Stock Market: 401K losing value; becomes 106L

Here's the question of the day; Where's the bottom? Now, there are a few bottoms in question.

First, the financial bottom. As of this morning, Asian, Australian and European markets are in sharp decline. I'm sure there are a fair number of people (myself included) who are worried about the day ahead.

Second is the political bottom. It seems like John McCain is taking the brunt of it, perhaps unfairly. (In a way) It seems to me that John McCain embellished his role in the negotiations of a bailout package to reap the benefits, but now with it's collapse it is only criticism being served. It seems like a number of Republicans bailed on it after a speech by Nancy Pelosi. That is quite a petty reason to bail on a bill, albeit a flawed one. With that being said.... Nancy Pelosi, shut your mouth. Shut it. The speech you gave on the house floor was unnecessary and inappropriate. You lauded this bill as a great bipartisan victory. Did you really need to jab them in the eye while handing them the pen? Seriously. Back to McCain. Sensing desperation, John McCain decided to get angry. The problem in that his anger is not genuine, it's manufactured, and you can tell just by watching him. Johnny Mac---You don't come across passionate or concerned, you come across as disingenuous and condescending. Even your crowds seem disengaged. If I were you, I'd kick it up a notch. Pepper your town hall speeches with "Don't you fuckers get it?"

The bottom of politician intelligence and/or experience.

"Of concern to McCain's campaign, however, is a remaining and still-undisclosed clip from Palin's interview with Couric last week that has the political world buzzing.
The Palin aide, after first noting how "infuriating" it was for CBS to purportedly leak word about the gaffe, revealed that it came in response to a question about Supreme Court decisions.
After noting Roe vs. Wade, Palin was apparently unable to discuss any major court cases.
There was no verbal fumbling with this particular question as there was with some others, the aide said, but rather silence." http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0908/In_reintroduction_Palin_to_do_more_interviews_and_tell_her_story.html

Nuff said.

"Yeah, hi. Barack? It's John. Listen, Friday is no good for me."

I know that John McCain is an exceptionally patriotic man. That being said, what he's trying to do in regards to the debate schedule is not an act of pure patriotism. It's more of an act of first aid. Step 1: Stop the bleeding. The past 2 weeks have been very damaging for the Republican candidate. We are now seeing a bold move to try and stem the flow of voter support and confidence making it's way to Obama. It seems as if McCain was posturing to put a line in the sand: "Where do you stand Mr. Obama, with your presidential aspirations, or the well-being of the nation?" It's a take on the "Country-First" slogan he (McCain) has been pushing. It doesn't seem as if it's going to work this time. Here are some of the elements behind the miscalculation:

1. McCain is admittedly not an expert on the economy. Neither his, nor Obama's presence in Washington directly adds any girth of financial wisdom to the discussions.
2. Speaking of country first, isn't a well informed electorate supremely important? We are on the cusp of one of the most important elections in a generation, and I feel it is rather important for the American public to see the candidates debate. Frequently.
3. McCain's proposal would also include the postponement of the Vice-Presidential debate. Interesting... Now we may be on to something. Polls have come out recently stating that a majority of Americans (Including Laura Bush) feel as though Gov. Sarah Palin does not have the necessary experience to be president. Couple that with the fact that Palin continues to struggle with the basic policy questions she has fielded. McCain know this much; Palin is a liability, and is not remotely prepared to debate Joe Biden.
4. Obama didn't bite. Sorry John, you're in no man's land now. We know that It was Obama, not McCain who initiated contact yesterday to propose a joint statement. The two spoke in the afternoon, and McCain immediately followed the discussion with his request. Was the request for postponement discussed with the Obama camp? From what I have read, they did seem rather surprised by it. But they held their ground. They have stated that the president should be able to handle more than one thing at a time, and Obama assured that he is ready to assist in Washington, should his services be deemed necessary by involved parties, but he was still prepared to debate.

Obama comes out of this looking strong, prepared, calm and (dare I say) Presidential. McCain looks flustered. Clearly if McCain felt he had any position of strength going into the debate, this postponement would not occur. Nice try John. See you on Friday.

Let's Sign this thing! Uh, wait....what?

Here's some language from the proposed bailout package:

"Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency."

Sounds like the Patriot Act is now being sponsored by American Express.

Movin' on up!

Here's your chance to be part of the First Family!

http://politsk.blogspot.com/2008/09/sarah_13.html

Sincerely,

Copper Catfish Palin

You talkin' to me, (my friend)?

The past few weeks have been a rollercoaster for a self proclaimed political junkie such as myself. I will be honest when I confess that the pick of Sarah Palin scared me. The enthusiasm that seemed to surround her was ferocious. She seemed untouchable. If anyone asked anything at all about her record, or her experience... well, you just about got your face ripped off, didn't you? No one could get close to her. Forget swiftboating, she wasn't even taking softballs. Perhaps this worked to her detriment. With her out of the spotlight, the media still needs to fill the void of Sarah Palin news. They went to Troopergate, and the bridge. There were people who revealed that maybe, just maybe she was feeding us a line. At this point, it feels like they have come down a bit. Several of McCain's TV spots have been denounced as lies. The ethics violations against Palin are starting to take hold, and her refusal to cooperate will end up fanning the flames. (Good point about this one, Guy) John McCain himself has been getting testy in a number of interviews lately, particularly on "Morning Joe." Hell, he even got grilled on "The View." I didn't see that one coming.

And another thing....

Exactly how many of you soccer moms out there who relate so well with Sarah Palin hang your asses out of a helicopter to murder wolves? Anybody? Anybody?

Announcement

I live in northern Rhode Island. It is a hilly town, and my locale is a at a high point. On the right day, with the right conditions, I have a (somewhat) clear view of Wrentham, MA and Franklin, MA. It is in that spirit, that I am pleased to announce my candidacy for the chair of Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. I feel that having the view of these towns for close to thirty years has given me all the experience necessary to fill this role at a moments notice. What is it that the Lieutenant Governor does exactly? That doesn't really matter. After all, I'm spunky. I'm a straight shooter who don't take nuthin' from nobody. I'm a bachelor. A baseball bachelor. And you know the difference between a bachelor and a Mass resident? Turn signals.

Addendum: I will be unavailable for all media inquiries until further notice.

The Wolfhunter of the Great Northwest Returns!

Sarah Palin is in Alaska. Now would be the time for Alaska Independence Party to do it's thing. Secede! Secede! I can only assume that the next few days will be more of the same. Short of The Governor finding herself on the business end of a bridge to nowhere collapse, she'll be touring her home state, telling the same kitschy little ditties that have been resonating through the cabins of every minivan in America.
Why does the media leave the story as "Obama says the comment was not about Palin, but the McCain campaign feels that it was, and that it is sexist?" Why can't someone come out and say point blank that the assertion being made by McCain is disingenuous, and flat out ridiculous? Oh wait, someone has...


"...there may have been good ways to take shots at Obama over the "lipstick on a pig" comment. But the Republicans are coming across as whiny grievance-mongers. Don't they realize that this harping on ambiguous slights is what people hate about political correctness? It was bad enough when liberals were trying to destroy Palin. Now Republicans are trashing her brand. They're undermining the basis of her appeal as a different, tougher kind of female politician. Today has been worse than wasted."


Who said that, you ask? Bill O'Reilly.

God help us.

Kissing a Pig

Though you'd never know it these days, objectivity is still a journalistic imperative. I am no journalist. That being said, Sarah Palin is a liar. Sarah Palin is a snake. Sarah Palin is possibly the most damaging development of the campaign season. This woman, as disingenuous as she is vindictive has spent the past two weeks on the attack. She travels from town to town, precociously tucked under Uncle John's trench coat. Shielded from the media and voters alike, she regurgitates a constant pablum for the masses to devour without questioning the authenticity of the orator. I bet it tastes like delicious moose stew, doesn't it? She has had 2 weeks worth of mud-slinging, without repercussion. She has not once been held accountable for the false rhetoric she is spewing. She refuses to speak to the media. She is the untouchable. That is, until it's absolutely necessary.
Perhaps this can be used to the favor of the Democratic party. If there is one thing she will not be accustomed to, no matter how much preparation her handlers run her through, it a direct and scathing response. Who can provide such a response? To quote Bill Maher, "Sarah barracuda, meet Joey the shark." On October 8th, the vice-presidential debate will take place in St. Louis. Admittedly, Biden will have a fine line to walk. He needs to attack Palin, and it helps there are so many points on which an effective attack can be made. Biden will undoubtedly be chomping at the bit to come out of the gates with guns blazing, (if he truly wanted to, I believe he could make her cry) but he needs to be sure not to go overboard. In the end, let's not kid ourselves. Biden is a skilled debater. He has the true ability to run circles around her without breaking a sweat. This challenge, especially if Palin to this point has not engaged in direct policy debate, will prove to be a metaphorical punch between the eyes. I am going on the assumption, of course, that they actually get the chance to discuss actual issues.
Undoubtedly, we're looking at a few news cycles where the media will be towing the line that Obama called Gov. Palin "a pig in lipstick." It's sad how much attention this is going to get. Lets take a moment to recall this quote of John McCain from an article by Rick Pearson on http://www.swamppolitics.com/:

-----"McCain criticized Democratic contenders for offering what he called costly universal health care proposals that require too much government regulation. While he said he had not studied Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton's health-care plan, he said it was "eerily reminiscent" of the failed plan she offered as first lady in the early 1990s.
"I think they put some lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig," he said of her proposal."

McCain knows he can't win on issues, only distractions. This will be merely another example of that. Lipstick on a pig. It's an irresponsible way to run a campaign, but it is not beneath McCain. IN that vein, here's another one for you Johnny Mac... You can have erectile dysfunction and still be a prick.