My primary vote is well in my rear view mirror. I can go into hibernation until November. The Trump campaign will try and convince me to not vote or to cast a protest ballot for some independent that can not win. Biden campaign will try not to offend me enough to sit out the Presidential election. Time will tell.
His being from my home state and briefly attending my alma mater would never cause me to vote for Jimmy Carter. I did vote for Sam Nunn (also from my home state and who also briefly attended my alma mater) for Senator. I would have voted for Mr. Nunn for President had he chosen to run. In those days I considered many democrats at the state level to be reasonable in their politics and voted for a few of them. No longer. We now have Ossoff, Warnock and Abrams. Of course Georgia republicans entered the ineptitude contest by countering with Herschel Walker. Kemp can't run for Governor again. No telling who the GOP might nominate for his replacement.
Neil Diamond...you Steve...really? Damn dude, you made me laugh with that one. Hey, i loved Neil, he put on one hell of a show back in the day. Some get giddy over Sweet Caroline's refrain, for my money nothing was better than "Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show" and the growl that turns into a roar.
But alas, this column isn't about our musical tastes, it speaks more to those "cheap dates," that have been bought and paid for to win elections, forever. Yesterday on The Racket we saw some of the highest commentary in a long while as a couple of posters decided to banter over third party salvation and the merits of having a Kennedy in the race.
He went so far as to share the link for the half-crazed wanna-be president. When i first started reading and saw the word bot, my immediate reaction was you had brilliantly discovered the source for the new arrival was indeed a bot.
I have no interest in exploring or debating the grassy knoll theory from Dallas, but my mind runs wild with what we will face the next 7 months. Between AI, bots and meme's created that are 100% fakes, what chance do mere mortals have to be anything but a "cheap date?"
Are we all screwed? I hope not, because if we are, another one of my favs from Neil will ring hollow; "Coming To America."
Because you asked the question, “Are we screwed ? “, I posed that question to my internet version Magic Eight Ball. The answer is …. “Outlook Good”. Guess that means we are screwed. But could be open to interpretation :)
Are you a glass half full or glass half empty Jay? Of course these days more and more are just drinking heavily to ease the pain. Imagine my pain after nearly 48 years of sobriety *said with a grin).
PS. I loved my grandmothers magic eight ball. Kept us grand kids busy for hours.
Maybe I am at heart a glass half full kind of guy, but I spent much time thinking of all the possibilities that the glass may be toppled or shattered soon.
Maybe I should have said I kind of liked “The Jazz Singer.” My musical tastes run toward 70s and 80s classic rock but I enjoy some jazz and show tunes too. Not much on hip hop or rap. I am proud of the fact that I can’t name 3 Taylor Swift songs.
Damn dude, that's 3 more than me. It's odd as the more i listen to stuff other than my oldies-but-goodies, i come to understand some of this "new" music is pretty darned good. Unfortunately the old adage about old dogs and new tricks fits me nicely.
Guy takes his car to his mechanic complaining about a God-awful noise coming from the dashboard. Few hours later the mechanic calls to tell him that he found the problem and fixed it. He removed the Taylor Swift CD and replaced it with Van Halen.
It boggles my mind—I’ve read enough of your work that you clearly know what Trump is capable of. You know he is unmoored from any principles—well, any beyond whatever benefits him in the very short term… assuming that can even be called a principle. Yet, you still “both sides” this election and the candidates.
I understand that you don’t agree with Biden’s policy positions… but surely you have the historical context to recognize that he’s about as middle of the roads as you’re likely to get—from either major party, I should add!
Do I wish we had better candidates? Sure! But I’ll have no doubt or ambivalence when I cast my vote for Biden this fall. There’s no question—it’s not even close.
I report both sides because there are two sides. Many people overestimate what “Trump is capable of.” If he was capable of being a dictator as POTUS, what is he capable of as a private citizen? The only end would be what Susan Bagwelll suggested: prison. But if he is capable of so much, could he avoid prison? Trump is terrible and should not be president. But Biden isn’t great and what Democrats want to do is in many ways as illiberal as Trump. They are very much better at doing it legally.
I'm having some trouble following your response, though. It feels like you're using some shorthand for statements/posts/events I'm not familiar with (which Bagwell post do you mean, for instance?).
> "If he was capable of being a dictator as POTUS, what is he capable of as a private citizen? The only end would be what Susan Bagwelll suggested: prison. But if he is capable of so much, could he avoid prison?"
He's capable of a lot less as a private citizen, but not nothing either -- mostly b/c he leads a sizable cult of followers (just calling it like I plainly see it). As far as avoiding prison: he's been pretty skilled at avoiding most any consequences for most (all?) of his life--and while at times it seems things are catching up with him, I'm not holding my breath on him being held to account.
> "Trump is terrible and should not be president. But Biden isn’t great and what Democrats want to do is in many ways as illiberal as Trump. They are very much better at doing it legally."
Trump is terrible, but Biden isn't great. These are very much NOT the same thing! And "doing it legally" vs. illegally is a pretty damn important distinction! I admit it isn't everything--there is a lot you can legally do that is damaging in various ways. Without providing any details of what you're thinking here, I'll have trouble refuting or agreeing with you ... but some of the things in my mind where Democrats have overreached have been more symptomatic of the larger executive branch overreach (and congressional inaction / abdication of their responsibilities) that has been happening for decades now ... facilitated by both parties. It's dysfunctional, no doubt -- but Biden has operated within the "normal" bounds of what modern executives have operated. I won't say the same for Trump.
It's hard to respond effectively without (a) remaining brief and (b) sounding like a lunatic. But I'll say that Democrats have for many decades enjoyed a definitive advantage in much of the media, corporate boardrooms, and local politics. Being drunk on its own newfound power in some of these areas, Republicans fell for some really terrible cons that Democrats had learned to compartmentalize. But Democrats still know how to use political violence, educational indoctrination, administrative lawfare, and social engineering much better than Republicans. In a poor historical military analog, it's like the Roman legions (D) fighting the Huns (R). The Huns were barbarians who flayed their enemies when they won, but the Romans never stopped and had the advantage of centuries of battle experience.
My primary vote is well in my rear view mirror. I can go into hibernation until November. The Trump campaign will try and convince me to not vote or to cast a protest ballot for some independent that can not win. Biden campaign will try not to offend me enough to sit out the Presidential election. Time will tell.
His being from my home state and briefly attending my alma mater would never cause me to vote for Jimmy Carter. I did vote for Sam Nunn (also from my home state and who also briefly attended my alma mater) for Senator. I would have voted for Mr. Nunn for President had he chosen to run. In those days I considered many democrats at the state level to be reasonable in their politics and voted for a few of them. No longer. We now have Ossoff, Warnock and Abrams. Of course Georgia republicans entered the ineptitude contest by countering with Herschel Walker. Kemp can't run for Governor again. No telling who the GOP might nominate for his replacement.
Neil Diamond...you Steve...really? Damn dude, you made me laugh with that one. Hey, i loved Neil, he put on one hell of a show back in the day. Some get giddy over Sweet Caroline's refrain, for my money nothing was better than "Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show" and the growl that turns into a roar.
But alas, this column isn't about our musical tastes, it speaks more to those "cheap dates," that have been bought and paid for to win elections, forever. Yesterday on The Racket we saw some of the highest commentary in a long while as a couple of posters decided to banter over third party salvation and the merits of having a Kennedy in the race.
He went so far as to share the link for the half-crazed wanna-be president. When i first started reading and saw the word bot, my immediate reaction was you had brilliantly discovered the source for the new arrival was indeed a bot.
I have no interest in exploring or debating the grassy knoll theory from Dallas, but my mind runs wild with what we will face the next 7 months. Between AI, bots and meme's created that are 100% fakes, what chance do mere mortals have to be anything but a "cheap date?"
Are we all screwed? I hope not, because if we are, another one of my favs from Neil will ring hollow; "Coming To America."
Because you asked the question, “Are we screwed ? “, I posed that question to my internet version Magic Eight Ball. The answer is …. “Outlook Good”. Guess that means we are screwed. But could be open to interpretation :)
Are you a glass half full or glass half empty Jay? Of course these days more and more are just drinking heavily to ease the pain. Imagine my pain after nearly 48 years of sobriety *said with a grin).
PS. I loved my grandmothers magic eight ball. Kept us grand kids busy for hours.
Maybe I am at heart a glass half full kind of guy, but I spent much time thinking of all the possibilities that the glass may be toppled or shattered soon.
Maybe I should have said I kind of liked “The Jazz Singer.” My musical tastes run toward 70s and 80s classic rock but I enjoy some jazz and show tunes too. Not much on hip hop or rap. I am proud of the fact that I can’t name 3 Taylor Swift songs.
If you had daughters you would be singing along with eras of Swift tunes :)
She did a pretty good cover of the Jackson Five “I Want You Back.” And as you know, no daughters here. All boys.
Damn dude, that's 3 more than me. It's odd as the more i listen to stuff other than my oldies-but-goodies, i come to understand some of this "new" music is pretty darned good. Unfortunately the old adage about old dogs and new tricks fits me nicely.
Guy takes his car to his mechanic complaining about a God-awful noise coming from the dashboard. Few hours later the mechanic calls to tell him that he found the problem and fixed it. He removed the Taylor Swift CD and replaced it with Van Halen.
It boggles my mind—I’ve read enough of your work that you clearly know what Trump is capable of. You know he is unmoored from any principles—well, any beyond whatever benefits him in the very short term… assuming that can even be called a principle. Yet, you still “both sides” this election and the candidates.
I understand that you don’t agree with Biden’s policy positions… but surely you have the historical context to recognize that he’s about as middle of the roads as you’re likely to get—from either major party, I should add!
Do I wish we had better candidates? Sure! But I’ll have no doubt or ambivalence when I cast my vote for Biden this fall. There’s no question—it’s not even close.
I report both sides because there are two sides. Many people overestimate what “Trump is capable of.” If he was capable of being a dictator as POTUS, what is he capable of as a private citizen? The only end would be what Susan Bagwelll suggested: prison. But if he is capable of so much, could he avoid prison? Trump is terrible and should not be president. But Biden isn’t great and what Democrats want to do is in many ways as illiberal as Trump. They are very much better at doing it legally.
I appreciate you responding--thanks for engaging.
I'm having some trouble following your response, though. It feels like you're using some shorthand for statements/posts/events I'm not familiar with (which Bagwell post do you mean, for instance?).
> "If he was capable of being a dictator as POTUS, what is he capable of as a private citizen? The only end would be what Susan Bagwelll suggested: prison. But if he is capable of so much, could he avoid prison?"
He's capable of a lot less as a private citizen, but not nothing either -- mostly b/c he leads a sizable cult of followers (just calling it like I plainly see it). As far as avoiding prison: he's been pretty skilled at avoiding most any consequences for most (all?) of his life--and while at times it seems things are catching up with him, I'm not holding my breath on him being held to account.
> "Trump is terrible and should not be president. But Biden isn’t great and what Democrats want to do is in many ways as illiberal as Trump. They are very much better at doing it legally."
Trump is terrible, but Biden isn't great. These are very much NOT the same thing! And "doing it legally" vs. illegally is a pretty damn important distinction! I admit it isn't everything--there is a lot you can legally do that is damaging in various ways. Without providing any details of what you're thinking here, I'll have trouble refuting or agreeing with you ... but some of the things in my mind where Democrats have overreached have been more symptomatic of the larger executive branch overreach (and congressional inaction / abdication of their responsibilities) that has been happening for decades now ... facilitated by both parties. It's dysfunctional, no doubt -- but Biden has operated within the "normal" bounds of what modern executives have operated. I won't say the same for Trump.
It's hard to respond effectively without (a) remaining brief and (b) sounding like a lunatic. But I'll say that Democrats have for many decades enjoyed a definitive advantage in much of the media, corporate boardrooms, and local politics. Being drunk on its own newfound power in some of these areas, Republicans fell for some really terrible cons that Democrats had learned to compartmentalize. But Democrats still know how to use political violence, educational indoctrination, administrative lawfare, and social engineering much better than Republicans. In a poor historical military analog, it's like the Roman legions (D) fighting the Huns (R). The Huns were barbarians who flayed their enemies when they won, but the Romans never stopped and had the advantage of centuries of battle experience.