Republican National Convention

[sirrahbed]

I noticed that a good discussion went on the week of the DNC and I watched parts of it myself. Am I watching the RNC all by myself or is it so unpopular that we are afraid to admit it for fear of being made fun of?

I think the speakers so far have been excellent. The first night - Senator John McCain and Rudolf Giuliani were the speakers. The talking heads had most praise for Giuliani but my personal favorite was Sen. McCain as I found him encouraging, straightforward and calming - no Kerry bashing - just talking about what President Bush has done, can do and will do to continue to keep our country safer than ever.

Last night, Tuesday, the speakers were Arnold Schwarzenegger and Laura Bush. I adore Laura Bush but could have done without her speech although it was very human and warm. The daughters seem immature for college graduates but so what - they are not polished and it does not matter. The Governor, on the other hand - gave a tremendously rousing speech with good points and charisma on top of everything else - he is a smart man as well as a good representative of the diversity among the GOP. We are not clones and that is acceptable.

President Bush is far from perfect but I do feel safer knowing that he is our president and will feel safer with him continuing in leadership for another 4 years.

[RICHARD]

Originally posted by sirrahbed
I noticed that a good discussion went on the week of the DNC and I watched parts of it myself. Am I watching the RNC all by myself or is it so unpopular that we are afraid to admit it for fear of being made fun of?

I have been yelling at my TV for two days now....

Politics, in it's purest form, is the ability to BS your way into the 'hearts and minds' of the electorate. It's also a way to put lipstick on a pig......it sure makes the pig look better but you still have a pig, I wonder if rouge and eyeliner would help?

I do miss the good old days when it was politics, issues and
debates.

Not so "swift water", 527's and 'My wartime record is better than yours' bore me to tears....the candidates are too worried about each other's past to take a look at the future of 240 million people.

I vote for 15 rounds of bare knuckle fighting on the streets of D.C.

The toughest guy wins the belt and gets to be prez......



But I am impressed with John Kerry being able to ski and wind surf and do all those hip extreme sports.....

I'm waiting for Tony Hawk, the pro skateboarder to run for president.....

........Hawk began his run for the presidency by pulling off a 720
with a No-handed fakie twist, and finished with an axle grind.......

Balance a budget and juggle your schedule-THAT'S what I want to see.....

[lizzielou742]

I have to admit, I haven't watched the RNC television coverage at all. However, I have been reading about the protests on this blog.

[Logan]

Thank you, Debbie, for your insight. No one here, that knows me, doubts my party affiliation. What I have enjoyed the most so far is that the "moderate" Republican speakers have avoided their differences and have focused on the issues they have in common with our President. Having a President, who is a Christian, and not afraid to say so, is important to me. But regardless of his faith, I appreciate his honesty and ability to stick to his guns about things that are important to him. And I appreciate those who recognize that they have things in common with him, without having to agree on every issue!

[RICHARD]

Originally posted by lizzielou742
I have to admit, I haven't watched the RNC television coverage at all. However, I have been reading about the protests on this blog.

Lizzie,

I don't doubt your party affliation or politics.......

What puzzles me about the whole protest/anarchy/demonstration
deal is-

Why do the people who oppose war and violence...

Create public chaos by tying up street intersections?
Call their headquarters the 'DNC WAR' room?
Punch a cop into unconciousness?
Resort to giving a motorcade the finger?

I am sure that the money spent on keeping a bunch people from being a problem would be better served buying some school books for kids? Hiring a few more teachers? Giving some homeless people a meal, some help?
How many AIDS tests would overtime for one cop pay for?

While I do agree that people have a voice in how the government runs and WHO runs it, I find that some of the events, like a DIE-IN are very counter productive in the long run....

You do not want to know what I did to get my messages across...

The thought of any kind of arrest record bummed me out, I didn't want to make any lawyer richer by defending me for my stupidity and the thought of my political party being on my side for being a
anarchist/protestor was beyond the realm of belief.

In the long run, the people who are crying about public budgets, school and health expenditures and politco's salaries are wasting more money by just being a PITA....they tie up the cops, the courts and the system...

Take a look at the cost of processing one protestor and compare it to the the fine they pay, lawyer's fees and all that other crap....

We all lose.

[Logan]

Did you see the piece on Fox News this morning ( Fox and Friends) that talked about the protesters, Richard? Here were all these protesters out there talking about freedom of speech, and protesting the way the Fox News chose to broadcast their news!!!! It is amazing to me.

[Pam]

I missed the first night but did watch last night. Ahnold was spectacular. I felt like singing the Star Spangled Banner as he spoke! LOL! I have always liked and respected Laura Bush. She is a "class act" next to the ketchup/pickle woman. Polls show if it was the two wives running Laura would win by a landslide. As for the Bush twins, we could have done without them. I thought they were pretty immature considering their age. **sigh**

[sirrahbed]

Originally posted by Pam
I thought they were pretty immature considering their age. **sigh**

Very much so. I know the family should not matter so much but we always tend to look at the "package". To their credit - they did MUCH better today - opening for the Young Republicans and addressing their peers...much more poised and confident.

I am very proud of the tone so far of the RNC - much less mud slinging and more looking forward to the future. Less glitz and glamour, less rhetoric and more meat to chew on. I am encouraged and reassured by what I am hearing.

[Logan]

As for the Bush twins, we could have done without them. I thought they were pretty immature considering their age. **sigh**

I agree! They were silly and rehearsed.......we could have done without all that "stuff" from them.

[RICHARD]

Originally posted by Pam
I missed the first night but did watch last night. Ahnold was spectacular. I felt like singing the Star Spangled Banner as he spoke! LOL

But can you do it with an Austrian accent???

Ah say cahn you seeeeee?

By-hi the don's erh-lee light...




And go easy on the first troubl-----first daughters...

[RedHedd]

Originally posted by Pam
I thought they were pretty immature considering their age. **sigh**

I thought they were pretty embarassing.

[sirrahbed]

Well BINGO - I guess we ALL agree on something! The Bush daughters are embarrassing Yes, I was cringing too.
Such a stimulating conversation

As far as reading blogs, how about watching the real thing and deciding for yourself? Why makes jokes of everything?....

Could it be because we all just afraid of the future of our wonderful country and wanting to have a leader we can trust? We did not get to be where we are without wars - it is a simple fact. Blood has been shed and it will continue to be shed. All the men in my family as far back as I know have fought in wars, including my husband and brother. Freedom is not cheap. Nobody *wants* war but it is necessary to maintain our freedoms. Terrorism is growing and we have spent too many decades negotiating. Now they have attacked our own country and the threats are intensifying. I believe this war is necessary to fight the evil that threatens us.

The ecomomy? Nobody KNOWS how to predict or truly keep our economy strong - but we DO have a strong ecomony! Why do the critics keep harping about our economy?? It will always fluctuate. Besides, if we lose our freedoms or hear that our own children are being held hostage somewhere or that our homes are in danger, are we really going to worry about a few points at the stock market?

I want a president who is committed to sticking with this war until it is won. Yes, we have lost lives and we will lose more. But it does not even begin to compare with what we lost at 9/11 and the harm THAT did to our economy.

The safety of my family, our future and the security of our great country is the most important issue in my mind.

[Edwina's Secretary]

Watched part of it, but then DH and I could stand no more and turned it off.

[Cincy'sMom]

I watched Arnold, the embarssing Daughters and Laura last night. I thought Arnold did very well and I also like Laura. The twins picking on Grandma a little bit was funny, but I didn't thik the whole thing needed to be a joke. I don't know that I will watch Chaney tonight.

[catland]

I'm sticking to my plan of only getting election coverage on the comedy channel.

Times like these make me miss Ross Perot and his chickens.