Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Vicious Politics
Fox News Channel just reported that someone has released all or part of Sarah Palin's Social Security number. Since that bit of informati0n is the key to getting at all kinds of personal information and is the gold ring for identity thieves, this is a big deal. It could cause all kinds of problems for Ms. Palin for years to come. If the story is true, I sincerely hope the perpetrator or perpetrators are identified, prosecuted and punished to the maximum extent of the law.
But there's certainly a political angle to this, too. The perpetrator or perpetrators are clearly acting in what they believe to be the interests of Barack Obama and the Democratic Party. They are likely as not involved in the campaign at some level. Do we really want to be governed by someone who attrzcts this kind of lowlife scum?
Oh, I'm sure Barack Obama or one of his surrogates will within hours make a public plea to stop this kind of activity, but he sort of has to, doesn't he? I mean, if he doesn't condemn it, then he's tacitly in favor of it. (Not to mention the possiblility that he himself is vulnerable to having unfavorable private information made public.) Besides, Mr. Obama is undoubtedly smart enough to know that this, like the attacks on Bristol Palin, is the kind of thing that can generate large and passionate backlash, especially if it continues for a week or more. Americans generally are decent people, and their acceptance of dirty politics is limited.
Back when Bob Dole was running for President, the buzzword used against him was that he was "mean spirited." Well, I submit that many in today's Democratic party (I hope nothing near a majority) have behaved and are behaving in ways that redefine the term. They are nothing more than thugs who use rumor and innuendo and lies instead of guns, knives and blackjacks.
If I were a Democrat, I would be appalled by this kind of activity, and I would let the party leadership know that this kind of behavior cannot be tolerated, lest the Democratic Party become known as the party of criminals. If the majority, or even a large minority of Democrats find this kind of behavior acceptable, then the party, and the country, are in deep trouble.
But there's certainly a political angle to this, too. The perpetrator or perpetrators are clearly acting in what they believe to be the interests of Barack Obama and the Democratic Party. They are likely as not involved in the campaign at some level. Do we really want to be governed by someone who attrzcts this kind of lowlife scum?
Oh, I'm sure Barack Obama or one of his surrogates will within hours make a public plea to stop this kind of activity, but he sort of has to, doesn't he? I mean, if he doesn't condemn it, then he's tacitly in favor of it. (Not to mention the possiblility that he himself is vulnerable to having unfavorable private information made public.) Besides, Mr. Obama is undoubtedly smart enough to know that this, like the attacks on Bristol Palin, is the kind of thing that can generate large and passionate backlash, especially if it continues for a week or more. Americans generally are decent people, and their acceptance of dirty politics is limited.
Back when Bob Dole was running for President, the buzzword used against him was that he was "mean spirited." Well, I submit that many in today's Democratic party (I hope nothing near a majority) have behaved and are behaving in ways that redefine the term. They are nothing more than thugs who use rumor and innuendo and lies instead of guns, knives and blackjacks.
If I were a Democrat, I would be appalled by this kind of activity, and I would let the party leadership know that this kind of behavior cannot be tolerated, lest the Democratic Party become known as the party of criminals. If the majority, or even a large minority of Democrats find this kind of behavior acceptable, then the party, and the country, are in deep trouble.
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