John McCain

[the_gneech]

Y'know, if McCain had gotten the nomination in 2000 (or heck, 2004 for that matter), I would have happily voted for him. The Presidential election was really a win/win scenario this time around — either candidate was a big-time upgrade from King George. It's a very nice (and unfamiliar) feeling to go into an election confident that even if "my guy" doesn't get in, we'll have a decent Prez. [1]

I think if he'd been up against another Gore or Kerry, McCain probably would have won this time, even with the economy down the hole; but Obama was simply too strong a candidate. If race had not been a factor in the equation Obama would have still been the stronger candidate — but his ability to motivate minority groups who have felt disenfranchised until now, simply by not being another "old white guy," made his victory inevitable.

Thus, while I did vote against McCain, I'm sympathetic to him; this was probably his last, best shot for the office, but it just wasn't in the cards. Thanks for trying, Senator McCain. :)

In other news, it looks like California's prop 8 (or "prop hate," as I've seen it referred to) is going to pass. Sigh. The people behind it have got to know it's just going to be ruled unconstitutional eventually, but I suppose in their minds the brief "shining moment" of it is worth the struggle. Pfeh. History is on the side of more freedom, not less, even if it does suffer setbacks from time to time.

-The Gneech

[1] Veep, not so much. Why'd you have to do that to us, Johnny?

Comments

[barberio.livejournal.com]

On prop 8, and similar... four years ago no one would have even thought same sex marriage had a chance... Eight years the result wouldn't have been close... Now, it was almost there...

So just think about next time.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Well, like I say, history is on its side. :)

-TG

[doodlesthegreat.livejournal.com]

18-21 year olds voted overwhelmingly against it, so I say it'll just take a bit while the bigoted old fucks die off.

[canisrufus-uk.livejournal.com]

Thats my hope for the world, each new generation seems to be, on average, less prejudiced than the one before it. So long as that continues the world we get there eventually.

[camstone.livejournal.com]

Me, just being curious, how'd you feel when McCain picked Palin as a running mate?

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

At the time I'd never heard of Palin, but my first thought was that he'd picked a woman in a bid to get the dispossessed Hillary supporters. As such, I was a little disappointed by the "maneuver-ness" of it. It sorta felt like, "Me too! Me too!"

Why do you ask?

-The Gneech

[dilletante.livejournal.com]

i thought the idea that the republican party felt it had to have a token woman on their presidential ticket in order to be competitive was a pretty interesting sign of the times.

[camstone.livejournal.com]

Like I said, curious to compare my own point of view with others.

At first, I figured he was, as you say, bidding to get the dispossessed (Hillary supporters) female vote. Then, she opened her mouth about the VP roles in governance and the Senate... and watched her interactions with McCain... and listened to the interviews with the media... and I just saw all sorts of bad mojo. I am also wondering if it was a selection he had any real "input" for, or if he let the party decide what was best.

[sirfox.livejournal.com]

To be fair, it was King George the 2nd.

*hugs*

i'm glad it's over. I'm glad to be proud of *both* my country and its leader again.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

True. :)

Re: Bush the Elder, while he was kind of a weenie overall, he was a much better President than his son has been. He was also a better President than Clinton, for that matter, but for entirely different reasons.

-The Gneech

[grifter-t-wolf.livejournal.com]

See I would have seriously considered McCain for President, he seems to have more experience behind him than his co-runners but he made one big mistake.

1. It wears glasses
2. It likes snow
3. It hates animals
4. Its a religious nut
5. It's a woman :P (Played the minority card there)

[vverevvolf.livejournal.com]

Just as a side note, from what I've heard George Bush has been described by most of the White House hired help as an ok guy who's gotten a lot of bad press. If anything most of it stems from surrounding himself with people who gave him bad advice. A mistake I hope the next president doesn't share, but from looking at some of his former cohorts, I'm not sure that's going to be all that much of a change...

Oh well, life goes on and there's always four years from now... (Presuming WW3 doesn't start before then... which I wouldn't be all that surprised if it started before Obama's even in office.)

/.-, VVolf

[doodlesthegreat.livejournal.com]

Just as a side note, from what I've heard George Bush has been described by most of the White House hired help as an ok guy who's gotten a lot of bad press.

Just the Patriot Act alone puts lie to that statement.

[the-mcp.livejournal.com]

Right, because Bush singlehandedly wrote the Patriot Act into law after he used his Evil Genius Powers(tm) to teleport 145 Democrats in the House, and all but 1 of the Democrats in the Senate (the 1 being Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, who didn't vote at all), to his Secret Lair in Crawford and replace their brains with Folger's Crystals.

Yeah, I know, they've since tried to claim that they were deceived, they didn't know what was in the bill, la-te-dah. Even if true, it doesn't absolve them of responsibility; it just makes them doubly idiots for not actually reading the bill before they passed it.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

There's lots of blame to go 'round for the Patriot Act, alas.

-The Gneech

[vverevvolf.livejournal.com]

Allow me to expound upon the_mcp's comment.

The Patriot Act was originally designed by a South Vietnam immigrant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viet_Dinh), passed the House of Representatives with a 357-66 (http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2001/roll398.xml) for it, then passes the Senate 99-1 (http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=1&vote=00313) (including John Kerry and Joe Binen I might add.) for it. Then Bush says "Ok, that can be a law."

You're more then welcome to your own opinions, but I'd suggest putting more blame on the people who actually had input to the content of the Act than just blame the guy who gave the final 'ok.'

My 2¢s
/.-, VVolf

[shockwave77598.livejournal.com]

SHH! Don't you know that the BushCo GruppenListen can record anything you say, without a warrant, because anyone and everyone might be a terrorist?

[vverevvolf.livejournal.com]

What I'm about to tell you may be considered a breach of National Security, but I felt you should know...

You have black helicopter flying around in your underpants as you are reading this...

Now if you'll excuse me I have to go hide until the next breach of National Security occurs... with the Mexican Border situation it shouldn't take to long, but I'm gonna give it 5 minutes, just to be sure.

[rhanlav.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I agree on pretty much everything ya said there, TG.

And yeah, Palin was one of those choices I was like "Bwah???" And the more she opened her mouth, the more I was like "Why did he pick her, other than she's a really, really conservative woman?". I still don't think I have a clear answer as to why except for maybe saying "Boy, he got some bad advice from someone". I think that probably was McCain's problem, was he got some bad advice on what to do, instead of letting himself be himself for the election.

Dook. Just my 2 cents.

--Salen

[vverevvolf.livejournal.com]

I think the reasons for Palin were these:

1. He wanted someone from outside D.C. (Congress has about a 9% approval rating, Palin had between 60%-90% approval depending on the poll.)

2. He wanted someone with some background in the Energy industry to add in the current Energy Crisis.

3. SNL wanted someone easily imitable.

Ok, the last one I made up... I'm sure he also wanted to attract some of the P.U.M.A.s disheartened by Hillary's defeat, but I'm sure that wasn't his only reason.

/.-, VVolf

[shockwave77598.livejournal.com]

I was originally pro mccain because he did work with both sides of the aisle, regardless of what the party said to do. And I was moaning about the potential for Hillary to be a candidate - sorry, but I've spent my entire life under either President Clinton or President Bush and I dont' want to hear those names again. And while being a POW isn't sufficient qualification to be CIC, it is enough to earn my attention and to tell me what you are all about.

But then McCain sold out his independent soul to suck up to the right wing radicals to get their support. My interest in him faded. Then he picked a VP so unready for the job that the plumber would be a better pick. My interest faded more. Then he couldn't comprehend the economy collapsing around him, the first thing he'll be called upon to fix. His mean demeanor at the debates clearly showed him to be intolerant of dissent and dismissive of anybody daring to think differently than him. We've had 8 years of that already; no more.

He became the very caricature of himself. A man who wanted to be president so bad that he would sell out everything he was for a few votes.

[rigelkitty.livejournal.com]

Prop 8 cannot be ruled unconstitutional at the state level because Prop 8 amends the state constitution itself.

[barberio.livejournal.com]

That's not strictly true. An California initiative process may amend the California constitution. It may *not* revise the California constitution, the section in the constitution recognises a distinct difference between the two. Revision requires two thirds of the legislature. It's an acceptable legal challenge to prop 8 that it is a revision that sought to revoke parts of Article 1 of the California constitution.

The summary of the proposal is very clear that it is a 'Change' to the constitution to remove rights, not an amendment.

If I were a judge, I would rule that any part of the proposition that altered existing rights would be inoperable. And that since the 'amendment' is incompatible with Article 1, Article 1 wins out.

[rigelkitty.livejournal.com]

Ooh, very astute observation. I wasn't aware of that. Thanks.

[m0nkeygrl.livejournal.com]

[1] Veep, not so much. Why'd you have to do that to us, Johnny?

Agreed. *sigh*