Enough Already -- Turn off the TV
Okay, I'm choosing to go off-line on this election for a while. Here's what I've read lately that encourages me to relax:
An article from Great Britain questioning Bush's mental fitness reassures me that his demeanor during the debates will not be swept under the rug. Bush seemed unbalanced during the debates--it's no wonder that the rest of world is desperate for the U.S. to oust him (see earlier post for link). This is a second reason to send a "vote of no-confidence," that is, both his mental state and his administrative record.
The New York Times lead editorial endorses "John Kerry for President," supporting Kerry for his record and his presentation during the debates, as well as criticizing Bush for his record over the past four years and for his demeanor during the debates.
Working for Change provides an opinion piece by Bryon Williams that predicts, "the election will not be close." Williams argues well (1) for the polls being unrepresentative because of high voter registration by Democrats and failure to poll younger voters who have only cell phones and (2) for incumbent races being essentially confidence/no-confidence elections, so that the poll results for the question, "are we headed in the right direction," is the major predictor of the election results--the other questions aren't that important. We need to remember that statistical data is only as good as its interpretation.
And for comic relief, there's Jonathan Chait's column for October 14, "Vote Bush, and Let Him Clean up His Own Mess," which makes an ironic case for letting Bush win, while pointing out the uncomfortably true aspect of a Kerry win--it's going to be VERY hard for Kerry to look good while he cleans up Bush's mess.
And finally, the post-debate debate over Kerry's reference to Mary Cheney cannot last another two weeks.. Even the TV news is going to have to return to the issues. And as Fox News has shown us, the Republicans really don't want to talk about Mary Cheney. Too much of Bush's base believes that's it's okay to discriminate against homosexuals because homosexuality is a choice, not an inherent quality like skin color. That part of Bush's base isn't comfortable that the second-in-line-for-President opposes an amendment discriminating against homosexuals and has accepted that sexual orientation is not a choice--it is one of the ways we are "created in God's image." No wonder Fox news isn't even talking about it.
So let's encourage people to vote their conscience--and let's just get out the vote!
An article from Great Britain questioning Bush's mental fitness reassures me that his demeanor during the debates will not be swept under the rug. Bush seemed unbalanced during the debates--it's no wonder that the rest of world is desperate for the U.S. to oust him (see earlier post for link). This is a second reason to send a "vote of no-confidence," that is, both his mental state and his administrative record.
The New York Times lead editorial endorses "John Kerry for President," supporting Kerry for his record and his presentation during the debates, as well as criticizing Bush for his record over the past four years and for his demeanor during the debates.
Working for Change provides an opinion piece by Bryon Williams that predicts, "the election will not be close." Williams argues well (1) for the polls being unrepresentative because of high voter registration by Democrats and failure to poll younger voters who have only cell phones and (2) for incumbent races being essentially confidence/no-confidence elections, so that the poll results for the question, "are we headed in the right direction," is the major predictor of the election results--the other questions aren't that important. We need to remember that statistical data is only as good as its interpretation.
And for comic relief, there's Jonathan Chait's column for October 14, "Vote Bush, and Let Him Clean up His Own Mess," which makes an ironic case for letting Bush win, while pointing out the uncomfortably true aspect of a Kerry win--it's going to be VERY hard for Kerry to look good while he cleans up Bush's mess.
And finally, the post-debate debate over Kerry's reference to Mary Cheney cannot last another two weeks.. Even the TV news is going to have to return to the issues. And as Fox News has shown us, the Republicans really don't want to talk about Mary Cheney. Too much of Bush's base believes that's it's okay to discriminate against homosexuals because homosexuality is a choice, not an inherent quality like skin color. That part of Bush's base isn't comfortable that the second-in-line-for-President opposes an amendment discriminating against homosexuals and has accepted that sexual orientation is not a choice--it is one of the ways we are "created in God's image." No wonder Fox news isn't even talking about it.
So let's encourage people to vote their conscience--and let's just get out the vote!
posted by Lynn Holleman Rudloff | 1:20 PM
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