Mike Luckovich for September 25, 2008

This would be funny if it weren’t so true.

No-showing at a debate in pretense of valiantly saving the economy. Nice.

Hmmm….if we blurred the face so it wasn’t McCain….and we took out the name Obama….how would this be different than the last 4 or 5 elections?

McCain’s policy campaign: Lie about Obama and scare American voters.

SOOOO TRUE!!! and soooo SAD!

They should, as Kylop notes, this is the Repuglicons of repeated mantra lo these many years.

No, Stew… any NON-Thinking american would swallow those tons of bovine excrement the GOP is fabricating…

any thinking human being in this planet ALREADY knows the TRUTH, that Sen Obama HAS a better plan, and that he is the choice for a Better America in a safer world…

any other option is another step to oblivion…

Here’s a question: what’s more American - a son of an immigrant melting pot from the Midwest working his way up, or the son and grandson of privilege and military demanding his rightful place as Leader?

motivemagus, Well put +++

“a son of an immigrant melting pot from the Midwest working his way up”

He’s not from the Midwest he’s from Hawaii. His parents are both graduates of Ivy League schools and his grandmother is the head of a bank. Stop trying to say he is an average American working his way up, it’s not true.

“or the son and grandson of privilege and military demanding his rightful place as Leader?”

Not once has McCain “demaded” anything. For you to say that is a blatant lie and I’m calling you out on that.

Stop trying to say McCain is lying by telling lies yourself. We don’t do that about Obama. Why must all of you?

Sorry, Bob, mixed my facts. But Hawaii, last I looked, is part of the US.

I checked on his parents. From what I can see his mother got her degrees from the University of Hawai’i (at least the BA and Ph.D). His father started there, too, then moved to Harvard in 1963 for his masters.

But do you really think he got into Harvard Law School through connections? I’m a bit skeptical there.

And CBob, there have been numerous lies written about Obama on these pages. I’m rather over it.

“Sorry, Bob, mixed my facts. But Hawaii, last I looked, is part of the US.”

No argument there, I just wanted to point out he’s not from the mid-west is all.

“But do you really think he got into Harvard Law School through connections? I’m a bit skeptical there”

No, I don’t believe he got into Harvard Law by any special connections at all. I was just saying that Havard isn’t exactly where the average American attends college.

I have no problem with his origins, if he held the same political beliefs I have then I would vote for him just as I would anyone else. I just don’t like misinformation on any subject as a whole.

“SOOOO TRUE!!!”

Interesting. How so?

Excuse me? “Harvard isn’t exactly where the average American attends college”? Are you claiming Harvard students are un-American? Allow this proud holder of two Harvard degrees (AB and EdM) to enlighten you a bit on this oldest and most American of institutions. When I went there in 1980-84, 70% of the students were on financial aid. Because Harvard is so wealthy, it means they have the freedom to be “aid-blind.” That means they can take people regardless of their ability to pay, and they do. As the oldest of five in a single-parent household, there was no way I could have gone otherwise. Now it’s even better: Families with income up to $60K will pay nothing for their Harvard children’s education; up to $180K will pay perhaps 10%. Harvard has actively recruited a wide range of people for decades – in fact, the rumor was that my odds of getting in from North Carolina were higher because so many people went to the great state schools there (I got into UNC-CH, too). There were eight (8) North Carolinians in my class of 1600. We had people from all over the world – ranging from the future Japanese Empress to Caroline Kennedy.

I am shocked that someone would consider going to Harvard a disadvantage somehow. Harvard is among the most competitive schools in the world, and works hard to make sure all those folks come from all over. I had a classmate who never got a high school diploma!

One of the things that enrages me about American politics is the implication that we don’t want someone who is smart and well-educated in the Oval Office. Well, what do we want? An ignoramus?

And by your logic, the average American doesn’t go to the Naval Academy either.

movivemagus, Relax that was just a CB rehashing the GOP “cheap shot” trying to Make Obama look like an elitist. I went to a community college and had to finish in night school. I consider myself an average American but don’t hold with anyone being elite, unique perhaps but not elite. Shouldn’t every individual aspire to develop to their fullest.

SEVEN HOUSES 13 CARS 1 AIRPLANE MULTI, MULTI MILLION BUCKS WE COULD GO ON. ME THINKS THAT IS AN ELITIST.

Humphries, I realize exactly what CBob was implying – I wanted to call him on it. If “elitist” means “competent” or “intelligent,” then it’s about doggone time we got an elitist in the White House (again)! I refuse to let this implication that being dumb as a bag of hair is somehow more “genuine” or “American.” As opposed to John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, John Q. Adams, Abraham Lincoln, and those other brilliant guys. And for the record, I’m a big believer in competencies over credentials – I know plenty of people who went to school with me at Harvard who are largely wastes of space (which also reinforces my point, come to think of it). Community colleges are in many ways more cutting-edge in terms of their approach to practical, applicable education. (I also worked for an web-based education platform company.)

motivemagus, Sorry, I wasn’t scolding, I agree with you. Just sometimes it irratates me at some of the selective viewpoints some of the conservatives espout.

Before you guys get so angry and claim that I’m calling Obama an elitist I’m going to come right out and say that I don’t believe that whatsoever. Please let’s not put words in my mouth ok?

“Are you claiming Harvard students are un-American?”

Absolutely not, but Harvard is hardly is a college that the “average American” attends. I didn’t say that going to Harvard was a negative thing so please use your Harvard education and reread my comment. I was merely replying to your claim that he was an average American, not knocking him for not being one. As sick as you are of people trying to say that Obama is an elitist I’m just as sick as people trying to say he’s part of the average folk, he isn’t and there is nothing wrong with that.

I also never said that his being intelligent wasn’t a good thing. How could that not be?

The fact that he isn’t “average folk” isn’t the reason I wouldn’t vote for him…it’s his ideals. I’m not here to convince anyone to vote for Obama or McCain in fact I’m fairly sure that Obama is going to win. You are overreacting motive…I’m not insulting your guy.

CBob– then let me turn it around. What IS an average American, to you?

To rikoshayrabbi

Did we meet the H.L.M.criteria lately? My wife says that in the upcoming election we could possibly repeat it.

DHL: your wife is correct except that it would be a threepeat …

DH: Thanks for using “H.L.M.”!!!