Republicans and Role Models, oh my

[Eamonn]

As someone who watches American politics from the side lines. Seeing what the Republicans are going through has been great entertainment.

I keep hearing how bad things are and that the economy is in the toilet but still there seems to be a lot of money out there for these guys to attack each other and call each other nasty names.

Back in the day, when I was a young man living in England. Supporters of the Labour Party were depicted as working class, cloth cap wearing, union card carrying guys who wanted to change things and make life better for the working class. On the other side of the aisle were the conservatives, the upper class, bowler hat wearing guys who sounded like they had a mouth full of pebbles when they spoke. These guys wanted to give the impression that they knew best, knew their way around finances.

Neither was really true but both made life a little easier for political cartoonists.

In past American Presidential Elections the word values has been brandished around a lot.

Under the heading of values, just about any and everything seems to be fair play.

When it comes down to selecting a president? I'm not so sure that people are really worried a role model.

While of course America is America and not Europe. Still if we look at some of the European presidents, we see presidents from France and Italy who might seem better suited to leading Playboy Magazine than leading a country.

Turn the clock back a few decades and it seems that there were places that the press didn't seem comfortable with going and things that the press was OK with turning a blind eye too. That doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

Like it or not everyone has flaws.

What flaws are OK? Or which are just unacceptable, tends to change over time.

I went to see the movie Iron Lady yesterday. While Maggie was never one of my choices. Who would have ever thought that the English of all people would ever elect a female Prime Minister? Back then being a female was seen a flaw. On the same hand who ever thought that th Americans would ever elect a black African American as president?

But when it comes to being a role model? Maggie and Obama are wonderful role models, one for women all over the world and the other for ethnic groups.

I think each of us has our own values and our own prejudices.

It might be that the most qualified candidate has or does something that maybe as an individual we just are unable to get past?

It seems to me that here in th USA that a lot of the baggage is not as big as it once was. Still I'm not sure if there are still some things that a lot of people might have problems with.

A gay president? A Muslim president?

Maybe the election of a president in some way reflects the morale feeling of the country? Maybe it in some ways reflects the values of the country?

Or maybe even in these tough times it'd just become a race where the guy with the biggest piggy bank wins?

Ea.

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

Time to take a political quiz:

 

http://www.supervillainornewt.com

[Papadaddy]

Well, I used to think values were important, but my liberal Democrat friends have convinced me otherwise. With their wild, unflinching support of the likes of Ted Kennedy, Charlie Rangel, Bill "Ididnothavesexwiththatwomanmonicalewinsky" Clinton, and Obama, whose past we know NOTHING about, (other than he hung out with Bill Ayres and Rev Wright), I am convinced that past sins are not important. It's all about what is best for the country going forward. With that, I will vote for whomever is running against Obama. I frankly don't care how many wives he's had. At least he's claimed redemption, something that Obama, Kennedy and Clinton never did.

[packsaddle]

Merlyn, 90%. I completely forgot that Wonder Woman plot.

[Lisabob]

Merlyn, that's hilarious. Thing is, I was having a hard time telling the crazy truths from the equally crazy fictions!

 

 

[NJCubScouter]

I only got 50 percent on that quiz, and that includes the one where the question basically tells you that both answers are correct.

 

Fortunately, when I renewed my Youth Protection training online earlier in the day, I got a much higher score.

[John-in-KC]

I scored 40%. Sigh.

 

There's a new band out there: Flipflop and the CloneClowns. I think you can connect those dots.

 

My Walter Mitty wishful thinking is for a Rice/Powell or Powell/Rice ticket. Yeah, I know, keep dreaming...

[packsaddle]

 

[sherminator505]

If a Republican beats Obama and the GOP retakes the Senate, can we expect to see more "America is returning to the values that Scouting never left" bumper stickers? :-)