Monday, November 12, 2012

The American Idol Election

            For President Obama dial: 1-866-BaddAss and for Mitt Romney dial:  1-866-DAWhimp.  Cast your votes and vote as many times as you want!!  Long distance charges may apply.


U.S. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney (L) and President Barack Obama debate in front of moderator Bob Schieffer during the final U.S. Presidential debate in Boca Raton, Florida

    Big surprise.  Despite record high unemployment, a desultory economy, sky-high gas prices, and scary levels of national debt Barack Obama was re-elected yesterday going away.  Go figure.  Not only that, a number of far left Senate candidates were returned to office and the Senate remains firmly in control of the Democrats.

    Millions of words will be written about this election and I have not read a single one of them.  Too discouraged.  Let me spout off with a few thoughts and then I’m done with politics. 

My first reaction is:  What the Hell are the people who voted for Obama thinking?! Clearly, for the majority of voters performance had nothing to do with their vote.  The first clue for me should have been the popularity of Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift.  Neither can sing worth a pinch of coon shit yet they are the most popular singers out there.  Likewise, the Kardashians.  Why are they famous exactly? 
   
During the election Obama did appearances on John Stewart’s show, Letterman and with other celebrities rather than interviews with serious news outlets.  Famously, he had no time to meet with Netanyahu when they were both in NY for the UN meetings but he did find time to go on The View and smooze with the fawning blowhards that host that show.  His handlers obviously knew which were the important appearances to garner the votes.  This election reminded me of one giant playing of one of Jay Leno’s bits called “Street Walking” where he asks basic third grade level questions of people on the street.  Natch, they probably pick the dumbest ones but you are left shaking your head at the end of the bit thinking, “My God, these people are eligible to vote!”  Apparently they voted in large numbers last Tuesday.

While that may offer some amusement, the real issue is the changing demographics in the US.  Blacks voted 95% for Obama and Hispanics were not far behind at 75%.  Women (inexplicably) went 55% for BHO.  (I guess free condoms are important after all.)  Those groups are growing.

 Romney’s candid comment that 47% of the people would never vote for him because they receive direct benefit from the government is, unfortunately, true.  Many receive food stamps, welfare, Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid.   Additionally, government employees are not going to vote against the party promising bigger government.  Nor are union workers, teachers, environmentalists, lobbyists and trial lawyers who believe that the Democrats will keep the money flowing and some of it will drift their way.  A lot of people don’t want less government spending no matter how irresponsible.

    So in a larger sense, Americans are voting themselves into the same hole enjoyed by a number of European social democracies…. Bankruptcy.  Apparently the metastasizing national debt means nothing to the majority of voters.  Let the next generation worry about it.

    Gas prices and unemployment did not matter either apparently.  The rogue EPA was of no concern to New York and New Jersey voters who overwhelmingly elected BHO and Democrats.  Many of those voters have been out of power for a couple of weeks courtesy of Sandy.  Given four more years of Obama’s EPA when they get done with outlawing fracking and shutting down all the coal fired electrical generating plants and the lights go out in the North East for lack of capacity, maybe they will think again.

    The Obama guys knew they could get away with blaming Bush even as the election approached:  “…Go back to the policies that got us into this mess…” That massive lie was never refuted or even attempted.  Yes, it’s complicated but it had to be addressed.  Think about it.  The current recession is the fault of the unprecedented prosperity we’ve enjoyed since the Reagan era?  Or something else?  Clue to my liberal friends:  It’s the policies of easy money by the Fed and lending money to people who could not pay it back.

This election proved once again that negative campaigning works.  Massive numbers of negative commercials in key states early in the campaign painting Romney as a corporate raider and greedy capitalist and that proved effective.  The first debate overcame some of the negative image but not enough.

The media played its usual role in cheering on the Democrats and ignoring stories harmful to Obama, particularly Benghazi.  This is malpractice but a fact of life.  The media and Hollywood wanted Obama and now they have him. Congrats.

After the euphoria of the Obama supporters subsides the hard reality will set in.  This election insures that ObamaCare will survive and be implemented and the substantial tax increases and policies associated with it will kick in.  The electorate will certainly not appreciate the result.  Taxes are surely going up.  The Republicans who still control the House will not be able to resist the Democrats in their desire to impose a tax increase on the “rich”.  The only question is how far down the income scale they deem the wealthy to be.  Clue:  The Rich don’t have enough money to make a difference so the middle class will get hit eventually.  Creating massive inflation is the only way to corral the runaway debt.  I’m certain that’s the Democrat’s hope and plan.  Gee, this is going to be a lot of fun.

Unemployment is probably going to limp along.  The young people who voted for Obama better be prepared to live in their childhood bedrooms for a few more years.  Or maybe for a long time.

==================================================

For a little extra amusement, you can see this reinterpretation of the debates.  American Idol, indeed.  

No comments: