The Presidential Debates

Rather fiery piece on McCain's history and background from Rolling Stone.
Quite a long read. Searing insight into a power-hungry manchild, or biased media smearjob?

Wew, there's fire in that article!

Worst thing is, it seems very well documented, it sounds really true... and that's scary the United State might even elect him as president.

Perfect new king over jesusland.

vanedor said:

Wew, there's fire in that article!

Worst thing is, it seems very well documented, it sounds really true... and that's scary the United State might even elect him as president.

Click to expand...

I'm not sure where you get "well documented". The majority of the foundation is interviews with a handful of folks, with no context for how much they really know and certainly not for the motivations they have.

IHT is also reporting the Keyting scandal, where mcCain is suspected of taking bribes. So if the Rolling Stone article wasn't all propaganda, that guy would deserve some time in jail instead of being allowed to run for a president.

That scandal is a couple decades old, Surlent, and is prominently mentioned in the Rolling Stone article. Right or wrong, McCain got off with a minor slap on the wrist for that situation.

:lol:

During his 1992 campaign, at the end of a long day, McCain's wife, Cindy, mussed his receding hair and needled him playfully that he was "getting a little thin up there." McCain reportedly blew his top, cutting his wife down with the kind of language that had gotten him hauled into court as a high schooler: "At least I don't plaster on the makeup like a trollop, you cunt." Even though the incident was witnessed by three reporters, the McCain campaign denies it took place.

Click to expand...

I can sympathise, I'm sensitive about whether or not I'm going bald too.

Hm. Something for Obama to consider for tonight's debate. "I'm taller than you are. And look at my hair. Neener neener."

Even as a toddler, McCain recalls in Faith of My Fathers, his volcanic temper was on display. "At the smallest provocation," he would hold his breath until he passed out: "I would go off in a mad frenzy, and then, suddenly, crash to the floor unconscious." His parents cured him of this habit in a way only a CIA interrogator could appreciate: by dropping their blue-faced boy in a bathtub of ice-cold water.

Click to expand...

Brokaw needs a backstage bathtub just in case. Nothing aggravates rage like a placid refusal to be intimidated by it.

Thanks for posting the link, Dyne. Some of the most damning things in that article come from McCain's own pen.

dteowner said:

I'm not sure where you get "well documented". The majority of the foundation is interviews with a handful of folks, with no context for how much they really know and certainly not for the motivations they have.

Click to expand...

What did you want? The full cv of everyone interviewed for this article? Seems to me they give enough context about who the person is and what's their relation with McCain.

And anyway, as Magerette said, "Some of the most damning things in that article come from McCain's own pen".

I expect people that I knew, even well, 30 years ago have changed a fair bit. All the good colonel (the most damning interviewee, IMO) really does is confirm what McCain says himself--he used to be a piece of crap. There's very little said about their relationship in that negligible 30 year gap, which could certainly impact what he has to say.

All that said, it's entire possible McCain still is a POS. Might be interesting to see what a similarly nasty article about Saint Barack would look like. Other than the entire history being 3 sentences long...

This is what makes me despair about politics, especially American politics -- this is as close as we'll ever get to Rome burning (I hope!), and they're talking about some penny-ante pipe bomber and a 30-year-old Senate scandal. Focus, people! Focus!

I don’t think you are fair here PJ.

What someone has done (or not) in the past is a good indication of what hem ay do or not do in the future… and since the future President of the United States of America is probably the man in the world who is the able to « fix » the current crisis or at least shorten it and prevent that it happens again in the future, I think the current discussion is far from being out of place.

vanedor said:

since the future President of the United States of America is probably the man in the world who is the able to « fix » the current crisis or at least shorten it and prevent that it happens again in the future

Click to expand...

now I am depressed.

If anybody's interested, this second debate was as soulkillingly dull as the last one. It was like a recycled and inferior version of the first debate, only presented against a backdrop of a nation in crisis it seemed even more futile and pointless. Obama was crisp most of the time, and though he's never really concise, he tried; in particular on taxes and health care. McCain was all over the map and aside from suggesting that the government start buying up bad mortgages instantly, nothing he said differed from his stump patter or remarks in the last talk-fest. Thankfully, we had no Ayers vs Keating5 warfare.

McCain was doing a great job of controlling his anger and frustration, and almost made it through the debate without showing a Grumpy McNasty moment, but he got minorly pissed over a question of his sacred mavericky record and sarcastically referred to Obama with averted eyes and a finger jab as "that one." It was extremely disrespectful and dismissive, and there's no way it doesn't become a you-tube moment. I expect to hear nothing but a lot of static from both sides about whether it was racist or not, but no matter what way you slice it, it was petty and rude.

McCain didn't do badly, but he needed to have an extremely superior performance or for Obama to fall on his ass in flames. Neither happened. This one goes to Obama.

hmm...I'll watch to see if that makes the local evening news here.

It was like 2am over here when the debate was on live, I fell asleep watching I'm afraid.

Seems to have gone in Obama's favour, or at the very least it hasn't given McCain the comeback boost he needs, thank fuck.

With that and the latest massive bailout it's almost looking like we might not be quite so terribly doomed as I thought.

EDIT - I'm more concerned today about the wine rack unit in my new kitchen not having a matching gloss panel front to it and whether it'll look bad than about the unfolding financial armageddon, which suggests that my sense of all pervading doom is either passing or getting displaced into ultimately very inconsequential things.

Benedict said:

EDIT - I'm more concerned today about the wine rack unit in my new kitchen not having a matching gloss panel front to it and whether it'll look bad than about the unfolding financial armageddon, which suggests that my sense of all pervading doom is either passing or getting displaced into ultimately very inconsequential things.

Click to expand...

Elitist! Or is that Euroweenie elitist?

I think it's hard to keep up the sense of impending doom unless doom walks into your personal living room a bit...if anything, the only tangible thing about the financial crisis that's impinged on our lifestyle atm is that the price of gas has come down dramatically. No tears over that, for sure.

Not to say that bad things can't/won't still happen, but the serious side of the stock market plummeting is still remote for many people. Time will tell, I'm sure.

woges said:

It was like 2am over here when the debate was on live, I fell asleep watching I'm afraid.

Click to expand...

So did my husband and it was televised here at 8:00 PM. It was a terribly boring affair. the town hall format made for too much rambling, disconnected babbling from both, imo.