Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Day Two
Arnold was good. Said all the right things, but mostly talked about himself. Laura was pretty boring and straightforward. She used the new template for political speeches... theme--personal example---personal example--relate to candidate---repeat theme.
The Bush girls also spoke, they were way too rehearsed and I think drunk (but that's just playing the odds).
The most interesting speaker was Maryland Lt. Governor Michael Steele. He was portrayed as the Republican Barak Obama (apparently because he's black) and he even took a couple of swipes at the Democratic Senatorial nominee. He made fun of the Democrats as being the party that promises hope, as if that was a bad thing. He used it to insinuate that the Dems have no plans, they're just offering empty hope. The Republicans, meanwhile, offer no hope, just plans.
He also named his three heroes....Frederick Douglas (good one) Martin Luther King (big fan) and Ronald Reagan (say whosawhatits?). He proceeded to hold them all up at fighters for equality. I guess two out of three isn't bad.
He then pointed at the Republican party as the party that fought for the civil rights movement. Ok, that's just wrong. Most Republicans were not fans at the time (in fact most Americans weren't he biggest of fans to begin with) and even some Democrats fought against it (though they were the Dixie-crats all later to become Republicans). It was a fine speech, but it just was a bit absurd. Of course, no one really questioned him about it, but they really should have.
On a final note, day two also saw the unveiling of the band-aids with purple hearts on them. Admittedly, with Kerry making his military service an issue some things can be questioned, but to me they seem like an affront to anyone who was ever awarded the purple heart. There are some things you just don't make fun of, that's probably one of them. And for those who wonder there have been more than 25,000 wounded in Iraq. Most will probably get the heart. Seems a bit hypocritical to talk about how much you support the troops only to make fun of something so important to them.
The Bush girls also spoke, they were way too rehearsed and I think drunk (but that's just playing the odds).
The most interesting speaker was Maryland Lt. Governor Michael Steele. He was portrayed as the Republican Barak Obama (apparently because he's black) and he even took a couple of swipes at the Democratic Senatorial nominee. He made fun of the Democrats as being the party that promises hope, as if that was a bad thing. He used it to insinuate that the Dems have no plans, they're just offering empty hope. The Republicans, meanwhile, offer no hope, just plans.
He also named his three heroes....Frederick Douglas (good one) Martin Luther King (big fan) and Ronald Reagan (say whosawhatits?). He proceeded to hold them all up at fighters for equality. I guess two out of three isn't bad.
He then pointed at the Republican party as the party that fought for the civil rights movement. Ok, that's just wrong. Most Republicans were not fans at the time (in fact most Americans weren't he biggest of fans to begin with) and even some Democrats fought against it (though they were the Dixie-crats all later to become Republicans). It was a fine speech, but it just was a bit absurd. Of course, no one really questioned him about it, but they really should have.
On a final note, day two also saw the unveiling of the band-aids with purple hearts on them. Admittedly, with Kerry making his military service an issue some things can be questioned, but to me they seem like an affront to anyone who was ever awarded the purple heart. There are some things you just don't make fun of, that's probably one of them. And for those who wonder there have been more than 25,000 wounded in Iraq. Most will probably get the heart. Seems a bit hypocritical to talk about how much you support the troops only to make fun of something so important to them.
