Well, I managed to catch the full VP debate last night.
I went in with no real opinion of Biden, a slightly positive one about Palin, a highly negative one of Obama, and a fairly positive one about McCain.
I came out with a highly positive opinion of Biden, a fairly positive one about Palin, a fairly negative one about Obama, and a fairly positive one about McCain.
So my opinions of three of the four principles went up. How often does that happen?
I wish Biden was running for president, and not Obama. Biden made me think he was involved, knowledgeable, genuinely cared about several issues, and despite his attemmpt to play it down I feel that he has some major divergence from Obama. IMO, that's a good thing.
I still don't feel Obama is qualified to be Commander in Chief, but my opinion of his ability to handle the domestic duties of the president has risen.
If the election were held today and Biden was running for president, I'd vote for him without hesitation or regret. As the tickets stand, however, I'm still leaning towards McCain.
I think the worst part of the debate for me was the period where both of them (I think Biden started it) were calling the candidates by their first names. This is a formal debate, and these people are US Senators, folks! You may or may not think they're qualified for the chief executive, but neither one has disgraced their office.
I suspect the media will say Biden won the debate, and I have to admit he made several solid points. Palin, however, certainly did nothing wrong, and highlighted a major divergence between Obama and Biden; part of the reason Biden came out looking so good to me.
Don't get me wrong, Obama's stated positions on a lot of issues appeal to me. However, I have very little confidence that he'll follow through on those, and the level of demigography going on disturbs me.
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They are drawn from the TV shows "Babylon 5" and "Crusade". They are, I think, a very comprehensive set of questions that identify a person. Of course, because of that, they are virtually impossible to properly answer.
Who are you?
What do you want?
Why are you here?
Where are you going?
Who do you serve, and who do you trust?
They are drawn from the TV shows "Babylon 5" and "Crusade". They are, I think, a very comprehensive set of questions that identify a person. Of course, because of that, they are virtually impossible to properly answer.
The Lady Vivamus
One of my swords. Live blade from Albion Swords http://www.albion-swords.com/swords/albion/late/sword-lady-vivamus.htm
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6 comments:
I had the same reaction. I came away wishing both tickets were flipped and the VPs were running instead of the Presidents (although slightly moreso in Biden's case, admittedly).
I also noticed the marked contrast between the tone of the VP debate and the first presidential debate. The Presidential debate was bitter and contentious compared to the cordial, kind, and well-informed nature of the VP debate. Through the whole presidential debate the candidates were rudely interrupting, contradicting, and making snide comments while the other talked. Palin and Biden were at least calm.
I also noticed that both Biden and Obama got riled up and knocked their microphone with their hands during their debates whereas Palin and McCain did not.
I also got the feeling Joe was saying whatever it took to sound good at times. The McCain campaign came out with "14 lies" that Joe Biden told during his debate: http://www.johnmccain.com/McCainReport/Read.aspx?guid=343ba934-6417-4b65-ac9e-92348acb5e97
and I'm surprised they didn't mention the gay marriage issue.
I'd rather have McCain as president than Palin; she's getting up to speed fast and I'm fine with her as a veep, but I wouldn't want her topping the ticket.
I agree that the debate was much more... well, a debate. A rational, factual, discussion of issues. I wish I had seen the presidential debate from the beginning so I could have seen who interrupted who first, and how many times before they interrupted back.
Ooh, hey, can I leave the liberal-leaning link then?
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/4/0123/07756/617/618746
All I can say is, I reall do not want this country to continue on the path it's on. McCain-Palin will not change anything for the better. I'm voting for Obama because there's a chance things will get better. With McCain, it will indeed be more of the same. I don't want that, and I don't know if we can take it.
mg4h, you're welcome to post just about anything you want in comments.
I disagree with the contention that McCain will simply be a continuation of Bush's policies.
However, I'm glad you acknowledge the "chance" things will get better, rather than assuming (as many seem to) that any change will automatically be for the better.
While I realize I am dangerously close to invoking the "Hitler rule", I would like to remind people that the NSDAP promised change to Germany in the depression of the 1930's... and no one can say they didn't deliver. The economy certainly got better for a decade or so.
McCain in 2000 I could have called a maverick, as he keeps using the word, because he did seem to act at odds with the RNC majority. Whether for good or ill, but he was different.
But since then, it seems like he's done nothing different enough for me to think he won't simply be four more years of the same. I feel like he's knuckled under and given up his honor.
My important example was the torture bill he voted against, claiming that the bill, which would force the CIA to only use those methods already outlined in the Army Field Manual on Interrogation, was unnecessary because he'd already worked to pass legislation that prohibits the CIA from cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment, and that it would limit the CIA somehow in their ability to torture people.
It was a change from what he wrote into the Congressional Record when he said that Congress intended to outlaw the practice when it passed the Military Commissions Act in 2006, and said:
“Staging a mock execution by inducing the misperception of drowning is a clear violation of this standard,” Mr. McCain said in the statement. “Indeed, during the negotiations, we were personally assured by administration officials that this language, which applies to all agencies of the U.S. government, prohibited waterboarding.”
“It is unfortunate,” he continued, “that the reluctance of officials to stand by this straightforward conclusion has produced in the Congress such frustration that we are today debating whether to apply a military field manual to nonmilitary intelligence activities. It would be far better, I believe, for the administration to state forthrightly what is clear in current law — that anyone who engages in waterboarding, on behalf of any U.S. government agency, puts himself at risk of criminal prosecution and civil liability.”
(This is all taken from here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/17/us/politics/17torture.html )
It all comes down to this - which candidate do you think is less likely to do the most harm to the country? Will there be stunning change? Only possibly. Will there be good change? Maybe.
If McCain wins, and manages to pass what he's proposed, health care will tank for a lot of people, especially the elderly (*sarcasm* yay revenue neutrality). Taxes will go up if you are poor or middle class, because you don't get tax breaks and oh there's this new health care thing to deal with. Roe v. Wade will almost certainly be overturned - and I cannot tell you how MUCH this freaks me and a lot of women out. The war will continue, on and on, probably until either we run out of troops, or he can decide that we've "won" enough and can maybe gracefully exit.
If Obama wins, taxes will go up on the rich. Roe v. Wade will most likely get some justices that will prop it up for at least another few years. Health care should improve for those who are poorest or have no coverage now, and yes, those of us with money are going to end up shouldering the cost somehow. The war will have an end date set, the troops will come home, I refuse to speculate what that will mean at the time it happens.
And if you're going to invoke Hitler, go for the full monty - after the economy got better for a decade or so, then it got worse - and that's when Hitler came to power, eh?
http://blogs.venturacountystar.com/vcs/greenberg/qqxsgFiscalConservative.jpg
You can draw your own conclusions from what I'm suggesting there, right? ;)
Actually, I believe that Hitler's effective control began very shortly after the NSDAP rose to power.
What you say may well be true, but I'm stuck on an issue I mentioned in an earlier post; how will each of them respond to a crisis? A real one, not an economic pseudo-crisis. I think McCain would act decisively, while Obama would hold a meeting. IMO we've got Congress if we need someone to hold meetings. The reason the Constitution created an executive was so there would be a clear leader when we needed one. That's morphed over time, but I remain a Consitutionalist.
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