Its Debatable...

Boxing and debates; we love the drama behind 'em, we love the sight of two long time foes being on stage (or in a ring) together. We love the idea of them face to face to solve their differences right then and there for the world to see.  We love to bare witness to the big hit or the tough question (so long as Olberman is not on moderating duty) that makes the fighter wobbly and the debater uncomfortable.

Both debates and fights become fodder for a lot of conversation  leading up to the event and its an even bigger opportunity for analysis directly following.

We are a competitively driven society.  I imagine its a big reason we love sports, various challenges and even game shows. We live vicariously through these athletes and contestants who are competing for pride, money, prize or glory.

We love to see somebody win and somebody lose.  We sit there watching very closely for that line or soundbite that's akin to a knockout punch. Depending on who is the recipient of said "punch", the audience either churns uncomfortably or is consumed with giddiness.

The only problem with the afore-mentioned scenarios?

In this day and age boxers are rarely fighters.  More often then not, they are technically sound, precise and safe boxers. As a result these matches rarely end in a decisive knockout punch and fans rarely get to see the fight the brawl or blood they crave.

Unfortunately the same can be said for debaters. I can't speak for the way debates were handled during the days of Alexander Hamilton, James Polk and John Tyler ( I imagine guns were involved), but debates these days are a lot more reserved, calculated and safe.  We all talk and fantasize about the one liners and soundbites of some of the most memorable debates we have had since they were televised, but when we look closely at it, how often do they really happen?

Just last night, a movie was brought to my attention, Roshomon.  A movie in which a number of people all witnessed the same murder and all have divergent opinions on exactly what they saw.

In the modern day of spin and counter spin both sides claim victory for every line, every question and every debate.  As for us? we glean from it what we choose. More often than not, if we liked a candidate before the debate we will like them after the debate and vice versa.

Now that I have convinced you that debates are essentially meaningless, forget everything I have just said. Thursdays debate between both vice presidential candidates is lined up to be a decisive one.  There will be a clear cut winner and loser.  If Sarah Palin can hold her own and keep the debate at a stalemate, she wins. If on the other hand she has a Katie Curric moment she loses.

So....when all is said and done, will she win?

well....I guess its debatable.

Have your popcorn and eat it too

There's a crispness in the air, the trees in Central Park are starting to shed their leaves, the football season has started, the baseball races are reaching a crescendo, this could only mean one thing...the television season is back! ....or is it?

The new fall season? the network dramas? The ever popular reality shows? The excitement and anxiety that goes along with an American Idol finale?

these are all things that traditionally keep Americans glued to their TV's on a weekday evening....during this election season however, who needs 'em?

A new reality show has emerged and taken center stage for a vast majority of Americans.

....and for those with whom it hasn't, maybe this post will help.

Act 1: A fierce Democratic primary filled with more twists, turns and plot changes than all 3 seasons of Lost combined (or have there been 4 seasons?).  The daily exchange of mutually aggressive harsh words between both campaigns and endless strategizing by Clinton/Obama advisers, mixed in with Buba's thrust back into the political limelight sprinkled in with a little Rev. Wright controversy caused housewives across the country all summer long to increasingly exchange their bon bons and Oprah Winfrey for well...bons bons and Wolf Blitzer. Ok that gross generalization and harsh exaggeration of housewives may have been over the top, but the Democratic political drama that ensued was not!

Act 2: McCain pulls away from Mike Hukcabee the "other" formerly fat- ever-so whimsical governor from Hope Arkansas and the straight out of central casting oh so presidential looking and sounding Mitt Romney. Obama does the same with the tougher than nails former first lady whose love of brightly colored pant suits would put to shame anyone who well...wore many brightly colored pant suits.  Clear battle lines have been drawn for a hotly contested presidential race. 

Act 3: A true fight begins to gain momentum. It becomes increasingly clear that this race is going to be as much about personality, character and spin as it its going to be about issues. In one corner you have the older more experienced and stately candidate, and in the other you have the younger more energetic self proclaimed conduit for change.  Ad after ad, soundbite after soundbite, press conference after press conference the public begins to become more and more engaged and the country becomes more and more polarized.

Act 4:  As the national polls and state polls start to trickle out, the razor thin race between Obama and Clinton starts to look as wide as  the Grand Canyon (at its widest point, and that pretty wide, i think).  However just as quickly as the race begins to look like a race, the Democrats have their convention.....and what a convention it was.  Day 1 ironically started out pretty boring (highlighted by Michelle) Day 2 - With the underlying question of party unity adopted by the media, the Democratic National Convention turned into the Clinton National Convention. Hillary comes out in an emotional, satirical, funny  and forceful speech putting a virtual end to the question of unity.  Day 3- Bill follows up on the good will fostered by his wife to deliver a true Clintonian speech, raising the bar for Obama.  Which brings us to day 4 in which Obama delivers a majestic speech in front of roman columns underneath a star strewn night in front of a star studded audience.

Act 5: After a resoundingly impressive and successful convention by the Democrats, Obama begins to pull away in the polls.  Just as soon as the conversation and attention  starts turning to the Republicans and Minneapolis, hurricane ("Hidalgo"?...whatever that "h" hurricane was before Ike) begins to head for the gulf states and all the attention gets redirected from Minneapolis to New Orleans. Once the hurricane proves not to be disastrous, the media jumps back on the network jets headed back to Minneapolis for the resumption of the Republican convention.  Can McCain overcome a plunge in the polls? A hurricane that cancelled the first day of his convention? The release of the monstrous ratings numbers from Obama's speech less then a week earlier?

Act 6: Enter Sarah Palin stage right.

Questions answered!

Act 7: After a very successful convention, McCain evens the playing field and takes a slight lead in the polls.  The drama, the issues, the attacking surrogates, the endless analysis, and the nasty attack ads begin anew.

- By now I am sure most of my somewhat theatrically astute readers may ask, isn't the 3 act storyline, the traditinally accepted one in the modern age of theatre and cinema? As act 8 will tell you, this story coninues to break the rules and push the limits.

Act 8: "Its the economy stupid" 

After both candidates set aim at one another, spending months digging in and entrenching themselves within their respective battle plans and particular ideologies, a dramatic shift in America takes hold. A faltering economy, financial markets in peril and credit virtually shut off to all business's and citizens, everyone begins to question everything.  This shift and national uncertainty permeates both campaigns.  John and Barack are now forced to question their tactics, their economic plans, their long range strategies and yes even their own parties. Congress is scrambling to pass or reject the biggest governmental bailout in American history, partisan lines are blurred, party loyalty and unity is postponed and suddenly an unpopular lame duck president is thrust back into the political forefront.  With 41 days left until the election the campaign for presidency turns into a national debate over the economic future of our country.

The question of who will win is only trumped by the question; what contest are we even talking about?

Act 9: I can't wait to find out....can you?

Friday 8 pm MSNBC

Oh Henry!

I can't speak for everyone, but I grew up with a -parental guilt inspiring saying- that I am sure many others did as well, "money doesn't grow on trees" or "if you are willing to work hard enough for it, then you deserve to bare the fruits of your labor" the flip side being, if you decide to be careless with your money or property, then conversely you deserve to bare the loss that goes along with it.  

Now that the investment banking industry has taken a plunge, the government, with the urging of Treasury Secretary Paulson, has decided to bail them out, sending a resoundingly disconcerting message to the public, while simultaneously placing the investment banking world above and beyond the needs and troubles of everyone else. Allowing them to conduct business relatively free from impunity, only to jump in and save them after they have taken advantage of said freedoms is not what I would call fiscal discipline.

Not only is the creation of this welfare for millionaires program difficult to grasp, but the estimated  700 billion being used for it is nothing short of staggering!  

For the sake of scale, allow me to compare it to some areas of the 2008 US budget:

-This bail out is more than the cost of every social program the country has for this year, combined!

Including; the Department of Health and Human Services, the Social Security Administration, Department of Education, HUD, and the Department of Labor....just to name a few.

-This  bail out is double the combined amount of every operational expense the country has this year.

Including; the Treasury Department, the cost of all government personnel, the Justice Department, the State Department, Department of Homeland Security (at a time when threats of terrorism are prevalent), NASA (at a time when we have been sending rovers to mars at a pace faster than Carl Lewis could run the 100 or 200), and the cost of maintaining the three branches of government!

-Finally this bail out is more than half the size of our entire yearly military budget (at a time when we are engaged in two wars)! 

Money does not grow on trees. This money is not going to come from the wallet of the very same executive that just cashed a 10 million dollar check from the very same bank being bailed out......it's coming from the guy in Michigan making 60,000 dollars a year working at an auto plant!  In addition to his expenses for raising a family,  he now has incurred an additional financial responsibility; bailing out some guy in a pinstripe suit 2,000 miles away who decided to partake in fiscally irresponsible transactions.

The primary excuse and reasoning for the bailout is to restore confidence in this country's economic system.  Well what kind of confidence does it inspire when we decide to carelessly dole out monies we don't have to PRIVATE businesses that have acted so carelessly?

What message does this send to every financial institution in this country? 

Take all the risks you want, if you succeed, all the power to you, but if you fail - we'll make the tax payer bail you out?

Proponents of this move will say, this action is needed to stabilize the markets. They are right....if you want to stabilize the markets for a week, then this is the action you take. However, what happens the week after that? or the month after? When people realize these financial intuitions didn't really recover on their own, rather they are only around today because of a new governmental program that I like to call BCWP, or the Big Corporation Welfare Program. It is a very dangerous precedent to set and a very frightening message to send.

I would like to think my brother and sister-in-law are two of the best parents I know, as a result, their two daughters are two of the most well behaved children I know.  Their secret? love and discipline.  If Adina or Shoshana were to take expensive toy dolls and smash them on the floor, I could assure you the discipline employed by their parents would not come in the form of giving them more dolls with which to smash.

....perhaps it is time the lawmakers of this country learn a thing or two from the parents of this country.

....Imitating Life

- A young minority democratic nominee for president emerged after a long intensely heated democratic primary.

- Said candidate called on a more experienced long time politician to bolster his foreign policy credentials.

-The republican nominee for president was a longtime senate stalwart looking for one last chance at the Oval Office after years and years of service in representing his western state. 

-Said nominee was known as a maverick amongst his peers for reaching across the aisle on many controversial votes and legislation.

- The outgoing administration was on the verge of a possible millitary engagement with a bullying Russia over the sovereignty and fate of a smaller country in the region desirous of membership to NATO.

- A female candidate was on the short list for VP consideration on the republican side.

I am not reviewing the highlights of this political year, rather I am recapping the plot points of the final season of the West Wing.

The West Wing wasn't just a show, it was an intense political drama, it was an exercise in political education and it was a window into the daily legislative maelstroms that result in the negotiating and framing of international and domestic policy.

With just 42 days left until we elect the next President of the United States, I am always struck at just how ahead of its time it was in foreshadowing the current political climate we find ourselves in today.

Thank you Aaron Sorkin for some of the most memorable dialogue and story lines in television history.

Thank you Tommy Schlomme for the vision to put Aarons words into cinematic acton.

Thank you John Wells for giving the red light on one of the most memorable Series of all time.

Thank you Snuffy Walden for some of the most moving music which contributed greatly to the thematic cohesiveness of the show.

I am a more educated person for having watched the show, and I am a more politically conscious person for having learned from the show.

.....As A gift to my readers and an example of the shows powerful imagery and emotional dialogue, I will conclude this entry with a small portion of a speech given by President Josiah Bartlet, which hppens to be especially pertinent this time of year.   This speech was given just hours after a pipe bomb had gone off at a university killing 44 people.  

"...We did not seak nor did we provoke an assault on our freedom and our way of life.  We did not expect nor did we invite a confrontation with evil.  Yet the true measure of a people's strength is how they rise to master that moment when it does arive.  44 people were killed a couple hours ago at Kennison State University.  Three swimmers from the mens team were killed and two others are in critical condition.  When, after having heard of the explosion from their practice facility, they ran into the fire to help get people out.  Ran into the fire.  The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels tonight.  They're our students and our teachers and our parents and our friends.  The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels, but every time we think we have measured our capacity to meet a challenge, we look up and we're reminded that that capacity may well be limitless.  This is  time for American heroes.  We will do what is hard, we will achieve what is great.  this is  time for Americn heroes and we reach for the stars."

Monday Morning Running Back

Fresh off a Sunday morning rich with talk shows, newspaper editorials and pundits putting in their two cents, I would be remiss if I didn't delve into the issues and headlines of the day dominating the political world.

- i.e. does she or doesn't she know what the Bush Doctrine is? Did he support sex-ed legislation for kindergardeners? Has he been slinging too much mud recently?

hmmm I feel like I'm missing someone here......lets see: Palin (covered), Obama (covered), McCain (covered).....oh thats right; did he gaffe when he admitted that Obama made the wrong choice for VP in giving him the nod over her? Biden and Clinton (covered)

So how about I just go through the checklist of all the things I'm obligated to discuss,before digressing into a non political obsession I want to discuss (yes yes there is another).

1) Talk about Sarah Palin in her first interview since being nominated as McCains VP.

Didn't seem very comfortable.  Seems vulnerable to attack on her experience and knowledge of issues. Impressed by Charlie Gibson's interviewing style and professionalism

NEXT

2) Mention Obama coming out with fresh ads attacking McCain. 

Nice to finally see Obama in all his angelic platitudes, coming down to earth and rolling in the political mud (no pun intended) like every politician (regardless how "lofty") eventually does. Afterall mudslinging is as much a part of the world of Washington, as  E=Mc2 is a part of the world of physics. 

NEXT

3) Share thoughts on Hurricane Ike.

I hate to be the one to articulate aloud what most people tend to think quietly, but i'm afraid its my duty in this venue to do so. 

Like many, I stayed up watching hurricane coverage all night -  and as like most, I tend to say things like "I hope its not as bad as expected" OR "our prayers are with the people of the region" AND "lets hope the destruction and damage is limited", blah blah blah - when in fact what  everyone is truly thinking, but are afraid to say out loud is that we secretly want to see Anderson Cooper sent flying by a big gust of wind, Geraldo Rivera being swept up by a surging wave, or Sanjay Gupta getting smacked in the head by flying debris as they all ironically discuss the dangers associated with not heeding the advice of experts who have repeatedly reiterated the importance of fleeing town. 

NEXT

4) Discuss Wall Street melt down. 

I Feel bad for the everyday investor and employee who is suffering as a direct result of Lehman's mistakes, but shamefully can't help but get a sense of glee when seeing an executive walking out the Lehman door with his box of personal belongings just 6 months after he deposited that most recent 10 million dollar bonus check.!

OK, I think I officially covered my responsibilities as a political blog. 

Now to the real important topic of the day: 

Much to the dismay and intense disagreement of others, I think these charges against Orenthal James are trumped up and bogus!  

Robbery? Burglary? Kidnapping? Intent to cause harm with a deadly weapon?....are you kidding???

Immediately after he left the hotel room (after taking back his personal belongings that were stolen from him), the "victims" were on tape laughing and joking around about how much money they were about to get by selling their stories to the tabloids.  Every single one of the "victims" has a wrap sheet longer than Mike Piazza's home runs at Dodger Stadium in his rookie year. Yale Gollanter's cross of these shady characters will be something to watch!

On a more serious note: 

We are going through the type of financial crisis the likes we have not seen in many years. How is it possible that neither candidate can come out with a comprehensive plan or even an attempted solution for fixing things?

They Say Obama is really really smart, they say McCain is really really experienced.....yet now in their first presidential test, when either has golden chance to break away, they are both dropping the ball on this profound opportunity.

hmmm.....Nader '08?

 

State of Confusion

So we finally get the polls that "matter" in the swing states of Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida. So what can we conclude from this...?

Nothing!

I'm sure you've all heard of the saying "As goes Pennsylvania so goes Ohio" OK, if you have heard of the saying, you're not a completely honest person, as I just made it up.  However the principal behind it remains true.  The voting demographics in rural PA, along with the middle class city of Pittsburgh mirrors in many ways the blue collar demographics of Ohio.  Therefore one would assume that if the Palin factor in PA has helped rally the blue collar's and the conservative base translating to a 5% point jump for McCain in the crucial swing state for Democrats, a similar trend would occur in the crucial swing state for the Arizona senator in Ohio.

So......did the age old Politichai adage hold true?

ummm not quite.

Despite the polls turning in McCain's favor in Pennsylvania, he lost crucial ground in Ohio, where he went from a virtual tie to being down 50-44%.

What can this odd variance in the poling be attributed to?

I mean aside from Sarah Jessica Parker starting to sport a Barack & Roll jacket across Manhattan.

Simply put.....jobs!

As recent economic news has come out placing unemployment in this country at 6.1% or the worse its been in 16 years.  The question becomes what candidate's economic policies favor the middle class and would help unemployment?  

In order to answer this question, lets look into their plans.

Obama favors a plan to lower taxes to the middle class, while raising taxes for the wealthy and corporations. Some could argue this tax relief is vital for the middle class who are suffering from tough economic times.

The McCain economic plan takes on a different approach.  Give tax cuts across the board, including the wealthy and corporations. In the hopes of stimulating those companies benefiting from the tax cut so that they can begin to flourish again and cut into the unemployment rate, thereby stimulating the broad economy.

Perhaps the differences in opinion on how best to approach this labor problem represents the differences in the polls with regard to two of the states most affected by this problem.

In a similar poll taken in Florida, McCain went from a slim 2 point lead to a more comfortable 7 point lead.....Can this swing too be tied to the unemployment numbers? Unlikely seeing as how I was just in Florida and can attest to the fact that everyone is old and retired.  

hmmm.....

Must be McCains sexy tan.

The New York Boast...?

Now that I have shared a brief glimpse into my particular and sometimes peculiar passions in life, namely sports and politics, I may as well add another secret obsession to that list; The New York Post.  Those whose knowledge of the paper is limited and peripheral in nature, tend to look at it as a tabloid. However for someone who reads it on a daily basis,  with its editorials and rather large NY footprint, the Post is an insightful source for local, national, and even international news.  To say nothing of their uncanny ability to stay at the forefront in exposing corruption on a multitude of levels across the city and state; most recently of course and perhaps most notably, the Charlie Rangel tax evasion scandal. It is for this reason that today I feel a sense of shame and embarrassment as a proponent of this paper.  

On a day when the campaigns of Barack Obama and John McCain have decided to suspend their squabbles and politicking and to appear together at a solemn yet hopeful ceremony at the WTC sight, this was a chance for the paper to show unity amongst the citizens of this country on  a bipartisan level and amongst the residents of this city on a local level.  I'm sad to say the Post failed miserably on both accounts.  A day when the remembrance of the tragic events of 9/11 is the clear priority, the Post squandered this remarkable opportunity.  Instead they chose to once again revisit the pig and lipstick political soap opera with nothing else but a big front page  picture of....well......you guessed it, a pig in lipstick.

What compounds this mistake other than my blog of course is that every other paper in NY was able to discern between right and wrong today.  The NY Post clearly got it wrong, while the Daily News, the NY Times, the Metro and AM New York all got it right.

On a personal note, this city has done a lot for me and I can only hope that the strength and the unity and regeneration you see in this city on days like this serves as a microcosm for what this country can and will do going forward regardless of who wins.

Pol's and polls

OK I admit it, I watch a lot of news and read a lot of papers.  In doing so, all I hear about these days (other than pigs and lipstick) are polls polls polls.  The Gallop Daily Tracking is my favorite....as if we don't have enough polls (every obscure state university, every newspaper and every network has their own poll) Gallop feels we need one everyday!!!

Aside from being inundated with these polls that vary and waiver more than Lucy Ricardo in a restaurant looking at a menu (OK I need to work on my analogies), they are focusing on the wrong information.

We don't need to know about the national polls, we don't need to know what percentage of likely voters nationwide are voting for one candidate or another.  Afterall have we forgottenthe lessons of 2000 that the popular vote is not what matters in this country?  We need to have state by state polls....and more specifically we need to have them in the swing states!

For the last 48 hours all NBC News and its affiliates have been touting is their NBC Wall Street Journal Poll, only to reveal that the race is in a virtiual "dead heat" (Obama 47 McCain 46).  

Don't give me a poll that touts the popular vote, give me one that tells me which way PA is leaning, or Nevada and while we are at it, how about Michigan, Colorado, and New Hampshire...and lets not forget the two states that decided the 2000 and 2004 elections respectively, Florida and Ohio.

For the record if you haven't had your fill of insignificant meaningless polls, Obama is leading 64 to 14 percent in an average of all polls in........ the crucial swing continent of Europe.

....my only question is why are 22% undecided?

Over Olbermann

Ahhh Monday, what a day!

-An NFL double header

-Obama on Fox News with O'Reilly

-Obama on MSNBC's Countdown.

Well at least two of the three offered some television drama.

The battle on the grid iron was often interchangeable with the spirited exchanges found on the O'Reilly show....but of course the highly ballyhooed interview with Olbermann, ummmm not so much.

Thanks to my girlfriend's DVR (and subsequently much to her dismay), I was able to go back and forth between the two "interviews" (and I use that word loosely, as no definition for "interview" found anywhere in the world, including wikipedia could cover O on O's puff piece) in order to create my own humorous, journalistic parallel universe in which the contradictory context of the interviews would make for great fodder in the writing of an episode of the twilight zone.

Among Olbermann's tough, hard hitting questions?

(And I'm paraphrasing here...)

1) "McCain and Palin are clearly lying in their commercials, do you plan on calling them out on it?"

2) "McCain and Palin are clearly lying in their stump speeches, do you plan on getting tougher in confronting them?"

3) "The McCain economic plan is clearly a horrible one, how do you plan on getting that message out to voters?"

4) For those of us who have been sick and tired of the last 8 years under Bush, have you thought of using the word "enough" more often to link McCain's campaign with Bush's presidency?"

5) "Seeing as how The Rachel Maddow show (shameless plug for his fellow liberal cohort with whom he forced MSNBC to give a show to while simultaneously firing a notable newsman to provide her with his time slot) is premiering tonight she asked me if I would ask you a question: Do you think you could mobilize your advisers and staff to find racial statements made by any Republican so that you could throw it back in McCain's face in the form of a 527 ad?"

(For the record, as much as I tend to exaggerate in life, sadly no embellishment was needed here, just boiling down all of Olbermann's characteristically long-winded fluff, to the actual questions he posed to Obama)

Is it just me or is his partisanship void of any journalistic integrity?

It is clear that MSNBC as a network is slightly left leaning, but come on! (For those not yet convinced, this O on O love fest is a three part series, so feel free to tune in tomorrow....or just check my blog for the highlights...)