A friend of mine, a Brit based in Japan, writes:
We've been glued to CNN over here watching the Bill Clinton prostitute what's left of his good name in a shrill effort to push his wife over the edge in NH. I've been a keen Obama man for months now and genuinely fear for him at the hands (not of the Republicans) but the Clinton machine. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this, assuming you are not a die-hard Hillary fan ;o) There are increasing suspicions among intelligent pollsters that Hillary benefited from the old racial "cold feet" syndrome as poorer whites approached the polling booth, if you know what I mean...
Drop me a line when you have a minute and let me know your thoughts on all this.
My response:
Right now I'm one of the undecided. From where I sit, the Democrats have an embarrassment of riches. There isn't a candidate among them who doesn't stand head and shoulders above the Family Values people. Though I'm not a huge Hilary fan - I'm also not anti-Hill. Actually, I think she's the smart one in the family.
Obama looks good and, if he plays his cards right, he could be the heir to the RFK legacy. He has the charisma, to be sure ... and I like what he has to say ... and after 20 years of Bush and Clinton dynasties, I suspect an Obama election would be the opening of a window and a rush of fresh air into the smoke filled rooms of American politics.
I am far less concerned about which Democrat gets the nomination than I am with the possibility of a religious nut case who relies on the guidance of bronze age cattle sacrificers who believed every species of animal on the planet lived within walking distance of Noah's house and who feels that the last 150 years of scientific breakthroughs cannot be trusted. And then there's Mr. Magic Underpants! - the shape shifter who can take any position on any issue and still keep a straight face and who imagines (perhaps correctly) that we have the best government money can buy.
McCain has gone over the edge. There was a time ... until 2004 ... that I thought, of those on the right, he might be someone I could live with. After a few choruses of "Bomb, bomb, bomb ... bomb, bomb Iran" sung to the tune of an old Beach Boys hit ... well, I'm one of those old, dyed-in-the-wool peaceniks who believes there are no winners in war ... only those who loose more and those who loose less. It's one thing to defend yourself ... it's quite another to go looking for trouble when you don't have to.
And then there's Rudy "One-note" Giuliani who's claim to fame was standing at ground zero in Manhattan on September 11, 2001 ... impotently shaking his fist at the sky. It's gratifying to watch his recent tanking in the polls ... demonstrating that the American public is finding out what New Yorkers have known all along ... that the more you get to know him, the less you like him! Even The Conservative, a right wing mag here in the States, featured Rudy on the cover ... dressed in a brown shirt, with a 9-11 arm band and belt buckle, and striking a pose right out of Leni Riefenstahl's "Triumph of the Will".
I have some thoughts about whom Obama should be fearful. You can find them here.
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