Thursday, September 8, 2011

A Few Questions Re: The GOP Primary Fight

The race for the GOP presidential nomination is in full swing, and though I think they're ultimately going to go with Mitt Romney there is always a chance for an upset. Still, I'm left with a few reactions:

1) At some point the media needs to stage an intervention for Rick Santorum, Herm Cain and Newt Gingrich, and tell these guys that Barry Goldwater's corpse has a better chance of becoming re-animated, then travelling back in time to 1964 and winning the presidency from LBJ, than any of them have of winning the GOP nomination in 2012. Of course, they know this, and they are just raising their visibility in order to sell books and maybe get a TV deal later. But shouldn't the fact that they're still soliciting campaign contributions from innocent dupes count as some sort of fraud?

2) The fact that there were loud cheers at last night's debate when it was mentioned that Texas executed over 200 people is an ominous sign for this country. (Disclosure--I oppose the death penalty but can at least understand those that favor it) Even if you favor the death penalty as an option for the more egregious crimes proven beyond any reasonable doubt and with due process, the execution itself should be seen as a somber necessity and not something to cheer the same way you'd cheer our country winning an Olympic medal. This is very, very sick.

3) What is with this outcry over Rick Perry favoring mandatory HPV vaccinations for 12 year old girls in Texas? What sort of Jenny McCarthy crap is this? I realize HPV isn't the death sentence that HIV can be, but stopping the spread of the virus is obviously a good thing. (And screw this privacy rights crap, this is Texas we're talking about. It's not like we're talking about registering handguns)

4) Ronald Reagan is probably the most underrated (by Democrats) and overrated (by Republicans) person to ever sit in the Oval Office. But the fetishization of this man by the GOP would probably disturb him if he were alive today. "Reagan Economic Zones"? That should be a nonstarter just for corniness reasons alone.

5) Debates would be a lot better if there were no rules or moderator at all. Just let them all have microphones, and start a ten-way shouting match! I would actually love to see that, rather than scripted questions and well tested answers. It's not as though any of those clowns are going to implement half the crap they say they will when they take office.

3 comments:

  1. The thing about Perry and HPV (we should try to boost that up as a google result) has a whole heck of a lot more to do with money than with privacy. Simply put, the pharma companies are huge, huge supporters of his and he required a couple million people to get these vaccinations paid for by their insurance company or out of their pockets.

    The side effect of the policy is a reduction of STDs and cancer.

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  2. Agree with all your points for once! I did like when Newt lashed out at the moderator proclaiming that the moderator was trying to get the candidates to bicker with one another. I can respect that. Was also impressed with Huntsman but it is too bad he doesn't have a shot, this time around. Oh, and Rick Perry scares me to death when thinking that he could be our next president.

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  3. Foggy--good points. Though I got to say I'd still favor the vaccinations--why not cut down on them?

    Nichole--"for once"? You mean you don't normally read my posts and think "this is pure truthism right here!"?

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