No, not even close.

But it’s pretty beat up this week. And it’s not even it’s own fault.

Capitalists are advised to gird their loins, keep a stiff upper lip, turn the other cheek and brace for impact over the near term.

Especially in the Twin Cities.

Over the next couple of weeks the downtrodden, the liberal media, and any other self-appointed disenfranchised victims with a pen or a microphone are going to come out of the woodwork and point their ignorant editorial finger at the “capitalist fatcats” who are ruining our country. All the while failing to realize whose name is on their meager paychecks or whose enterprise and the philanthropy it made possible, funded the grant or the foundation that put them on the air or puts their drivel on paper.

They’ll blame unfettered capitalism for all our nation’s troubles (giving Global Warming a break for the time being) and cite the real estate meltdown and it’s newly minted (pun intended) cure.

And the alleged scheme by John Petters isn’t helping either. The timing could not have been worse for free-market proponents.

Oh, and they’ll somehow blame George Bush even more.

They’ll forget how the Kennedy’s made their money (which was has since been outlawed by securities regulators among other authorities), and the Carnegie’s, the Gates’, the Rockefeller’s and the rest of the benefactor families that turned capitalism and the American Dream that is it’s upside into the largest charitable foundations in America. Their foundations fund the arts and education; they fight poverty and disease wherever it is found in the world. No doubt it is done more efficiently than any government agency ever could.

Nonetheless, stand by for the knee-jerking.

Mrs. Roosh and I walked most of Broadway in NYC today, ending up at the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street.

I asked the guy at the door if there is anything I could do to help.

He said they have everything under control.

Hmmm. Okay.

President Bush, Henry Paulson and Ben Bernanke haven’t been able to push through bailout legislation without pushback from Republicans and Democrats alike.

This is good. For a while.

Time is still of the essence.

The market today agrees so far, rising on expectations that the bailout will happen, and not fretting over the fact that cooler minds are prevailing; giving pause.

Free market purists are calling for a no bailout approach but this situation has devolved to the extent that inaction is no longer an option.

The cause and the action needed to rectify the effect need to be treated separately. The patient needs to be stabilized before we call in forensics. In time, the facts will show the blame will fall across multiple administrations and both parties in congress. True to form in any bubble, irrational exuberance will have been exhibited by all parties involved. Once the market lost its luster, real estate became the highest and best use for capital. For individuals and corporations alike.

Too much money chasing any particular ascendant asset class results in the potential for a bubble to form. Coupled with a congressional mandate to push all citizens, even those that truly don’t qualify, into home ownership, you have the potential for a disaster.

Another perfect storm.

In the wake, the bailout needs to be right more than it needs to be fast. Past examples are rare, but there is a chance, if structured properly, that the American taxpayer could recoup much or all of the bailout dollars. A knee-jerk reaction focused on quick action over prudent action will all but prevent this.

If we are buying the assets, we need to be in a position to benefit from their appreciation in value and/or proceeds of their sale. Congressional oversight and control of executive compensation must also be mandatory provisions.

As for the finger pointing? Blaming this disaster solely on Wall Street is inaccurate and unproductive. This was a systemic failure. A failure of regulation. A failure of ethics. A failure of speculation. We are not bailing out Wall Street, we are bailing out our entire national financial system.

Mrs. Roosh and I will be travelling to New York tonight through Sunday to see what we can do. We will keep you posted on our progress. Okay, it’s more of a vacation, planned since February. I promise if Hank, Ben, or G.W. call on me, I will drop what I’m doing. In the John McCain idiom, we will roll up our sleeves and work tirelessly to restore confidence in our financial systems.

…and we’ll take some pictures.

Update:

Bailout: Lawmakers say they’ve reached deal

The Paulson Plan Will Make Money For Taxpayers

Sure enough. As predicted, black boxes in cars will be required in all motor vehicles by 2012.

The device can be used by the manufacturer to determine if the car was abused in the case of warranty issues (fair enough) but can also be used by attorneys or law enforcement to gather data that “can and will be used against you in a court of law” (no thanks).

A Florida man named Scott Weires (who is an attorney incidentally – JR) has canceled the order for his long-awaited Nissan GT-R. Why? It’s not that he was disappointed in the car’s performance credentials, far from it. The problem is that the GT-R is equipped with a ‘black box’, similar in theory to the kind found on airplanes to help determine what went wrong in case of an accident or breakdown. By the end of 2012, car buyers won’t have a choice as to whether their new car is equipped with a ‘black box,’ or Electronic Data Recorder — they will be federally mandated to carry one.

Florida man cancels Nissan GT-R order due to ‘black box’ 

That’s at least one consumer voting with his checkbook. No word yet on whether the devices will be defeatable.

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McCain Up Three In Michigan   

Is he secretly throwing the game for someone on Intrade?

Do these guys talk at all? Doesn’t seem to be much strategery going on.

I said it before, I’ll say it again: Barack, dump the dead weight! Hillary is your man.

The Delaware Senator took issue with an attack ad from his own side in an interview with CBS, telling Katie Couric that the Obama hit on McCain’s ignorance of computers and technology was “terrible.” The ad paints McCain as out of touch — and all but calls him ancient — but doesn’t mention that the Arizona Senator’s war injuries actually prevent him from using computers for an extended period.

Asked whether he’s disappointed with the tone of the campaign, including the ad that Couric characterized as “making fun of John McCain’s inability to use a computer,” Biden said “I thought that was terrible by the way.

“I didn’t know we did it and if I had anything to do with it, we would have never done it”

Biden’s right…but at the same time…wrong. Even when you are rooting for the other team, we all cringe when someone on the field fumbles, picks up the ball again and run’s the wrong way.

Biden has also been contradicting Obama on key topics. Politico’s Mike Allen reports on an Obama interview with erstwhile Couric colleague Matt Lauer of NBC’s “Today”:

The Democrat attacked Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) for initially opposing the federal government’s intervention to save insurance giant AIG.

“I think what has been clear during this entire past 10 days is John McCain has not had clarity and a grasp on the situation,” Obama [said].

But Lauer pointed out that Obama’s running mate, Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), had initially said the same thing–on “Today,” no less.

“I think that in that situation, I think Joe should have waited, as well,” Obama said.

You best listen up, Joe. That’s your boss talking. Or did you think FDR is your boss?

Biden also told Couric, “When the stock market crashed, Franklin Roosevelt got on the television and didn’t just talk about the princes of greed. He said, ‘look, here’s what happened.’ ”

The stock market crashed Oct. 29, 1929. FDR became president March 4, 1933. According to the Information Please Almanac, FDR made his first television appearance April 30, 1939.

One more: Biden v. Obama on energy policy

He was asked by an anti-pollution campaigner about clean coal–a controversial approach in Democratic circles for which Obama has voiced support, particularly during the Kentucky primary.

Biden’s apparent answer: He supports clean coal for China, but not for the United States.

“No coal plants here in America,” he said. “Build them, if they’re going to build them, over there. Make them clean.”

“We’re not supporting clean coal,” he said of himself and Obama. They do, on paper, support clean coal.

The answer seems to play into John McCain’s case that Obama has been saying “no” to new sources of energy.

That ought to be helpful in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Democrats flying high on Obama’s candidacy pre-convention have got to be biting their nails now.

The Washington Post reports that the Obama campaign has released a statement attributed to Biden “walking back” the criticism of the Obama ad making fun of McCain’s disabilities: “Having now reviewed the ad, it is even more clear to me that given the disgraceful tenor of Senator McCain’s ads and their persistent falsehoods, his campaign is in no position to criticize,” Biden supposedly said.

Which begs the question: why aren’t we seeing Obammy and Joe Blow together much?

This is quickly becoming a disaster…for Obama. Biden wouldn’t know the difference.

I know, I know; I am sure the title will ilicit some interesting double entendre in the comments…have at it. 

Bawbwa Wawa: “Biew, Did Hiwawee want to be Vice Pwesident?”

Bill Clinton: “Not really.”

Right. It depends on what the meaning of the word “be” is?

“She would have been the best [choice] politically, at least in the short run, because of her enormous support [in] the country,“ Clinton said.

“She said ‘If he asks, I’ll do it because it’s my duty.’”

Sidenote: There is actually four minutes and fifty seven seconds where Whoopee Cushion doesn’t open her big mouth.

Bill Clinton makes an interesting point at about 3:45 in the video.

A rally in Wasilla, Alaska drew an impressive number of Obama supporters.

60.000 (I added the extra zeroes so as to be supportive) Obamanistas clumped for a show of support of the Junior Senator from Illinois.

Witty signs and shouts of praise for Obama came from the revelers. And although those passing by were generally cordial, a few one-finger salutes and derogatory comments were hurled from those motoring past on the Parks Highway at the intersection of Crusey Street.

Did email just arrive in Alaska? I’m pretty sure we got it here in Minnesohta in the 20th century.

Using 21st century connectivity, Fisher said she began e-mailing friends about the planned corner rally, which eventually blossomed into a mass e-mail announcement.

Well, there you have it. No one will be accusing those wiley Alaskan liberals, all sixty of them, of not knowing how to use email.

During a recent symposium in Willow, nearly 55 mushers from the area threw their support behind Obama

A Shot In the Dark first: The words symposium and mushers in the same sentence.

Okay, so 60 folks plus 55 mushers is…um…carry the one….yikes! That’s over a hundred!

Alaska appears not to be at risk.

On November 4th, many of America’s hardest workers and most loyal Democrats are going to punch out, head to the polls and vote.

…for John McCain.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — You just knew that when Joe O’Connell, former head of the local AFL-CIO, got on stage here with John McCain and Sarah Palin things were not going smoothly for the Obama campaign among union voters.

“I am a lifelong Democrat, an intelligent Democrat, who is supporting John McCain,” O’Connell said last week as a crowd of 7,000 waved “Another Democrat for John McCain” signs and roared its approval.

Ladies and Gentlemen, that’s a seven with three zeros behind it. And why exactly are they leaving the DNC at the bottom of their lockers?

Race?

Oh oh.

(Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President Bill George) narrows the problem down to race. “There is no question, earlier in the primary campaign the racial issue was there, just like the gender issue was with Hillary for some unions,” he says.

“We in America like to think we don’t have any hang-ups or stereotypes. But because of our history and because of a lot of industrial psychology controlling the masses, people have innate prejudices.”

Did he just call his membership a bunch of racists? A history of racism?

George says that the mind-set of some people in the labor movement regarding race is no different than it is in church groups, or in the Republican Party.

Oh, scratch that. Union members, Republicans and the Spiritually Inclined are all racists. Gotcha.

Joe Rugola is George’s counterpart in Ohio and he, too, is seeing a problem with race and his members. Yet he also sees another dynamic going on — a respect among union members for McCain.

Might this be a little closer to the truth? Respect for McCain? And…huh? Because of their conservative values? Bam!

Stricker says that other than people not voting for a black candidate, a couple of factors — such as Obama’s cultural style and pro-choice stand — do not sit well with culturally conservative union members.

I’m not sure what the euphemism “cultural style” [Kevin Nealon]reverendwrightarrogantelitist[end Kevin Nealon] represents. But sadly Obama’s race is apparently an issue with some Americans, to an extent probably not reflected in the polls.

Side note: I think we can all agree that if Obama loses his bid solely due to his race it will be a sad day in America.

Whether the issue is abortion, race or “cultural style”, the Democrats are running scared in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

“It’s a problem,” George admits, “but we are in an all-out effort to educate our members that the Democratic Party is the only one for working families.”

Democrats count on unions for get-out-the-vote efforts and for the support of members and their families. Without them, states such as Pennsylvania and Ohio — which each have about 740,000 workers who belong to unions, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics — would move into the Republican column.

Obama’s handlers have been heard to say that they can win without Ohio. But Ohio and Pennsylvania? Not so much…not to mention the East Coast Effect that could have on voters on election night.

…and Joe Biden, thought to be the key to securing these very voters, the “Energizer Bunny Mouth” isn’t helping much either.

Is this the beginning of the end for Obama?

Joe Biden, not realizing his mistake, is running with his “Paying Taxes is Patriotic” theme.

On Thursday he upped the ante, thundering that he also has Jesus in his corner. “Catholic social doctrine as I was taught it is, you take care of people who need the help the most,” Mr. Biden preached to a group of union supporters on Thursday.

So the “you” in Catholic doctrine is the Federal Government? I wasn’t there when that doctrine was penned, but I’m pretty sure they meant “you” as in “you and the church” in which case tithing and “your brother’s keeper” are the operatives they had in mind.

By the way, how’s Obama’s brother doing these days? (I digress)

Applying the actual intentions of the Catholic doctrine, Joe Biden, not surprisingly for a Democrit, practices what the church preaches to the extent of ten percent of the national average – not among the rich – not among those that earn what he earns – the average of all Americans.

Mr. Biden and his wife recently released their tax returns, and they reported an average of $380, or 0.2% of their income, in annual charitable contributions over a 10-year period. The national average was about 2% of income.

Jesus is pissed.  Joe best watch his back.

Democrats deliberately dishonor those that protect and provide their right to be…(I’m sorry, can someone please help me here in the comments section with a suitably disparaging descriptor…I’m at a loss for words, hard as that may to believe). 

Even Barack Obama, who opposed the Iraq troop surge, has finally acknowledged its success. But some of his fellow Democrats in Congress apparently remain unconvinced. Earlier this week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin teamed up to block a vote on a bipartisan resolution “recognizing the strategic success of the troop surge in Iraq” and thanking our men and women in uniform for their efforts.

Even Obama, presumably their new messiah, is better than that, essentially admitting his error in judgement without admitting his error in judgement. How thick can these people be to not at least acknowledge the political ramifications of not resolving to express gratitude for our troops?

By late 2006, Iraq was gripped by sectarian chaos. Insurgents and death squads were killing nearly 3,000 civilians per month, and coalition forces were sustaining more than 1,200 attacks per week.

Under General David Petraeus, who relinquished command of U.S. forces in Iraq on Tuesday, sectarian bloodshed has almost entirely abated, daily attacks have fallen to 25 from a high of 180 in June 2007, and overall violence has declined by more than 70%. In July, U.S. combat deaths were lower than in any month since the beginning of the war. All of the troops sent to Iraq as part of the surge have now returned home and are not being replaced.

And our Congress, now dominated by Democrats can’t muster the fortitude to simply say “Thank you.”

(Insert above descriptor again here please – our friends at KAR are really good at this sort of thing – Assnozzles comes to mind?)

Citing General Petraeus by name, the resolution, which is sponsored by Independent Democrat Joe Lieberman and Republican Lindsey Graham, “commends and expresses the gratitude to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces for the service, sacrifices, and heroism that made the success of the troop surge in Iraq possible.”

The Senators — allies of John McCain — had hoped to attach the resolution to a defense bill under consideration this week. But Mr. Reid wouldn’t allow it. Democrats have often claimed that while they may oppose the war in Iraq, they wholeheartedly support the troops. That’s a defensible position, and this resolution honoring our soldiers and Marines for a job well done gave them a chance to back up their rhetoric. Yet they still balked.

The reality is that success in Iraq has confounded the political left, which placed a huge political bet on our defeat. Senator Reid famously declared the war lost in April 2007. Joe Biden introduced a resolution opposing the surge. And Hillary Clinton said the reports of progress in Iraq required “a willing suspension of disbelief.” In the Democratic narrative, our troops in Iraq are victims of a lost cause, not heroes. They’re allowed to get maimed and killed, but not to succeed.

Democrats: so don’t acknowledge victory in Iraq. You wouldn’t know it if you saw it any way. Don’t acknowledge George Bush, General Petraeus or John McCain. No one expects you to change your stance on the initiation or management of the war in Iraq.

But for the troops, at least say “Thank You.” you…(again, please help me in the comments).

[/rant]

If you are reading this and are or have ever served our country in the armed forces, please know that my family is profoundly grateful and exceedingly proud of your service and sacrifice.

My Son and I made our first trip over the new bridge…he made a quick video…

ANNOTATED VERSION UPDATED 9/21/08 2:34 PM

CLICK FOR HD Version HERE

“It would be a disgrace and a humiliation if Barack Obama does not win,”

Said Woody Allen, seen here with his current wife and former lover’s adopted daughter; 35 years his junior.

Reportedly Senator Obama’s reply to Mr. Allen: “Get off my side you parched, peaked, pedophile!”

Citing a 90% correlation of Senator McCain’s voting record with the President’s, Obama and his brainwashed minions have gotten a lot of mileage out of the mantra that the McCain Presidency will be third term for the Bush administration.

Is this the same McCain who drove Republicans nuts on campaign finance, the environment, taxes, torture, immigration and more? Where has McCain not crossed swords with his own party?

And in a striking bit of irony, at the same time calling McCain a liar.

As it’s being used, the 90 percent figure, from Congressional Quarterly, is nonsensical. As Washington Post congressional reporter Jonathan Weisman explained, “The vast majority of those votes are procedural, and virtually every member of Congress votes with his or her leadership on procedural motions.”

Obama might want to be a little careful with these attacks, as the same measure has him voting with Democrats 97 percent of the time.

The truth is, McCain is more like the average American than the President, and much more so than Obammy.

According to the League of Conservation Voters, John McCain is the ultimate centrist. While the average Republican supported liberal environmentalist positions 13 percent of the time, and the average Democrat supported them 76 percent of the time, McCain’s 44 percent put him in the middle.

As Obama and his teleprompter-feeders might recall, many conservatives have held McCain in contempt of our most dearly-held beliefs. Its safe to say more than a few of us will vote for McCain as the lesser of two evils.

Another way to look at these numbers is to see how many of the 99 other senators voted more conservatively than McCain. In 2006, these four groups ranked McCain as the 47th, 46th, 44th and 51st most conservative member of the Senate, respectively. Surely, McCain is not nearly as liberal as the typical Democratic senator, but rankings from the left, middle and right find he is more liberal than the vast majority of Republicans in the Senate.

In contrast to the very liberal ratings given to Obama, the interest groups find that there are about as many senators to McCain’s right as there are to his left. This might not endear him to many conservatives or liberals. But it is a real distortion to claim he is a Bush clone.

Each Candidate’s selection for Vice President, adjusting for political expediency, is far more telling as to their true intent.

Obama’s “Change” platform is belied by the choice of the nation’s second most liberal senator, self-admittedly a life-long member, having joined the club at age twenty nine. Furthermore, Obama’s choice reveals a striking inability to lead as clearly he chose Biden in a moment of weakness, retreating to a default position. Hillary was the clear choice, but would have also required Obama to summon a degree of leadership not within his grasp.

McCain’s courageous (and admittedly calculated) choice of Sarah Palin shows McCain is willing to enlist the aid of someone else who has challenged his own party’s entrenchments. The fact that she’s a woman, and a babe, is the frosting, not the cake.

As it stands, McCain/Palin represents far more hope for a detour from politics as usual than Obama/Biden.

Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them? Exhibit A: Barack Obama

Senator Barb Mikukulski wants to remind us that Democrat women can wear lipstick too!

…at a women’s rally with Joe Biden in Virginia Friday, Sen. Barbara Mikulski told the crowd, “Democratic women, we wear lipstick too!” referring to Sarah Palin’s now-famous joke that the difference between a pitbull and a hockey mom is lipstick.

With all due respect Senator…are you actually asking us to compare this:

“You and I know that we women in America are mad as hell and we don’t want to take it anymore,”  

…to this?

“We don’t need another George Bush in earrings being the No. 2 spot,” Mikulski added.

I’m pretty sure no one will make that comparison Barb. I’d be mad as hell if I were you too.

Pelosi urges Bush to take action in letter 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is sending a letter to President Bush pressuring him to offer a “comprehensive and effective systemic response to ongoing market turmoil.”

Ooooh. Nancy. The mumbo. The jumbo. I love it when you use multiple syllables.

“We need to hear from you about a comprehensive and effective systemic response to ongoing market turmoil — one that will restore stability, grow our economy, create jobs, and insulate hardworking, middle-class Americans on Main Street from Wall Street’s crisis,” Pelosi writes in the letter.

Geez, Nancy is that all? As long as you’re at it, why didn’t you ask for the cure for cancer? Government is the solution for all ills, right. Maybe now would be a good time for everyone to get Hillary’s $5,000?

Translation:

We don’t know what the f*ck we’re doing. Harry Reid is crying in the balcony. The Senator from Illinois isn’t even “Present.” So Mr. President, if you don’t mind, we’d like you to look the fool. Please overlook the fact that it is we that have blocked reform legislation since 1992.

Legislation that may have prevented this debacle in the first place.

She also says Congress will be willing to stay on Capitol Hill beyond the target adjournment date of September 26 to deal with the problem.

Well, we know they will be hanging around for at least two or three days until the President gets his letter.

…and removes all doubt.

…and is utterly, completely underwhelming.

Biden waffles on AIG bailout 

“The truth is I don’t know what the bailout is yet,” Biden said Wednesday afternoon in Maysfield, Ohio. “It looks like they’re lending them a little bit of money. I don’t know what they’ve done, I haven’t had a brief on it. I haven’t spoken to the Secretary of the Treasury.”

…and these are the people we’ve been waiting for?

Gee Joe, the economy is the political issue now. Ya’ think y’all might wanna get schooled on the subject?

Truth is, the Democrats don’t know anything about “The Economy, Stupid.” 

…and blaming the “suffering” of the middle class on Bush’s policies is political dejecta. 

The federal government is loaning AIG $85 Billion at eight percent interest which is to say the Fed could potentially profit in the deal. 

Make no mistake. This is an unwise installment is what in looking more and more like a serial government bailout that will only encourage more deservedly failed enterprises to line up with their hand out. Further, these short-term fixes only serve to undermine the long-term health of our economy by weakening our dollar.

The prospect of a government bailout (now in place) of Fannie and Freddie emboldened them to take risks they would otherwise not have taken. The cascade effect allowed Washington Mutual, AIG, and others to follow suit. They, along with GM are now raising the white flag.

These companies should be condemned to suffer quick, conspicuous deaths, allowing their assets to be picked up by their rightful owners – those institutions that wisely resisted the lure of chasing too little reward by accepting too much risk.

Meanwhile, Joe Blow Biden incredulously believes this to be the time to talk of raising taxes.

Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden said Thursday that paying more in taxes is the patriotic thing to do for wealthier Americans. The Republican campaign for president calls the tax increases their Democratic opponents propose “painful” instead of patriotic. 

“We want to take money and put it back in the pocket of middle-class people,” Biden said in an interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

Versus stimulating and enhancing the opportunities to earn it themselves, right Joe? You arrogant socialist hack.

A more accurate choice of words is “confiscate”. Only a liberal democrat would assert that “taking” money from those that have leveraged the American Dream by investing, working hard, and employing others will somehow result in a stronger America.

I’m actually starting to believe Obama’s assertion that Joe Biden is a regular “lunchbucket” kind of guy. Just exactly the wrong kind of myopic mind to be assuming leadership of our nation.

…that the man leading the party that has ascribed an insignificant fluctuation in worldwide temperatures to mankind, packaged the phenomenon as a crisis, and crowned a failed Presidential candidate (don’t miss the link – it’s Al Gore – 100 lbs. ago!) and hypocrite as it’s King…

…would blame the failure of a private financial services company during what Alan Greenspan called yesterday a “once in a century” financial crisis brought on by a completely predictable (as to what, not when) collapse in the price of homes when the American congress is controlled by Democrats.

…and John McCain is the liar, huh?

Obama, the Democratic nominee, said President George W. Bush‘s policies have caused “the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression.” He also called for “modernizing” regulations at a rally in Grand Junction, Colorado.

Obama’s economic literacy is limited to the balancing of a checkbook, and even that is an assumption on my part. Obama’s paycheck has never originated from anything other than a government entity. Anyone want to take a guess as to what Obama means by “modernizing” means in this context?

Here – let me give you a hint. Is it…

a. Augmenting

b. Expanding

c. Multiplying

d. Swelling

e. Widening

f. All of the Above

In all fairness, McCain was also quoted as saying more regulations are indicated, but at least he wasn’t obtuse enough to make a lame attempt to leverage the situation politically and blame it on President Bush.

Both candidates were trying to score points with voters looking for reassurance after Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. became the latest casualty on Wall Street.

Guess what America? Our economy has cycles. Companies that have irrelevant or outdated business models are supposed to fail and all the better if it happens quickly. Sometimes the risk reward quotient yields the risk; the risks of doing business are realized. Our government can’t be expected to mitigate every risk of life and living in America.

…unless you are a pandering politician.

You’re killing me.

Dump Biden. You’re losing your grip on Pennsylvania, certainly at this point the only compelling reason to have selected Blow Biden.

You can’t undermine Governor Palin without appearing sexist and rallying more women to Palin’s side.

Hillary is still available. You’ll make history.

Sincerely,

Your Candidacy

Charlie Gibson, spectacles dripping off the end of his nose, asked Governor Sarah Palin to offer an opinion on the “Bush Doctrine.”

In my interchanges with some of the most politically articulate people I know, Sarah Palin’s response to the question has come far less into question than the existence of a “Bush Doctrine” and the wisdom of Gibson’s attempt to trip up the Governor.

The consensus? There is no singular “Bush Doctrine.” Clearly, President Bush has articulated (admittedly a poor choice of words for G.W. Bush) America’s response to the attacks of 9/11 as a desire to secure America’s safety through the promotion and support of democracy throughout the world. This is an element of his neoconservative roots. He has also asserted that America now retains the unilateral right and responsibility to strike terrorists and hostile regimes before they strike us; but no one has consistently used the phrase “The Bush Doctrine.”

That is, until now.

From Wikipedia (emphasis mine)

The Bush Doctrine is a term used to describe the foreign policy doctrine of United States president George W. Bush, enunciated in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. It may be viewed as a set of several related foreign policy principles, including stress on ending terrorism, spreading democracy, increased unilateralism in foreign policy and an expanded view of American national security interests. Foreign policy experts argue over the meaning of the term “Bush Doctrine,” and some scholars have suggested that there is no one unified theory underlying Bush’s foreign policy. Jacob Weisberg identifies six successive “Bush Doctrines” in his book The Bush Tragedy, while former Bush staffer Peter D. Feaver has counted seven.

Set back on their heels, Democrats on the talk show circuit are saying Charlie Gibson wasn’t tough enough.

The rest of America is putting themselves in that chair across from Charlie Gibson and saying (or at least thinking):

“Charlie, you’re an a**hole.”

We expect the media to conduct hard-hitting interviews and do their part in the “vetting” process. But to intentionally attempt to trip up Sarah Palin with a contrivance only serves to elevate the contempt the voter has for the media.

And it surely doesn’t help the Obama campaign because everyone is still talking about Sarah Palin. They are rooting for her because so many Americans are like her.

The Gibson interview is a bad omen for Obama. The Democrats are quickly realizing that there is no way to take down Sarah Palin without severe blowback. She is rubber, they are glue.

…and the best is yet to come!

The confluence of Joe Biden’s inability to control his diction and the strengthening warm front that is Sarah Palin’s candidacy portends The Perfect Storm for the Obama campaign.

No. Not the Vikings. They’re dead to me after 1998.

It’s this:

Minnesota Poll: Obama, McCain are dead even in state

The poll found that McCain has made gains across the board since a May Minnesota Poll that showed him trailing by 13 points. He has picked up considerable support among men and to a lesser degree among women. He also has boosted his standing with whites, young voters and all levels of household income and education.

I don’t know what to think about a poll from the Strib that shows a dead heat between their annointed One and the guy who can’t thumb an email.

RCP lists Minnesota as +7.0% for Senator Obama as of September 2.

Minnesota a Purple State according to the Red Rag? Does this mean McCain is doing even better than tied with Obammy?

…and on McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin v. Obama’s choice of Biden?

…John McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin has moved independent voters towards the GOP ticket, while Obama’s choice of Joe Biden has bombed.

If Minnesota becomes a Red state, can Iowa and Wisconsin be far behind?

Disrespectful is the title…

…too much? “They” say this stuff works.

Polls on McCain v. Obama have swung in favor of the man that can’t email, not because he’s too old but because of injuries sustained during the time he became a national hero in his service to our country – but once again, I digress.

For the time being this is encouraging for supporters of McCain/Palin, especially given the source of these polls and their dubious design.

When it comes down to pulling the lever however, even exit polls can be inaccurate as the Bush/Kerry race revealed, and the current McCain/Obama race still hinges on whether enough American’s truly are post-racism and whether newly-minted young liberals will get off their second-hand Lazy Boy’s and actually vote.

When people put their money where their vote is however, the results are intriguing – and amazingly accurate. Using that measure, McCain is up over the 50% mark.

Intrade is not a poll, it’s a free market wherein people place bets on the outcome of future events by buying or selling “contracts.” The more likely the market thinks–at the moment–that the event is to happen, the higher the price of a contract.

…no one is going to lie when they bet on Intrade. And having to put up real money, like the prospect of being hanged, concentrates minds wonderfully.

Many believe that traders simply reflect conventional wisdom and lack predictive value while at the same time consider them to be more accurate than polls. The truth is somewhere in between but consider this…

In 2004, Intrade correctly predicted the outcome of the presidential election in every single state, even those the pollsters thought too close to call.

Intrade is tracked on Real Clear Politics and may just be another source of data on the leanings of voters if not a predictor. Either way, it bodes well for McCain right now.

So it is interesting that while Obama has been consistently in the 59-61 range (peaking in mid-July, just before his foreign trip, at about 67) ever since the primary season ended in June, he has suddenly fallen to 48.1 as of this morning. In other words, while 60 percent of the traders thought Obama would win two weeks ago, now only 48 percent do.

In political discussions of late, I have maintained that the only way Obama is going to turn things around is to dump Biden, admit his weakness, and put Hillary on the ticket. Do you want to win or not?

Sure enough, although trading is thin, Intrade is showing a rising market value on this event as well although as of this moment there is not enough volume on Hillary Clinton to be on Democratic ticket on Election Day to depict a trend.

Greed is Right. Greed Works. Greed clarifies, cuts through..