Dangerously, McCain ‘Casts the First Stone’

Will what many are calling the first negative campaign ad against against Barack Obama backfire on John McCain?

Patrik Etschmayer writes for Switzerland’s Nachrichten newspaper:

“John McCain is one who proudly boasts (like many other politicians) of his ignorance about the Internet and e-mail. Its likely that McCain has never seen the videos produced by his staff on a computer monitor – but rather on a video tape sent to his home which he popped into his vintage Magnavox-VHS recorder to watch on his trusty Zenith TV … McCain shows by far the greatest weakness in terms of his connection to the real world. At a time when cyber-terrorism, espionage and crime are an even greater threat; when countries like China recruit whole armies of hackers to work against the West and plot the collapse of its IT-infrastructure – which could cost billions of dollars and millions of lives – it wouldn’t be bad if the President of the United States had at least a rudimentary knowledge of what’s at stake.”

Etschmayer concludes:

“McCain’s casting the first stone. But he’s not so unassailable. He may be triggering an avalanche that in the end, will bury him.”

By Patrik Etschmayer

Translated By Patrik Etschmayer

July 31, 2008

Switzerland – Nachrichten – Original Article (German)

Amidst the midsummer heat as befits the season, the campaign for the U.S. Presidency is heating up as well. And if you harbored any hope that this contest would be less spiteful and repellant than the last one, you can let go of it now.

And ironically, it’s McCain’s staff which has launched a rather venomous campaign against Barack Obama. In an online video they have put the Democratic candidate on a par with Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, depicting him as hollow celebrity that delights German fans – a kind of political equivalent of David Hasselhoff .

This kind of negative campaigning was successfully used four years ago – with the same people in the background at the controls – by George W. Bush, in his campaign against John Kerry. But the situation is now fundamentally different.

READ ON AT WORLDMEETS.US, along with continuing translated foreign press coverage of the U.S. election.