GMD in the spotlight again: Cox News Washington.

(Cross posted at Broadsides.org)

Just when I thought I could take a breather from the shallow end of mainstream politics, up steps Grandpa McCain with his best imitation of the dirty old man with his selection of Sarah Palin as his vice presidential nominee. Come on, did you see how creepy McCain looked while lurking about the podium while Palin tried to speak? Watch it, Johnny-boy, because Sarah’s hubby races snowmobiles. But, then again, with an ice-cold wife like Cindy, Johnny’s certainly used to getting his ass kicked around.

McCain’s selection of Palin, however, could certainly be the pinprick to the Obama hope balloon that the Republicans – and the Clinton’s – have been looking for. And he’s delivered it before all those adoring Obama fans even had time to wipe the running eyeliner off their cheeks from last night’s tears of elation. Oh, the beauty of…of… of… oh yeah, hope. Whatever.

I ran into a staunch Democrat this morning while picking up my morning newspapers and, after uttering the obligatory “it was great” mantra with that far away look in his eyes that seemed to be searching for some proof – any proof! – for his feelings, he came forward with this whispered caveat: “But why did Obama soft-pedal his critique of Bush/Cheney?”

The answer was simple. Because Obama’s Democratic Party and, in many cases Obama himself (FISA, Patriot Act reauthorization, Iraq War funding, etc.) did NOTHING to stop Bush/Cheney. And they know it. It’s the modern Democratic Party dilemma of being terminally disqualified at election season based on its own legislative season inanities. Remember the mid-term election of 2006, for example, when the Democrats told us that with control of both houses of Congress they’d be able to stymie that twin tower of bastardism, Bush/Cheney? And how, exactly, did that work out for us? Cue Emily Latela and one more, big “never mind” to the nation.

Sadly, the Democrats seem to be all about the next, great rainbow chase over the horizon. They all but sit on their hands during the Republican rainy seasons (and, let’s face it, it’s been pouring for eight years), roll out their next, great rainbow candidates (Gore! Kerry! Obama!) in the election seasons, and then send their faithful and ever-forgiving followers out searching for that elusive pot of gold. For Democrats, the bullshit of election season continues to hijack their ever-so-meager attempts at accomplishment during legislative season. And around and around they go.

Repugnant as it is, when the smarmy Republicans want a world war, by golly, they start one. Worse, they let it linger and fester and drain us all until…well…they find a new one! Hey, it’s not as if the Democrats – at least the ELECTED Democrats – are going to stop them.

But wait. This was supposed to be about Sarah Palin (cue sound of screeching halt).

Let’s face it, Grandpa McCain hit the trusty “refresh” key with his choice of Palin. Oh sure, it all amounts to one more warm piss in the kiddie pool of a campaign season stuck in the shallow end (nothing new there), but, if shallowness shall rule (hope, anyone?), McCain just upped the ante by playing his Palin card.

Let’s recap the game as it’s now being played out seemingly without parental approval: Obama has hope. McCain has experience. Biden has experience. Palin has hope.

Oh fuck, checkmate.

But, in this case, we’re the losers. Yeah, “we”, as in: we, the people. Because the more the two corporate parties are hell-bent on dragging us down this moronic road of nothing but clichés, the more the great spectacle of nothing in particular distracts us all from a whole lot of important matters. You know, those “silly” and “distracting” things like war, peace, health care, global warming and the like.

By now, we all know why McCain picked Palin: She’s young, she’s a woman, she’s an outsider and she’s conservative. In other words, she’s “better” than Hillary Clinton when it comes to rule number one in the not-so-great game of presidential politics: Superficial appeal is all that matters.

McCain and the Republicans are all but wetting themselves with their hopes that the Democrats will begin attacking Palin for (what?) being young, energetic, an outsider and – oh no, here comes that word again – hopeful. Hmm, all that seems to sound familiar. Oh yeah, that’s all sooooo Obama.

Better yet, McCain and the Republicans are hoping beyond hope that the Obama faithful childish trashing of Palin will only further irk the Hillary crowd, which as you’ll recall, doesn’t just include women but also the working class that Palin and her husband just happen to come from.

Oh my, we are, indeed, a nation stuck in the shallow end of what should be a very large political pool. Sooner or later the lifeguards have got to declare that it’s “adult swim time,” no?

It’s been an adventure. I wish I could say that entirely in the positive sense of the word, but it’s definitely a good thing that I was here. There are a lot of comments I could make, but I’m tired. And I walked more yesterday than I have since the Step It Up walk. Ouch.

It should be said that as amazing as the show was inside (and by “amazing” in this post, I’m referring to my amazement that nothing went wrong), the logistics outside were horrific, and there were a lot of angry people walking for hours and miles to get in, or being funneled out exits way to small to accommodate gazillions of people. The crowd I was with actually pushed over the temporary fencing and made their own way out, and in true bleeding-heart liberal style, many lingered for a while to help the elderly or unsteady climb over the concrete barrier to exploit the hole created in the fence line and (thankfully) escape.

I staggered around after my own escape and got lost, wandering through a very large housing project. I was hoping to catch up with fellow Vermonters as I’d felt a bit cut off from them in the evenings, what with the logistics of taking the bus out to the place I stayed Tuesday and Wednesday nights – the condemned home of a medical marijuana growing renter who was in the process of being evicted (and who’d just had most of his plants stolen), and for whom I had to knock with a secret code to be allowed entry so he’d know I wasn’t the cops. More on that later… or not.

So I caught up with some of the younger delegate set at the hotel the delegation had been staying at, but… er, well… the phrase “fifth wheel” comes to mind, so I quickly set off in search of more suitable downtime environments, finding bloggers JD Ryan and Philip Baruth  having drinks with Senator Shumlin. I settled in, and I think it was the most relaxed I’ve been all week.

So a collection of videos follow below the fold, but first here’s Stevie Wonder and dancing Vermont legislators from Mile High Stadium…

Here’s a particularly effective street theater demonstration from Iraq Veterans Against the War. Unfortunately, I didn’t video the best part – where they “roughed up” a faux detainee, but this should give you the flavor.

Here’s a sense of some of the sheer scale of what was up, including the logistic nightmare of getting in out of the stadium (including the aforementioned downed fence and mass escape at the end).

Here’s the reaction of some of the Vermont delegation to Obama’s appearance on the stage, as well as some comments afterwards.

…and in a final reminder that Vermont is the Rodney Dangerfield of states, here’s a screen capture from an MSNBC slideshow of the night. Note the description below the picture…

1). She’s a creationist.

2). She’s under investigation for abuse of power.

3). What?  That’s not enough?

This pick is the Harriet Myers of VP selections.  This is absolutely hilarious.

Sarah Palin, Committed to all Americans:  

Larry Kudlow of CNBC’s “Kudlow & Co.” asked her about the possibility of becoming McCain ticket mate.

Palin replied: “[A]s for that V.P. talk all the time, I’ll tell you, I still can’t answer that question until somebody answers for me what is it exactly that the V.P. does every day? I’m used to being very productive and working real hard in an administration. We want to make sure that that V.P .slot would be a fruitful type of position, especially for Alaskans and for the things that we’re trying to accomplish up here for the rest of the U.S., before I can even start addressing that question.”

Backed by Ted Stevens.

Being compared to another inexperienced VP pick.

Seems like a shallow, panic pick to me, designed to get attention, obviously.

is definitely not saying yes …….

The New York Times in an editorial today titled Fish to Slaughter states “Entergy is eager to renew its reactor licenses, which expire in 2013 and 2015. That means that regulatory agencies can require the company to do the right thing.”

Enexus /Entergy’s spin-off shell if SEC approved will own five aging nuclear plants in NY,Vt,and Ma .. Note should be taken of the contrast in tone New York state takes dealing with this corporation . New York state has worked to force Entergy to adhere to financial agreements and environmental rules that have been previously made. It is an attitude seldom seen here in Vermont as Gov.Douglas demurs to the New Orleans based utilities demands with a nod and veto.Short sighted fear of losing “low” rates and a general sympathy for all things corporate is guiding Douglas. Any demand such as long term guarantees on the decommissioning funds are seen by a fearful Gov.Douglas as a threat to our current rates . Enexus leveraged financial scheme that is bringing it into being sounds worthy of Enron’s creative arrangements. If the new company Enexus, like a spoiled child granted all it’s previous wishes comes to Gov .Jim Douglas to renegotiate the existing power contract terms “low” rates how will he say no ? Last week the paper carried another example of the different treatment Entergy gets .

In New York ,Entergy’s proposal was disclosed this year in securities filings, which laid out a new holding company called Enexus that would include nuclear plants in New York and Vermont. In a clause in one of those filings, Entergy claimed that Enexus would not have to live up to the revenue-sharing agreement between Entergy and New York.

Under the existing agreement, Entergy is supposed to pay New York up to $72 million annually through 2014, and state officials had expected to receive the full amount. The money is due to go to the State Power Authority, which provides low-cost electricity to businesses and municipalities and administers various programs like replacing coal furnaces in public schools and providing energy-efficient refrigerators to public-housing residents.

Following negotiations in recent weeks with the Power Authority, which was threatening legal action, Entergy backed off from arguably the most controversial part of its spin-off proposal – at least in the minds of New York officials.

In Vermont, the other state where the law requires state regulators to sign off on the spin-off, lawmakers passed a bill earlier this year calling for the Public Service Board to require Entergy to make additional financial guarantees to a decommissioning fund before approving the spin-off. But Gov. Jim Douglas vetoed the measure, saying Entergy might raise electric rates after its current contract expires in 2012.

Gov.Douglas  may find himself re-negotiating sooner rather than later .This view on Entergy’s plans and prospects from Zacks Investment “Anticipated rate increases, a relatively strong balance sheet and decent earnings visibility at the Entergy Nuclear business are some of the company’s attractive investment features.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08…

http://www.chron.com/disp/stor…

Funny thing …

“Asian alliance rebuffs Russian effort to gain support for its actions“, blared the page 3 headline in today’s (08/29/08) Times Argus.

The article began

China and several Central Asian nations rebuffed Russia’s hopes of international support for its actions in Georgia, issuing a statement Thursday denouncing the use of force and calling for the respect of every country’s territorial integrity.

A joint declaration from the six-member Shanghai Cooperation Organization also offered some support for Russia’s “active role in promoting peace” following a cease-fire, but overall it appeared to increase Moscow’s international isolation.

But WAIT!

“

Russia wins backing from China“, shouted the headline for News.com.au (Fox affilitiated I believe).

RUSSIA today won support from China and Central Asian states in its standoff with the West over the Georgia conflict as the European Union said it was weighing sanctions against Moscow.

Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev said he hoped the “united position” of a summit of Central Asian nations would “serve as a serious signal to those who try to turn black into white.”

Dammit, now I gotta figger it out for myself.

This is the new voice of the Democratic party:

I’m sort of amazed.

This is it. The last slide show from the Democratic National Convention. Included are photos from yesterday’s Progressive Democrats of America conference and the main event at Invesco Field. Obama’s speech was amazing. I don’t know how the GOP can actually respond to this. They’re toast as far as I’m concerned.

Hope you enjoyed the coverage. I’ll have a final recap sometime soon. It was fun out here. It really was.

– Christian

Crossposted at Docudharma.

SO many things going on. I didn’t get a chance to submit these last night because I was too damn exhausted. As I was heading home last night, I came across a biker stand off with police at 15th and Blake Streets in Denver. One guy got hauled off and arrested but the picture I took came out all fuzzy. It was one of those spur of the moment photographs that just didn’t come out right when you needed it to.

I’m including these photos because the Democratic National Conference is more than just a dog & pony show. Political conventions have always been about protests, overreactive police force, etc. These photos capture some of the things that took place. When I left the bikers were chanting “The whole world is watching! The whole world is watching!” Activists never get credit for the actions they do. That’s why they belong here.

As always….. more to come.