Cynics Unlimited

After months of research, I know where this site’s bread is buttered in terms of traffic and it sure as hell isn’t political discussions. Alas, the US election is fascinating, if only because of the substantive message behind its lack of substance. Below is a collection of points originally posted at Jack’s Newswatch. My regards to all the admirable souls at Jack’s who endured and subsequently challenged/refined these opinions …

Hidden Agendas: Has Barrack Obama “Changed his Spots” for this Election?

I don’t think he has, but what were those spots to begin with? If you’re an aspiring black politician, you’ve got two basic ways to get into the game -

1) Faux civil rights crusader for the left wing
2) Token attack dog for the right wing against faux civil rights crusaders

Without delving into which which works better, the advantage to #1 is a captive black vote – especially if you are a great orator. The hard left basically usurped the Booker T Washington approach to attaining equality and replaced it with a self-pitying, government-dependent approach. Their underlying message of “it’s not your fault” of course resonates with a community in terrible economic shape and whose previous attempts at independence were intentionally thwarted. Their message? “Under Marxism, you will live just as well as THEM”.

One person this would not resonate with, at least empathetically, is Barrack Obama. He is half-white, well-educated, well-traveled and has generally enjoyed a better quality of life than nearly the entire world population. He does understand, however, how to attain power. He knows that in order to get the black vote you need to show the whip marks on your back, and in order to get the white liberal vote you need to say “those whip marks don’t matter – we can CHANGE the future”.

Obama was implicitly through with the likes of Bill Ayers, Jeremiah Wright, and Acorn the moment he went mainstream and appeared to be giving Hillary Clinton a good run for Democratic nominee. When Rev. Wright wouldn’t shut up Obama dumped him explicitly. There are several such stories from his Chicago days and I’m surprised no one’s highlighted them.

Obama’s a politician, not a marxist or a race-radical … or a messianic agent of change. Frankly, I don’t know why he doesn’t chase real money by becoming a CEO or Televangelist, but that’s his choice. His record proves but one thing – he’ll imply what you want to hear to get your vote and provide enough loopholes to back out when he needs to impress the next set of people. Classic lawyer. Expect many exposes from jilted ex-associates in the coming years.

Underwhelming Choices: How did this Election Boil Down to McCain vs. Obama?

Obama - Black Swan (read the link – I’m not trying to be a smart ass!!). I believe the DNC planned for Hillary to take the crown and defeat the GOP with ease. They did not count on the ground swell of grassroots support for Obama, who tapped into liberal angst and their desire for a non-politician looking politician. Both Obama and Ron Paul (his right wing, wild-eyed equivalent) cashed in large via small internet donations and have an army of unflinching acolytes.

McCain - To win the GOP nomination McCain defeated a cross-dressing serial divorcee, a reclusive Mormon, a congressman turned TV actor who essentially plays himself, a Baptist preacher who is unafraid to talk about his trailer park roots and a conspiracy-minded maverick who inspired the makers of Zeitgeist. It’s fair to say that the GOP -love them or not- did not supply their A-list for this election. Odds are the A-listers, or at least those with hopes for a long and fruitful career, had no interest in presiding over the Bush legacy (record debt, infinite wars, international infamy, broken markets). A subsequent GOP president would be taking the fall for America’s woes – there’s no point in detractors attacking Bush since he won’t be running again. The point? The GOP, deep down, doesn’t even expect to win and if they do they do not want any of their real bright stars to live in infamy. Why not choose McCain, who’s at least 8 years past his prime? Same logic applies to a VP, so why not select an obscure governor willing to squander her integrity on WWE style jingoism? Maybe she can even out-star Obama. Meanwhile the real brains of the GOP have headed for the hills of bipartisanship, ready to return when the carnage of this failed election / failed presidency is over. McCain is a sacrificial lamb, whether or not he wins.

Is it Time to Return to Old-Fashioned Values in America?

The old way of life had serious problems as well. It would be to America’s detriment to return to days gone by. The real solution is the least appealing one – trying something new. Socialist systems have proven economically disastrous while Classical liberalism (which is now called conservatism) was never designed to accommodate corporations, globalization or complex financial instruments. The type of Christianity practiced by many Americans (which I do not believe represent the views of entire Christian world) would lead to a second civil war if enshrined at the government level. All of the aforementioned systems may have good elements, but none can be adopted wholesale – they were developed for simpler times.

What about Sarah?

Sarah Palin I do not trust. She may connect with many Americans but not the kind whose empowerment has taken America down a very good path. Of course she may be a total wind-up like Obama (can’t believe so many people think he’s actually going to turn America socialist) but to her followers … it’s real. There will be consequences for making gay rights and abortion front-row issues during an economic meltdown and massive shift of capital eastwards.

Many conservatives claim that Palin has been unfairly trivialized by the media. The only seriously petty attack I’ve seen in mainstream sources is the recent one about her campaign-financed wardrobe. The GOP can do whatever it wants with its own campaign money. If they really think they’re going to get some lift (no pun intended!) from spending $150k on clothes vs $20k that’s their business. This is far less important than Palin’s willingness to break with McCain’s stances on gay marriage.

Are Blacks Being Racist by Overwhelmingly Supporting Obama?

1) Blacks vote 90% Democrat, regardless of candidate.
Current estimate of support for Obama = 95%
95% – 90% = 5%
Obama has received a maximum of 5% from from the “brothas”.
In terms of swinging the election, the effect is 13% (black population) * 60% (vote rate for adult blacks in 2004) * 5% (Extra votes for Obama over Democrat Norm) = 0.39% of population. I don’t think John McCain is losing sleep over this issue.

2) Previous black candidacy runs …
a) Jesse Jackson (DEM): Failure at party level; Negligible black vote
b) Alan Keyes (REP): Failure at party level; No known black vote
c) Ezola Foster [VP] (Reform): Failure at national level; No known black vote
d) Al Sharpton (DEM): Failure at party level; Negligible black vote

3) African-Americans != Americans from Africa
These two groups don’t get along. Former stereotypes latter are savages. Latter stereotypes former are violent and lazy. Race does not imply ethnicity or culture.

4) Voting Obama over Palin = No Brainer when Palin (oops, must have meant to say McCain) is using a Southern Strategy.

Who is going to Win this Election?

The polls are completely unreliable. In the same day FOX reported Obama having a 9 point lead and later that the candidates were dead even. If I were betting I’d put $100 on McCain since so many people think Obama has it in the bag. The winnings would be phenomenal.

Related Posts:

• Why Would this Fiscal Conservative Support Obama? Toxicity.