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Single White Democrat, Seeking...

By Tommy Christopher (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/29/2008 12:39:00 PM

Filed under: Democrats, Featured Stories,Race While researching yesterday'sObama/Clinton story, I came across a PewResearch Study entitled, Obama Weathersthe Wright Storm, Clinton FacesCredibility Problem, which I used in thatstory. As is often the case, the study"buries the lede," as they say. Deep intothe report, I found a fascinating survey. Ideliberately haven't linked it here. I will doso after the jump.The portion of the study that caught myeye was called Political Values, Traits andEmotions, and it was a survey of whiteDemocrats on a variety of issues, questionsI would never have thought to ask of anyDemocrat. I have always taken for grantedthat being a Democrat carried with it a setof automatic principles that transcendedpolitics.These were not traits that I ascribedsolely to Democrats, but that I assumed all,or most, Democrats shared. Theoverarching philosophy of the Democrats,as I saw it, was tolerance, empathy, andfairness. You know, the old Liberté,égalité, fraternité. Sure, there were non-Democrats who shared some or all of theseprinciples, like good people who were justa little too greedy. It's that smugsuperiority that people hate in us.Of course, I'm oversimplifying, but youget the idea. Even after the Ohio primary,when there was so much chatter in themedia about white Democrats voting forHillary based on race, I stuck to my theorythat demographics are secondary toregional considerations. After the jump,we'll put you all to the test and see howyou stack up against Pew's whiteDemocrats, and chew over the survey'sresults.OK, now, answer as honestly as you can.Results from the Pew Study after the poll.I am a White Democrat WhiteRepublican Non-white Democrat Non-white Republican White Independent Non-white Independent VoteWe have gone too far in pushing equalrights in this country Agree Disagree Notsure VoteI think it's all right for blacks and whitesto date each other. Agree Disagree Notsure VoteWomen should return to their traditionalroles in society. Agree Disagree Not sureVoteIn general, men are better leaders thanwomen. Agree Disagree Not sure VoteWe should be willing to fight for ourcountry, whether it it right or wrong. AgreeDisagree Not sure VoteThe growing number of newcomers fromother countries are a threat to traditionalAmerican customs and values. AgreeDisagree Not sure VoteWithout further ado, here are the resultsof the Pew Study.I was pretty shocked even by thesequestions, let alone the results. I call it aPew study because I have to hold my nosewhen I read it. From the Pew summary:Overall, 61% of white Democratic voterscompletely agree that it's "all right forwhites and blacks to date each other." Butfewer than half of non-college and olderwhite Democrats completely agree (44%for each group). Notably, about one-in-fivein each of these groups disagrees with theidea that interracial dating is acceptable.By contrast, just 6% of college-educatedDemocratic voters, and just 3% of youngerwhite Democrats (ages 18 to 44), findinterracial dating unacceptable. Then,there's this: Few Democrats believe thatwomen should return to their traditionalroles, or that men make better leaders thanwomen. However, younger and bettereducated white Democrats are even morelikely than others to disagree with thesenotions. About three-quarters of collegeeducated (76%) and younger Democrats(73%) completely disagree that womenshould return to traditional roles, comparedwith 48% of those who have not attendedcollege, and 56% of Democrats ages 45and older. Similarly, 57% of Democratswith college experience completelydisagree that men are better leaders,compared with 40% of Democrats whohave not attended college. Finally, there'sthe war question, which, while lessdisgusting than the other questions, was farmore disturbing in the outcome:Democrats are nearly equally divided overthe statement that "we should be willing tofight for our country whether it is right orwrong" (50% agree and 46% disagree).However, 52% of Democrats who haveattended college disagree with this view,compared with 37% of non-collegeDemocrats. There are no significant agedifferences on this question. Whatconclusions can be drawn from this? Well,without comparative data, I can only gleanfrom this is that a party is made up of people, and that some of them are deeplyflawed. I would love to see howRepublicans would do in a poll like this.Although the proportions might bedifferent, I would expect similarrelationships between these questions andthe age and education level of therespondent.I would also love to see numbers from 25years ago, to see if this is a messagingissue. In any case, this was an eye-openerfor me. Your thoughts?Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

Get Your Game On

By Denise Williams (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/30/2008 1:00:00 PM

Filed under: Democrats, 2008 President,Humor, LOLectionTired of sparring over your choice of Democratic candidate in the commentssection? Got some bloodthirst on? Act outto your hearts content:Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

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Dith Pran Taken, Not by Killing Fields

By Tommy Christopher (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/30/2008 10:49:00 AM

Filed under: Obits The New York Timesreports that photojournalist Dith Pran,subject of the film, The Killing Fields, hasdied at the age of 65: Dith Pran, aphotojournalist for The New York Timeswhose gruesome ordeal in the killing fieldsof Cambodia was re-created in a 1984movie that gave him an eminence hetenaciously used to press for his people'srights, died in New Brunswick, N.J., onSunday. He was 65 and lived inWoodbridge, N.J.The cause was pancreatic cancer, whichhad spread, said his friend Sydney H.Schanberg. Anyone unfamiliar with Pran'sstory should check out The Killing Fields,but be prepared for a sobering, shatteringexperience. Pran outlived the actor whoportrayed him, Dr. Haing Ngor, himself anescapee of Cambodia's Khmer Rouge.Ngor was murdered in as unjust a fashionas I can imagine, by a street gang who shothim when he, after surrendering his Rolex,refused to give the thieves a locketcontaining a photo of his late wife.I can only hope that Pran's death wasmore peaceful. The Times did a fine job of reporting on Pran's life. I want to spend aminute telling you what Pran meant to me.When I saw The Killing Fields, I was 16years old, and I still harbored dreams of being a journalist. The film was at once aninducement and a discouragement, as itshowed both the power and thepowerlessness of the pen. But Pran'scourage was undeniable. After seeing thefilm, I read Dr. Ngor's story as well, andboth of their tales humbled me. These werenot "great men" of grand aspiration, butrather fighters for that which we take forgranted, our lives, our freedom, food in ourstomachs.There are times in Pran's story where Iimagined he had no hope, yet he keptgoing. I wondered what fueled him at thosetimes, what ground did he stand on, oreven fall to, when everything went to hellin Cambodia? I was reminded of this againwhen I first saw reports of the Rwandangenocide, of people being machine-gunnedin their hospital beds and slaughtered inthe streets. What is there to return to afterthat?Both Pran and Dr. Ngor are among a tinyhandful of people whom I would callheroes, in the sense that they possessqualities that I can never claim, but towhich I can aspire. They survived whenthere was no reason to, and it seems theydid so only to help others once they did.I am sorry to say, I haven't thought aboutPran much, really since I heard that Dr.Ngor had been killed, as life replaced mydreams of being a heroic journalist. I didn'tknow he lived a scant 90 minute drivefrom me. Hearing of his death todayreminds me that there are seas of injusticesin this world, and only pebbles to fightthem, but those pebbles can cause mightyripples.Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

Videos of the Week - American Dad

By Tommy Christopher (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/29/2008 11:42:00 PM

Filed under: Republicans, John McCain,2008 President, Videos of the Week Welcome to Videos of the Week. It hasbeen a bad week for Hillary Clinton, withthe Senator taking a lot of heat over hertrip to Bosnia, and an ever-increasingdrumbeat of pundits suggesting that shefeel the fork and bow out gracefully.As a longtime Hillary Clinton admirer,this puts me in an awkward position, as Idon't really want to play you some of thesevideos again. It just feels like piling on.Here's what I will do instead. At the end of VOTW, I will post a video player with allof the related videos. That way, if youmissed them, you can still catch up, and Ican still look myself in the mirror.So, our first VOTW is a controversialnew ad from John McCain, the first of thegeneral election. Why controversial? Mark Impomeni asks the question here, but I willanswer it, and so can you. The last line of the commercial:ANNCR: John McCain. The Americanpresident Americans have been waitingfor.View PollMy answer? Of course it's a swipe atObama, and a damned clever one. Themore people talk about it, the more theyemphasize and magnify the smears againsttheir rival, while retaining completedeniability.This was a busy week for my pals atBarelyPolitical.com, and it's good to seethat great minds think alike. Obama Girlwants Hillary to stop helping McCain, andso do I.Speaking of Obama, he's got a new adout. I really like what he says in this one,and I think it will resonate with voters.Remember those lines? Remember how,in the late 80's, Geo made cars that got 60miles per gallon? What happened?Time to lighten the mood and darken theskies. Here's The Onion with a report onChina's environmental achievements.China Celebrates Its Status As WorldâsNumber One Air PolluterThis week marked a tragic milestone inthe Iraq war, as the U.S. saw its 4,000thsoldier killed in that conflict. As you cansee from the press briefing, not much haschanged in the administration's view of Iraq.This next clip features my new favoriteClinton, Chelsea, fending off aninappropriate question.I would like to help Chelsea out here byfinishing her sentence. "...you asshole!"Now, try laughing through the tears atthe "trailer" for Recession: The Movie.That's it for this week. As promised,here's the "Sniper-Gate" roundup. See younext week. Don't bite your friends.Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

Bill Clinton to Democrats:"Chill Out"

By Christopher Weber (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/30/2008 12:30:00 PM

Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Democrats,Primaries, 2008 President, Bill ClintonNot surprisingly, Bill Clinton doesn'tbelieve a long, drawn out battle betweenHillary and Obama will hurt the party.Quite the contrary. He think it's the way tovictory in November. The former presidentwas a special guest at this weekend'spowwow of California Democrats in SanJose. He cozied up to superdelegates andgave a speech urging Dems to let theballoting continue."There is somehow thesuggestion that because we are having avigorous debate about who would be thebest president, we are going to weaken thisparty in the fall," he said Sunday at thestate Democratic Party convention."We're going to win this election if we just chill out and let everybody have theirsay," Clinton added.Mr. Clinton of course failed to addressthe elephant (make that donkey) in theroom: the fact that Obama appears to havea nearly-insurmountable lead in delegatesover Mrs. Clinton.While many of his supporters are callingon Hillary to drop out, for his part Obamasays he doesn't care either way.Campaigning in Pennsylvania, Obamasaid, "My attitude is Senator Clinton canrun as long as she wants."Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

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Sadr Reverses Course; Calls for Truce

By Mark Impomeni (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/30/2008 9:00:00 AM

Filed under: Bush Administration,Breaking News, Iraq One day after tellinghis Mahdi Army fighters to defy the Iraqigovernment's call for the militia group tolay down its weapons, rebellious Shiitecleric Moqtada al-Sadr told his followersin Iraq's southern port city of Basra tocooperate with government forces. Theturnaround comes as U.S., and Britishforces engaged in the conflict yesterday insupport of Iraqi Army units trying to wrestcontrol of the city from the Iranian backedgroup.Sadr announced the change in plans in anine-point address delivered from hisheadquarters in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. He renounced "anyone who carriesweapons and targets governmentinstitutions, charities and political partyoffices," and called for the Iraqigovernment to grant amnesty to hisfighters and release any they have detainedduring the standoff. Iraqi Prime MinisterNouri al-Maliki has not responded to thedemands. While this turn of events couldhave been anticipated since it has beenSadr modus operandi to cause trouble andthen pull back, hoping to be viewed as aconciliatory figure, the quick turnaroundmay indicate that the entrance of coalitionforces made Sadr's patrons in Iran nervous.Maliki is in Basra, and has vowed to staythere until the unrest is brought undercontrol. He met with local tribal leaders onSaturday and secured their support for thegovernment's effort to "save Basra fromthe criminal gangs," according to the PrimeMinister's office. Maliki wascharacteristically bombastic in a statementabout the government's actions, comparingthe Mahdi Army to al-Qaeda."We will continue to stand up to thesegangs in every inch of Iraq. It isunfortunate that we used to use say thesevery words about al Qaeda, when all thewhile, there were people among us who areworse than al Qaeda." Just yesterday, itappeared that Maliki's gamble in goingafter the Mahdi Army might backfire,causing the Iraqi government to appearweak and vulnerable. But coalitionfirepower helped turn the tide in thestandoff, so that now it is Sadr seeking anaccommodation. Like a cat with nine lives,Sadr will survive this confrontation tocause trouble at another time, likely thenext time he feels it necessary to solidifyhis own position as a leader among theShiite factions in Iraq. Eventually, though,his chances will run out. In the deadlygame of Iraqi politics, al-Sadr will one dayoverplay his hand. When he does, U.S.forces should be ready to go all in, and callhis bluff.Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

U.S., British Troops Back Iraqis in Basra

By Mark Impomeni (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/29/2008 5:00:00 PM

Filed under: Bush Administration,Breaking News, Iraq As the standoff between the Iraqi Army and police andfirebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr'sMahdi Army continues in the strategicsouthern Iraqi port of Basra, U.S. andBritish troops have engaged in supportinggovernment forces. U.S. jets weredropping precision-guided bombs onMahdi Army strongholds inside the city,while British ground troops, which hadpatrolled Basra until withdrawing to basesoutside the city, handing over control of Iraq's second largest city to the Iraqis, firedartillery in support of Iraqi Army units.Al-Sadr, who is backed by Iran, told hisfollowers to defy the government's order toturn in their weapons. Iraqi Prime MinisterNouri al-Maliki, who is in Basra and hasunwisely vowed to stay there until theunrest is quelled, originally set a deadlineof Saturday for militia members tosurrender their arms. That deadline hassince been extended to April 8th. Sadrsupporters accuse the Maliki governmentof attempting to eliminate the rival Shiitegroup ahead of provincial elections thisfall. Sadr's decision to call his army to thestreets now may be the opening salvo inwhat is a sad grab for political legitimacy.Maliki has staked his government'sreputation on its ability to bring Sadr toheel in Basra. If government troops areseen as backing down, it will onlyencourage more trouble making by Sadrand various other ethnic factions. Further,it could cause the Kurds in northern Iraq todepend much more heavily on their ownforces, known as the Peshmerga, forsecurity, threatening to split the alreadysemi-autonomous north from the rest of thecountry. The United States and Britain,perhaps fearing the political consequencesof seeming to take the lead in the clashes,initially stood by while Iraqi forces beganthe planned offensive. The entrance of coalition air and ground power signals thatIraqi forces are not quite ready to take on achallenge the size of the Basra operationon their own.But the fact the Maliki was willing tomake the move to rout the Mahdi Armyout of Basra does indicate that hisgovernment is feeling more secure in itsposition. President Bush called thedecision "bold" earlier this week. Malikihas been lobbying Washington for greaterfreedom to control security operations inIraq for some time. Although he may havebitten off more than he can chew in Basra,the fact that Iraq is moving to solve its ownsecurity problems will eventually prove tobe a positive step.Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

Left Hooks

By Denise Williams (Political Machine)

Submitted at 3/30/2008 9:40:00 AM

Filed under: MediaMSNBC's Keith Olbermann has a 5-yearanniversary special tonight on regular oleNBC AND he blogging over at Daily Kosabout it - Daily KosSome pics and back story on blogger'sconvention that I went to in Philly thisweekend that included political cartoonistTed Rall, Princeton U Economist (andNYT columnist) Paul Krugman, Harper'sMagazine's Scott Horton, PhiladelphiaNews' Will Bunch and Eric Johnson (Chief of Staff for Congressman Robert Wexler(D-FL)) as well as some of the bestprogressive bloggers around theblogosphere(partial list). - Blast Off Paul Krugman makes a funny on themortgage bubble (thanks Will Bunch, Icouldn't read my notes), "It's not someradical new technology -- it's housing".Obama should stick to basketball. Hesucks at bowling - ReutersKarl Rove was not well-received at GWUniversity. Watch how he describes hishorns and tail:Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs|Comments

Cayne Sells Out

(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)

Submitted at 3/27/2008 2:00:00 PM

It's over.Any hope that there will be a deal otherthan J.P. Morgan Chase's $10-per-sharestock offer for Bear Stearns should now befinally dashed.James Cayne, the chairman and formerchief executive of Bear Stearns, has sold5.6 million shares of Bear for $10.84 ashare, or about $60.1 million, on Tuesday.It's quite a comedown for a man who wasa billionaire about a year ago, when Bear'sstock price was near $160. He had beenamong Bear's largest shareholders.The Securities and ExchangeCommission filing indicates that Cayne'swife sold 45,669 Bear shares.Related LinksThe Age of ReregulationWill Asking Mortgage Servicers toModify Mortgages Have Much Impact?Bear Funds Being Liquidated: WhoWants to Buy?