Eyes Peeled

Aside from news and social media, this is an important site to watch as the election draws closer:

Five Thirty Eight

At the moment, President Obama is about 100.2 points ahead of Romney on the projected electoral map.

As in previous elections, Five Thirty Eight is typically right on the money. Let's hope they stay true to form this year…

Delusional Grandeur

I have a feeling I'll be screaming at my television set in frustration and disgust nearly every day from now until election day. I was incredulous when Romney was trotted out to make a statement about the violence and loss of American life in Libya. His action was little more than a political tactic in the face of a tragedy, an undignified maneuver that was as obvious as the day is long. He is highly offensive and desperately self-serving, a foolish wanna-be who imagines his statements are just as important as those given by the President of the United States.

Romney assumes most Americans are idiots who don't have a clue to what is really going on, just like many of his right-wing counterparts. It's as if he expects the masses to swallow every word that comes out of his mouth without question, even in regards to the mysterious plans he has to dig America out of its economic slump.

At least President Obama had the grace and dignity not to seize on political opportunity when he made his own statement today, which is the only one that counts anyway.

Sunday Mull

I don't typically pay much attention to political party conventions, preferring to focus on the live debates when candidates have to answer real questions. I have to admit, however, that I did watch Bill Clinton's speech at the Democratic National Convention and also listened to President Obama when he accepted his party's nomination and spoke about his vision for the future of America.

Like most Democrats, I was impressed by Clinton's oration. Aside from Barack Obama, Bill Clinton is my favorite president. When he was in office, I could have cared less when it was discovered he was cavorting with a woman in the Oval Office. I thought: "If that's what it takes to provide a flush economy, let him have at it." I felt sorry for Hillary, naturally, but the big hullabaloo perpetuated by the morally jaded right-wing at the time was a joke at best.

Back to Clinton's speech…Perhaps my favorite part was when he talked about "arithmetic" when reminding everyone about the differences between Democrat and Republican records. Later, Think Progress provided a snapshot Info-graph of the tallies. One of the "info-graph" comments left by reader Jim Wolf put my own thoughts into a nutshell:

When you're stated intention is to make sure that the President is only a "one term President" (Mitch McConnell) and block any and all job-creating-legislation, you don't deserve the right to lead.

Using one of Clinton's phrases, the Republicans have "brass" in attacking President Obama for lack of progress in the economy. Not only do they forget to mention or take responsibility for the bloody mess in which their party left the nation, they have also purposely blocked attempts by the President and most Democrats in Congress to address the issues.

The right-wing moral harping also rubs me the wrong way. For the most part, conservatives claim to God-fearing Christians yet they don’t bat an eyelid when it comes to suggesting cuts to benefits for seniors and low income families. What sort of Christian is it who deliberately abandons those less fortunate than themselves? Does the word hypocrisy ring any bells?

In my opinion, Romney is as dry as salami and as phony as a three dollar bill. There's simply nothing there. It's not just his right-wing political views and apparent lack of empathy with common people that present as glaringly obvious; it's the slyly minimized but still-looming issue of Romney's religion that remains a turn-off for me.

Prejudice in any form is not amongst my personality traits. I typically don't give a hoot about anyone's race, religion or sexual preference. However, having lived in a place dominated by the Mormon religion for many years – not by free choice, but through circumstances beyond my control - I'm extremely leery about a presidential candidate who is not only an ultra-rich conservative but who also happens to practice the same said religion.

In my experience, which spans over several decades in intermittent fashion, the specific religious influence is appallingly duplicitous in regards to business as well as everyday living. Don't be fooled by pious claims of decency and concern for fellow human beings because my bird's-eye view of the culture does not bear this out. I have never lived amongst a more selfish or judgmental group of people in my life who in reality care little for the disabled, poor, minorities or otherwise disadvantaged. They will be the first to donate money, sure. Yet when it comes to treating the aforementioned people with common decency and respect, their self-proclaimed Christianity goes right out the window and is replaced with derision and dismissal. This is not a fleeting observation or rare occurrence, but rather events which have taken place on a daily basis over many years. I've lost count of the times I saw an able-bodied man, woman or child cut in front of a disabled person who was either struggling with a cane or pushing themselves along in a wheelchair; or a grocery store cashier who treated a customer with barely-veiled contempt when they presented a food stamp card in the form of payment for goods.

And no matter how much Mormons profess to be accepting and non-racist, don't believe it for a minute. I worked at a lumber company in Salt Lake City in the 1980s, where I began dating one of the drivers. He was tall, handsome and black. The backlash of hatred and vitriolic remarks we were both forced to endure – often for just going out to lunch together – was a sickening eye-opener into the real local culture. Their track record speaks for itself, frankly. The Mormon church had a strict policy against ordaining African-Americans into their "priesthood" until 1978, when one of their leaders conveniently had a sudden "revelation" to reverse the non-black policy following intense criticism by civil rights and other religious groups. To me, the worst stains on American history are the country's despicable treatment of blacks and native Indians. The fact that Mormons effectively participated in the racially-motivated ostracization until just thirty-four years ago speaks volumes.

As for business, perhaps the narrow-mindedness is not unusual as it seems common to many corporate environments across the globe. The same people who spend every Sunday in church think nothing of stabbing their co-workers in the back during the week, most often when trying to leap-frog to a promotion. I worked at an insurance company – again in Salt Lake City – for more than seven years, where the vicious modus operandi of doing business horrified me. Money was the bottom line, and woe the person who stood in the way of the grubbing. I think many of them would have stepped over their own mothers or best friends to get ahead, let alone someone just trying to survive.

There are exceptions, of course. I know a handful of Mormons who have vast amounts of integrity without prejudice, but unfortunately they remain few and far between.

For all these reasons – mingled with the tiresome right-wing fanaticism - I simply find it incomprehensible that the American people will vote Romney into the highest office in the land.

Gifts Aplenty

The GOP is a gift that keeps on giving…

GOP Senate Candidate: Victims of 'Legitimate Rape' Won't Become Pregnant

No matter who you are, it's basically impossible to hide your true personality or beliefs for a long stretch of time in a close personal relationship. It's especially difficult to hide your true self if you live and work in the public eye.

I have a feeling that the middle-aged white men who comprise the GOP would rather revert to laws that governed the Wild West. Specifically, laws forced upon women whereby it was not a crime to beat or rape your wife, and then blaming her to justify the abuse.

They might not come out and say it – and actually pay lip-service to the rights of women – but it doesn't take an idiot to see where the GOP mind-set aligns itself.

And true to form, Fox News glossed over the "legitimate rape" comments. According to Think Progress:

Fox News is following its well established pattern of underreporting stories that don't appeal to its conservative base, instituting a virtual blackout of Rep. Todd Akin's (R-MO) controversial — and widely condemned — comments about "legitimate rape."

What's next? Taking away a woman's right to vote? Considering their track record of voter suppression with low-income communities and minorities, it's not such a far-fetched notion.

Yee-Haw!

Oh, come on! It can't be this easy…

• Mitt Romney set to name Paul Ryan as running mate

Romney has no idea what it is to struggle on a day-to-day basis, and now he picks a VP running mate who wants to single-handedly minimize social security benefits?

Good God, I can't wait to see just one debate between Joe Biden and Paul Ryan. I don't care how smart the right-wing thinks Ryan is, when he comes to the national forefront as someone who wants to mess with senior benefits he's all but finished.

And don't think President Obama's campaign won't take advantage of the easy pickings.

Rock on!

More: Paul Ryan's Strengths & Weaknesses.

One Way or Another

An assortment of both Republican and Democrat lawmakers are caught with their proverbial "pants down" sooner or later. The only difference is Democrats do not base their political platforms on moral issues as vehemently as the right-wing, which seems to make their actions all the more hypocritical.

• Married Republican lawmaker resigns over visit to topless bar while on golfing holiday with six colleagues

Judge not lest you be judged…

Dead Zone

I can't remember a time in my collective memory when Washington has been so utterly useless.

• Aseconomy falters, Washington fails to act

It drives one point home: elected officials have no interest in their constituents other than garnering their votes. Once safely in office, they cite the atmosphere in Washington as the reason progress is not being made on a variety of issues. Republicans blame Democrats, and Democrats blame Republicans.

However, one fact cannot be disproven: Washington has never been as ineffectual as they are now, ever since the right-wing took over the house.

God forbid we elect another one of them to take over the biggest job in the land.