where politics and sports naturally collide, and those types of stories are often covered beautifully by David Zirin.

But making baseball a campaign issue that's supposed to be important to voters is just stupid.

Some of you may recall this stupidity during Hillary Clinton's first run for the Senate, back in 2000. She was running against the completely forgettable Rick Lazio. Lazio was getting his ass handed to him at a time when New York had a Republican Mayor (Giuliani) and a Republican Governor (Pataki). The October Surprise of that election was that the Mets and Yankees both went to the World Series.

Giuliani and Pataki wore their Yankee caps, and Lazio (from Long Island) wore his Mets cap, as they joked about reaching across team lines, etc., etc. More importantly, they were pointing out that Hillary hadn't expressed allegiance to either team. In fact, it appeared she might be a, gasp, Cubs fan!

No one cared, Lazio lost, and Hillary's in the middle of her second term as New York Senator. As far as I know, she still hasn't expressed allegiance to either New York team, and seriously, who gives a shit.

It came up again last year during the primaries. Giuliani the die hard Yankee fan declared (just before the New Hampshire primary in the heart of Red Sox Nation) that he was rooting for Boston over the Colorado Rockies. No one cared, Giuliani lost, and he's still a dick.

Now, of course, it's McCain's turn. Obama's a Chicago White Sox fan, and apparently he's stated that he's rooting for the Phillies in the World Series.

There's no telling why someone roots for which teams in the World Series. If your team doesn't make it (and most don't), it's all about adopting a team.

But when a couple of the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays offered a public endorsement of Obama (including former Met Clifford "Motherfuckin'" Floyd), Obama said some kind things about them and the Rays, even though it was the Rays that beat the White Sox in the playoffs.

McCain accused him of pandering to voters in both swing states. Obama's campaign called the criticism ridiculous because he's still rooting for the Phillies.

And again, no one cares. Because it's fucking stupid.

I want the Rays to win, I suppose, but I also don't care so much that I wouldn't be able to find something positive in a Phillies victory. Neither are my team. So really, John McCain, who gives a shit?

I can't wait for the voters to John McCain this guy.

I'm So Proud of You

In McCain's continuous defense of his choice of running mate, he constantly says that he's proud of her. His spokespeople are feeling the pride as well.

NY1 is off the air in my home, so I'm watching the Today Show on NBC. Man, these national morning news programs are terrible. But they do get the national campaign spokesfolks, and McCain's woman just repeated the line about how proud they are of Sarah Palin.

Is Palin a child? Is she his daughter? Is she a participant in the Special Olympics who sacrificed her own victory to help a fallen competitor?

I'm no fan of Sarah Palin, but at some point she should tell McCain and his spokespeople to stop being so damned condescending. They're helping her look like fucking idiot.

Colin Powell's Words

Colin Powell the former member of the Bush Administration baking soda as anthrax the good soldier etc., etc.... Today, Powell did what might be considered a little image repair.

Yes, Powell endorsed Obama today. Big news, of course, and he hit on a little something that I haven't heard much about on that liberal mainstream media. Here are the money words:

I'm also troubled by, not what Senator McCain says, but what members of the party say. And it is permitted to be said such things as, "Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim."

Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim; he's a Christian. He's always been a Christian.

But the really right answer is, what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer's no, that's not America.

Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president?

Yet, I have heard senior members of my own party drop the suggestion, "He's a Muslim and he might be associated terrorists." This is not the way we should be doing it in America.

He went on to talk about a Muslim-American soldier who died in Iraq.

It was a proper shaming of the McCain campaign and the Republican Party from an elder statesman (who at 71 is still younger than McCain!).

Oh, and he also had some nice things to say about the junior Senator from Illinois.

What Stood Out This Week - 10/12-10/18

Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Let's see What Stood Out This Week...

Democrat

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Republican

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This Week's Argument

Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber. Joe the Plumber.

And that's What Stood Out This Week. Just over two weeks until the election! Joe the Plumber!

Irony?

New York is, in the vernacular of the media, a blue state. New York City is like a navy blue Sharpie stain on the blue state. We're a bunch of queer-loving abortionists who'd hug trees if we had any worth hugging. (Like our models, our trees are so skinny you're afraid you might break them with a good squeeze.)

So imagine my surprise when I saw a young man walking down the street wearing a McCain-Palin cap. My instincts said, "Tourist!" But he and his wife (or girlfriend or transgendered partner) were carrying groceries, an activity that screams, "Local!"

Now, had I been in Williamsburg, I'd have naturally assumed it was irony, sort of like those bushy mustaches that the Great Unwashed wear.

But alas, I was on the Upper East Side, a neighborhood not known for its irony or socialism.

In other words, I found the man who clearly possesses the biggest balls in New York.

Mr. Met's Darth Vader Moment

Star Wars geeks will recall the moment in Empire Strikes Back when General Veers is about to receive his orders from Darth Vader. An egg-shaped womb is opening up, and Veers catches a glimpse of Vader's disturbingly scarred head as the black helmet is put in place.

My seven-year-old self was terrified and nauseated by this disturbing reveal. It marked me, I tell you.

So imagine my shock and horror to witness the same thing in reverse on my beloved Mr. Met after the final presidential debate.

Someone took his head right off! Right on camera! He walked away like everything was fine, but man, that's gotta hurt.

I relived the General Veers/Darth Vader moment when I was already at my most vulnerable: after a presidential debate. I haven't been the same since.

As a point of interest, General Veers was portrayed by the actor Julian Glover. Julian was also a James Bond baddie in For Your Eyes Only, the bad guy who drinks from the wrong grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and the voice of the giant spider in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. I don't know if any other actors can say they've been a part of all of those franchises. Certainly none that also taught me Shakespeare during my junior year abroad in college.

How many of you saw that name-drop coming? Woo-HOO!

Fuck the Mothers

I should really not watch presidential debates. They make my blood pressure spike. Bob Schieffer did his job well in getting them to engage with each other, which only made me more tense.

John McCain seethed with rage, well, pretty much the entire time. But there was one astounding moment: when McCain mocked the health-of-the-mother exception for abortion. That moment revealed a deep and genuine misogyny.

Whatever Hillary voters were still supporting McCain last night (not many) should be chilled by that moment. It was seriously fucked up.

Guest Post - Baldy in a Battleground - Episode 10

There is No Justice

So, Obama was visiting this battleground last week. It was all very exciting - huge crowd of people, completely forgetting everything Obama stands for and selfishly looking out for their own best interests and not those of the crowd.

Capitalists.

I had the very pleasant job of working the line. This involves a few tasks:

1. Checking people for homemade signs. The conversation goes something like this:

Me: No signs allowed, folks! If you brought a sign and you don't give it up now, the Secret Service will take it from you.

Mama for Obama: But look at this beautiful sign my daughter made. She worked so hard on it. Please?

Me: Sorry ma'am, I don't make the rules. No signs allowed.

Mama for Obama (to daughter): Sorry sweetie. This mean baldy says you can't bring in your beautiful sign. I guess Obama doesn't like art. Or children.

2. Making sure people fill out their tickets fully with name, address, phone, email, bank routing numbers, and mother's maiden name. The conversation goes something like this:

Me: Tickets? Can I see your tickets? They must be filled out for you to get in.

Suspicious ticket holder: Why do I need to fill this out? I RSVP'd online with all this info.

Me: Well, we need to confirm that you showed up.

Suspicious ticket holder: You already have all my information. Can I just put in my name?

Me: Not if you want to get in. I'll need all of your information.

Suspicious ticket holder: The paper said that the rally was free and open to the public. I don't even understand why you handed out these tickets. And now you need all my personal info again? I don't understand.

Me: Well, I don't make the rules. Please fill out your ticket.

(The reason is, of course, so we can hit them up to volunteer.)

3. Hitting up people to volunteer, straight-forward like. The conversation goes something like this:

Me: Only three weeks left to make a difference! Who is going to volunteer? I need people making calls and knocking on doors! Senator Obama is going to ask you to volunteer today. Who is going to sign up?

Rally attendee suddenly very interested in the view opposite from where I'm standing (thinking): Maybe if I look this way, baldy will go away.

Me: Sir, when can you volunteer for the campaign? Only three weeks left! We need your help.

Rally attendee "startled" from their reverie of the view opposite from where I'm standing: Oh! I didn't see you there! What now? Volunteer? I don't have time for that. Too busy. Way too busy. No free time. Not even one spare hour.

Me: Really? Because you seem to have 8 hours on a weekday to stand in line and wait to see the guy. I just need one hour a week for the next three weeks. And you won't have to be in a line full of cranky people on a hot day with anti-choice yahoos screaming at you from their dead baby truck.

4. Telling people to ignore the dead baby truck, and the crazed McCain supporter who has painted his truck with the names of the republican ticket, and the evangelists walking up and down the line asking why you hate God. This conversation goes like so:

Me: Folks, please ignore the dead baby truck. We're not here to engage in an argument with these people, which is what they want. Please ignore them.

Angry Obama supporter: But what they're saying isn't even true!

Me: I know, but a response from us validates them and we do not want to validate them, do we?

Angry Obama supporter: What does validate mean?

And so it went for hours. On my feet. In the heat. No water. No appreciation.

When the rally finally begins, I am sadly not inside. No, it seems I'm going to be stuck outside, hoping to catch a few words that will carry over the crowd.

This does not happen. I hear bits and pieces of Obama's speech - something about pie? - and then it's over. The same crowd that nearly ran me over to get in is now nearly running me over to get out.

*Sigh.* So much work and I don't even get to see Obama.

I'd invited someone to the rally who was visiting from out of town and who has not volunteered for the campaign at all. This person met up with me as the crowd dispersed. We'd been separated earlier in the day when volunteer tasks were being assigned.

He walks up and I get ready to hear his tales of rally-as-a-volunteer life. Instead, he says it was the most amazing experience of his life. He was placed on stage, and yes, shook the Senator's hand, as well as the hands of our governor and mayor. He doesn't even live in the state. Or in a battleground.

There is no justice.

I blame Bush. And McCain.

What's the Matter With Florida?

I gotta tell ya, folks, there's something strange about Florida. It's already suspect because of the 2000 election, those weird expansion baseball teams that make it to the playoffs, and the curious retirement communities. Plus, you know... it's my birth state.

But in Florida's 16th Congressional District, well, frankly, I'm beginning to think the water isn't potable.

Some of you will remember Republican Mark Foley, who was caught writing inappropriate text messages to his underage pageboys. In 2006, he was replaced by Democrat Tim Mahoney, who promised to bring some good old-fashioned decency back into the office.

Turns out that Tim was pallin' around (sans pants) with a lady staff member during the election in which he promised to bring that good old-fashioned decency back into the office. I guess by "decency" he meant banging chicks instead of harassing underage pageboys.

Tim also shelled out $121,000 (and a job) to keep the woman quiet. And although he has admitted to violating the woman, he says he didn't violate any laws or his oath of office.

And naturally, he considers it to be a "private matter." Good luck with that, Tim.

What is it with these douchebag politicians who can't keep their Jolly Ranchers in their wrappers?

If you enjoy sordid political affairs, you can read more about it here.

Maybe I'll Give the Phillies a Pass This Round

It's my duty as a Mets fan to root against the Philadelphia Phillies. Hence, my support for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series.

But over the weekend, Philly's hockey fans really came through in a big way. Sarah Palin was pallin' around with the Philadelphia Flyers management and dropped the ceremonial first puck. The Philadelphia Flyer faithful booed the shit out of her.

Oh, Flyers fans. I sure am glad that your booing wasn't deterred by the presence of Palin's pregnant daughter, or by that other little girl who likes to lick her brother's hair. After all, they were pallin' around with Sarah Palin.

Now I'm torn. Do I root for the Phillies because I see eye-to-eye politically with a good chunk of Philadelphia sports fans? I mean, they're the Phillies, the Mets' rivals. But they booed Palin mercilessly. And that's Fan Support I Can Believe In.

Undecided Baldies

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the prominence of baldness during the past week's presidential debates.

The first mention occurred during Talking Points Memo's live blog of the debate:

9:09 PM ... We're told this audience was selected to be a cross-section of the local community. But is it not obvious that it's weighted to bald men?

Well, TPM, I'm not sure what you're saying exactly.

Then on Thursday evening, when Saturday Night Live decided to take their election-spoofing ratings boon for a midweek prime time spin, Amy Poehler also observed that the debate crowd was full of baldies.

Last but not least, during the debate itself, John McCain made a joke about getting hair plugs. Like most of his jokes during the town hall, this one too fell flat.

Let me just state for the record, lest these observations become stereotypes about my people, i.e. the bald people... Not all bald people are undecided, and not all bald people want plugs.

What Stood Out This Week - 10/5-10/11

If we can just sustain a campaign in that magic corridor between hate and violence, I think we'll pull this thing off. Let's see What Stood Out This Week...

The Democrat

Let's face it: Barack Obama wants to keep the trajectory of this campaign exactly the way it's going now. Hell, when there are people who are bigoted to the point of dropping n-bombs during interviews and yet still admit that they don't know who they're voting for... Well, you're starting to reach beyond the typical undecided voter.

Barack Obama had a very disciplined week. He's probably the most disciplined candidate ever who still has some charisma.

The Republican

The McCain/Palin campaign is actually becoming dangerous. They can try to call it passion from their supporters, but it's hate.

All week long supporters have been shouting things like "Terrorist!" and "Bomb him!" and "Kill him!" at various McCain/Palin rallies, and until yesterday, McCain and Palin weren't doing anything to stop them. In fact, at times, they were even stoking the fires of hate.

Things are particularly dangerous at the rallies that feature Palin (who, by the way, totally abused her power and broke the law in that Troopergate scandal in Alaska-near-Russia, even though the McCain campaign "officially" cleared her of wrongdoing earlier in the day). Palin's a culture warrior, accusing Obama of hating America and pallin' around with terrorists.

So at a town hall yesterday, after a couple of days of conservative pundits saying (on cable) that McCain needs to be careful with inciting these crowds, McCain tried to douse the flames a bit. He called Obama "a good man" with whom he simply has fundamental differences. Americans don't have to be afraid of an Obama presidency, he said. He's not an Arab, he explained. Obama's a family man who loves his country.

The crowd booed. Not what they want to hear, and not what they've now become accustomed to hearing, at a McCain rally. To his credit, McCain insisted (during the forum) that his campaign and supporters remain respectful. He did get some cheers.

Now, the cynics will say that it's because the hatred, the Ayers attacks, and the negativity have all backfired. The idealists will insist it's because deep down McCain is a good man who didn't want to go negative in the first place.

I say the negativity backfired. And if you want to read where some of my (additional) McCain cynicism comes from, take a gander at the cover story from the most recent Rolling Stone. It's quite a thorough indictment of the "Make Believe Maverick."

You may also recall that there was a debate this week, but it was so dull (other than Tom Brokaw's obsession with time) that it hasn't Stood Out.

So that's What Stood Out This Week. Just over three weeks until voting day, B&E readers. Can you believe it?

Apologies to the Dodgers and (Devil) Rays

As long as the stock market is still crashing and the election is even uglier, let's return to baseball.

That's right, B&E/baseball fans! The playoffs continue!

The usual is happening again, I'm afraid. My support is a curse. In each round I pick the teams I'd like to see win, and so far, only one team has advanced. My temporary fandom of the Angels, Brewers, and Cubs doomed them. (Although, to be fair, the Cubs have their own set of issues.) Only the (Devil) Rays survived my cheers.

So now the (Devil) Rays and Red Sox face off against each other in the American League, while the Phillies and Dodgers go head-to-head in the National League.

Since I'm now rooting for the (Devil) Rays and Dodgers to continue on, I fully expect to see a Red Sox-Phillies World Series.

(To non-baseball fans, I was looking for an image of some sexy Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays players, but couldn't find anything quickly. So instead I offer this one, which goes with this story. I want to know whose job it is to scrub the paint off those things.)

Dude, We Can Totally Go to Iceland!

When I make this whole financial crisis about me (because, after all, what is a blog if not a vehicle for narcissism), I see some silver linings.

The missus and I rent, we have debt, and we have no savings or retirement plans or anything. We do have good jobs with relative job security. Based on bshort's explanation of the economy in the comments below, this puts us in a pretty decent position with regard to this here recession.

Well, there's even better news. Some of you may remember that the missus and I went to Sweden last year. When we were exploring places to go, Iceland was actually pretty near the top of the list, but with the weak-ass dollar and the strong-ass kroner in Iceland, we just couldn't freakin' afford it.

But now Iceland's broke! The Icelandic kroner is tanking, the government has taken control of all the banks, and the Lutheran leaders of this Lutheran nation are calling for a return to traditional values (which I suspect means something a little different in Iceland than it does here).

Bring on the hot springs and long summer days and Ring Road and reindeer meat! Hell, I'm even (culturally if not religiously) Lutheran, so bring on the Lutherans!

Yeah, So I Watched the Debate

I have one little question. Both of these fellas want Georgia to be in NATO. (I'm assuming they meant the country, not the state within the U.S.) If Georgia had been in NATO a couple months ago, wouldn't we be at war with Russia right now?

I'm still voting for "that one."

Naomi Klein Is Smarter Than You (and Me)

With the collapse of our economy over these past few weeks, I've been meaning to give another shout-out to my journalist crush Naomi Klein. She knows things and explains them well, and she's been making the circuit on the talk shows, from schooling idiots on Fox News to having fun with Stephen Colbert.

For the second post in a row, I also need to give credit to Democracy Now!. Amy Goodman did me the pleasure of playing a full hour yesterday of Naomi giving a speech at the University of Chicago.

You see, the University of Chicago is building a $200,000,000 economics center to be named for free marketeer Milton Friedman. Milton taught at U of C, and influenced several generations of free market economists.

Naomi does a hell of a job of explaining what happens when this ideological economic theory gets played out in practice. (I'll give you a hint: It's not good.)

One would think that the market collapse would be an indictment of the Milton Friedman school of thought, but instead the right-wing followers of his theories are pushing for even less regulation. See "Gingrich, Newt."

Naomi's speech at U of C is wide-ranging, pointed, and smart. She discusses her grandparents, who were rabid Marxists, and their devastation of learning what was happening under Stalin in the Soviet Union. She tells this story to make an important point: the left has been held responsible for what happens to Marxist theory in practice.

Well, we've now reached a time when the right needs to be held responsible for the exploitation, greed, and devastation that occurs in the wake of right-wing, Milton Friedman, free market ideology when it plays out in practice.

Go, Naomi! Boy, I sure do have a crush on you. Maybe the missus will give me The Shock Doctrine in paperback for Christmas.

Another Reason I Wish I Was an Economist

Here in New York we're waking up to worldwide market crashing. So if we assume that...

- the missus and I have no investments,
- we don't own our own home, or any homes at all,
- we both have gainful employment...

Does any of this affect us at all?

And who's the bald lunatic screaming about money and taking it all so personally?

Man, the morning routine without NY1 totally blows.

What Stood Out This Week - 9/28-10/4

Uncomfortable interviews, uncomfortable bailouts, and uncomfortable debates. Let's see, uncomfortably, What Stood Out This Week.

Vice Presidents

Sarah Palin Stood Out This Week, because her interview with Katie Couric that began with her convoluted explanation as to why Alaska's proximity to Russia made her a foreign policy expert was spread out over the week, and seemingly every day, there was a new awkward moment. What newspapers does she read? "Oh, you know, most of 'em." Other than Roe v. Wade, what Supreme Court decision does she disagree with? "...?"

Suddenly the VP debates took on new meaning and anticipation. People wanted to watch the train wreck. On one hand, you've got Joe Biden, who very often sticks his foot deeply in his mouth. On the other, Sarah Palin, who might know absolutely nothing beyond her talking points.

Democrat, Republican, Third/Fourth/Fifth Party

Right, so the debate. Yeah, I didn't watch it. My blood pressure can't take it, and fortunately, it was on TV opposite the baseball playoffs.

Apparently, both candidates did fine. Perhaps Biden "won," but Palin did well enough to restore some confidence in her. No "game-changers."

Of course there were no game-changers. The debates aren't serious discussions. They're not even really debates. They're a chance for both sides to recite sound bites.

And ultimately, of course, people don't vote for vice president anyway.

But here's the real problem... It's the debates themselves. (I got a crash course from Democracy Now! with Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzales.)

The debates are currently sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates, a bipartisan group that works with the candidates and party leaders to structure the format, the total number, and everything else related to the presidential debates (as their name would imply).

Sounds alright, doesn't it? Except the Commission is bipartisan, i.e. two parties. The debates should be organized by a nonpartisan group, i.e. no parties.

For years, the debates were organized by the League of Women Voters. They set the rules, and the candidates could participate under their rules or not. It was up to them. But they were televised events, which meant millions of viewers, and very few candidates didn't participate.

In 1980, Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter refused to debate third-party candidate John Anderson. The League of Women Voters said, "Well, we've invited him, and Ronald Reagan's coming. We'd love to have you, too." Jimmy didn't show, and Reagan debated Anderson. You might recall (or learned via history, depending on your age) that Reagan trounced Carter in that election.

By 1988, the Commission was created. It is perhaps one of the only true bipartisan organizations in the country, because its primary interest is to keep the two-party system strong to the exclusion of other candidates. They work with the major candidate campaigns to set the rules, none of which are ever actually made public.

Whether or not a third party is allowed to participate is based on the completely subjective question, "Can they realistically win?"

In 1992, Ross Perot was included in the debates, but only because George Bush the First wouldn't debate if he wasn't included. The Clinton campaign didn't want him there but knew that denying his presence would look cowardly.

In 1996, it was Bob Dole who particularly didn't want Perot involved, thinking that Perot would pull more support away from him than President Clinton. Clinton had a large lead in the polls over Dole and used Perot as a bargaining chip. Rather than demand Perot's inclusion, Clinton limited the number of debates to two and set them both opposite the World Series, hoping no one would watch and therefore not change the dynamic of the race.

And so on...

No third party will ever be included unless both parties want the third party candidate involved.

This year, Ralph Nader (Independent), Cynthia McKinney (Green), and Bob Barr (Libertarian) are all on enough state ballots that they could conceivably win a plurality of electoral votes to win the presidency. But McCain and Obama don't want them in the debates, and the Commission on Presidential Debates does the two major parties' bidding.

I'm not actually overstating the case when I say that this is strangling our democracy. The best ideas come from third parties. The Republican Party was just a third party, after all, when it took up the issue of the abolition of slavery.

Most popular movements become embraced first by third parties. And those third parties either become serious contenders, or the popular movement becomes embraced by one of the major parties.

We need to hear from alternate voices. Two very simple examples from the debates so far that demonstrate why...

All four candidates (I'm talking Dem and Pube Prez and Vice Prez) support the monstrous Wall Street bailout. We need to hear why it's a bad idea too. All four candidates stand against gay marriage. We need to hear why treating a large portion of the population as second-class citizens is un-American.

We need to open our debates. And you can read more about this at opendebates.org.

And that's What Stood Out This Week.

Guest Post - Baldy in a Battleground - Episode 9

Dream Analysis in a Battleground

Lest anyone should wonder if election anxiety is creeping its way into my dreams, here is as accurate an account as I can give of my dream last night:

The volunteer coordinator of the campaign office kept stealing my writing utensils and replacing them with cookware - spatulas, tongs, soup ladles, etc. After I had stolen my pens and pencils back from her multiple times, and very cleverly put them in a container for kitchen utensils, thinking this would trick her, she did it again. When I went to confront her, she informed me that Senator Obama was coming to town and that it was my job to take him around and introduce him to all the volunteers.

Imagine my surprise when, upon his arrival at the office, in walked Mayor Tommy Carcetti, from The Wire. He wasn't with Barack, he WAS Barack. I was confused, but everyone was acting like he was Barack, so I went along with it. That is, until I took him to the first volunteer house. My volunteer opened the door, he said, "Surprise!" and hugged her, at which point she looked at me and said, "Who the hell is this guy?" I told her it was Barack Obama, but she wasn't buying it.

Barack Obama/Tommy Carcetti was very upset about her reaction. He'd been expecting a warmer reception. I hesitated for a moment and then said, "Well, Barack, you just don't look the way you look on TV. I mean, for one, you're black on TV. But here, you're white, and short, and you're also a character on an HBO drama. We're just confused."

He was hurt. He didn't understand. I asked him if he knew he was black, or at least that he appeared black on TV. He said he'd been hearing whispers. As best he could tell, there was a lighting issue the first time he ever appeared on TV, which made him look black. There was such a positive response to the possibility of the first black president, that his handlers had decided to keep using the lighting trick. Nobody had told him this directly - they didn't want him to be involved in the lie - but this was his theory as to what was happening. The constant rejection by people seeing him in person and realizing he was that white guy from The Wire, was really getting him down, though.

Sad, huh?

I wonder if Stringer Bell is white, too... And McNulty is black...

Where's My Weather on the 1's?

Every so often, NY1 goes dark on me. Such mornings are quiet. Too quiet. This is one of those mornings. I don't like it. It's like I've lost my moral compass.

Bloomberg Seeks Third Term, Lips

Apparently, Mayor Mike Bloomberg, a.k.a. Mayor Mike, a.k.a. Bloomby, wants to serve a third term. Here in New York City, we've got ourselves some term limits, so technically this is against the rules. So he's gunning to change the rules.

I've got mixed feelings on the matter. I'm fairly certain that I've never voted for Mayor Mike (I can't actually remember who I voted for during his re-election - Ferrer? Would I do that? - so maybe I did vote for Bloomby).

Overall, I don't think Mayor Mike has been a bad mayor at all. I like his environmental vision for the City. Even if the congestion pricing thing didn't work out, I'm thrilled he tried and hasn't given up. He's a bit pro-business for my tastes, and I'm not convinced his approach to education is the right one, but I desperately hope it is, for the sake of the public school kids.

But there is one thing I like tremendously about this whole third term thing...

Remember Rudy Giuliani? America's Mayor? Noun, verb, 9/11? He was all heroic and brave and calming and blahdiblah during the days following September 11, 2001? And then he did what all New Yorkers expected and became a Dickhead again. We didn't actually know how the Dickheadedness would manifest itself; we just knew he'd return to Dickheadness. Rudy declared himself to be Mayor-For-Life or something equivalent, despite that Mayor Mike had already been elected to replace him.

Well, at no point was a third term seriously considered for Rudy. And yet for Mayor Mike, the powers-that-be are looking into it. So that's a nice little "fuck you" to Rudy, and I like any opportunity to give a fond "fuck you" to Rudy.

Oh, and Mayor Mike has no lips.