Open Thread

13 Comments

1. 

   fabooj on August 18, 2008 at 5:06 pm

   At Seesmic, Dan Patterson created a public account for conventiongoers and watchers. You can use that account to make live videos on the convention floor and and to record your impressions while watching.  Also you can use that account if you see video on YouTube that’s relevant to the conventions.  

2. 

   idredit on August 18, 2008 at 5:13 pm

   Yeah The Drudge Report (I read him so you don’t have to) has a red banner with the flashing dome -whenever he has a scoop –

    You should stay up until the early AM don’t go to sleep –

   The NYT newsroom was buzzing late Monday afternoon after Obama-beat reporter Jeff Zeleny learned how the Dem hopeful has finalized his choice for a running-mate — and set out an elaborate roll-out to announce his decision that will begin with an early morning e-mail to supporters, perhaps as early as Tuesday!

   • 

     Sven on August 18, 2008 at 5:30 pm

     speculating on that – an outsider pick? Tomorrow morning Obama will be in Orlando at the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention. So, a Florida pick? A Veteran pick?

     Florida picks could be Bob Graham or Bill Nelson. Nelson lives in Orlando and served in the US Army reserves.

     A vet/military pick would also fit the theme of wednesday night, when the VP speaks at the convention. Could also mean Jack Reed or Wes Clark.

     And if it’s not tomorrow we can speculate about others tomorrow night…

     • 

       BooMan on August 18, 2008 at 5:41 pm

       My knock on Bill Nelson is that I don’t think he is really a very sharp thinker.  I’m not saying he’s stupid or intellectually lazy, but he seems like a very average intellect.

       Having said that, his committee assignments are sterling.  He serves on Armed Services, Foreign Relations and Intelligence (a rare troika) as well as Budget and Commerce Science & Transportation (a busy man).  He actually chairs two subcommittees:

       Commerce Subcommittee on Space Aeronautics and Related Sciences
       Foreign Relations Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations Democracy and Human Rights

       In other words, he’s the man on NASA and he’s also the man on issues like NATO expansion and our relations with Ukraine and Georgia.  

       Add to this that he was a strong Clinton supporter and that he is a born-again Christian.

       There are real solid strengths in this resume, including the fact that he hails from the Sunshine State, is a very decent and likable fellow, and he won’t upstage Obama.  

       I’d probably be a little unenthusiastic about this pick, but I’d sure see why it was made.

       • 

         hauksdottir on August 19, 2008 at 12:15 am

         I told his people to take me off their mailing and email lists after he voted with Bush one time too many.

         Bill Nelson is the ONLY person that I regretted sending money to.  Yes, we had to get rid of that loathesome Katherine Harris, but he needs to be replaced, as well, NOT promoted.  

         Just warming his butt on “the right committees” isn’t a good enough reason to vote for Bush lite.  Of course he is a Clinton supporter: he favors authoritarianism.

         I want my government back.  

         Electing him won’t do it.

     • 

       idredit on August 18, 2008 at 5:57 pm

       won’t be Reed or Wes Clark.  Clark won’t be at the Convention.

3. 

   dada on August 18, 2008 at 5:24 pm

   The East Coast Avengers leaked to the Internet a copy of their new song “Kill Bill O’Reilly.”:

   i wipe the dirt from my hands as i walk from your grave
   those ain’t facts those are lies in the statements you made so

   we gotta get em get em we gotta chill em chill em
   we gotta dead em dead em we gotta kill em kill em

   audio in link. turning the reichwing hate mongering and calls for violence against “liberals” back on them…l’m just waiting for the shit storm over this.

   when the going gets weird, the weird turn pro…hst

   h/t raw story

   • 

     Second Nature on August 18, 2008 at 5:31 pm

     That’s just stupid.  I think we should leave the hate mongering and death threats to the right.

     • 

       Real History Lisa on August 18, 2008 at 5:47 pm

       Of course, who is to say the right isn’t behind this as a way to ‘even the playing field’ to pretend that liberals are just as nasty?

4. 

   americanforliberty on August 18, 2008 at 6:25 pm

   Here is some news to cheer you up..if anyone ever thought about voting Republican read this first.
   And W’s streak of ruining every company and country he ever ran continues…

   http://biz.yahoo.com/cnbc/080818/26264706.html

5. 

   anarchronarchist on August 18, 2008 at 6:41 pm

   Anyone got more on this one:

   A few years back I had a friend renting a room in a house in Berkeley, CA. The landlady was an investigative journalist who told me she was working a story about Texas hotel owned by a Bush family friend that was the regular site of Coke and Hooker parties for the Bush brothers. That story never surfaced again.. and neither has she. My friend moved out soon after (unrelated reasons) and had to just leave his key.

   Wonder if he got his deposit back..

6. 

   idredit on August 18, 2008 at 6:47 pm

   worth a read this Ezra Klein-Dana Goldstein essay in The American Prospect:

   It’s His Party

   “Barack Obama might be running on a post-partisan platform, but he is more focused on building the Democratic Party than any other candidate in recent history.”

7. 

   Andrew Longman on August 19, 2008 at 10:50 am

   Yesterday on NPR the buzz was Obama’s VP could be Colin Powell