Sunday, March 18, 2012

Sometimes its best not to say anything at all

Yes, I made it to my vacation destination. I wanted to show you the view from which I'm blogging but apparently I can't download pitctures from my ipad (I'll work on that later). Suffice it to say that, as I type, I'm overlooking the Pacific Ocean in all its graduer. YEAH!

But this morning I'm once again struck by a question I used to have as a child. I'd ask my mom what would happen one day if there was no news. She'd be dismissive and tell me that would never happen. I guess that now I know what she meant. People will ALWAYS find something to report on - even if there's no "there" there. That's what I thought when I read this article at TPM.

The author is trying to predict the future of the Obama campaign from the themes addressed in "The Road We've Traveled." And pulls a total fail. That's because the video was about the past we've all been through - not the future the President will campaign on.

There's a cool chart showing how many minutes the video spent on each issue it addressed. And one of the conclusions is accurate...the Obama campaign will spend a lot of time touting the success of the auto bailout. That's because it is one of the concrete things the President has accomplished where the results are obvious to all of us. In contrast, the author says the video addresses the benefits of ACA but leaves out the elements that have not been completed yet...duh. Its a video about the past.

The author also claims that gays and Latinos got short shrift. The film does talk about DADT, but doesn't mention marriage equality. And it doesn't talk about immigration reform. The conclusion is therefore implied that the campaign will not address these issues. At the risk of being repetitive...the video is about the past. Those things haven't happened yet.

All in all, the entire article looks to me like an attempt to fill up space. Gawd forbid we simply wait to see the outlines of the campaign as it unfolds and understand that a video titled "The Road We've Traveled" is simply a look at the past. Sometimes - when you have nothing to say - its best not to say anything at all.

11 comments:

  1. Mo'nin', Ms. Pants

    SOOO glad you're safe and sound.

    And, "The Road We've Traveled" summarizes beautifully just how impressive, steady, and BOLD PBO has been. He, whether folk want to admit it or not, and MANY will not, saved our country.

    But, as you point out so well, silliness will continue (sigh). Now...

    Relax, refresh, and re-charge.

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  2. I am reminded of the phrase coined by someone (dont know who)"the person repugs are running against doesnt exist". I am struck by how few people can understand PBO and fewer still can anticipate what he will or wont do!

    They wont acknowledge that they do not have the info and intelligence he has & they dont. They wont put what he faced in the proper context and then give the Bush admin proper credit for the mess they made. But they want to analyze PBO's every decision.

    For me, PBO is the best president I could ever have imagine and I have been around since FDR!
    Smilingl8dy

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  3. PS Glad you are in your favorite place. Enjoy and do nothing without joy!
    Smilingl8dy

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  4. Happy to hear you've arrived 'safe and sound' at your favourite resting post, SP. Wishing you whatever you need to get the best out of your time away!

    'Sometimes - when you have nothing to say - its best not to say anything at all.'

    Wouldn't it be nice if the Emoprogs, and certain pundits, would adopt this mantra for the next eight months?

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  5. I actually thought the TPM article was interesting. Granted, it might not mean very much,and it might be reading too much into the documentary, and there is a difference between a documentary about the past and a campaign about the future, and it might have been just the product of a slow news day. But still, if you like to read the tea leaves, the documentary might give some indication of what events in the president's first term the campaign is going to emphasize.

    All speculation, of course, but still interesting.

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  6. Off-topic: you may be on the Pacific but you can't be here in San Diego, or you'd be complaining about how the rain is wrecking your weekend. If you're in town, I apologise on behalf of the city.

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  7. I could see you from here if it weren't for the clouds obscuring the view!

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  8. Enjoy your vaca, Ms. Smartypants. I've put up a post on my blog on this video, and it has attracted whiny, complaining GOPers who, apparently, never heard that when asked about his presidency and if he had ever made any mistakes, GWB answered no, he couldn't think of any!

    And the half-term governor of Alaska, IIRC, had a film that was in theaters in parts of this country called "The Undefeated," even though she had been defeated twice in running for office: once in Alaska in 2002, running for lt. governor, and of course, big time in 2008.

    IOKIYAR.

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  9. TPM has been trending the way of HuffPoo for a while now. Especially with their inflamitory headlines. Sad.

    ps. have you seen any whales yet?

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    Replies
    1. I saw one whale yesterday. Word is they may have already begun their migration north...we'll see.

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