Christopher Hitchens says Obama ought to be crushing the Republicans, who deserve to be drawn, quartered and fed to the buzzards. But he's not. Should Obama lose, Dems will tell themselves it's because he was just too dadgum decent to fight the Rovianized GOP, Hitchens predicts, but the truth is otherwise. Excerpt:
To analyze this is to be obliged to balance some of the qualities of Obama's own personality with some of the characteristics of his party. Here's a swift test. Be honest. What sentence can you quote from his convention speech in Denver? I thought so. All right, what about his big rally speech in Berlin? Just as I guessed. OK, help me out: Surely you can manage to cite a line or two from his imperishable address on race (compared by some liberal academics to Gettysburg itself) in Philadelphia? No, not the line about his white grandmother. Some other line. Oh, dear. Now do you see what I mean?
Hitch goes on to say that Obama, having won the Democratic nomination, hasn't "the faintest idea what to do with it or what to do about it."
Look at the record, and at Obama's replies to essential and pressing questions. The surge in Iraq? I'll answer that only if you insist. The credit crunch? Please may I be photographed with Bill Clinton's economic team? Georgia? After you, please, Sen. McCain. A vice-presidential nominee? What about a guy who, despite his various qualities, is picked because he has almost no enemies among Democratic interest groups?
I still think Obama's going to win this one come November. But Lord have mercy, if the Democrats lose this year, the long knives on the recriminatory left are going to be something to see.
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Kit Stolz @ 1:46 AM writes:
"Shorter Hitchens: Obama is not as effective as he should be.
Shorter Will: McCain is a dangerous hothead.
Draw your own conclusions."
All right: no matter who wins, we're in for 4 years of Great Value for Our Entertainment Dollar.
Anyone see where I put my popcorn ?
Your servant,
Lord Karth
Lord Karth,
Man, I miss Syracuse! Lived there for five years and was dragged kicking and screaming to Texas for the husband's job promotion. Lived there during Sausage-Sandwich-Gate and laughed every year after when the Clintons popped up at the fair, stuffing their faces with all the local food faves.
We would probably disagree on a few things politically (I'm more of a "crunchy conservative Democrat," if there is such a thing) but I thoroughly enjoy your posts and would meet you at Dinosaur for that beer, some pulled pork and conversation tomorrow if I could. :)
Kit Stoltz, you said:
"Shorter Hitchens: Obama is not as effective as he should be.
Shorter Will: McCain is a dangerous hothead."
I agree, to a great extent. McCain's proposals about how to manage the greatest crisis for our economy since the Great Depression amount to attempted scapegoating (the proposal to fire the head of the SEC) and railing against "corruption" on Wall Street and in Washington.
The problem is, due to the lack of regulatory oversight, which can be traced back, primarily, to the best of my knowledge, to the massive deregulation beginning during the Reagan Revolution, the whole Banking and Finance system may be corrupt or simply built on sand, but it is hard to get to the bottom of things.
McCain, through his stated support for deregulation and his record, has been part of the problem for 26 years. That is why, in my opinion, he is not proposing solutions that would actually get to the heart of the problem. Those solutions would go against his own oft-expressed convictions.
Lord Karth,
It does my (extremely Southern) heart no end of good to know that folks not only eat BBQ in New York state, but *pulled pork* at that.
What is the sauce like?
*Your* servant,
Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas @ 4:37 writes:
"It does my (extremely Southern) heart no end of good to know that folks not only eat BBQ in New York state, but *pulled pork* at that."
The Dinosaur is perhaps the most popular small restaurant in Central New York. I eat there regularly, and most days the lines are inordinate. You should see the place on weekend nights; it becomes a jazz club that attracts national talent.
"What is the sauce like?"
Which one ? The Dinosaur's sauces range from a mild sauce that even my two-year-old likes to an Habanero that will take the top of your head clean off.
Your servant,
Lord Karth
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