With the Republicans doing so poorly in the Presidential and down-ticket races - with potentially heavy losses coming in November - will someone cancel the War on Christmas?

It’s kinda fun to watch Republicans and the Capitans of Industry scream about the sociallization of our banks and stock markets. . .  now.  It’s a bit like a drunk driver being forced to attend state-funded drug rehab sessions and then bitching about “socialized health care.”

George Bush decided to take a moment from clearing brush and petting the family dog to be president for a while, seeing as how we’re in the middle of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression while he’s in office.  How generous of him.  He says that “We can solve this crisis and we will.”  Gosh, that’s great.

And now, back to your regularly scheduled vacation:

Bush: ‘We can solve this crisis and we will’ - The White House- msnbc.com

Perino said Bush, after his statement on Friday, would proceed with his scheduled trip to Coral Gables, Fla., and Kiawah Island, S.C., for political fundraisers and a meeting with the Republican National Committee. He also will meet with representatives of the Cuban-American community in Florida.

Late Update: It seems that MSNBC has taken that last bit down.  Did she say it or didn’t she?

OK, so I understand that I’m going to seem insulting to a lot of people.  If this is your first time here, you should know that such behaviour are something of a forte of this website:

Tuesday’s match-up at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., will be moderated by NBC’s Tom Brokaw, with the questions to be culled from a group of 100 to 150 uncommitted likely voters in the audience and another one-third to come via the Internet. The Gallup Organization — as in past debates like this — has the job of making sure the questioners reflect the demographic makeup of the nation.

Undecided voters.  Man, are we ever into the dregs with this bunch.  How could anybody whose been paying any attention at all be undecided at this point?  What could there possibly be to be undecided about?  And why are the questions of people who so obviously don’t really care more important than questions from those of us who do?  Why are they so important?  Is it out of line to ask such questions?  I don’t give a rat’s ass if it is.

I’m assuming the people in the audience just kind of wandered off the mall promenade, lured in with a promise of free slurpees, Hollister gear and Coldplay MP3s.  Some of them were even too lazy to get dressed and show up in the studio; they’re sitting at home, naked from the waist down, responding from the Internet.  That’s a finger on the pulse of America if ever there was one.  Unfortunately, that finger is blocking the flow of the morphine drip. . . .

The Dow is down again.  The Dow is down again.

Now that we’ve established that, I think it’s time to look for more and better indicators of the economy’s status than the casino that is Wall Street.  Perhaps some cunning journalist could forge some sort of index based on employment, housing, credit, Wall Street and oh, I don’t know, pork belly futures?

Whatever is the case, looking at the day to day ups and downs of the stock market is clearly not telling us a damned thing about anything other than what a bunch of panicky rich people think about what a bunch of other panick rich people are going to do.  Does it ever strike you as odd, for example, when major Wall Street firms that control vast amounts of wealth in the form of mutual funds start talking about what “The Market” will do?  When big shots from these corporations start “hypothesizing” about what the future will look like in the next six months on cable news programs?  Have you ever screamed at the television, “you’re the fucking market, douchebag!?”

Well, I certainly have.  And while every expert economist I’ve read agrees that the bailout is a necessary evil - including those disinclined to listen to the Wall Street Giants - nothing good can come of continuing to listen to these people when they tell us how bad things are.  Where are the economics professors and researchers from government think tanks to tell us what’s really going on?

Oh, that’s right.  The government is owned by Wall Street.  Silly me.

Helpfully, someone on YouTube took the time to split the entire debate up by question, posting each question as it’s own video.  This makes it much easier for the rest of us to hone in on the points of the debate we thought were important.  Go check it out, after you read this post, of course.

One thing that struck me quite clearly in the debate which did not get picked up yet in the mainstream media is Sarah Palin’s response to the question about what would change in a Palin Administration, should the elected president ever kick it:

The first half minute of her ninty second answer is largely prologue.  She agrees what a tragedy it would be if either party’s president died, she banters on, making stall talk while she steers the ship where she wants it to go.  She throws in the cheesy grin she’s known for and shrugs off the inevitable “mavrickiness” of her party’s ticket.  She throws in a few bullet points about how John McCain really wants her opinion (sure he does, honey) and some crap about ANWAR.

Like I said: prologue.  It’s pretty clear from the tone of her voice that this is all perfunctory stuff before she gets to what she really wants to talk about: herself.  From here through the next fifty nine seconds, she talks about how Washington needs a little “Main Street Wasilla” in order to get it’s shit straight.  Where everything else is halting and weird, once she starts talking about herself, she’s in the groove and you almost forget that she’s second banana.

You can almost see her leaving Grandpa McCain at her brother’s house while she goes off on her little National Lampoon’s Vacation:

Late Update: Sarah Palin, discussing the decision by the McCain Campaign to pull out of Michigan, says that if the McCain camp can’t do it all by themselves, why by golly, Todd and Sarah want to give it a try.  ‘Cuz ya know, them McCain folks is messin up the works, doncha know. . .

Journalists are sneaky and nefarious types.  Filled with hate and brimming with mischief.  What’s more, their favourite pass-time is playing “Gotcha Journalism.”

How, precisely “Gotcha Journalism” compares and contrasts to “Gotcha Politics” is not entirely clear, but I presume they originate from the same evil wellspring of contempt for politicians not grown in vats at Harvard or in a Georgetown country club.  Whatever is the case, both are equally unacceptable and it’s a wonder journalism hasn’t been made illegal yet.  Let’s all hope the McCain-Palin ticket goes straight to the White House, so we can make that happen.

Case in point, in Sarah Palin’s interview with Katie Couric, Mrs. Couric threw out the most devious of questions, sure to trip up any salt-of-the-earth politician: she asked “What newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this to stay informed and to understand the world?”  And when Sarah Palin refuse to answer in specific (since, after all, education is a private affair), Couric drilled deeper, “Can you name a few?”

Can she name a few?  What is this?  Joseph McCarthy’s Communist trials?  I mean, those were good, but this is outrageous.

But, with the cat-like intellectual reflexes we’ve come to expect from Mrs. Palin, she responded, “All of them.”

Well, if that doesn’t shut up critics, I don’t know what will.

Update: No Palin disaster story is truly complete without the video:

I figure a snappy headline should be about all I’m required to provide for this article.  No further comment necessary.

Imagine being a woman who is expected to be a surrogate for the McCain campaign, defending a female vice presidential pick who isn’t qualified to be your latte runner.  Imagine having worked for the campaign for over a year by the time that this completely random, entirely gender-based decision has been made.  They could have truly picked anyone if they picked Sarah Palin.  They could have picked a number of Republican Senators or Representatives who also have vaginas.  Hey, they could have even picked you. After all, you have an impressive resume. . .  er, wait. . .  who is this Nancy Pfotenhauer, anyway?

So, to recap: we don’t know what the questions will be, but if there’s too much foreign policy, there’s going to be trouble!  Leave it to a guest of Steve Doocy to manage to fein outrage at a yet-to-fore imaginary debate.

FHA Mortgages are becoming increasingly popular after the subprime meltdown.  Well, you could have knocked me over with a feather when I read that. . . .