Week 3: Is the Honeymoon Over?

It's difficult to believe, but it hasn't even been a month since Palin was announced as the back half of the Republican ticket. Yet, whatever magic the Palin pick has given McCain on the national level may be starting to fade.

This will become even more true if the Obama campaign avoids taking her on directly and minimizes any references. Let other folks not actively engaged in the campaign rip into her and take her on.

As sexy as the Palin pick has been for the news folks, there's really only so much new on the trail drama she can add if she doesn't have someone to really spar with. Which is why taking on the news outlets as a nemisis will be a good story for both both McCain-Palin and the press themselves, and will further shore up an already news sensitive Republican base, but may leave the Republican ticket cold with independents and particular conservative factions.

Obama might do well to remind voters that over the last 8 years, the White House and Republicans have done more public bitching about the media than at any other time in the history. And look what the result was: closed door meetings, lying, blurring of the facts. So when the McCain camp, who once embrassed the media, continues to turn on the media more and more each day--Cindy lashed out at The View recently--it really does feel like McCain is taking on the spirit, if not the entire policies, of the Bush administration. Clinton's "message control" was outdone by not only the effiency of Bush's, but also by how hard Bush's message control also came crashing to earth.

One other area that the Democrats shouldn't be concerned about is if Biden is hot or not in comparison to Palin. Let him be workman like in getting out and about as he stumps on the trail. The more Palin is a superstar, the more she has to perform at the debates. And the more she's a superstar, the weaker it makes McCain look. McCain with and without her is a stark contrast and for someone who's been such a major factor in American politics for the last decade plus, that's not a good thing.

John vs Barrack: Throwing Punches Out of Sync

Not a traditional debate--although there hasn't been a traditional debate on the presidential trail in many, many years--last night's Service event featuring the two candidates was still measured in boxing terms. McCain was going to have to predict where Obama was going to be on the theme of service and land some jabs. While Obama was going to have to hope that he could pull a Marty McFly and go Back to the Future on the warrior.

I personally didn't see it in these terms. By having these two candidates separate and on their own terms, was probably a lot more enlightening than listening to them debate. Which would have inevitably disentegrated into the typical, let me use the first 60 seconds of my 90 seconds to get in a jab, then let me use the next 60 of my remaining 30 seconds to actually answer. Why the answer can't be the jab has always baffled me. Until you look at the responses by the audience and you realize how fickle the audience can be when their candidate isn't "sticking it" to their opponent.

On the whole, Obama I thought was more substantive in his answers, and that his body language was compelling. He exuded leadership. Best subtle moment for Obama: When he looked out into the crowd as if he was actually envisioning the future. It's a moment I think will resonate with millions of viewers.

McCain on the other hand, was just as comfortable as Obama. I'm not sure how well he communicated the idea of service to the American public though. He certainly touched on quite a few elements, but never pinpointed anything concrete. And while he didn't stick to military service too much, he probably didn't give non-military service as much weight as he should have. According to estimates, about 3 million people serve in the military as active or reserve members. That's only about 1 percent of the United States population. For most people, they will never serve in the military. Although, that small number, does drive home the need for ROTC on college campuses.

Another great moment was Obama not shying away from government service. The anti-government mantra of the last 30 years has done great damage. Government is not going away, so being ambivilent and cynical about it is counterproductive. Obama gets busted everyday for having 300 foreign policy advisors, but doesn't Bush rely on the work of thousands to form his opinions and policies on foreign issues every day? Knowing that, we should be encouraging the best and the brightest to become civil servants.

At the end of the day, I'd say that speaking to the base, both shored up some votes. On reaching independents and undecideds, Obama probably opened some doors. McCain was able to show himself as affable and likeable. He didn't look anywhere as Presidential as Obama, but he has helped further inocculate himelf when it comes to the question of his temper.

Days Since Palin Hasn't Been Interviewed as VP Candidate

Quick Hits #1

* Watching Dance of the Dead again I realize how much I enjoy the film. And Gregg really handled the "touching moments" well. Every crowd I've seen it with really feels the character deaths.

* Schroeder's in Rome has great wings. Try them if you have a chance.

* I agree with Spike Lee. Obama needs to hit Palin hard and fast. She did open the door with her speech.

* I agree with Spike Lee part 2. It was also insulting to Clinton to talk about finally breaking that glass ceiling since Clinton busted her ass for almost 2 years to make those "cracks." Palin can't appear on the scene and in only a matter of a few days claim that mantle. Plus, there's almost nothing Palin or Clinton agree on.

* It's only been 3 days, but I'm going to keep singing the praises of Netvibes. Having 20 different feeds, including email and my facebook accounts, on one page makes my already easily distracted brain jump for joy.

* The Days Inn I'm at has free wifi. Why isn't this sh*t standard at all hotels. If you have to pay extra for it, you're not business friendly!

So White, So Brite I Had To Wear Shades

That's the kind of future McCain wanted to evoke with his speech last night. He's a maverick who will help the Republican's clean up their act, hence the white, and bring back the glory days of the 80s, hence the bright.

Unfortunately, the white too many will see, and I saw, was the 90% plus white convention. From the Washington Post: Only 36 of the 2,380 delegates seated on the convention floor are black, the lowest number since the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies began tracking diversity at political conventions 40 years ago. That's down from a high of a 167 in 2004. That means less than 2% of the delegates were black.

And what was blinding, wasn't McCain's optimism, but the age of the audience.

There were definitely students for McCain signs waving, however, the audience's average age didn't look like it was below 45. Considering older voters are more reliable that could be a boon for McCain in November. But, for the Republican party, that could be a death knell for the journey it has made since the late 60s in growing its ranks.

With every camera pass, it became more obvious that, at least in perception, this is a party that's not really ready to pass on the mantle.

The greatest mistake the Civil Rights Generation did was to hold on to power much too long. The Hip Hop generation did take up the reigns, but it was never with the tacit approval or involvement of the older generation. And until the naughties, never in the mass that has eclipsed the Civil Rights Generation, even though the Civil Rights Generation was already deep into political middle age by the time the Hip Hop generation was turning 18. That mistake has had long lasting effects that are only now starting to be corrected and reflected in new policies and ideas.

Where will new conservative ideas come from if Republicans don't get their act together. They'll be doing it from a metaphorical grave. And considering how often they go to the Reagan well, that's not much of a stretch.

Republicans, for all their talk, have yet to demonstrate that beyond white folks who were actually old enough to vote for Reagan, that they really desire to represent or fight for all America.

Picture Hotlinked From Washington Post

I'm Back Baby! So Many Opinions On Sh*t, I've Got To Blog

May 2006 is my last post. Can you believe it's been that long since I've blogged here? Then again, I had the movie Wanda out from Netflix about that long.

Why am I back? Well, I do want to comment on topics that I can't do on the Atl Film Fest Blog. As a non-profit, it's dangerous waters to delve into a discussion about the election without being somewhat partisan. Then there's my need to keep my skills up. Lastly, there are times I want to be brutally honest and I don't want to jeopardize any relationships the festival has made.

Now don't get it twisted. There will be times when I will have to clam up. But, for now I'm back baby. Get ready to be entertained and pissed off.