Tuesday, September 06, 2016

Lightning Round - 090616

Seems appropriate, as lightning is flashing all around me as I write this stormy Tuesday morning. Let's start with some video.


 


She's the picture of health. No question about it. Anyway...

  • Is the campaign about the direction of the country, or about monetizing campaign funds? Read and decide for yourself.
  • Remember how we were told Barack Obama would improve foreign relations? How's that working out, Mr. President?
  • The talk around town, and all over Minnesota, has been about the end of the Jacob Wetterling story, after 27 long years. The idea that a stranger would abduct and kill your child is one of the greatest fears any parent has. We've seen a big change in how kids live their lives since that fateful day in 1989; many parents aren't willing to risk letting their children run around unattended. When I was Jacob Wetterling's age, I could go anywhere in town and my parents never worried about it. Those days are gone. Danny Heinrich, the monster who took Jacob, took away a lot more than one child.
  • Wisconsin 16, LSU 14. A very satisfying result. And just a guess -- we're going to be waiting a long time for another SEC team to come north.
  • I don't know if Sam Bradford can save the season for the Vikings; I tend to doubt it, actually. Still, give the Vikings credit for taking a chance -- while their defense is young and talented, the window for Adrian Peterson is closing and they may not have another year to wait.
  • I'm not crazy about the Packers releasing Josh Sitton. I'm even less crazy about him going to the Bears. Ted Thompson better be right.

15 comments:

jerrye92002 said...

Trump, inc. would violate campaign finance law if they did NOT pay "appropriate" rent.

Mr. D said...

Even if it's not a conflict of interest, it sure looks that way. He'd have been well advised to rent elsewhere. It's an unforced error, another example of how his campaign continually steps on rakes. And since competence is one of Trump's best arguments against Hillary, it's doubly corrosive.

jerrye92002 said...

It's not a conflict of interest because he is following the campaign finance laws and paying "going rate" for the space rather than making a "corporate in-kind donation." Nobody complained when he was using his own money to pay that rent, as he continues to do. Sounds to me like a smart businessman who doesn't want to be beholden to special interest (outside) money. That's double-good, IMHO. Considering Hillary's huge special-interest money advantage, I hope his campaign is a sign of a sea change in the way campaigns are run. There's too much /Democrat/ money in politics.

3john2 said...

If Obama was thinking this junket was going to be a victory lap then he was sorely mistaken. Maybe he didn't read the intelligence briefings in advance. It's one thing for China and Russia to gaslight you, but when the Philippines feels like it can get up in your grill as well, then maybe it's time to hold the rest of your junkets on Martha's Island.

Mr. D said...

Count the number of words it takes you to explain the distinction, Jerry. Now imagine the number of words it takes the Hillary campaign to paint it in dark tones. If you're explaining, you're losing.

Bike Bubba said...

Somehow the classic "the reason this letter is so long is because I did not have time to make it shorter", or something like that, comes to mind. Can't remember who said it, but apropos here. Yes, a mistake by Mr. Trump.

Regarding the other topic RA brought up, that's the kind of thing you'd expect from a guy who skips half of his intelligence briefings, which is exactly what we've got at this point.

3john2 said...

Blaise Pascal was the one who noted the connection between letter length and time available.

Gino said...

Josh Sitton: from what i've read, the packers have a set-in-stone limit of what they will pay for a given position, and will not deviate.
Josh was worth so much more, and they felt they could toss him aside and make things work with the cheaper talent in his spot, putting the extra money where it is dictated to go.

packers seem to have done well enough with plan in place. will it hurt them this time? i doubt it. strength in one position easily covers mediocrity in another, and they seem to know where to put their money for the most part.

jerrye92002 said...

"If you're explaining, you're losing."

That's unfortunately true. If it doesn't fit on a bumper sticker the average voter doesn't have the attention span. Now Trump could just say, "I followed the law" and let people decide if Hillary can make the same claim. That would work. Among those actually paying attention, like those here, a longer explanation can be useful.

Now I also note that Hillary doesn't explain any of her vast collection of "extremely careless" antics. I don't see that as a path to victory, either, so long as those antics can't be kept entirely hidden from the public.

jerrye92002 said...

On the other hand, if Trump suggests a short answer, then it is Hillary has to explain, at greater length, why the original attack is still a problem.

Bike Bubba said...

Regarding Hilliary, the thing that gets me is not the cough; she could simply be irritating her throat by yelling all the time. I've hiked many miles with such a cough, really. What gets me about her physical readiness is that she disappears from campaigning for days on end and doesn't risk a press conference. That indicates she really doesn't have the endurance for the job.

And of course, yelling all the time ~140 years after Bell, Edison, and others introduced microphones and loudspeakers seems to indicate that she doesn't have the mental acuity for the job, either. This is of course a bad habit she shares with a lot of politicians.

Oh, and best of luck to Mr. Sitton in his new job! (sorry, couldn't resist)

jerrye92002 said...

If you are correct, that the cough is not a physical ailment but merely a sign of overwork (it is accompanied by hoarseness, which would suggest the same), then we can dismiss that health concern and raise some others.

One would be why she needs to be helped up stairs and sits often. Or that she takes a week to "rest" and then comes back with the same coughing fits (maybe she yells at everybody). That she polls best when kept out of sight and away from questions. And when her off-putting habits of yelling and cackling aren't on display.

Bike Bubba said...

Jerry, just to clarify, I'm just saying that it could be something from overstress. Or it could be something less benign. And agreed 100% that always needing to be helped is a serious sign of a lack of strength and endurance. Now of course, Roosevelt also needed some help in this regard, but he had the excuse of polio, and was always up to the campaign. I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up hospitalized (if she hasn't already) before November.

jerrye92002 said...

Actually, I would not like to see her lose the election because of ill health, or worse, win the election and try to govern in ill health. And with all the yelling, I think she would be "governing in ill health" and it would be contagious. she seems "temperamentally unsuited," a charge she has been projecting onto Mr. Trump.

What concerns me more, and what I would like the voters to be more concerned about, is the fact that with every public appearance her poll numbers go down. I don't know whether that is from how she looks, what she says, how she says it, or just a reminder of all of her excess baggage.

jerrye92002 said...

Here's an interesting:
Hillary wheelchair

Before I saw this, I was wondering if they weren't just lowering expectations for her debate performance a couple weeks from now. Now I'm wondering if that debate won't be another Nixon-Kennedy tidal change moment.