What I don’t like about some Democrats

David of RW&B is being an ass.

Either one of the two candidates will be much better than what we have had.

To push your own guy to defend the republican . . . in a race that involves two very well qualified people.

It’s embarrassing.

Why is he representing my point of view.  Crap now he is a freaking libertarian.

Stupid.  David has just been stupid.  Why did I think this was a good show?

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Today in McCainland

flounders floundering

Not sure how it happened exactly, but this McCain called out for Joe the Plumber and got no response.  The guy showed up at a later rally, but does that really make up for the earlier incident?

The most shameful part of the morning rally though was that the kids at the high school had to attend and out of the 6000 there, 4000 had been bused in.  Sad.

Those Paperless Voting Machines Work JUST Fine in Texas, Right?

Here’s a long article in Wired about problems voting in Texas.  It reiterates what I had read about in this earlier post concerning straight ticket voting and includes reports of the machines switching votes from Democratic to Republican candidates.  The same DeLeon character mentioned in the comments in that earlier thread makes an appearance in this article:

Martha Herndon voted last Friday at a machine set up at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union hall in Houston in Harris County, Texas.

Herndon said she selected the straight-party Democratic choice on her Hart InterCivic screen but when the ballot came up, all of the Republican candidates were selected, including John McCain in the presidential race. Two races on the ballot were blank. One was for a Senate race (she didn’t remember if it was a U.S. senate or a state senate race); she couldn’t remember the other race.

The Harris County ballot does include a U.S. Senate race between Republican incumbent John Cornyn, Democrat Rick Noriega and Libertarian Yvonne Schick. It also includes four state senate races, each of which has a Republican candidate running in it. One of the state senate races doesn’t have a Democratic candidate.

Herndon said she called the poll worker, who re-set the machine for her. But when she selected straight-party Democrat again, the ballot still came up with all Republican candidates selected.

When Herndon pointed out to the poll worker that all of the selections were Republicans, Herndon said the poll worker told her it didn’t matter, as long as she had selected straight-party Democrat her ballot would be cast for Democrats. Herndon asked the poll worker to re-set the machine again. When she selected straight-party Democrat a third time, the ballot came up correctly with Democratic candidates selected and highlighted.

Herndon said she used a machine that was set aside for handicapped voters in wheelchairs. Although she’s not handicapped, a poll worker directed her to that machine.

Harris County spokesman Hector DeLeon was skeptical of Herndon’s account. He said that in every example where voters complain about machines, they complain only to the media or their political representative and not to poll workers at the time the problem occurs. He also said the claims can never be substantiated when election workers check them out. He acknowledged his office did not check out Herndon’s claim. Although Herndon had reported the issue to her poll worker at the time, the poll worker apparently didn’t pass the issue on to election officials.

I really hope that Paul Bettencourt loses this little game he’s playing with Harris County’s Democratic voters.  His boss at the radio station (KSEV’s Pan Patrick) has been fanning the flames of fear, particularly this week.  Callers are scared and Patrick seems to like it that way.  That vote for the republicans or else strategy doesn’t seem to be working on anyone but a few.

John McCain Thinks You are Stupid

TPM wraps it all up:

The McCain campaign apparently thinks you don’t have a very long memory — or much regard for the truth. It has just released what it’s billing as a new ad attacking Obama on Iran — even though the McCain camp already put out the same ad back in August, only to see it widely exposed as deeply dishonest.

I heard Hugh Hewitt play the ad this afternoon, claiming that French President Sarkozy had called Obama’s stance on Iran ‘immature,’ which I had read earlier (and is still there) on memeorandum.  But there is a little problem:

The remarks attributed by the newspaper Haaretz to the president of the French Republic concerning Sen. Obama’s positions on Iran are groundless. To the contrary, the in-depth discussions between the president of the Republic and Sen. Obama on Iran during their meeting in Paris in July demonstrated a broad convergence of views on this issue. President Sarkozy and Sen. Obama agree to oppose Iran’s development of a military nuclear capability.

Thankfully, I have already voted and cannot be swayed by McCain’s insult.

The Movie We Can All Agree Upon

or so I hope. We had a little trouble choosing a movie this past Saturday and decided not to go at all.

It looks like there is another Keanu Reeves movie — The Day the Earth Stood Still.

December 12.  After classes.  Looks good!

Oh WOW!

I just saw a new Obama commercial on Channel 11 (very good 60 minutes btw — acckk except for that turd drop at the end) and it was awsome!  It was on tax cuts.  I can’t find it online yet.  Plus, Obama brought out the crowds in Colorado today.

Here comes The Amazing Race.  YaY!

A New “Voice” on Houston Radio

In the immediate aftermath of hurrican Ike, Micheal Berry hired a new talker for KTRH.  Her name is Lores Rizkalla.  I listened to her show a couple of times in the dark and have turned in on two or three Sundays, including today.  She’s from the same cookie-cutter.  (No matter how hard all these talkers try to differetiate themselves from each other, they never do — with the notable exception of Michael Savage.)

She has a link on the KTRH website with blurbs of praise from the usual suspects, Hannity, Hewitt, and one local Republican group.  Her links in the blog posts on the KTRH website remind me of the same sort of wingnut links Chris Baker used to post there.

She also has a website with a blog.  I haven’t explored it all, but I will try to check in and perhaps comment there when I have the chance.  Just now she was really shitty to a little girl who called.  The little girl tried to explain to to Lores where she had gotten the things she was talking about and Lores just twisted it.

Gees, just listening to the kids on her show today and how she handles the ones who say they are for McCain versus the two or three who supported Obama.

Thankfully her show is almost over.

But wait!!!!!!  The next to last caller claims he’s not a racist because he would vote for Michael Steele and Lynn Swan.  Too bad, though, neither one of those guys are in office.  It’s tough for Republicans like him — they can’t seem to get their fellow Republicans to agree with them.

I did my part

Two friends and I voted today.  There was a line, but it went quickly.  We went out to eat to celebrate.

We voted at the same place that two of us did during the primaries.  I felt the same way about it.  I checked it twice — the first time intentionally, the second time was because I had forgotten that you get to review your ballot.  I paused just a moment each time to see who I had voted for.  I didn’t think this day would come — and definitely not this way.  Call me a later comer (March) to the Obama team.

I feel relieved.  Harris county looks to be going big for Obama.  Bob Stein of Rice University was on the local news saying that the inner loop was of course going for Obama since we’re all minorities now . . .  remind me some day to tell the story I have to tell about Stein.

Iraq

I saw this link earlier today, and I can’t really summarize it — the post and the links in it are well worth reading.  The UN mandate in Iraq ends December 31st.  However this agreement shakes out, it looks like there very well may be a limbo period of time in Iraq between then and the 20th of January.

http://www.atlargely.com/2008/10/iraq-agreement.html

At the very least, hopefully, our people over there won’t be huge targets, though I don’t know enough to feel very confident about that.  Bottom line is that things are going to be very difficult all the way around.

Dan Patrick Logic

Here we go!

The free world can’t be strong without the U.S. being strong.

The U.S. can’t be strong, without Texas being strong.

Texas can’t be strong without Harris County being strong.

Harris County can’t be strong without conservative Republicans in charge.

Conservative Republicans can’t be strong without Texas Senate District 7 being a strong conservative district (in Harris County).

Dan Patrick is the Texas state Senator for District 7.  Dan Patrick is a strong conservative Republican.  Voters had better keep Dan Patrick in office or else.

And there you are!

I’ll try this.

The free world can’t be happy unless the U.S. is happy.

The U.S. can’t be happy unless Texas is happy.

Texas can’t be happy unless Harris County is happy.

Harris County can’t be happy unless Houston is happy.

Houston can’t be happy unless there are strong happy people in Houston.

I live in Houston, so somebody had better make me happy or else!

ZOMG — Patrick thinks if it were Palin/McCain vs. Obama/Biden, Palin would win.