Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Blood in the water

I have long said that this should be a 6%-10% popular vote, 320+ electoral vote blowout, but for a number of reasons (many including the complicity and disgraceful behavior of the corporate media), a race that is, in reality, probably not (in reality if the vote were to happen on any given day) nearly as close as it is portrayed to be is still, well, “close”.



And it always seemed like there were so many moments where the McCain campaign and republican party would crash and burn like the 5 planes that McCain himself lost. But every time it was supposed to happen, it didn’t. And nearly every time, it was because of the corporate media burying a story, a gaffe, a verbal assault or a McCain moment for some other conjured up lie about “what some people are worried about with respect to Obama” or a well timed barbecue.



We knew that once the truth about McCain came out, when the sheen of the false persona behind the poor judgment was wiped away, the risky gambles were exposed, the hotheaded outbursts were recounted, the lack of awareness about basic things like the economy, the internet, the Sunnis/Shiites/Iran/al Qaeda was too much to hide, the “prickly” nature was exhibited one too many times and the grudges and the self serving pandering couldn’t be covered up any longer – this race would start to represent what it should have represented.



It’s no secret that many in the corporate media (as well as a good number of Americans) pushed and followed a narrative that ran counter to what the country actually was interested in and what the needs and important issues facing families were. Distractions were pushed to the top of the agenda because corporate media heads decided that “this is what people want to talk about”, while real important issues facing this country were being ignored and sugar coated.



At the same time, a groundswell of new voter registrations, thousands of volunteers, and Americans have decided that it is time for a change. A time to no longer be told what to think, and how to vote, or what issues are important. The text message announcement of Biden as Obama’s VP pick was sheer brilliance as now there is an instant way to rally and reach millions of people before or on Election Day.



The fact that even Pat Buchannan loved Obama’s speech last week, coupled with the media frenzy over the Palin selection has been almost unbelievable to watch and has given a window to completely take advantage, go for the jugular and stomp McCain, Palin and the republican party into the ground on November 4.



That Noonan (Reagan’s speechwriter) and Murphy (one of McCain’s informal advisors) would say the things they are saying about Palin when off mic is nothing short of stunning.



To them, nothing is more important than backing a “winner”. And right now, they are starting to sense that maybe, just maybe, McCain is going to be a big loser.



The very important thing here is that while this is amazing, it is only a window of opportunity that we MUST take advantage of. Noonan’s Wall Street Journal article just today gives a very different picture of her thoughts on Palin. But now that she has been exposed for what she really thinks (ditto for Murphy), this is something that should not only be hung around Noonan’s neck and Palin’s neck but more importantly, around McCain’s neck.



We have to stay on offense - and while it should be as relentless as we can be, it should also follow the same theme about McCain. This is all about McCain and his poor judgment, his self serving advisors as well as his reckless and arrogant decision making. If Palin stays, great – we have a slew of things to keep dripping out that have nothing to do with her daughter. If Palin goes, then that speaks to the poor judgment of McCain, regardless of why she goes.



We can keep this narrative going, keep the McCain camp and the republicans on defense and make them look to America like the losers that we already know they are. But we have to stay on top of this every single day until the election.



How? Pretty simply, actually. The corporate media smells blood in the water. McCain and the republicans have screwed up (whether intentionally or not) so badly that even the shills and hacks can’t completely cover for them all the time. What we need to do is remind everyone of the disaster that the republicans have brought and how the way McCain’s campaign is run is indicative of how he will run the country.



  • By monitoring the corporate media sites and stories, and posting links/comments/narrative frequently, we can force stories and narratives into the “mainstream”;

  • By using social networking like the "Know Your McCain" Facebook group (please join this group), we can distribute this information far and wide;

  • By DIGGing stories and narratives, we can keep them out there;

  • By using YouTube and sending videos around, we can expose the lies passed off by the talking meatsticks;

  • By remembering that this is all about John McCain and his failures, his rush to judgment and his poor decision making and centering everything around that, we can keep his campaign and the republicans on defense; and

  • As Dallasdoc wrote below, WORD OF MOUTH. Tell everyone you know a story or a tidbit about McCain or Palin that they otherwise wouldn't know - something that speaks to judgment and character.


Hat tip to Kossack LNK for challenging me to give action items and talking points



If they are on defense, they aren’t making up lies. If they are explaining or whining, then they are losing. They know they have a big loser on their hands but are still trying to desperately cover up how much of a loser it really is. Their corporate media buddies can only do so much, and even they are starting to show their true feelings.



We have a great opportunity to make this the blowout that it should be. If we can keep another new story out there every week, then we can drive the narrative. And there are more than enough stories to keep us going through the election.



The opening is small, but it is there. And it is getting a bit bigger – but only if we take advantage of it can we shatter this election wide open.

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