John McCain's speech - live
I'll be commenting on John McCain's acceptance speech live, so please keep refreshing your page to read my most recent updates.
21:17: A slightly tentative start from John McCain with praise for Laura Bush. Most Americans know that the Bushes and McCains are not close. He can't waste time in this speech with platitudes - he's got to say something exciting.
21:21: The stage is low, looking in from the side. It appears that John McCain is attached to the crowd. It's a nice effect - it certainly works from the angle I'm at.
21:25: A protestor is shouting - the crowd is drowning him out with prolonged shouts of "USA".
21:26: This is now becoming a serious distraction. Another protestor is shouting as he's hauled out of the arena - will McCain be put off his stride?
21:27: The protestor's silenced now - and there's a huge cheer for a mention of Sarah Palin.
21:30: A strange part of th speech now where he's talking about changing Washington - does he think President Bush has been a good thing or a bad thing? It's one of the questions he's going to have to address in the speech. It's almost as if the enemy has been in power in Washington for the last eight years.
21:36: An important little story now about a family having a tough life in the heartland. It ends with him saying: "Their lives matter to me". If people believe that, McCain has a chance of winning this. If he's unconvincing he simply can't win. And he knows the polls show most people don't think he understands their lives.
21:41: We've reached a section of the speech where he goes through the things he would do and the things Obama would do - with cheers for him and boos for Obama. The audience is energised but I'm not sure it plays that well around the nation.
21:42: A good line on jobs: "We're going to help workers who've lost a job that won't come back to find a new one that won't go away".
21:44: A promise for more choice in education gets good cheers as well. This is the kind of thing that the country needs to hear, though frankly I think this audience would rather be cheering and booing - and they're still dreaming of Sarah...
21:47: A big cheer as well for a promise to drill new oil wells off the American coast. Funny, he hasn't mentioned man-made global warming. The Iron Lady from Alaska doesn't think it exists. A real straight-talk express line would have been to tell this audience - and her - that it does.
21:51: A promise of solidarity with Georgia is almost whispered. It's a style that leaves the audience here a little non-plussed but I suspect on TV it works quite well. He looks calm and controlled. A ranting McCain would frighten the horses.
21: 52: Again, when he says "I know how to stand up to those who oppose us", he whispers it. The line has little effect in the hall but may well strike a chord outside.
21:54: I thought for one brief and very strange moment that Cindy McCain had walked out. This would be news event. In fact I would probably have to stop blogging to cover it. But in fact the family have simply moved behind the scenes to prepare to join him on the stage later.
21:58: He tells the story of being shot down over Vietnam with a twinkly charm. Humorous, but it brings you up short to look at him - a 72-year old man - and to think what his body has been through. And his mind.
22:01: I wonder if part of his low-key speaking style is a deliberate effort to draw a distinction between himself and Obama.
22:05: The end of the speech is almost entirely drowned out by cheering. Most people can't hear what he's staying but they don't care. They think there ought to be one rousing moment so they've decide to make one for themselves.
Thanks for reading - log on later on when i'll be giving you a more considered take - and other people's reactions as well.
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Is it just me, or is the crowd continually cheering everything actually putting him off a bit?
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He does seem a bit distracted but he has had to follow Palin which cannot be easy since he is not as pretty and really does not have anything new to say.
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Where Sarah Palin's speech made me nauseous, John McCain's speech reminded me of why I liked him much better than Bush II. Not that I'd vote for him now, of course, since there were several things in his speech that still put me off, but his speech made me respect him again.
At least, tonight I respect him. And congratulate him on getting the RNC's nomination. (As he said to Obama last week, tomorrow morning it's "Game On" again!) Hearing his POW story in his own words was an eye-opener (if repetitive). It was enlightening to hear about his Vietnam experience, and there's no way to put down his military experiences.
However, some of what he spoke about tonight reinforces why I, as an American, will vote for Obama instead of McCain:
1. His mention of giving parents a choice as to where to place their children in schools alludes to the volatile "school vouchers" issue that threatens to take money away from public schools who sorely need the funds and give them to private schools, leaving the less-able parents and students in even more crumbling public schools and worse education than before.
2. He also, in my opinion, said several lies against Obama concerning his Senate record, including his allegedly not reaching across party lines or passing any significant legislation.
3. I noticed his ending benediction for Americans to work to make our country better ("Enlist in the military, become a teacher, teach someone to read, volunteer, etc.") blatantly omitted "Become a Community Organizer".
4. "We never hide from history, we make history"--except we've hid from the history of racism, discrimination, treatment of the poor, crumbling of our infrastructure, events and gross mistreatment of many marginalized people. Oh, and the Katrina disaster victims, among other events "we've" hid from.
Again, congratulations to John McCain and a pretty darn good speech. Tonight. But tomorrow it's Game On!
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"I wonder if part of his low-key speaking style is a deliberate effort to draw a distinction between himself and Obama."
Are you kidding? He is a different person. He has a different style. And he's much older. He doesn't have to work at drawing a distinction.
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He seems to be promising a voucher system system to fund private or confessional schools if parents don't like the public ones
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Justin Webb
His service in Vietnam has been the card he has played every time, in his speeches and whenever he did not have an answer for a tough question. To paraphrase Joe Biden, McCain's talk is a "noun and a verb" and I was a POW!
I am so sorry for this poor man. It seems that this is almost all he has left to point to for his achievements. No wonder he is so desperate to count POTUS on his final reseme.
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Oh boy,
Awful reading delivery. Bad crowd reaction. Timing was to cards, not the words. 'I say' ooops hold up card saying cheer.
I would just be embarassed if one of my presentations was that way. Folksy examples back to back? No details. There were moments when he couldn't even read the words?
Any corporate VP would die on that delivery. Why is Carly not on the ticket?
Scared Sam
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1. The hecklers were a gift from God--the contrast between the leftist vitriol and McCain's dignity tells the story.
Notice how no Republicans showed up to heckle Obama last week?
Hmm...who's divisive, who's bitter?
2. He's self-conscious as an orator, but when he allows some of the personal warmth to shine through, he connects.
3. Great line about pork-barrel pols: 'I will make them famous, you will know their names!'
4. 'I'd rather lose an election than see a country lose a war.'
5. 'We lost their trust when we valued our power over principles. The party of Lincoln, Roosevelt and Reagan is going to get back to basics.'
6. (Obama claims that McCain won't talk in specifics, doesn't care that suffering exists, that he somehow 'doesn't get it'. Hmm...really?)
7. 'Education is the civil rights issue of the twenty-first century'--he hits a huge hot button. 'I want schools to answer to parents and students.'
8. Energy independence--stop sending our wealth overseas. Drill, use every resource at our disposal.
9. National defense knowledge from first-hand experience in his family.
10. 'I was blessed by misfortune...'
I had never heard him tell his own story.
'Nothing brings greater happiness than serving a cause greater than one's self.'
And, finally: 'I'm not here because history has anointed me to save the country--I'm here because this country saved me!'
After watching Obama duck and dodge Bill O'Reilly earlier this evening, the contrast could not be clearer. BHO should NEVER have taken that bait!
Obama is in trouble.
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I just wish the BBC could provide some **facts** and allow their readers to make a decisions. Take a look at PBS and see a balanced approach on all sides for Dems and Reps
C'mon Webb! You are too opinionated!
I was appalled the BBC would show the protester in the audience 3 times!! Yes, they exist, and last time I heard, the whole country is divided!
I wish the BBC would get over its love affair with Palin. Time to move on.
McCain is looking presidential tonight.
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It seems obvious that the republican party (McCain and Palin) have taken the Obama theme of Change and making it their own. I am guessing by the end of the Campaign, it may appear that they had it going from the very outset, while the other side tried to copy. While I have had immense respect for McCain for the type of leader he was, I have been increasingly put off lately as to how he has been sounding like just one of them. His intentions are utopian: how can you drill and drill and still improve the health of this planet? And what in the book is this clean Coal technology?
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Sometimes when "we make history" we'd rather forget it. Our 20 years in Vietnam from 1954 to 1975 was a misbegotten enterprise. I don't fault McCain for his role in it, however. He did what he thought was right, and served with courage and distinction, and I respect him for it. Not a reason for me to vote Republican this year, however.
We would have been better with McCain instead of Bush 2 in 2000, I think. Too late for that now.
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Gagalulu (#10), I worked for a company in the 1980s that was working on clean coal technology. It just means burning it without putting sulfer and other pollutants into the air.
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#5: 'He seems to be promising a voucher system system to fund private or confessional schools if parents don't like the public ones'
What matters more: A country that finds a variety of ways to truly educate the young, or the continued propping up of a sole-source government educational system that has proven to be a shameful failure? It's OUR tax money being spent, and our children are only issued ONE childhood apiece. Let every school compete, prove its mettle, or get out of the way and let the parents take responsibility for their children's education, as they best see fit.
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#8
Hecklers? Inside the party convention?
Is that why we heard 'USA USA' when it was sooo wrong for the moment in the speech?
Delegates were heckling in a party convention? OMG! This is the most controlled event in the nation and folks got in and heckled? The die hard Republicans disagree?
So 15,000 of the most Republican Republicans heckle each other? And 80,000 folks from colorado don't heckle a Liberal? That is amazing.
This will be fun to watch.
Excited Sam
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As OldSouth notes, no Republicans showed up last week to heckle Obama. Three showed up to shoot him, however. Probably yahoos from the "old south" who hadn't heard that the Civil War is over and they lost.
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Samtyler1969
I agree that the speech was very sad.
I left a question for you on the previous blog. Your #152 used terms and words that I was not familiar with and I would like to learn. Thank you.
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I thought McCain handled the heckler well but the crowd chanting USA was ominous.
These Republicans believe anyone who opposes their views is opposing the US.
The protesters believe that the Republicans are not following American ideals.
I don't care about speaking style. What is important to me are the ideas and whether they will work and help America and the world.
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That was a really good speech. I can't remember what he said in response to the heckler, but I remember thinking it was a great line. I also loved the part where he said he would make known the congressmen and senators who pile the pork onto legislation. I think the next president, no matter his party affiliation, should make that a priority.
I still can't vote for him due to a number of his views. Most importantly energy independence. How can he continuously say he wants to wean us off foreign oil, and point to wind and solar as ways to help with that transition, when he has avoided voting 8 times to extend the tax credits and subsidies that would expand those forms of energy? I don't get that.
But I have no doubt he would be a big improvement over Bush...just not as big as Obama in my opinion ;)
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Both Obama and McCain have delivered well crafted speeches, but then every word spoken at either convention is carefully crafted to place each party's best face forward so you can't go by that...
McCain's almost blatant support for school vouchers puts me off. And he seems eager to keep America involved overseas while ignoring some serious problems here at home. But his pledge to stop the pork barreling catches my ear in a good way.
The debates are usually more illuminating (entertaining?) than the convention speeches and I'm looking forward to seeing how the candidates respond to pressure off-the-cuff. McCain is more likely to say something rash, while Obama is more likely to say something naive. Biden is likely to get long winded, while Palin is in danger of sounding catty. As an undecided voter, I will be listening closely and the debates will probably define my decision.
Thank goodness for the BBC and for you Justin! If it weren't for 'you guys in the [british] media' I would never get an objective report. (US national news loves the dems, local news is heavily republican).
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I find the patriotic fervour (jingoism) very hard to take.
I forced myself to listen to the Republican convention (felt I ought to at least make the effort to listen) on a long drive and I am very disheartened at the rhetoric from people who claim to be 'straight talking' - what I hear is a lot of doublespeak.
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War, family, war, platitudes, war, mis-quoting Obama's positions, war, Maggie Thatcher's failed education policy, war. With lots of "when we win" and "we will win" thrown in.
Contrasts with Obama's speech:
1. With no "public" there, it seemed far more like everyone had been choreographed. Probably necessary, as his delivery style was akin to a wooden box.
2. Obama gave specifics on amounts; McCain did not. In particular, he "feels the pain" of those suffering financially, but offers no policies to help them with their woes.
3. Aggressive to Russia and "we will protect you" comments. Trigger-happy gun-totin' Americans, here's your opportunity to go and fight more wars. And be a "hero".
Like last night, smug beyond words, but not as snide and cynical as his un-vetted pit-bull.
I'm scared. For this country and the world.
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#14Samtyler
I was wondering about the hecklers, myself, but was distracted. You made a very good point about security so these people must have been Republican delegates or someone connected to them. How interesting! But I am sure it will not get much coverage, though I would really like to hear what they might think.
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Justin - a quick question for one who knows how things are done in DC (I can't use the word "Washington" as he seems to have made it into a swear word):
If he were to veto every bill with pork in it, would any legislation ever get passed?
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#16
Extreme Latin.
All I am saying
Sleepy Sam
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Well. It seemed like a good speech. I honestly wasn't giving it my full attention, but from what I heard it was most certainly the highlight of the convention.
Still, his constant talk of war is disturbing. And he spoke very little on the economy, which is the number one issue on my mind. Those issues alone keep me from even considering supporting McCain.
Nevertheless, his speech was good and he deserves the nomination. My hat's off to you John!
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I don't understand the heckler part - they allow
Democrats into a Republican convention?
As far as McCain is concerned, I think that the
only way to understand what he is saying is
to read between the lines, since he has been
at odds with members of his own party for so long.
He wants to "throw the bums out," but they're
the ones in the room. It's like a coup in Thailand
except that the news media and the ballot box
are being used instead of tanks.
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#26
They don't. Who the heck was it?
Confused Sam
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#22 aquarizonagal
Code Pink
and they are a very fun group of women. Watch for them at protests..they wear some fun costumes...while covering serious topics.
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#17Bethpa
The Republicans have been calling all those who do not agree with them 'unAmerican.' I am very tired of that and I think a lot of others are, as well. There are more out here like you than you may believe. Lets all stand up and take our country back!
My parents came to this country 83 years ago to find a better life for themselves and their children. They found that, I have had that and, by all that I hold sacred, my children, grandchildren and great grandchildren will also have that.
Whenever we despair or give up what we believe, we allow negative forces to win. I will not do that!
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#9.toocoldincanadaeh: "I was appalled the BBC would show the protester in the audience 3 times!" I don't think the BBC had its own camera crew but used a feed - the CNN broadcast had the same thing. I would have preferred to have seen more of the protesters and how they were handled - especially the one who represented American Veterans. The chant of 'USA, USA' became tedious, as if to say that only those present were Americans - which was contrary to what Mr McCain was attempting to say. A love-fest for all concerned - but Cindy, with all her millions, simply must get a new hair style!!
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If people don't know what Code Pink is then doesn't that tell you something about your news media?
"The Los Angeles Times has described her as "one of the high profile leaders of the peace movement," and in 1999, San Francisco Magazine included her on their "power list" of the "60 Players Who Rule the Bay Area." In 2005, she was nominated as one of 1,000 exceptional women from around the world to receive the Nobel Peace Prize as part of the project "1000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize.""
Leader of Code Pink
You are not getting the news you need to make decisions!!!!!
You do not know what the left thinks...you do not know their leaders or their organizations.
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#15garyahill
Yes, the FBI wanted to prosecute but to my understanding the Federal Justice Department said: NO
Maybe my information is incorrect but maybe these guys are out on the street looking for another chance.
Sometimes I think that I have lived too long and the world has turned just too mean and ugly.
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#28, bethpa, I am reassured. For a minute there
I thought that I was having a flashback, and watching
a medals award ceremony at the 1968 summer
olympics in Mexico City.
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#29 aquarizonagal
Its been very difficult to get information out about the criticisms of the Bush administration. ( Impeachment is off the table ..Pelosi)
Even the people here ..who are above average in information ...did not know what Code Pink is ..even though Code Pink is one of the most active of the protest groups.
American news is filtered.
Well we are headed into dangerous times..because the Bush administration must know there will eventually be some activity investigating their criminal activity..and how will they react? I just want them to go away...just get them out of power...
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bethpa (#31), anyone can be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. I think Hitler was nominated.
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bethpa, aquarigal,
I thought the "USA" chanting to be extremely odd.
Whose idea was that? Were they trying to
drown out the hecklers?
As far as I know, the Republican party is not
exactly the American Nazi Party yet, is it?
And, here I am without an armband!
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The speeches, the conventions, the debates. These don't tell us anything. They are badly scripted extravaganzas, like the Oscars or one of those "I Love Me" roasts, and the speakers are not exactly orators. Don't expect a Gettysburg Address.
A day or two after the convention I go on the internet and listen to two minutes here and three minutes there. It's all predictable and more than I can take. I can't wait for it to be over.
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Do people here know about the arrests of news reporters at the Republican convention?
They were arrested on the sidewalk as they tried to cover events and had identified themselves as reporters.
One was Amy Goodman from Democracy Now and another was a cameraman from ABC ..among some others
And the costs of these arrests are now being paid for by private insurance companies..so that tax payers will not have to pay for illegal arrests:
"Taxpayers Off The Hook For GOP Convention Lawsuits
Critics say the agreement has only encouraged police to use aggressive tactics knowing they won't have to pay damages."
Now the police have nothing to hold them back from egregious behavior
Welcome to America!
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Hmmm. If you check out that code pink link, you will find that they were demonstrating in Denver as well.
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Gary a Hill
The point is that you do not know about events in your own nation. You have no idea of what the left thinks.
Some "free" press
and yes
gunsandreligion
the chants were intended to drown them out. It is almost impossible to get any coverage if you want impeachment or heavily criticize the war.
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#36:
"As far as I know, the Republican party is not
exactly the American Nazi Party yet, is it?"
Answer: The emphasis is on "Yet."
The "USA" chanting used to be a sports affectation. A fun, rabble-rousing crowd raiser for the home team. A uniting chant.
Then 9/11 happened.
Now, for the Republicans, chanting "USA" is like the new litmus test of patriotism, along with the ubiquitous flag pin, riding around with a large truck and a larger flying stars-and-stripes flag, and professing one's belief in "God" (Read: Evangelist Christian) and "Country" (Read: Conservative).
Among other things, chanting "USA" is turning into a new, chilling type of McCarthy test, leaving about 65-85% of the rest of America in the cold.
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bethpa, to be fair, the article you quote does say:
"Other cities who hosted conventions in recent years - including Denver, Boston, New York and Philadelphia - either covered those costs from their general budgets or used tax money to buy insurance policies."
St. Paul was just cutting a little corner.
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gary
Code Pink is also seen at congressional hearings..you can see them on tv ...in the backround..in the audience
They are almost always women and they wear pink.
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#35. Gary_A_Hill wrote: "anyone can be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. I think Hitler was nominated." He was, but the nomination was withdrawn on 1 February 1939.
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bethpa (#40), I am the left. Most of the time, I know what I think.
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38, Bethpa.
Does this remind you of a certain European country in the middle of the 20th century?
I am really glad we are inroducing the world to freedom, democracy, and the American way. Especially China.
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38, Bethpa, et al.
We have to get rid of thos thugs. Vote Obama even if you don't like him personally.
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Editor and Publisher has been a source that has imo accurately reported the news.
Arrests at RNC Slammed as Goodman Arrest Video is Seen 500,000-Plus Times
and I made an error
the arrest of the ABC News producer was made at the Democratic Convention. An d the arrest was done imo to protect wealthy and powerful people who are running America...
ABC Reporter Arrested in Denver Taking Pictures of Senators, Big Donors
Asa Eslocker Was Investigating the Role of Lobbyists and Top Donors at the Convention
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Ms. Marbles, I don't think that McCain is like Bush.
McCain knows what it's like to be tortured. Heck,
every time I listen to Bush I am reminded what
torture is like.
I'm a little surprised that he brought in the Pearl Harbor story.
It makes me wonder when he's going to recite
some incident from the Revolutionary War.
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gary
Sorry Gary... its late at night here and I am still learning poster's names.
...................................
The big issue here is that people are not well informed by the news media and it is difficult to get information.
They give you filtered information and then you think you know ..but you do not have any depth of information.
There was a shut down on alternative points of view just as the US began to plan an invasion of Iraq...it is well documented. Most Americans have no idea though about what they do not know...
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10:00 PM PDT here (California). Watching my local news recap.
Forgot to comment on something unfortunate for John McCain: The screen behind him during part of his speech showed a Colonial-style house with a large green lawn.
Unfortunately, Mr. McCain was illuminated in front of the green lawn part. Poor man. Another "Green Screen" moment!!
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#46 allmymarbles
Its worse than you think..the laws have been changed drastically by the Bush administration
Everyone should be debating these changes..but its being hidden
I think the powerful who control this nation ( the US) do not think much of the American public and give us weak information..and looking at what we are told in speeches by people like Palin and McCain ..and how many people think this is great and plan to vote for them..well its hard to argue that people should be told more...
This is a great documentary:
The American Ruling Class
"explores our country?s most taboo topic: class, power and privilege in our nominally democratic republic." It seeks to answer the question, "Does America have a ruling class?"
(And yes it does)
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Paul Krugman at the NYTimes has written an article analyzing the Republican strategy
The Resentment Strategy
"What struck me as I watched the convention speeches, however, is how much of the anger on the right is based not on the claim that Democrats have done bad things, but on the perception ? generally based on no evidence whatsoever ? that Democrats look down their noses at regular people."
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#8 - How will McCain take the GOP "back to the basics of the party of Lincoln and (T.R.) Roosevelt and Reagan" when Reagan took the GOP on such a hard right turn after Eisenhower, who was the last of the 3 GOP greats that I would list, deserving of more than his dollar coin and my nomination for monuments before Reagan.
Nixon and Reagan started the turn and Bush took the party right off it's tracks to a different set of basics than Lincoln, TR and Ike. Susan Eisenhower's endorsement of Obama is noteworthy.
If Obama simply asks American to pull together he is labelled as a 'collective marxist' or 'socialist'. Yet Nixon instituted the most draconian federal economic controls since the 1940s, and Palin governs a state that leads in per-capita federal spending and pays state stipends to it's residents...
Ironically, Obama is labelled as 'tax and spend' when he only proposes - in his very detailed plans and speeches - to start closing our staggering deficit with a return to tax rates that we saw under Reagan.
The scenes described in #38 above, as bad as they are, worry me less than the un-American "big lie" tactics that Rove has made the normal mode of Republican campaigning...
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21:12: "It's a nice effect - it certainly works from the angle I'm at." I've only learned US English but I thought it was bad form to end a sentence with a preposition this way?
21:42: ""We're going to help workers who've lost a job that won't come back to find a new one that won't go away". What does this mean? Is it a riddle?
No mention of the fact that JM's face looked orange? Was this only evident on television?
Cheers.
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For production values alone (single screen, smaller venue not fully packed with delegates, fewer signs), I thought something was amiss. I was wondering what was with all of the "homemade" signs at the Republican convention.
Now, I know.
All of the cheering and sign-waving at the RNC wasn't exactly spontaneous or genuine, allegedly
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So McCain thats the best you can do the last two nights........Obama the next President
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This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the House Rules.
I listened to all of McCain's speech after having listened to Obama's speech to get a balanced view, and I have to admit I found it hard going. However I do find him a lot more likeable than his VP. Why all the hype about her and all that attention. To me she struck me as a female George Bush and not very appealing - rather scary to be honest. I'm a woman, pro life and a Christian but there was nothing about her that appealed to me at all. And all the nastiness about Obama - if that kind of candidate is what gets Republicans going and if swing voters are attracted to that kind of negativity, I shudder to think what the world is in for.
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WE are going to cut financial aid to non-friendly countries? we should start with the ones being invaded and own oil.
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#52 bethpa says
"I think the powerful who control this nation (the US) do not think much of the American public..."
We deserve better!
Democracy works only when all parties are good citizens! By using the big lie as a campaign tactic, the Republicans have broken their trust with America - plain and simple.
Spin does not equal truth!
Perception does not equal reality!
A society cannot be fair to all if lies are more powerful than the truth.
In the United States, we outlawed the Communist Party for just the same reason.
What makes Republican lies any more holy?
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the speech reminded me of the story of the "Emperors New Clothes"
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Chicoan (#61), the Communist Party of the United States has not been outlawed. They exist today and even have a website. They are so small as to be irrelevant in American politics today, a mere historical curiosity. That we do not need to outlaw such groups to defeat them is an indication of the strength of our political system.
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Justin, this is just the most useful way to help us get perspective on the speech as it unfolded in the convention. I wish you could have commentated along the bottom of the screen of the BBC coverage. As it was, we all tun into CNN or others because we need to hear reaction to the BS and other stuff being regurgitated (honestly, after 8 years and a majority in both houses, McCain says Republicans have the answer to the Nation's problems - that THEY created?).
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I always felt there should be a law against being Amy Goodman and I see she was arrested for violating it. Amy Goodman is so far to the left and so incompetent as a journalist that when given a chance to interview President Clinton whom some call America's first black president, she got him so angry he gave her a good scolding and walked out on her. And she bragged about it and played her scolding over and over again on the radio. Good for you Amy, that's the way to go. YOU GO GIRL!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA. Pacifica Radio, what a joke. Always has its begging bowl out. I don't think I'll live to see they day they ever go broke. Somewhere, somehow, subversive money will always find its way to them. Cuba? Hugo Chavez? Somewhere. Soviet style Communist Radio's last stand in America.
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Hey why should we complain about the presumpticans dumping on us for eight years, despite the fact that they shoulda bin potty trained, and now they're all growed-up they want to a chance to show us they can finish the job!
How could anyone possibly think that was presumptious?
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Gary_A_Hill
I'm sorry to say this but-
It ain't exactly the strength of the political system that finished communism in america-nope.
It was the strength of Joe McCarthy- and the kind of witch-hunting spin doctoring that the house of Rove specialises in. As I recall the history books say it was Hoover what helped them. Of course the fear of all those pinkos just pushed the thing right along.
Same as the Valerie Plame shindig, impeachable offense number 430 of the Bush-Cheney sham.
Say what you like about Clinton but at least he was busy in the Oval. With GW's weil known slackness I can't imagine he did anything to build up a sweat in the oval office.
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I was chilled by John McCain's delivery.
The Mob psychology and the platitudes delivered by the lone figure in the middle of a large stage brought back memories of pictures and recorded speeches of Adolph Hitler prior to World War II and beyond.
The format was most disturbing with this "mob reaction" factor.
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Addendum to #68
See also #36 for further clarification of the chant mob psychology issue.
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i hope that the speech went off great!
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