CNN ran a ticker on Oct 29 which screamed "Shays takes swipe at McCain". In the body of the news it wrote: "New England's lone House Republican appears to have publicly broken with his party's standard-bearer, saying John McCain has not run a clean campaign and is likely to lose his bid for the presidency.
'I just don't see how [McCain] can win,' Connecticut Rep. Chris Shays told the Yale Daily News earlier this week. 'He has lost his brand as a maverick; he did not live up to his pledge to fight a clean campaign'."
The report further added: "Fellow Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl and former GOP presidential Candidate Mitt Romney also have reportedly said they think McCain is likely to lose. Jon Kyl denied making the comments, though the Arizona Daily Star later produced audio indicating he did."
Other Republicans breaking ranks include Former Maryland Sen. Charles Mathias, former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, and former Secretary of State Colin Powell.
Why are these Republicans feeling so disgusted with McCain? Shays has already highlighted some of the reasons. General Colin Powell so eloquently gave his assessment of McCain and his campaign on Meet the Press program recently. In essence, these Republicans got pissed off by McCain's brainless and falsehood based approach to his campaign.
One inherent problem with the 72 year Senator from Arizona has been that he is intellectually dwarfed. On top of that he made some silliest of comments and choices. McCain's choice of Palin speaks volumes of his lack of sound judgement. His remarks about American economy during recent economic turmoil clearly indicated what a big stupid he is.
A nincompoop does not have to have horns to show to the world that he is a nitwit. His/her words or actions convey that. This is exactly what has happened with McCain. He asked about Obama's so-called association with Ayers when Obama was 8 years old. How on earth could anything be more nonsensical than this?!
He made similar foolish assertions day after day; one can go on and on with the list of gaffes the Republican candidates committed. Most recently on Oct 29, Sarah Palin mentioned about Obama's association with some Palestinian person named Rashid Khalidi. But she forgot to mention to the public that Republicans had provided about $500,000 to Khalidi for one of his studies. The Chairman of the committee which decided to fund Khalidi's study was none other than McCain himself.
So one lie after another, one stupid association after another thrown at Obama to paint him in bad light, annoying robocalls, lack of grasp of issues which really affect average Americans - all these snowballed to put off the sensible Republicans so much that they felt compelled to publicly denounce McCain and predict that the republican candidate is doomed to be defeated.
To make matters worse, the over-ambitious, straight-faced liar Palin gave enough clear indications to the media that her sight is set on 2012 presidential election. She has gone 'rogue' as the McCain insiders have already started calling her.
Only a miracle can save McCain-Palin ticket from defeat on Nov 4. But Palin has already invoked God to help her. But does divinity help liars, or poison filled persons, like, Palin? One hopes not. One hopes God will provide some response to Palin for unnecessarily dragging Him in the elections! And, His response may not be just a light rap on the wrist.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Sunday, October 26, 2008
LAST GASP REPUBLICAN DIVERSIONARY TACTIC WITH INCURSION IN SYRIA!
BBC website reported on Oct 26 "US helicopter-borne troops have carried out a raid inside Syria along the Iraqi border, killing eight people including four children, Syrian officials say.
The official Syrian news agency Sana said the raid took place in the Abu Kamal border area, in eastern Syria. It said that American soldiers on four helicopters had stormed a building under construction on Sunday night.
The US says it is investigating. It has previously accused Syria of allowing foreign militants into Iraq.
Syria has summoned the US and Iraqi envoys in Damascus to protest at the raid.
If confirmed, the raid would be the first known attack by US forces inside Syrian territory, says the BBC's Natalia Antelava."
In a separate article on same day BBC's Diplomatic correspondent, Jonathan Marcus writes "But its (US action's) timing is curious, coming right at the end of the Bush administration's period of office and at a moment when many of America's European allies - like Britain and France - are trying to broaden their ties with Damascus."
He further writes "Whatever the local military factors involved in this US operation, it would be unthinkable to imagine that an incursion into Syria would not require a policy decision at a high-level."
So, why did some one very high in Washington - either the President himself or the Defence Secretary - authorised this incursion? The answer is simple: it is a tactic to give McCain, who claims he knows more than Obama on security issues, to divert the election campaign focus from the perilous current economic crisis to security matters.
It is just a ploy to give McCain and the Republicans, who are badly trailing in opinion polls, some straw to clutch on to. Some political analysts had felt about 9-10 months back that US may resort to adventurism in Iran to ensure Republican victory in Nov this year. But somehow this option didn't seem to be feasible because of high cost attached to it and potential of dangerous politico-military fall out. An Israel led adventure also did not seem feasible because of continued political instability in Israel for the last few months and even now.
So, Iran being not an option to do some gun-boat diplomacy, the outgoing Republican administration looked at other 'cheap' options. And, they found Syria to be not only a 'cheap' option to strike but that any action vis-a-vis Syria could be relatively easily justified to the American people and the international community.
Republicans are staring down the barrel for a double whammy - loss in Presidential election, and Democrats getting the magic figure of 60 in Senate. With opinion polls showing precarious condition of Republicans on both the fronts, it is hard to assume that Bush administration will watch the situation idly and twiddle its thumb.
So, the outgoing administration seems to have decided to play the military card against Syria which is notorious in US as being anti-America. They probably reasoned to themselves that whacking Syria, even in a limited manner, would be a safe bet politically and may help the Republican cause in some way.
Some one may say that the above is a cynical view. But in all fairness it should be said that it is not a cynical commentary on this incident. It is not a biased view because one may ask: why did US wait all this long to carry out this incursion? After all, movement of insurgents and foreign fighters from Syria into Iraq has long been a bone of contention between Damascus and Washington.
There is, therefore, hardly any doubt about the political motive of the timing of this military raid. As the BBC Diplomatic correspondent noted further in his article 'this action of US is in marked contrast to European efforts to engage the Syrians.
With French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the lead, a number of European countries have sought to bring Syria in from the cold.'
Incursion in Syria is an attempt by the outgoing President and his cronies to administer 'CPR' to the sinking Republican poll campaign. It remains to be seen whether the US voters can discern this diversionary tactic and prefer to remain focused to more bread and butter issues.
Finally, it will not be surprising at all to see US military carrying out something sensational before Nov 4 to provide the vital dose of oxygen needed by McCain, and the Republican senate candidates for their political survival.
The official Syrian news agency Sana said the raid took place in the Abu Kamal border area, in eastern Syria. It said that American soldiers on four helicopters had stormed a building under construction on Sunday night.
The US says it is investigating. It has previously accused Syria of allowing foreign militants into Iraq.
Syria has summoned the US and Iraqi envoys in Damascus to protest at the raid.
If confirmed, the raid would be the first known attack by US forces inside Syrian territory, says the BBC's Natalia Antelava."
In a separate article on same day BBC's Diplomatic correspondent, Jonathan Marcus writes "But its (US action's) timing is curious, coming right at the end of the Bush administration's period of office and at a moment when many of America's European allies - like Britain and France - are trying to broaden their ties with Damascus."
He further writes "Whatever the local military factors involved in this US operation, it would be unthinkable to imagine that an incursion into Syria would not require a policy decision at a high-level."
So, why did some one very high in Washington - either the President himself or the Defence Secretary - authorised this incursion? The answer is simple: it is a tactic to give McCain, who claims he knows more than Obama on security issues, to divert the election campaign focus from the perilous current economic crisis to security matters.
It is just a ploy to give McCain and the Republicans, who are badly trailing in opinion polls, some straw to clutch on to. Some political analysts had felt about 9-10 months back that US may resort to adventurism in Iran to ensure Republican victory in Nov this year. But somehow this option didn't seem to be feasible because of high cost attached to it and potential of dangerous politico-military fall out. An Israel led adventure also did not seem feasible because of continued political instability in Israel for the last few months and even now.
So, Iran being not an option to do some gun-boat diplomacy, the outgoing Republican administration looked at other 'cheap' options. And, they found Syria to be not only a 'cheap' option to strike but that any action vis-a-vis Syria could be relatively easily justified to the American people and the international community.
Republicans are staring down the barrel for a double whammy - loss in Presidential election, and Democrats getting the magic figure of 60 in Senate. With opinion polls showing precarious condition of Republicans on both the fronts, it is hard to assume that Bush administration will watch the situation idly and twiddle its thumb.
So, the outgoing administration seems to have decided to play the military card against Syria which is notorious in US as being anti-America. They probably reasoned to themselves that whacking Syria, even in a limited manner, would be a safe bet politically and may help the Republican cause in some way.
Some one may say that the above is a cynical view. But in all fairness it should be said that it is not a cynical commentary on this incident. It is not a biased view because one may ask: why did US wait all this long to carry out this incursion? After all, movement of insurgents and foreign fighters from Syria into Iraq has long been a bone of contention between Damascus and Washington.
There is, therefore, hardly any doubt about the political motive of the timing of this military raid. As the BBC Diplomatic correspondent noted further in his article 'this action of US is in marked contrast to European efforts to engage the Syrians.
With French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the lead, a number of European countries have sought to bring Syria in from the cold.'
Incursion in Syria is an attempt by the outgoing President and his cronies to administer 'CPR' to the sinking Republican poll campaign. It remains to be seen whether the US voters can discern this diversionary tactic and prefer to remain focused to more bread and butter issues.
Finally, it will not be surprising at all to see US military carrying out something sensational before Nov 4 to provide the vital dose of oxygen needed by McCain, and the Republican senate candidates for their political survival.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
WILL FREE-MARKET SUPPORTERS PLEASE SHUT UP!
John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, is trying to paint his Democrat rival as a socialist by saying that Obama's so-called "spreading the wealth" phrase essentially aims to kill capitalism in US. What McCain is trying to do is to scare American voters in whose psyche 'capitalism' resides at a sub-conscious level.
Not that every American understands the nuances of capitalism, free market theories or what socialism actually means but probably every American equates uncontrolled free enterprise with capitalism and somehow thinks that it is synonymous of democracy. And, when the Arizona senator creates the sceptre of socialism in his speeches he is trying to touch that part of American psyche and create a fearful revulsion in the voters' minds.
It is a good tactic for McCain, and it may work to some extent. But if this guy really believes in "Country First", he should understand that the so-called free-market mechanism without any oversight has brought US to this economic cataclysmic state. First, let us quickly recap what one of the staunchest supporter of unregulated free-market said the other day.
Alan Greenspan, who was Fed Chairman from 1987-2006, while deposing in front of US House of Representative's Government Oversight committee on Oct 23 acknowledged under questioning that he had made a “mistake” in believing that banks, operating in their own self-interest, would do what was necessary to protect their shareholders and institutions. Greenspan called that “a flaw in the model ... that defines how the world works.”
He went to admit that the "flaw" in the assumptions he used over the past 40 years were that banks and other financial institutions were best able to protect the interest of their shareholders.
The financial crisis even prompted the Republican Greenspan, a cheer leader for free markets, to propose that government consider tougher regulations, including requiring financial firms that package mortgages into securities to keep a portion as a check on quality. He said other regulatory changes should be considered, too, in such areas as fraud.
Now, let me mention some relevant excerpts of what the Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, said at the Asian-European leaders' meet on Oct 23. Singh, a noted economist himself, stated:
"The international financial crisis has resulted from three failures:
(a) A regulatory and supervisory failure in major developed countries;
(b) A failure in risk management in private financial institutions;
(c) A failure in market discipline mechanism
These are not my views but those of the distinguished Managing Director of the IMF, with which I agree. We must analyse objectively how and why these failures have occurred with such ferocity. This is necessary to put in place a new set of rules which will prevent recurrence of such failures. The sad truth is that in this age of globalisation we have a global economy of sorts but it is not supported by a global polity to provide effective governance."
What the aforementioned people - Greenspan and Dr. Singh - are essentially trying to say is: stop the chest thumping stentorian pro-free market assertions; recognise the inherent greed in human psychology and put in place mechanisms that will prevent such financial melt-downs.
What is said above does NOT by any means usher in socialism, nor does it mean that capitalism is moving towards ultimate death, all this means is - for God's sakes don't remove the referees from the hockey game and allow the players to regulate themselves, the result will be chaos on the ice!
I am not sure McCain, who is intellectually challenged, will understand all that is stated above. On his part, the Republican candidate, who has his back to the walls, will clutch on to anything by which he can scare the voters away from the Democrat nominee. 'Scare the voters' tactics has been used by Republican in the past, they are trying this again.
Do the American voters see through the Republican tactics? I don't know for sure. But one hopes for America's sake that they do. Because, if they don't they will end up with a Prez and a Veep who are a disastrous combination of senility, dis-ingenuity, shamelessness, pathological abhorrence for truth, one-upmanship, utter lack of intellectual ability and gargantuan incompetence. God help America!
Not that every American understands the nuances of capitalism, free market theories or what socialism actually means but probably every American equates uncontrolled free enterprise with capitalism and somehow thinks that it is synonymous of democracy. And, when the Arizona senator creates the sceptre of socialism in his speeches he is trying to touch that part of American psyche and create a fearful revulsion in the voters' minds.
It is a good tactic for McCain, and it may work to some extent. But if this guy really believes in "Country First", he should understand that the so-called free-market mechanism without any oversight has brought US to this economic cataclysmic state. First, let us quickly recap what one of the staunchest supporter of unregulated free-market said the other day.
Alan Greenspan, who was Fed Chairman from 1987-2006, while deposing in front of US House of Representative's Government Oversight committee on Oct 23 acknowledged under questioning that he had made a “mistake” in believing that banks, operating in their own self-interest, would do what was necessary to protect their shareholders and institutions. Greenspan called that “a flaw in the model ... that defines how the world works.”
He went to admit that the "flaw" in the assumptions he used over the past 40 years were that banks and other financial institutions were best able to protect the interest of their shareholders.
The financial crisis even prompted the Republican Greenspan, a cheer leader for free markets, to propose that government consider tougher regulations, including requiring financial firms that package mortgages into securities to keep a portion as a check on quality. He said other regulatory changes should be considered, too, in such areas as fraud.
Now, let me mention some relevant excerpts of what the Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, said at the Asian-European leaders' meet on Oct 23. Singh, a noted economist himself, stated:
"The international financial crisis has resulted from three failures:
(a) A regulatory and supervisory failure in major developed countries;
(b) A failure in risk management in private financial institutions;
(c) A failure in market discipline mechanism
These are not my views but those of the distinguished Managing Director of the IMF, with which I agree. We must analyse objectively how and why these failures have occurred with such ferocity. This is necessary to put in place a new set of rules which will prevent recurrence of such failures. The sad truth is that in this age of globalisation we have a global economy of sorts but it is not supported by a global polity to provide effective governance."
What the aforementioned people - Greenspan and Dr. Singh - are essentially trying to say is: stop the chest thumping stentorian pro-free market assertions; recognise the inherent greed in human psychology and put in place mechanisms that will prevent such financial melt-downs.
What is said above does NOT by any means usher in socialism, nor does it mean that capitalism is moving towards ultimate death, all this means is - for God's sakes don't remove the referees from the hockey game and allow the players to regulate themselves, the result will be chaos on the ice!
I am not sure McCain, who is intellectually challenged, will understand all that is stated above. On his part, the Republican candidate, who has his back to the walls, will clutch on to anything by which he can scare the voters away from the Democrat nominee. 'Scare the voters' tactics has been used by Republican in the past, they are trying this again.
Do the American voters see through the Republican tactics? I don't know for sure. But one hopes for America's sake that they do. Because, if they don't they will end up with a Prez and a Veep who are a disastrous combination of senility, dis-ingenuity, shamelessness, pathological abhorrence for truth, one-upmanship, utter lack of intellectual ability and gargantuan incompetence. God help America!
Friday, October 24, 2008
'John McCain was never tortured in my jail’, says Tran Trong Duyet
Reproducing herebelow the relevant excerpts from a news item published on Oct 25, 2008 in the famous British newspaper "The Times".
"On one bank of the Truc Bach lake a small electricity sub-station is plastered with flyers touting a local plumber. Along the road is an aerobics studio where youngsters lazily sip coffee and browse the papers. Thirty yards out across the water – rancid and bobbing with dead fish – is moored a handful of pedal boats shaped like swans.
It was within this unlikely triangle of landmarks – exactly 41 years ago this Sunday – that John McCain crash-landed and, say his captors, began his run for the United States presidency.
For even if the cold, barely conscious US Navy officer did not know it at the time, says Le Van Lua and the other Vietnamese whose lives entwined with Mr McCain’s that day, this little spot of Hanoi is undoubtedly where pilot turned politician. If fury had prevailed, it is a transformation that might never have happened, says Mr Lua, 61, a factory worker who was the first on the scene after the crash and swam out to retrieve the battered, politically valuable prize.
He mimes clutching Mr McCain’s hair in one hand and a kitchen knife in the other: “I didn’t care about the politics, I just saw a man who had killed so many Vietnamese that I longed to kill him. He was injured badly and at the time I was desperate to finish him off. We only stopped because we were told he was more valuable alive. Now I’m glad I did stop: that day was truly the turning point in his life.”
Mr Lua’s account of that day – along with Vietnamese accounts of the five and a half years that Mr McCain spent as a prisoner of war – differ significantly from the presidential candidate’s own record. Mr Lua speaks of quickly getting Mr McCain to the safety of a police station (now the aerobics studio) before any harm was done. Mr McCain writes of mob attacks on his shoulder, ankle and groin with rifle-butt and bayonet.
Where the accounts differ most starkly is in the period of Mr McCain’s long incarceration as a PoW – first at the prison known as the Hanoi Hilton, then at The Plantation.
Tran Trong Duyet, the former prison director who now surrounds himself with caged birds in a house in Hai Phong, first met Mr McCain a year after he had been shot down. He recalls a defiant rule-breaker, the patriotic son of an admiral and a fervent believer in the war. What he does not recall, however, is a victim of torture or violence.
“I never tortured or mistreated the PoWs and nor did my staff,” says Mr Duyet in contradiction of Mr McCain’s account and those of other prisoners. “The Americans were dropping bombs on military and civilian targets – so it’s not as if they had important information we needed to extract.” Mr Duyet says that he sympathises with Mr McCain and other PoWs for claiming that they were tortured. “It’s up to the Americans to decide whether or not he counts as a hero. He was very brave, very manly, he dared to argue with me and he was very intelligent. But all the talk of being tortured is for the sake of votes.”
The McCain campaign refused to comment on the claims yesterday. Mr McCain did eventually sign a confession to his supposed crimes against the Vietnamese people and holds that it was only extracted after weeks of pain inflicted by his tormentors. In a more recent interview Mr McCain explained the signing of the confession as his failure.
The full article is avaialble at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article5010491.ece
"On one bank of the Truc Bach lake a small electricity sub-station is plastered with flyers touting a local plumber. Along the road is an aerobics studio where youngsters lazily sip coffee and browse the papers. Thirty yards out across the water – rancid and bobbing with dead fish – is moored a handful of pedal boats shaped like swans.
It was within this unlikely triangle of landmarks – exactly 41 years ago this Sunday – that John McCain crash-landed and, say his captors, began his run for the United States presidency.
For even if the cold, barely conscious US Navy officer did not know it at the time, says Le Van Lua and the other Vietnamese whose lives entwined with Mr McCain’s that day, this little spot of Hanoi is undoubtedly where pilot turned politician. If fury had prevailed, it is a transformation that might never have happened, says Mr Lua, 61, a factory worker who was the first on the scene after the crash and swam out to retrieve the battered, politically valuable prize.
He mimes clutching Mr McCain’s hair in one hand and a kitchen knife in the other: “I didn’t care about the politics, I just saw a man who had killed so many Vietnamese that I longed to kill him. He was injured badly and at the time I was desperate to finish him off. We only stopped because we were told he was more valuable alive. Now I’m glad I did stop: that day was truly the turning point in his life.”
Mr Lua’s account of that day – along with Vietnamese accounts of the five and a half years that Mr McCain spent as a prisoner of war – differ significantly from the presidential candidate’s own record. Mr Lua speaks of quickly getting Mr McCain to the safety of a police station (now the aerobics studio) before any harm was done. Mr McCain writes of mob attacks on his shoulder, ankle and groin with rifle-butt and bayonet.
Where the accounts differ most starkly is in the period of Mr McCain’s long incarceration as a PoW – first at the prison known as the Hanoi Hilton, then at The Plantation.
Tran Trong Duyet, the former prison director who now surrounds himself with caged birds in a house in Hai Phong, first met Mr McCain a year after he had been shot down. He recalls a defiant rule-breaker, the patriotic son of an admiral and a fervent believer in the war. What he does not recall, however, is a victim of torture or violence.
“I never tortured or mistreated the PoWs and nor did my staff,” says Mr Duyet in contradiction of Mr McCain’s account and those of other prisoners. “The Americans were dropping bombs on military and civilian targets – so it’s not as if they had important information we needed to extract.” Mr Duyet says that he sympathises with Mr McCain and other PoWs for claiming that they were tortured. “It’s up to the Americans to decide whether or not he counts as a hero. He was very brave, very manly, he dared to argue with me and he was very intelligent. But all the talk of being tortured is for the sake of votes.”
The McCain campaign refused to comment on the claims yesterday. Mr McCain did eventually sign a confession to his supposed crimes against the Vietnamese people and holds that it was only extracted after weeks of pain inflicted by his tormentors. In a more recent interview Mr McCain explained the signing of the confession as his failure.
The full article is avaialble at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article5010491.ece
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
WHY PALIN IS REALLY A DISASTER FOR McCAIN AND USA
If McCain's mental faculties are working alright, even to some extent, he must be ruing his decision of having chosen Palin as his running mate. The reasons for this are umpteen. However, if he is not feeling angry about his decision, there could be one possible explanation - the 72 year Senator is too besotted by Palin's physical charm.
Let's face it, the Governor of Alaska is far more attractive than Cindy McCain. No wonder the hockey-mama got pregnant even at the age of 43 years. One wonders whether any naughty amorous thought ever crosses the old man's mind when he hugs his running mate. You mean, umm, somekind of a Viagra moment? Well, well.
Anyway, one thing is heartening in the current campaign - the American voters are showing far more political maturity than what they were 4 or 8 years back. The voters are able to see through the mean, falsified, twisted TV campaign the republican candidates are running.
This is evident from the opinion polls. Not only McCain is trailing Obama by double digit, Palin is faring horrendously in all categories. Her image is plummeting at an alarming rate in the minds of all rational voters of US. On top of that such news like the GOP has spent US$150,000 in accessorizing Palin is certainly not going down well with the average voter either.
Also, the independent investigation held that the Alaska Governor had misused her position in the incident popularly known as "troopergate". This clearly brings out a very disturbing aspect of her character and that is - she is a mean, vindictive, scheming person who will not hesitate to resort to any means if anybody runs foul of her.
Mind you, she is very ambitious too - politically, I mean. This makes a dangerous cocktail in terms of her personality traits. So, if per chance McCain wins, she might outshine Cheney in being one of the meanest, nastiest VP. For all you know, she might even become an extra-constitutional authority unto herself and undermine the President's office big time. This could potentially spell danger to the country itself.
And, if for some reasons the Arizona Senator becomes incapable of discharging the duties of the President, Palin will assume Presidency, and, boy, she may go berserk! On top of that her utter lack of any sensible knowledge on matters important to country will be perfect recipe for national disaster.
It seems majority of American voters realize all this and that's why opinion polls are indicating what a huge millstone has Palin become around McCain's neck. But it is also necessary that the rest of the voters also get to understand this for the sake of their own country's good. Some fanatic republicans may not like to see the reality, too bad. But as long as they remain in minority it will bode well for US.
Let's face it, the Governor of Alaska is far more attractive than Cindy McCain. No wonder the hockey-mama got pregnant even at the age of 43 years. One wonders whether any naughty amorous thought ever crosses the old man's mind when he hugs his running mate. You mean, umm, somekind of a Viagra moment? Well, well.
Anyway, one thing is heartening in the current campaign - the American voters are showing far more political maturity than what they were 4 or 8 years back. The voters are able to see through the mean, falsified, twisted TV campaign the republican candidates are running.
This is evident from the opinion polls. Not only McCain is trailing Obama by double digit, Palin is faring horrendously in all categories. Her image is plummeting at an alarming rate in the minds of all rational voters of US. On top of that such news like the GOP has spent US$150,000 in accessorizing Palin is certainly not going down well with the average voter either.
Also, the independent investigation held that the Alaska Governor had misused her position in the incident popularly known as "troopergate". This clearly brings out a very disturbing aspect of her character and that is - she is a mean, vindictive, scheming person who will not hesitate to resort to any means if anybody runs foul of her.
Mind you, she is very ambitious too - politically, I mean. This makes a dangerous cocktail in terms of her personality traits. So, if per chance McCain wins, she might outshine Cheney in being one of the meanest, nastiest VP. For all you know, she might even become an extra-constitutional authority unto herself and undermine the President's office big time. This could potentially spell danger to the country itself.
And, if for some reasons the Arizona Senator becomes incapable of discharging the duties of the President, Palin will assume Presidency, and, boy, she may go berserk! On top of that her utter lack of any sensible knowledge on matters important to country will be perfect recipe for national disaster.
It seems majority of American voters realize all this and that's why opinion polls are indicating what a huge millstone has Palin become around McCain's neck. But it is also necessary that the rest of the voters also get to understand this for the sake of their own country's good. Some fanatic republicans may not like to see the reality, too bad. But as long as they remain in minority it will bode well for US.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
I AM SERIOUSLY CONCERNED ABOUT PROSPECTS OF GLOBAL RECESSION
The Bank of Canada cut the overnight lending rate by another 25 basis points on Oct 21. In his commentary the BoC Governor Mark Carney mentioned some very ominous things.
First, there is chance of global recession. Second, US is already in recession. Did you read correctly about US being in recession? I bet, you did! Third, he said that because of close trade ties between Canada and US, Canada will also be affected though it may just be able to avoid recession.
After reading Mr. Carney's remarks the thought that came to my mind was: Has Fed admitted that there was recession in US? I don't recall Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke having said that US had been taken over by the 'R' phenomenon.
May be Benrnanke is trying his best not to mention the 'R' word before Nov 4 US presidential election in order to avoid the massive embarrassment that will be caused to the Bush administration which in turn will hit McCain-Palin hard.
But Carney has nothing to fear, hence he could be more forthright in his assessment of US economy. Now the next question is, have we seen the worst yet? Or, there is more to come!
As far as Europe is concerned, no new bad news is emanating from there. Nor is any bad news coming out of Asia yet. That leaves US. It seems there is likelihood of some bad news emerging from US in coming weeks and months.
What does that bode for the world? Well, it is obvious that if the biggest consumer spending society, i.e. US, starts to clam up further it will mean less exports to US from Europe, China, and Canada. It will hurt Indian companies too to some extent.
The drop in consumer spending in US will trigger a vicious downward spiral in various economies which may eventually lead to global recession alluded to by BoC Governor. If not recession, there is certainly a danger of stagnation enveloping the globe.
So, to counter the possibility of looming global recession/stagnation the US needs to take some more bold steps. And, they have to act quickly. But if the Bush administration postpones those measures till the presidential election in order to prevent further potential damage to the Republican ticket, it might exacerbate the situation seriously.
Liquidity crunch situation has got to be tackled on war footing by US. The European countries have already been proactive in this regard and they are not fighting shy of taking any measures they think necessary.
Let us hope better sense will prevail and the US government and the Congress will act quickly to bring in next set of measures to deal with financial crisis that is threatening to devour the US economy and consequently cause a serious damage to global economic order.
The outgoing US President has 3 more months to show some leadership and effect some good to his country. But if he chickens out at this crucial stage, he will go down in the history as that Captain who chose to take the life raft and run away rather than try to save his ship from capsizing.
Texans are not known to chicken out. One hopes Dubyah will not allow the Texan image to be brought in to disrepute!
First, there is chance of global recession. Second, US is already in recession. Did you read correctly about US being in recession? I bet, you did! Third, he said that because of close trade ties between Canada and US, Canada will also be affected though it may just be able to avoid recession.
After reading Mr. Carney's remarks the thought that came to my mind was: Has Fed admitted that there was recession in US? I don't recall Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke having said that US had been taken over by the 'R' phenomenon.
May be Benrnanke is trying his best not to mention the 'R' word before Nov 4 US presidential election in order to avoid the massive embarrassment that will be caused to the Bush administration which in turn will hit McCain-Palin hard.
But Carney has nothing to fear, hence he could be more forthright in his assessment of US economy. Now the next question is, have we seen the worst yet? Or, there is more to come!
As far as Europe is concerned, no new bad news is emanating from there. Nor is any bad news coming out of Asia yet. That leaves US. It seems there is likelihood of some bad news emerging from US in coming weeks and months.
What does that bode for the world? Well, it is obvious that if the biggest consumer spending society, i.e. US, starts to clam up further it will mean less exports to US from Europe, China, and Canada. It will hurt Indian companies too to some extent.
The drop in consumer spending in US will trigger a vicious downward spiral in various economies which may eventually lead to global recession alluded to by BoC Governor. If not recession, there is certainly a danger of stagnation enveloping the globe.
So, to counter the possibility of looming global recession/stagnation the US needs to take some more bold steps. And, they have to act quickly. But if the Bush administration postpones those measures till the presidential election in order to prevent further potential damage to the Republican ticket, it might exacerbate the situation seriously.
Liquidity crunch situation has got to be tackled on war footing by US. The European countries have already been proactive in this regard and they are not fighting shy of taking any measures they think necessary.
Let us hope better sense will prevail and the US government and the Congress will act quickly to bring in next set of measures to deal with financial crisis that is threatening to devour the US economy and consequently cause a serious damage to global economic order.
The outgoing US President has 3 more months to show some leadership and effect some good to his country. But if he chickens out at this crucial stage, he will go down in the history as that Captain who chose to take the life raft and run away rather than try to save his ship from capsizing.
Texans are not known to chicken out. One hopes Dubyah will not allow the Texan image to be brought in to disrepute!
Monday, October 20, 2008
WHY McCAIN IS NOTHING BUT A SENILE JOKER!
These days I am getting free entertainment by watching snippets of 72 year John McCain talking on some TV channel or the other. His comments make me laugh and I am enjoying every bit of it. And, yeah, I also pity the Arizona Senator for his growing senility.
Let me tell you about the snippet that made me laugh a lot. McCain speaking on a TV channel on Sunday repeated in his 'hushed' voice "We must know the true relationship between Mr. Obama and Bill Ayers". As soon as I heard this sentence I burst out in laughter. Why?
Because Senator Obama met Ayers when he (Obama) was only 8 years old. And Mr. McCain wants to know the 'true' relationship between the two?!! Do you mean, McCain wants to know what was the true relationship between the two when Obama was just 8? The whole of US knows that Obama didn't meet Ayers until years later they both happened to be on the same Board . Incidentally, on this Board there were some strong pro-Republican folks also.
So, what makes me laugh is what 'relationship' detail is the 72 year senile McCain looking for ? You know, the straight face and seriousness with which he (McCain) asks such idiotic questions makes me feel more amused. The most bizarre aspect of this is that the Arizona Senator thinks in his mind as if he had just stated something brilliant.
I feel sorry for the depletion that has taken in McCain's mental faculties. As it is he was intellectually challenged (he was in the bottom 10 of his military training cohort), and now he is fast skidding on the slope to ultimate senility. I have already mentioned in one of my previous posts about his vacuous, dumb smile. If you visualize the two together - his foolish smile and his idiotic remarks - you can not but burst out in laughter.
Another remark that proves beyond any shade of doubt what a numskull McCain is. This one is about so-called 'distribution of wealth' alleged to be proposed by Senator Obama based on which McCain labels the Illinois Senator to be 'socialist'.
This again is another foolish comment because the 72 year old senator does not seem to have any idea as to what makes one socialist and what constitutes 'socialism'. It is very clear that as McCain finds himself trailing more and more, and as his running mate Palin publicly disagrees with him over and over on campaign strategies, the Republican presidential candidate is going further berserk - mentally.
So, if you want some relaxation after a day's hard work, simply watch the senile McCain trying to say something profound with utter seriousness. Don't try to look for any meaning in what he will be saying because there won't be any substance in them, just enjoy the inanity of his pronouncements and laugh.
By the way, comedy script writers the world over are taking a break because they are not having to exert much to create something funny, they are getting all the material free of cost courtesy 72 year intellectually challenged McCain. These people surely don't want Nov 4 to come soon!
Let me tell you about the snippet that made me laugh a lot. McCain speaking on a TV channel on Sunday repeated in his 'hushed' voice "We must know the true relationship between Mr. Obama and Bill Ayers". As soon as I heard this sentence I burst out in laughter. Why?
Because Senator Obama met Ayers when he (Obama) was only 8 years old. And Mr. McCain wants to know the 'true' relationship between the two?!! Do you mean, McCain wants to know what was the true relationship between the two when Obama was just 8? The whole of US knows that Obama didn't meet Ayers until years later they both happened to be on the same Board . Incidentally, on this Board there were some strong pro-Republican folks also.
So, what makes me laugh is what 'relationship' detail is the 72 year senile McCain looking for ? You know, the straight face and seriousness with which he (McCain) asks such idiotic questions makes me feel more amused. The most bizarre aspect of this is that the Arizona Senator thinks in his mind as if he had just stated something brilliant.
I feel sorry for the depletion that has taken in McCain's mental faculties. As it is he was intellectually challenged (he was in the bottom 10 of his military training cohort), and now he is fast skidding on the slope to ultimate senility. I have already mentioned in one of my previous posts about his vacuous, dumb smile. If you visualize the two together - his foolish smile and his idiotic remarks - you can not but burst out in laughter.
Another remark that proves beyond any shade of doubt what a numskull McCain is. This one is about so-called 'distribution of wealth' alleged to be proposed by Senator Obama based on which McCain labels the Illinois Senator to be 'socialist'.
This again is another foolish comment because the 72 year old senator does not seem to have any idea as to what makes one socialist and what constitutes 'socialism'. It is very clear that as McCain finds himself trailing more and more, and as his running mate Palin publicly disagrees with him over and over on campaign strategies, the Republican presidential candidate is going further berserk - mentally.
So, if you want some relaxation after a day's hard work, simply watch the senile McCain trying to say something profound with utter seriousness. Don't try to look for any meaning in what he will be saying because there won't be any substance in them, just enjoy the inanity of his pronouncements and laugh.
By the way, comedy script writers the world over are taking a break because they are not having to exert much to create something funny, they are getting all the material free of cost courtesy 72 year intellectually challenged McCain. These people surely don't want Nov 4 to come soon!
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