Andy B

Now that the Olympics have concluded, another gymnastics exhibition has begun, as the Kerry campaign should be doing some very challenging contortions to distance themselves from the anti-RNC protests going on in New York. I was watching some coverage last night of a young man throwing dixie cups of water at middle-aged Republican delegates while yelling “Yeah?!? C’mon!! Whatya gonna do about it?!?” High dialogue there. And then these pearls: “Republican murderers go home and kill your babies!” and “Bitch, go home! We don’t want you here!”. Wonderful examples of erudite, tolerant young Dems. I don’t think this will “play in Peoria”, and I’ll mete out all the rope they need to fashion their noose.

Forgive me, but I can’t let this one fade into the ether just yet. A previous comment from Akefa stating that “the economy has only gone down since Clinton left office” , and citing “the esteemed economist Krugman’s book The Great Unraveling ” as a reference was certainly well-timed if nothing else. Had I ridden the train this morning rather than driven, I would have already read Brian Wesbury’s piece on nothing other than……the Economy. Wesbury is chief economist at GKST, and has been a voice in the wilderness for the past couple of years, pointing out the undercurrent of strength in the domestic U.S. Economy. As the numbers have steadily improved, he has picked up quite a bit of company. These few lines jumped off the page for me as I consumed a late dinner this evening:

“After growing at a 14.5% annualized rate in the first-half of 2000, business fixed investment stopped in its tracks and grew just 1% in the second half. The Clinton White House knew this was happening. A member of President Clinton’s Council of Economic Advisors (CEA), Kathryn Shaw, said in August 2001, “economic growth had started to fade in the fall of 2000.” Mr. Clinton’s CEA chairman, Joseph Stiglitz, wrote in 2002 that “the economy was slipping into recession even before Bush took office.” Al Gore said that “the economic downturn really began in March of 2000.”

Obviously, the esteemed economist Paul Krugman holds views that are in direct conflict with the very people who presided over the start of the recession, illustrating that Mr. Clinton & Co. were the beneficiaries of some very fortunate timing, and that my friend Akefa is decidedly not.

So it is a gorgeous day in Chicago and I leave my office and go for a walk down LaSalle Street to Torrefazione Italia for a mid-day coffee. Truly the best in the city, they don’t burn the beans. As I leave the shop, a young lady approaches me and says in a polite and perky tone, “Would you like to help us stop Bush in November?” This is the third time in 2 months that I have been asked this question by a young kool-aid drinker on the street, and God bless them for getting involved. I respond by saying, “with 20 years in the Senate, can you point to any of John Kerry’s accomplishments that stands out and makes him a good presidential candidate?” The response: That John Kerry will stand up for the people of this country, blah, blah, blah, and George Bush has done irreparable harm, blah, blah, blah….. Just the typical spoon-fed talking points, not a hint of extemporaneous thought, nor any attempt at an answer to my question. How disappointing that was. I’m not spoiling for a fight, just for an honest effort, but all I get is pap. Most of what I see this election cycle is a largely uninformed, “undecided” segment of the electorate being pursued by largely uninformed campaign volunteers. I think I will have to resort to wearing my W 2004 baseball cap to ward off the flying monkeys (ooooh, he said MONKEYS, we know what that means) when I venture out onto the streets of my hometown.

Commenting to reporters on the flare-up of violence in Sadr City and subsequent “alleged” passing of 300 of Muqtada’s band of merry men, Sheik Raed al-Qathimi said, ”I categorically deny these American lies” . Gosh that takes me back to simpler times, when you could rely on none other than the former Iraqi Information Minister, Muhammed Saeed al-Sahaf for a nightly shot of infotainment. Whether secular, or radical Islamist, entrenched dictator, or wannabe, the judicious use of wild prevarication just never goes out of style!

From the campaign trail:

Kerry invited Aspen resident and writer Hunter S. Thompson to ride in his motorcade and brought three copies of Thompson’s book about the 1972 presidential race, “Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail” for autographs.

“Just to put your minds all at ease, I have four words for you that I know will relieve you greatly,” Kerry told the fund-raiser. “How does this sound — Vice President Hunter Thompson.”

The only thing keeping this from becoming a Michael Dukakis-in-the-tank moment is the lack of a compelling visual to go with the quote.