In defense of the republicans:

[vicarz]

I'm not going to defend Palin; however, I am going to point out that the lead member in the executive ticket is McCain and he doesn't suck. He is old, but he's fully functional and should be for years. He has tons of bipartisan experience, much of it respected for decades. He has flaws, but so do the other players.

You know what? His military experience DOES COUNT. Seriously. I just spent time with someone I hadn't really seen in ten years, and found they were different but their core as a person was pretty much the same. Why wouldn't McCain be the same? He was a prisoner of war - and by all accounts was not only dignified but far more resistant than many of his peers. He provoked the guards and got so abused...he only signed his fake confession when his captors re-broke his arm and left him in a pool of his own blood and fluids. They say after that "loss," he got even more provocative with his jailors - as though he was serving a personal penance. That was over 30 years ago, but it shows a strength of spirit and character that is unlikely to go away. Now, as a pilot perhaps his perspective on that war was, and remains, skewed compared to those who saw the issues on the ground - but I do believe that that type of behavior in his "youth" tells volumes about his core as a person (thank you long interview on NPR). This same type of analysis is why I respect Kerry, same war but on the ground (I don't buy that republican attack on his character or service) and why Bush is a fucking douche, who used the pseudo military experience and bolted from it to campaign as that was more important.

Why say this, rise to the "defense" of McCain. Palin is a twit and shames the entire platform, but I think the focus has moved too far away from Obama (oh, and for the love of cheese don't forget the other hundreds of races in November other than the superman allegory prez). I fall into the trap, as many do, of wanting to trash the entire republican party for Palin. That's lazy and too easy to do. When we descend into name calling and pointing out the weakest link's flaws as a standard debate tactic, we degrade the entire process and waste our abilities to engage in spirited debate on relevant issues. Our debates should be about broad patterns of behavior of multiple leaders, individual voting records, character shown over years of consistent (or in-) behavior, and most of all - policy arguments as supported by data and analysis.

Unless we're watching the daily show because that was just fucking hilarious.

Comments

[djpsyche.livejournal.com]

I remember well the 2000 primary. I was gutted when Bush beat McCain. You're right about his positive qualities -- or, at least, they applied at the time. Now, unfortunately, he seems to have lurched to the right especially on the abortion issue; and also in the intervening years we've got ourselves involved in a major and inappropriate war that I don't really trust a hawk like McCain to handle in the right way. So I was quite pro-McCain in 2000, not so much so now.

Notice how I slip back into the "we" in an election year. ;)

[unapologetic.wordpress.com (from livejournal.com)]

I'd agree with most of what you said. For me the case on McCain comes down to this: if he did everything he said last night he wanted to, I'd love it. But I don't trust him to deliver on those promises. Grampa Joe said it best: "[95% agreement] isn't change, it's more of the same."

Ultimately, that's not why I'm voting the way I am, though. There are plenty of reasons to vote against John McCain, but for once I'm not voting against someone. You're right to say the focus has moved from Obama, and I want to bring it back there, because I'm voting for him. I believe he can -- and will do everything in his power -- to deliver on his vision for the country, and I believe in that vision.

[calibraxis-x.livejournal.com]

I have a lot of mixed feelings about McCain. In fact, when he first ran against Bush, I donated money to his campaign. But I have really come to be disturbed by the foreign policy of, really, the US in general since the end of WWII...I just don't see McCain changing our course at all in that regard. Now, Obama is certainly not going to alter fundamentals of post-WWII US foreign policy, but at least he will tweak it in a more sensible direction.

The other issue is domestic policy---this health-care situation is getting out of control. There aren't a lot of perfect solutions being proposed out there, but at this point, the only ones proposing anything at all are the Dems. If Republicans are in control, absolutely nothing will happen with health-care.

I don't care if they do institute socialized medicine, just something has got to give---there are too many people getting sick who can't afford to get care (and who then stiff hospitals for their bills--or just suffer miserable illnesses and early deaths), and too many repetitively/chronically sick people (my Grandfather and Grandmother included--who are soaking up hundreds of thousands of dollars of medical care, preserving their lives into their 90's by extraordinary means...) who are just sink-holes for infinite extreme care with astronomical costs. That's just an untenable situation!

At least if we let the Dems reform health-care, it will be in the direction of providing some coverage to a greater number of people...the Republicans seem to want to reform it by providing less...

that's a long way of saying that while personally I think McCain is a great man, and about the best Republican there is, his policy positions are the reason I cannot support him.

[joanarkham.livejournal.com]

Any respect I had for his character disappeared when he started snuggling up to the religious right that he had previously denounced.

Is it worse to have once had character and then lost it or never to have had any at all?

[http://users.livejournal.com/_blackjack_/]

No, actually, he really does suck. His military experience was minimal when he was captured, and he only got where he did because his dad was a Fleet Admiral. He has a violent temper and used to routinely get in fistfights when he was younger. He has almost no understanding of economics or geopolitics, and admits readily that he doesn't read and relied on others to keep him informed. He called his wife a cunt and a trollop in public. He kissed Bush's ass even after Bush's people smeared him in 2000, all to get a shot at the White House. He pretends to be a "moderate" but holds positions almost identical to Bush's on most issues.

[frontdoorangel.livejournal.com]

Thank you for this post, several of my family members happen to support Mccain and regardless of what anyone says, they are not idiots and have as much of a right to their opinion as anyone else. I'm getting really tired of seeing a lot of allegedly open minded liberals on livejournal adopt a "vote for Obama or you are retarded and evil" approach to this election.

[end-fate.livejournal.com]

After every convention I watch The Daily Show. XD

[kelowna.livejournal.com]

I like McCain.

I like hearing all the details of flipflopping and mind changing.

Obama flip flopped and mind changed too.

PEOPLE CHANGING THEIR MIND. New evidence comes to light. Favours are bought and sold and people find ways to position themselves.

This is POLITICS. It is how the game is played.

Why there is more on McCain than Obama is because he has been around longer than Obama.

There are two parts to this:
1) WINNING the Election.
2) Doing the job.

You can't do the job unless you win the election and people in those positions know that and know who they have to please in order to do so.

Do I dig 2501's URL quotes. Sure thing. They are interesting. They are not drop your mouth and gasp and consider the dude the devil. All the quotes do is show he's changed his mind. I respect a person who changes their mind more than I do one who holds fiercely to some idea when that idea may not be exactly right.

My conversations with his daughter made me see things in a different light.

--k

[n8-zilla.livejournal.com]

but mccain wants to start all sorts of new wars... he's a pretty belligerent guy. his first reaction to international disagreement seems to involve more in the way of bombs, much less in the way of diplomacy. his record is also very conservative. aside from a few, high-profile defections on campaign finance, he's been a reliable social conservative vote in congress. he's voted with bush 90% of the time.

i don't see how that makes him all that much different than the rest of his party.