And a mere 250 people show up... and that's the press report of the crowd size.
4 years ago, there were 80,000 of us out on the street to see the Massachusetts Senator. I'd have gone out and gotten some pictures for you today, like I did back then, but I had a class. I'd have gone, otherwise. The absence of a crowd is interesting too.
I think there would be enthusiasm if Obama himself came to town, but, really, things are calm here. I don't hear much talk about the election. I don't see many yard signs, buttons, and bumper stickers, oddly enough. Sometimes, I see cars with just an old Kerry sticker or an old Feingold sticker... and no Obama sticker. Not that I think Wisconsin won't go for Obama, just that things are very low key.
October 14, 2008
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Hey, I was just in Madison two days ago and saw nothing but Obama signs. Literally not a McCain sign--and I was looking for one.
Nice city, Madison, a very fortunate place, but it has a feel of living in a bubble.
The signs that there are are for Obama not McCain, but there are very few signs.
I live in Cuyahoga County, Ohio (the Greater Cleveland area). It's pretty heavily Democrat. I see Obama signs everywhere. I see cars with not just one Obama sticker, but plastered with Obama stuff.
McCain and Palin came to the West Side of Cleveland last week and were greeted by an enthusiastic crowd. But, really, my neck of the woods is very energized about voting Obama. I see odd things, too. Like, murals of Obama around town. Which maybe is a little disturbing, like maybe people are TOO into him.
I live in the eastern suburbia of Cleveland and the only area near me with a high number of McCain signs is an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood.
I think my city is so messed up in every which way that they desperately want new blod in Washington. I'm not sure it'll make much difference for Cleveland. Cleveland keeps elected the same old crooks at the local level, and the FBI has been raiding the residences of our county commissioners and judges and so forth. All of whom are Democrats, But yeah, I see a lot of enthusiasm for Obama here, and I guess its rubbed ff on me to some extent as I am voting for Obama even though I'm not a Democrat like most of my neighbors are.
new blod=new blood
I love the Kerry remark (below) during the "don't tase me bro incident." I swear Kerry's still got the presidency on his brain.
Cop: "PUT YOUR HANDS BEHIND YOUR BACK! OR YOU WILL BE TASED!"
Meyer: "GET OFF ME!!! I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! ... HELP ME! HELP ME! HELP!
Copwoman: "Stop resisting or you WILL BE TASED!"
Meyer: "... If you let me go, I'll walk out of here..."
Cop: "YOU DON'T HAVE AN OPTION"
Copwoman: "DO IT NOW! DO IT NOW!"
Kerry: "I'll answer his question. Unfortunately, he's not available to come up here and swear me in as president. Let me just say that since it's a very important question..."
Meyer: "Why are they arresting me? Can someone do something here? I'm being arrested. What did I do!?! GET OFF ME! ... Get the fuck of me, man! I didn't do anything! ... Don't tase me, bro! Don't tase me! I didn't do anything!"
Taser: BzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBzBz
Meyer: OW! OWWw! OWWw! OW! OWw! OWwwwww! OWwwwww! Let meee gooo. NO... LET ME GO.
Token Shorty: "NO! NO! STOP!"
Cop: "Get back now!"
Token Shorty: "WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT!?!? WHY?!?!"
Meyer: "Owwww... Ow... Let me go... What did I do? WHAT DID I DO? WHAT DID I DO?"
Nasaly Nerd: "POLICE BRUTALITY! ... Police brutality! Rodney King."
NC is actually in play this election, plus there's Senator, Governor, and state/local government battles, so TV has more election ads than non-election ads. Thank God for mute. More Obama car stickers than yard signs, reserve for McCain.
Palin will be at Elon U. (5 miles from me) on Thursday, but the county Rep. party doesn't have any required tickets to hand out.
Heh - funny going back to read the update on your old post. Even back then the left were calling you a nazi for failing to tow their line precisely as they wanted. Things never change.
Ann Althouse said...
"The signs that there are [in Madison] are for Obama not McCain, but there are very few signs."
Is that because they don't feel the need to communicate who they're voting for, it's just presupposed?
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds flying in midair, "Come, gather together for the great supper of God, so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and mighty men, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, small and great."
Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous SIGNS on his behalf. With these SIGNS he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. The rest of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.
Revelations 19:11-21
Sarah'll be drivin' six white horses when she comes.
As to number of signs, I guess it depends on what you are used to. I made my trek to Madison from Sturgeon Bay, where the main signage is "Real Estate for Sale." The "For Sale" sign is pretty much the dominant one in Beaufort, SC, where I spend the winter. Not that there aren't for sale signs in Madison, but it seems like there are a lot less.
The world is upside down. Affluent, fortunate Madison is reliably liberal. Beaufort and Sturgeon Bay, far less prosperous, are much more conservative.
I did quite a bit of business in Madison from about 1975-85. Man has the place come a long way since then.
John Kerry comes to Madison to promote Barack Obama.
There's hope for McCain yet! :)
Simon, one "toes the line," not "tows the line."
Two nations, divided by a common language and all that.
The only chance for McCain - more John Kerry.
yep. Remember when Kerry almost cost the Dems the midterms?
LoafingOaf said...I see odd things, too. Like, murals of Obama around town. Which maybe is a little disturbing, like maybe people are TOO into him.
You just noticed that? Where the f*** have you been for the past couple of years? Our Lord and Savior walks among us!!
I live in the eastern suburbia of Cleveland and the only area near me with a high number of McCain signs is an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood.
Get ready for even more.
Geee ... it looks like Dems are embarassed by Kerry now. That makes their choice of Obama even stranger, because Obama is very much a version of Kerry updated for today: as much arrogant smooth talking empty pot with no real credits, except doing pretty well for themselves.
I think I've noticed, just in the past week or so, a lull in enthusiasm in friends and family members who are Obama supporters. Is it because the campaign has been so damn long? Is it the economic crisis? Is it because they know they're about to buy a pig in a poke and now that it seems inevitable, they're having some kind of pre-buyer's remorse?
None of them are able to tell me what specific change they expect Obama to bring about. He isn't Bush, that's about it. Obama isn't ready, I suggest to them, he isn't fully baked. And although they know they don't want McCain and especially don't want Palin, they tend to agree with me - Obama, the man, isn't quite up to the job.
Sort of like Jimmy Carter wasn't up to the job.
Peter, you're right, and damned if Amba didn't correct me on that the other day, too. The stupid thing is that I know it's to toe the line, I just can't seem to type it lately, for some reason!
I'm so mad about the poll numbers I can't even type straight. ;)
Simon, perhaps some "poll dancing" is in order!
Obama's incident with the Plumber today was quite telling.
The guy was not impressed. Said he wanted to decide what to do with his money, not let Obama redistribute it to the ACORN types (I'm extrapolating) - said he could put a few more guys to work, a few more trucks out there - wasn't pleased with Obama at all.
Revelations.
Who is the Republican equivalent of John Kerry? Not the 'failed candidate' as much as the 'irrelevant and annoying surrogate'...
Danny, I'll vote for Jack Kemp but there are many others.
Yards signs with McCain are just asking for trouble. A story today in the paper about a 73 year old man with two McCain signs. Woke up in the morning and they had been replaced with Obama signs. And that's a mild example. Bumper sticker, no freakin way.
Perhaps Fred Thompson could fit that description.
Funny. Dems are "embarassed by Kerry now." (That's the one who almost beat Bush in 2004, yes?)
And, there's "a lull in enthusiasm in friends and family members who are Obama supporters." And "Obama is very much a version of Kerry updated for today: as much arrogant smooth talking empty pot with no real credits, except doing pretty well for themselves."
This is what double-digit leads for Obama in WI, MI, and MN inspire? Not to mention leads in OH, PA, FL, MO, NC, VA...
Yeah, I'm feeling that same thing, guys. Uh huh.
Today I was reading a food blog that's written in an irreverent voice and with nice photos, called "I'm Mad and I Eat." The author calls her(?) significant other Grumpy. Doesn't get many commenters, no link because the author discouraged me about the inherent loveliness of humanity. I was interested in every post, following all the links and spending time exploring those as well, then returning to I'm Mad and I Eat. Finally get to the bottom of the page where there are two regrettable and utterly incongruous posts on Palin that elicited twenty comments each and were all depressingly vile. It made me feel like running away, or like I had accidentally slipped into a sewer. The comments were all women commenting on Palin and they were all awful and vicious. Made me sad.
That's because people only came to see him because he was the Democratic nominee. Other than that, he's Senator nobody.
I bet a lot more people would have gone to see Obama 4 years ago, because even then it was clear he wasn't the nonentity that Kerry was.
Kerry is subject to gaffes, so likely they sent him to hide in Wisconsin because if he said something that would make headlines it is less likely to be noticed there than in a place that is really on the front lines of the election right now like Missouri or North Carolina.
There's enormous interest in the election here in southeastern Ohio, a rural/small town Appalachian area. My guess is that the vote is fairly evenly split here, with a slight advantage to Obama.
We also saw evidence of huge interest in the race while we were in Philadelphia on Thursday through Sunday. Obama seems to enjoy a huge advantage there overall and a slight advantage even in some of the upper income suburbs we saw.
As to Kerry, for good or ill, he's yesterday's news. It's unthinkable in today's political world that a person could be renominated as were Dems in bygone eras: Grover Cleveland (nominated three times) William Jennings Bryan (nominated three times), and Adlai Stevenson (nominated twice). Lose an election and, even if you nearly won, you're tagged as a loser.
Besides, with the interminable and hypermediated campaigns we have these days, people grow weary of Presidents and would-be Presidents. Overexposure throws you up and down the pop charts in a hurry.
Yahoo!
Former Ambassador under President Clinton, Mark Erwin, is endorsing John McCain for President.
Sen. Obama does not yet have sufficient leadership experience. He has never led so much as a Boy Scout troop. I am not comfortable thinking of him as the leader of the greatest nation on earth as his first real executive job. In 2007, his running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, said, “I think he can be ready, but right now I don’t believe he is. The presidency is not something that lends itself to on-the-job training.”
***
100-Plus Former Ambassadors Endorse McCain
More than 100 former American ambassadors are endorsing John McCain and Sarah Palin for president and vice president.
But don't get happy - New 8th Grade English Textbooks Now Contain 15 Page Section on Obama! (No Hillary, No McCain, No Palin, No Bush)
Obama's doing more than picking out the drapes...
Think about that: the front lines of the election right now are in places like Missouri and North Carolina.
Bush won both of these states overwhelmingly in 2000 and 2004.
Red is turning blue all over.
Obviously this means Obama is a failure.
I am watching Hannibal right now.
That was a fabulous movie.
The music was incredible.
Cleveland is a messed up city. I went there for business recently and the city is dead. How sad. A big northern city bordered up. I hate to see that.
Thankfully, the bath house was hopping.
I hate to see cities that are barron during the weekends. There is nothing more depressing.
I want to see cities alive with street life.
I wish America had a "Manchester, England city"
A large industrial city filled with people. Blue collar people. But that has been gone and it is very sad.
And Pittsburgh doesn't count.
The Ohio bike commuting yard sign count stands at Obama 4, McCain 15.
John Kerry comes to Madison to promote Barack Obama.
And a mere 250 people show up... and that's the press report of the crowd size
I can't imagine anything more boring than a John (Reporting for Dooty) Kerry pep talk. Unless it was Biden asking one of his 25 minute questions at a confirmation hearing.
I wonder about how many people a Bush visit would draw? Cheney perhaps?
It's all relative.
Kerry thinks his words are being recorded for posterity, so he's careful to say only statesmanlike things.
Mostly this involves conjunctions.
I am happy to welcome the citizens and people of Madison.
HDH - in Madison? Closer to 80,000 than 250, I would think. Of course, 79,000 of them would be protesters demanding they be jailed, but still...
John F. Kerry. Did you know he was in Viet Nam?
Johnny, we hardly knew ye.
I wonder about how many people a Bush visit would draw? Cheney perhaps?
hdhouse you miss the point. Madison is a liberal stronghold, a bastion of progressive thought if you will. If Kerry can't draw more than 250 people for the Obama rapture, it certainly explains why Bush won his second term.
John F. Kerry. Did you know he was in Viet Nam?
Of course. It's seared, seared in my memory.
So I guess 79,750 of you guys feel really stupid for going out to see Lerch, huh? I would have paid money to hear that windbag think up excuses for his current complete deficit of any cache in a liberal college town.
Trey
As I noted in that other long thread, the "rally" was at the Capitol, and I watched some of it while eating at the top of State Street. I'd say more than 10% of the people there -- maybe 20% -- were holding McCain signs.
I don't see that many yard signs for President -- certainly there are more for the County Board race in my neighborhood (but many of my neighbors actually know one of the candidates, so that might explain things). But I see McCain signs around town. David, you must've been on the fashionable east side.
Trey, I'd say a majority of the people in '04 went to see Bruce, not Kerry.
The Apostle John doesn't draw a crowd like the Obamessiah does now that his identity has become known. Let his thousand year reign begin.
There aren't many yard signs or bumper stickers in Baton Rouge Louisiana either and on a trip to the beach in Florida I saw two Obama stickers and two McCain/Palin stickers.
What is going on?
Rose reported:
"Sen. Obama ...has never led so much as a Boy Scout troop"
That is the best line of the election season. Think about the irony of it also. Millions of Americans volunteer for NO PAY and coach youth sports, lead boy scouts/ girl scouts, and then pols ask us to do MANDATORY community service.
Yet many of these same pols (i.e. Obama) have never done any community service unless they were being paid. Did Obama ever even coach a kid's basketball team for free?
Not living in a swing state has its advantages. Whenever coworkers or friends get too fired up about the election, I just remind them that Texas is going for McCain, so there's no point in fighting with people on the other side of the aisle. That usually helps calm people down.
I believe McCain was making a lot of progress in the polls before he selected Palin
I know people who believe in Bigfoot too.
McCain was barely treading water in the polls until he picked Palin. If you think she hurt him among conservatives you're mistaken.
Did Obama ever even coach a kid's basketball team for free?
No but I am sure he organized someone else to do it.
McCain earned three letters in high school, playing football, tennis, and wrestling.
Palin, the barracuda, basketball.
Obama played JV basketball. (Unclear whether he played varsity.) He did not play in college. The NYT reports he is "a wily player of pickup basketball, the version of the game with unspoken rules, no referee and lots of elbows."
McCain boxed at Annapolis. "What he lacked in skill he made up for in ferocity." Here's an article about him at the Naval Academy. Hijinks, and he did things like defend a Filipino steward from an upperclassman bully.
One candidate had a completely undisciplined college career, giving up on organized sports, changing schools, getting high a lot, and hanging out with oddballs. The other man lived up to the expectations of his father and grandfather and made it the through one of the toughest academic college programs in the world, one designed to build character, teach leadership under stress, and instill a sense of duty to country and, if necessary, fight to the death.
McCain will win.
One of his ancestors John Young, a captain in the Virginia Militia, served on Washington's staff, receiving his commission in 1775.
He is living up to other expectations as well.
MadisonMan wrote: "Trey, I'd say a majority of the people in '04 went to see Bruce, not Kerry."
Ohhhhhhhhhh.
Never mind.
Seriously, I would have been there to see Bruce! My wife and I saw him a couple of months ago, first time for both of us. I immediately started a Bossfrontrow fund.
Thanks for the important bit of info!
Trey
250? That was a good draw for McCain before he chose Miss Wasilla.
250? That was a good draw for McCain before he chose Miss Wasilla
LMAO Doyle! Leave it to a bitter lefty to cling to their dreams when reality so rudely intrudes.
John Kerry comes to Madison to promote Barack Obama.
Barack Obama comes to Madison to promote John Kerry.
John Madison comes to Kerry to promote Barack Obama.
Kerry Madison comes to John to promote Barack Obama.
John Obama comes to Barack to promote Madison Kerry.
Barack Kerry comes to Obama to promote John Madison.
John Promote comes to Barack Obama to Madison Kerry.
Kerry Obama to John Barack comes to Promote Madison.
To Obama Kerry promote to comes Barack John Madison.
Comes Madison to to Kerry Obama John Barack promote.
To to John promote comes Madison Obama Barack Kerry.
Promote Barack. Kerry to John Madison Obama comes to
Jhon Kerry comes to Miasdon to poormte Braack Ombaa.
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One candidate had a completely undisciplined college career
Yes, John McCain. By report of his classmates, he completely blew off his math and engineering coursework (which constituted more than half the program). Where he excelled was in the accumulation of demerits, again showing his lack of discipline in such basic matters as keeping his quarters clean, shining his shoes, and showing up on time.
From McCain's profile by the Arizona Republic:
McCain's bio in the academy yearbook said it all:
"Sturdy conversationalist and party man. John's quick wit and clever sarcasm made him a welcome man at any gathering. His bouts with the academic and executive departments contributed much to the stockpiles of legends within the hall."
In contrast to party animal, responsibility blowoff McCain, Obama shouldered his academic responsibilities and succeeded, doing well enough at Occidental to transfer to Columbia. Then he did well enough at Columbia to get into to Harvard Law School, then did well enough at Harvard Law to graduate in the top ten percent of his class.
You want to know what the most interesting thing about this post is:
" ... and that's the press report of the crowd size."
I used to be a newspaper reporter, and so I know a little something about how the press uses crowd size to push an agenda.
If you want your topic of the day to seem popular, you report a large crowd size; and if you wanted to demonstrate the paltry crowd attracted by the Republican candidate, well then you'd run a picture of the 12 people who showed up.
A picture is worth a thousand words.
"But wait," our critics would say. "Why don't you just run a picture all the time?"
Well, for space considerations. Newspaper is expensive, we only have so many column inches and other newsworthy things were happening that day!
It was always such a handy excuse.
But you know what? It's no longer handy. Pixels are free. YouTube will host your video without charge. There is simply no excuse any longer for any reporter to ever need to estimate a crowd size, since they could always just show the pictures or run the video, and let us be the judge.
But they'll never do that.
And it's why they're doomed.
Both parties charge for yard signs now. This may account for a little of the good taste we have been witnessing.
Both parties charge for yard signs now. This may account for a little of the good taste we have been witnessing.
Well, I saw the crowd, and I'd say 250 was about right for an estimate.
We're apparently getting a yard sign today, btw, courtesy of my in-laws. I'm so thrilled.
FLS: "he did well enough at Columbia to get into to Harvard Law School, then did well enough at Harvard Law to graduate in the top ten percent of his class.
Has Obama released his academic record? I'm unaware if he has done so. What reason would he have to hide his record?
Since he's accomplished so little -in terms of actual, accountable responsiblity - the fact voters are not getting a true vetting of his past by the MSM is very dangerous. Given there's little else to judge him on, his alliances and allegiances take on even more importance.
So far, I don't like what I know about Obama. I see a huge increase in the role of the federal government, large tax increases, greater dependency and lower productivity. Awful.
"The world is upside down. Affluent, fortunate Madison is reliably liberal."
All of the affluence and fortune in Madison is tax money transferred there from the productive parts of Wisconsin.
No surprise.
Madison is not that affluent.
The east side of the city is a total dump.
The houses on the east side are disgusting.
I am horny.
Also the north side and south side of Madison are total dumps.
I don't know is "South Town" is still there but that mall is one of the most depressing malls I have been to and I hate malls.
Re: The lack of yard signs
If Madison is not in play, the local campaign headquarters are probably out of signs. I live in a solidly red area. Both the McCain and Obama campaigns barely supplied any signs and bumper stickers because both thought it a waste of campaign resources.
So now if people want those things, they have to go on the Internet and order them, and that also means that they have to pay for them rather than get them for free. People aren't as likely to do that.
Doyle said...
"250? That was a good draw for McCain before he chose Miss Wasilla."
Yep. That was the point I was making either here or commenting on another post - Palin is the only thing that sustained McCain's viability this long. If he'd picked someone else, his campaign would have been over by September 1st. It seemed the obvious thing to do at the time, and with the benefit of hindsight, it was obviously the right thing to do. If it didn't do enough - well, the dems had a lot of inertia and white guilt. Tough to beat that.
Simon's right, without Palin this election would've been over by now. Actually, Romney would probably be backstabbing the Mac campaign right now if he were the VP. It's also interesting that in Scranton, PA, Sarah got twice as many people to come out for her (6k) than Biden/H. Clinton/B. Clinton did (3k). And that's Biden's hometown. I wonder if the Palin turnout on election day is a sleeper issue.
I think this post is also interesting on another note. Look how quickly the dems dumped Kerry after he lost. I bet you if Obama does lose, the dems will dump their former messiah asap in a heat of rage.
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