Joe the Plumber

My mom told me this joke when I was a little girl. It kind of reminds me how a certain political candidate is using his new-found blue-collar friend. I feel bad for Joe the Plumber.

Suzy came home from school one day and announced "Mommy! I made a quarter today!"

Her mother said, "That's great! How did you do it?"

"The boys said if I climb the flag pole they'd give me a quarter. And boy do I know how to climb the flag pole."

"Oh honey. You know they just wanted to see your panties. Don't do that again."

"Ok, Mommy."

The next day, Suzy comes home from school announcing, "Mommy, Mommy! Today I made a whole green dollar!"

"I told you those boys just want to see your panties."

"Don't worry mommy, I didn't wear any panties."

It's debatable

For the first time in the McCain-Obama race, I watched an entire presidential debate last night. My reaction? Disturbed, appalled, and perplexed. I honestly don't understand how someone who cannot answer a question is allowed to progress so far in a political race. I think that in many ways all candidates are trying to at least appear to offer a better life for as many of their constituents as possible and that people have different perspectives on what might work to achieve that. Clearly, no one has 100% amazing foresight and everyone makes mistakes. We can't predict the future, as hard as we might try.

The point of signing up to be a leader is to have the ability to represent and make decisions on behalf of your constituency and to be able to convey policies, changes, relationships, etc. to the people you lead. This requires you to be able to understand other people and have them understand you. It's called "communication" in some circles. John McCain is incompetent. I thought it was an interesting strategy to underhandedly attack Obama's eloquence. What? You mean his ability to utter an entire sentence without getting distracted and to listen to and then actually answer a question? Or was it his ability to coherently talk about his own policy ideas and not just repeatedly attack his opponent with the same non sequitur argument?

If we end up with the "wrinkly white haired dude," I might have to go back to Costa Rica--or become a community organizer dead set on counter-acting the problems he and his cohort create. I suppose that would be a more positive way to deal with it.

What I really don't understand is how you can be "undecided". I think those people are lying.