It's finally happened! I didn't blog about it right away, because, let's face it, I don't react that quickly on my blog. :) Still, something this momentous has to be talked about. Especially since I am out in Angels/Dodgers/Padres country. The title of the post comes from something my friend Ed (Hi Ed!) emailed me:
This century's world championships:
Red Sox 1
Yankees 0
That statistic also lends itself well to when Yankee fans try to trot out the number of rings they have. You just say "Oh, the Yankees are SO last century." They will of course point out that they won in 2000, but that was the last year of the last century. Sorry, New York.
Since I'm feeling saucy about all this, I think I'll throw in some other Sox stuff that came around during this amazing run, like this image from my old Boss.
I wish my Bube and Zade were alive to see this. I got my love of the Sox from them. Many's the time I remember going over to their house and Bube would sit at the kitchen table with me. We'd play cribbage or rummy or parcheesi and we'd have the game on in the background. Zade would be in the den watching the same game in his recliner. Yaz, Rice, and Lynn were a big part of the summer. I didn't learn to shout at the TV from them, though. (I learned that from Dad! *grin*) They always watched quietly. I never heard Bube criticize or complain about them. Zade would have comments after the game, but he never yelled. Zade and my Dad went to game 6 in 1975. They got to see Fisk's historic homer. I got to sleep over at Bube and Zade's that night. We stayed up and watched the game. Dad told me they didn't get home until three in the morning!
My nephew, Ian, sent us a Build-a-Bear with a Sox cap and an ALCS champs shirt. I may have to order the World Series shirt for him, when it comes in. For those who don't know, I have two sisters who manage at Build-a-Bear stores. It's one of those stuff your own animal places. Well, you also get to do stuff like give it a name and print a birth certificate. There's even a locator inside the bear. If he gets turned in, they know who the bear belongs to. Ian named our bear "Yankees Yuck!". Strange name, eh? It's even funnier when you realize that he thinks that's what Sox fans chant at the games. He chants it along with them. :)
It's funny how an event like this makes you miss your grandparents. I expected a lot of other emotions. And I've had them, too. A part of me is still in shock. A part of me is elated. And a part of me is sad that my grandparents missed it. For those who believe in heaven, and even for those who don't, I'll leave you with this Sox joke stolen from my friend Kerri.
Roger Clemens, after living a full life, died. When he got to heaven, God was showing him around.
They came to a modest little house with a faded Yankee flag in the window. "This house is yours for all eternity," God said. "Treasure it, as few are given a house up here." Roger felt special indeed, and strode towards his new house.
On his way up to the porch, however, he noticed something strange. There was another house just around the corner: a three-story mansion with a bright red and blue sidewalk, a 50 foot flagpole with a Red Sox flag flying on it, and a Red Sox logo in every window. And in the front yard there was a marble arch on which the following words were inscribed: "Welcome to Boston."
Clemens looked at God and said, "I don't mean to be ungrateful, but I have a question. I won three World Series rings, more awards than I can remember, and more than 300 games. Why does Pedro Martinez get a better house than me?"
And God said, "Roger, that's not Pedro's house...it's mine."
If there is a heaven, my grandparents watched the game at God's house and shared the triumph with me.
Friday, October 29, 2004
Red Sox 1, Yankees 0
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
Tools I use
I thought this would be a good time to point out some web tools that I make use of whilst playing amongst the ether. Some of these are good for non-bloggers. The bloggers out there probably know most of this. So, this is targeted more at the uninitiated...
Bloglines is a service that allows you to keep tabs on your favorite blogs. Bloglines monitors many different types of feeds. All you need to do is sign up, which is free, and select the blogs you want to monitor. Once you have subscribed to a feed, all you do is log in to bloglines and look at the tab called "My Feeds". Anything you have subscribed to that has new content will be in bold. Click on the feed and the new articles are displayed on the right. Subscribing is easy, too. Let's say you wanted to subscribe to this blog (*HINT HINT*). All you do is set the drop down box to "Search All Blogs" enter "briwise" in the adjacent text field and press the blue and white arrow button. Then select the subscribe link next to the feeds you want to keep up on. This way, you only have to visit one place each day to see which places have new content.
Furl is another good free service. At its most basic, Furl is a place to keep and organize your internet bookmarks. It's kind of like Netscape's "Bookmark" or IE's "Add to favorites". The main difference is that this list is on the net, so you can access it from anywhere. It has additional features such as being able to allow others to subscribe to your links, or having your links posted on a web page. You can also subscribe to other people's links there. It's a great way to find things you didn't realize you were looking for. :)
BugMeNot is a nice find from my friend James. Have you ever gone to a site to look at something and been denied access because you don't have a login? The login may be free, but they want to collect your personal information. So, you either swallow the bitter pill, or you skip the thing you wanted to see. Not anymore! BugMeNot keeps a list of valid logins to a wide array of sites. Need a login, just click the "bookmarklet" button that you can get from them. A window pops up with a login and a password. If it doesn't work, there's a button to let them know it is defunct. You can also add logins to help perpetuate the product.
TextPad is a full featured text editor. It's great for creating text based files of an assortment of types. It has syntax higlighting for a variety of languages including Perl, HTML, Java. It allows you to record and replay macros and has a number of edit modes and features. It's one of the best text editors I've ever used for Windows. It's the only thing on this list that is not free. It's "nagware", which means you can use it legally for free for a set amount of time. After that, you need a license. If you don't have a license, it won't stop you from using it, but it will remind you via delay and message that what you are doing is not ok. I bought a license.
Blogger is what I use to create and maintain this site. It is not the most full featured blog software out there, but it does a decent job. It's easy to use, has pretty good help, and above all, is free! It also accepts code from some popular plugins like HaloScan and StatCounter. I'm sure there are others. Blogger is a fairly widely used blog system, so you can expect to have many options for add-ons.
HaloScan is a comment service add-in for blogs. Blogger has a built in comment system, but it doesn't offer trackbacks. I haven't delved too far into haloscan yet, but trackbacks are pretty easy to do. I'm hoping it will support a "recent comments" query. Customizing this tool in non-standard ways appears a little script heavy, but so far, I like it.
StatCounter is one of many free web site statistics services out there. They keep track of the number of hits that your site gets as well as a number of detailed statistics about how people came to your site. One of my favorites is the keyword statistics. If someone got to your site via a search engine, the keyword stats will tell you what keywords they used and what article it landed them in. You can also exclude IPs from the stat gathering (such as your own) so you aren't inadvertenly inflating your hit count. I have only just begun to scratch the surface of this data, but it is incredibly easy to use and highly detailed.
Thursday, October 14, 2004
Final Debate - My thoughts
Now that I've posted the summary, it's time to be a pundit. Read on if you want me to tell you what to think. Or if you want to see what I want you to think. Or if you don't want me to tell you what to think so you need to know what I think so you can think something else. I think.
I think that if you watched the debate, it would look like a draw. However, if you look at the facts afterward, Bush's lies and distortions were clearly more significant than Kerry's misleading statements. So, it was a draw on style, but Kerry won where the facts are concerned. Part of the problem was that neither candidate offered anything new. They both stuck to their messages even when those messages did not answer the questions. Kerry and Bush both scored some good hits, but Kerry's hits stand up better to the facts.
Another area where Kerry was better was in talking about the details. I just worry that he threw too many details out there. Kerry tried to outline solutions to the problem facing the nation. Bush usually responded that we hadn't given his programs enough time and that they were starting to work. Therefore, if we do more of the same, we'll be all right.
In the commentary, Chuck and I both said there were no major flubs. I think we were referring to overt flubs that were obvious to the watcher. James correctly points out that lying is a pretty big flub. And Bush lied on a few issues, one of which was pretty big. On the question of Osama bin Laden, Bush claimed he never said that he just doesn't think much about him. However Fact Check shows that he did say it and that the quote is as damning in context as it sounds out of context.
Kerry needs to hammer Bush on his lies over the next few days because many undecideds are not going to check the facts. They are going to go on how they "feel" about their guy. And if they watched the debate and didn't check the facts, they have to feel good about Dubya. He came across as "folksy". Heck, he met his wife at a down home Texas barbeque. So, the only way to get the truth out is for it to get picked up on the dailies.
Debate III - The final chapter
Last night was the third and final debate. On the one hand, I wish they were going to debate some more. On the other, I've really had enough. For this debate, I did a running commentary with my friend Chuck. Chuck was nice enough to edit the commentary and intersperse quotes from the participants where appropriate. Here it is:
| Chuck | 8:58:59 PM | I've switched over to C-SPAN... looks like CSPAN2 is running something else |
| Brian | 8:59:08 PM | I've got NBC here. |
| Chuck | 8:59:32 PM | OK lets get on the same feed |
| Brian | 8:59:42 PM | Hang on. |
| Chuck | 9:00:14 PM | OK I'm on NBC |
| Brian | 9:00:15 PM | Now I have C-SPAN |
| Brian | 9:00:17 PM | LOL |
| Chuck | 9:00:20 PM | STAY THERE |
| Brian | 9:00:24 PM | Courtesy of my dumb dog. |
| Brian | 9:00:31 PM | She sat on the remote. |
| Brian | 9:00:41 PM | I'm staying. |
| Brian | 9:00:45 PM | 1 minute warning |
| Brian | 9:01:08 PM | I think the debate is biased. More blue than red on the stage. |
| Brian | 9:01:14 PM | It's subliminal. |
| Chuck | 9:01:20 PM | back on C-SPAN |
| Brian | 9:01:24 PM | OK |
| Chuck | 9:01:28 PM | Don't let your dog touch the remote |
| Chuck | 9:01:30 PM | :-) |
SCHIEFFER: ...Good evening ladies and gentlemen, I'm Bob Schieffer.... | ||
| Chuck | 9:01:40 PM | Good evening Bob. |
| Brian | 9:01:40 PM | I've moved it out of her reach. |
| Brian | 9:01:58 PM | Don't think I like the moderator already. |
| Brian | 9:02:02 PM | Dunno why. |
| Brian | 9:02:17 PM | Yeah, right. |
| Chuck | 9:02:34 PM | This is all very standard from the other debates... same speech |
| Brian | 9:02:39 PM | Yup. |
| Brian | 9:03:13 PM | What if one of them farts. |
| Chuck | 9:03:16 PM | Bush switched to red tie |
| Chuck | 9:03:22 PM | instead of blue |
| Brian | 9:03:22 PM | Yeah. Noticed that. |
| Brian | 9:03:34 PM | They look like they have the same tie. |
| Chuck | 9:03:36 PM | practically identical suits |
| Brian | 9:03:46 PM | How will we tell them apart? |
| Chuck | 9:04:05 PM | Bush is trying hard to look personable. |
Q: Senator... will our children and grandchildren ever live in a world as safe and secure as the world in which we grew up? | ||
| Chuck | 9:04:24 PM | Kerry tips hat |
| Brian | 9:04:31 PM | Yeah. |
KERRY: I believe that this president, regrettably, rushed us into a war, made decisions about foreign policy, pushed alliances away. And, as a result, America is now bearing this extraordinary burden where we are not as safe as we ought to be. | ||
| Chuck | 9:04:51 PM | Kerry comes out swinging... no surprise there. |
| Brian | 9:05:03 PM | Yup. But not saying anything new. |
| Chuck | 9:05:20 PM | there goes George... blinkblinkblink |
| Brian | 9:05:33 PM | Check his ears. Any receiver? |
| Chuck | 9:06:03 PM | Kerry is repeating himself from earlier debates. No surprise there. Trying to stay on message. Invoking Reagan |
| Brian | 9:06:29 PM | There's the trademark smirk. |
BUSH: ...I have got a comprehensive strategy to not only chase down the Al Qaida, wherever it exists -- and we're making progress; three-quarters of Al Qaida leaders have been brought to justice... | ||
| Brian | 9:06:42 PM | There's the 75% leadership lie again. |
| Chuck | 9:06:54 PM | Bush is trying very hard to behave. |
| Brian | 9:06:59 PM | Fact checker disproved that one last time. |
BUSH: ...My opponent just this weekend talked about how terrorism could be reduced to a nuisance... | ||
| Chuck | 9:07:14 PM | There's the nuisance line, we saw that coming |
| Brian | 9:07:34 PM | Invokes Afghan elections. Neglects the fact that there are election fraud irregularities in Afghan. |
| Brian | 9:08:18 PM | Lying again. |
| Brian | 9:08:34 PM | Trouble is, most people won't check the facts. |
| Brian | 9:08:35 PM | Grrrrr. |
| Chuck | 9:08:38 PM | true enough |
KERRY: ...Six months after he said Osama bin Laden must be caught dead or alive, this president was asked, Where is Osama bin Laden? He said, I don't know. I don't really think about him very much. I'm not that concerned... | ||
| Chuck | 9:08:35 PM | Kerry calls Bush on his "I don't think about Osama much" line. Uses it against him |
Q: We are talking about protecting ourselves from the unexpected, but the flu season is suddenly upon us. Flu kills thousands of people every year. | ||
| Chuck | 9:08:47 PM | here comes the flu vaccine questions |
| Brian | 9:09:01 PM | Oh, here we go. |
BUSH: ...Bob, we relied upon a company out of England to provide about half of the flu vaccines for the United States citizen, and it turned out that the vaccine they were producing was contaminated. And so we took the right action and didn't allow contaminated medicine into our country. We're working with Canada to hopefully -- that they'll produce a -- help us realize the vaccine necessary to make sure our citizens have got flu vaccinations during this upcoming season... | ||
| Brian | 9:09:08 PM | Foreign drugs *bad* |
| Brian | 9:09:36 PM | Strangely, Canada good. |
| Brian | 9:09:47 PM | Kind of a flip-flop there. |
| Chuck | 9:09:48 PM | He's reaching out to the swing voters there |
| Chuck | 9:10:02 PM | No indication on whether or not he'll follow through on that if elected |
| Chuck | 9:10:05 PM | This is always true |
BUSH: ...We have a problem with litigation in the United States of America. Vaccine manufacturers are worried about getting sued, and therefore they have backed off from providing this kind of vaccine... | ||
| Chuck | 9:10:16 PM | Pulling in the litigation caps |
| Chuck | 9:10:20 PM | Which is ridiculous |
| Chuck | 9:10:27 PM | Has nothing to do with flu vaccine |
| Brian | 9:10:47 PM | Hope Kerry mentions that England had plenty of warning about this but we somehow missed out. |
| Brian | 9:11:06 PM | Kerry's answer is wandering to health care. |
| Chuck | 9:11:20 PM | Bush trying not to smirk. |
KERRY: ...Five million Americans have lost their health insurance in this country. You've got about a million right here in Arizona, just shy, 950,000, who have no health insurance at all. 82,000 Arizonians lost their health insurance under President Bush's watch. 223,000 kids in Arizona have no health insurance at all... | ||
| Brian | 9:11:22 PM | A bit of pandering to the elderly in AZ. |
| Chuck | 9:11:34 PM | Yes, Kerry has appealed to the locals in each debate |
| Chuck | 9:11:40 PM | It's good strategy |
| Brian | 9:11:49 PM | But he isn't answering the question. |
| Chuck | 9:11:58 PM | This is true |
| Chuck | 9:12:00 PM | He isn't |
| Chuck | 9:12:17 PM | Kerry is focussing on Health Care but not saying why we don't have flu vaccine. |
| Brian | 9:12:23 PM | Every time he says "I have a plan" or "this President", take a drink. |
BUSH: ...He just said he wants everybody to be able to buy in to the same plan that senators and congressmen get. That costs the government $7,700 per family. If every family in America signed up, like the senator suggested, if would cost us $5 trillion over 10 years. | ||
KERRY: ...It's really interesting, because the president used that very plan as a reason for seniors to accept his prescription drug plan. He said, if it's good enough for the congressmen and senators to have choice, seniors ought to have choice... | ||
| Chuck | 9:13:07 PM | Ooooh |
| Chuck | 9:13:08 PM | Nice |
| Brian | 9:13:13 PM | Got hit there. |
| Chuck | 9:13:13 PM | Nice smack back at Bush |
| Chuck | 9:13:33 PM | What is Bush doing with his mouth? |
| Chuck | 9:13:50 PM | It's sort of part open and his tongue is doing something... weird |
| Brian | 9:13:51 PM | Bush looks like Ruprecht wetting himself in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. |
| Chuck | 9:14:05 PM | He's trying HARD not to make the same mistakes from the other debates |
| Brian | 9:14:16 PM | Hopefully he can make all new ones. |
Q: Senator Kerry, a new question ... you pledged during the last debate that you would not raise taxes on those making less than $200,000 a year ... how can you or any president, whoever is elected next time, keep that pledge without running this country deeper into debt and passing on more of the bills that we're running up to our children? | ||
| Brian | 9:14:38 PM | Kerry is staying on message but not answering questions. |
KERRY: ...we start -- we don't do it exclusively -- but we start by rolling back George Bush's unaffordable tax cut for the wealthiest people, people earning more than $200,000 a year, and we pass, hopefully, the McCain-Kerry Commission which identified some $60 billion that we can get. | ||
| Chuck | 9:15:09 PM | He's starting to cover the answer now. |
| Brian | 9:15:13 PM | Yup. |
| Brian | 9:15:23 PM | Good invocation of McCain in AZ |
| Chuck | 9:15:41 PM | He's hitting Bush on the pork in the latest spending bill |
| Brian | 9:15:48 PM | Good. |
BUSH: ...He been a senator for 20 years. He voted to increase taxes 98 times. When they tried to reduce taxes, he voted against that 127 times. He talks about being a fiscal conservative, or fiscally sound, but he voted over -- he voted 277 times to waive the budget caps, which would have cost the taxpayers $4.2 trillion... | ||
| Brian | 9:16:08 PM | Here goes the raising taxes bit again. |
| Brian | 9:16:23 PM | Kerry better smack him on the distortions. |
| Chuck | 9:16:25 PM | Bush coming back against Kerry's record. Again with the 98 votes to raise taxes. This is specious... FactCheck covers this |
| Brian | 9:16:32 PM | Yup. |
| Brian | 9:17:35 PM | Bit of spittle in the right corner of his mouth. |
| Chuck | 9:17:39 PM | Kerry seems unfazed |
| Brian | 9:17:51 PM | I think he wanted a shot to rebut, though. |
| Chuck | 9:17:55 PM | Yeah |
| Brian | 9:18:08 PM | OK Jobs of the 21st century. |
| Brian | 9:18:10 PM | century. |
| Brian | 9:18:15 PM | What are those? |
| Chuck | 9:18:24 PM | Yeah he does have a glob of spit on the corner of his mouth |
| Chuck | 9:18:28 PM | yech |
BUSH: ...We've expanded trade adjustment assistance. We want to help pay for you to gain the skills necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century... | ||
| Brian | 9:18:41 PM | And what is the likelihood that a 50-something factory worker can train for one of them. |
| Brian | 9:18:57 PM | Ah. No child left behind. |
| Chuck | 9:19:04 PM | Bush says education is the solution to the job issue |
| Chuck | 9:19:21 PM | Kerry will no doubt raise unfunded no child left behind mandate. |
| Brian | 9:19:23 PM | Bush says he needs four more years "to continue to raise standards" |
| Brian | 9:19:30 PM | Undoubtedly. |
| Chuck | 9:19:40 PM | trade-adjustment money is what Bush says he offers |
KERRY: ...Being lectured by the president on fiscal responsibility is a little bit like Tony Soprano talking to me about law and order in this country... | ||
| Brian | 9:20:04 PM | Good Sopranos jab. |
| Chuck | 9:20:30 PM | Good hit on fiscal responsibility. |
| Brian | 9:20:40 PM | Costs are up. Jobs are down. Good point. |
| Chuck | 9:21:11 PM | Bush wanted to rebut there. |
| Brian | 9:21:12 PM | Still? |
| Brian | 9:21:23 PM | Yeah, well, Kerry wanted to rebut the last one. |
| Brian | 9:21:33 PM | Guess that makes the moderation fair. |
| Brian | 9:22:09 PM | Q: Is administration responsible for job losses. |
KERRY: ...I don't blame [the administration] entirely for it. I blame the president for the things the president could do that has an impact on it. | ||
| Chuck | 9:22:01 PM | Kerry taking an earnest line here |
| Chuck | 9:22:06 PM | I can't stop all outsourcing |
| Chuck | 9:22:16 PM | But I can make the playing field as level as possible |
| Brian | 9:22:59 PM | Talking about incentives for job creation at home. |
| Chuck | 9:23:01 PM | Kerry's answer: no they aren't ENTIRELY responsible, but they do little to help people who've lost their jobs, and I will. |
| Brian | 9:23:31 PM | Bush's smirking and giggling looks to be a strategy. |
| Brian | 9:24:01 PM | He's also reacting as though Kerry is ridiculous in everything he says. |
BUSH: ...You know, he talks to the workers. Let me talk to the workers. | ||
| Chuck | 9:24:20 PM | Bush citing the tax cuts as help to the workers who lost their jobs. |
| Brian | 9:24:20 PM | Talking taxes. Not even related to job losses. |
| Brian | 9:24:29 PM | Ah. Is that the tie in? |
| Chuck | 9:24:32 PM | yes |
| Chuck | 9:24:52 PM | Back to the 98 times |
| Brian | 9:24:53 PM | "Not tell citizens how to live their lives" |
| Brian | 9:25:11 PM | Does that include gay marriage and abortion? |
KERRY: ...Bob, anybody can play with these votes. Everybody knows that. | ||
| Brian | 9:25:41 PM | Kerry isn't going far enough on the vote thing. |
| Chuck | 9:25:59 PM | Bush sticking to the vote thing, and tying in liberal thing |
| Brian | 9:26:10 PM | I so want to smack him. |
| Brian | 9:26:20 PM | Ooooh. Gay marriage question. |
| Chuck | 9:26:24 PM | Gay marriage... do you believe homosexuality is a choice? |
| Chuck | 9:26:40 PM | GB: don't know. But people should be treated with tolerance and dignity. |
| Brian | 9:27:06 PM | Sanctity of marriage. Protect it as an institution. |
| Brian | 9:27:15 PM | Activist judges. |
| Chuck | 9:27:17 PM | constitutional amendment, activist judges |
KERRY: We're all God's children, Bob. And I think if you were to talk to Dick Cheney's daughter, who is a lesbian, she would tell you that she's being who she was, she's being who she was born as. | ||
| Brian | 9:28:21 PM | Bringing in Cheney's daughter as gay. |
| Chuck | 9:28:35 PM | Kerry saying -- it is NOT a choice. |
| Brian | 9:28:41 PM | Bush appealed to his base. Kerry is appealing to his. |
| Brian | 9:29:13 PM | Kerry says marriage is between man and woman. |
| Chuck | 9:29:58 PM | Catholic archbishops say it is a sin to vote for Kerry, Kerry's reaction. |
| Brian | 9:30:15 PM | Respects views, but disagrees with them. |
| Brian | 9:30:26 PM | Can't legislate his religion. |
| Chuck | 9:30:49 PM | Very good response. |
| Brian | 9:30:53 PM | Yes. |
| Brian | 9:31:13 PM | Oooooh. Good Bush quote. |
| Brian | 9:31:32 PM | Not a Catholic President, but a President who happens to be Catholic." |
| Chuck | 9:31:42 PM | Invoking Kennedy |
| Chuck | 9:31:49 PM | Respecting the rights of others. |
| Brian | 9:31:51 PM | Bush can't hit back on it either. |
| Brian | 9:32:05 PM | "Culture of life" |
| Chuck | 9:32:29 PM | He's going to call for abortion reduction. |
| Brian | 9:32:30 PM | Reduce abortions. |
| Chuck | 9:32:39 PM | My opponent voted against partial birth abortion |
| Chuck | 9:32:47 PM | saw that coming |
| Brian | 9:32:50 PM | He is going to ding Kerry for voting against partial birth abortions. |
| Brian | 9:32:52 PM | Yup. |
| Brian | 9:33:37 PM | Should have allowed a rebuttal for the factual distortion. |
| Chuck | 9:33:40 PM | new question to Bush, Health Insurance is out of control? |
| Chuck | 9:33:46 PM | Bush is about to blame lawyers |
| Brian | 9:33:54 PM | Who is responsible. |
BUSH: ...I'm a strong believer in what they call health savings accounts. These are accounts that allow somebody to buy a low-premium, high-deductible catastrophic plan and couple it with tax-free savings. Businesses can contribute, employees can contribute on a contractual basis. But this is a way to make sure people are actually involved with the decision-making process on health care. | ||
| Chuck | 9:34:30 PM | Promoting health savings account, the "ownership society" |
| Chuck | 9:34:39 PM | Here come the lawsuits |
| Brian | 9:34:42 PM | Yup. |
| Chuck | 9:34:44 PM | I knew that was coming |
| Brian | 9:34:46 PM | Saw that coming. |
| Chuck | 9:35:02 PM | Always thinking of the lawsuits and never the victims |
| Chuck | 9:35:06 PM | Big business stooge |
| Brian | 9:35:09 PM | Yup. |
| Chuck | 9:35:29 PM | Health care is technologically behind |
| Brian | 9:35:44 PM | And how do we fix this? |
| Brian | 9:35:56 PM | So, is he in favor of generic drugs coming to market. |
| Brian | 9:36:08 PM | That's anti-pharmaceutical corps. |
| Chuck | 9:36:12 PM | Kerry --> it's Bush's fault. |
| Brian | 9:36:20 PM | Canada issue. |
| Chuck | 9:36:24 PM | Bush against medications from Canada |
| Chuck | 9:36:43 PM | Bush against bulk purchasing of medications via Medicare. |
| Brian | 9:36:44 PM | Bulk purchasing issue as well. |
| Chuck | 9:37:12 PM | Bush gave a $139 B of your money to drug companies |
| Brian | 9:37:38 PM | Why does he get to choose a rebuttal? |
| Chuck | 9:37:53 PM | Bob gets to choose |
| Chuck | 9:38:06 PM | Kerry defends his record. |
| Brian | 9:38:09 PM | Right, but Bush interjected over him and he acquiesced. |
| Chuck | 9:38:16 PM | Bush trying not to smirk |
| Chuck | 9:38:37 PM | I gotta hand it to Kerry, he is VERY cool and collected. |
| Brian | 9:38:49 PM | Right, but maybe too cool. |
| Chuck | 9:39:00 PM | Q Kerry: how are you going to pay for all these health care promises. |
| Brian | 9:39:16 PM | I can see Bush's smirking and giggling and "folksiness" resonating very well with undecided voters. |
| Brian | 9:39:22 PM | We hate him, so it grates |
| Brian | 9:39:52 PM | But he is projecting an aura of knowledgeability even in the face of his ignorance. |
KERRY: ...Here's what I do: We take over Medicaid children from the states so that every child in America is covered. And in exchange, if the states want to -- they're not forced to, they can choose to -- they cover individuals up to 300 percent of poverty. It's their choice. | ||
| Chuck | 9:40:18 PM | Kerry giving a lot of details here. Will this confuse voters? |
| Brian | 9:40:26 PM | I think so. |
| Brian | 9:40:48 PM | Bush is going for simple and then making it appear as if Kerry is out of his mind. |
| Chuck | 9:41:11 PM | Ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. |
| Brian | 9:41:17 PM | What was that? |
| Chuck | 9:41:32 PM | Bush calls into question major news organizations analysis of his statements on Kerry's plan |
| Brian | 9:41:32 PM | He started to make a dig and then said "never mind" |
| Chuck | 9:41:48 PM | Yeah, that was deliberate |
| Brian | 9:42:02 PM | Right, but it didn't seem intelligible. |
BUSH: ...I think government-run health will lead to poor-quality health, will lead to rationing, will lead to less choice. | ||
| Chuck | 9:42:31 PM | Here comes the fear line vis-a-vis government health care. |
KERRY: The president just said that government-run health care results in poor quality. | ||
| Chuck | 9:42:47 PM | LOL! |
| Brian | 9:43:03 PM | Good response. |
| Chuck | 9:43:11 PM | Kerry THIS must be why Bush won't fund government health programs. Because the quality will go down! |
| Brian | 9:43:34 PM | Bush - we are meeting commitments. |
| Brian | 9:43:43 PM | Veterans health care is very good |
| Chuck | 9:44:06 PM | Q Bush : social security -- savings accounts will cost 1$ trillion, what happens? how? |
| Brian | 9:44:41 PM | Seniors today will get their checks. |
| Brian | 9:44:50 PM | People of the future will not. |
| Brian | 9:44:56 PM | Unless we do something. |
| Chuck | 9:44:56 PM | Basically |
| Chuck | 9:45:00 PM | yeas |
| Chuck | 9:45:24 PM | He hasn't answered the question |
| Chuck | 9:45:31 PM | WHERE IS THE ONE TRILLION COMING FROM? |
| Brian | 9:45:35 PM | Yup. |
| Brian | 9:45:52 PM | Well, it's going to come from "coming together" |
| Brian | 9:46:11 PM | Kerry - |
| Brian | 9:46:21 PM | Bush plan is an invitation to disaster. |
| Brian | 9:46:40 PM | Benefits would have to cut benefits by 25 to 40 percent |
| Chuck | 9:46:52 PM | Kerry invokes bipartisan Congressional Budet Office assessment of the Social Security savings accounts plan |
| Brian | 9:47:03 PM | Kerry points out that Bush didn't answer the question |
| Chuck | 9:47:05 PM | Kerry President is not saying where is the money coming from?? |
Q: ...Senator Kerry, you have just said you will not cut benefits. | ||
| Chuck | 9:47:55 PM | Q KERRY: Greenspan said Social Security cant pay , cut benefits, raise retirement age. How can you promise no changes? |
| Chuck | 9:48:26 PM | Kerry says that was what the surplus was supposed to be for. |
| Brian | 9:48:29 PM | Uh-oh. I think he could get dinged on that. |
| Brian | 9:48:55 PM | He is now saying that the surplus went to funding the tax cuts. |
| Chuck | 9:49:11 PM | Yes that and the war |
| Brian | 9:49:12 PM | Now Kerry is not answering the question. |
| Chuck | 9:49:39 PM | He's bringing up jobs again. |
| Brian | 9:49:47 PM | But he also said rolling back the tax cut is how he is going to pay for the new programs |
| Brian | 9:49:52 PM | Double dip. |
| Chuck | 9:50:04 PM | Unless he thinks there's enough to pay for it all. |
| Brian | 9:50:22 PM | Bush is not answering either. |
| Chuck | 9:50:31 PM | Bush: Kerry giving more of the same. He's voted to tax Social Security Bush defending tax cuts. |
| Brian | 9:50:37 PM | Bush claims that most of the tax cut went to the middle class. |
| Brian | 9:50:39 PM | Not true. |
| Chuck | 9:50:44 PM | Right |
| Brian | 9:50:44 PM | Calls tax system more fair. |
| Chuck | 9:50:50 PM | FactCheck .org |
| Brian | 9:51:22 PM | 1.9 mil jobs over 13 months. |
| Chuck | 9:51:32 PM | Kerry wanted to rebut |
| Brian | 9:51:52 PM | Please ding him on the fact that the new jobs are not even keeping pace with the people entering the work force. |
| Chuck | 9:51:56 PM | Q BUSH: immigration. 8000 people cross borders every day illegally. How do you see this, what do we do about it? |
| Brian | 9:52:06 PM | Increase border patrol. |
| Chuck | 9:52:11 PM | new equipment |
| Chuck | 9:52:15 PM | unmanned vehicles |
| Chuck | 9:52:18 PM | continue to do so |
BUSH: ...And so in order to take pressure off the borders, in order to make the borders more secure, I believe there ought to be a temporary worker card that allows a willing worker and a willing employer to mate up, so long as there's not an American willing to do that job, to join up in order to be able to fulfill the employers' needs. ... | ||
| Brian | 9:52:55 PM | Oh boy. Here comes the temp worker card. |
| Chuck | 9:53:08 PM | not familiar with this issue |
| Brian | 9:53:20 PM | Let's create a subjugated working class. Serfs essentially. |
| Brian | 9:53:48 PM | Let immigrants come in and do the lowest wage jobs. |
| Chuck | 9:54:29 PM | tax cuts disappeared into the rising costs of everything else. |
| Brian | 9:54:34 PM | Yup. |
| Brian | 9:54:51 PM | Middle class tax burden up. Wealthy down. |
| Brian | 9:55:05 PM | Cant be done. |
| Brian | 9:55:23 PM | Securing the border, that is. |
| Chuck | 9:55:32 PM | Earned legalization program. |
| Brian | 9:55:56 PM | More discrediting of Kerry. |
| Chuck | 9:56:33 PM | Kerry sticking by his claim borders not secure |
| Brian | 9:56:40 PM | Kerry's response - No. Bush is wrong. |
| Chuck | 9:56:48 PM | Q Kerry: gap growing between rich and poor |
| Brian | 9:56:56 PM | Raise min wage? |
| Chuck | 9:56:56 PM | raise minimum wage? |
| Brian | 9:57:07 PM | Kerry says yes. |
| Chuck | 9:57:10 PM | Kerry: YES. Republicans won't let us vote on it. |
| Brian | 9:57:16 PM | Republican leadership is blocking it. |
| Brian | 9:57:31 PM | Raise it to $7 per hour over time. |
| Chuck | 9:57:46 PM | Back to the tax cuts |
| Brian | 9:57:49 PM | Yup. |
KERRY: ...If we raise the minimum wage, which I will do over several years to $7 an hour, 9.2 million women who are trying to raise their families would earn another $3,800 a year. | ||
| Chuck | 9:57:59 PM | Nice one there |
| Brian | 9:58:04 PM | Bit of a jab there. |
| Chuck | 9:58:12 PM | Tired of politicians who talk family values but don't value families. |
| Brian | 9:58:19 PM | He's pandering for the women vote though. |
| Chuck | 9:59:04 PM | Bush brings it back to education. |
| Chuck | 9:59:14 PM | Go out and get educated and get a better job, dumbass. |
| Brian | 9:59:17 PM | Ah. The key to minimum wage is to work on education. |
| Chuck | 9:59:21 PM | Right |
| Brian | 9:59:40 PM | Cannot solve a problem unless you diagnose the problem. |
| Chuck | 9:59:55 PM | Don't raise minimum wage. Educate the people. |
| Brian | 10:00:12 PM | That's right. Keep the wages low for those guest workers. |
| Chuck | 10:00:23 PM | Strong to tie education to jobs |
| Chuck | 10:00:48 PM | Q BUSH: do you want to overturn roe v wade? |
| Chuck | 10:01:04 PM | GB: no litmus test for judges. Period. |
| Chuck | 10:01:38 PM | JK: Right of choice is constitutional. President wants to undo it. |
| Chuck | 10:01:47 PM | Long way to go in terms of fairness. |
| Chuck | 10:01:57 PM | Appealing to minorities. |
| Chuck | 10:02:11 PM | JK: No Child left Behind UNDERFUNDED |
| Brian | 10:02:16 PM | right |
| Chuck | 10:02:17 PM | Tie it to people on the ground in AZ |
BUSH: ...only a liberal senator from Massachusetts would say that a 49 percent increase in funding for education was not enough... | ||
| Brian | 10:03:02 PM | More with the liberal labels from W |
| Chuck | 10:03:12 PM | Bush: he is misleading you. Lots of money going in. Tossing liberal label around |
KERRY: You don't measure it by a percentage increase. Mr. President, you measure it by whether you're getting the job done. | ||
| Chuck | 10:03:31 PM | JK: percentage increase has nothing to do with it, ARE YOU GETTING THE JOB DONE? |
| Chuck | 10:03:57 PM | Inadequate funding to No Child Left Behind but big cut to the wealthy. You judge. |
| Brian | 10:04:16 PM | Any relief to the guard people and stop loss? |
| Chuck | 10:04:18 PM | Q KERRY: Is there a relief that can be offered to soldiers in field (backdoor draft)? |
| Chuck | 10:04:36 PM | JK: repeated callups & stopless indication of the bad judgment of GB |
| Chuck | 10:04:45 PM | JK: we are overextended |
| Brian | 10:05:07 PM | Kerry wants to add troops to active duty, |
| Chuck | 10:05:08 PM | JK: 90% of our military wrapped up in Iraq, add two active duty divisions, double special forces |
| Brian | 10:05:19 PM | Not saying how we will get people to enlist. |
| Chuck | 10:05:29 PM | Bring national guard home, use them HERE for homeland security |
| Brian | 10:05:39 PM | Real alliances. |
| Chuck | 10:05:47 PM | Run a foreign policy such that we are strongest when working in real alliances. |
| Brian | 10:05:49 PM | Denigrate rebuttal upcoming? |
| Chuck | 10:05:59 PM | Most likely |
| Chuck | 10:06:23 PM | President didn't pull in allies, didn't choose war as a last resort, didn't plan adequately |
BUSH: The best way to take the pressure off our troops is to succeed in Iraq, is to train Iraqis so they can do the hard work of democracy, is to give them a chance to defend their country, which is precisely what we're doing. We'll have 125,000 troops trained by the end of this year... | ||
| Chuck | 10:06:29 PM | HEH |
| Brian | 10:06:32 PM | Ah! |
| Brian | 10:06:43 PM | Best way to succeed is to win. |
| Chuck | 10:06:49 PM | Succeed in Iraq, and that will relieve our forces. |
| Chuck | 10:07:03 PM | Essentially, it is up to the troops to relieve themselves. |
| Brian | 10:07:08 PM | Morale is apparently high. |
| Chuck | 10:07:09 PM | Somehow that sounds wrong. |
BUSH: ...In our first debate he proposed America pass a global test. In order to defend ourselves, we'd have to get international approval. That's one of the major differences we have about defending our country... | ||
| Chuck | 10:07:20 PM | here comes global test BS |
| Chuck | 10:07:31 PM | misinterpreting it yet again. |
| Brian | 10:07:46 PM | In spite of clarifications subsequent. |
| Chuck | 10:08:00 PM | and here they come again |
KERRY: I have never suggested a test where we turn over our security to any nation. In fact, I've said the opposite: I will never turn the security of the United States over to any nation. No nation will ever have a veto over us. | ||
| Chuck | 10:08:23 PM | We must pass a truth standard... don't we want legitimacy? |
| Chuck | 10:08:36 PM | GB : Kerry voted against the gulf war. |
| Brian | 10:08:56 PM | Kerry needs to attack Bush in more plain language. |
| Chuck | 10:09:09 PM | Q BUSH: why wont you encourage congress to vote to for assault weapon ban |
| Brian | 10:09:16 PM | Claims he did. |
| Brian | 10:09:18 PM | Lie. |
| Chuck | 10:09:24 PM | GB: I tried to, but I was told bill wouldn't move. |
| Brian | 10:09:33 PM | Another lie. |
| Brian | 10:09:56 PM | Crack down on crimes with guns. |
| Chuck | 10:10:13 PM | Kerry identifies with hunters and gun owners |
| Brian | 10:10:14 PM | I brought my gun to church with me., |
| Brian | 10:10:23 PM | When I was an altar boy... |
| Brian | 10:10:27 PM | :-) |
KERRY: ...If Tom DeLay or someone in the House said to me, "Sorry, we don't have the votes", I'd have said, "Then we're going to have a fight". | ||
| Chuck | 10:11:11 PM | Wow |
| Chuck | 10:11:14 PM | Nice punch there |
| Chuck | 10:11:23 PM | I would have fought |
| Brian | 10:11:31 PM | Invoking Clinton. |
| Brian | 10:11:39 PM | Need for affirmative action? |
| Chuck | 10:11:42 PM | Q KERRY: do we still need affirmative action? |
| Chuck | 10:12:08 PM | JK: no regrettably, not far enough along to get rid of affirmative act. Oh and BTW, it's Bush's fault. |
| Chuck | 10:12:15 PM | He's certainly sticking to message |
| Chuck | 10:13:24 PM | JK racism still a problem. We fought to reform Affirmative Action back in 90's |
| Chuck | 10:13:53 PM | GB hasn't met with NAACP, black congressional caucus, hasn't met with civil rights folks. How can you reach out if you don't do that? |
| Brian | 10:14:14 PM | I tell you, if I wasn't commenting on this, I'd have turned it off. |
| Brian | 10:14:29 PM | Neither man is interesting. |
| Chuck | 10:14:38 PM | GB: that's not true, I met with black congressional caucus at the white house. Quotas are bad, back to education. Affirmative Action is improving education for the poor. |
| Brian | 10:14:39 PM | Again with education. |
| Chuck | 10:15:05 PM | yes |
| Chuck | 10:15:09 PM | ownership society |
| Brian | 10:15:43 PM | Oooooh. Faith questions. |
| Chuck | 10:15:45 PM | Q BUSH: how does faith play in your decisions? |
| Brian | 10:16:00 PM | Faith is personal. Bull! |
| Chuck | 10:16:05 PM | GB: I pray a lot. My faith is very personal. I pray for strength, wisdom, family, for the troops. |
| Chuck | 10:16:18 PM | But people should worship as they want to or not. |
| Chuck | 10:16:30 PM | Freedom of religion. |
| Chuck | 10:16:37 PM | Pray and religion sustain me. |
| Chuck | 10:17:14 PM | armies of compassion? |
| Chuck | 10:17:22 PM | AH. Faith based initiatives. |
| Chuck | 10:17:38 PM | Freedom on the march again. |
| Brian | 10:17:40 PM | God wants people to be free. |
| Brian | 10:18:12 PM | LOL |
| Brian | 10:18:21 PM | Native American blessings. |
| Chuck | 10:18:32 PM | JK: Love the lord, and love your neighbor |
| Chuck | 10:18:43 PM | JK: We have a lot more loving of our neighbor to do |
| Brian | 10:18:51 PM | Haves vs. have nots. |
| Chuck | 10:19:00 PM | Unequal school system. One for people who have and one who have not. |
| Chuck | 10:19:22 PM | Kerry clearer on respect to atheists. |
| Brian | 10:20:03 PM | And clearer in showing how faith can work for the good of the country. |
| Chuck | 10:19:46 PM | Q KERRY: our unity after 9/11 has melted away. Will you set a priority on bringing us back together? |
| Chuck | 10:20:26 PM | JK --> President did a terrific job right after 9/11 did a great job uniting then |
| Chuck | 10:20:29 PM | but not anymore |
| Brian | 10:21:09 PM | Kerry tries to find the common ground. |
KERRY: ...And if Americans trust me with the presidency, I can pledge to you, we will have the most significant effort, openly -- not secret meetings in the White House with special interests, not ideologically driven efforts to push people aside -- but a genuine effort to try to restore America's hope and possibilities by bringing people together... | ||
| Chuck | 10:21:29 PM | JK: I have tried to find the common ground. Most significant effort (openly, not secret, not ideologically driven) |
| Chuck | 10:21:45 PM | Campaign finance reform with John McCaine. |
| Brian | 10:21:45 PM | Mentioned his friend McCain three times. |
| Chuck | 10:22:14 PM | Yes |
| Chuck | 10:22:22 PM | Bush, No Child Left Behind reached out to Democrats. |
| Brian | 10:22:22 PM | interesting. Now Bush is invoking Ted Kennedy. |
| Chuck | 10:22:53 PM | Yeah, 10 minutes ago it was the lib from MA, and now it's I wanted to work with Kennedy. |
| Brian | 10:23:24 PM | Kerry should have gotten to rebut that one. |
| Chuck | 10:23:46 PM | Last Question: what is most important thing u have learned from strong women in your life? |
| Brian | 10:23:40 PM | Fluff question. |
| Brian | 10:23:45 PM | What a waste to end the debate. |
BUSH: To listen to them. (LAUGHTER) To stand up straight and not scowl. (LAUGHTER) | ||
| Chuck | 10:23:58 PM | GB: stand up straight, don't scowl, listen to them |
| Chuck | 10:24:09 PM | love my wife and daughters. |
| Brian | 10:24:24 PM | So, he broke his word to his wife. |
| Chuck | 10:24:37 PM | wife campaigns for me, she speaks English better than I do. |
| Chuck | 10:24:47 PM | This makes him look humble. |
| Brian | 10:24:50 PM | Met my wife at a barbecue. |
| Brian | 10:24:57 PM | *Hurk!* |
| Chuck | 10:25:08 PM | Recounting how he met his wife. |
KERRY: Well, I guess the president and you and I are three examples of lucky people who married up. (LAUGHTER) And some would say maybe me moreso than others. (LAUGHTER) But I can take it. (LAUGHTER) | ||
| Chuck | 10:25:25 PM | JK joking about Theresa's wealth |
| Brian | 10:25:32 PM | Kerry being surprisingly human |
| Chuck | 10:25:44 PM | Well it is a personal question |
| Brian | 10:25:45 PM | Also mentioned his Mom |
| Chuck | 10:26:35 PM | closing compliment to bush' |
| Chuck | 10:26:37 PM | interesting |
| Chuck | 10:26:44 PM | Closing statements. |
| Brian | 10:26:47 PM | Why does Kerry have to close first every time? |
| Chuck | 10:26:53 PM | probably the deal |
| Brian | 10:27:02 PM | He ought to get the last word once. |
| Chuck | 10:27:28 PM | JK --> we are divided. We need to work together. We CAN do better. |
| Chuck | 10:27:46 PM | JK --> I will not allow a country to have a veto over our security |
| Chuck | 10:27:53 PM | JK is invoking EVERYTHING |
| Chuck | 10:28:01 PM | veterans, Vietnam, fait |
| Chuck | 10:28:04 PM | faith |
| Brian | 10:28:06 PM | Major pandering response. |
| Chuck | 10:28:25 PM | I think he looks almost noble. Now Bush's turn. |
| Chuck | 10:29:10 PM | GB --> invoking optimism |
| Chuck | 10:29:50 PM | armies of compassion again |
| Brian | 10:29:53 PM | Yup. |
| Brian | 10:29:57 PM | Firm resolve. |
| Chuck | 10:30:00 PM | never waver |
| Brian | 10:30:02 PM | Never waver. |
| Chuck | 10:30:03 PM | interesting |
| Brian | 10:30:04 PM | LOL |
| Chuck | 10:30:15 PM | We haven't heard him mention mixed messages and wavering this time |
| Brian | 10:30:16 PM | Spread freedom and liberty. |
| Brian | 10:30:19 PM | Nope. |
| Chuck | 10:30:21 PM | Public is tired of hearing it. |
| Brian | 10:30:26 PM | Played that card out. |
| Chuck | 10:30:32 PM | Interesting debate |
| Brian | 10:30:38 PM | Boring debate. |
| Brian | 10:30:59 PM | Kerry didn't counterpunch where he needed to |
| Chuck | 10:31:06 PM | a mostly positive closing for both candidates... |
| Brian | 10:31:11 PM | Yup. |
| Chuck | 10:31:13 PM | less fireworks at the end |
| Brian | 10:31:47 PM | Not sure why the timber company didn't come up again. |
| Chuck | 10:32:00 PM | too obscure for the average viewer? |
| Brian | 10:32:18 PM | But it would have been an opportunity to point out how Bush had lied. |
| Chuck | 10:33:10 PM | Okay, I'm not watching the spin room. Shutting off TV. |
| Brian | 10:33:16 PM | Righto. |
| Chuck | 10:33:24 PM | Callin commentary usually pisses me off anyway. |
| Brian | 10:33:31 PM | Yup. |
| Chuck | 10:33:32 PM | So, first impression. Clear winner? |
| Brian | 10:33:36 PM | No. |
| Chuck | 10:33:39 PM | I agree |
| Chuck | 10:33:45 PM | The debate was pretty even. |
| Brian | 10:33:51 PM | This is the first one I really felt was a draw. |
| Chuck | 10:34:09 PM | I felt that Bush did a much better job of controlling his emotions and not allowing himself to look like a moron. |
| Brian | 10:34:13 PM | Yup. |
| Chuck | 10:34:27 PM | it was unusual to see him look presidential, that can only help him |
| Chuck | 10:34:38 PM | Kerry's performance was very smooth |
| Brian | 10:34:42 PM | I think he went back to being more folksy. |
| Brian | 10:34:48 PM | Bush did. |
| Chuck | 10:34:45 PM | I didn't notice any flubs. Did you? |
| Brian | 10:34:50 PM | Nope. |
| Chuck | 10:34:51 PM | Right |
| Chuck | 10:34:57 PM | At times he did |
| Chuck | 10:35:06 PM | That personal question I think helped Kerry |
| Brian | 10:35:12 PM | Yes. |
| Chuck | 10:35:13 PM | It made him seem more personable. |
| Brian | 10:35:18 PM | Absolutely. |
| Chuck | 10:36:42 PM | However all the answers are in conflict (no surprise) and nothing new was said (no surprise there either). The candidates should have by now communicated their positions. |
| Brian | 10:36:52 PM | Yup. |
| Chuck | 10:38:52 PM | No clear winner, I agree. And the opinion of the wingnuts will be that Bush won because he didn't act like an ass. |
| Brian | 10:39:33 PM | it's sad that we have such lowered expectations of our commander |
| Chuck | 10:39:37 PM | Right |
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