Political Attacks

[Note: See Update below.]

I’m all for ’em. Slinging REAL mud between political opponents is a Very Good Thing. It can enlighten the public about those seeking office in ways that just won’t happen if candidates are able to control their own stories in an echo chamber.

But the mud had better be genuine mud dredged up from the candidates’ own personal records, not toxic sewer sludge deliberately dredged up from somewhere else, made to appear as if it were a candidate’s own and then poo-flung by hordes of rabid monkeys. The latter is pretty much what the rumors and downright lies and false reports circulating the past coupla weeks about Governor Palin have amounted to.

Today, I got wind of two things that don’t quite fall into the toxic sludge area but do reflect poorly on Repubgnican’t/conservative voices. One is the assertion that Obama’s “lipstick on a pig” comments were plagiarized. Well, maybe. The “lipstick on a pig” comment itself obviously was not. The rest of the comments do have an eery similarity to a Tom Cole political cartoon. But. The Tom Cole political cartoon has an eery similarity to statements made over the past week made by Obama operatives and the campaign itself. Chicken? Egg? Cole simply another Obama campaign operative spouting its talking points? The Mass Media Podpeople Hivemind and the Dhimmicrappic political machine have so much pillow talk/spore exchange going on it’s really hard to tell.

At any rate, it’s a weak assertion of plagiarism and that dog won’t hunt with the electorate.

The one that bothers me more is a McCain campaign ad answering the “lipstick on a pig” comments. First, the ad, then my observation:

[NOTE: YouTube pulled the ad reportedly because of a copyright complaint by CBS. See comments on this post. I told ya, McCain… ]

Set aside the arguable inference (“The Obamassiah meant to call Sarah Palin a pig”–not entirely clear from the context of Obama’s remarks, arguably he could have been implying that, but it’s not clear) from his remarks stated–not implied–by the ad. That’s an arguable issue. (Weakly arguable, IMO, by those who assert that story, but arguable nonetheless.)

What bothers me is that I was sure Couric was NOT referring to sexism contra Palin. In the age of Google, the McCain folks should not have STRONGLY implied that Couric was addressing sexism in the presidential campaign in general or against Palin in particular. Firstly, it would ring utterly and completely false. Couric defend a conservative woman? Get outa here! Secondly, didn’t happen. Google is your friend if you base your comments on fact, otherwise…

Now, true, Couric was attempting to equate her own “courageous” struggles against a putative glass ceiling with Hillary Clintoon’s similarly perceived “glass ceiling” struggle (perceived by Couric and others–including, apparently, Palin). But it is a long way from that assertion to a direct tie to the attacks on Palin being denounced by Couric of all people. A few clarifying words–either voiced over or in graphic–could have tied the sexism remarks back to the Hillary campaign as perceived by PUMAs and others then noted a similarity to the Palin attacks in general.

Still, tying all that back into the lipstick remark as a personal, “sexist” attack on Palin is weak indeed. Oh, it’ll be strong with folks who don’t think it through because of laziness or lack of ability to do so (admittedly up to 90% of the electorate) and who already have a bias toward accepting any negative remarks whatsoever about The Obamassiah (probably about 50% of that 90%), but that still doesn’t make it an honest ad, and I thought Juan Mexicain ran the “straight talk express”.

That ad is NOT “straight talk” in any way, shape, fashion or form.

Mr. McCain: tear down that ad!

There’s enough of substance to attack The Obamassiah on. This ad is just beneath any worthy candidate.

(OK, now here I get to water down my objections to the ad with nit-picking: the musical underpinnings of the ad? Lame. Even with my really nice subwoofer thumping the last string bass hit, lame. OK, so maybe I’ll just say, “Not to my taste. Borrrrring.” *yawn* :-))

[UPDATE: I was pretty well finished with this whole lipstick on a pig thing until The Obamassiah opened his yap yesterday and put his clown shoe in it. On w/David Letterman, he offered this “analysis” of his own words:

“…in Illinois, the expression connotes the idea that if you have a bad idea, in this case I was talking about John McCain’s economic plans, that just calling them change, calling it something different, doesn’t make it better, hence, lipstick on a pig is still a pig.”

Exactly as the phrase seems in context–if you watch the whole thing and/or read a transcript. But now this exchange…

Dave: “Yeah, they got together and they said, ‘You know what? He called our vice presidential candidate a pig.’” (audience laughs) “Well, that seems pretty unlikely, doesn’t it?”

Obama: “It does. But keep in mind that, technically, had I meant it that way, she would have been the lipstick, you see?” (audience, Dave laugh) “But now we’re…”

Dave: “I don’t know, you’re way ahead of me.” (audience laughs)

Obama: “Yeah, the failed policies of John McCain would be the pig.”

“[H]ad I meant it that way… “? No, O Great Obamassiah who Failed to Learn Logic In Law School, the expression “Palin=lipstick as McCain policies=pig” only works if you were NOT using the expression to call Palin a pig, if you WERE “talking about John McCain’s economic plans”.

Dumbass.

“Nuance” only works under three interdependant conditions, O Great Obamassiah:

1. It’s simple enough for clear communication (I know, I know: “simple” and “nuance” seem contradictory, but only because dumbasses make it so)
2. It’s honest, not playing fast and loose with the facts and
3. It makes at least some sense.

The Obamassiah’s nuance in this case fails all three conditions.

The Obamassiah: smart stupididity. Is this someone we want in the White House?

*heh* Looks like Jerry Pournelle had a reaction to the McCain “response” ad that was in a simliar “family” as my own:

“Phony outrage is very bad tactics.”]

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