WHERE'S TRICKY DICK ?

Yo Dick, you owe me a drink... A nice 12-year-old scotch will do.... not chivas.... I hate that stuff.

.... AND ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST

My coffer maker went belly-up this morning, so no coffee. ... And since I needed something to get blood pumping up to speed, I tuned in to Hadley Whiplash's blog..... and , holy dogs, it's gone... vanished into the great beyond of cyberspace. It's a pity really, that he couldn't stay around to argue and defend his right-wing perspective.... a fair-weather friend to the fascists.

MIGHTY QUIET OUT THERE....

Two days since we heard from Hadley Whiplash....... you don't suppose he's sulking, do you... he shouldn't be... he tried, at least.... and got 2.5 percent of the vote.... hell, that's something.... at least it shows he's not so freaking weird that nobody agrees with him.... Buck Up, Hadley. It's a new day and there are dragons to slay and damsels to rescue and ridiculous arguments to be made..... Tell ya what; why don't you and Joe come on over here and we can pontificate on the sudden change in fortune for Don Rumsfeld.
Some people are suggesting the first moron lied last week when he said Rummy was his man until the end. But I don't know if that's true. I think he meant it when he said it, but then the polls were closed and the votes counted, I think even the president could tell which way the wind was blowing, and he had to make immediate changes in order for the party to regain some semblance of validity before the 2008 general elections. What do you guys think?
Moreover, I think we're going to see significant changes in the party in the near future, that may include a distancing from the so-called "Christian Right," toward a more centrist position -- at least as far as being public perception goes. ... Now, come on up on the porch, pull up a rocker and let's talk for a spell.

THE S.S. REPUBLICAN ARROGANCE HITS A SNAG

After cruising along unimpeded for six years, the S.S. Republican Arrogance yesterday hit a snag that tore a hole in the aft portion of the ship. Although Capt. Georgi Shrubinski has portrayed the damage as "minor" to the passengers and ship's owners, reports from the scene indicate he has jettisoned important cargo to lighten the ship's load and adjust the ballast. While Shrubinski's actions have had the desired effect, the Arrogance is still dead in the water and salvers say it could be two years or more before they can recover the vessel and make it seaworthy. Other informed sources say, however, that it could be eight or even 12 years before the ship can be returned to flagship status. Until that happens, the Arrogance has been re-assigned to garbage-scow duties. Shrubinski was on his last voyage before his retirement. Although he is descended from a line of captains, Shrubinski's career has been plagued by failure and, some would say, incompetence.

THE MORNING AFTER THE NIGHT BEFORE

So here we are.... and things turned out pretty much as I thought they would. More to the point, they turned out like they did for the reason I thought they would.... I spent election day doing exit polling in Worcester County and the one point that became clear very early in the day was there midterm election were a referendum on the president and his policies. Two questions on the exit poll made that point clear. .. One was whether or not voters came to the polls to express support or dissatisfaction with the president, and yikes, those who responded that the president's performance had not role in their vote were in the low dingle digit percentages. The overwhelming majority responded that it did... I was too busy to get a clear idea of how the numbers went pro or con for the president, but my impression is that voter were mostly dissatisfied with the White House shrubbery.
And that impression takes on added weight when we consider the other question, which dealt with the occupation of Iraq... We saw a lot of teeth gnashing and outright vocal anger in response to that question. Although I was in a solidly conservative precinct, support for the war and the president's policy was nearly non-existant.
There are a couple more numbers I want to see in order to further validate my observations, but they'll come in the next day, or so. One is the percentage numbers on total voter turnout, and the second is the percentage numbers on voter turnout by party.

VOTE FIRST-- THEN WE'LL TALK

I'm out in the field today.... working for the wires and network news organization doing exit polling. We'll talk (gloat) tomorrow. GO VOTE !

NEWS? WHAT NEWS?

Over across the river, Joe has brought up a subject that always gets my Irish up.... okay, I'm not remotely Irish, but you understand the phrase..... the subject is the local news media and how the beg like cur dogs for tips that will help them report news.
While tips from the public have always been part of a reporter's toolbox for gathering news, it seems that many news organizations have, for some time, hired reporters based mainly on how many words they can type and not on their news gathering ability. Consequently, even print news organizations have a lot of typists who can write to the AP Style Book and not many people who can actually go out and find a story. So, not only are the newspapers and reporters reduced to begging for information, but so is the public. And even if the news-gatherers can find a story, most can't or won't get the information because they're too timid, ignorant, or both to get the background information. Add to these deficits the editors' demand that reporters no annoy anyone with political or economic power. .... So what are reporters left with ? Crime reports, political reporting that is nothing more the "he said, she said," and press releases from community organizations that want to portray themselves in the best light. Many editors have taken away the most basic reporters' tools. Papers rarely will allow a reporter to file a demand for documents under FOIA because they don't want to pay legal fee if the source refuses to turn over documents. And they won't stand behind reporters in questions of accuracy.... if somebody complains, then the reporter must be wrong.... anything to placate power. .... And let's not even talk about the local TV news because they're even worse.... most of the so-called-reporters have little or no experience or training in journalism..... they are communications majors.... trained to speak clearly and look good.... and they have even less time than the print guys to do any in-depth reporting.... of the local papers, the Maryland Coast Dispatch is the best, although even they shy away from really digging into the background of stories. But at least the reporters are competent and autonymous enough to ask the right questions.....