Michael Gerson: McCain's no fool, just a victim of circumstance

Michael Gerson| Oct 15, 2008 at 11:59 AM

It is leftists who embrace economic determinism. Conservatives read biographies of Winston Churchill and wait in constant expectation for the second coming of Ronald Reagan. Charisma and truth, in this view, can always overwhelm material conditions.

And this often leads to the small man theory of electoral setbacks. A losing Republican is not merely unfortunate; he must be incompetent, politically blind and betrayed by his bumbling underlings. If he is not a winner, he is a fool.

John McCain has reached this stage of criticism among conservatives.

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'Hollywood has no agenda' and other whoppers

Andrew Klavan| Oct 15, 2008 at 11:50 AM

V for Vendetta: Hollywood storytelling has been guided by a liberal mythos.

Hollywood used to be called the Dream Factory, but nowadays it seems to be grinding out as much propaganda as anything else. Next up: Oliver Stone’s "W.," which, if the trailer is any indication, will depict our current president’s life as an evolution from drunken loser to dangerous idiot.

For the past 30 years or so, Hollywood storytelling has been guided by a liberal mythos in which, for example, blacklisting communist screenwriters during the ‘50s was somehow morally worse than fellow-traveling with the Stalinist murderers of tens of millions ("Trumbo"); Che Guevara was a dashing, romantic liberator instead of a charismatic killer ("The Motorcycle Diaries"); and the worldwide violence currently being waged by Islamo-fascists is either a figment of our bigoted imaginations or the product of our evil deeds ("V for Vendetta").

Hollywood moviemakers have been telling lies — loudly, constantly and almost always supporting a left-wing point of view. Here are their most egregious whoppers:

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Steve Chapman: Do angry voters want an angry president?

Steve Chapman| Oct 15, 2008 at 11:28 AM

Photo by Associated Press - Ap

John McCain

At a town hall meeting last Friday, McCain had taken a surprising tack. When a woman in the audience said that Barack Obama "is an Arab" (presumably meaning "Muslim"), McCain said it wasn’t so. Responding to a questioner who was "scared" by Obama, McCain assured him, "Sen. Obama is a decent person and a person you don’t have to be scared of as president of the United States" – a statement that sparked boos.

In Iowa this week, McCain was intent on making sure any boos were directed at his opponent. He slammed him for voting for pork barrel projects, planning to raise taxes and "insider dealing."

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Good morning: Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2008

Eric Ringham| Oct 15, 2008 at 11:01 AM

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Readers Write

Tim O'Brien| Oct 14, 2008 at 06:28 PM

ACORN allegations

GOP diverting attention from voter repression

ACORN has just completed the largest, most successful nonpartisan voter registration drive in U.S. history. We helped 1.3 million low-income, minority and young voters across the country register to vote, including more than 42,000 new voters in Minnesota. In order to complete such a massive project, we hired more than 13,000 registration assistance workers.

Any large voter registration operation will have a small percentage of workers who turn in bogus registration forms; their goal clearly is not to cast a fraudulent vote. It is simply to defraud their employer — in this case, ACORN — by getting a paycheck without earning it. In nearly every case, ACORN discovered the bad forms and called them to the attention of election authorities, put the forms in a package that identified them as suspicious, encouraged election officials to investigate, and offered to help with prosecutions.

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Editorial: Long view is key when markets drop

Oct 14, 2008 at 06:20 PM

Fidelity Investments sent a brief and only slightly reassuring e-mail to its 401(k) customers last Thursday. “The extraordinary events of the past few weeks have tested the portfolios and the confidence of investors around the world,’’ the e-mail began. “We understand.’’

The empathy was appreciated. So were the main points of Fidelity’s simple message:

•Market volatility is normal.

•Investments should reflect risk tolerance and investment time frame.

•Stay focused on long-term goals.

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Letter of the Day: Mad about the bailout? Then Bob Barr is your candidate

Oct 14, 2008 at 06:13 PM

Four words describe Bob Barr that make him different from John McCain and Barack Obama: “He opposed the bailout.”

Barr recognizes that money and choice in your hands is better than in Washington’s.

McCain might talk the talk, but he does not walk the walk. He voted for the $700 billion bailout of corrupt banks, plus another $100 billion in pork.

Obama also voted in support of the bailout. Money from the people into the hands of the same powerful shadowy figures he claims that he will punish.

The rest of us in the real world are left more than $700 billion poorer with nothing to show for it.

They call it sacrifice. Bob Barr calls it the “Bomb” — short for Bush, Obama, McCain Bailout.

I will not vote for either major-party candidate. Orders for “change” by either candidate might be effective in North Korea, but not here in the land of the free.

I’m voting for Libertarian Party candidate Bob Barr. I like a candidate who has faith in American innovation. That is an actual change.

Dennis J. Zachman, Sauk Centre, Minn.

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Fitting tribute for Borlaug

Lori Sturdevant| Oct 15, 2008 at 12:29 PM

Norman Borlaug undoubtedly would approve of the way his alma mater, the University of Minnesota, is observing Norman Borlaug Day today. It's collecting food and money, with a goal of providing 7,500 meals through Second Harvest Heartland, the region's largest emergency food provider.

Borlaug has been ailing in the past year. But the former Nobel Peace Prize laureate and leader of the so-called Green Revolution remains associated with anti-hunger efforts around the world. A native of Cresco, Iowa, Borlaug was trained as a plant scientist at the University of Minnesota, and went on to develop disease-resistant, high-yield crops credited with preventing the starvation of millions of people.

The University's collection in Borlaug's honor will continue through this month. Click here for details and information about contributing.

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PBS' "The Choice" just the latest in broadcast's best election coverage

John Rash| Oct 14, 2008 at 12:55 PM

It’s been an election year of postmodern media moments. Old media have used - or been used by - new media to augment its audience, such as clips of David Letterman discussing (and dissing) Sen. John McCain for canceling (or snubbing) his appearance on Letterman’s “Late Show” and academic research determining that yes, Tina Fey’s impersonation of Gov. Sarah Palin lowers Palin’s approval rating for Democrats, Independents and even Republicans.

All too often, however, old and new media has had more heat than light, be it the smart alecks or anti-intellectuals on cable news or the infamous Democratic debate moderated by ABC’s Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos, which focused more on flag lapel pins than pinning down the candidates on the incredibly important issues the next president faces.

There has been one shining exception: PBS. Every weekday night Jim Lehrer doesn’t just turn to in-house commentators to get the perspective of the smartest person in the room, but instead tries to get the smartest people on the planet to explain the roots, ramifications and remedies of the issues that should be the driving dynamic on this -and any - election.

And PBS’s “American Experience” has continued its compelling series on past presidents, giving nuance to the usually broadly drawn policies and people who have the world’s toughest job. Last night, for instance, while NBC ran the program premiere of “My Own Worst Enemy,” PBS reassessed Richard Nixon (the documentary could have had the same title as NBC’s drama). Next week the larger-than-life LBJ gets the “American Experience” treatment.

But tonight should be the best yet, as PBS runs “The Choice 2008,” an in-depth look at the two men vying for votes on November 4th. If previous “Choice” specials, which started during the Bush-Dukakis race in 1988, are any indication, the quadrennial quality of this series will be the best broadcast journalism has to offer and may be even more insightful than the debate the next night.

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Fact is, it's a great time to invest

Andrew M. Borene| Oct 14, 2008 at 11:32 AM

Photo by Associated Press

Wall Street traders watch the board as markets snapped back early Monday from last week's devastating losses.

In recent weeks many of us took a big hit in the 401(k) or the IRA. I’ve lost over 20% of the value of my own accounts since October 1st, but I am not in any mind to sell. In fact, if I had money to spare, I’d be putting even more of my income into equity investing. Some good news is that if gas prices continue dropping, I just might have an extra hundred dollars or so each month to sock away.

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The McCain campaign's outreach to extremism

E.J. Dionne| Oct 14, 2008 at 11:03 AM

Photo by Dml - Star Tribune

John McCain

McCain has clearly become uneasy with some of the forces that have gathered around him. He has begun to insist, against the sometimes loud protests from his crowds, that Barack Obama is, among things, a "decent person."

Yet McCain’s own campaign is playing with powerful extremist themes to denigrate Obama. When his running mate Sarah Palin first brought up Obama’s association with 1960s radical Bill Ayers, who has become a centerpiece of McCain’s attacks, she accused Obama of "palling around with terrorists."

What other "terrorists" was she thinking about?

Since Obama was a child when Ayers was part of the Weather Underground, and since even Republicans have served on boards with Ayers, this is classic guilt by association.

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