Framing the Dialogue

Posts Tagged ‘mccain’

Re: Treads

Money is a little tight, but my car needed new tires.  Even though I made it through the winter in decent shape I was always concerned that I’d lose one of my tires at an inopportune moment.  I am not sure what an opportune moment would be to lose a tire…perhaps if one blows just as you pull into the bay at a tire dealership.  There are a lot of options and you can pay as little as $75 per tire to well in the hundreds of dollars.  I really wanted to fall between the two and closer to the lower end.  The problem then is that I’d be doing this again in two years.  Tires just don’t last like they used to. 

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Consider The Grasshoppers

“Because half a dozen grasshoppers under a fern make the field ring with their importunate chink, whilst thousands of great cattle, reposed beneath the shade of the British oak, chew the cud and are silent, pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field; that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little, shriveled, meager, hopping, though loud and troublsome, insects of the hour.

Edmund Burke

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Decision Points

If you love George W. Bush you’ll still love him; If you hate him you’ll still hate him; If you are like me and fit neither extreme you probably won’t be moved from that position either.  One thing that he is most proud of was that under his watch we were not attacked after 9/11.  I appreciated the speed with which the government moved into “protect” mode after those attacks.  Did they go too far with the Patriot Act…probably.

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Hypocrisy (hi-pok-ruh-see)

Hypocrisy is defined as:

  1. The practice of professing standards, beliefs, etc., contrary to one’s real character or actual behaviour.
  2. A feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not.
  3. An expression of agreement that is not supported by real conviction.

Synonyms:  deceit, insincerity

What does Edmond Burke think:

“Hypocrisy can afford to be magnificent in its promises; for never intending to go beyond promises; it costs nothing.”

How about Billy Connolly’s thoughts:

“Hypocrisy is the vaseline of political intercourse.”

Can you give some examples?

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Are You Smarter Than…

This posting is a quiz based on recent news stories and will test your ability to discern the correct answers to the questions.  Good Luck!

Are you smarter than politicians?

Question 1:  Senator John McCain and Senator Tom Coburn recently released a report, Summertime Blues, detailing some of the worst cases of wasted tax dollars.  We have almost become immune to these types pet projects that scream WASTE!  I don’t know where Sen. Coburn stands on the issue of earmark, but Senator McCain has been steadfast in his fight against them and has refused to participate and we should celebrate his efforts.  One of the items on the list was a mere $712,883.00 to build a machine that tells jokes.  Here is the test.  Which of the following is the machine?

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Comprehensive (kom – pri – hen – siv)

Comprehensive is defined as:

“So large in scope or content as to include much.”

Synonyms:  complete, broad, wide, full, sweeping, exhaustive, extensive.

What does Wolf Blitzer think:

“I think what we try to do is bring the news to our viewers in a very comprehensive responsible way”  This is CNN?

Can you use it in a sentence?

Politicians often use the word comprehensive when they introduce a piece of legislation when the want the American people to think they are being thoughtful and forward-thinking.  Most citizens who pay attention know that when an elected official uses the word comprehensive to describe a bill, a rule, a policy, etc. that it actually means that it is full of things they do not want you to really know about.   [Okay that is two sentences]

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Whores and Prostitutes (as a metaphor)

Ben Nelson moneyThe health care legislation speeding train has been getting Americans upset for the last few weeks.  Neither the left or the right are happy as the left wants so much more from the legislation and the right just wants you to die (at least according to Florida’s Rep. Grayson).  The story over the last week centered around Nebraska’s Senator Ben Nelson who was holding out, allegedly, over issues in the legislation relating to federal funding of abortions.  The lame stream media often cast him as a man under extreme pressure and most photographs illustrated this vision.

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