Mr T's rants and ravings

I think I understand how McCain won. I think that NH voters want someone who will talk to them, answer questions, show emotion, and even disagree with people. That is just the way things work here. McCain does that. I have seen him in action and his style is a perfect fit for picky New Hampshire voters.

Romney is just too button downed, too establishment and too smooth. I haven’t been to a Romney event (shame on me) but he doesn’t come across as a "regular guy" like McCain does. Huckabee is too religious for secular New Hampshire. I don’t think he spent the time in state that is really required to win in this state. Paul was the Internet darling and I think his message appeals to a lot of old New Hampshire (old in terms of not being recent immigrants from other states) but that is not enough. Giuliani never "clicked" with NH voters and I think he gave up here early to focus on other states.

So no surprises for me on the Republican side. Now the Democratic side I just don’t understand as well. I have to confess that I don’t understand Democrats. That someone who claims to be caring for the downtrodden and under represented could support abortion just never made sense to me. If anyone should be pro-life it should be the Democratic party. And by the same token someone who says they are "pro-choice" should oppose most gun control just to be consistent if nothing else. And shouldn’t the Democrats have been the ones calling for us to "free" Iraq? Well all that is besides the issue.

I expected Edwards to do better in NH. He campaigns the way you are supposed to campaign in New Hampshire. I loved his message as well. To me it reached from the left to the center. Obama lacks experience. So really does Clinton. This "35 years of experience making change" is such a ridiculous statement that I don’t understand why people don’t break out into laughter when ever she says it. Perhaps people are just stunned into silence? And Clinton and Obama are both (as I see it) very much to the left and NH is not a far left state. Although I suppose that the migration from Massachusetts has been changing that. That is not a change for the better in my opinion.

And Clinton just comes across (to me) as nasty. Obama is a wonderful speaker but few people seem to be looking much past his rhetoric to his actual experience and platform. That will not be enough for the general election. Electability may have come to a lot of people in the last days.

I think the emotional scene Clinton had the other day helped her a lot. I think that most of the time she comes of as unemotional and to calculating. That video showed her as very passionate. I think voters are looking for passion. They see it in Obama but this is the first they really saw it in Clinton. Seeing that probably turned a lot of undecided people her way.

I’m not surprised that the polls got it wrong BTW. Things move fast in New Hampshire and I think the polls under counted the Independents. I’m actually very please that we "fooled" the polls. The media spends much too much time talking about polls. They should be talking about issues and poking holes in distortions in candidate statements and not pretending the race is a sporting event.

Well there is a big fuss going on about the President of Iran’s visit to New York. He wanted to lay a wreath at Ground Zero but that has been nixed citing “security and logistical problems.” I suspect this is completely because they are worried about people protesting him and what he has to say. The other big deal is that he has been invited to speak at Columbia University.

People, including the Jewish Defense Organization and some elected officials, object to his being treated as an “honored guest” anywhere in the City. Now granted the man is a font of evil and absurd statements (no Holocaust? Is he kidding?) And is very critical of the US, Israel, Jews in general and on and on. I can’t imagine he’s said much I agree with if anything. And does he really not understand that New Yorkers would be upset at him being at Ground Zero? I mean seriously look at how easily he and his countrymen take offense of stuff we do.

But all that being said, isn’t exposing people to other views a big part of the role of the university in society? And can we really claim to have free speech if we only like “the good guys” talk in public? And if you really didn’t want what he says to get broadcasted wouldn’t you more logically protest the news media for quoting him and repeating every ridiculous thing he says? I mean after all if the man speaks to a couple of hundred students is that really so bad? But the newspapers and TV/radio stations will repeat it all endlessly for millions upon millions to read and hear. Who is doing more to spread his lies? Columbia or the news media!
Yeah but we have freedom of the press. OK sure. But what about freedom of speech for Mr. Ahmadinejad?

Let me put it another way – how would the protesters feel if one of their own was treated the same way in Iran? Golden Rule anyone?

Who knew a Prius could go as fast as 100 MPH. I thought of them in terms of MPG not MPH. It turns out that tree hugging, energy saving Al Gore has a son who was caught going 100 MPH in a Prius. Oh and yeah he had cocaine in the car as well.

I feel bad for the kid’s parents. I feel bad for the kid as well. (BTW he’s 24 which isn’t that much of a kid. I was a married father by that age. But it sounds like he has some growing up to do.)

It is not easy being the child of famous people. Everyone watching you all the time. People always talking about how great they are, their parents are, and all sorts of stuff like that. It’s a lot of pressure. I’ve seen more than a few kids crack under the pressure. Some decide to embrace the image and live up to it. Some find it too hard and rebel against it. It sounds like All Gore III might be in that later group. His father the once upon a time next President was the type to embrace it.

Well young Al Gore III is going to rehab maybe he’ll smarten up and fly right. I sure hope so.

I went to my second John Edwards event today. I have to say I am more and more impressed with him each time. He really wants to shake things up. I’m not sure he can do it but it would be great watching him try. Obama and Clinton just seem too much like candidates of the establishment and the media. I haven’t seen them in person but I just don’t know if I want to. Obama seems like a good person on TV. But he is young and I worry that he will be too much of a mainstream party guy in office. Clinton just never struck me as a good person. I don’t trust her. It’s a gut feeling.

I like the way John Edwards looks people in the eye when he talks. I like the way he respects the people who ask him questions. There was a funny exchange today. A woman asked a good question and John Edwards said “that’s a good question.” The woman replied “I know.” John repeated her comment, laughed and said “welcome to New Hampshire.” He said it in a good way. He said it in a way that gave me the impression he knew that people in New Hampshire thought hard about their questions and would think hard about his answer. It told me he understands what the New Hampshire Primary is about. Retail politics at its best.

John Edwards talked about a candidate’s responsibility to meet with people and take their questions and answer them on the spot. I completely agree with him on that. Campaigning in New Hampshire is all about letting people ask questions face to face. Edwards understands that and is more than willing to do it. Are the other candidates? I don’t know. I have yet to see them in person. But clearly John Edwards is a fearless question taker. I respect that in a candidate.

Who knows, if none of the Republican candidates impress me I may change my registration and vote for him in the primary. Now wouldn’t that shock some people?