The Total Eclipse of John McCain

Written by: Thomas Janowski on Sep 7, 2008 10:08 AM EDT

Linked to groups: dfaROCHESTER

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

I'm confused. Is John McCain still running for something? Is he still a candidate?

I'm not sure whether it was predicted or intended, but John McCain forced himself into the shadows by selecting Sarah Palin as his VP. And now if the average citizen/voter wants to point fingers and label someone a celebrity, they would be pointing directly at Sarah Palin. There's a huge difference between the celebrity of Barack Obama and Palin. Obama has much more of a "Beatles" appeal--he makes people feel good because he gives them hope. Sarah Palin's celebrity is much more in the vein of Brittney, Lindsey or any of the other bad girls of Hollywood. Palin's celebrity is born out of internet rumours about her pregnancy, her daughter's pregnancy and more important issues such as library book censorship and the investigation surrounding what she attempted to do to her brother-in-law--all these things are more bad than good.

The thing is she was totally unknown less than 2 weeks ago and now she's on the cover of every "fluff" magazine--while experts claim "she's not ready" for real news media interviews. Poor John McCain--he's gone and forgotten. Even more sad for the rest of us is how the focus is gone from the real issues. I mean are there really that many women who already want "Sarah Palin" rimless glasses? Just like those glasses, Palin is hopefully nothing more than a passing fad.

But even more alarming is the strange intangible feeling that this campaign is now about Obama vs. Palin. Citizens and the media have decided to compare Obama to Palin instead of Biden to Palin. I guess it makes for a better story. And I'm guilty of getting caught up in that sort of thing as well. But it is time to put the focus back where it belongs. It's time to bring poor John McCain out of the darkness.

It's time to start asking why John McCain picked such a poor excuse for a VP candidate.

It's time for independent voters along with progressive Democrats to keep this campaign on track by pointing out the stark contrasts between Obama/Biden and McCain/Palin. The questions are simple. The answers are even easier.

Do we want an America where all people are equal? Obama/Biden is the answer.

Do women want to protect their right to choose options regarding their bodies? Obama/Biden is the answer.

Do we want an America that looks to a future of cleaner air and energy independence based on a new economy of alternative, non-fossil fuel, energy sources? Obama/Biden is the answer.

Do we want an America that censors library books? McCain/Palin is the answer.

Do women want the Republicans deciding what they can and cannot do with their bodies? McCain/Palin is the answer.

Do we want an America, like the past 8 years, that continues to deny science and global warming? McCain/Palin is the answer.

I'm not sure how to explain how or why McCain has allowed the extremist ideas of Sarah Palin to take over his campaign. I guess it is just another example of his bad judgement.

John McCain exhibited a total lack of judgement when he selected Sarah Palin as VP. Together, McCain and Palin stand for the wrong direction for this country. McCain isn't about change. McCain will start off as another Bush term and then use Sarah Palin to head into what can only be called an even more extremist conservative direction.

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