Tom McKenna, Vop Osili, Brad Ellsworth & Identity Politics

I’ve never feared conversations about race. Today is no exception.

When a few people (translation: mostly white Republicans and white, Hillary-supporting-Democrats) complained that some African-Americans were voting for Obama because “he's black,” I laughed. If you've never had someone who shares your identity rise to exalted status, of course, you will give more benefit of the doubt.

Did it shock the conscious to see disproportionate support among Muslims for Keith Ellison, gays for Houston Mayor Annise Parker, Latinos for Bill Richardson, women for Hillary Clinton, or evangelicals for Pat Robertson in 1988? This, of course, doesn’t mean support from whatever “group” we originate is automatic. If it did, Alan Keyes would at least be an alderman somewhere and Clarence Thomas would be a beloved justice among African-Americans. (Shhhh! Don't tell him, but he’s not!)

Nobody can deny identity politics is more prevalent than ever (see this great article by James Poniewozik in Time on Sarah Palin), and as much as we want to declare America is post-racial, race remains a key identifier.

Democrats strive for, and with decent success, achieve racial diversity.

Republicans? Well, in his book Right Now, beleaguered RNC chair Michael Steele claims that “Republicans reject identity politics.” I’m assuming he wrote this ironically.

Republicans routinely engage in the practice, just not well. For example, they might elevate a not-particularly-savvy African-American to national party chair so they can criticize the black Democratic president. Or, they might make sure to get the one Asian guy and the one African-American woman in the crowd into the frame on the close-up. Watch for at least 30 seconds, and you'll know what I'm talking about). Or the Indiana GOP might front a guy on its webpage who they know they wouldn’t but for his ethnicity (though maybe youth as well, as age is an identifier).

Identity politics was going to be a political headache for Tom McKenna in his competition with Vop Osili to become the Democrats’ candidate for Secretary of State. But when Evan Bayh stepped down, things turned migraine.

Before going further, know that the Secretary of State position is critical politically. The Secretary of State is our tie-breaker for Speaker when the Indiana House of Representatives splits 50/50. As McKenna has argued repeatedly during his campaign, a D Secretary of State can stave off future Republican efforts to impose new burdens on voting that will likely prejudice Democrats at the polls in 2011 and beyond.

There are local effects as well. The party whose Secretary of State candidate garners the highest vote total in each county determines which party appoints precinct committee inspectors and which party is placed first on the ballot.

In Indiana, Democrats don't choose their Secretary of State candidate in a primary; they decide in a state convention (this year on June 26) populated by up to 2,288 delegate, with each county allotted a share based on an equation only slightly less complicated than the school funding formula.

When you look strictly at political considerations for those delegates, Vop has a formidable advantage.

In the 2008 general election, 381,000 votes were cast in Marion County, President Obama got 241,000 (or 63%) of those votes, and 135,000 (35%) of which were straight-ticket Democrat. Only Lake County delivered a higher percent of Obama votes (67%), and only four counties topped Lake's 70% turnout. In short, give Lake County the right candidate, and it performs. These two counties helped Obama become president while carrying only fifteen of Indiana's ninety-two counties. Given the high concentrations of black folk living in Marion and Lake, is it a stretch to hypothesize that African-Americans are the single best source of Democratic straight-ticket vote in Indiana?

Smart politicos maximize straight-ticket votes, so a savvy delegate might ask, this question:

"Which Democratic state-wide line-up delivers the high turnout, straight ticket (African-American) voters we need to keep our Senate seat now that it's going to be a battle royale without Evan Bayh? The one with Brad Ellsworth (white guy) for Senate, Tom McKenna (white guy) for Secretary of State, Pete Buttigieg (white guy) for Treasurer, and Sam Locke (white guy) for Auditor, or the one that gives African-Americans the chance to elect Indiana’s first black Secretary of State and put him in position to become Indiana's first black Lieutenant Governor?

(Hey, if Evan Bayh runs in 2012, he’ll need a running mate who can smooth African-American ruffled feathers from all his anti-Obama statements and votes).

Some may think I'm naive to not consider the "identity politics" downside for Vop, given the GOP's historic skill at running the campaigns of the type that can generate subconscious (or even outright) fear of Vop's name, race, heritage, or all three combined.

To those folks, I would say studying the 2008 election results certainly depressed me at first blush. Given ballot fatigue, we would expect Obama to be the highest vote getter across the board, even in the counties he lost, right? But he wasn't.

In seven counties where Democratic Attorney General candidate Linda Pence and Democratic Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate Dr. Richard Wood won and Obama didn't, both gained more total votes than Obama, even though fewer people voted. For example, in Fayette County, 9,457 people voted for President, and Obama got 4,389 votes, or 46.4% of the vote. Linda Pence polled 288 more votes than Obama (for 53%) in Fayette County, even though 681 fewer Fayette residents voted for AG.

This means that even in seven "Democrat" counties, Obama didn't poll highest at the top of the ticket, even as the first Democrat to carry Indiana since Lyndon Johnson.

But that's not all. Pence or Wood outpolled President Obama in a staggering 38 counties in which all three Democrats lost. (In contrast, where the President won, he was only outpolled by his downticket colleagues in three counties - Starke and Madison by Pence and Vermillion by Wood).

But then I realized something critical. In 2008, both Pence and Obama got 49% of the respective votes cast for their offices (President Obama actually won by a plurality if you don't round up). But statewide, the presidential contest drew 153,000 more voters than the AG's race did, and Obama outpolled Pence by 95,000 votes overall.

In contrast, in 2004, both John Kerry and Democratic Attorney General candidate Joe Hogsett had 40% of the respective votes cast for their offices. But statewide, the presidential contest drew 79,500 more voters than the AG, and Kerry had 15,500 more votes than Hogsett. In other words, Obama owned the overvote with 61%. Kerry only got 20% of his overvote.

If Indiana suffered from a pervasive and deep-seated race-based antagonism, I don't see how Obama would have done as well outpacing his national predecessors. At a minimum, we can say that the counties that went for Obama went all the way.

Of course, to suggest that just because Obama won Indiana, any African-American Democrat can do it minimizes the uniqueness of the decentralized Obama campaign and the President's formidable PR skill set. But at least it can be said that the political advantage from identity politics can clearly outpace any identity downside, whether it be perceived or actual for Vop Osili.

Here's why.

If you combine the delegates of all seven counties where both Pence and Wood won and Obama lost, it's only 79 total delegates. Even if you add all counties that either Wood or carried and Obama lost, you only get to 207.

You see, Indiana is populated with a lot of counties that Jesus couldn't crack 45% in if he came back and ran as a Democrat. And if no Democrat can win the county, a savvy county chair will likely persuade his folks to do what (s)he can to help the statewide ticket, including Brad Ellsworth, who will need every vote he can get, and the candidates for Indiana House of Representatives.

The two counties with the strongest African-American populations, Lake and Marion, have 547 combined delegates, or half of the total needed to clinch the nomination. If you add the 15 counties Obama carried, you get over 50% of the total needed.

In short, Vop doesn't have to be liked everywhere, just strongly liked in the areas where astute party operatives know he can boost turnout and benefit both the candidates above and below him.

I know and like both of the candidates, and this post isn’t intended as an exhaustive assessment of their relative strengths, or in Vop’s case, intended as a dismissal of the same because its focal point is on his identity advantage. It’s intended solely as a raw political analysis. (Of course, we'll probably get a good hint if I'm right when the campaign finance reports come out today, so stay tuned).

I will say I like Tom McKenna’s passion for the central issue of his campaign - voter protection. I also think from strictly a resume perspective, his lengthy government service puts him in better stead, and he definitely knows the state better right now and lives in GOP candidate Charlie White's backyard (Hamilton County), so he might make inroads in a GOP stronghold.

That being said, I have no reservations whatsoever about Vop being able to perform the SoS job based on his impressive business success and broad vision for the office. Plus, he doesn't need to wow Hamilton County. He just needs to run up the numbers in D strongholds.

Also, I have never begrudged somebody a political job because they're looking past it (and nobody thinks Vop would be content to be just a Secretary of State). Some of the best public service is rendered by people intent on executing their duties flawlessly to create a testament to their ability to manage a bigger office.

In sum, Democrats have two equally-matched and well-qualified candidates. Unfortunately for Tom McKenna, on the rare occasions when that happens, all that's left to break the tie is the politics.

UPDATE: I haven't studied the reports closely to see if there are any self-loans, big "insider" donations, or other tricks that candidates use to puff their reports, but Vop Osili raised $138,067 during the last reporting period to Tom McKenna's $115,049. However, Vop spent $69,489 to Tom McKenna's frugal $21,434, meaning Tom has $93,614 left in the bank to Vop's $68,577.

Both Democrats outraised the GOP candidate, Charlie White, who pulled in $52,067, spent $12,504, and has $39,563 c-o-h.

Tom McKenna, Vop Osili, Brad Ellsworth & Identity Politics

A Donkey in Elephant's Clothing

"Know thyself, know they enemy" - Sun-Tzu, Chinese general and military strategist

The Friday before last, I had the (free) opportunity to attend the Lawrence Township Republican Club's Lincoln Day Dinner with my friends from the Hoosier Muslim PAC. Like a Nat Geo documentarian chronicling the activities of a foreign species in a strange land, I waded in, and it was more entertaining than Meerkat Manor. This is my dispatch.

The event was held at the Marriott at Keystone at the Crossing. When I entered the "check-in" chute, I was offered petitions to get Dan Coats and John Hosteller on the ballot. To be on the ballot for U.S. Senate, every candidate has to obtain the signature of 500 registered voters per congressional district. This is a preposterous exercise for sitting office holders like Evan Bayh, who got nearly 1.5 million votes in 2004, but who said laws are logical?

I enthusiastically signed both petitions, thinking at the time that if either became the candidate, Bayh would crush them. Polling showed Bayh leading Coats by 20 points in a head-to-head. I know already! I inadvertently helped a Republican! But how in the (expletive) was I supposed to know Bayh was going to drop out the following weekend? Also, I was trying not to get "made" so I could eavesdrop, which is why I signed while muttering, "Big business. Reaaaally big business."

Shortly thereafter, John Hostettler actually strolled by, and I reflexively yelled, "Congressman Hostettler!" He shook my hand and, because I really couldn't think of anything complimentary to say, I said nothing. Nonetheless, he continued to smile warmly well past the point of awkward silence. Were his beliefs not to the right of the Freeman Militia, he could really be somebody in the Republican Party, though he was shorter than he seems on TV. I'm confident that Bayh could have not only defeated him electorally, he could have also scored on him at will in the low post.

I noted immediately that, except for some delightfully polite greeters, the "default face" for Republicans is dour. Not a single person with whom I made eye contact smiled except for the ones who recognized me. Of course, those smiles had a Chesire cat-like, "what the (expletive) are you doing here" look, kind of like how you greet your in-laws when you weren't expecting them. This is not an exaggeration. It was strange because during the dinner speeches, there were hearty laughs; there were just no smiles for strangers.

The attendance for a township club dinner was insane. When I entered the ballroom, I counted 38 tables with ten seats each, and almost all of them were full. This might be attributable to the genius of having a huge dinner the night before slating (an idea I hope my party will employ). It's safe to say that with the platinum, gold, and silver sponsors paying $1,500, $1,000, and $400 respectively per table, Lawrence Township raked in a tidy sum.

Each table had a centerpiece bearing the name of a purported "titan of GOPism." For example, my group sat at the "Ronald Reagan" table. There was even an Arnold Schwarzenegger table, which was ironic because Lieutenant Governor Becky Skillman later zinged California when she joked it had "changed its name to South Oregon to avoid its creditors."

Being a party of generally wealthier people has advantages. Though you still have to pay $4.25 for a domestic beer (most Republicans opted for imports), you get better campaign "swag." Each attendee received an "Establishing Liberty" mini-book at their seat, along with a pile of literature from candidates seemingly as high as a Marion County phonebook.

I wondered how well the Republican Party's effort to "become diverse" under African-American RNC Chair Michael Steele was progressing at the grass-roots level. While I'm told it was better at slating, at this deal, the answer was not too well. I counted eight African-Americans and five Latinos. But here is the fascinating part. Three of the black folk were candidates for at-large city-county council, one was a candidate for seventh district Congress, and another was L.G. Skillman's executive assistant. Two of the Latinos were running against Andre Carson for 7th District congress.

That's a staggeringly disproportionate ratio of minority office seekers and higher ups to general members, which shows you that the GOP is not stupid about identity politics. It is so interested in proving its diversity, it might not be hyperbole to suggest that if you're in a minority group, you might be asked to run for office at your first township club meeting.

The initial speaker, whose name and title I don't recall, was mostly ignored as he battled a bad accoustic system. Grace was to be delivered by the gentleman who invited the Hoosier Muslim Pac. Unfortunately, he was out of the room, and the speaker "freestyled" a dinner prayer that ended with "In Jesus's name we pray," a strange thing to say in a room with a table populated by Muslims. (In fairness to the GOP, my colleague's friend gave a moving, unifying benediction at the end of the dinner sans the Jesus reference). But this disconnect is the GOP struggle - how to come to grips with the fact America isn't one thing without alienating a large contingent of its supporters who only want it to be one thing.

I don't remember the second speaker, but a lot of the crowd ignored him as well while chatting up ways to destroy President Obama and dining on delicious breaded chicken, asparagus, mashed potatoes, and killer cheesecake. Throughout dinner, two large screens showed quotes from Abraham Lincoln, my favorite one being: "What kills a skunk is the publicity it gives itself." Who knew Lincoln was such a PR genius?

Somebody introduced Marion County GOP Chair Tom John, and he got a surprisingly lukewarm round of applause, as if he was the guy who told Carl Brizzi to cozy up with Tim Durham and sell justice to donors. I left firmly convinced that county chair is second only to whale proctologist as the world's most distasteful and thankless job.

House Minority Leader Brian Bosma then spoke and pulled back the wizard's curtain on Todd Rokita's drive for redistricting reform when he noted that in some year I forgot (because it was Brian Bosma talking) that Hoosiers had cast 343,000 more votes for GOP house candidates than they had for D candidates. Bosma went on to say that it was only Democrat maps that let D's keep control of the Indiana House of Representatives. Translated into human speak, Bosma was saying that if House R's, a bi-partisan Commission, a computer logarithm, or monkeys with laser pointers were given control of the maps, the GOP would fare better. The painfully objective part of me knows this is true, but it also makes me decry claims that the GOP wants competition. If Rokita gets his way, we will have fewer competitive districts than we have now.

But I digress. Channeling his inner jedi, Bosma stated that we are engaged in a battle, not between the dark force and the light, but in a battle "for the future." Given that a good percentage of the GOP wants to take us back Doc Brown-style to the "good old days" of 1954, I couldn't tell if he misspoke.

Senator Merritt then delivered some remarks, none of which I remember except when he called Becky Skillman "Governor." While I know Emily Post on Elected Officials says you can afford this designation to an L.G., it is not required, so I'm sure this was done to get the GOP accustomed to hearing it before 2012.

L.G. Skillman gave the keynote address, and this was my first time really seeing her in action. She has notable poise and impeccable fashion sense. I quickly picked up on a speech "tic" where she elongates the first syllable of certain words, such as "fuuuuuuuture" and "huuuuuuuuundreds," but that just made her sound like your sweet New England auntie after a sherry too many.

While Skillman fastidiously adhered to her scripted remarks, she came across so much more intelligent than Sarah Palin. Of course, this might have been because Skillman's speech was on cue cards, not her hand.

Skillman's remarks were chocked with typical Washington liberal bashing. She got her strongest applause of the evening when she said, "Spending what you have is called cash. Spending what you don't have is called credit. Spending other people's money that they don't have is called Congress." (I thought that was called "working on Wall Street"). Apparently, nobody told L.G. Skillman that her boss spent a good deal of time in D.C., or I don't think she would have been so harsh on the capitol.

I couldn't deny that Skillman had the Lawrence Township GOP eating out of her hand. She lost her audience only once, when she said the Supreme Court had proven its independence that week, no doubt referring to Citizens United, an opinion that, ironically, would allow corporations to pump untold sums into things like state judicial elections, thereby ensuring that ONLY the federal judiciary would stay independent.

Skillman also had some constructive things to say about the Daniels administration, including that it has reduced government employment by 20 percent, that companies folding up in other states want to stop by Indiana for a brief stay before moving on to Singapore (okay, she didn't say that last part about moving on), and that we have $100 million in highway construction going on. Curiously, she admitted that a good portion of those funds came from federal stimulus money. I can only assume someone jammed an index card into her speech as a practial joke since the Governor would never take federal dollars while spending so much time griping about them.

While I would only give L.G. Skillman a two for originality, she earned a nine for lip-syncing. She will be formidable in 2012, though I do not believe she'll defeat Governor Bayh.

Then the moment I had waited for all night came finally arrived....the speech by Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard. The only problem was he wasn't there. I didn't hear why, but in lieu of a speech, we got to view what must be Greg Ballard's first mayoral TV ad.

For evoking emotion, it was a thing of beauty. I didn't get it word for word, but I got some of it....

"It began as a grass roots movement...

"Fed up with government (yada yada) people who had had enough..."

"....found their voice with Greg Ballard...."

"It was the biggest political upset in Indiana history...."

"Since that night...what has it meant for our city?"

The following phrases (not in order) then popped on the screen....

"Better Ethics," "Mayor Takes Control of IMPD," "Crimes Rates Down," "Charter School Expansion," "Innovative Ideas," "Honestly Balanced Budgets," and "New Wishard Hospital."

As these phrases jumped across the screen, the ad offered pristine depictions of every feel-good, nostalgia-inducing visual Indianapolis has to offer - Victory Field, the canal, Lucas Oil, Conseco, Circle Center Mall, and Monument Circle among many others. What does Greg Ballard have to do with any of these? Absolutely nothing. But rule number one in advertising is create good feelings, then throw your picture into the mix so viewers have a Pavlovian response the next time they see the feel-good images.

The phrase that shocked me the most was "crime rates down." Anybody who reads the Star or watches TV knows that murders might be down, but shootings sure aren't. And I'm just not sure how much credit you can take for reducing homicides when it's easier to attribute the reduction to poor marksmanship and the incredible work of Wishard trauma in keeping gunshot victims alive. (Of course, this would explain the Mayor's strong support of Wishard - it helped him keep the city's death toll down).

After the ad concluded, Bosma introduced every elected official and candidate for anything at any level. During this time, I read War & Peace on my cell phone. Twice. Bosma even joked, "Anybody who is NOT running for something stand up. Maybe that will be easier."

Let this be said about the GOP. What it fails to offer in constructive solutions, it makes up for by sheer number of candidates vying for the right to not offer them. And it knows how to fill a party hall.

A Donkey in Elephant's Clothing

From the Land of Not a Surprise...

...I don't generally read Us, People, or any other periodical that makes news of people's personal lives, so I'm not sure how old this information is. But call me not-at-all-surprised that Levi Johnston and Bristol Palin are no longer engaged. That was a marriage forced, and as soon as the impetus for it - the need to preserve the Palin family "clean livin' " myth - disappeared, so did the nuptials. Levi apparently went on a talking heads show and said he was "pretty sure" Sarah Palin knew he and Bristol were having sex. The Palin camp, in response, attacked Levi for resorting to "outright lies."

See the disconnect? He says basically that he THINKS Sarah Palin knew Bristol was having pre-marital sex, and in response she attacks him for outright lies. Now I'm more likely to believe she knew. Otherwise, she would have just explained why his "belief" was wrong. BUT that would have invited a debate over questions like, "Did he ever stay overnight with your family? If so, did they ever stay up late at night in the same room with your daughter when you and Todd went to bed? Did they ever actually sleep in the same room with Bristol?"

Palin would have come off either as supremely naive or as covering up for what any regular parent would have known, meaning she doesn't REALLY subscribe to the no premarital sex mantra. She just TALKS about it. Either way, she would have lost more of whatever luster is left of the Palin mythology.

From the Land of Not a Surprise...

Tripp....and fall!

Sarah Palin has a grandson whose name is "Tripp."

What explanation can we give for this horrendous name?

Perhaps somebody (grandma, I'm thinking) must think it will be cute to say, "My grandson sure is a Tripp!" Or, is it (we can only pray) some significant family name that, sadly, got made into a first name in another example of family/parental narcissism trumping the fact this kid will get mocked daily in school?

But wait! It's actually worse because the full name (this is NOT a joke) is:

"Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston"

Great. He's also named after an aluminum bat.

Do you know how people (mostly white in racial composition) make fun of African-American mothers for giving their kids names like Lamonjelo and Oranjelo (phonetically, but spelled "Lemonjello" and "Orangejello" respectively, as detailed in Freakonomics), or for naming them after liquors, cars models, or Greek gods?

Well, this is the white trash equivalent. Bad baby naming skills are being handed down from generation to generation. The Palin clan has concocted a completely ridiculous name that will guarantee this kid a lifetime of torment, and they make it worse by THEN trying to make it sound aristocratic by giving him four names.

If government could ever serve a useful function, it would be regulating baby names. If your proposed name was approved by the "Naming committee," it would then be referred to the "name spelling" subcommittee. Here's a dramatization:

Naming committee chair: "It was a VERY close vote, but we will let you name your daughter Charisma."

Spelling committee chair: "Hold on....how were you going to spell it?"

Parent: "K...A...R...I...Z....

Spelling committee chair: "I'm sorry, no. I have to refer you back to the naming committee where you'll start over. And may God have mercy on your soul!"

Oh, by the way, no word on when this alleged Bristol wedding will actually happen. We just have a "sometimes in 2009." Don't hold your breath. Also, Bristol Palin's soon-to-be mother-in-law just got arrested for selling Oxycontin.

While I understand there is a tradition of having people in the White House with embarrassing relatives (see Billy Carter, Nancy Reagan, Roger Clinton/Hugh Rodham Clinton, and Neil Bush/all of Jeb Bush's kids)....I can't believe so many of you wanted THIS as the Second Family?!?

When will you all admit you were horribly, HORRIBLY mistaken about Palin? And, ironically, the conservatorati are blaming MCCAIN for this loss! Are you kidding me?!?! The man had to carry an albatross around his neck every minute post-convention!

American is obsessed with looks, and Palin has them. I get that. But at some point, don't we all have to agree that the moniker "hottie" can only be uttered about Palin after the words "intellectually vacuous"?

Tripp....and fall!

The Old Lion and His Witch in the Wardrobe

The economy is in the tank, taxpayers got hosed on the bailout, and the Colts got drubbed on Sunday, so in the big scheme of things, this is minor. But Republican National Committee (RNC) campaign finance reports show that $150,000 was used to "outfit" Sarah Palin.

This is a dubious legal move, as campaign finance laws do not permit expenditures for personal benefit. Palin's folks say she intended to give the clothes to charity. That's fine, but how is she giving back the used cosmetics? But if the RNC wants to be mocked for purchases, so be it. That's not what bothers me.

McCain was heralded in GOP circles for getting somebody who is supposed to be a regular gal and "one of us." So why did WASHINGTON have to get her gussied up (ohhhh! Palin would love that expression) to the tune of $150,000, which I'm pretty sure is more than most Americans have spent on clothes in their lifetimes.

The Old Lion and His Witch in the Wardrobe

Lugar’s Unshakeable Integrity Tells the Tale

Richard Lugar knows Sarah Palin is unqualified. The Louisville Courier Journal points out today that when Barack Obama selected Joe Biden as his VP choice, Lugar issue a statement heralding Biden.

However, clearly living by the gentlemanly adage that if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all, Lugar said nothing when Palin was selected.

(Folks, Senator Lugar knows she's a foreign policy nitwit. I'll be curious to see how strained any remarks he makes on her behalf will be today).

Apparently, wishing to alienate every rush-hour commuter possible, Sarah Palin has opted to appear at 4:30 p.m. at Verizon Wireless Center in Noblesville today.

Will Palin display her intellectual heft? Not likely, if you believe Governor Becky Skillman, who said, (I am not making this up) “Expect some zingers.”

Translation: expect some nasty cue-card scripted attacks against Obama. That Sarah Palin, gollygeewillikers! She’s a humdinger of a zinger slinger! You betcha!

Lugar’s Unshakeable Integrity Tells the Tale

IPOPA’s Random Thoughts on Politics and Culture

- The tone at John McCain and Sarah Palin rallies lately is a bit terrifying. I’m not saying John McCain and Sarah Palin are racists or would ever wish harm to Barack Obama, but you can’t whip up this kind of “he’s not one of us” frenzy without expecting at least a few people to pick up the torches and pitch forks. Before the election is over, expect a member of the “liberal media” press corps that follows McCain to get more than just “the finger.” Nice family values, by the way.

- I’m morphing into a populist before my own eyes. I’m one of the 2/3 of Americans who opposed the bailout. Giving $700 billion to people who created the problem is like giving the guy who blew up his garage more dynamite and asking him to “be more careful.” I promise you that nobody you know will benefit from the $700 billion dollars in Monopoly money that we’re giving the Treasury Secretary. I was extremely disappointed when Congressman Andre Carson switched his vote in favor of this package. (Kudos to Baron Hill, Pete Viscloskey, Dan Burton, and Steve Buyer for getting this right).

- The fact the stock market has plunged AFTER the bailout is perplexing. Maybe I just don’t understand this. Isn’t it the case that companies that make things of value still make things of value? That they still own the same property? If worry about mortgages can make Microsoft, Lilly, or BP tank, weren’t they overvalued to start with? Might it not be the case that prices are going down based on irrational panic, and now is a great time to get a deal?

- I’m sick of the mythology that owning your own home is the American dream. This is marketing crap spouted by homebuilders. Living free is the American dream, and we're all living it the second we're born here. Everything else is just gravy. I’ve rented places, and I’ve owned homes, and I didn’t notice any more psychological comfort with the home. In fact, minus the tax benefits, the only difference with being a homeowner is you spend half your summer powerwashing your wooden fences.

- If I bought more home than I could afford, how can I complain when the bank comes to get it? Why are we trying to keep people from foreclosure? They bit off more than they could chew. I promise you when the home market goes low enough, people who DIDN’T overextend themselves will start buying those houses. I'll be one of them.

- And can someone explain this “credit crunch” to me. Everybody is walking around acting like Warren Buffet can’t get a loan. I don’t get this. People with good credit (i.e., those who SHOULD get loans) can still get them. I know this because a buddy of mine just bought a car for 2%. This is going to be a crazy idea, but maybe, just maybe, all the people whose credit is not good enough to get them loans should try living within their means for a while.

- Americans, including me, have spent more than they should for at least three decades now. If we need a financial shock to cleanse the system, I’m for it. We need to get back to when we actually waited to make purchases until we had the money. We also need to save more in America so that when we do borrow money, we’re borrowing our own, not China’s. The days of easy credit are gone, folks, and the idea that the government is trying to keep it alive says America hasn’t learned its lesson.

- I’m no prude, but I'm disugsted that little girls' costume options include “slutty witch.” We all know men use Halloween to induce their women to go scantily clad in public with the excuse "it's just a costume," but do we really need little girls looking like tramps? Who MAKES these costumes? The Pedophiles of America?

IPOPA’s Random Thoughts on Politics and Culture

Huffington Post and Daily Kos Misdiagnose Palin’s “City On a Hill”

American history buffs and theocracy fearers rejoice! Andrew Bacevich is talking to you on The Huffington Post, and Daily Kos (ironically) must need some “liberal” arts education.

Bacevich dissects the only philosophically meaningful comment Governor Sarah Palin made during the VP debate:

“And we are to be that shining city on a hill, as President Reagan so beautifully said, that we are a beacon of hope, and that we are unapologetic here.”

As Bacevich notes, the “city on a hill” idea came from Massachusetts Bay Colony Founder, John Winthrop, in 1630. Bacevich lays out the entire text and context for Winthrop’s remark and convincingly argues that unless America is God’s chosen people, a presumption which strikes him (and me) as arrogant, the "city on the hill" comment is inapplicable to the American experiment.

Daily Kos goes a step further and implies that Palin’s "city on a hill" remark is “code” for a fundamentalist conspiracy to create a Christian-based theocracy. D.K. says they (the religious right) have been “slipping this one by us.”

Daily Kos notes:

“The phrase was referenced several times during the 2008 Republican National Convention by Rudy Guiliani and several others, during the nomination of the Republican John McCain.”

Here’s the idea By referring to an “obscure” 1630 sermon that was given at the initiation of a Puritan colony, Republicans are secretly signaling their intentions to other Christians to enforce Christian values in government.

With all due respect, this idea that Republicans are "signaling" through Winthrop is crazy talk. Sarah Palin (and the supermajority of Christians in this country) couldn’t even tell you who John Winthrop is, let alone what he said and why. Without knowing the context of Winthrop's remark, how can anyone draw an association from it?

The stronger "signaling" argument is the one both Bacevich and Daily Kos completely miss. The original source of Winthrop’s oratory is the Gospel of Matthew, verses 14-16 (NIV):

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

In other words, Christians should act Christ-like while letting people know they are Christians as a way of gaining more believers. This is an uncontroversial notion that can be summarized as "serve as an example." Winthrop mutilated the original meaning to induce his followers to create a completely Puritan-based government.

"City on a hill" might be a signal, but it's no more a secret to a cultural literate American than "an eye for an eye," "turn the other cheek," or "God Bless America." The fact that Daily Kos, a leader for my party on a lot of issues, has authors who don't know such an obvious reference in the Bible is concerning because I suspect they know Greek and Roman mythology.

Like it or not, the Bible is the best-selling book in the world. Whether you're Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddist, Wiccan, atheist, agnostic, transcendentalist, or accidental tourist, you have GOT to know the Bible as a matter of cultural literacy. Even if you cringe when you hear someone call America a "Christian nation," you cannot dispute that it's a pluralist nation with a supermajority of Christians. As a result, even if you read it as fiction, you HAVE to read it. It's sort of like the Da Vinci Code, except movie adaptions of the Bible are actually entertaining.

(Also, even the culturally illiterate might have driven by the staggering number of churches actually named "City on a Hill." They're in Atlanta, San Diego, Boston, Albuquerque, Torrance, and Knoxville, and that's just the first six Google pulled up among the thousands of links I got in response to my search).

Huffington Post and Daily Kos Misdiagnose Palin’s “City On a Hill”