Randomness

Welcome to the Palindrome
Didn't see this one coming. Who did. As my departed friend Tim Bartley would coyly say "interesting". There is a lot going on right now, a hurricane hitting the beleaguered city of New Orleans is distracting, the delay of the Republican convention and the pick of Sarah Palin being a little off the books for the GOP candidate.

Part of it is very interesting, actually all of it. The choice of a conservative woman from a non-consequential state with a huge history of corruption and graft. And a couple days later, we find out that her teenage daughter is pregnant. (so much for the ole abstinence education) And the left wing starts tripping over itself trying to make points off of it.

So what's the deal? This isn't a Mondale can't possibly win so I'll pick the crazy lady from Queens, this is a major candidate in a very close election. The idiot's (read media) analysis is that all the "18 million voters" will run to the female candidate, as if all these intelligent ladies who put money to Emily's List and pro-choice causes will suddenly fall to the moosemeat eating creationist, anti-choice governor of America's last frontier. But maybe it's smarter than we think. Maybe folks will like the youth to go along with McCain's experience. The comely Palin brings a certain life to a party that has been polluted by a very boring set of circumstances if not dynastic progression of Republican candidates both in the number one and number two spots. If it wasn't the conservative of the week, it was the next millionaire.

So along comes a woman that speaks to the American woman. A young, attractive and active woman with one older son, due to enter the nation's service, an infant with special needs, a couple of middle kids and coming to a nursery really far from you, a daughter that is due to give birth outside of wedlock. One might say, including myself for the 17 year old expectant mother, damn lady, were you taking care of business while trying to count the money coming out of the US treasury for the state? But no, every family in the country can identify with the miscreant nature of youth and certainly the GOP can spin this to their advantage. "What are supposed to kill your mistakes?", certainly a certain pride can be found in every issue of Parade magazine for a vice president as grandmother taking her infant grandchild into her own care in the United States naval observatory.

It's an interesting pick on McCain's part. The refrain across America from us liberals, was what an idiot, why would you choose a woman from a backwater state, having no real experience outside what is considered to be outside of Louisiana one of the most corrupt states in the nation to be part of a ticket? However this works right into McCain's former and beloved maverick roots. A standard Republican would take the next man in line, Romney, a young but stalwart conservative Republican governor, whoever was next in the receiving line, but McCain went off the map, making people wonder, maybe this is McCain 2000, not huggy McBush eating cake on Air Force One, but a real leader.

Some will fret at the thought of an anti-science, anti-choice, inexperienced governor being in the second seat of a former PoW, cancer surviving 72 year old candidate. But many are brought to action, to energy, by someone who "shares their values", a woman who lives a real life, a large life, outside the confines of many of us in the continental United States. It seems funny to me as a crazy, elitist, progressive egghead here on the Eastern seaboard, but maybe John McCain has cast his dice in a way that will re-energize "his base" and bring Reaganism yet another victory in the national election.

EL LOBO
Television journalism is an oxymoron. In fact, I'm not sure it even exists. With Russert gone, a certain

bottom dropped out. Glimpses of journalism can be found, of course Christiane Amenpour is a leader in the field that is frightfully underexposed and there are numerous other sideline reporters that seem to have a good head on their shoulders.

But mostly, it's a bunch of crap. Even with people I used to like. Lou Dobbs, of course, has gone off the deep end, supporting an odd nativist/independent/populist/anti-immigration/Luddite agenda, trying to somehow think he convince the world that globalization is a stoppable force. Lou has become a cartoon character, but you know what you are getting.

The "announcer" who makes me the most crazy is Wolf Blitzer. I seem to remember Wolf as a responsible journalist during Gulf War I, giving out what seemed like solid information and analysis. Suddenly he has morphed into a post-dementia version of an illiterate news reader. To say aloof insults those that are truly aloof. His perfect coiffed beard and hair seem to be his prominent characteristic along with his seeming disengagement with the topic at hand. The issue is that there seems to be some talent around him, such as Suzanne Malveaux, but it's the equivalent of having Butch Hobson managing the Red Sox.

I'm still waiting for journalists to ask the tough questions, to stop acting like they are working the Academy Awards for E or something.