prole

That photo really brings out the chicken skin that's accumulating at the top of his collar.

Um, no, not even close to an accurate representation of the man, and a laughable comparison between these two non-equals. TR entered politics when he was 23. Aside from a few years ranching and soldiering, he was a nationally known politician his entire adult life. By the time he was offered the VP slot, he was a national hero. TR was also a highly cultured and educated intellectual. Raised in a prominent Manhattan family, there was nothing podunk about him. He excelled at Harvard, was fluent in several languages including latin and ancient Greek, authored over 30 books, including a national best selling series on the winning of the West, loved literature and poetry, in addition to being a gifted athlete and naturalist. As for his hunting; he couldn't hit the broad side of a barn because of his poor eyesight. Most of all, he was deeply embued with a social consience; he was the first president to reign in the unchecked power of big busines, and the first to side with a union during a strike. He also firmly believed in helping the poor. Sarah Palin is none of these things. Come on, the GOP always picks the stupid ones, the controlling corps know they make better puppets. Bill Clinton, Rhodes scholar (didn't graduate but only 35 Americans receive this scholorship annually). Obama magna-cum-laude doctorate. First black president of Harvard law revue. McCain. Graduated 6th from the bottom in a class of 899 at the Naval Academy Palin. 6 colleges in 5 years just to earn a 4 year Journalism degree. Maybe she had to college shop to find someone willing to pass an F student. Or she ran through the football team and wanted new meat. As new mayor of Wasilla 6,000 pop at the time, was proud to announce she took a pay cut. Didn't mention she hired a manager to do the mayor job and the total wage was more than the original. In other words she couldn't even handle mayor of podunk. Obama was dead on about the pig lipstick comment, but Palin isn't the pig. She's the lipstick and McCain and the repug party is the pig. Empty fake gloss to pretty up a stinking rotten corpse of a party. "Duh, but they're just like me!"

I haven't read much by her in a while, but yep this pretty much covers the idea: From Olympics: Unveiling Police State 2.0

Fer cryin' out loud, keep it under your hat, man! We're still on Code Orange. Remain vigilant! Palin/McCain

Nah, not as long as the jesuit economists and their alcolytes in the business press can still filibuster us to death with ahistorical technojargon, right? During the next couple decades of re-regulation we can look forward to the remaining true-believers whine about the misapplication of "sound market principles" or failure to "go all the way" as the explanation for the current crisis (their IMF clergy members will have had plenty of practice from South America) on the one hand. On the other we can expect to hear how reregulation is doomed to failure and totalitarianism is right around the corner. Your dustbin awaits fellas, filed right next to "the end of history". Unhappily, as a result of the failure of their misguided doctrines the next phase of global capitalism is likely to have a strong authoritarian flavor. Don't think the American technocrats watching the Chinese Olympics weren't wondering "what the hell's so great about democracy anyway?"

Anybody here making large withdrawals today? Link

Paul Theroux on Henry David Thoreau on moose hunting for votes.

Thanks for ruining my day.

More foreclosures followed by the rise of a new slumlord/real estate speculator class? Yay?

Oh I like art, I like art in public spaces. Unfortunately, most works commissioned by the State are the adult equivalent of the Teletubbies: vacant, banal, decontextualized gobbledegook. At worst it's merely a reconstitution of corporate and State power: East Berlin with Cows.

"Public art" is always a waste of money. Just look at this crap. Giving money to artists on the other hand... We wouldn't be in this mess.

Hey diddle diddle, The cat and the fiddle, The cow jumped over the moon. The little dog laughed to see such fun, And the dish ran away with the spoon.

Yeah Billcoe, keep up the doom and gloom scenario and people will start to believe it. Guh.

You're on the right track. Deregulation resulting in the explosion of "exotic" financial instruments is the story that's (not suprisingly) still not being told by the lobbyists and business press that championed it.

Yes "a bit of trouble" to say the least. This election has turned into the national joke (hence my ageist comments). Given the scale and scope of the crisis our country and our planet is facing, the stakes have perhaps never been higher. Our political leadership has never been more impotent, our national political discourse more banal and cynical. I am not an alarmist, but taking a longer-term view of things given this toxic mixture, I would say there will be upheavals in the coming years the likes of which have not been seen since our grandpappy's day.

Hmmm. Yes, the Democratic Party is the American party of vitriolic hatred for every man, woman, and child on the planet. It's efforts over the last seventy years or so for something approaching full employment, affordable health care, an internationalist foreign policy, stewardship for the environment, etc., etc. is really just a smokescreen for its real aims to steal everybody's private property and put everyone into State run labor camps which of course is in accordance with its Communist ideological aims. There, you win. It's all true, just tune into AM talk radio tomorrow morning and it'll tell you. Good night and sleep tight!

Who's being dense now?

Mmmm...no.

Oh, please elaborate...and be sure to provide late 20th century historical examples.

Well, I suggest you take that proof to your next beer-hall pustch meeting with all 6 of the wackos that share your worldview and draft an immediate action plan to stockpile food and weapons for the coming race war.

How is your life's work coming along anyway?

skeet, skeet, skeet

OK, I just wanted to get this in before newspapers hit the stands tomorrow. McCain is a dried up, mummified, moldering, half-dead, wrinkly, prune-faced, shouldn't be driving, poopy-drawered, Metamucil drinking, prescription drug popping, liver-spotted, rotten toothed, haggard, wizened, varicosed, walker needing, red scooter driving, Clapper using, Lawrence Welk listening, Matlock watching, vestigial head growing out of the side of his face old coot! (The views and opinions expressed here...)

Given the political scorched-earth campaigns the Repubs have waged with their 51% "mandates" over the last decade and the complete farce the 2008 campaign is shaping up to be, I'd be surprised if we didn't see some "uppity-ness". Bring it on.