Category: News and Opinion

Pete Puma

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Dateline: Denver, Colorado–8/27/08–5:45 PM Mountain Time  

As many of you may have guessed, my great role model in life is Bugs Bunny.

Other than the one where he sells some yokel the Brooklyn Bridge (“But where to find a rabbit in the city? No, he must go to the country, to the forest primeval, to Flatbush”), my all-time favorite Bugs cartoon is the one where he encounters Pete_Puma.

To those who don’t recall, the Puma just never grasps the reality of the situation. No matter how many times the Puma is outsmarted, the Puma is under the illusion that the battle is not over, and somehow, by playing by the same old rules, instead of assimilating the new realities, the Puma is going to outplay and outsmart the Rascally Rabbit and emerge triumphant. Instead the Puma keeps getting a head full of lumps.

What the Democratic Congress Must Do

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If Senator Obama becomes President, it is nearly certain that the Democrats will control both the Presidency and both houses of Congress for the third time in my adult lifetime. The first was under President Carter in the 1977 to 1980 period, and the second was under President Clinton in 1993 and 1994. Both times they blew it, and ended up being repudiated by the voters. To President Carter, the nation’s number one challenge was energy, and to President Clinton, it was the lack of universal health care. Each proposed policies that, whatever their flaws, would have addressed those challenges. But any reasonable proposal on either subject may be expected to generate opposition from those who benefit from current arrangements, including interests prominent in both the Republican and Democratic Party coalitions. Solutions to problems, moreover, including these, often involve sacrifices or disruption in the short run to make things better in the long run. In each case – Carter’s energy policy, and Clinton’s health care policy — the Congress, controlled by their fellow Democrats, yielded to those interests and shrank from any sacrifices, and not only failed to follow the Presidents’ lead but also failed to enact betters alternative Carter and Clinton could have lived with. And years later, while the next President will likely face immediate economic, fiscal, and foreign policy crises on a grand scale, these two issues remain the most important long-term domestic problems the country faces. This time, the Democratic Congress had better not blow it.

Where Have You Gone, Rock Hackshaw (A Guest Column by Roscoe Conway)

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A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

I hope that Hackshaw's absence on these pages is explained by a combination of altitude sickness, jet lag and a bad plate of scallops au gratin at Shelly's reception.

We're at Day 3, and so far I've outposted Hackshaw by both item count and word count.  Not only that, I've got a direct pipeline to a voting member of the New York delegation.  Pretty inpressive performance, if I do say so myself, for someone who's a real-life version of Vinnie Antonelli here in New York politics' version of WitSec.

When can I expect my $460?

Corrections

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Dateline, Denver Colorado, 8/27/08 1:30 PM Mountain Time

On Tuesday night, Shelly Silver’s opponent, Paul “Obamawitz” Newell, finally showed up in Denver to play his role as Delegate. I have been unable to confirm the rumor that, unlike the rest of the rest of the New York Delegation, which is staying at the Downtown Sheraton, Newell is being housed in a Motel Six in Provo, Utah.

Paul tells me that he spent two hours last night dialing up voters in his district, and will be continuing to campaign aggressively via long distance. I’ve been unable to confirm the rumor that those phone calls constitute more effort than has been expended in the last month by spoiler candidate Luke Henry.

Generational Equity and the Legacy of Today’s Politicians

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There is a moral issue behind most of the public policy issues at the federal, state and local levels, and even in the private sector: generational equity. Almost every decision, non-decision, deal and trend of the past 25 years has provided no reductions in benefits, or even more benefits, for older generations, while imposing additional burdens and sacrifices on younger generations, those who will be working and paying taxes, and in need of public services and benefits in the future. One finds generational inequities in the Social Security system, in government financed and subsidized health care, in public employee union pensions and other retiree benefits, in the wages and benefits of older and younger generations in the private sector, in the financing of maintenance of the public infrastructure, in energy and the status of the natural environment, and in the tax code. These are in addition to soaring on-the-books federal, state and local debts. In some cases a diminished future for younger generations has already arrived, and in some cases it is coming. And no one, not the Democrats, not the Republicans, not “liberals,” not “conservatives,” seems willing to point this out.

Youn N Eye (In Which I am Compared to Theodore Sorenson–sort of)

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Dateline Denver Colorado – 8/26/08 – 8:30 PM Mountain Time 

This morning, I paid a little tribute to Monica Youn, the lovely young lady lucky enough to be sitting next to me last night at the convention:

“To add insult to injury, my preeminence among the NY delegation’s bloggers (at least those who’ve produced written evidence of their presence in Denver beyond the bad checks Rock is undoubtedly passing) was usurped by the lovely and talented Monica Youn, an at-large New York delegate pledged to support Barack Obama who works as a lawyer in the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law and is also the author of “Barter“, a book of poems which, given the lady’s poise, probably contains nothing quite as offensive as Kevin Powell’s “Son to Mother.”

Ms. Youn is posting for an obscure outlet called “Slate”, apparently owned by a gentleman named William Gates, although I’m not certain she is making much more than $460 herself. Last night, she had an invite to Slate’s reception, but why be jealous when one can have desert with Tom DiNapoli (if one can get there).”

Infomerical

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Dateline: Denver, Colorado – 8/26/08 – 1:15 PM Mountain Time 

It’s not been a great day, although, on the good side, I finally discovered the Microsoft Specialty Media Lounge, complete with good wifi, free coffee and box lunches.

On the other hand, I misplaced all my info concerning the non-transferable events I RSVPed to without being invited. Actually got turned down by Rahm’s Chicago Blues Event.

A Gatemouth barred from the blues; I should alert the Irony Police.

Also misplaced my John McCain condom (I kid you not) before I got to use it. Plus Domestic Partner called to complain about all the sly references I'd made to other women. While on the phone, she added that I failed to mention any of the speeches.

Denver is Grand, No Division

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Dateline: Engelwood, Colorado–8/26/08, 9:34 AM Mountain Time   

“Angry Democrats Distracted DNC Attendees in Denver” screamed the top headline on my laptop’s personal Dell Homepage, one of two distressing items greeting me on the web this morning.

I sympathized. Like myself and others covering the convention, Jake Tapper had discovered there was no news here and decided to make it up.

Angry Democrats? I’ve never been among a happier bunch of people in my entire life. Eating, drinking, schmoozing, gawking celebrities and taking part in the biggest pep rally of them all.

WHY I’M NOT A DEMOCRAT (OR A REPUBLICAN)

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Imagine two parallel horizontal lines, one representing a philosophy of greater government intervention in people’s lives, and the other a philosophy of lesser intervention, but both applying their philosophy equally to everyone. The higher line could be called the social community philosophy, the lower the individual autonomy philosophy. Or imagine two points of view on what constitutes the good and moral life, one material, one spiritual. Those holding one point of view could be called the new Athenians, and the other the new Israelites. In that case I could respect either philosophy or point of view. Neither of these divisions, however, and indeed no universal philosophy or ideology at all, describes the Republican or Democratic parties today. Rather than two sets of principles of what is best for everyone, these parties for the most part represent two sets of interests seeking a better deal for their insiders at everyone else’s expense, and at the expense of the future and the younger generations who will live in it. The parallel lines are in fact vertical, not horizontal, with some feeling entitled to more out of government and others left with less, some forced to contribute more to government and others avoiding similar contributions.

Wonderpets

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Dateline: Engelwood, Colorado-/8/24/08– 12:55 AM–Mountain Time

The phone, the phone is ringing–there’s an animal in trouble somewhere (trust me, if you have child five or under, it’s an hilarious reference to the show named in this piece's title) or maybe it's an international crisis (where is Hillary when you need her?) or another of those text messages.

Sound asleep, it is minutes before I realize it is a phone and where I am, as I slowly wake up from a drunken stuper. Contrary to the dream I was having, I am alone (although, if it were otherwise, I would still be saying the same), I reflect that, on the whole, this is probably a good thing, although Chelsea was having the time of her life.

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