See spin. A few days ago Bob Herbert had me steaming over, among other things, political journalists' readiness to accept a political tactic that signifies "substance"-- in this case, John Edwards' decision to go into detail about his health care plan a million years before the election-- as genuine substance.
See spin run. David Broder for years now has made himself a seemingly unwitting punchline by always favoring sweet, glorious "bipartisanship" over, well, any actual stance on any actual issue. As I posted earlier, Edwards has lambasted his rivals for not taking the unusual (and potentially imprudent) step of detailing how exactly they will achieve universal health care-- assuming they, like Edwards and Barack Obama, support it. Naturally, the Dean is on the case!
BRODER: [O]f late, Obama's soaring rhetoric has left some of his audiences hungry for more substance from the senator. That was the case at a March 24 health-care forum in Las Vegas, where Obama promised to achieve universal coverage as president but had to admit that—unlike former senator John Edwards of North Carolina—he had not yet formulated a plan for getting there. And it was the case again Wednesday.
As I explained previously, there are perfectly good reasons for not going into specifics the way Edwards has done. And it's not as if Obama hasn't expressly stated his support for universal health care, something Edwards himself declined to do just four years ago. But one very smart reason for Edwards to talk about the substance of his plan is so he can talk about his own "substance," which had been a liability for him before (incessant Dem-feminizer Maureen Dowd calls him "the Brecht girl"). It's interesting and depressing that the most experienced, supposedly best qualified Washington pundits don't even seem to mention this fact.
Sort of like how they assume that Matthew Dowd not having a book out means he doesn't have a financial incentive to distance himself from Bush.
No, *I'm* laughing straight to the bank with this.
(Loudon Wainwright III: Motel Blues)
On the other hand, plenty of conservatives aren't even bothering to engage with the specifics Edwards has provided, preferring to party like it's 1992 (who wouldn't?). Matthew Yglesias catches David Boaz suggesting Edwards "supports a national health care system that would deny families the right to choose their own doctor." That's "straight-up false," Yglesias explains. "Nothing in Edwards' plan would do that."
Skin-tight pants and MySpace hair!!!
(Cub: New York City)
JARVIS COCKER IS NOT ON A COUCH EATING BON BONS (Pitchfork interview by Scott Plagenhoef)
"Fuck the Kooks."
(Lucky Soul: Add Your Light to Mine, Baby)
UGK Feat. Outkast: International Players Anthem (stream via Sean Fennessey)
Can't you see he's cryin'?
(Leonard Cohen: The Stranger Song)
Mikrofisch: The Kids Are All Shite (download via Idolator)
I don't lie awake at night with thoughts of river depth.
(Ludacris and The Jackson Five: Woozy/ I Am in Love)
Reviews: Cloud Cult in Pitchfork, Adult. in Playboy.com
Year's best vid so far? Get excited not innocuous guys.
(Dizzee Rascal: Sirens)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment