If you've been watching CNN, you'll know that CNN has been checking in on the candidates, some time each day. Yesterday it was John McCain in Lima, Ohio, where he gave a speech and then changed it into "townhall meeting." But wait, is it possible to have a townhall meeting and not really have one? You bet it is!
First, McCain reads his speech using his teleprompter. Do NOT make a mistake here by throwing in off-the-cuff comments. Remember "Bomb, bomb, bomb! Bomb, bomb Iran!"
After reading the speech, it is time to "Read the townhall meeting." Here is how that is accomplished. Remember, a townhall meeting is supposed to be off-the-cuff answers to questions, but ... McCain is incapable of doing that, ... so don't let that keep you from your teleprompter.
The first question is a two pronged question that deals with Obama. Why doesn:t the candidate attack his rival more on issues? Read that again. Good question. Is it possible that the reason he doesn't verbally attack Obama is that it is not SCRIPTED? McCain cannot do extemporaneous; he seems to have short-term memory loss.
McCain begins to ramble on about what is important and not important and there are two things important. By this time, he has shuffled over near a teleprompter and finishes reading his stock response.
My hope is that Obama has not committed to the townhall meeting. McCain is begging for them, but the reason why, is that he can depend on his staff and the teleprompters to keep him from "Bomb, bomb, bombing, ..." his answers.
Is a 34 year retired educator with a Masters Degree in Counseling - a free-lance writer with articles in Spanish and English Guideposts, Mothering, Oklahoma Observer, Oklahoma Gazette, Westview, Oklahoma Reader, The Lookout, Christian Standard ... . The author has the largest number of published "letters" in the history of Time magazine and NEA Today. Just had an LTTE in NEWSWEEK in December, 2007. Dale W. Hill is married with 5 children, 4 grand-children, one foster child, and 4 foster grandchildren. He and his wife, Marcella, live near Anadarko, Oklahoma, at which school he retired in 2002. Hill is a computer collector, writer, and musician. Hill is a historian of Country Music, with 1972 Ovation and Martin BackPacker guitars. Favorite diatonic harmonica is a Hohner Special 20 and all chromatics, that "...scream The Blues!!"
I guess because he has repeated it so many times, he does seem to remember what his standard reply to any question dealing with taxes is: "Obama wants to raise your taxes. I want to lower your taxes." To many people who take McBush at his word, this is music to their ears. This oft-repeated message sounds like a great idea to those who believe in such things as the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus. However, the reality of the situation is that someone, sometime is going to have to pay the astronomical costs of Uncle Sam's war for oil and generous tax cuts for the rich. McCain seems perfectly comfortable continuing the "play now, pay later" practices of the current administration.
There is no such thing as a free ride. Our children and their children ad nauseum for many generations to come will be saddled with the bill for the fiscal irresponsibility of Bushenomic policies.
The other mantra Hanoi John seems to easily recall is how he would withdraw American troops from Iraq based soley on "conditions on the ground and the advice of 'military experts' ", as opposed to Obama's plan to withdraw them based on the whims of "some bureaucrat in Washington".
The sad part of the whole thing is how many simpletons will actually vote for politicians who preach the feel-good message that we can get everything for nothing. "Duh, gee boss, dat sounds good to me. I'm gonna go vote for McCain, because he wants to lower my taxes....."
by
Kris Malmquist (9 articles, 0 quicklinks, 39 diaries, 101 comments)
on Monday, August 11, 2008 at 5:33:17 AM
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