Better. But.

reading the excerpt, what he says sounds like he just came out of a meeting where the results of focus groups were discussed ("Senator, Americans don't think that you understand their problems -- you aren't connecting with people. So go out there and show them you understand!").

As you note, he's nnt offering any solutions -- its all watered down "I feel your pain" crap filtered through the "change" theme.

And the Clinton stuff is just embarrassing -- Obama needs Clinton to explain "why we need to change the economy in fundamental ways"? Absent any kind of "road map" that explains what those changes entail, what's the point.

Somebody cleverer than me needs to golf the fact that pork is the other white meat.

that the sheeple can clap for and little substance behind it. I was listening to a NPR story on Sarah Palin in which they interviewed a range of people she worked with in Alaska--those who admired her reformer work and liberal opponents who saw the political machinations behind her crusade. But to a one, they all vouched for her willingness to work hard and go to the mat for her moral beliefs, right or wrong.

Obama doesn't have that kind of cred and no matter how many talks he has with Bill Clinton, I still won't be reassured me that he'll know what he's doing when he gets into office. That is, if he still gets elected--here's a local perspective from a Chicago journalist about him and his vulnerability to questions about the Chicago machine:
http://divisionstreet.wordpress.com/2008...

Because after the primary irregularities, the alienation from half of his base and the way the convention cheated voters out of a legitimate floor vote, I do not.
He's sell us out in a heartbeat. I have no idea if he'd be better or worse than McCain but at least McCain has character witnesses. That's not an endorsement. That's just disgust at the party that gives me such fricking lousy options.
Someone has to be held accountable.
Come together at The Confluence

While it's a colorful figure of speech, "lipstick on a pig" is basically sexist - one level above "beer goggles" - and it shouldn't be used in the context of even picking new siding for the county courthouse by grown up, responsible people in power (or vying to be in power).

But at this point, the faux outrage from the RW noise machine means that to discuss "LOAP" today in terms of its misogyny means amplifying the effects of that noise machine and giving in to the narrative they've crafted this week.

I think the ingrained sexism here is akin to our current broken "health care" system. A clean sweep of things isn't even on the table by any candidate. It's not even part of the debate. TL will ban your ass for even bringing up the "H" word in a sexism discussion, on a site where this colorful language is being defended. Ugh.

On "Morning Joe" this morning, the talking heads - our good friends like Mike Barnicle, Mort Zuckerman, Chuck Todd, etc were once again in the advice-giving/concern troll business. (Because, you know, they rilly want Obama to win.)

If team O had any genuine feminists amongst them, they would have advised him by now to say just what I said in paragraph 1: Yes, it's a bad, sexist, figure of speech. It's bad under any circumstance, whatever the topic, and shouldn't be used to refer to anything.

except we're in a frickin' war! That is why many of us did not support someone with his level of experience in the primaries, and many more won't in the GE. Taking chances on the new guy, wondering if he is up to the job, is a lot riskier with 300,000 troops and contractors in the field. While I agree that "It's the economy, stupid" as far as talking points go, Obama still has not convinced many that he has crossed that Hillary called the CinC threshold.

quite nicely by saying the Repubs "had a meeting" to demand an apology. Huh?

Obama: "...in Illinois, the expression connotes the idea that if you have a bad idea, in this case I was talking about John McCain’s economic plans, that just calling them change, calling it something different, doesn’t make it better, hence, lipstick on a pig is still a pig.”

Dave: “Now what I like about this scenario is because they demanded, the Republicans demanded an apology.”

Obama: “Yes, they did.”

Dave: “So that means there had been a meeting at some point somewhere along the line.”

Obama: “All of them.”

Dave: “Yeah, they got together and they said, ‘You know what? He called our vice presidential candidate a pig.’” (audience laughs) “Well, that seems pretty unlikely, doesn’t it?”

Obama: “It does. But keep in mind that, technically, had I meant it that way, she would have been the lipstick, you see?” (audience, Dave laugh) “But now we’re…”

Dave: “I don’t know, you’re way ahead of me.” (audience laughs)

Obama: “Yeah, the failed policies of John McCain would be the pig.”(Emphasis mine)

OK, I think he could have stopped after Dave's questions about "that seems pretty unlikely, doesn't it" and he would have been ahead. But, no, he had to dig his hole a bit deeper.

McCain is a sentient human being who has policies--bad as they may be--in Obama's explanation; Palin is just "lipstick," a thing being used. Lipstick is what they reportedly call her within the campaign.

Sorry--irked me big time. He just doesn't get it, does he?

I don't know that I'd take "lipstick on a pig" to be sexist if it were clearly and unambiguously referring to an idea. But the misogyny that's been rampant in this campaign season and the fact of two prominent women in the presidential-VP contests means that a sexist interpretation is closer to the surface than it would normally be, particularly as "lipstick" has gotten such a close connection with Palin. (My problem with Obama is that he doesn't seem to get that, or maybe, what would be worse, he gets it and is relying on the plausible deniability to get his snickers across. He enjoys that audience reaction just a bit too much for my comfort.)

Here's another one: "If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, lipstick won't help." (A twist on another oldie that I picked up somewhere.) I've used that one myself. But these days? I'd avoid it.