Q. Notes, Day 199

I didn't waste any precious minutes of my remaining lifetime watching the first debate, but I did see about 90 minutes of post-game wrap-up on MSNBC, and a few minutes on CNN (which was all I could take of that focus group of so-called undecided voters). As of now, include me in that large group of citizens who believe the two remaining debates should be cancelled. There's nothing whatsoever to be gained by giving Cheez Whiz three more hours of air time to perform his tired old act and tell the same old lies.

When Cheez Whiz is trailing Joe Biden by eight points in a Rasmussen poll, it probably indicates he's behind by AT LEAST eight points, since Rasmussen's likely voter screen causes its results to tilt rightward.

Q. Notes, Day 198

Tonight is the first of three presidential debates between Cheez Whiz and Joe Biden. It will be carried on all the news channels, but I won't be tuned in. I watched the three debates between Cheezy and Mrs. Clinton four years ago, and what I saw helped me realize that watching the fat fuck any time he's on camera is a pointless waste of time. Everything he says is either incorrect or a lie, and even worse, he's just plain repulsive to see and hear. That face, that voice make me puke. Fuck him. I'll catch the highlights in the recap on MSNBC.

So, Rep. Kevin Brady is demanding an investigation regarding the source(s) of the information on Cheez Whiz's income taxes reported by NYT. Too bad Brady is in the minority, so Madam Speaker probably doesn't give a good goddamn what he's demanding. Maybe Moscow Mitch or Booger Barr can get something started. 

Cheez Whiz's director of national intelligence (sic) has declassified a claim from the Russians that in the last election, Mrs. Clinton tried to frame Cheezy, something about pinning a conspiracy on him. We also hear that Cheezy spent less than three hours preparing for tonight's debate. Thus, we have confirmation that Cheezy thinks he can get the win by dazzling America with the brilliance of his bullshit. And why not? It worked the last time, right?

Final Debate Bullet Points

The third and final presidential debate, this one on foreign policy, is over and now it's a matter of waiting to see how things work out on November 6th. The key points I took away from the debate:

• There is a distinct difference between a man who has been the commander-in-chief for four years and a shallow rich guy who thinks he might like to have the job.
• That fucking Romney sure sweats a lot.
• How many times did Romney whine about President Obama attacking him? I distinctly remember two, but there might've been more.
• The best line, the one that will be revisited often, was Obama's reply regarding fewer horses and bayonets.

Dreary Day

The rain has kept me inside most of the day, so I've been reading the political news online and searching for something good. There's plenty of good news if you're a Republican, a lot less if you're not.

Multiple Mitt doesn't seem to be fading in the polls; he's pulling ahead instead. The prevailing viewpoint is that the town hall debate format tonight won't allow Obama any opportunities to level Willard, and even if Obama wins tonight, Romney won't lose ground unless he makes a major gaffe. So claim the experts.

I guess I'll watch one more debate, but if there's no significant positive movement for Obama as a result, I'll write this fucking election off as a lost cause and move on to other things.

Damage Control

During the first debate, Obama responded to Willard's constant lies with a calm, courteous and solemn demeanor. The serial liar got bolder as the debate went on and exploited the opening fully. Multiple Mitt's lies and Obama's passivity created an enthusiasm gap that helped Romney come from behind in the polls -- with an added boost from low-information undecideds fooled into thinking Romney's a moderate. Right-wingers loved it, and were suddenly happier than they'd been in weeks.

Regardless of what Fox News says, Biden's behavior last night wasn't bizarre. Biden's main job was to stop the bleeding among depressed Democrats. Mission accomplished. He diminished Ryan's attacks by laughing at them and treating them with the contempt they deserved. I'll bet the enthusiasm gap that helped Romney last week is gone.

Biden's second duty was to correct public opinion on the Romney/Ryan agenda. His goal was to push Mini-Mitt out of the middle of the road and isolate him on the far right where he belongs. We'll see how women voters respond now that Ryan has clarified the Romney abortion agenda.

Biden's job was not to win undecided voters; that will be up to Obama in the two final debates. Obama's job should be easier now that Joe has done his job. 

Conservatives realize that Biden was effective -- that's why they're doing damage control today, whining about how mean and disrespectful Biden was last night instead of talking about how terrific the cheesehead was.

Clusterfuck

Absolutely incredible.

Bizarre Thoughts

At the Republican debate yesterday, each participant was asked which of the other candidates onstage he (or she) would select as a potential running mate, and why. Rick Perry's response is quoted below: 

“I don’t know how you would do this, but if you could take Herman Cain and mate him up with Newt Gingrich, I think you would have a couple of really interesting guys to work with.”

I've read gossip about Jimmy Dick's lovelife, so for some reason it isn't surprising that the first idea that came to his mind involved an older black guy mating with an older white guy, and that those guys, after mating, would be interesting to work with.

Two down...

Watched most of tonight's debate from Nashville. The most chilling moment for me was when Speedo, referring to some pork-laden Senate bill, said, "You know who voted for it ? You might never know it. That one." Gesturing toward Obama. You could almost hear "That n-" in his tone of voice.

I've thought since the beginning that it would only be a matter of time until Ace or someone close to him slipped and uttered the dreaded N-word, and tonight he came right up to the edge. The old man has definitely taken a turn toward outright creepiness. Falin gets slutty, Speedo gets creepy, and I get nervous. The next four years are gonna be a bitch if this keeps up.

Added 5:30 pm, Wednesday 8 October:

In an earlier post on a sibling blog, I wrote my observation that when an old man and a bright younger man start mixing it up in a discussion, the younger man has real advantages. I know this to be true since I argue a lot, and in some arguments I'm the younger man and in others I'm the old man. Ace (or McAnus as my sis calls him) moved into cryptkeeper territory with his "that one" remark last night, but people on the other side are just too fast for him.

Posted 10/06/2008: The best thing swiped off the www: McCain and Palin = The Old Man and The C

an evening with Joe and Barbie

The debate is over and I watched most of it, although I timed my restroom breaks so that I was out of the room when Falin was talking. I was relieved that Biden was articulate, relatively concise, and didn't make any apparent game-changing blunders. Ever the gentleman, he bypassed numerous opportunities to body-slam the Barbie doll, and stayed instead with a serious critique of Ace McCain. At all times, Joe looked like a guy who could handle the job if he had to step in for the president.

Falin was effective, but after her on-camera appearances the past two weeks, anything she said that sounded like reasonably coherent English would be a radical contrast. I'm not in any way a disinterested third party, but I can sum Falin's part of the debate up in a few sentences. Just for the record, I'm one of those people who wants the president and vice president to be a whole lot smarter than I am. Therefore, I won't be voting for a ticket that includes this bimbo.

First, nearly everything Falin said sounded like a campaign speech memorized so well that she only had to regularly check her notes, as opposed to reading it from a teleprompter. Second, she knew exactly which GOP talking points she was supposed to recite, and she stuck to them even if it meant ignoring the question she was asked. Third, Falin was obviously coached to play up the Mayberry prom queen/beauty pageant T&A aspects of her personality and ran it into the ground. It probably worked to excite the bubbas in the audience, though. Next, she kept referring to Speedo and herself as mavericks. I can't speak for Falin, but Speedo resigned from the maverick club years ago. She kept telling us she and Speedo were going to bring change to Washington but never said what the changes would be, just the usual stump speech platitudes. A bobblehead doll as VP would be a change, I guess.

The only thing that I would classify as a mildly pleasant surprise was Falin's answer to the gay marriage question. Somewhat more moderate than I would've expected, considering her appeal to the evangelunicals.

After giving the matter due consideration, I've decided that Alaska belongs in a special category with Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming. I call it the "Fuck That Bunch of Ignorant Shitkicking Yahoos" category. Falin is added to the "Like Monica Crowley" category of semi-attractive conservative bimbos whose voices drive me up a wall. There were moments in tonight's show that reminded me of the movie "Westworld" when the gunfighter android played by Yul Brynner goes haywire and starts killing shit for real. That will be the metaphor that lingers regarding Falin's performance tonight; not necessarily thinking, but relentless nonetheless.