Elitist

[filkertom]

This whole "Is Barack an elitist?" noise, standard-issue Repub talking-point bullshit, has already been dealt with handily by many sources... but, as is often the case, one man cuts to the heart of it all:

Comments

[vixyish.livejournal.com]

Warning: do not watch while drinking tea. :)

[maiac.livejournal.com]

"Warning: do not watch while drinking tea."

That's true of every Daily Show.

[maiac.livejournal.com]

Obama's fatal error is so completely fatal that it's had no effect whatever on the Pennsylvania race.

But notice in the linked article how very hopeful the mediawhore sounds that it may still hurt Obama. "We said it would, it has to!"

Wrong again, Beltway Insiders.

[darthparadox.livejournal.com]

The last two minutes nails it, I think.

I'm a pretty smart guy - and I don't think I'm even remotely up to the task of running the country. I want someone smarter, savvier, and with better judgment and instincts for the job than I.

Of course, they're using "elitist" as a buzzword for "upper-class snob who looks down on the working people". Which is ridiculous, coming from Clinton (who is funding her campaign in part from the $100 million her husband's made on speeches since he left office) and the rest of the cable media which seems to exist in order to promote the political views of its wealthy stockholders by obfuscating reality rather than, say, actually educating the public about current events and policy issues.

Why don't we have more people calling them on their bullshit?

[cadhla.livejournal.com]

I just died laughing.

How I love you.

[scruffycritter.livejournal.com]

I've been reminding people for years that the whole rebellion movement against "intellectual elites" was started by Dan Quayle.

Dan Quayle vs intellectualism.

Tells you everything you need to know, don't it?

[unclelumpy.livejournal.com]

"Let me share some of my good fortune with you." = Elitist

"I got mine, screw the rest of y'all." = Man of the people

Little by little, America is transforming into Bizarro World.

[allisona.livejournal.com]

I watched Jon Stewart's comments on "elitism" last night and just wished it would be seen all over the States for days to come. Thanks for helping with that :).

[bayushisan.livejournal.com]

I salute Mr. Stewart for what he said and I salute you Tom for making it a bit more accessable for people to see. :) Made my night.

[smallship1.livejournal.com]

*insert recap of key Leo McGarry speech here, you know the one*

Say "elitist" does mean "someone who looks down on ordinary people."

If you put someone up on a frodding big pedestal, he'd better be able to look down. If he only looks at people on his own level, he won't see anybody at all except maybe Vladimir Putin. "Gee, I wonder where all the people went. Oh well, guess I can do what I like now." Flaws of Democracy number twenty-seven in a series of far too many: when you elect someone a ruler, they are by definition no longer of the people. So they'd better be able to cope with that.

[randwolf.livejournal.com]

See (http://randwolf.livejournal.com/168060.html#cutid1).

[dornbeast.livejournal.com]

*pokes the link*

[randwolf.livejournal.com]

Article unlocked; sorry.

[randwolf.livejournal.com]

Took another look at that article and decided to relock it; here's the contents I'm willing to publish.

In the gym, Friday night, CNN had at least 20 minutes of a single quote from Obama, pulled out-of-context, which they claimed was dissing small-town voters. As usual Clinton was all over him. You can read a lot about it (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/13/us/politics/13campaign.html), and the original quote, which doesn't sound nearly as awful put back into context, at the New York Times web site. So now we have the media message on Obama, which we are probably going to be hearing until the end of the campaign: he's a big-city liberal, who doesn't understand Real American Values. Obama doesn't deserve this, and neither do we. Maybe he can turn this around. I hope so.

[vettecat.livejournal.com]

Having connection issues... is there a transcript anywhere?

[wolfger.livejournal.com]

OK, not only what he said, but... has the media even looked at the other elitist candidates? None of these people are "average joes", regardless of how many beers they drink at the pub while the media laps it up. They have all gone to elite schools, make elite salaries, and move in social circles most of us can't even get near much less in to. They are, more or less, equal to one another. So how can only one of them be "elitist"?

[judifilksign.livejournal.com]

I think I had tears in my eyes from laughing so much... the line about a president who gives in to peer pressure to drink just about killed me.

I'm so glad I wasn't in the middle of drinking tea...