WilliamC wrote:I thought Fred Thompson's speech was one of the best endorsement speeches I've ever heard. Just wanted to say that.

Just goes to show. . .I'm about to be 37 years old and I felt as though I was watching someone that just didn't connect with me and my generation.

One of his first comments was "Listening to the other party you'd think we were in the middle of a great depression, that we're down, disrespected and having difficulty overcoming challenges that face us" and I said to myself "Yep". And then he said "We (I took it to mean the Republicans) know we have challenges but we also live in the free-est, strongest, and most prosperous nation in the world." Huge applause ensues.

I don't see how the first statement doesn't allow you to say the second. Because I think we are not held in high regard worldwide and that we are facing adversity as a nation doesn't mean I don't hold our ideals and way of life and form of government up as a solid foundation. It was like I wasn't patriotic if I admitted our current faults.

stevemc wrote:It was like I wasn't patriotic if I admitted our current faults.

Wasn't that a major part of their strategy leading up to the last time we did this whole "let's pick a President" thing?

Woody wrote:

stevemc wrote:It was like I wasn't patriotic if I admitted our current faults.

Wasn't that a major part of their strategy leading up to the last time we did this whole "let's pick a President" thing?

It was.

I will say that Thompson did paint a very nice picture of McCain's perserverance and his qualities as a leader.

stevemc wrote:

Woody wrote:

stevemc wrote:It was like I wasn't patriotic if I admitted our current faults.

Wasn't that a major part of their strategy leading up to the last time we did this whole "let's pick a President" thing?

It was.

I will say that Thompson did paint a very nice picture of McCain's perserverance and his qualities as a leader.

Yes, I was speaking mainly of his knack for telling the story of what McCain has went through(which was the majority of his speech). I didn't really care so much for some of the backhanded comments but overall, I thought it was pretty brilliant and presented a good picture. It was humorous at times, and really did let you know what kind of man McCain at least once was.

WilliamC wrote:Yes, I was speaking mainly of his knack for telling the story of what McCain has went through(which was the majority of his speech). I didn't really care so much for some of the backhanded comments but overall, I thought it was pretty brilliant and presented a good picture. It was humorous at times, and really did let you know what kind of man McCain at least once was.

See, I couldn't help but assume it was mostly hyperbole, if not fabrication. "They beat him every day and when they'd drag him by his cell mates, he always gave the ol' thumbs up!" C'mon now.

Houshphandzadeh wrote:

WilliamC wrote:Yes, I was speaking mainly of his knack for telling the story of what McCain has went through(which was the majority of his speech). I didn't really care so much for some of the backhanded comments but overall, I thought it was pretty brilliant and presented a good picture. It was humorous at times, and really did let you know what kind of man McCain at least once was.

See, I couldn't help but assume it was mostly hyperbole, if not fabrication. "They beat him every day and when they'd drag him by his cell mates, he always gave the ol' thumbs up!" C'mon now.

Because that was the only functioning appendage at that juncture, I would presume

Woody wrote:

Houshphandzadeh wrote:

WilliamC wrote:Yes, I was speaking mainly of his knack for telling the story of what McCain has went through(which was the majority of his speech). I didn't really care so much for some of the backhanded comments but overall, I thought it was pretty brilliant and presented a good picture. It was humorous at times, and really did let you know what kind of man McCain at least once was.

See, I couldn't help but assume it was mostly hyperbole, if not fabrication. "They beat him every day and when they'd drag him by his cell mates, he always gave the ol' thumbs up!" C'mon now.

Because that was the only functioning appendage at that juncture, I would presume

Or, being in thumbscrews, his thumbs were always "up".

Special forces (possibly US) attack taliban base in Pakistan with 20 reported killed. Pakistanis sound off:

"This is a direct assault on the sovereignty of Pakistan, and the people of Pakistan expect that the armed forces ... would rise to defend the sovereignty of the country and give a befitting reply,"

I'd say pakistan is the new palestine, except it's about as old. Anytime their military start sounding off, though, I get concerned. Not a good time for this to be happening with another election in the offing.

Andrews is gonna run for his House seat again. SHOCKING

jerseyhoya wrote:FDR was a governor.

most overrated president ever.

OK, so I thought about including this in the running political thread, then decided it would be better to start a new one.

I received this e-mail from my father-in-law, who is a Fox News loving, McCain-poster-in-his-front yard Republican (not that there is anything wrong with that):

Did you know that 47 countries have reestablished their
> embassies in Iraq ?
> Did you know that the Iraqi government currently employs
> 1.2 million Iraqi people?
> Did you know that 3,100 schools have been renovated, 364
> schools are under rehabilitation, 263 new schools are now
> under construction, and 38 new schools have been completed
> in Iraq ?
> Did you know that Iraq 's higher educational structure
> consists of 20 universities, 46 institutes or colleges, and
> 4 research centers, all currently operating? Did you know
> that 25 Iraq students departed for the United States in
> January 2005 for the re-established Fulbright program?
> Did you know that the Iraqi Navy is operational? They have
> five 100 foot patrol craft, 34 smaller vessels, and a naval
> infantry regiment. Did you know that Iraq 's Air Force
> consists of three operational squadrons, which include 9
> reconnaissance and 3 US C-130 transport aircraft (under
> Iraqi operational control) which operate day and night, and
> will soon add 16 UH-1 helicopters and 4 Bell Jet Rangers?
> Did you know that Iraq has a counter-terrorist unit and a
> Commando Battalion?
> Did you know that the Iraqi Police Service has over 55,000
> fully trained and equipped police officers? Did you know
> that there are five police academies in Iraq which produce
> over 3,500 new officers every 8 weeks?
> Did you know there are more than 1,100 building projects
> going on in Iraq ? They include 364 schools, 67 public
> clinics, 15 hospitals, 83 railroad stations, 22 oil
> facilities, 93 water facilities, and 69 electrical
> facilities.
> Did you know that 96% of Iraqi children under the age of 5
> have received the first two series of polio vaccinations?
> Did you know that 4.3 million Iraqi children were enrolled
> in primary school by mid-October?
> Did you know that there are 1,192,000 cell phone
> subscribers in Iraq and phone use has gone up 158%? Did you
> know that Iraq has an independent media which consists of 75
> radio stations, 180 newspapers, and 10 television stations?
> Did you know that the Baghdad Stock Exchange opened in June
> of 2004? Did you know that 2 candidates in the Iraqi
> presidential election had a televised debate recently?
>
> Of course you didn't know. Our media refuses to tell
> you and me information like this.
> Instead of reflecting our love for our country, we get
> photos of flag burning incidents at Abu Ghraib prison and
> people throwing snowballs at the presidential motorcades.
> Tragically, the lack of accentuating the positive in Iraq
> serves three major purposes of the extreme liberal news
> media in the USA:
>
> 1. It is intended to undermine the world's perception
> of the United States, thus minimizing consequent support
> from our allies;
> 2. It is intended to discourage American citizens and erode
> their support for the war; and
> 3. It is intended to help the Democratic Party gain more
> power in the next elections.
>
> All the above facts are verifiable on the Department of
> Defense web site.
> http://www.defenselink.mil/
>
> Isn't it tragic that news media in a free country with
> a "free press" can be totally selective with the
> type of news which is printed or aired and, at the same
> time, the same free press can suppress news which the public
> needs and is entitled to see and hear?

My first response to this is, what motivation does the "extreme liberal news coverage in the USA" have in slanting against the war? Last time a I checked, all the media outlets are owned by major corporations that ultimately benefit from a corporate friendly Republican party.

Also, is it crazy to think that the "Defense" have a politically motivated agenda as well? If Barack were to be successful in removing the troops out of Iraq, doesn't that mean there is less federal funding heading out to the pockets of the Armed Forces?

These are my starting points- I have a weekend of Barack hating, Pro-Life, Sara Palin has more executive experience in front of me- I'd be interested in thoughts on both sides of the fence here.

WilliamC wrote:I thought Fred Thompson's speech was one of the best endorsement speeches I've ever heard. Just wanted to say that.

That guy should have run for President.

Anybody going to see Obama speak at the park next to f&m in Lancaster tomorrow? Pre speech bbq at my place starts at 2pm!

SteveJeltzPhanClub wrote:I received this e-mail from my father-in-law, who is a Fox News loving, McCain-poster-in-his-front yard Republican (not that there is anything wrong with that).

I didn't know that kind of guy existed; it seemed to me the Fox News crowd was supporting McCain mostly out of obligation, like how we root for Myers

Drink heavily. You can't win a debate with your father-in-law. Why even start talking politics? Aren't there football games to watch?

Really, you can't win. The only possibility you've got is if you don't take the bait. You might still lose, but at least your dignity is intact.

Mike Murphy and Peggy Noonan caught on an open mic with Chuck Todd trashing the Palin pick.

Murphy worked for McCain in 2000 and there were rumors that he was coming back to take over McCain's campaign again before Steve Schmidt assumed day to day operations.

How does that become public? Really, MSNBC is worse than Fox News at this point. No conservative should be caught dead on that network. Ever.

jerseyhoya wrote:How does that become public? Really, MSNBC is worse than Fox News at this point. No conservative should be caught dead on that network. Ever.

Good point. It's obviously during a commercial or something. Who has access to tape like that besides someone who works at MSNBC?

MSNBC is taking a pounding by Dems and R's this election season between Rendell and the Clintons blasting Matthews and Olbermann to McCain's constant claims and media bias. I usually watch Morning Joe when I'm getting ready for work because I like the format and the heavy focus on politics. When Scarborough told David Shuster that his party revels him last week, I have no doubt he was speaking the truth. Republicans like Scarborough, Buchanan, Murphy, etc. really risk the backlash of appearing on the channel, much like the liberal left has held Fox News in contempt the last few years.

MSNBC is a disgrace. But so is just about all television "news". Except the Weather Channel. Lots of hotties on the Weather Channel.

When is Palin supposed to speak?