Just a Gwai Lo fun within prescribed limits http://justagwailo.com/node/3305/atom/feed 2007-09-03T00:38:31-07:00 Imagine The Contempt http://justagwailo.com/filter/2004/02/11/dean 2004-02-11T16:45:28-08:00 2007-09-03T00:38:31-07:00 Richard Christopher Hitchens: “Mr. Dean was simply appalling when he spun a yarn about a preteen girl supposedly impregnated by her father, and used it against parental notification of abortion. A physician has no business with demagogy of this kind even if the story is half-true, which in this case it apparently was not. And imagine the contempt that Mr. Dean must have felt for the pro-choice audience on whom he road-tested this potential but ultimately self-defeating fund-raising tactic.”

Hitchens makes no mention of the Internet other than to note that many a conspiracy theory about Sept. 11th originated from it, one or two of which Dean may even have fallen for. I have to wonder what the effect of Dean potentially not being a candidate either for President of Vice-President will have on future campaigns with regards to the Internet. Kerry and Edwards have been successful despite not having a major following on it, and while I'm an optimist in the Internet's continued growth, both in terms of size and power, if either Kerry or Edwards win, there will be Democrats in the future who will point to them and say "see? They didn't need the Internet, why should I?" And they'll have a point.

Betsy Devine: “From my point of view, Howard Dean has already won. He has turned the Democratic primaries from a banal centrist teaparty into a spirited critique of George W. Bush. Candidates like Kerry and Edwards who once were politely suggesting that Bush might have gone just a teeny bit too far got pushed by Howard to point out that Bush's presidency has been a major disaster to our economy, our children, and our friendships abroad.”

Dean can claim part responsibility for this, but that does not make him a winner. It's a little hard for me to accept anyone as a winner of anything if by their own definition and measurements—in Dean's case, being the Democratic nominee for President—they fail to achieve their goals.

Fred Wilson on Wes Clark's exit from the race: “He was good, but not great. He was a rookie and understandably made some rookie mistakes. But none of that changed my opinion that he'd have made a great president. Because he is a great leader.”

You know, if he said "player" instead of "president", he'd be accused of spouting sports clichés. Whatever. If I must tip my hand, Clark was up until now my favourite of the Democratic candidates, largely because he was general with real achievements—even though at the time, I (wrongly, in hindsight) opposed one of those achievements—but not insignificantly because of how he described meeting his wife. Sure, it was any one of coached, acted or exaggerated, but it was an effective display of humility. He may or may not be human, but in that quote, he sure comes across as one. It's funny that people don't understand why Clark wouldn't call Bush a deserter, but it's an easy one: as a former general, he has a pretty good idea of what a deserter really is.

]]> Christopher Hitchens: “Mr. Dean was simply appalling when he spun a yarn about a preteen girl supposedly impregnated by her father, and used it against parental notification of abortion. A physician has no business with demagogy of this kind even if the story is half-true, which in this case it apparently was not. And imagine the contempt that Mr. Dean must have felt for the pro-choice audience on whom he road-tested this potential but ultimately self-defeating fund-raising tactic.”

Hitchens makes no mention of the Internet other than to note that many a conspiracy theory about Sept. 11th originated from it, one or two of which Dean may even have fallen for. I have to wonder what the effect of Dean potentially not being a candidate either for President of Vice-President will have on future campaigns with regards to the Internet. Kerry and Edwards have been successful despite not having a major following on it, and while I'm an optimist in the Internet's continued growth, both in terms of size and power, if either Kerry or Edwards win, there will be Democrats in the future who will point to them and say "see? They didn't need the Internet, why should I?" And they'll have a point.

Betsy Devine: “From my point of view, Howard Dean has already won. He has turned the Democratic primaries from a banal centrist teaparty into a spirited critique of George W. Bush. Candidates like Kerry and Edwards who once were politely suggesting that Bush might have gone just a teeny bit too far got pushed by Howard to point out that Bush's presidency has been a major disaster to our economy, our children, and our friendships abroad.”

Dean can claim part responsibility for this, but that does not make him a winner. It's a little hard for me to accept anyone as a winner of anything if by their own definition and measurements—in Dean's case, being the Democratic nominee for President—they fail to achieve their goals.

Fred Wilson on Wes Clark's exit from the race: “He was good, but not great. He was a rookie and understandably made some rookie mistakes. But none of that changed my opinion that he'd have made a great president. Because he is a great leader.”

You know, if he said "player" instead of "president", he'd be accused of spouting sports clichés. Whatever. If I must tip my hand, Clark was up until now my favourite of the Democratic candidates, largely because he was general with real achievements—even though at the time, I (wrongly, in hindsight) opposed one of those achievements—but not insignificantly because of how he described meeting his wife. Sure, it was any one of coached, acted or exaggerated, but it was an effective display of humility. He may or may not be human, but in that quote, he sure comes across as one. It's funny that people don't understand why Clark wouldn't call Bush a deserter, but it's an easy one: as a former general, he has a pretty good idea of what a deserter really is.

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