Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the stupidest of them all?

The New Neo Posted on by

According to many Democrats, liberals, and Leftists, leading Conservatives and/or Republicans seem to fall mostly into one of two molds: the evil clods and the evil geniuses. Bush is one of the former and Cheney and Rove the latter.

McCain is a bit different; he doesn’t clearly fall into either category. That’s why Democrats and the press have had to attack him in other ways: age, recklessness, and loudly and repetitively that he’s Bush in McCain clothing.

Palin, however, is much easier to work into the template: she’s another evil clod. Gibson’s “gotcha” interview that “proved” she didn’t know all the answers to his pop quiz on foreign policy was part of this strategy. She’s a dummy, see? Continue reading →

A liberal tries to understand the Palin phenomenon

The New Neo Posted on by

Judith Warner seems to be trying to get it.

In a meandering, unfocused piece in the NY Times, she tries to work through her confusion about Palinmania. Along the way, there is the usual condescension, barely contained.

But towards the end she seems to begin to understand something she may have never grasped before, Continue reading →

Another goof from the well-managed Obama campaign: never mind

The New Neo Posted on by

Obama will be appearing on Saturday Night Live tomorrow. This makes a certain amount of sense, since lately his campaign seems to be headed into previously uncharted Emily Litella “never mind” waters.

When I heard about this ad I immediately thought it was an error of judgment:

What could Obama possibly gain by alienating people who, for one reason or other, don’t use computers? Continue reading →

Thoughts on the Gibson-Palin interview: the Not-So-Grand Inquisitor

The New Neo Posted on by

I was constantly distracted by two things: the shockingly choppy editing, and Gibson’s profoundly inquisitorial demeanor.

It wasn’t just his game face, and the peering over the eyeglasses (he gave new meaning to the expression “looked down his nose at her”). It was his remarkable condescension: “I got lost in a blizzard of words…” That crack sounded more like one side of a couple’s quarrel overheard in a restaurant than the statement of a neutral interviewer. Continue reading →

Palin unhinges feminists on the Left

The New Neo Posted on by

I hadn’t been following the women’s movement all that closely since its relatively sedate days of “equal pay for equal work.” Yes, I knew that at some point rather long ago it had been taken over by a radical fringe on the Left with some zany ideas that had turned off the vast majority of women—and men—and had given the movement a bad name. But I had no idea.

Repeat, shouting: I HAD NO IDEA!

The nomination of Sarah Palin has acted as a sort of plaque discloser for the display of a fulminating rage which until now I had assumed was directed by these activists solely (and all too often inappropriately) towards the men they felt had oppressed, assaulted, and otherwise done them wrong. Continue reading →

Seven years

The New Neo Posted on by

It’s been seven years since 9-11.

Seven years, a Biblical number. I’m not sure whether they were seven lean years or seven fat ones on the whole. But one thing I do know is that they’ve been seven astonishing and gripping ones.

Things I never imagined back on September 11, 2001:

—That we would not be attacked again within the next seven years.

—That a mere seven years later, the attacks would seem as though they happened a very long time ago.

—That I would end up admiring a great deal about George Bush.

—The growth of the blogosphere, and my place in it.

—The widening and increasingly bitter divisions in our country.

—A war that would open up the wounds of the Vietnam era and teach me to reconsider things I thought I already knew.

—That I’d ever vote for a Republican President, and even volunteer to help elect one.

—So many readers who would enrich my life immeasurably.

My theory on the Walmart Diet

The New Neo Posted on by

It turns out that having a Walmart in the neighborhood is associated with a slight weight loss in the surrounding population.

Researchers are at a loss (pun intended) to determine the reason this might be. But their guess is that a Walmart frees up part of the income of people who are pressed for money, allowing them to buy more fruits and vegetable and other healthful items.

I beg to differ. Even though the study reports that a Walmart leads to decreased exercise, I still think exercise might be the key. My theory is that whatever the decrease in other exercise reported in the study (and I assume activity level was not measured, but was based on self-report), it left out one extremely important factor: the exercise involved in shopping in a Walmart itself.

Think about it—have you been in one lately? I have. Those babies are huge.

To score any item usually involves a hike that amounts to more exercise than many people in America get in an average day. And that doesn’t even count the getting lost part, which is practically obligatory in a Walmart.

Remember that Saturday Night Live sketch about the size of Walmarts? I rest my case:

Greeter #1: Hi! Welcome to Wal-Mart!

Greeter #2: I know I say this to you every day.. but I still can’t get over how big this Wal-Mart is!

Greeter #1: I knowwwww! It’s too big!

Greeter #2: I knowww!

Greeter #1: I knowww!

Greeter #2: I knowww! The whole town is this Wal-Mart!

Greeter #1: I knowww! It has too many things!

Greeter #2: I knowww!

Greeter #1: This store has to be at least eight city blocks! I mean, that is about 500 miles of store!

Greeter #2: I know! This Wal-Mart is as big as 250 Rite-Aids!

Greeter #1: I knowww! Thank God we work near the door! Otherwise, we’d never be able to get out! Continue reading →

The Vice Presidential pick: a test of judgment

The New Neo Posted on by

In all the verbiage about McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin versus Obama’s rejection of Hillary, one especially important point is what it says about the judgment of both candidates.

On the face of it, Obama’s choice of Biden seemed “safe.” That was the word bandied about when it was announced. John McCain’s selection of Palin was “risky.” This would seem to indicate that Obama has better judgment, right?

But that’s not the way it’s been playing so far. Continue reading →