Telling it Like it Is

I think what gets my goat most about the way the Democrats are handling the Zell Miller and Dick Cheney speeches at the RNC is the "butter wouldn't melt in our mouths" way they approach it. What do I mean by this? Well... let me see if I can parse it out. I'm not sure if I even have it sorted out for myself yet.

Democrats seem to creep up to the point when they can no longer stuff their true meaning back in their mouths with subtle craft and innuendo. On the rare occasions that they are confronted by the media with the facts that counter their position, they immediately backpedal. I guess it's all about plausible denyability - of opinion and conviction. And of course it's touted as "being diplomatic". There is a reason that French is called "the language of diplomacy".

There is a time for diplomacy and a time for plain speaking. Harry Truman knew this. I believe that the Democratic Socialists - which really includes the core of the Democrat Party - cannot afford the luxury of speaking freely.

If they did, they would be forced to abandon the core of their incrementalist socialist agenda. If they really spoke directly to the majority of the American public about their quest to engineer society into an equal-outcome utopia, they would be be ridden out on a rail.

This will get me in trouble with the ladies, but this is a stereotypical feminine tactic. If you don't have the facts or the power to push your point, dance around the topic. Never, ever confront it directly. If you're caught, retreat with a "Well, I surely didn't mean that!" And always make sure that you're really indignant. The bigger the misrepresentation, lie or connivance you may be caught in, the more you need to pile on the indignation!

If you're really caught with your pants down, you say "How dare you!!!???"... as in "How dare you question my patriotism!!!???". Yeah, the redirection helps too. Make sure that you change the subject and accuse the person calling you on the carpet of some horrible taboo.

Back in the 60's, the people who fancied themselves speaking truth to power urged us to "tell it like it is". Well people, that's what Zell Miller did last Wednesday night.

He painted an accurate portrait of the National Democrat Party, focusing on their attitudes on international relations and armed conflict that they have clung to since 1972. He left no room for interpretation of what he really meant.

I'll admit that he stretched it a little but with the "John Kerry would ask permission from the UN..." business. (Kerry DID say that once. Yeah, he did kind of, sort of repudiate that statement.. But one of Kerry's central criticisms of the President is that he acted unilaterally in invading Iraq. ) But, Miller attacked Kerry and his party on their record.

Senator Miller simply said what millions of Jacksonian Americans have thought about the elitist, East Coast, liberal/socialist Democrat base for years.

How can we tell...?

Can you say 11 point bounce?

Righteous Anger = Hate... Just ask Andrew

Sullivan is digging up old... really old dirt on Zell Miller.

Let's see... He's "hateful". He's a "liar". He's a "bigot"... oh, excuse me Andrew... a "proud bigot".

And, most importantly, where was Cheney's lesbian daughter???!!!

The Republicans talk about family values; but they believe in disappearing their loved ones when politics demands it.

And there you go. Now the Republicans are not just Nazis. They're Stalinists as well... airbrushing the unwanted and banned out of family portraits.

For anyone who had any doubts, this pretty strongly supports the idea that it won't be the "blue" state "conservatives" who lead the defense of this country. Their courage tends to be of the hothouse flower variety. When things get nasty, as things in war inevitably will... they wilt.

Or... in an alternate (and even less flattering...) option, imagine that Bush had not backed the anti-gay marriage amendment. Would Sullivan be as shocked and appalled at Zell's hot rhetoric...?

Andrew Sullivan - So long, and thanks for all the kitsch.

Well, it's really and truly official. Even though he was impressed by W's speech, Andrew is not going to support him.

Oh well... that's the beauty of living in this country, Andrew. There are "rough men" who will defend you. Although he's not a soldier, George W. Bush is one of those men. He may not support gay marriage, but I'll bet that he would step in if you were being pounded by a bunch of gay-bashing cretins.

Hey, you can afford to be cavalier and support Kerry. You're smart enough to know that there's not much chance that he won't win. Hell, given where you live your vote would be wasted anyway. Might as well vote your conscience. Or at least your predilections.

My thoughts about Mr. Sullivan can be found here. Looks like I was right. Too bad. I truly hoped that he had more historical perspective.

Andrew Sullivan - Canary in the Coal Mine?

Mr. Sullivan finds Zell Miller "crude":

Last night was therefore a revealing night for me. I watched a Democrat at
a GOP Convention convince me that I could never be a Republican. If they wheel
out lying, angry old men like this as their keynote, I'll take Obama. Any
day.

He also compares Zell to Michael Moore.

Hey, this war thing is nasty. It's gross. People say mean things. And where was Cheney's Lesbian daughter???

I'm out of here, man.

What disturbs me about Andrew Sullivan most is that he may be a bellwether for the majority in this country. September 11th got their attention... for a while. But hey, things are okay now.

Folks, it's time to return to our regular programming.

Sorry Posting Has Been nonexistent

Just got back from my annual wilderness canoe trip in Canada. Before I could leave, I was swamped at work.

Thanks to those who emailed wondering what happened. Don't worry. I'm still here and my bombastic opinions are still plentiful.

You know, though... the Register (along with the rest of the "mainstream media" almost parodies itself these days. The Edtorial Board seems to be careening through the stages of mourning. They almost always gravitate back to denial.

I don't have cable, so I have to watch the GOP convention on PBS. Mark Shields looks perpertually apoplectic. Lord, what a tottering, stuttering shill for the Democrats. No argument... no analysis... just doddering propaganda. At one point he tried to make the case that the man who bears the mantel of George H. W. Bush is... wait for it... John Kerry! He must wear the tinfoil under his toupee.

His counterpart is David Brooks the NY Times columnist. Mr. Brooks looks like he's somewhere between bemused and sedated most of the time. He's a "house conservative columnist" at a (dare I say) LIBERAL newspaper... so he's a natural for the PBS gig. He's deferential and mostly polite to Shields. But, you still get the feeling that he could rhetorically reach across the table and pull out the old man's still-beating heart. But, like Kane from Kung Fu... he refrains.

Anyway, I'll be out tomorrow evening hoisting a few beers with friends so I may not catch the President's address. I hope that "W" can rise to the occasion tomorrow night. There's a lot at stake.

Zell Miller - My New Hero

My God, what a speech. I was literally on my feet cheering during this section:

Together, Kennedy/Kerry have opposed the very weapons system that won the Cold War and that is now winning the War on Terror.

Listing all the weapon systems that Senator Kerry tried his best to shut down sounds like an auctioneer selling off our national security but Americans need to know the facts.

The B-1 bomber, that Senator Kerry opposed, dropped 40 percent of the bombs in the first six months of Operation Enduring Freedom.

The B-2 bomber, that Senator Kerry opposed, delivered air strikes against the Taliban in Afghanistan and Hussein's command post in Iraq.

The F-14A Tomcats, that Senator Kerry opposed, shot down Khadifi's Libyan MIGs over the Gulf of Sidra.

The modernized F-14D, that Senator Kerry opposed, delivered missile strikes against Tora Bora.

The Apache helicopter, that Senator Kerry opposed, took out those Republican Guard tanks in Kuwait in the Gulf War.

The F-15 Eagles, that Senator Kerry opposed, flew cover over our Nation's Capital and this very city after 9/11.
I could go on and on and on: against the Patriot Missile that shot down Saddam Hussein's scud missiles over Israel; against the Aegis air-defense cruiser; against the Strategic Defense Initiative; against the Trident missile; against, against, against.

This is the man who wants to be the Commander in Chief of our U.S. Armed Forces?

U.S. forces armed with what? Spitballs?

Wow.