07/30/2008 (Politics)
Want to see who’s leading in the all important Electoral College vote count rather than the headline of the moment “national polls?” Visit Pollster.com for a visual presentation of what is perhaps the most sophisticated interpretation of polling data available. If you do, check out their FAQ where they explain how they interpret and present [...]
07/23/2008 (Changing times, Politics, The return of the commons)
Whether we live in the best of times or the worst of times (or both), no doubt we do live in both the blessing and curse of exceedingly interesting times. At the “worst of times” end of the scale, we find the “shock doctrine” and the rise of “disaster capitalism” as promulgated by Naomi Klein. [...]
06/22/2008 (Changing times, Politics, Uncategorized)
I guess it had to happen: prefabricated, easily personalized digital ads. And it’s happened for political as well as commercial ads. Check out this video from SlateV.
06/17/2008 (Changing times, Politics, Uncategorized)
Why a landslide for Obama? That can be a long conversation, and I write short posts. So I point, first, to Frank Rich’s column in last Sunday’s NY Times. He provides a good and readable analysis for the forthcoming tsunami (switching to an oceanic metaphor). Rich also notes the mainstream media will not cover this [...]
06/09/2008 (Changing times, Politics)
Obama has achieved the nomination, “presumptively” of course. And Clinton, after her evening of “deranged narcissism,”* saw the handwriting all over the wall of the Media and Internet saying that her historic run had ended. What a bummer to go from candidate assured of being anointed to also ran…and also ran to such an upstart.
So [...]
05/23/2008 (Changing times, Politics)
“Every great cause begins as a movement, becomes a business, and eventually degenerates into a racket.” Eric Hoffer as quoted n the article that gave this post its title. The article is long, informative, and most readable. Written by George Packer, it can be found in the New Yorker at the link below.
The fate Republican [...]
04/28/2008 (Politics, Social commentary, The return of the commons, Web 2.0)
The shouting in and about the Obama and Clinton campaigns continues, but the basic context remains and the quest for the Democratic presidential nomination unfolds within it. All the tactical decisions, the evaluations of those decisions, all the campaign ads, all the surrogates’s advocacy, etc., are subordinate to the larger question of whether a [...]
02/29/2008 (Politics, Social commentary)
Ralph Nader is back running for president. I do not begrudge him taking another shot. I believe in democracy. Let 10,000 flowers (candidates) bloom. And yes, restructure ballot requirements for federal offices making access easier and uniform.
But at this stage of the game, he will have less electoral support than ever. We’re not going to [...]
02/28/2008 (Politics, Social commentary)
This video pretty much speaks for itself. Clinton is prone to resentment, and while resentment may feel “good” to the one who expresses it, it rarely seduces anyone other than fellow sufferers. First up is Obama setting the levels, so to speak. Watch what happens to the audience responses as Clinton speaks. The video is [...]
02/24/2008 (Changing times, Politics, Social commentary, The return of the commons)
After the Texas debate with Hilary testing a gracious exit from her hopes of the presidency, not to mention the delegate totals and the virtual impossibility of her catching Obama, it’s all over but the counting. I predict that Obama will win the Democratic nomination and then the general election.
What’s happening here? The pundits for [...]
01/27/2008 (Politics, Social commentary)
We talk about positions and policies and experience, but what matters most about candidates and their political narratives are the emotions they evoke — and it is emotion that propels us to action. Could what we see below in a video from Slate Video called “Hillary’s Inner Tracy Flick” contribute to Hillary Clinton’s high and [...]
01/21/2008 (Changing times, Politics, The return of the commons)
More than 20 years ago Ronald Reagan shifted the dominant political discourse in America. Today it looks like it may be Obama’s time. His campaign for president continues on a visionary path. Odd it is to see a communitarian vision poised against the backdrop of the every capitalist for himself theater of the past 20 [...]
01/05/2008 (Changing times, Politics, The return of the commons)
After 20 years in the wilderness, political, that is, it’s good to have called an election, even if it’s only the Iowa Democratic caucuses. Obama won. Given the size of his victory and his flourishing rhetorical skills (see the video below) I predict victory for him in New Hampshire.
In regard to the title of this [...]
12/06/2007 (Changing times, Politics)
Another video. This one is by the Obama campaign and is designed for women. It’s “long,” 20 minutes. But with the soundtrack, the editing, and overall production, it’s also easy to watch.
The video is instructive in a couple of ways. One goes to the question of how does a male candidate run against a female [...]
09/20/2007 (Changing times, Politics)
Let’s see, we (America) are trying to keep together an artificial, European invented, multi-ethnic and religious state in Iraq while Belgium is splitting apart along cultural and linguistic lines. What, as the phrase goes, is wrong with this picture? The title of this post comes from the work of Marshall McLuhan.
“There are two extremes, some [...]
08/22/2007 (Politics, The return of the commons)
The post at the link below gives the best succinct explanation of the relationship between lobbyists, politicians and legislative (and administrative) outcomes that I’ve seen. It’s by Larry Lessig of Creative Commons. One quote:
…if there were a way to fund campaigns that wouldn’t create the stain of corruption, we would still need (and want) [...]
05/02/2007 (Politics)
You just can’t make this stuff up. Of all the writers a presidential candidate could name as the author of his favorite novel, L. Ron Hubbard is the last who would come to my mind. In this context he wouldn’t come to my mind at all. Before L. Ron founded Scientology he was a science [...]
03/26/2007 (Health, Politics, Social commentary)
We’ll be the last wealthy country to provide at least basic health care to its citizens, but the day will come. My guess is 2011 when the next president (if a Democrat) is looking to be re-elected in 2012. What form it will take is unclear, but the push for single payer gets stronger with [...]
03/20/2007 (Politics, Web 2.0)
If you haven’t seen the video remix/mashup of Apple’s famous 1984 commercial into a prescient, even brilliant, satire of Hilary Clinton, you can watch it here. For some initial punditry from techPresident, click here. The games have begun.
03/09/2007 (Politics)
From the age of J. Edgar Hoover to the present time, the FBI just can’t help itself. Under Bush and the Orwellianly named Patriot Act, basic civil liberties continue to be diminished.
For the story of the current illegal intrusions into our lives, click here.