Ilang buwan pa bago mag-eleksyon pero sa tuwituwinang tayo’y magbubukas ng radyo o TV, natural lamang na puro tungkol sa pulitika ang mapapakinggan at mapapanuod natin. Marami sa kanila ang naghahangad ng kapangyarihan at ang ilan naman (sana lang tama ako ah), ay para sa layuning maiahon ang bansa at magbigay ng serbisyong totoo para sa publiko.

Pinaka pangunahing pinag-uusapan ang mga personalidad na naghahangad sa posisyon ng pagkapangulo na tunay nga namang pinakamalaking isyu para sa bansa natin ngayon.

Ngayon katoto ko, tatanungin kita, para sayo sino ang nararapat na maging pinuno ng ating bansa? ako’y curious lamang. hehehe

——— aling iska

“Well, now President Obama has done quite a number of things, which bring to mind other analogies, some of which lurk beneath the worship continuum. Before Roosevelt there was Herbert Hoover, and before Lincoln there was James Buchanan, both of whom share the dishonor of being ranked among the country’s worst presidents, as Nathan Miller pointed out a decade ago in a perky book entitled Star-Spangled Men. About Hoover, much has been written; but it is President Buchanan who presents a really interesting case.”

Click here to read the entire column

Opposition Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero announced that he isn’t seeking for any higher office in the 2010 Elections, at a press conference held in the Club Filipino, Greenhills San Juan. “Napagpasyahan ko na hindi tumakbo bilang pangulo sa darating na halalan (I have decided not to run for President this coming elections),” he said. He later clarified, addressing a question by a reporter, that he would not seek to run for either the Presidency or the Vice-Presidency next year.

He asked for the Filipino people to be vigilant and critical in seeing past the sweet promises and actions of those who have declared themselves to run for the Presidency. It is important to see whether they have or have not been eaten by the system in their quest for the highest position of the land.

Chiz stated in black and white his plans of not running in the near future, but what is important to note is that he expressed his decision and desire to still lead and change this nation. He also hinted on his future plans. “I have decided that even though now is not the time for my dream and destiny for a presidency that won’t be beholden to anyone, I will continue to hold that dream and promise. If not now, in the near future.” (translated from his speech in Filipino)

““Kaisa ninyo ako, at kaisa ako ng kung sinumang pagtitiwalaan ng sambayanan sa mga darating na araw. At bilang botante, bilang Pilipino, bilang Senador patuloy akong mananalig sa kakayanan ng Pilipino at ng ating bansa na malampasan ang mga hamon at pagsubok na ito.”

Video also posted at Blogwatch.ph

Yeah – I know I shouldn’t be blogging now, of all times. But this just begs to be watched:

Sure, there’s bias. But there’s also the underlying message that education and the ability to actually think for yourself are both losing value in people’s eyes, even though most people hardly have the capacity to judge whether education has value. (It does, by the way.)

I could go on and on about this (I hear about similar things on a daily basis – it’s unavoidable when you’re in IB), but my brain that’s currently in Maths IA mode has only one thing to say: “Who are these people, and why are they trying so hard to bullshit when they can’t even repeat what’s been stuffed down their throats?”

This blog was never supposed to have anything to do with politics, so there won’t be anymore. Now – back to my IA and strange symbols I’ve never used before.

Just thinking about thinking riles me up these days.

• Maths IA due tomorrow morning
• Chem test on Thursday
• Physics presentation on Thursday
• EE final, final draft due on Friday
• Can die on Saturday

I love my life.

- – -

Maybe the choice of interviewees is intentional, maybe not. And maybe I’m just being typically prejudiced and superficial and elitist. But there are those who defy stereotype anyway. Good or bad – you decide. I don’t have the time to go into detail, but it should be obvious anyway.

ARGH.

The GOP primary field could have a lot of “personalities” in it. Along with Sarah Palin, three other media personalities may be gearing up for a run at the White House.

When asked by Fred Thompson whether or not he is considering a run for the White House, Lou Dobbs responded, “yes is the answer.” If Dobbs is too xenophobic for CNN how will he fare with moderates, without whom no presidential election can be won?

Another name being tossed about for 2012 race is Glenn Beck. I know, I know. Ridiculous. But watch this video. Notice the red, white & blue streamer? The rolled-up sleeves? The call for a 100-year plan? It almost sounds like a campaign rally.

Mike Huckabee will likely be another media personality to join the race. According to a recent Gallop poll, 7 out of 10 Republicans (71%) say they would “seriously consider” Huckabee for president in 2012. That puts the preacher/politician/pundit ahead of both Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney, but he may be too liberal for the Republican base.

After President Reagan refused to renew the Fairness Doctrine in 1987, the GOP took over the radio. Now the radio is taking over the GOP.

-brandon

Romanians vote for a president on Sunday in the first round of an election that is crucial to breaking a political impasse that has blocked the recession-blighted country’s access to international financial aid. According to opinion polls, struggling to enter in the second round of presidential elections to give between three candidates: Traian Basescu, Crin Antonescu and Mircea Geoana. Financial Times make a brief characterization of the three favorites:

“Mr Basescu, a former sea captain and gifted communicator, has promised to continue the fight against corruption, a campaign on which only limited progress has been made over the past five years. He is also advocating popular measures that include abolishing one of parliament’s two chambers and cutting the number of MPs. Mr Geoana, a former foreign minister and ambassador to Washington, promises a more technocratic alternative to Mr Basescu’s boisterous and divisive style of politics, with plans for targeted recession-busting spending on infrastructure that he says could raise Romania’s growth rate. Mr. Crin Antonescu, the candidate of the National Liberals, the third largest party, promises tax cuts.”

Unfortunately, despite serious problems in the economy of the country, the second largest of the EU’s new members in Eastern Europe, the campaign has focused on non-economic issues.

Exit poll (12. PM – Bucharest Time):

CCSB: Traian Basescu: 32% ; Mircea Geoana: 34% ; Crin Antonescu: 18%

INSOMAR: Traian Basescu: 33% ; Mircea Geoana: 36%;  Crin Antonescu: 18%

CSOP: Traian Basescu: 34%; Mircea Geoana: 34%; Crin Antonescu: 20%

UPDATE  – Exit poll (15.00)

CCSB: Traian Basescu 30%, Mircea Geoana 28%, Crin Antonescu 22%
INSOMAR: Traian Basescu 30%, Mircea Geoana 30%, Crin Antonescu 22%
CURS: Traian Băsescu 36%, Mircea Geoana 30%, Crin Antonescu 22%
CSOP: Traian Basescu 36%, Mircea Geoana 30%, Crin Antonescu 22%

It would be much to discuss about the credibility of public polling institutes. So far these are unofficial figures. The official will be given at 21 hours after closing the voting ballot.

UPDATE 2 – Exit poll (21.00)

CCSB: Traian Basescu 34,1%,  Mircea Geoană 30,9,  Crin Antonescu 22,1

INSOMAR: Traian Basescu 32,8%,  Mircea Geoana 31,7%,  Crin Antonescu 21,8%

CSOP: Traian Basescu 33,2%, Mircea Geoana 30,3%, Crin Antonescu 22,0%

Were present to election over 50% of citizens voting. In the second round (6 decembrie 2009) will meet Traian Basescu and Mircea Geoana.

Commentary:

Noynoy may lose presidency due to Luisita.
Land issue must not drag on until March 2010
Carl Ala, political economist from the University of the Philippines-Manila

The land issue of Hacienda Luisita has again come to the fore due to a number of reasons; chief among them is that up till now the 6,453 hectare estate has not been returned to the farm workers. They are now asking the presidential frontrunner and part-owner of the hacienda Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III to give back their land. Noynoy responded by saying that he will ask his relatives who are the majority holders of the corporation to discuss what they will do with the estate.

But this is hardly an answer that would satisfy anybody, Noynoy must realize that he is now the leader of his clan and that he must now take the opportunity to correct the blatant disregard for agrarian and social justice during his mother’s term. The Hacienda Luisita issue will test Noynoy’s mettle if he does indeed have integrity, righteousness and leadership. This issue will make or break Noynoy’s presidential campaign.

Yes, it is a given that he is extremely popular now with the latest Pulse Asia survey conducted nationwide from Oct.22 to 30 showing Aquino topping the poll with 44 per cent of the vote. His closest rival Senator Manuel Villar got 19 per cent, while Sen. Francis Escudero got 13 per cent and former President Joseph Estrada only got 11 percent. But this popularity may dissipate if the Luisita agrarian issue drags on as well as the other issues that have been cropping up against Noynoy regarding the controversial land, from the massacre to the overpricing of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway.

As of now the effects of the fall out regarding the issue cannot be felt yet by Aquino’s campaign team but if the issue continues then it will eat a considerable chunk of his supporters because the land issue is concrete and it is credible. It is not like some made up scandal to besmirch a politician. What is more is that the Luisita issue is the classic example of the class struggle and is indeed a very volatile problem if handled improperly. It is between the poor and the rich and between good and evil, and this will definitely wreak havoc on Noynoy’s candidacy especially when the formal campaign season begins.

I agree with the recent Inquirer editorial saying that this issue should be resolved quickly but for an entirely different reason. It states that this should be resolved so that it will not become more politicized and be used by Aquino’s critics and agrarian reform advocates against him, but my reason for its immediate resolution is that the farm workers have suffered long enough and it is time that what is theirs be returned.

My unsolicited advice to Noynoy is that he should immediately return the land to the farm workers with no strings attached or his chances of being president will terribly be reduced. ###

Another great e-mail from a buddy.  Race is NOT the issue…

Submitted by Karen Bondurant…

Anne Wortham is Associate Professor of Sociology at Illinois State University and continuing Visiting Scholar at Stanford University ’s Hoover Institution.  She is a member of the American Sociological Association and the American Philosophical Association .   She has been a John M. Olin Foundation Faculty Fellow, and honored as a Distinguished Alumni of the Year by the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education. 

In fall 1988 she was one of a select group of intellectuals who were featured in Bill Moyer’s television series, “A World of Ideas.” The transcript of her conversation with Moyers has been published in his book, A World of Ideas.

Dr. Wortham is author of “The Other Side of Racism: A Philosophical Study of Black Race Consciousness” which analyzes how race consciousness is transformed into political strategies and policy issues. 

She has published numerous articles on the implications of individual rights for civil rights policy, and is currently writing a book on theories of social and cultural marginality. 

Recently she has published articles on the significance of multiculturalism and Afrocentricism in education, the politics of victimization and the social and political impact of political correctness. Shortly after an interview in 2004, she was awarded tenure . 

This article (below) by her is something worth your time to read.

NO, HE CAN’T

Fellow Americans,

Please know: I am Black; I grew up in the segregated South. I did not vote for Barack Obama; I wrote in Ron Paul’s name as my choice for president. Most importantly, I am not race conscious. I do not require a Black president to know that I am a person of worth and that life is worth living. I do not require a Black president to love the ideal of America .

I cannot join you in your celebration. I feel no elation. There is no smile on my face. I am not jumping with joy. There are no tears of triumph in my eyes. For such emotions and behavior to come from me, I would have to deny all that I know about the requirements of human flourishing and survival – all that I know about the history of the United States of America , all that I know about American race relations, and all that I know about Barack Obama as a politician. I would have to deny the nature of the “change” that Obama asserts has come to America . 

Most importantly, I would have to abnegate my certain understanding that you have chosen to sprint down the road to serfdom that we have been on for over a century. I would have to pretend that individual liberty has no value for the success of a human life. I would have to evade your rejection of the slender reed of capitalism on which your success and mine depends. I would have to think it somehow rational that 94 percent of the 12 million Blacks in this country voted for a man because he looks like them (that Blacks are permitted to play the race card), and that they were joined by self-declared “progressive” whites who voted for him because he doesn’t look like them.

I would have to wipe my mind clean of all that I know about the kind of people who have advised and taught Barack Obama and will fill posts in his administration – political intellectuals like my former colleagues at the Harvard University ’s Kennedy School of Government.

I would have to believe that “fairness” is the equivalent of justice. I would have to believe that a man who asks me to “go forward in a new spirit of service, in a new service of sacrifice” is speaking in my interest. I would have to accept the premise of a man that economic prosperity comes from the “bottom up,” and who arrogantly believes that he can will it into existence by the use of government force. I would have to admire a man who thinks the standard of living of the masses can be improved by destroying the most productive and the generators of wealth. 

Finally, Americans, I would have to erase from my consciousness the scene of 125,000 screaming, crying, cheering people in Grant Park, Chicago irrationally chanting “Yes We Can!” I would have to wipe all memory of all the times I have heard politicians, pundits, journalists, editorialists, bloggers and intellectuals declare that capitalism is dead – and no one, including especially Alan Greenspan, objected to their assumption that the particular version of the anti-capitalistic mentality that they want to replace with their own version of anti-capitalism is anything remotely equivalent to capitalism.

So you have made history, Americans. You and your children have elected a Black man to the office of the president of the United States , the wounded giant of the world. The battle between John Wayne and Jane Fonda is over – and Fonda won. Eugene McCarthy and George McGovern must be very happy men. Jimmy Carter, too. And the Kennedys have at last gotten their Kennedy look-a-like. The self-righteous welfare statists in the suburbs can feel warm moments of satisfaction for having elected a Black person. 

So, toast yourselves, 60s countercultural radicals, 80s yuppies and 90s bourgeois bohemians. Toast yourselves, Black America. Shout your glee, Harvard, Princeton , Yale, Duke, Stanford and Berkeley. You have elected not an individual who is qualified to be president, but a Black man who, like the pragmatist Franklin Roosevelt, promises to – Do Something! You now have someone who has picked up the baton of Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society. But you have also foolishly traded your freedom and mine – what little there is left – for the chance to feel good.

There is nothing in me that can share your happy obliviousness.

God Help Us all…

Yesterday my son and I were listening to a discussion on CNN regarding Sarah Palin and her new book, Rogue: An American Life. The discussion led to the question, will she make a run for the Presidency in 2012?

I made the remark that I would not vote for her. I said she is not qualified. My son, without hesitation responded, she’s more qualified than Obama!

Although, perhaps, I should have responded,  I did not, because my son was stating criteria, such as the length of her term as governor of Alaska, and I really didn’t know if what he was saying was factual or not. Nor did I have any qualifications that I could state factually and defend.

Therefore, for my son and whoever might believe that Sarah Palin is qualified to be President of the United States, I herein state why I believe she is not, and certainly not more than Barack Obama.
From PBS’s Frontline presentation, The Qualities That Bear On Presidential Performance by Fred Greenstein, here are some of the qualities that were deemed essential, and of which I agree:

Effectiveness as a Public Communicator
I personally would say that as far as effective oratory and public communication Barack Obama has my nomination. In every interview, he is well positioned on the issues. I cannot see where there would be any disagreement here, it’s an inarguable assertion.

Sarah Palin has a difficult time with communication effectiveness, as for example in her campaign interviews with the media. She has the charisma, but not sufficient knowledge of the issues to answer the hard questions on economics or foreign policy, and in other areas, as well. This should be an inarguable assertion, as well.

Organizational Capacity and Political Skill
Barack Obama went from being a virtual unknown in 2004 to becoming the 44th President of the United States in 2009. He conducted an extremely well organized and effective campaign, of which he worked hard to achieve.

Sarah Palin is more of a celebrity than she is a politician. She acquired her celebrity position because John McCain’s campaign handlers made her a celebrity. She also achieved her celebrity as a result of the tabloid nature in which her image was exploited, to which many Americans seem to have an obsession. She didn’t arrive at her celebrity as a result of her capacity for hard work or organization, or because of her political skill. And, one must answer the question for themselves, why did the John McCain and his campaign managers choose her. Most reasonably minded people know the answer to that question.

Vision
President Obama has a progressive vision for America, one that evolves with prevailing conditions — a vision that takes into account modernity and globalization and does not support the status quo. He has substantiated that position many times.

Sarah Palin’s mindset is in the same camp as Cheney and Bush in terms of Iraq and Afghanistan, foreign policy, and economics. She is a strict status quo conservative who has no progressive vision for America. She would make a better commentator on Fox News than President of the United States.

Cognitive Style
Barack Obama is a critical thinker and a builder of strategies to accomplish goals. He has a style of listening rather than dictating or talking. He is a consensus builder at heart, ever though he has 535 congressional members who for the most part are not. President Obama has an impressive handle on the issues and can clearly communicate them. He strongly believes, as evidenced by his actions, that it is important for a leader to surround themselves with reliable people from which to draw a variety of views prior to making decisions.

Sarah Palin has not demonstrated an acceptable cognitive style, at least to my satisfaction, so far. Sarah Palin certainly does not seem to be a critical thinker. She has a combative and confrontational demeanor in the style, more or less, of Hannity, Beck, and Limbaugh, when presenting and defending her positions on the issues.

Emotional Intelligence
President Obama has outstanding control over his emotions. He is cool as a cucumber under the most difficult situations and controversy; he exemplifies reticence and dispassion.

From the examples Sarah Palin has shown, she does not seem to have the emotional intelligence necessary to be President of the United States. It is clear that she does not have the ability to control her emotions. When she said, you can describe the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull in a single word: “lipstick,” she was self-describing herself as a pit bull, which in slang means: one who behaves in a markedly aggressive or ruthless manner.

Character and Credibility
Barack Obama has gravitas, and he makes outstanding judgments concerning the issues that face America.

Sarah Palin has not demonstrated gravitas or credibility.

These are some of her fallacious remarks:

Ronald Reagan faced an even worse recession than the current one;
 
Says she couldn’t take stimulus money because it required universal building codes;

Ms. Palin certainly does not show thoughtful, well-reasoned responses to Interrogation, nor does she give dignified responses, such as her response to the healthcare reform issue.

Sarah Palin thought the interview during the campaign with Katie Couric would be a hockey mom to hockey mom sort of thing. She could not name any regular news or magazine publications that she regularly read. And, citing Alaska’s proximity to Russia as part of her foreign-policy experience clearly showed, if nothing else, how unprepared she was for the interview.

And, the question posed by Katie Couric here certainly should reveal to anyone that Sarah Palin is not Presidential material:

COURIC: Why isn’t it better, Governor Palin, to spend $700bn helping middle-class families, who are struggling with healthcare, housing, gas and groceries, allow them to spend more and put more money into the economy instead of helping these big financial institutions that played a role in creating this mess?
PALIN: That’s why I say, I, like every American I’m speaking with, we’re ill about this position that we have been put in where it is the tax payers looking to bail out, but ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the healthcare reform that is needed to help shore up our economy, helping tho— it’s got to be all about job creation too, shoring up our economy, and putting it back on the right track, so healthcare reform and reducing taxes and reigning in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans. And trade, we’ve got to see trade as opportunity, not as— competitive— scary thing, but one in five jobs being created in the trade sector today, we’ve got to look at that as more opportunity. All those things under the umbrella of job creation. This bailout is a part of that.

What did she say that was coherent? It was garbled, inscrutable, and she was simply copycatting the conservative or republican position without any nuance. Unlike President Obama who is skilled in presenting things in a nuanced way as well as with depth of meaning.

Leadership
This is the most important criterion for a President of the United States. All of the qualities presented here are encompassed under the header of leadership. But, leadership in its essence is the ability to lead people in the pursuit of a common goal or in developing a common purpose, a vision, recognition for a job well done, instilling pride in participatory ownership of the goal or vision, and eliciting sacrifice for the greater good. A good leader must represent authenticity and believability, as well as to provide guidance and direction. Leadership lies in the capacity to act personally, as well as representing their organization or country, in this case the United States of America, by setting the best example through best practices for themselves and their country.

President Obama is such a leader. I really doubt that Sarah Palin could measure up to that.

Experience
Someone once said, and I believe it to be true, there is no previous experience that can adequately prepare anyone for the Presidency of the United States, other than the preponderance of their own life’s experience.

Education, Work Experience, and Accomplishments

Barack Obama

Graduated from Columbia University in New York

Received his law degree, graduating magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School

He became the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review

Worked as a civil rights lawyer and as a community organizer in New York and Chicago

Lectured in constitutional law at the University of Chicago

He was elected to the Illinois state senate in 1997, where he served as chairman of the Public Health and Welfare Committee

Third African-American to deliver a keynote address at a Democratic National Convention when he took the stage at the 2004 convention in Boston, MA.

In 2004 he was elected to the U.S. Senate and quickly became a major national political figure

He was inaugurated as the 44th — and the United States’ first African American — President on January 20, 2009

Sarah Palin

First female governor of Alaska

Earned a journalism degree from the University of Idaho in 1987

A few stints as a TV sportscaster in Anchorage

Wasilla city council in 1992

Wasilla city’s mayor from 1996-2002

In 2002, she made an unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor

On December 4,  2006, became Alaska’s first woman governor, but resigned in the middle of her first term

From 2003 to 2004 chaired the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. However, concerned by ethical conflicts involving a commission member who was also republican state party chairman, she resigned after serving less than a year

Became John McCain’s running mate in the U.S. presidential elections of 2008

It seems to me that any logical thinking person would easily see that Barack Obama is significantly more qualified to be President of the United States than Sarah Palin.

Along with Limbaugh, and Fox News’s Hannity and Beck, she certainly is and will continue to be a rebel rouser for, and will represent the values of, the Republican Party. However, at this time she should never be considered for the office of President of the United States of America.

And, for that matter, I don’t see where she, Fox News, or Limbaugh do anything positive to advance the authentic positions of the Republican Party.

(Cartoons are the courtesy of US News and World Report)

Fridays are rarely the right time for writing a blog post. So my housemate James Franklin and I (see his blog) have decided to set up a podcast from the pub instead.

Today we’ll be giving our take on the new EU presidency, the sell-off of the Big Chill festival and a Tory recommendation to relax media regulations (link not available). Today’s reference was the Guardian – though we promise it won’t be every week. Enjoy!

Get it here.

Gordon Brown has accepted that prime minister Tony Blair cannot become the first President of the European Council, Downing Street has said.

Mr Blair had never publicly said he was in the running for the job – despite vocal support from Mr Brown.

European Union leaders are gathering in Brussels to select their first full-time president and foreign affairs high representative.

Mr Brown has backed Labour peer Baroness Ashton for the foreign role.

————-

WAKE ME UP,I AM HAVING A NIGHTMARE!!!

——————————–

Related: BlairSupporter quoting Adam Boulton on Sky News tonight

“Right now about 99.9% of Europeans do not know who Van Rompuy is.  By this time next year that’ll be down to … er… about 90%”.”

Thus far it seems that the overall feeling on Palin’s book is that it is a weakly voiced, whiny 400-pages of buck passing and finger pointing for her follies and short comings in the run for vice president as well as a self-flagellating recount of her life and family. I have not read it, probably never will unless it is lent to me by someone because I refuse to support her financially and idealistically. I have read a half dozen book reviews and heard her claims on the Newsweek’s ‘sexist’ cover that ran a photo of her taken for a shoot for a running magazine. In a time where she is presumably setting herself up to run for office in 2012 she has penned, or most likely ghost-written, an apparently petty and scathing editorial on those around her for her failings instead of taking responsibility for her lack of basic governing common knowledge and being ill-prepared for the investigative light that comes with the campaign for the high office that she sought.

In many reviews it is said that the book lacks the voice of a ‘leader’. The words are devoid of an overall message of power, strength, conviction, and accountability. She often slams the ‘liberal media’, though she has never shunned the coverage, and her secret desire to get one reporting team ‘slimy’ and dirty, which didn’t happen during a photo op fishing trip she went on with the crew. She felt slighted by those that made her over, and controlled her during the campaign, though this is what campaign managers and PR people get paid to do. She points out many short falls in the campaign in her eyes and speaks at length about the Katie Couric interview debacle that she wasn’t ready for. (That question on ‘what books do you read’ was a serious doozy for her I am sure.) She claims she was misinformed on Couric’s interviewing prowess. Misinformed? It’s Katie Couric, if you have owned a TV in the last 15 years then you should know that that chick swings for the fences in an ‘exclusive interview’ event like yours. Grow a pair, you are mildly educated on the topics you should know so much about, and Couric shoveled her way past your thin vail of a hockey-mom persona to find that there was little behind the mask. You got nailed, as Colbert would say, deal with it.

Whatever the book may be to those that read it, it seems that all is coming to fruition that I predicted so long ago. It will be a best seller, no question, and it will make her a media starlet again, for good or ill. Palin will take the place of the Jon&Kate fiasco on the tabloids, get serious interviews, like the one she had with Oprah pre-book release. She is doing her book tour, which will be a soft pedaling affair where most talk will be of how great her hardcore fans think she is, and how the media is so mean, when it should be her chance to push policy and talk shop, instilling confidence in her as a potential leader. Though this tour and public appearances would be a great chance for her to further her political career and talk policy and begin campaigning as a candidate for 2012 it will probably turn in to a whiny bitch session from stop to stop and TV appearance to TV appearance. Little will be spoken of that isn’t juicy, salacious, and an excuse for her performance and recent activities and this will be a huge mistake on her part if this isn’t taken advantage of as a chance to rally the ‘rogues’ out there that love her no matter what she says.

Sarah is all over the place, and one place she is not happy with being is on the cover of Newsweek. Sure enough, here comes the liberal media with it’s ‘sexist’ cover photo of her in thigh long running shorts, stockings, running shoes, and a long sleeve fleece zipped all the way up. Yes this ‘sexist’ cover showing less skin than a 1940’s ladies one piece bathing suit is a take from a shoot she did for some running magazine with the tag line ‘how do you fix a problem like Sara Palin’, or something to that effect. She claims that this photo is offensive and is sexist. Yes, this photo (a poorly lit and shot photo, the shadows behind her are an egregious slap in the face of exposure compensation and lighting proficiency, a flat lighting ratio, et al, a bad photo) that she volunteered to be in for a running magazine is now sexist on the cover of Newsweek. I don’t see how it wasn’t sexist in one magazine and then sexist in another. Apparently it objectifies her as a sexy woman and this takes away from her as a political figure somehow, as if the McCain team didn’t play her attractive looks and the republicans didn’t get a hard on with her as a poster child, gimme a break. How can you pose for a photo and then complain when a magazine legally obtains the rights to it for publication? It is such a cliched, poorly shot photo, do you see the American flag she leaning on? She prostitutes the word and idea of ‘American’ and ‘patriot’ to the point that the whole concept loses is power and meaning, so really the only thing the photo can be accused of, besides being bad, is that it is a tasteless pander to prostituting the honor and respect we should have for America and truly patriotic people, not those that whore the word out for political gain.

So what is next? Well, she should appear on Larry King Live soon, before he dies. I would say Letterman, but she probably won’t do that after his whole blackmail/affair debacle a while back, so I am betting the Jay Leno Show would like to ‘get’ her. She will make a cameo appearance on Saturday Night Live, possibly this week. I would love to see her on The Daily Show, but that won’t happen, maybe Colbert, but unlikely, and I think she might make a Meet The Press appearance. Palin will hammer the media as they cover her and blast her critics who say she needs to come to terms with her delusions of grandeur and get back in to small politics if she wants to ever make a run at the highest office. There are those that feel she is just not ready for the big show, maybe in 20 years, when age softens her looks as well as hopefully gives her wisdom, she can come in and take a more measured and experienced approach; that is, if she gets back in to smaller state offices now. Her proponents will trumpet the same old line of how great she is, how strong, how smart, and ignore every fact that points to the contrary; and this is who this book is written for, those that she the world through a Palin-made filter.

Sara Palin’s first book should have been a trumpet to call her troops and instill the thrill of victory in to their hearts for 2012. The book cover to cover could have a clarification and idealogical manifesto for the new Republican Party that needed to emerge for victory and a better America. She could have silenced all her critics with a el written and tough out socially conscious piece, and like a Phoenix she could have rose from the ashes of her shortfalls and very public embarrassments. She could have spun a tale of love and devotion in her family, explained away the pregnancy and all that stuff about marital problems, et al. It should have been a speech like something out of 300 that gave you goosebumps and made you just want to kick a door in to see how it felt. Her words, or someone else carefully shaping her words, should have cut to the core of her constituents and should have shed a light on the system she was going so ‘rogue’ from, creating a firestorm of support that would rocket her to near mythical proportions in the coming years. Instead she penned 400-pages of her boring, quaint life growing up and came to the summation that: A) Katie Couric is a bitch; B) Washington D.C. is a cross between ‘sodom and the frozen circle of hell’; and C) that her wardrobe stylist, Lisa A. Kline, was the torpedo that sank the McCain dreamboat to the White House and ruined her beyond repair. Yeah, it was the stylist’s fault. Bra-fucking-vo, Palin, your legacy is intact.

When Loren Legarda entered the national political scene, by running for senator in the 1998 elections under the Lakas-NUCD-UMDP party, she became the darling of the press, a whiff of fresh air in a stale atmosphere of politics and a great inspiration to the women in this country.

She was seen as an epitome of a new politician – young, pretty, popular, intelligent, articulate and oozing with vim, vigor and idealism.

All these attributes were noted by millions of Filipinos who made sure she won and she did, winning big on her first try by topping the 1998 senatorial race by over 15 million votes.

It was an auspicious beginning for Loren. She did well her homework. Her accomplishments during her first term were remarkable. She earned the respect of her colleagues.

As her stature grew in the senate and as the influence of her position carried more weight, she became more ambitious.

Her ultimate goal was the Presidency, one could sense it. She unveiled herself as one woman- politician in a hurry to move up.

In 2003, Loren quit the administration party, Lakas, to join the opposition Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP) of Fernando Poe, Jr., where in 2004 elections, she became KNP’s vice presidential candidate.

She found a more worthy nemesis in Noli de Castro, a former colleague at ABS-CBN, who beat her by 800,000 votes.  She filed an electoral protest before the Supreme Court, which was later thrown out.

Loren’s loss to the de Castro was an ignominious blow to her ego, that in her desire to get back at her erstwhile associate, she entered into a one-upmanship competition with de Castro which cheapen her value and eventually took the dazzle from her allure, marring her record and reputation.

Not having a party of her own where she could have grown roots, Loren joined the Genuine Opposition party coalition when she run for the senate in 2007.

Although she topped the 2007 senatorial race again, she was now being labeled a political butterfly, a political opportunist and a political chameleon, for her ability to jump and change ‘coats’ wherever the best of political convenience fits her.

Loren was on the side that wanted ex-Pres. Joseph Estrada nailed during his impeachment trial, yet became Estrada’s docile follower, hoping to be anointed when she had ambitions first to run for president in 2010. Estrada instead declared himself a presidential candidate.

Loren’s alluring ways have diminished so badly that even the Nationalists People’s Coalition (NPC), the party under which she had a see-saw battle with Chiz Escudero, as to who would become its standard bearer, ended up not endorsing any of them.

Finally, after ‘hunting’ for a partner and a long soul-searching, Loren Legarda has “cast her luck” with Nacionalista Party (NP) president Manny Villar, becoming the latter’s running mate.

What a circuitous route it took Loren to find her niche in the race!

It must have been hard swallowing the bitter pill of pride from being instrumental in ousting Sen. Manny Villar as Senate President and being a critic, not to long ago, of  his alleged misconduct, in relation to the C-5 road controversy, only to turn around and embrace Villar’s political mission and vision.

Loren Legarda, once again found the convenience of changing her ‘coat,’ for the nth time!

Product of the country’s democracy? C’mon!!

• Why Iraq is no reason to reject President Blair
• Why the Iraq Inquiry is not a reason to reject President Blair
• Chat of the day: Barack Obama and Herman van Who? Rompuy/

Former Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga is annoyed by the behind-closed-doors-debate about the first EU President and calls for an open discussion.

See The Times here:

The leading female contender to be chosen as Europe’s first president yesterday challenged her male rivals to an open contest, and criticised the secretive carve-up of the EU’s top job.

Known as VVF, the formidable Vaira Vike-Freiberga is furious at the suggestion that there are no suitably qualified women to run the EU — and at the squalid selection process taking place behind the scenes.

Twice President of Latvia, she is one of the few openly declared candidates for the EU presidency and is well equipped to become the face of Europe among a field of grey men. Her remarkable early life, fleeing across Europe from the front lines of the Second World War, was followed by a distinguished academic career and eight years as President, steering Latvia into the EU and Nato.

(…)

She is dismayed by the secretive appointment procedure for the presidency and has called upon the EU to “stop working like the former Soviet Union”. She challenged Tony Blair and her other male rivals to come clean about their ambitions and tell Europeans why they should be chosen. Her own campaign for the EU presidency has a dedicated page on Facebook.

“It should be more transparent,” she said, pledging to make an open process part of her programme as president. “The first step would be to stop hiding behind their fans and come out and say they would be ready to take the job. They should say they are a candidate, not just to 27 [the EU leaders] but to the whole of Europe so its citizens know what’s going on.”

—————–

Maybe that’s a good idea.It would give my fellow Europeans the possibility to wake up and realise the heads of states are about to elect a President, namely Herman van Rompuy,who “would be the same HvR who told the secretive Bilderberg group of politicos, bankers and businessmen of the need for new EU wide taxes.” (See Alastair Campbell’s blog on that)

Besides, Haikupuy (that’s my new name for him, succeeding undertaker and coffin dodger) will hardly impress the Obamas,Vladimirs and Wens of this planet.

Let alone Berlusconi.Herman writes very nasty poems about hair.That’s Silvio’s priority numero uno.

Hair blows in the wind
After years there is still wind
Sadly no more hair.

Tonino mi amor!

I doubt it will earn him a kiss from his Italian counterpart. Quite the opposite to Mr.Blair whom Silvio tenderly calls Tonino. He even wants to marry him,well if he was a woman. Not to mention his strong support for Tony’s EU Presidency.

Herman,our Belgium undertaker, will be blessed with a kiss on Thursday when the heads of states decide on the first EU President.Let’s hope it will be a KISS OF DEATH!

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RELATED:

Health warning: I am not paying compensation for any long term damages.

The picture of Herman van Rambo is really NOT pleasant.Oh and please ignore the reference to Cherie.

Dan, Brad, Chip and Brandon discuss the passage of health care legislation in the U.S. House, the Stupak Amendment, and reform’s implications for the 2010 midterm elections.

• Why Iraq is no reason to reject President Blair
• Why the Iraq Inquiry is not a reason to reject President Blair
• Chat of the day: Barack Obama and Herman van Who? Rompuy/

Watch here:

Tony Blair,talks to On Faith’s Sally Quinn about how to combat extremism within and among religions.Watch out,there is also a comment about his potential EU Presidency.

This piece was originally published in Daily The Post on September 13, 2008

The sight of slogan shouting jiyalas at the gates of Presidency was not only a rare but moving one on ninth day of ninth month – a historic day in the annals of Pakistan’s political saga, when democratic process of electing state’s sovereign head was completed. As Plato puts it, “Democracy is a charming form of government, full of variety and disorder, and dispensing a sort of equality to equals and unequals alike”. Pakistan People’s Party displayed it with full life. Amid the fears raised by certain sections about his credibility and ability, Asif Ali Zardari finally took oath as the democratically elected President. While watching the ceremony on TV, one could hardly resist tears rolling down the cheeks, as the event reminded of the biggest loss people endured during their struggle for democracy in Pakistan.

Whether it was the exchange of harsh words between security personnel and supporters of the president, or embarrassment of forces’ chiefs who could not get way to leave the presidency after the ceremony due to the presence of enchanting jiyalas; whether it was dripping down of painful tears from Sanam Bhutto’s eyes or loving glitter of pride on Hakim Ali Zardari’s face; whether it was forlorn thought of the gone dictator who was nowhere to be seen or the Zinda hey BiBi Zinda he slogans gushed out naturally of the people present there, everything was but manifestation of nation’s emotional state experiencing peaceful and amicable transformation of hurly-burly arbitrary rule into serenity of democracy.

All the romance of PPP’s success and its pro-people slogans aside, one needs to objectively watch the actions of a party in-charge of country’s affairs completely, from now on. The real responsibility starts from this day. After a very successful and ably handled press conference, morale is high and spirits are up to the sky. It’s high time to capitalize on this breadth of acceptability and deliver in real terms of the word. Notwithstanding the fact that newly elected president, it is understandable, is confronting umpteenth challenges as the leader of ruling party. But the huge responsibility is not carried by Zardari alone, we all must share it. The nation must understand the fact that if past nine years have made Pakistan’s citizenry an alert one, they have taught many things to political adversaries as well. The parties, traditionally right of the center (or center for that matter), especially the ones who were born out of the wedlock of civil and military bureaucracy with clergy, now have creative ways to confront a popularly rooted political party.

We have seen how ambivalent the stances of conventional opponents of PPP have been during past six months. All popular slogans were picked up to embarrass PPP among people while indulging into inflexible single faceted politics – a quick recipe for disaster in as complex a state as Pakistan, facing multiple internal and external threats. Mr. Zardari’s politics since last half a year has been of that of reconciliation and inclusion, an evidence of party’s maturity over the years and an outcome of its sufferings at the hands of powers that be. And now, when the power at home has been successfully consolidated, these “wiser adversaries” need to be tackled in equally befitting manner. The politics of signing the documents you don’t believe you’d be able to abide by has been a tactic for a particular situation, which should be avoided in future at all costs.

It was no later than 4^th century BC that Demosthenes, a prominent Greek orator and statesman of ancient Athens was able to realize that there is one safeguard known generally to the wise, which is an advantage and security to all, but especially to democracies as against despots. What is it? Distrust. The rulers should now candidly recognize the amount of trust deficit that exists between elements of PPP and the masses, owing to some undesirable happenings during past regimes ruled by the party. Serious efforts need to be put in to ensure issues of governance in every field and every aspect of policy implementation. That does not need resources; it just needs commitment and sincerity, which the party is not lacking right now. Whatever drastic steps government has to take, no qualms should be felt while pruning off of bureaucrat friends.

During the maiden press conference of the president, he sounded genuinely cognizant of the supremacy of the parliament. This, however, should go beyond rhetoric. Instead of putting the onus on parliament, the co-chairperson of the ruling party should actually initiate the move to remove notorious 58-2(b) and chopping off of presidential powers transferring them at length to the Prime Minister. Sooner the better. In order to avoid unnecessary political instability at the hands of opponents, and to concentrate on real problems of people, these basic hitches are required to be removed as quickly as possible.

Another monster Zardari is facing is economic challenge. Creative solutions inclined towards people oriented public policies are urgently needed. Broad based technical expert groups should be immediately established to assist the executive branch as well as legislative branch (especially parliamentary committees). While direct transfer of money, however little it is, to the poorest of the poor through Benazir Cards is highly commendable, the removal of subsidies with no plans of their provision in near future is a question mark on party’s prop-people credentials.

A long-awaited change in country’s polity is coupled with immense challenges of economic crisis, constitutional and judicial issues viz a viz credible democracy, coalition management and dealing with war on terror with popular support.  We offer you Pakistan to manage and rule Adda Sayeen, Bhali Karay Aaya!

“The very next paragraph is going to make the nut jobs on the far left excitable beyond belief. I am not referring to all Democrats or even a majority of liberals. I am singling out the “they’ve-lost-all-touch-with-reality” crowd. This includes Media Matters for America led by the admitted hit-and-run, drunk-driving serial liar. The group includes the unshaven, bathrobe-clad unemployed who live in their mother’s basement and are devout followers of MoveOn.Org. It is also the bitter, aging spinster working at the New York Times, the morbidly obese documentary film maker, and cable TV news’ resident drama queen who hosts MSNBC’s Countdown. They are about to simultaneously suffer from brain aneurisms. So without further delay, I’ll say it.” – Mark Hyman, American Spectator

Click here to read more

First published in the GE Vibes – November 2009 issue 18 / An abbreviated version appeared on cafebabel.com

If rumours are anything to go by, the culmination of a long, outdrawn and rather undemocratic process that is shaping the future of Europe is nigh.

Following a preliminary round of consultations with the European heads of state, the Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt decided to convene an informal summit on the 19^th of November during which he intends to put forward one candidate for each of the two European top posts. ‘It could be that a lengthy dinner at the European Council actually delivers someone else’ he announced, suggesting that the candidates that have been mentioned in the European media so far are not the only ones vying for the positions of President of the European Council and High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy respectively.

The image it evokes is that of a bunch of statesmen enjoying a meal whilst calling out the names of the candidates they are backing. Not exactly an example of democracy in action… but arguably a fitting continuation to the ratification.

On the 2^nd October, 17 months after the first referendum, Irish voters were invited to rethink their original position and ended up voting in favour of Lisbon. For the EU institutions not taking ’no’ for an answer back in 2008 eventually paid off as the last remaining obstacle was thus removed (save for the minor detail of allowing the Czech Republic to opt out of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights in return for Václav Klaus’ signature on the treaty) and European leaders could turn their attention to the real business at hand: the distribution of posts.

Whereas names of potential candidates had been circulating for a while, guessing who would come out on top suddenly became the prime occupation across Europe. Rarely has an EU issue enjoyed such media attention. The latest ‘conventional wisdom’ circulating in the European media, however, is that those who announced their candidacy early-on made a tactical mistake. Apparently external observers should be paying heed to the dark horses in the herd.

While no final decision-making power is vested in either position, both will wield considerable influence in European affairs and on the global stage. Yet both posts will be appointed by the heads of state. The election of the President relies on a qualified majority among the members of the European Council and does not require the approval from the European Parliament. The High Representative on the other hand will be appointed by the heads of states and governments whose choice will need the approval of the Commission President.

In the past there have been calls for direct elections to take place to give the President a clear mandate, but to no avail…  After all, why suddenly change our habits and deprive the dining kingmakers from announcing their choice on the 19^th of November?