McCain's Temper

John McCain's temper is apparently alive and well.  

See this video, at around the 4:30 mark (listen to the few seconds before that so you know what's going on).  McCain mumbles "horseshit" twice under his breath.  Reminds me of Dick Cheney.

Actor Dead, Salad Dressing Lives On

RIP: Paul Newman

Paul Newman died today of lung cancer, he was 83.  Known for starring in many movies, such as Cool Hand Luke, he is perhaps better known today for his Newman's Own line of products, ranging from the original salad dressing to popcorn.  It will be interesting to see for how long the brand will outline the man, but there was a good amount of succession planning done prior to today.  His daughter will take over the company.  The fact that most know that all profits are donated to charity means that it is still a winning sales pitch.

The First Debate

Some quick thoughts:

Bottom line: McCain's strongest credentials lie in foreign policy. This debate was a tie, at best, for McCain. So, while the battle may have been a draw the war is quickly slipping away from John McCain.

What struck me during this debate is that John McCain actually thinks that "victory" is possible in Iraq. I would like to ask him how he defines victory. Unlike when we entered WW2 against Germany and Japan, we are not asking for Iraq's surrender. We supposedly support their government. Therefore, a true victory is not possible.

And Obama's points that we took our eyes off the ball on Afghanistan was very good. McCain did not have an answer to this.

McCain barely would look at Obama during the debate. Obama was extremely respectful, almost to a fault. McCain had the "grumpy grandpa" look.

McCain brought up Miss Congeniality twice, wasn't that Sarah Palin's beauty pageant?
Speaking of which, Obama brought up Biden. I didn't hear McCain touting his VP pick.

At one time in the debate, near the end, McCain was very close to losing his temper. It is too bad he did not explode.

McCain said that he wants to end all ethanol subsidies. I agree with him on this point, but there's no way in hell he'll be competitive in Iowa now.

Kissinger did say that the US president should meet with any foreign leader, without pre-conditions. He said: "Well, I am in favor of negotiating with Iran. And one utility of negotiation is to put before Iran our vision of a Middle East, of a stable Middle East, and our notion on nuclear proliferation at a high enough level so that they have to study it. "

Quote of the Day

"I don't thnk the Palin problem is fixable. She is who she is: an unqualified fundamentalist liar with no nowledge of or experience in national domestic or foreign policy. And McCain had absolutely no idea who she was when he picked her."

--Andrew Sullivan

Don't Mess with Letterman

David Letterman, on whose show John McCain announced his campaign, is not happy with the Arizona Senator.  McCain cancelled his appearance on Letterman's show since he was suspending his campaign, but instead of going to Washington he stayed in NYC and did more interviews. 

 

More here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjkCrfylq-E

 

I think this may be more damaging than any video the Obama campaign could come up with.  People love and trust David Letterman.  He has fans of all ages and this may make some of them think twice.

A letter to John McCain

Senator McCain,

You believe that you are the most qualified person to be the president of the United States. The POTUS regularly has to deal with several important issues on the same day, whether it be a foreign policy crisis, a domestic matter, or a campaign. By telling the American people that you will not attend the debate unless the economic bailout is passed, you are denying us all the right to make a well informed decision. You are denying Americans the ability to see you and senator Obama. Whether the debate is rescheduled or cancelled, it may affect the VP debate. So it may also deny us a sincere presentation of your Vice Presidential candidate. Presidents routinely must multi-task, which would include going to congress during the day and debating in the night. If you are unable to do so, myself and many other Americans will question your mental preparedness to hold the highest office.

Sincerely,
A taxpayer

Obama's bailout conditions

Today, Barack Obama outline 5 conditions for any economic bailout plan, and urged John McCain to support him in this bipartisan initiative.  This comes after McCain and Obama issued a joint statement.  

If McCain is smart, he will indeed endorse the points below.  Whether you are a democrat or a republican, you will agree that what Sen. Obama outlines below is necessary.

First, there must be oversight. We should not hand over a blank check to the discretion of one man. We support an independent, bipartisan board to ensure accountability and complete transparency.

Second, we need to protect taxpayers. There should be a path for taxpayers to recover their money, and to turn a profit if Wall Street prospers.

Third, no Wall Street executive should profit from taxpayer dollars. This plan cannot be a welfare program for CEOs whose greed and irresponsibility has contributed to this crisis.

Fourth, we must help families who are struggling to stay in their homes. We cannot bail out Wall Street without helping millions of families facing foreclosure on Main Street.

Fifth, we both agree that this financial rescue package should move on its own without any earmarks or other measures. We have different views about the need for other action, but this must be a clean bill.

John McCain's Campaign Suspended

John McCain suspended his campaign so that he can go to Washington and focus on the economic issues that are currently going on.  This is a complete gimmick.  McCain knows about the economy about as much as a fifth grader.  He is just trying to make Obama look bad.  Either Obama goes along and follows McCain, or he looks like he's favoring politics over helping people.  Neither situation would be good.

But I think that this situation could also be bad for McCain.  By stopping his campaign he is telling us that he cannot effectively multi-task.

eBay kills the paper payment

Today eBay announced that checks and money orders will no longer be accepted for the majority of the sales on its site (automobiles are one big exception).  

How do I feel about this?  I don't really care, since I almost always use PayPal.  Many sellers now require PayPal only as well.  I have had the unfortunate experience of locating a seller of a special item and finding out they only take money orders.  So I had to schlep to the post office, get a money order, put it in an envelop, put a stamp on the envelop, mail it, and wait a few days.  

I know some are angry about PayPal's fees for sellers, but money orders and checks are a pain in the ass for both buyers and sellers.