Comments | amethysted_ink: Last night's debate.

amethysted_ink

Last night's debate.

Oct 03, 2008 12:38

Indulge me. A few observations:

1. Sarah Palin didn't do as terrible a job as everyone predicted. After her Katie Couric blunder (which, admittedly, did reek of "gotcha" journalism), I didn't have very high hopes for her. But she did alright. Apparently her study sessions with Kissinger and other notables paid off. However...

2. She didn't ( Read more... )

Comments 11

spider_matt October 4 2008, 12:25:04 UTC

Counterpoint.

amethysted_ink October 4 2008, 18:58:55 UTC

I love Penn & Teller, but that 'argument' is, well, bullshit. A smart leader would watch over us more, really? Hmm, more than "stupid" Bush with the warrant-less wiretapping and the sweeping intrusive power from the Patriot Act? I think that alone proves that there is no correlation between intelligence and protection of civil liberties.

spider_matt October 4 2008, 22:38:27 UTC

Yeah, I mostly just thought it was an interesting perspective. I don't agree with all of it. Considering how he used the word stupid, though, it looks as though he might not have meant it literally or was saying it to simply to make a point--i.e. the president shouldn't need to be a genius to handle presidential duties because presidential duties should be so limited in scope that the job shouldn't be that hard--which is something I tend to agree with. I also agree with the "great leader" comment, which is what really peaked my interest to the article (besides the fact that I love Penn & Teller for being so damned overtly libertarian). A great president should not have to be a great leader for exactly the reasons Penn described: A great leader "can fire people up and get them to do what he wants. He does smart speeches that promise everyone everything they need and make us feel good about our country and how much greater our government could be." Personally, I would consider most government intervention into people's lives stupid

twitchhitter October 4 2008, 14:35:57 UTC

I think "amen sister"

And the creepy Palin winks. I find being winked at to be very patronizing...

amethysted_ink October 6 2008, 20:56:39 UTC

Unless it's by a cute girl ;)

aznina October 4 2008, 16:31:05 UTC

that wink made me want to vomit. also, sara palin cannot complete a sentence. if you don't believe me, take a look at any transcript of her speaking. she says lots of words but they rarely lead to any coherent, conclusive thought.

biden did an awesome job of pointing out the fact that she didn't really answer several of the questions, as did gwen ifill. i just hope people were paying attention.

letitbe_ October 6 2008, 03:00:35 UTC

I have a counterpoint--

Obama proposes more federally-funded programs than McCain...meaning, necessarily, he will raise taxes. Maybe McCain would be better for Joe Sixpack's wallet.

But basically, I hate both candidates.

Ron Paul 2008!

amethysted_ink October 6 2008, 20:55:43 UTC

I think we can all agree that Obama would raise taxes, at least compared to McCain. But why is that necessarily worse for the average American's wallet? Obama would only eliminate Bush's tax breaks for those households earning over $250,000 a year. He would expand tax credits for the low and lower middle class labor force. According to the Tax Policy Centre, 80% of American households would pay less taxes under Obama than they do now, with only 10% paying more. Under John McCain, it seems to me that the ever widening gap between the very rich and the middle class would only yawn larger. Supply-side economics hasn't been working in recent years ( ... )

ohgrpup October 6 2008, 07:33:16 UTC

This debate actually made me angry. I think Palin is incredibly stupid, and it boggles my mind that people such as my mother fall for her bullshit, along with McCains. If you remember correctly, I used to really think McCain was a great guy, and an even better presidential conidate... but recently, he's become a silly, stupid, retarded old man. And adding Palin to his candidacy only made him seem even more stupid.

Joe sixpack? PLEASE. You said it best, who wants a socker mom as VP or, heaven forbid, president? I want someone who can kick some ass (verbally...) when it's needed.

Jesus Christ, McCain is an old dying piece of human waste from both the dems and the crats, and Palin is just a sexy momma that doesn't know much about world politics. How is it that they have a fighting chance for running our country? Please, Beth, take me with you to China, and let's stay there, or Canada, if they get elected.