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How quickly we have already come to a replay of 2004 campaign between John Kerry and George W. Bush. Swift Boating and a con job sold Dubya as the "'decisive' and 'ready to keep us secure" candidate while Kerry got pinned with the labels of 'flip flopper and out of touch with the American people. It sure as shootin' ' worked to put the oligarchy's favorite party back into the White House. We are seeing something akin to that now with McCain successfully defining Obama as 'not ready to be President" and "elitist" and "too muddle headed and liberal to keep up our military". McCain's vicious drumbeat of slander seems to be gaining traction. and so far "the Mad Maverick' Cactus Jack McNasty seems to be gaining in the polls and Obama losing ground as he gropes to spottily begin to fight back. I suspect part of the reason for Biden in the mix is to help Obama parry McCain's relentless attacks and lend him 'credibility' with the national morons who think McCain's experience being corrupt in Congress trumps Obama's youth and relatively short time in the Senate. Now that Biden is in the mix, you can bet McCain will launch a whole new round of 'Gotcha'.
But this is a two edged sword: because if Biden's words can be used against him by the McCain camp--, like, for instance, the quote about Obama not being ready to be President, and the other quote about Biden being honored to run with or against McCain because the country would be better...."(close quote)--the Obama camp can also use this same "gotcha' by digging up all the dirt that flew between Mitt Romney and John McCain during their primary, that is, if McCain picks Romney for his VP. Two can play at ''gotcha' and whomever McCain picks will have some kind of baggage that can also be used against him or her.
It is a sad commentary on this country that with so many pressing issues in need of urgent solution, that our public, despite its professions to the contrary of supposedly hating negative campaigning, , can enjoy and reward McCain for his slander and avoid making their brains hurt if there were to be,God forbid, a discussion of issues. \
I think this in part may come from the movies and television, where 'good guy/bad guy' is a popular form of entertainment and we all know that tabloid smears seem to be more entertaining to a dumbed down populace than a discussion of issues that will very certainly affect their future, and most likely with life and death urgency. It is 'the ship of fools': party while the ship is sinking and engage in empty parlor games instead of bailing to keep the boat afloat.
Bread and circuses is what the Romans used to keep the masses quiet. But with the price of food going so high these days, we are left with circuses.
The Republicans have NOTHING to run on in the way of substance or ideas for the good of the country, so playing the 'tabloid' card and using tried and true Swift Boat smears offers the public some black and white snap solutions to complex problems, and some 'dirt' to believe about whichever candidate they don't like. A stealth-Republican-Assisting-Lamestream press is only too happy to oblige the public appetite for bear baiting and below the belt attacks. It is similar to reality tv, in whicn backstabbing and making down and dirty attacks on reality-game-rivals reduces human behavior to the level of chimpanzee grooming, then sudden screeching, baring of teeth and feces throwing if necessary. This has become the model for our society instead of getting to work solving the energy crisis or getting out of Iraq or paying off the almost unpayable national debt and getting some of our jobs back from overseas. There's no time for issues because smears and lies fit into television ratings better.
