November 8-10, 2008
Nov 08 03:43 Relaxation Is... Nov 08 04:38 Boldly Going Where We Already Should've Gone Nov 08 08:41 Amen To That!!! Nov 08 14:20 Jazz Shaw, Amateur Pundit Nov 08 18:48 Forget Buying Newspapers Nov 09 03:02 Gas prices drop below $2 a gallon Nov 10 10:53 'Three Beasts' Lead Vikings to Victory Nov 10 16:49 Coleman-Franken 08 = Rossi-Gregoire 2004? Nov 10 19:47 Ballot Box Troubles: A Matter of Incompetence or Dishonesty?
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Relaxation Is...
Relaxation is getting away from the computer for awhile. I'm staying at a nice hotel in northern Minnesota this weekend. In a few short hours, I hope to release my inner savage. The only thing that needs to happen to make that happen is for a furry 4-legged critter to cross paths with me. (Actually, having multiple 4-legged critters would make that happen,too.)
Over the years, I've developed two mottos that encapsulate my philosophy towards deerhunting:
1) I prefer my critters big, stupid & close to the road.
1A) The bigger & the dumber the better.
If things work out right, I hope to be back in in time for Final Word wih King & Michael. (I wonder what they'll be talking about.)
Posted Saturday, November 8, 2008 3:43 AM
No comments.
Boldly Going Where We Already Should've Gone
I've referenced several things from RebuildtheParty.com . First, I've gotta say that I notice something new each time I visit this website. Here's something that jumped out at me on my latest visit:
The Republican Party can no longer survive in a modern era if we resist this new reality. With our power in Washington waning, our grassroots are the source of our greatest strength, not a problem to be managed. To revitalize ourselves, we must invite the crowd back in and tap their energy and creativity.It's time for a paradigm shift. We can't survive if we rely on a top-down 'grassroots' system. What's needed is to unleash a system that's centered on an Army of Davids mindset. There are thousands of people out there who are very good in their niche of activism. It's time that we trusted them with owning their corner of the activist network while still monitoring them and holding them accountable for their corner.
This isn't just about the Internet; it's about recognizing that in a people-powered era, with the power of technology-empowered grassroots movements on the rise, everything about the way we mobilize voters changes. Campaign plans that called for a few hundred or thousand volunteers making phone calls in the final days are hopelessly quaint and limiting in an era when millions of people want to feel connected and involved 24/7.
Giving people ownership of a project within the team's goal is just the first step. We should encourage people to work in teams so that we take advantage of the synergy that's sure to develop within a team. Two heads are still better than one, especially if they're committed to the same goal.
We saw how that pardigm and that synergy worked when we defeated McCain-Kennedy. We had thousands of ringleaders driving that situation. We had talk radio hosts calling people to action but, most importantly, we had people emailing each other, updating each other hourly. In turn, those activists were calling and/or emailing their senators to the point that we melted down the Senate switchboard.
That system wasn't centered on a single individual. It was built around thousands of faceless activists pushing in the same direction. It's imperative that activists adopt that mindset. It can't happen soon enough.
It's imperative that we do this and much more. Let's get started ASAP.
Originally posted Saturday, November 8, 2008, revised 09-Nov 11:13 PM
No comments.
Amen To That!!!
I'm working my way through the RebuildtheParty.com's recommendations. At each turn, I'm finding their thinking to be impressive. Here's the latest paart that's worth implementing:
A 25,000-strong Nationwide Campaign Force. It isn't just our candidate recruitment that's wanting. We must replenish our pool of trained campaign workers who know how to win races from school board to the Senate, and who know how to integrate new media into their field and communications efforts.It's time the RNC activated the grassroots by actually trusting in them. The Lady Logician , King Banaian and Andy Aplikowski know that I've said more than once that we need to eliminate the Beltway-bound GOP startegeists because they don't know what's happening out here in flyover country. What's worse, they're afraid of their own shadows. We need strategists with the mindset of Sarah Palin.
To do this, we propose that the next RNC Chair make it a priority to train 25,000 high-level activists by 2012. A few thousand of these will go on to run races. The rest will form the nexus of a permanent volunteer corps that keeps the Republican Party strong and relevant in local communities. And this training must occur in all 50 states and over the Internet, and not just in Washington, D.C.
In her introduction speech, she said that she wasn't running for the media's or the Beltway's good approval. AMEN TO THAT. That attitude must permeate the entire GOP, from the highest parts of the hierarchy to the lowliest activists.
In 2004, President Bush talked about an ownership society. It didn't get enacted but it's something worth examining as it pertains to activism. It's time that we let activists flow to the campaigns It's time that we incent activists to make calls from home in addition to phonebanking from a Victory HQ. It's time that we inspired activists to take charge of litdropping their neighborhoods but it's also important that these activists organize activities via Facebook and MySpace.
The only way to activiate activists into doing these things is if we pick candidates who stand for appealing conservative principles. The only way to activiate activists is if the candidates and/or incumbents stay in touch with these activists.
Locally, Steve Gottwalt and Dan Severson have done a great job of staying in touch with their constituents with weekly updates when they're in session. They're constantly available via townhall meetings. They've done a great job of applying conservative principles to problems facing Minnesotans in general and their constituents specifically.
The Minnesota House GOP did a great job fighting for free market, limited government solutions the last 2 years. During the House Oil Party, Mike Pence, Thad McCotter, Jeb Hensarling, Marsha Blackburn, Michele Bachmann and others fought for the right things. As a result, their campaign contributions flowed in more freely than in the past. Now it's time to get Senate Republicans to fight the same fight.
The only thing that'll prevent these these changes from happening is if those that crave control try tripping up the movement. If that happens, then those conrarians must be stripped of their position.
Only then can we start a new conservative movement.
Originally posted Saturday, November 8, 2008, revised 09-Nov 11:13 PM
No comments.
Jazz Shaw, Amateur Pundit
It isn't often that I pay attention to Jazz Shaw but I have to say something about this incoherent post .
To each of these groups I would urge caution. In the short time we've known Governor Palin, the media has begun assembling a treasured collection of video and audio gold. Her interviews have been disastrous to all but the most die-hard worshipers. In the inevitable night of the long knives following Big Mac's concession, the Arizona senator's senior aides have begun spinning tales out of school regarding diva performances and extravagant luxuries that would make Caligula blush. In a candid moment on the tarmac, awaiting her exit from the field of battle, Palin was asked about her plans for the next election and responded, "2012? That sounds like years from now." Her ardent fans should step back for a moment and realize that Sarah is the verbal equivalent to Gerald Ford's golf game.With all due respect, Sarah Palin utterly dismantled the Delaware Blowhard. She was Obama's intellectual superior, especially on energy policy. Mr. Shaw's hint that she's verbally inept is a pile of BS. She's incredibly articulate.
Other than that, Gov. Palin's ability to connect with voters is vastly superior to politicians like Mitt Romney and other career politicians. Certainly, she had more appeal than Sen. McCain. Looking back, as honorable as Sen. McCain is, he didn't have a chance at Sen. Obama's GOTV machine. Too often, Sen. McCain pulled his punches & kept issues offlimits. Gov. Palin didn't let that stop her.
I can understand why moderates don't like her. It's just that I don't buy into the notion that we need moderates to win elections.
Originally posted Saturday, November 8, 2008, revised 09-Nov 11:11 PM
Comment 1 by The Lady Logician at 08-Nov-08 11:41 PM
However, Gary - Jazz does raise a point. Electoral history does NOT accept losers lightly. We may have to wait and see on this one.....
LL
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 09-Nov-08 02:28 AM
LL, it doesn't look kindly on losing PRESIDENTIAL candidates. I don't think there's much of a history to draw on for VP-mates on the losing side.
Comment 3 by The Lady Logician at 09-Nov-08 08:02 PM
John Edwards comes to mind rather quickly.....
We should not rule out (or in) candidates solely on what happened this year. Let's see what happens in the next 4. I don't think Sarah as three strikes against her (as Jazz does) but I would say she has a good two.....
LL
Comment 4 by Gary Gross at 09-Nov-08 11:08 PM
John Edwards comes to mind rather quickly.
Edwards isn't a good example because he isn't a substantial person.
Forget Buying Newspapers
Powerline's John Hinderaker posted this about the media's bias:
Conservatives should stop talking about media bias and start founding (or buying) some newspapers of our own. Of course, until that happens we'll probably still complain about bias from time to time.I agree with starting newspapers but not with buying them. There's too much deadwood involved in established media. What's needed is a series of newspapers, preferably online-only papers, that have a mixture of video clips of what people are saying and research-filled. As I wrote here , more people get their political information from the internet than anyplace else.
On that front, I'm plannning on doing that in the St. Cloud area. Far too often, events weren't covefred this election season. When they were, they weren't as informative as my liveblogs were. I'm not blaming the reporters for this. I'm just saying that newspapers have space restrictions. I don't because I'm publishing it on my blog. My only restriction is my ability to pay for bandwith, which isn't a stifling burden.
An example were my liveblogs of the CMTA Forum and the St. Cloud Chamber health care forum. Rob Jacobs stood up at both events and said that he wasn't an expert on either transportation or health care so he "wouldn't pretend to be." Had this been televised into people's living rooms, people would've been stunned at his answers. Jacobs' comment at the CMTA event wasn't included in a newspaper account because the SC Times didn't cover the event. The Times covered the health care event but they still didn't include Jacobs' comment in their article.
I said over a year ago that we needed to stop whining about the liberal media's bias, then getting our information from the biased liberal media. That's utterly stupid.
There's never been a better time to get started with a Joe Friday, just the facts, Mam, type of newspaper. Actually, we need that type of newspaper that covers local state legislature races and national races because they're both vitally important.
Originally posted Saturday, November 8, 2008, revised 09-Nov 11:12 PM
Comment 1 by eric zaetsch at 10-Nov-08 11:44 AM
fyi - this:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1029/p25s01-usgn.html
This news outlet has kept its independence from wire service feeds about as well as anyone has.
Also, that comment about too much deadwood in the print editions, was a pun intended?
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 10-Nov-08 12:38 PM
Good point, Eric.
No, that wasn't meant as a pun. Thanks for pointing that out.
Gas prices drop below $2 a gallon
That's the headline of this article . The main reason why it's happened is because the economy tanked. Here's the key quote of the article:
Declining demand in the U.S. and overseas is a major reason for the price drop, according to Jim Feneis, president of East Side Oil & First Fuel Banks in St. Cloud. "OPEC decided to cut production by 1.5 million barrels a day, but global demand is down 3 million," Feneis said.The minute the world's economy starts up again is the minute gas prices start jumping again. Barring a 5 year recession, we'll see high gas prices again. If we don't have a robust drilling program for the OCS, we'll have high home heating costs each winter, too.
Let's enjoy these prices while we can. I'm not convinced they'll last beyond the current recession.
Posted Sunday, November 9, 2008 11:10 PM
Comment 1 by Walter hanson at 09-Nov-08 02:50 PM
the wrong method to reduce gas prices. The currect method is to drill for oil and increase supply.
Unfortunately, the Democrats are so married to the environmentalists they don't care
we might pay $5 or $6 before the 2012 election.
Unless is their plan to slow down the economy for another four years.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Comment 2 by J. Ewing at 09-Nov-08 02:54 PM
According to the news, Barack is considering reinstating the executive order banning OCS drilling. You know, the one Bush revoked, and Republicans in Congress forced Democrats to let elapse? All you conservatives who stayed home should be asked to pony up to pay these higher gas bills, unless Obama keeps his "promise" to pay them for us.
Comment 3 by Gary Gross at 09-Nov-08 07:10 PM
Jerry, re-instating that ban will kill him because it'd put him on the wrong side of 80+ percent of Americans. What happens when the economy finally rebounds & gas prices start rising again? Will he then re-uninstate his executive order?
Comment 4 by eric zaetsch at 10-Nov-08 11:37 AM
Wait and see. Obama's fate might be to endure a Carter-like presidency. Inheriting such a woeful mess from the GOP that fixing it would have people blaming him the way Carter and Voelker were blamed for setting things right where the Gip then took the credit. I do not think Obama will move precipitously. Also, 80% of the people don't want offshore drilling as much as they want green energy developed and efficient automobiles and decent transit as an option. The GOP view is the drilling offshore view, and Nasser smiles about that and might have even more Coleman cash for the future if it's not undone. Who figures Pelosi wants it off her shores? Go figure. Most people realize Big Oil's been screwing with the market and is the problem, not part of any solution.
Comment 5 by Gary Gross at 10-Nov-08 12:36 PM
Also, 80% of the people don't want offshore drilling as much as they want green energy developed and efficient automobiles and decent transit as an option.
That isn't exactly true. The polls I read in July & August wanted drilling in ANWR & on the OCS to be a significant part of the solution for energy independence.
The mistake people make is thinking that there's a single silver bullet. There isn't. That's why it's gotta be an all of the above approach.
Most people realize Big Oil's been screwing with the market and is the problem, not part of any solution.
Again, that isn't true. Now that there's a significant cushion between supply & demand, the commodities brokers, aka speculators, aren't in the position of screwing with the market. Speculators don't make money when supplies outstrip demand. PERIOD.
High gas prices were caused by (a) the US government causing artificial shortages with their energy policies & (b) the resulting speculation of commodity prices.
'Three Beasts' Lead Vikings to Victory
A look at the Vikings' roster tells you that they have three beasts that teams have to account for every Sunday. Those beasts are Kevin Williams, Jared Allen and Adrian Peterson. Sunday, the Three Beasts led the Vikings to victory despite Gus Frerotte's best attempts to win the game for the Pakers.
AP ran the ball 30 times for 192 yards, including a dramatic 29 yard game-winning touchdown with 2:22 left. He now leads the NFL in rushing with 1,015 yards after 9 games. On the game-winning drive, Peterson was involved in six of the seven plays. Of his 30 carries, 6 were for 10 yards or more, with 3 runs being for 26, 25 and 29 yards.
Kevin Williams had the 'quietest' game of the Three Beasts. Nonetheless, his stripping of Aaron Rodgers of the ball led to the Vikings' first safety, with Rodgers getting called for an illegal forward pass in the end zone. He was generally disruptive all afternoon, helping the Vikings defense shut the Packers' offense down, holding them to a paltry 184 yards of total offense.
Jared Allen's performance was incredible, especially considering him playing with a third degree shoulder seperation. Allen only finished with one sack but he made it count for another Vikings safety.
The only way that the Packers stayed in the game was because of Vikings turnovers. Frerotte was intercepted 3 times, leading to 17 Packer points. Add Will Blackmon's 65 yard punt return touchdown and you have 24 of the Packers' 27 points.
The win gives Minnesota a share of the NFC North lead with Chicago. Frankly, they're one of the worst 5-4 teams I've seen in ages. Frerotte is at the end of his career but he's better thank Tarvaris Jackson.
Their special teams are always good for points...for their opponents. Considering the Vikings' poor special teams play the last three seasons, Paul Ferraro is probably gone after this season. Good riddance.
The good news is that the Vikings are winning thanks to the play of Mssrs. Peterson, Williams and Allen. That might be enough to win their division.
Posted Monday, November 10, 2008 10:53 AM
Comment 1 by eric zaetsch at 10-Nov-08 11:29 AM
No tundra game this year, no Farve, a banged up Green Bay offensive line where Allen faced less then the best in blocking, and winning by one point because both kickers missed once wide right? Dominance? Not exactly. But after years of Dennis Green defenses, where he treasured guys who could not tackle and every year fired his defensive coordinator, under the bus because Green himself was not at fault, it is good to see a defense that shows up to excel. Childress, whatever else, showed up saying you win or lose at the lines and has yet to strengthen the O-line as I expect he'd want to. So, should taxpayers buy Zigi a stadium because he signs free agents? Allen is interesting, where he was drafted showing how astute the player evaluation is. Was he drafted the same year Green drafted Demetrius Underwood?
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 10-Nov-08 12:28 PM
Demetrius Underwood was drafted in 1998, Allen in 2003.
Comment 3 by Walter hanson at 10-Nov-08 09:55 PM
Gary I will think we have four studs.
Pat Williams is literally a one man wall that stops running up the middle.
It is the Williams wall that helps make Williams and Allen more effective since he will stop the running plays while the other williams and Allen can go running into the backfield without fear on running plays.
Not to mention Eric Kansas City had the brains to pick Allen which we traded for. Considering what we gave up the price is worth it. Denny Green who couldn't draft a defensive player if his life depended on it was the person who picked Underwood.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Comment 4 by Gary Gross at 10-Nov-08 11:24 PM
PWill was a stud last year but he's battled injuries this year. I'm still glad he's our NT but he isn't the beast he was the last 2 years.
Coleman-Franken 08 = Rossi-Gregoire 2004?
Forgive me for saying this but the more I read about the chain of custody procedures being employed by the election officials for the Coleman-Franken recount, the less faith I have in these procedures. They sound more like the methods that helped Christine Gregoire defeat Dino Rossi in the third counting of the vote after losing the count the night of the election and the mandated recount. Here's a refresher of Rossi-Gregoire 2004:
King County election officials yesterday admitted a major error in tallying votes in the governor's race that could reverse the results and make Christine Gregoire the winner in the hand recount now under way.That's the charitable way of wording it. Here's what Stefan Sharkansky wrote about that process in December, 2004:
The discovery that 573 (formerly 561) votes were improperly disqualified super-heated backers of Republican Dino Rossi, who for weeks have worried that King County, a Democratic stronghold, would find a way to give Gregoire the edge.
King County is still unable to provide conclusive information to validate their vote count.Fast forward to Coleman-Franken, 2008. Here's Fritz Knaak's quote on the matter:
The voter file, which I obtained earlier today, contains the names of only 895,660 voters recorded as voting on Nov. 2, a significant discrepancy from its hand recount certified total of 899,199 .
The Elections Office informed me that they're still doing "quality control" and adding in the names of some of the absentee voters. Even that wouldn't explain the entire discrepancy, as there appear to be discrepancies with the polling place and provisional vote counts as well. I've asked the Elections Office for further clarification and will convey their explanation as soon as I receive one.
A judge ruled Saturday that 32 new absentee ballots will be counted in the race for U.S. Senate.That doesn't include the 100 votes Franken, and Sen. Obama, picked up in the tiny city of Mountain Iron:
Coleman's campaign learned of the new ballots Friday night after a phone call from Minneapolis elections director Cynthia Reichert.
"We were actually told they had been riding around in her car for several days, which raised all kinds of integrity questions," said Coleman's attorney, Fritz Knaak.
A tiny town in the Democratic stronghold of Minnesota's Iron Range emerged Friday as the latest battleground over the state's disputed U.S. Senate race.I'll avoid niceties here. It's my opinion that the DFL is attempting to steal this election. If they were serious, they would've taken chain of custody issues seriously.
Democrat Al Franken gained 100 votes there between election night and when results were officially tallied on Thursday.
Adding to the intrigue, and suspicion in Sen. Norm Coleman's camp: The time stamp on the official tape printed out by a ballot machine in the precinct in question carried a date of Nov. 2, two days before the election.
Do I know that the 32 ballots are phonies? No. Do I know that the 100 extra votes in Mountain Iron are phonies? I can't say that either, though, having the tape register the votes 2 days before the election raises serious questions about their validity.
What I know for certain is this: If law enforcement treated evidence in criminal trials this sloppily, they'd never get a conviction because a competent defense attorney would get the evidence thrown out because custody wasn't maintained.
I've got several questions about both sets of ballots. Let's start with the 32 votes found in Minneapolis.
1) When did the the election official find these ballots in his/her car?Next, let's ask about the ballots from Mountain Iron:
2) Were the ballots cross-checked against the voter registration records?
3) Were all 32 ballots from the same precinct?
1) When were these votes discovered?As you can see, that's a pair of lengthy lists of questions. I won't trust the validity of this many discrepancies without a coherent explanation. At this point, we aren't even close to having received a coherent explanation.
2) As I understand it, the explanation
given was that the information sent to SecState Ritchie's office was filled out
incorrectly. Who caught the mistake?
3) How was the mistake caught?
4) What proof do Mountain Iron election officials have that the votes were cast
properly?
5) Doesn't the fact that the ballots were found with an official tape saying that the ballots were cast on November 2, 2 days before the election, suggest that the votes are questionable at best?
6) How do Mountain Iron election officials explain this considering the fact that absentee ballots are usually kept apart from ballots cast at the precinct?
7) Were all 100 votes from the same precinct?
8) What proof do we have that these ballots are valid?
9) What was the turnout rate in Mountain Iron?
That's why I'm worried that Coleman-Franken 08 will turn out just like Rossi-Gregoire 04. Follow this link if you want to help prevent a rerun of Rossi-Gregoire.
Posted Monday, November 10, 2008 4:58 PM
Comment 1 by Walter hanson at 10-Nov-08 09:51 PM
I have a question that you have ignored Gary.
The City of Duluth finally started to report it's results at two in the morning. Amazing that it takes four hours to get results from a city much smaller than Minneapolis or Saint Paul.
Furthermore it reported just one precint at a time from one through I think they have thirty. I got the impression they were trying to drag out their results so they could figure out how many votes to try to create for Al Franken to help him win.
Given the fact they reported four hours late is suspicious.
Given the fact they did one precint (in numberic order also) at a time over three hours is suspicious.
The media should be talking to Dulth's incompetent person who can't get their votes counted properly and fast!
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Ballot Box Troubles: A Matter of Incompetence or Dishonesty?
The AP is reporting that Team Franken Lawyer David Lillehaug asked the Hennepin County canvassing board to reconsider 461 ballots that had previously been rejected. Here's what they're reporting:
Minnesota's largest county has declined a request from Al Franken's Senate campaign to reconsider some disqualified absentee ballots.The Coleman campaign just issued this press release:
Franken trails GOP Sen. Norm Coleman by a little more than 200 votes and the race is headed for a recount starting next week.
Attorney David Lillehaug asked the Hennepin County canvassing board to reconsider 461 absentees that he said had been improperly rejected.
"The Al Franken campaign today tried to stuff new ballots into the ballot box in a brazen, last minute act of desperation. We have raised concerns repeatedly about these types of tactics by the Franken campaign. Today is further evidence of their intent to use whatever means necessary to counter the decision of the people of Minnesota. We applaud the actions of the Hennepin County Canvassing Board in rejecting this blatant, desperate act."Hennepin County is a big DFL stronghold, which leads to this important question: Why is it that only DFL strongholds have had difficulty with processi
