It's scary, it's funny.

It's funny to watch this election, it's scary to think there are such zealots on the Right. People still say 'we can win it' for McCain, people still insist 'they're close on polls!' it's scary how diluted people are. They don't get that for McCain to win the electoral college he has to not only win every last battleground state, but also turn some states from blue to red, in four days. Yea, don't worry, he can still win. It's funny, people on the Right were just fine when Gore lost the election after winning the popular vote, claiming 'that's the system of America!' Now. when McCain loses because he hardly has any Electoral Votes how many of these 'that's the system' people will be screaming fraud? Remember kids, it's ok when we do it, but if those Dems do it it's WRONG. Fanny/Freddy bailout was ok, but any OTHER kind of Socialism is evil.

So, Joe the Fake Plumber who Owes Back Taxes and Sarah seem to be working hard to kill the McCain campaign, I'm thinking of sending them a cookie bouquet. First Joe makes his comment that Obama will mean the end of Israel, cause you know, them thar A-rabs is all tha same. Even Shepard Smith of Fox News had the moral integrity to say 'ok....no he's said over and over Israel will always be a friend of America', Shepard is one of the few Fox anchors I can watch without wanting to scream, and continues to be one of the few truly balanced anchors there. Then, Joe decides he doesn't want to appear at a McCain event, which is fine, the man isn't a politician and really it was McCain who dragged him into all this, he has every right to say 'nah, I don't want to do that' when asked to be paraded around as a mascot. The problem is he didn't feel like even texting McCain about this decision, leaving McCain introducing a man who wouldn't be showing up. What really gets me and so many other people upset is that he's got this attitude of 'Welp I'm just a normal guy and no expert so don't take me as some educated source....but let me run my mouth off anyway, make sure that camera's on me'. Think Joe likes Chocolate Chip?

McCain likes to get offended when people question Joe on anything, becoming outraged that they dare to drag him into all this. Yet, he's the one who constantly invokes him, he's the one who puts out 'I am X the Y' ads, and he's the one with no true respect for the common man. McCain switched to this plumber crap because Palin's constant invocation of 'Joe Six Pack' finally got offencive. Seeing as that name directly references the idea that your average working man drinks a six pack nightly, I'd understand most people don't like being associated with that. So now McCain is trying to identify with the common man by resorting them to a one word description. What happened to "I'm Joe the plumber who enjoys classical music and has an expensive doctor bill to pay?", what happened to "I'm Mike the builder who collects vintage advertisement products but also has kids in public school and want the best for them?". No, these new mastheads of the Republicans are a cold, bureaucratic form of a person. "Joe the Plumber" "Mike the Builder" "Ron the Rancher" "Dora the Explorer" What's funny though is there's no "Ryan the Professor" "James the Doctor" "Bill the Lawyer", why? It's the same thing the McCain campaign says Obama does, class hatred. Except they hate the upper class, so it's ok. If Obama came out with an ad saying 'look forget what Joe the Plumber has to say here's James the Doctor his opinion is all that matters' he'd be burned at the stake, but McCain saying 'don't pay attention to those people with fancy degrees and jobs, here's Joe the Plumber, only he matters' is ok. Remember, it's cool to support class warfare, but only as long as it's to the upper class, screw them and their positions of respect...they vote Democrat.

What is scary is the raw hate and vitriol being thrown by McCain supporters. I mean real hate, I don't mean normal partisan anger, I have no problem with 'yea well screw Democrats, buncha jerks' or whatever in election years, that's how it's always been. What scares me is cries of "KILL HIM" about Obama at Palin rallies, McCain being booed harshly just for saying Obama has good qualities, people who scream "SOCIALIST" at Obama and refuse to shake his hand on the trail, and of course the classic cries of 'He's a Muslim' or 'he's a Commie!' What makes me laugh though is the cries of evil for not keeping the theoretical agreement he made to accept only the federal money, this agreement made during the time he was 'that black dude' and nothing more in the race, when he had near no support. Yes, how dare he not hobble himself by keeping a purely theoretical idea he made in the days when the federal money was the biggest 'donation' he could expect. Remember though, these are the people who scream 'WE DESERVE TO KEEP OUR MONEY' at any ideas of taxing the wealthy, but Obama doesn't deserve the money he made, he's a Democrat.

Do you know the difference between Obama and McCain? Obama's 'profiles' of working people in his thirty minute ad were actually a look into the person's life and ideals and problems. McCain just sticks with 'this is Joe, he's the plumber', that's all he needs. Who do YOU want in this comparison?

Foxitize Me

Out of raw dullness and insomnia, I'm going to try an experiment, only watch Fox News whenever I'm in my dorm, I have one class from 9 to 10 AM other then that, just homework. Let's see what this does to me, I'll update the post as I go.

Fox and Friends just started (I feel obliged to say I should go easy on them for being a 'morning show' type show but I really dislike their personalities out of pure annoyance, so I won't take that seriously.) So far we're talking wardrobe and ACORN jokes. Now they're talking about an 'alleged attack' from an Obama supporter on a McCain one, and 'casually' mentioning they worry about riots if Obama loses. Gotta remind people them black folks like to riot I guess. Good work.

More ACORN comments, nothing new, decent start to the morning I guess. At least they're only blaming the organization and not Obama for it. I think the brown haired dude is hitting on the blond one though, he just winked at him and said 'punk is hot now' in regards to a joke the blond one made about his roomie in college. Nevermind, it just got crazy again, the blond dude claimed that four college students being dumb about state voting registration laws is an organized plot and they should be brought up on 'at least felonies'.

Karl Rove is on now, explaining how McCain can win, apparently he has to win 6 already firm blue states, 2 'battle ground' ones that are 'leaning blue' and 1 totally neutral one. Math, the greatest weapon of any election. Just saw a teaser for Ted Nugent appearing on an afternoon show, he's 'sick of slams on Sarah' and we'll be 'finding out who's in his sights' today. I hope it's a reporter dressed as a White Tail Deer!

Rove talked some more, gave donuts to the staff. The three are ranting over SNL not being fair and just called NBC 'National Barrack Channel'. Awesome.

I'm eating horrible chicken noodle soup and watching Judge Napolitano talk about ACORN, again managing to not blame Obama, pleasantly surprised. The brown haired guy (turns out his name is Brian) kept pressing the idea they should be convicted under felonies, the Judge himself said 'no, that can't happen unless it can be shown it directly did something', Brian thinks he's smarter then the Judge in matters of law. Awesome.

They play a clip of Palin saying 'a 'trifecta' of Democrats (House, Senate, Pres) is bad because checks and balances are being skewed' of course, checks and balances were never meant to be bipartisan, but rather simply 'extra sets of eyes' for the government. She is of course, not corrected. Seventh time the blond one makes fun of New York Times endorsing Obama, because as you know they're the first ones to do that and this was never done before, then he makes an NBC joke, then he mocks our intelligence by saying 'except for that pesky Electoral College' as if we don't know a Times endorsement doesn't mean a victory... Fox News keeps it classy.

More coverage of the Obama supporter 'attack' on the McCain supporter that happened 'luckily' just outside of the ATM's camera's range, and no mention of the fact that the 'knife carving' looks like a doctor did it with a scalpel rather then some psycho slashed her face. And of course, it was a male attacking a woman. This is way too lucky to be real. Also if they start treating this as a real 'statement' I'm gonna start mailing them links to all the McCain supporters yelling 'kill him' about Obama, calling him 'the Muslim' and generally being amazing stereotypes for their party. Because that means to them the psychos are valid topics.

Steven Baldwin looks retarded. Not in the demeaning 'hur hur retard' I mean he honestly looks brain damaged. Brian is being aggressive in trying to scream "BIAS BIAS BIAS" about the evil left, he asked the one Panelist that disagrees with him "DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT?" atleast three times already. Baldwin is talking about 'truth', Brian is ignoring the people who fight his opinions to give Baldwin and some random woman who's some pollster (insert crude joke here) more speaking time. It's funny to see three nobodies and Steven Baldwin making up their panel and Brian not thinking that would matter. You know, it's wrong for LEFT WING celebs to be political, and infact, Alec Baldwin is evil for taking a side, but Steven is cool for taking the other side. These people aren't even trying any more to pretend to be fair. Brian is disgusting, the woman host is your typical 'cute blond', nothing added, nothing detracted, the blond guy Brian kept flirting with (Steve) seems to be a pretty decent person. Ironically, despite the stunning bias in Brian's alone time with the 'Pundit Pitt' the actual composition of the three regular hosts evens out. I'm not going to blog any more untill the next show after my morning class. I'll leave with this for now, Brian is still playing the 'there will be riots!' card, he got outright called racist for saying that after the famous Gore/Bush race ended peacefully aside from words being thrown out, and yea, it was way worse then this. Baldwin thinks he's clever by implying the rioting will come if Obama WINS, them blacks, they love their riots. Also, it's apparently sexisim to make fun of Palin in any way, but again, riots over the black man, totally in bounds.

Go Fox!

========================

Checking back in, same stories as before, I'm going to put this marathon on hold until mid afternoon and evening I think, but I do love McCain saying 'Obama says his VP engages in 'creative flourishes' at times' as if the very two words are so insane to say, damn elitists, using real words and all. Also, since when does Military Service/POW time mean 'testing' for a president?

Bill O'Reilly is a Bad Person

It's 4 AM here, I'm watching Bill O'Reilly, I'm sick.

He's honestly complaining about his appearance on The View not doing well because he came in mocking the show, mocking the hosts, and then insisting that it was all because he's a Republican. Of course, his 'fair and balanced' experts are a Republican woman who claims it's 'impossible to be a Republican in New York' and someone who's simply called a 'Fox News Contributor'. Both of course, agree fully with him that it's a vast conspiracy.

This was after he said 'oh all the criminals watch MSNBC', said Powel's endorsement was all a personal vendetta, and mocked a guest openly for daring to say something other then him. Oh yea, and he literally just now declared 'war' on the New York Times, as if they weren't already 'at war' with them with their altered photos of journalists and cries of bias.

I wouldn't care so much if he didn't make up the 'center stage' of Fox, I mean everyone knows Hannity (the show that follows him) is a shill, everyone admits it and thinks it's ok because they hired a simpering wimp to be his 'sidekick' Liberal. But Bill is honestly seen as a fair journalist in his circle. This is the man who despite getting 'awards' such as the Pink Brick for promoting GBLT intolerance, 'most devolved reporter', and 'best use of unintentional satire' thinks it must be EVERYONE ELSE! He's right because he's a 'Culture Warrior' and only his 'culture' is right, and that anyone who supports other 'culture' is a traitor.

Let's see, using his show to attack rivals for fun, insisting his culture is 'right' and we're all the problem, and declaring 'war' and demanding his 'warriors' support him unwaveringly. Wow...that sounds...JUST like what the terrorists say.

Irony rocks.

edit:

He has the gal to call out people who give money to what party as a way of demonizing. He basically just yelled "THEY THINK DIFFERENT! DON'T LISTEN TO HIM". Oh and he's editing the Ron Howard ad to work for his message, and not mentioning how McCain and Palin made speeches claiming three different baseball teams know how to 'turn it around' based on what city they were in, while mocking Obama for 'rooting for Phillies but showing some love to Marlins'. Because as you know, sports TOTALLY matters in picking a candidate. I was SO going to vote McCain till I read Obama was from Chicago, I LOVE the Cubs! Oh, and he's mocking Richard Drifas right now for wanting to not be interrupted in his interview after being invited on Bill's show. Well played Bill, you've showed us only you are right.

Now call a Jihad on New York Times, come on, you'd love the irony.

I Hate it Here

The title of my post is shamelessly ripped from the comic book, Transmetropolitan, it was the name of the book Spider Jerusalem (the main character, a journalist) wrote where he basically expressed his disdain for everything in his city and country. I have never had a more fitting title for a blog post. As a Poli-Sci major I'm allowed to say this, I hate politics now. I hate them with a word that can only be called 'raging passion'. These aren't politics we see, these are party loyalty festivals. No matter what side you're on, that's what it is. I proudly voted 'Straight Democrat Ticket' in my early voting rather then look into every single position being elected and making a choice based on how I felt about the candidates. I made a choice based on party loyalty, I was sick of Republicans, I didn't want them anywhere near power, I voted all Democrat. My mother is the same way, on her blog she refuses to say a good thing about Obama, to say anything about how this 'birth certificate controversy' was brought up by a lawyer who wanted Bush brought up on murder charges because he thought 9/11 was an inside job and is generally a way to attack Obama for some stupid reason (It is basically trying to insinuate he's not a citizen), and generally refuses to see any decent people in the Democratic party. Of course, I have no moral high ground here, I don't say much good about McCain and all I'll say good about his VP choice is 'she seems like a nice woman' and I'm in no way sorry for that.

Why do I complain then? Because there are two things you can do when you realize that what we have is no longer politics. You can either whine and cry and stamp your foot and refuse to vote or do anything because as you know, you matter so much in the modern environment; or you an whine and cry and stamp your foot, but accept the new regime of politics and try to change it while still holding on to the core ideals of the country. I choose the second one, I choose to believe my vote still counts, I choose to believe it is my civic duty to vote and do all I can to support the people I feel are right, and I choose to believe that one voice can snowball into millions, and get real change. These are stupid beliefs, elections are bought by the media, your average voter who's still undecided at this point has the IQ of a smoked salmon, and when you're pissed off about something all you can do is make sure your message gets out and hope people will stop caring about the new fast food burger or movie star couple long enough to actually read it. People are more worried about High Fructose Corn Syrup then they are about the energy crisis, people are more panicked about the latest celeb caught snorting coke or saying something someone doesn't like then they are about the presidential race, and what pisses me off more, and what makes me write this post, people are more concerned about being SEEN caring then really DOING something.

I don't hate it here, I take it back, here is a pretty damn nice life, I could be in a country where I get shot for calling our leader an incompetent buffoon, I could be a country where I'm told who to vote for and checked on to make sure I voted right, I could be in a country where I have to pick between fresh water or fresh food for the day. Here is pretty cushy. I hate the people here. I hate people who think they're soooo rebellious for wearing a Che shirt but don't even know who he is, I hate people who are more concerned if their protest gets on the news then if it gets their damn message out there, I hate people who scream slogans and buzzwords, be they 'NO BLOOD FOR OIL' or 'SUPPORT OUR TROOPS', and don't know anything about the damn issue, and worst of all I hate people who think anything is an unbiased source. To the few random people that click on my blog, I have an agenda, so does CNN, so does FOX, so does MSNBC, so does New York Times, and so does every other human being. It is impossible to simply state facts now, people don't like saying bad things about things they like. I will always try to justify every flaw Obama has, my mother will always try to justify Palin, the man writing an op-ed will always want to make sure his side is 'right', and the guy who writes the news story about a candidate they support will always try to downplay the problems. The media of any kind will always try to put their spin on it, it's YOUR job as the reader to make your own choice, read the news, hear the news, and take it to form your OWN ideas. Though, I have to say, there is one more thing I hate more then the people here.

I hate the mindsets here. I hate that facts are seen as just extra touches to statements, I hate that we want to elect average people, and I hate that we're all a bunch of freaking hypocrites. We're all guilty of it, I mock Palin's lack of experience while defending Obama's, McCain calls Obama a Socialist like it's a bad thing and then defends the massive banking bailout as just fine, and my mother insists that Palin is a fresh outlook and great for the country while Obama is dangerous for being different. My problem is that people aren't questioned for their hypocrisy any more, because they know their own insanity will be called to question. We're taught since birth that we can do what we want because of a silly title we hold of 'super power', we are taught to give faith in Roosevelt's 'Big Stick Diplomacy' even to this day. We can invade another country basically whenever we feel like it, but not those damn Russians! We can have nukes, we looooooooove our nukes, they make us feel cool, but we don't want anyone else to have them...what if they get MORE then us? We can use 'enhanced interrogation' and constantly just skate the Geneva Convention's rules, but we better not hear about any other people doing it! But wait, it goes down to an even better level, not just nationally, but politically! Republicans can support a bailout of major banks and not be Socialist, but someone says 'redistribute wealth' and he's a filthy Socialist scum. A Republican can change his views on the war, as long as they go from 'we're doing great' to 'we could do better...', but if a Democrat ever says bad he hates the troops. A candidate can be a 'maverick' while selling all his independent ideals out to get the nomination, but if the other guy says one word that's a common platform of his party he's just another mindless drone.

What, you think it ends there? Your country is the best, your party is the best, your state is the best, your city is the best, your sports team is the best, your school is the best, and your SCHOOL'S sports team is the best! These are all drilled into your head at a young age, and what gets me mad, what inspires this post, and what kills me faster then the smokes and fatty foods, is that less and less people question it. Less and less people think for themselves, and more and more people mindlessly parrot information they heard once as infallible fact, and then demand a candidate that's 'just like us'. This is a vicious circle of ignorance, and every four years it gets stronger. I beg you people...just once...let the 'elitist' win, let the 'ivy league snob' win, let the one with 'intellectual smugness' win. Why? Because once in a while they have a damn good reason to be 'smug', they are smarter then you, and me, and the other guy sometimes, and sometimes, we should let the smart guy lead the country, just for a change of pace.

The Watchmen

I'm more then a political nerd, in fact I'm a fairly well rounded nerd as most all of my friends can attest. One of my interests, however, is comics. I love comic books, I really do. I'm normally a Marvel man but I have plenty of DC 'exceptions'. There's the normal mainstream heroes, the Batman, Flash, and Green Lantern are the tops there. Then, there are the 'indie' things DC will do, making things that really make you go 'whoa, the people who made Superman published this?' One of those things is a comic called The Watchmen, by Allan Moore.

This is a rather dark comic, it treats super heroes as if they were real, the cops resented a bunch of freaks in masks doing their jobs, so they were outlawed. The heroes had flaws, and no, not weaknesses, honest flaws. Half the time you find yourself thinking 'why do I like this guy again...'. The stereotypical 'atomic super man' simply can't relate to normal humans, he caused cancer in a former lover, and finds himself in a self imposed exile to Mars to escape the disdain that grows regarding him. Our 'Batman' type grizzled investigator with no powers is a real bastard, horrible childhood, contempt for the world, even his one friend is constantly pushed to the limits of being around him. Most of all though, under the masks, the heroes are human. That's why I love that comic, because the 'human' side isn't Clark Kent, the nerdy reporter no one likes so we only see him for a minute or two, it's not Peter Parker the social outcast, and it's not Bruce Wayne the millionaire playboy. The 'Humans' run the gambit from a homeless 'doomsayer' who's hinted to be retarded many times, to the average woman, to the introverted brilliant man.

With this humanity being the a key side of the characters, comes human reactions. The story focuses around the death of a former hero 'The Comedian', who's seen with a mix of pure scorn and hero worship. On one hand, he was a 'golden age' hero who went on to serve his country in Vietnam on his own free will. On the other, he's a rapist who saw humor in the burning of villages. Neither of these sides are fictional, there's no dramatic moment where our hero goes "NO! You were wrong all along about him!" He's laid out on the table for the reader very early, never disproved, only expanded on. Why? Because he was human. Have you ever wondered 'ok, The Flash is being funny with his little quip but...how does he stay joking after all the insane things he's seen?' It's really simple, The Flash isn't human. Sure, 'canonically' he is, but from a mental state he's not. Why? Because, watching a hero sob and mourn for ten issues after every disaster isn't fun. The Comedian, however, is human. He goes from the light hearted 'tee hee I used a spring powered boxing glove to knock out the robber' to a Punisher like hero who has no problem killing. Why? Because he saw things that 'killed the joke'.

Why am I writing all this? Well, for one, to say 'go buy The Watchmen, it's cheap and most bookstores carry an anthology of all the comics,' but also because there is a movie being made of them. I have no idea how to feel about this movie. On one hand, my fanboy side is going 'whoooooo Watchmen movie! This is gonna rock!' but on the other, my film nerd side is going 'wait, how will this work?' One of the amazing things about the comic is that it's a heavily 'internal' story, inner monologues, journals, and deep personal thoughts are all used to turn the characters to more then ink on a page. For a comic, this is amazing, books of all kind were made for 'internal development' because we readers have the luxury of being able to 'read the mind' of the hero. A film, however, is very external, the actors can't project their thoughts. Of course, voice overs and such are very good workarounds, but for this film to capture the comic's 'soul' it would need to be ALL voice over as the heroes talk in between, a very clunky thing to do.

Another issue comes in the main character Rorschach. This is a very hard role, let me break down the major character points of him. He's antisocial, speaks in perfect monotone until his very final line, wheezes, spends more time writing in his journal then speaking, has many flash backs to his abusive childhood, is a general sociopath in regards to views on human life/respect, and as said before, is hinted to be brain damaged in some pretty major ways. Let's see, this is a major movie chance, they're gonna stick to big names...who could do all that in a way that won't make you cringe...

Here's my worst fear, this movie is an atrocity to the comic, it focuses more on demonizing The Comedian then getting the message of his story across, it focuses more on showing 'check out how awesome we made Dr Manhattan look' then showing his struggle to live a normal life, it focuses on making Rorschach a 'lovable antihero' instead of how he really should be, a giant bastard with massive mommy issues, and after all that, it's a giant success. I've seen film companies ruin some great things, I'm getting tired of it. I want this movie to do great, I want to see people rushing to buy the comics, I want to see it be more then some obscure name, but at the same time, if it succeeds by destroying the source, what's the point? I know it sounds horribly spiteful but, if this movie winds up being a total bastardization of the source, I hope it fails, just so Watchmen can live on.

I'm Not Smart

I am not a smart man. I'm a person of average intellect, maybe a bit above but nothing to go around flaunting like it's a trophy. I understand this, I know there's no shame in this, why can't others?

There are two things in this world that honestly make me queasy to see growing strong. One is the loss of respect for intellectuals, but that can wait for another time, lord knows plenty have talked about this before me. The second, and the thing I wish to subject you to my rantings about, is the rise of pseudo-intellectuals who are treated as true intellectuals. There, I just used a rather 'fancy' word 'pseudo' yet, magically, my first statement still stands, I'm a man of average intellect. I comprehend that my ability to pull a word out and use it correctly does not make me a brilliant man. Yet, it seems many don't understand this, and are supported by legions of followers that help stroke their ego.

You see, the loss of respect for intellectuals can be fought, pretty easily too; but the rise of false intellectuals commanding respect they don't deserve is harder to fight. I'm going to pull an old classic out here, I blame the times. Why? Because now everyone gets their 'fifteen minutes', and no one wants to be that clod who said 'yup, I'm just a normal dude doing normal things I guess, thanks for the attention though'. No, that's too humble, that's too honest. Now we all want to be seen as a great visionary, a brilliant thinker, a sage among apes. Why? Because it feels good to be respected, and earning it honestly is hard. So, here's what we get, two different schools of 'false intellectuals'. One school is the 'shock school' the other, the 'pompous school'. Really, you can assume the meaning behind the names by using basic context, but just for the sake of indulging my own rant I'll explain them in a handy guide for any future false intellectuals. If you need an ego boost and don't want to actually work, get out the pad and pencil, it's time for note taking. Better yet, just copy and paste into Word, note taking is hard.

The shock school is most common, you can see these people in any walk of life. It's rather funny though, that in many of these cases these people can be found in positions that already should be respected, scholars, teachers, creators, that stuff that's 'nerd work' I guess. The shock school is guerrilla intellect, to be a member all you need is a love to hear the phrase "HOW DARE YOU". I mean really love, I'm talking perversion here. To use this school, all that must be done is for you to take a controversial view. Don't worry about thinking them up though, there's a wide buffet of garbage to dine on, all brought to you by your local media who just LOVE to do stories on how wicked and mean your predecessors are. It's easy, really, just get in a public discussion (remember, if there's not a crowd you're not doing it right) and say something like 'we deserved 9/11' or 'I think the holocaust was overblown', or anything else you can find on any message board full of teenagers crying about how their parents are Nazis. Oh yes, bonus points if you can compare someone to a Nazi, because remember, killing millions of people and oppressing many more is the exact same as holding a different ideal then you. Now, here's the fun part, when you're soon called to the carpet on your outrageous statement, don't use real facts to back it up, in fact, don't treat the discussion as anything more then you being victimized. Remember, YOU'RE the victim here, how dare these philistines not accept your idea unquestioningly. Don't debate the topic like a mature adult, that's for those nerds who earned their position in the academic circles, all you need to do is remind the crowd that you're the only smart one. Point out any grammar or spelling mistakes your opponent makes, mention that he most likely voted for someone you don't like, and claim every fact and figure he uses is misleading, biased, or just outright false, even if sources are given. Remember, this isn't about supporting your claim or proving you're right, you're right because you said so already, this about making sure everyone knows anyone on the other side is stupid. It's not a different opinion, it's ignorance. Beware though, they may have the nerve to call YOU the ignorant one, use this as a chance to flaunt all your academic achievements you've ever made in any field, that second prize you got in the spelling bee in grade school? Heck yes it has merit to prove how much you know about the conflict in the middle east. The prize you won for great skill in Chemistry? Of course it helps your claim that minorities are inherently stupid, how dare they disagree, it's all the same science! Just remember, always attack, never defend, you don't need to defend yourself, you've already said you were right.

The second school is more rare, mainly because it requires real work to get into. This is the pompous school. Just say the name, doesn't that sound so much classier then the other school? Better, say it in a European accent, they're all the same, just pick one. So, how does one get into this prestigious school? Well, the vulgar side of me wants to simply say 'take your head, shove it firmly into your rear, and leave there' but that wouldn't be as fun. For one, call yourself a 'citizen of the world', trust me, you need this for your future debates. Mainly, it makes you sound cultured, even if you've never left your own state, but aside from that it will grant you immunity to later claims you make. Secondly, attach an accent to your name, anywhere you want. Of course, this rule only works if your parents didn't already put an accent there. For example, Chad can be pronounced 'shad' or 'chad-aye' with proper accent use. Better then accents, add a second vowel to any ones already in your name. This gives the illusion of exotic history while not needing you to remember a new name to use, just remember to very firmly remind people 'no no, it's 'Lisa' with an 'e' at the end', you're so much better then those common Lisas. Third, get a degree from a college. Any degree, any college, but you get bonus points if it's something like Philosophy or Ethics or something. No don't worry, you don't need to know Plato's cave allegory's meaning or anything by the end of your college life. You just need to decide what you think it means, then insist it's the ONLY way it can be interpreted. Now you're done! You're free now to apply for any position of power over people you can think of, after all, teaching people is so much easier if you can MAKE them agree, isn't it?

How do you go about teaching you ask? Why, it's simple, simply make a claim, any claim. Unlike those fools in the shock school you don't need to stick to inflammatory comments, the world is your oyster, and you have the drill. Who cares if a hammer is a bad tool to use for oysters, you have it, that makes it good. Now, here's where you divert from your so called 'peers' in the academic world, rather then encouraging frank, open, and safe discussion of your claim and its opposing views, simply claim that you're right, everyone else is wrong, and you will make their lives miserable until they agree. Unlike the shock school, your goal is to prove how smart you are, and let everyone just assume that means the other person is stupid. How is this done? Simple, Google 'trivia'. Find a page nice and full of random facts about things, hopefully a wide array of things. Now, memorize those facts. No! Don't study why those facts are true! Don't take the time to learn just why an ant can lift ten times its body weight! Just memorize the fact, that's all you need. Now, wait for a debate, if one doesn't come to you, start one. Once the debate is in full force, start whipping these facts out, one after another, machine gun style. No no, it doesn't matter that none of these facts are relevant, the point is you know them. Now, how could a person who knows so many facts not be smart? Did the other guy remind everyone that bats are not really blind, they simply have amazing hearing? No, that fool was still discussing the topic, what a boob. Ok, the crowd is on your side, they see how smart you are, now drop the other boot, show them how cultured you are too! See, this is where that 'citizen of the world' stuff helps. That way once you say "I wouldn't expect an /American/ to understand the finer points of German politics" (Remember, say American like it's a curse), and your opponent points out that you have lived in the same state as him all your life, you can say 'yes yes but I'm a citizen of the WORLD thank you." Pick a country, any country at all, wikipedia it, learn some phrases in its most common language, and bam, you're an expert! The same works for food and drink, remind everyone that the champagne your host bought for the party isn't REALLY champagne since it came from...ugh...Normandy and not Champagne like it should. No it doesn't matter that the host is an old friend and the party is actually a surprise for you he worked hard on, this fool had the nerve to call sparkling white wine from Normandy 'champagne', and it wouldn't be a party without people fawning over your great culture, would it? One last note, remember to flaunt that degree, even if it's not relevant to the topic, remember, that degree makes you a better human being.

Now, after reading all that, do you see why this makes me ill? I was raised believing education and knowledge are the keys to life, that nothing is more important then learning. Most of all, though, I was taught that the truth matters. We've forgotten those two things, learning and the truth, we've allowed ourselves to think anyone who uses a big word or makes a radical claim is a great mind. We've turned being a true intellectual into something to be reviled and mocked. We've turned people who are honestly cultured into elitists and snobs, while 'citizens of the world' are to be honored and respected no matter how honest that claim is. Worst of all though, we've been taught to not disrupt these people, these same people who wear their Che Guevara shirts without knowing anything about the man, these same people who always say 'fight the power', these people are never to be questioned, never to be demanded to back up their claims with real facts. Worst of all, they're never expected to earn the respect they get. I'm allergic to these people, my mind retches in their presence, they make me sick. More then that though, their fans make me sick, their sycophantic followers who defend every word as gospel, who never demand reason for their admiration. They make me more then sick, they make me ashamed.

Starting off with a Bang

Hey all, this is my first blog, but I figured since it seems to be becoming more then a pointless hobby, and since my own mom has been blogging successfully for a while, I might as well jump in and try my hand. For some background, I'm a college student, Political Science major with a pre-law bend to it (I'm lucky enough to go to a school that honestly has two different Poli Sci programs, one for just normal and one for pre-law). My parents raised me to be interested in politics, and from a young age I was always 'that kid' who actually watched the news for fun, enjoyed debating, and actually wanted to learn more about things that interested him. So, to get back at them for making me into a political nerd at a young age...I became the only Democrat in my Conservative immediate family. As you can imagine, it's fun at home.

Anyway, I figured I'd make my first blog about a rather common topic, Sarah Palin. I like McCain, I respected him in 2000 for being a real 'rebel' in his party, and I was honestly mad that he was vilified for daring to say 'hey, maybe the other side has good ideas too'. Now in 2008, he's learned his lesson, stay down, don't rock the boat, and play ball to get elected. I wish I could say 'how DARE he, he's a horrible politician' over this but, well, he's just a typical politician now. What really got me upset was he went from typical politician to shameless pandering politician in one move, that move's name is Sarah Palin.

I get what he was going for, he wanted a typical American, he wanted someone 'you can have a beer with', it worked before for both parties, it works now, people like people like them. There's a problem though, people like you and me, an average American, shouldn't be in such a high rank of politics. It's nothing bad, there's nothing wrong with us, but the Vice President of this country needs to be better then us. We don't like intellectuals anymore, something happened to us to make us see anyone who uses big words as an elitist. It's how Bush beat Kerry last time, and Kerry fell for his trick by trying to show how average and normal he was, and looked like a giant tool. Why does all this matter? Because this is the kind of political atmosphere that bred Sara Palin.

McCain knew this well, he's not a stupid man, he knew Obama and Biden would look bad compared to Palin in the mind of a person who votes solely based on who they want to drink and watch football with. I don't mind her in Alaska, the people there voted for her, good for her, I respect her for being a mother, a wife, and managing to be a political figure in her state. That said, she needs to keep as far away from the national scene as possible. Why? Because this woman feels living near Russia makes her good for foreign relations. She sees brokering a Canadian/American pipeline deal that did further damage to the Canadian native people as a great gold star on her record. She thinks asking for topic changes midway through a debate is acceptable. She thinks she wins a debate when she winks and makes a joke. Worst of all, she thinks she can win by being 'cute'. This is something I find hilarious considering she took offence to Obama calling the McCain campaign 'a pig in lipstick' (A reference for the fact that Palin comes from the state with HUGE amounts of Pork Barrel spending, or insinuating that McCain is just Bush for a third term depending who you ask) as a personal attack on her for some reason. Remember though, it's ok to call yourself a pit bull in lipstick, because pit bulls are so cuddly and sweet normally.

The final point she brings up to me is the massive double standard that still is thriving in society. That standard is that a woman should never be insulted, even if her party has launched the same insults on her male opponent. Ironically, people wanted Hillary because she broke that stereotype in their minds, these are the same people McCain expects to win over with Palin. Here's a little list of things it's ok to insult Obama for, but not ok to point out on Sarah.

Obama's crazy pastor: Fair game.

Palin's husband's connection to the Alaskan Succession Interest Group: Not fair game.

Obama has no experience in the national scene: Fair game

Palin has even less experience: Not fair game.

Anything Obama does to try to connect with the average American: Pandering and insulting.

Palin saying she should get votes because she's a Soccer Mom: Acceptable.

Obama voted for things that cost money: Booooo, hiss.

Palin's state is constantly the single highest pork barrel spending requests: Nothing wrong there.

Obama plays the 'race card' to get support: How dare he!

Palin is a living embodiment of the 'gender card': You go girl!

All in all this election is fascinating, this is the first time in a while we don't have an incumbent or a Vice President running, we have four politicians going for their own place in the highest job in the country. This is a great election to use my first vote for, and the 'Palin Factor' only makes it more interesting to watch.