The Summer Television Season...Brought to you by John McCain

One great thing about having kids: Political campaigns don't buy ad space on Nickelodeon or the Disney channel...yet. So, thanks to my two young sons, for now I can avoid the insulting barrage of negative attack ads that have become the hallmark of neoconservative election-year summer television. But I wonder if those days aren't too far off.

The funny thing is...I think children would naturally question the lies and half-truths the republicans try to pawn off as fact. Many adults tend to just accept what fits their preconceived, environmentally hard-wired, narrow view of the world. Personally, I find the ads offensive; an insult to my intelligence. I fervently hoped that I'd seen the last of the Swift Boat style summer television. But it seems that we are in for more of the same. Fortunately, there are others out there willing to take the time to dissect these 30 second character assassinations. One such person is William Bradley, who provides a baker's dozen list of reasons why the current McCain attack ad is not to be believed (along with a link to the ad itself). And if this ad isn't enough for you...make way for the new ad that compares Obama to Britney Spears and Paris Hilton (in as much as they crave celebrity). And don't for a second think that this blatant juxtaposition of a black man and young blond women isn't a deliberate attempt to subliminally sow racist fears. Playing the Mandingo card isn't only insulting, it's sad, just sad.

Frankly it should come as no surprise that McCain, who once decried this type of negative advertising, has caved in to his neo-conservative puppet masters and is embracing this soul-sapping approach to campaigning. But given that McCain himself was the victim of a vicious and specious smear job at the hands of George W. Bush, I find his association with this kind of campaigning all the more distasteful and hypocritical. Why, it would be almost as incredulous as if he would suddenly come out in support of torture! Oh...wait. Never mind.

Well, as far as attack ads go I'm sure this will seem fairly innocuous compared to the ads we'll see as we get closer and closer to November, and the neocons become increasingly panicked about the demise of the Bush/Rove vision of right wing hegemony. Fortunately, I'll be watching Ralph's World, Pingu and Flight of the Conchords re-runs...and there won't be a Bush/McCain/neocon attack ad in sight.

American Econocide

Bush and his band of neocon republicans are the antithesis of what they profess to believe in. Under Bush's eight years of stewardship, we've seen government grow and spending run amok. Bush has done a hatchet job on our economy, and regardless of who is crowned king on January 20th 2009, they will have a tough job trying to undo the extensive damage.

In the latest salvo of mind-numbingly depressing news about our economy, a sheepish White House official informed CNN that the 2009 budget deficit is expected to be $490 billion. (By the way, that only includes $70 billion toward the cost of the war!)

Senator Kent Conrad, who chairs the budget committee had this to say: "If they gave out Olympic medals for fiscal irresponsibility, President Bush would take the gold, silver and bronze. With his eight years in office, he will have had the five highest deficits ever recorded. And the highest of those deficits is now projected to come in 2009, as he leaves office."

Now...you might say, "budget deficit, ah, who cares?" But remember this - the U.S. has to BORROW from other countries in order to pay off its deficit. In addition to further vitiating the dollar...putting our economic fate in the hands of countries who do not have our best interests at heart is a grave threat to our homeland security. And though a senior White House official tried to pull out that old nugget of blaming Clinton for today's deficit, I would just like to point out that Bush inherited a $128 billion surplus. From Clinton.

So, as if we needed it, here is further proof that Bush and the Rove-crafted agenda is more concerned with right-wing political hegemony than with what is best for America.

So, what?

Rather than enduring my Cassandra-like warnings about the long term damage inflicted by Bush's policies...rather than watching me froth at the mouth over the administration's (often illegal) attempts at creating a neo-con hegemony...rather than listening to me inveigh against the current state of American culture (or lack thereof), rather than watching me pull my hair out over the fate of the Washington Capitals...my wife has set me up with a blog. I'm not sure what the purpose of it is, other than to get me to vent to someone other than her.

But time permitting, I will try to commit to paper (?) my thoughts and opinions. Who knows? If this proves fruitful, perhaps I will call on others to contribute herein. If not, then it will be the sound of one hand clapping...or one mouth yapping, as it were.

So this is my innaugural post. I won't delve into anything of substance today. Who knows? Perhaps I never will. But the journey of a thousand blogs begins with...what? This? I guess so.