If I had a fedora, and a zoot suit, I’d get me a bank of phones and some old adding machines. Notebook. Sharpened pencils. Old School.
But, after watching the Democratic debates tonight, I wouldn’t go get more bets to ‘balance’ the positive side of The Book.
I’d go after bets on three candidates, and place high for bettors who bet ‘against’ these three receiving the nomination ever. I’d also take bets that these same three will drop out of the race before the home stretch.
Based on what we saw and heard from the candidates tonight, some seemed out of touch; some touchy, some took on whiney voice when challenged instead of sounding declarative; some sounded rehearsed; and some put forth concepts they must have surely felt, but which seemed bigger and grander, I think, than their wherewithal for making them come true.
Just one way of assessing, not only the Democratic candidates but the Republicans also, what in psychology is called ‘identification of task, competency and follow through’:
–Who would you want to be talking to Ahmadinejad and be strongly effective.
–Who do you think would truly lead and not fall into waiting for consensus to end the war in not just Iraq… it was amazing that questioners and candidates barely whispered the word Afghanistan tonight. Did they forget our military is fighting and losing their lives there too?
–Think of who you’d want to be talking to Kim Jong Il.
–Think of who you’d want meeting with Chavez.
–Think of who you’d want to meet with the Sudanese Ambassador who just claimed angrily that there is no genocide there, no one dying there.
–Who would be most timely and effective in overseeing repair of our threadbare foreign relations.
The three names I’d only make negative book on at this point in time… not surprising I’m sure, to most who have been watching:
Senator Mike Gravel
Representative Dennis Kucinich
Governor Bill Richardson
Unless they have tons of money to throw away, it might be time to close the store, give the money to the charities of their choices, and go on to other important matters where their influence can connect en puente. I personally don’t believe they added much to the debate that wasn’t carried by others. Pulling rank isn’t the same as debating. Watching how the candidates interacted with each other can give insights into their leadership styles; how they face things they don’t agree with, how they see others as individuals; how they are persuasive, or aren’t.
Senator Chris Dodd might be a ‘morning glory.’ That’s a horse that has great morning runs, but flags on the track during the race.
Senator Joe Biden might have been a horse ‘under wraps’ tonight. That’s a term for a horse who must be reined back in order to maintain either a slower or more even pace.
If a front runner is a horse who likes to take the lead and keep it for the entire race, that’s what any one of them hope for, but who is the front runner really? … Senators Clinton, Obama, and Edwards… they, along with Joe Biden all seem running hardest thus far. But, so far, no clear front runner leaving the others behind in the dust. It’s early though. At least tonight, Senator Obama, felt spare. I don’t know if a young rookie can, in such serious times as ours, really overtake those with far more battle cred and far many more years of international connections. We’ll see.
So far, there appear to be no closers, that is, a horse who remains distant from the front of the herd until the final stretch, and then powerfully closes in on the front runner. I don’t know that the Dems have a horse like that right now.
Some say about horse races; Don’t count any horse out til the homestretch. But the bookies start making phone calls when they see, out of the gate, whichever horses either don’t have the fire in the belly, or who burn up fast with not just running but aggression, or else break into a canter when they ought to be head out, galloping hell bent for leather.
Here are some interesting views on the debate tonight:
http://www.rightwingworld.com/2007/06/03/live-blogging-democratic-presidential-debate/
8:28 p.m.:Did the leftist Dennis Kucinich just stand against the CIA taking out Osama bin Laden? He would rather the police obtain an arrest warrant, place handcuffs on terrorists and read them their Miranda warning. We can’t trust these Democrats to prosecute – no pun intended – the war on terror.
And this… a predication before the debates:
I’m betting Obama will have fine tuned his performance for this round to appear stronger on the security issues. Edwards will be his jovial socialist self advocating defeat in Iraq and socialized everything from the government.
Perhaps, if we’re lucky, there will be a softball question about global warming and climate change in which the Dems can take turns bashing carbon footprints.
Also, look for some disgust with President Bush. Last time Bush was hoisted in the center of the stage and each candidate took a turn nailing him like a piñata. Undoubtedly we’ll hear that Bush lied, Iraq is a mess, and Karl Rove is the devil.