Look Long & Hard At This Photograph, America. I Mean Really Long & Hard
Look long and hard at this photograph, America. I mean really long and hard. Because when all is said and done, this is what selecting a vice presidential running mate is all about.
Look long and hard at this photograph, America. I mean really long and hard. Now, squint a little and picture Joe Biden raising his right hand to take the oath of office as a stunned Michelle Obama stands at his left side and Jill Biden at his right. A disturbing thought, but at the same time comforting. Because Biden would be ready to lead.
Look long and hard at this photograph, America. I mean really long and hard. Now, squint a little and picture Sarah Palin raising her right hand to take the oath of office as a stunned Cindy McCain stands at her left side and Todd Palin at her right. Not just a disturbing thought, but a nightmarish one because the Republican nominee-to-be rang up an obscure wingnut with a walk-in closet full of skeletons in a fit of pique.
Long long and hard at this photograph, America. I mean really long and hard. Because this is what selecting a vice presidential running mate is all about. This is not what John McCain is all about. What John McCain is all about is being a worn-out pol who is addled at best, pickled at worst and nothing if impetuous beyond his many years. Unfit to select, let alone lead.
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52 Responses to “Look Long & Hard At This Photograph, America. I Mean Really Long & Hard”
Um, OK, Steve, sure. Thanks for providing an illustration of the typical 'moderate' response, which goes something like this:
1. A commenter who has a perspective which is further right than the status quo here posts a comment.
2. Rather than respond to the substance of the comment, one or more of the regular commenters respond by calling the person a wingnut (or a similar remark.) This of course is the logical fallacy commonly known as 'begging the question'. You define everyone whose perpective is more conservative than yours as a wingnut, and then you use that definition to lump people who disagree with you in that category, and dismiss them. Then you use that as proof that there are no reasonable people who disagree with you. The problem is that you assume that neutral observers don't notice that the initial commenter didn't say anything that warranted that kind of dismissive treatment- he/she simply presented an alternative viewpoint that contradicted the accepted narrative.
Even your recap of past events isn't factual. I never 'walked away', I simply started expressing the fact that I was beginning to feel that it was a waste of my time to comment here, and began doing so less frequently. Even expressing that sentiment brought hysterical criticism, just like your ridiculous characterization of some of the right of center former bloggers as 'pro-censorship wingnuts'. The people who gave up attempting to blog here did so not because they were 'pro-censorship', but because they were tired of the comment policy being enforced for some bloggers but not others (certain bloggers couldn't be personally criticized in the comment section, while others had insults continuously posted which were ignored.)
It's my opinion that this kind of atmosphere leads to an echo chamber, where commenters read only what they agree with and insult bloggers or commenters with whom they disagree until those people give up and go away. That doesn't strike me as very intellectually honest, nor does it strike me as healthy for our country's political atmosphere. If you disagree with that, fine, but I think many observers will note that in your disagreement with me, you provided the example of exactly what I'm referring to.
I don't get the argument of the post. I guess I'm supposed to picture Joe Biden as ready to lead, but nothing is adduced for that point. Then I guess I'm supposed to hate on Sarah Palin because of the name-calling the poster indulges in.
The comments, mercifully, move away from the post and just rant about whatever they like, which range from hitting Obama's record to calling everyone right-of-center a wingnut.
Does anyone on the Internet actually talk to other people, or is all their communication done by shouting at strangers in comment threads?