The newsstands look like the cover of the Beatles’ 1966 classic “Sgt. Pepper,” only the band is made of just one face: Sarah Palin. Don’t worry, America is beginning to get sick of her. By election time, her novelty worn off, she’ll return to the frozen tundra, and the only ones who will fear her will be the moose.
He’s a regular comedian. Immediately after delivering the one big punchline in his 20 minute speech, Joe Lieberman felt the need to explain the joke to his audience. Twice.
“Let me give you a little of what John would call ‘straight-talk’ … friends, if John McCain is just another partisan Republican, then I’m Michael Moore’s favorite Democrat. And I’m not! And I think you know that I’m not!”
The man has a knack for comic timing and little else.
But who cares to listen to Joe Lieberman? As a Democrat, he failed. As an Independent, he’s a failure. As a Republican, he’s a joke. At the RNC, the self-proclaimed “Democratic Independent” was applauded and celebrated with chants of “Country First, Country First” to his painfully partisan speech.
The following night, a better clown entered the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. Hilarity ensued.
Rudy Giuliani had the crowd in stitches. After a cliffs notes version of John McCain’s time at the Hanoi Hilton, he tried to offer contrast with Barack Obama and hit hard with his first big joke.
“You have a resume from a gifted man with an Ivy League education … He worked as a community organizer.”
To this, the crowd burst into uproarious laughter. Hysterics brought on by the line “community organizer.” Giuliani actually had to pause and move away slightly from the podium as the audience shared in a good belly laugh.
Watching the Republican National Convention feels like watching an episode of Jackass, only the RNC has ten thousand more jackasses.
What again is funny about community organizing? What’s funny about devoting oneself to those less fortunate? The Republicans have a truly twisted sense of humor.
“A small town mayor is sort of like a ‘community organizer’ that has actual responsibilities!” riffed Vice-Presidential nominee Sarah Palin, a half hour later.
What we saw during the Giuliani and Palin speeches were ugly scenes. In an arena packed tight with white, rural faces, entire sections in cowboy hats, clutching signs reading “Country First,” they ridiculed a young black man’s service to an underprivileged urban community.
If you want to criticize young black community organizers, why stop with Barack Obama? Dr. Martin Luther
King, according to Sarah Palin, apparently had no “actual responsibilities.” Just think what he could’ve accomplished as the mayor of Wasilla.
“Country First” is not just another Republican campaign slogan. “Country First” is a targeted message. The word “country” has a number of meanings. Let’s see what our friends, Merriam and Webster, have to say:
1: an indefinite usually extended expanse of land: region <miles of open country>2 a: the land of a person’s birth, residence, or citizenship b: a political state or nation or its territory3 a: the people of a state or district: populace b: jury c: electorate4: rural as distinguished from urban areas <prefers the country to the city>
Country does not just mean ‘Nation.” The Republicans will not say it explicitly, but their new battle cry is an attempt to evoke an old battle. Rural vs. urban, white vs. black.
“Country First,” the RNC’s choice of country music between speakers, and the choice of rural Governor Sarah Palin are all part of a calculated Republican attempt to continue dividing the country for the sake of winning elections.
The Republicans think they are safe ridiculing community organizing given that in small towns, there is no need for community organizing. The communities are already organized by local governments and local church congregations. We can all agree that there are great differences between our country’s urban and rural communities, but does this mean we cannot share common goals and respect each others’ struggles? With one party claiming to be the only one that puts “country first,” it becomes difficult to even have a dialogue.
When the Republicans laugh at noble causes, the message they are sending and the image they are letting slip out is simply dreadful. They are desperate and defensive, petty and pathetic. They’re having a good laugh at their party now, but this election is no laughing matter, and there’s no way these clowns can win.
