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| (Beyond the Nation) |
| A frolic through the realm of current events with a main focus on the world of politics. Occasionally informative, usually sarcastic and desperately trying to stay with the times and a bit beyond the rest of the nation. |
| Language: English |
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| Unique Visitors: 0 |
| Total Unique Visitors: 9685 |
| Visitors Out: 269 |
| Total Visitors Out: 269 |
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| Lieberman's still good to go |
| 2008-11-18 10:57:00 |
Senate Democrats have voted to allow Joe Lieberman (I-Del) to keep his chairmanship of the Homeland Security committee despite his actions throughout the campaign season in support of John McCain.Personally, I agree with this decision, and not because the Dems need ......
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| Joe the Celebrity? |
| 2008-10-16 11:46:00 |
If one thing came out of the debate, it's the start of 15 minutes of fame for Ohio man Joe......
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| The 20,000th and final debate |
| 2008-10-16 08:46:00 |
Last night saw the final debate of this election. I looked back and saw that the first of my posts regarding debates was on January 16th in which I talked about Dennis Kucinich being denied entry into a debate between Obama, Clinton and John Edwards. That was AFTER most of the Democratic candidates were out. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the ridiculous amount of debates over the past year. But you're not here for the nostalgia trip, are you?The main thing that sticks in my mind after last night's debate is just how much I've grown sick of hearing about Joe the Plumber. If you're not familiar with the tag line, John McCain brought up a plumber that Barack Obama had apparently come across who was worried that his health/tax plan would prevent him from running his own business. It was almost a tou...
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| It just keeps going further and further off course |
| 2008-10-14 08:08:00 |
It's exactly three weeks until Election Day. Do you know where your vote is going?It's getting painful to watch the McCain campaign anymore. The Palin love-fest is gone, as are the bump in poll numbers (if you follow them) that came with it. While the stock markets had an incredible day yesterday, the economy is still in bad shape and the national deficit has actually grown past the amount of digits on the Times Square Debt Clock. So what do we get from the McCain campaign as they slide a bit more? "We've got them right where we want them."Riiiiiiight.If you missed it, an Alaskan committee found that Sarah Palin had acted unethically in her attempt to get a former brother-in-law ......
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| Not exactly riveting television |
| 2008-10-08 08:54:00 |
I watched the debate last night, occasionally flipping the channel to see what else was on. I, unlike many who gave previews to the show, was not expecting much to come out of the thing. As soon as Tom Brokaw explained the format, I knew I wasn't going to be glued to the screen. This debate was the long-desired 'town hall' format, but rather than taking questions from ......
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| At least fire somebody! |
| 2008-09-19 10:02:00 |
Turns out the economy is in something of a proverbial shithole right now and everyone is looking for answers. John McCain has called for the resignation of Christopher Cox, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and is quite proud of himself for doing so. In fact, he repeated his call in this video:Unfortunately, McCain said "FEC" instead of "SEC". That would be the Federal Election Committee, which is headed by Donald McGahn II. Yes, I know it was an innocent slip and I'm not going to go into a lecture on the necessity of avoiding some slips. I just thought we could all use a giggle in these rough times.Or something like that.......
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| Panic at the pump! |
| 2008-09-12 12:22:00 |
As I drove to work this morning, I passed a Kroger Gas just down the street from my office and noted the $3.75 unleaded price. Not "bad", I thought, but I didn't have the time to stop and fill up. When I journeyed back to the Kroger on my lunch break, the price had jumped to $3.99 unleaded. I knew I had been nailed, but since I had been paying $4.39 not too long ago, it really didn't upset me. I still didn't fill up, though, because there was something there that hadn't been 24 cents a gallon ago. Several somethings, actually.That's right - now that Hurricane Ike is affecting gas prices, panic has hit the masses and lines are spilling out of gas station parking lots. People have to make sure they have an absolute full tank of gas for the hard-pressed days ahead in which...well, nothi...
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| What seven years they've been |
| 2008-09-12 10:59:00 |
Unless you stayed in bed all day, you were probably aware that yesterday was the seventh anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. While many take the opportunity to mourn the fallen and get their patriotism-laced high going, I see it in a different way. To me, 9/11 is a symbol of how the United States had about as close of a chance at international unity in the modern era as it was going to get, and horrifically squandered it by playing (or at least trying to play) 'World's Policeman'.Overly bitter? Perhaps, but I have to say my mood on the situation worsened when I came across this Reuters report.In studies done in China, Indonesia, Nigeria, Russia, Egypt, France, Germany, Britain, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Mexico, the Palestinian Territories, South Kore...
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| I swear I'm not lazy |
| 2008-09-11 08:02:00 |
Okay, okay, so maybe I'm not updating this thing as frequently as I did in the primaries. Honestly, weren't the primaries more exciting? As the Clinton/Obama feud unfolded, we never knew just where we'd be taken next. Now we're in the general election season and all we get is one candidate saying something, then the other candidate answering why that's wrong, and vice-versa. The only amusing part is to see just what they'll disagree on. Obama could come out and say 'I support turkey sandwiches' which would then get a reply from the McCain campaign saying that in a time of war, a President should be attentive and focused, not sleepy, as turkey sandwiches can make a person. Then the Obama campaign would question why McCain would worry about such a frivolous topic (even though they star...
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| Real quick |
| 2008-09-10 10:28:00 |
The message I've been reading over and over lately is that Sarah Palin has given John McCain a bump because women voters are flocking to the GOP ticket, now featuring ovaries. Look, I'm going to put this very simply.If you vote for John McCain mainly because his VP is a woman, then you are a fucking moron.I don't know how else to put it, really. If you pick McCain because you believe he is a better choice, then kudos to you. Make a smart choice. This isn't a woman-power issue. This is a presidential election. Use your damn head.......
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| Thoughts on McCain's speech |
| 2008-09-05 09:22:00 |
Actually, I didn't watch it. I spent last night solving the mystery of Sinking Island.Here are links to reviews by actual politicos, so have at it.......
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| Economically hurt US spends $1 billion it doesn't have to prove point |
| 2008-09-04 08:17:00 |
Yesterday, the United States proudly announced that it will be sending $1 billion in aid to Georgia, thumbing its nose at Russia in the process.One billion dollars in aid...to Georgia. With all of the insane war debts that you're not hearing about because of the election, hurricanes beating on the coastlines, the economy teetering on the edge of...well, something not good, and countless other things that need being done all over the world...and we're sending money to Georgia - and making a big deal out of it.Yes, yes, I know Russia is the "bad guy", but we have so many other problems right now, can't we just hold off on this until we get done with Iraq, Iran, North Korea, the election, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc, etc?......
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| Fact checking the Huck |
| 2008-09-04 05:43:00 |
I usually enjoy listening to Mike Huckabee speak - being that it's usually in the context of a skit on the Colbert Report. He's got great comical timing and is often both a hoot and a holler.However, in his speech to the GOP convention, Huckabee claimed that VP pick Sarah Palin got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Biden did during his ill-fated run for the presidency this year. That's pretty harsh - except for the fact that Biden received 79,754 votes towards the nomination, and as of the 2000 Census, the population of Wasilla was 5,469 (with it being reported over 9,000 now).That means to support those numbers, the town of Wasilla would have had to have 100% voter turnout in every year that Palin was in office from 1996-2002 (and ignore that she got less than 1,000 v...
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| Palin: Day 6 |
| 2008-09-03 09:05:00 |
Keep in mind that it hasn't yet been a week since Sarah Palin was named John McCain's running mate.Palin is set to give a speech at the GOP convention tonight and the masses are going to be listening close. With all the hubub going around with the news of her ethics investigation due to firing an ex-brother in law, her pregnant (OUT OF WEDLOCK!!!!) 17 year old daughter, her history of earmarks and ties to the fabled Bridge to Nowhere, as well as the reports that she wasn't properly vetted before being picked (which would explain how all this came out so quickly). Forget her God-for-America standings and her blatant partisanship - she's speaking tonight! All will be cleared up, right?Yeah - if you buy that, I have a bridge for sale you may be interested in.I've also heard that McCain is ...
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| 2012 to not be as embarassing? |
| 2008-09-02 09:21:00 |
It's no secret that this year's primary calendar was (for lack of a better term) bat-shit crazy. With Iowa holding its caucuses on January 3rd, Florida and Michigan jumping the gun and also going in January, then Super Tuesday being held on the first Tuesday in February, it can definitely be said that the states got a tad out of control. A tad.But amongst the scaled-back first day happenings of the GOP convention, a new primary schedule was set for 2012. Once again, New Hampshire, Iowa and South Carolina are given precedence, but they are not allowed to hold their primaries before the first Tuesday in February. The other states are not allowed to hold theirs until the first Tuesday in March. If they keep with this ruling, and the Democrats follow suit, then we may have a less ridiculo...
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| Palin thoughts |
| 2008-09-02 06:57:00 |
I've learned so much about Alaskan governor Sarah Palin that I find it hard to believe that I only first learned she even existed four days ago. It was a mere four days ago that John McCain's selection for VP left me scratching my head and booting up my computer waiting for MSNBC's First Read to give me the information I was seeking. Staunch conservative, I was expecting. Two years into her first term as governor...hmm, that's a bit unusual. Kind of undermines the inexperienced argument against Obama. Ah, woman - I actually had figured that one out on my own. Whether or not that was the reason for his pick (and I believe it was) you have to admit that Sarah Palin is a woman. It says so right on her...you know what? I'm not going to finish that thought.But as the weekend (hell, Frid...
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| News Headlines |
| 2008-08-27 11:22:00 |
On my iGoogle page, I have a page set for news widgets that have 10 different news sources, 3 headline gatherers, and one for the Onion, America's Finest Newsource. In the middle of this page, split into three columns, are the widgets for MSNBC, CNN and FoxNews, on the left, center and right sides, respectively. I looked at their headlines not long ago, and this is what I saw:MSNBC focused mainly on Clinton and Obama at the Democrative Convention, with a headline on the progress of Hurricane Gustav:Hillary Clinton boosts Obama; next up, BillNYT: For Obama, a challenge to clarifyGustav may reach Category 3 strengthCNN also focused on the Concention, while also giving a poll showing McCain up on the issue of national securi...
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| DNC, RNC, Iraq...uh...NC |
| 2008-08-27 07:33:00 |
Sick of the Democratic National Convention yet? No? Well how about the press coverage about the Democratic National Convention? If it is indeed turning you off, be sure to tune in next week for the coverage of the Republican National Convention. If there isn't as much coverage next week as there is this one, then there will be hell to pay! The media's biased and all that.Something I'm surprised that isn't getting more coverage is the U.S. deal to get out of Iraq by the end of 2011. You might even call that a 'timetable for withdrawal', but don't say it too loudly. Don't want our enemies emboldened, after all. Surprise, surprise - the U.S. actually wanted to hang out in Iraq until 2015, but Iraq negotiated to 2011. Their original goal was 2010 - whic...
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| Don't believe everything you're polled on |
| 2008-08-20 07:01:00 |
Since Obama and McCain became the definite candidates for November's election, there have been hundreds upon hundreds of polls run across the country trying to get a fix on what you (yes you) are going to do come November. Every day there's a new poll out, and the analysts go bat-shit crazy on the results...until new ones come out the next day that contradict them, and then the cycle begins anew.With month upon month of this, you might realize why I've been MIA since the end of June. Gets frustrating if you think about it too hard.So when a poll comes out today that says McCain is now up 5 points over Obama, that's big news, right? Well, not really. You see, this line in the article sums it up:"The telephone poll of 1,089 likely voters had a margin of error of 3 percentage points." (Re...
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| He just doesn't get it |
| 2008-08-20 06:57:00 |
Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens is facing federal corruption charges, but he's actually got bigger things on his mind, if you can believe that.According to CNN Headline News, Stevens is requesting his trial be moved from Washington D.C. to Alaska so he can stand trial during the day and campaign for reelection at night. Really - that's actually what he said.I think somebody's missing the point here.......
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| Good idea, man |
| 2008-07-21 14:24:00 |
If you listen closely, you can actually hear (from wherever it is you may be reading this from) John McCain's plan backfiring in his face.A while ago, to counter Barack Obama's rather hopeful-sounding plans for American troops in Iraq, the McCain camp made the argument that Obama was not qualified to make such plans as he had not visited the country recently as McCain had. The idea was to show McCain as qualified, and Obama full of gas. Obama had the simple solution, though: he planned a trip and went to Iraq.McCain briefly called foul in the matter, especially when all three major news anchors (Brian Williams, Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric) went on the trip with him. The trip made Obama look even more like a media darling and McCain like a grumpy ragamuffin (how I love that word).Now...
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| Explain this one to me |
| 2008-07-17 07:07:00 |
The price of oil has dropped over the past couple days due to speculation (there's that word again) that the sky-high prices will cause people to drive less...which is true. So with oil prices dropping, what's that mean for gas prices?Oh, they set A NEW RECORD HIGH NATIONAL AVERAGE.So follow me here - if oil prices go up, the price of gas has to go up to make up the difference. If the price of oil goes down, the price of gas goes up because...um...I guess demand goes up for gas. Wait, that doesn't make any sense. The price of gas hasn't gone down to stir the demand - it's still at the low point that caused the price of oil to go down to begin with.To hell with this. I still have to get to work, so I'll pay it anyway.......
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| Jacob vs. the Pledge |
| 2008-07-16 08:56:00 |
I'm going to take my nose out of the news for a bit (I know I've slacked off lately, but it was a holiday break, so bite me) and take a step up onto my soapbox. The purpose of this blog is not to preach - you can do a random blog search and get that. The purpose is to pass along news that I find interesting and comment on it with the underlying theme of informing the reader on what kinds of things are going on. But we'll get back to that next entry. Now it's opinionating (not a word) time.I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.Ever heard that before? Of course, that's the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States flag. Chan...
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| French loving |
| 2008-07-14 11:53:00 |
Everyone's coming together to celebrate France's Bastille Day.We're being outclassed by the French here. Or should that be outclassed by the Freedom here?......
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| George W. Bush is an idiot. No, really. We have proof. |
| 2008-07-14 07:51:00 |
Just remember - our proud nation elected him twice.From Telegraph.co.uk:The American leader, who has been condemned throughout his presidency forfailing to tackle climate change, ended a private meeting with the words: "Goodbye from the world's biggest polluter."He then punched the air while grinning widely, as the rest of those present including Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy looked on in shock.Mr Bush, whose second and final term as President ends at the end of the year, then left the meeting at the Windsor Hotel in Hokkaido where the leaders of the world's richest nations had been discussing new targets to cut carbon emissions.One official who witnessed the extraordinary scene said afterwards: "Everyone was very surprised that he was making a joke about America's record on pollution....
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| Embarrassment resumes for the cause of protecting marriage |
| 2008-06-27 14:56:00 |
In an effort to protect the sanctity of marriage from whatever it is that allowing gay marriage will do (I can't think of anything, but there has to be something to get these people riled up), a resolution from the Senate seeks to amend the Constitution. This likely won't get too far in the Senate, let alone to the states for ratification, so there's nothing really big about the story...except for one thing.If you check out the list of co-sponsors for this, one in particular may stand out to you: Sen Craig, Larry E. [ID]. That's right, Larry Craig is co-sponsoring the bill to protect the so-called sanctity of marriage. I guess that wasn't a big deal to him a year ago when he got himself busted for soliciting sex in a men's restroom in Minnesota. Note tha...
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| Obama's popularity limiting Clinton's VP chances |
| 2008-06-23 09:26:00 |
Polls I've been seeing how shown Barack Obama up - like double digits up - on John McCain. While that may excite at first, please keep in mind that if you check your calendar, it will likely say "June" (or "May" if you haven't checked it in a few weeks), not "November". Also, you might have heard some guy called Michael Dukakis had a similar lead over George H.W. Bush back in 1988, and I don't think he was the one elected. Then the argument starts that I just compared Obama to Dukakis and we go back and forth.The moral of the story? Don't put too much into polls at this point. You never know what might come up.What the story does tell is how unlikely an Obama/Clinton ticket will be. You might think Obama would be uneasy to share the ticket with Clinton, a...
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| Brokaw to moderate Meet the Press |
| 2008-06-23 09:22:00 |
You may recall last week when I said this about Tim Russert's replacement on Meet the Press:"Until then, hopefully Tom Brokaw can stick around as a fill-in host. He has the dignity and respect that the job requires, but unfortunately his career is behind him and I doubt he'll come out of retirement for the full-time hosting gig."Well, I have to say I called it.I think that's a good move for the election and it will give NBC plenty of time to find a full-time replacement.......
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| I just don't get it |
| 2008-06-19 09:34:00 |
With all the controversy that went down with the Reverend Wright deal, how in the blue hell can people still think that Barack Obama is a Muslim? REVEREND Wright!Ugh.......
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| Busy day of terrorism and oil |
| 2008-06-18 11:52:00 |
There is a lot going down today - which is fitting in that it is also the day of Tim Russert's funeral.Rudy Guiliani is up to bat for McCain's team against Obama's stance on counter terrorism. Problem is that the Obama campaign is using Guiliani's own political identity - the mayor of New York during the 1993 and 2001 terrorist strikes - against him. Turns out back in 1993, Guiliani responded to the attacks by saying that America doesn't fight violence with violence - they use the law. He was quite a proponent of that back then. But now the law isn't good enough to handle the evils of the world. Indefinite imprisonment without charge - violating basic human rights in the process - is the answer now. Definitely an American we can be proud of. Just...
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| How to fill the holes Russert left? |
| 2008-06-18 07:56:00 |
There is not another Tim Russert anywhere that I am aware of - and especially not in any of the major news organizations. He was definitely unique and his untimely death last week has left a major hole in the hearts of those who knew him and those who watched him on TV.But his death has also left holes in NBC's news organization - in both his roles as the Washington Bureau Chief and moderator of the popular Meet the Press. Everything I've been hearing says that the two jobs will be broken up, which I think is a good idea. It's an enormous work load that only a guy like Russert could divide and do well. He was experienced in it and he was good at it - but he didn't start out with both jobs on day one, and neither should any successor to his jobs. It would be a huge responsibility to tr...
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| McCain repeats usual stance towards Obama |
| 2008-06-17 13:44:00 |
As I glanced over the mid-afternoon headlines, I spotted the top story at the Washington Post titled "McCain Camp Criticizes Obama on Foreign Policy". 'That's not really news', I thought - McCain's been criticizing Obama's foreign policy since before the Democratic primary race ended. So McCain advisers are calling Obama's approach to terrorism "naive". That's nothing new either - most pro-Iraq figures say that against the opposition. They say that Obama has a 'September 10th mentality' to terrorism.Uh oh - them's fighting words!Actually, they aren't. In fact, it's not a very bright thing to say at all, since one doesn't have to think very hard to remember just who was president on September 10th, 2001 and the almost eight months leading into it. Com...
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| 3 months after being defeated, Ron Paul ends campaign |
| 2008-06-16 10:05:00 |
Sadness aside, I meant to comment on another recent happening only to have it escape me - the ending of Ron Paul's campaign for Republican nominee on June 12. Despite that John McCain hit the magic number to secure the GOP on March 4, Paul continued on the trail with no media coverage whatsoever. With Mike Huckabee in the underdog spot leading up to McCain's victory, Paul was overshadowed in those months, then ignored altogether when McCain took the win. It seemed like the only people that cared that Paul was still running was the hardcore supporters.And were they ever assholes about it.I've seen the term 'Paultard' used in several places in referring to Ron Paul, and in some cases the label fits. At GOP conventions ar...
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| Tim Russert: 1950 - 2008 |
| 2008-06-16 07:16:00 |
It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that I type the following sentence. Tim Russert died on Friday after collapsing while taping voice-overs for his reknowned show Meet the Press.I can't say that I knew Russert personally, but from numerous editions of Meet the Press and a seemingly endless string of debate and primary election coverage, I grew to know and appreciate the amazing journalistic talent and prestige that he radiated.Rest in peace, Tim. The country will not be the same without you.......
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| Impeachment |
| 2008-06-11 21:55:00 |
Perhaps you've heard, but Ohio Representative Dennis Kucinich brought forward 35 counts of impeachment on President Bush to the House floor two days ago. That would be big news if anyone thought for a second that anything like that would even move a single step forward, but alas, it will not. In fact, it's not even Kucinich's debut act on impeachment. Last year he brought forward charges against Vice-President Cheney which the Democrats quickly dismissed when the Republicans decided they wanted to debate the matter on the floor.So the whole thing likely has you yelling at your screen "Why the hell not impeach Bush, when Clinton went to trial for lying about gettin' sump'in sump'in from a staffer? Well, like most things around that neck of the woods, it's complicated.But I didn't sit do...
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| They're infiltrating everything! |
| 2008-06-10 08:08:00 |
A few days ago, I posted on the awesomeness of the Barack/Michelle Obama fist bump, but little did I know the true meaning of the signal. Thank god Fox News was on the case.No, really. She actually said that.......
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| Little early there, sport |
| 2008-06-10 06:40:00 |
As I swim through this amazing sea of information and bullsh*t opinions that is the Internet, I do have certain regular stops that I frequent to keep tabs on what's going on with the world. It makes me look like I'm smart when I have some idea of what I'm talking about on this wonderful thing.But now that we're in full General Election mode, I've seen quite a few polling numbers treated as if they were the election results. A candidate polls 14 points higher than his opponent, and celebrations begin as if that's the race. Goodnight and good luck. But one small fact is being missed here - one that could potentially disrupt the party. Rain on the parade if you will.It's June - by my count, a little under five months before the general election.If we've learned anything by the Democratic...
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| That's what I said! |
| 2008-06-06 08:01:00 |
I've made this point before, but an entry from Crooks and Liars has a quote that sums up the thought of a substantial amount of Clinton supporters voting for John McCain."You don’t spend your life fighting for women’s rights and then vote for Sen. McCain.”Let's hope bitterness doesn't get in the way here.......
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