The purpose of the following paragraph or two isn’t to pat myself on the back but rather to establish that I am capable of critical analysis and not just, as I was once accused, of regurgitating others opinions. Many times, things are so simple that its easy to draw a conclusion that others think of it simultaneously… but many would rather credit ‘others’ for original thoughts rather than those within our own ranks.
Weeks ago I speculated that the Georgian-Russian skirmish might have been orchestrated by the United States as a way of forcing the EU to admit Georgia into NATO. The effect of this would be to be able to place NATO missiles on Russia’s borders. Russia since then has made the same accusation.
I also said that this would trigger a Russian response and we would be seeing Russian missiles in our backyard. On September 8, the LA Times ran a story of the Venezuelan government announcement that 4 Russian naval vessels would participate in joint exercises in the Caribbean this year.
In my last blog (Sunday 9/7/08, written the night before) I pointed out Dick Cheney brownbagging $1B of taxpayers money to Georgia. The following day as I posted it, there was a NY Times columnist with the same topic.
In the same blog, I referred to Sarah Palin as ‘lipstick on a pig’… a phrase Obama used the following Tuesday.
Even before Hillary Clinton’s speech at the democratic convention, I pointed out that HRC was not throwing her full support behind Obama. I felt that she wanted to subvert Obama, leading to his loss… the only way she can run in 2012. Many pundits are now drawing this conclusion.
Recently in Florida, when asked about going after Palin, HRC said, “You know what? I don’t think that’s what this election is about… This election is about the differences between us and the Republican Party”. Really?
Sometime ago, I stated that the rise in oil prices had nothing to do with demand and supply but manipulation. Please see this link http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080910/ap_on_go_co/oil_speculation
I must bring the following to readers’ attention and ask them to go to the following links for the fuller story about John McCain. Thanks to fellow blogger at Jamaicans.com http://blogs.jamaicans.com/gwgraeme/ “A sneak peek at John McCain…” and to master journalist John Maxwell of the Jamaica Observer: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/html/20080906T220000-0500_139905_OBS_GREAT_WHITE_SNARK_.asp
And here is something else to look up. John McCain’s campaign manager Rick Davis in an interview with the Washington Post just before the republican convention (Sept 1) was barefaced enough to state “This election is not about issues… This election is about a composite view of what people take away from these candidates.”
I don’t think this bit of news was carried by the media worms protecting McCain. But why would Ricky-boy say that? Well, it isn’t the republicans strategy to argue issues, at least not when there are better targets like race and sexism to exploit.
According to the Post, “We are in the worst Republican environment since Nixon in 1972,” said Davis. “We take that seriously. We get the joke”. Apparently not.
Davis dismissed the idea of Palin as a media creation but quoting the Post, “As for the (her) speech itself, Davis said a generic, “masculine” speech was being prepared before the pick was made and, now that Palin is the choice, she is adapting the speech to her own needs and personality”.
Davis demurred when asked when Palin will sit for interviews with major news organizations, pointing out that now would not be the right time given the “combative” attitude the media has seemingly adopted toward Palin”.
In other words, Ms Gimmicacy is not yet ready and has to be schooled on all sort of appropriate responses to issues before facing the press. Expect some nice sound bites soon.
But the issue is that McCain doesn’t care about the issues because he has nothing to offer the majority of this country. He is afraid of being such exposed so he and Mrs Palin are now riding the Personality Express, “Smile, wave and prepare a meaningless but pretty sound bite, dearie”.
But while the republicans are playing hardball, Obama is in a mist. His strategy? Winning by genteelity. Fool.
So here’s my personal message to him. Obama… stop playing defense. I know its good to counterstrike, rope-a-dope or something, but its no good if you are too far behind, or your opponent gets in one lucky punch. Go after McCain and Palin hard. Go after Bush and Cheney as if they are running, link all four. Stop telling people that McBush is a good man and a war hero. He isn’t and he isn’t. Tell your VP not to refer to McCain as a good man. F–k that. Let loose your own dogs of war. Tell HRC to sh-t or get out. She is not helping you now. Stop apologizing. Stop remaking yourself. Stop trying to be everyman to everybody. Hit them with the war, the economy, Guantanamo Bay, and Abu Ghraib as if Bush, McCain and Palin were all posing in those photos. Show the McBushes as they really are… fat and rich and disconnected by their wealth. Make it about issues. Hit them with everything… you can apologise after you win. Your ‘if I did know I shoulda ’ won’t worth crap if you lose.
Let me leave you with a part of Jamaican Claude McKay’s poem ‘If we must die’. This poem reflected McKay’s defiance when blacks were being rounded up, beaten, hung, burned or otherwise grotesquely slaughtered by the fore-parents of the very people lined up against you.
“If we must die, let it not be like hogs
Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
… Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack,
Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!”