Friday, October 3, 2008

Contemporary American Non-Thinkers or Hell in a Handbasket

This morning, I'm bummed about the future of our country on account of the debate last night. In the afterword on MSNBC, Pat Robertson (I know: consider the source. But I'm considering how many people believe him) said that Joe Biden was boring and Sarah Palin was sensational. Rachel Maddow said something along the lines of "Boring and Right. Sensational and Wrong," as well as saying that she might croak if somebody else winks at her today (paraphrase).

Rachel Maddow

Since I rarely watch the news because I think those people are full of shit, I had never seen Rachel Maddow before last night. She may not be full of shit, but I suspect it's going to come down to people voting for Sarah Palin simply because she's not boring. So we find another reason why I don't watch the news. It's damn depressing.

When Sarah Palin started talking about what it would be like to have her in the White House, it sounded a lot like the premise of the movie Bruce Almighty. Take some ordinary dumb ass and make him God. Then she said Dick Cheney had the right idea about the VP being more than just an executive and that she had lots of executive experience. She said she was demonstrably independent due to her choices for state wide jobs. As I recall she had a history of choosing her High School buddies for state offices like some broad who said she was qualified for Alaska's secretary of agriculture because she likes cows. What more can you expect from someone's who is well versed in foreign policy because she has seen Russia?

It is my considered opinion that these debates only reinforce our existing biases. They never change anyone's mind - although it's possible that undecided voters could be influenced by what they see and hear. I can't imagine that anyone watching the debate would be undecided, however. If they are undecided now - most likely they don't read the papers, etc. so why turn on the debates at this late date?

The trouble with Sarah Palin is that all those Bible Thumpers who may not have voted for McCain or Obama because they would have gone for some independent candidate if they voted at all are impressed with that winking control freak. McCain was sucking up to the conservatives when he picked Sarah Palin in the first place. They come out to vote.

Lots of people who may prefer Obama don't vote because they make up the great disenfranchised electorate.

Watching Obama-McCain, I had to shake my head in fear and sadness because McCain will lead us into another Vietnam as sure as the sun still rises in the morning. Now we have Sarah Palin as his Number 1 fan. Chairwoman of the Pep Club. There she is with her pom-poms and everything.

If this development could lead us into a revolution due to the economic bullshit, I might be excited. But they will not be the first bastards with their backs against the wall when the revolution came - like the elevator manufacturers in Hitchhiker's Guide.

The western world will simply go to hell in a handbasket with the Bushes, James A. Baker III and their buddies in the Carlyle Group counting their money while we drown in our own stupidity and/or hopelessness. I maintain that high stakes standardized testing has been perpetrated on America by these same megalomaniacs in order to assure that the general public has absolutely no capacity for analytical, creative or critical thinking. There is plenty of documentation to support this idea, but no one pays attention to that either because - since things are going according to plan - it's a rare human these days who can recognize connections. As soon as you start separating the disciplines so that Science has nothing to do with History and teaching to the test - BINGO - we have a couple of generations of Contemporary American Nonthinkers.

They're going for the Sarah Palin trick Hook, Line and Sinker.


For the record, I'm blowing off Existentialism and going back to Bokonism. Bokonism is much more personally relevant.

3 Comments:

Blogger Comrade Kevin said...

The GOP base and conservative talking heads are as partisan as we are, but even so, look beyond the hyperbole.

The same people who are going to vote for a McCain/Palin ticket are the same ones who would have voted for her even if she had made major goofs in the debate. This changed nothing. All it did was salvage Palin's political future on a national scale.

October 3, 2008 at 12:40 PM  
Blogger PENolan said...

I know you're right, Kevin. Hopefully we'll have the bigger turn out - and no one will rig the election ;)

October 3, 2008 at 12:57 PM  
Blogger Gail said...

Hi Trish-
Good reporting/writing. Clearly, you should write for MSNBC, clearly.

Ummmmm, Sarah? My 85 year old mother made an interesting point. She said that "she should leave her special needs baby out of the 'lime light"

For me, I was stuck on the words "doggone" and "heck" and all that winking. In a country western bar she would be a real winner. In fact, I believe she would look really good in jeans, cowboy boots and a western hat. Definitely.

I am not a good political conversationalist. I read all I can and I admit I can be swayed in the moment.
i am an Obama fan - even if I swing and sway on various points I am still an Obama fan.

Trish- I applaud your ability to express your views so well - truly a gift.

Gail
peace.....

October 3, 2008 at 4:02 PM  

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