On Wed, May 14, 2008 at 6:06 AM, Doug Henwood <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> For sure, but let's not fall into the Naomi Klein trap and assume that the
> right can only take power through force and maintain it through torture.
> Though the sun might be setting on them now, the right won a series of
> electoral victories over the last 25 years in Britain, the U.S.,
Australia,
> New Zealand, India...and managed to turn previously leftish parties into
> milder versions of themselves. How did they do this?
>
I have no doubt Rove is very knowledgeable about the electoral arithmetic in
the US etc, and he may well be worth listening to if you are into that sort
of thing. Even then his instincts are less than perfect. Here's a quote from
Rove about Hillary from several months back: "She is the dominant player on
their side of the slate. Anybody who thinks that she's not going to be the
candidate is kidding themselves." Oops.
Anyway I got to say, among public figures, Rove, along with Cheney, are
among the ones who literally make my skin crawl as in "how do these guys
look themselves in the mirror everyday?". They don't even have Bush's
intellectual deficiencies as an excuse. These guys are, in the literal sense
of the word, creeps.
Catalog of Rovisms:
In the fall of 1970, Rove used a false identity to enter the campaign office
of Democrat Alan J. Dixon, who was running for Treasurer of Illinois. He
stole 1000 sheets of paper with campaign letterhead, printed fake campaign
rally fliers promising "free beer, free food, girls and a good time for
nothing", and distributed them at rock concerts and homeless shelters, with
the effect of disrupting Dixon's rally. (Dixon eventually won the election).
Rove's role would not become publicly known until August 1973. Rove told the
*Dallas Morning News* in 1999, "It was a youthful prank at the age of 19 and
I regret it."
Texan voters began receiving calls from "pollsters" asking questions such
as: "Would you be more or less likely to vote for Governor Richards if you
knew her staff is dominated by lesbians?"
Rove's operation proceeded to target McCain with false stories: McCain was a
stoolie for his captors in the Hanoi Hilton (this from a lunatic
self-promoting Vietnam "veteran"); McCain fathered a black daughter out of
wedlock (a despicable reference to McCain's adopted Bangladeshi daughter);
Cindy McCain's drug "abuse"; and even McCain's "homosexuality."
"Conservatives saw the savagery of 9/11 in the attacks and prepared for war;
liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare
indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers."
"Cindy Sheehan is a clown. There is no real antiwar movement. No serious
politician, with anything to do with anything, would show his face at an
antiwar rally."
Rove said George W. Bush was "one of the most intellectually gifted
presidents we've had."
{At least he has a sense of humor!]
And Dickisms:
"I had other priorities in the '60s than military service."
In 1986, Cheney, along with 145 Republicans and 31 Democrats, voted against
a non-binding Congressional resolution calling on the South African
government to release Nelson Mandela from prison.. Appearing on
CNN<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNN>,
Cheney addressed criticism for this, saying he opposed the resolution
because the ANC "at the time was viewed as a terrorist organization and had
a number of interests that were fundamentally inimical to the United
States."
(From the VP debate, 2000) "I'm pleased to see, Dick, from the newspapers
that you're better off than you were eight years ago, too." CHENEY: I can
tell you, Joe, the government had absolutely nothing to do with it.
"Conservation may be a sign of personal virtue but it is not a sufficient
basis for a sound, comprehensive energy policy."
Cheney then described the life of the hundreds of prisoners being held at
Guantanamo: "They're living in the tropics. They're well fed. They've got
everything they could possibly want."
And of course he shoots defenseless, captive birds for recreation.
-raghu.
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