B Rack and Hill Dawg

If there ever was a sign that I have become a junkie it was on Tuesday. Temporary political junkie that is. I came back from work on Tuesday and pondered "hmmm? How about skipping gym today and parking my ass in front of the TV and spending quality time with the folks on CNBC watching the Potomic primaries (their term)?" And with that I started watching 5 hrs of CNBC (switching to Larry King over on CNN for a while). I never miss gym, but felt like I had to do it. And for what, to listen to Tucker (Tucker? My life is boring!) and Olbermann and Chris Matthews!

As much as I want to get non-personal in this Democratic primary, I find myself getting personal. I am at heart a cynic when it comes to politicians so prefer to criticize everyone. But somewhere along the line I started rooting for B Rack. And somewhere along those lines I found myself hating everything about Hill Dawg, I mean the way she smiles, the way she waves to her supporters, her laugh, her deliberate gestures, everything seemed to drive me nuts! But then I realized what the hell am I doing? This was not supposed to be personal. For those reading this blog you can go back and check back my post in August where I criticized B Rack's economic solutions to the sub-prime crisis . But now I can't seem to not like anything he says or does.
It is undeniable that he speaks and presents himself unlike any politician from recent times. Plus maybe 'cause he started off as the underdog made me root for him all the more.

That said, let's examine the 'real' differencies between the two Democratic candidates. Mind you at this point real policies mean squat. In politics it is always about convincing people that you can do what you say you will. Period. People want to believe you so whoever does the best job at that usually wins. Dont let the media and other folks fool you about "where is the real meat in his/her campaign". Pluuuuuhhsease! It's never about the policy peeps!

In any case, let's examine what policies each are proposing. Here we go:

Healthcare:
The difference is that Hill Dawg claims about 12-15 million Americans will be left un-insured if B Rack's plan is implemented as oppossed to hers. What B Rack is proposing is that healthy young folks can choose if they want insurance or not, the rest are all covered. hmmm? Not sure which one would work. Hill Dawg has not said how she will find her universal coverage plan without running into huge budget deficits. But it is tought to argue against how popular Hill Dawg's plan will go with the blue collar folks. And that is important. Remember, the practicality of both plans is not real good unless clear budgets are presented. But hey this is politics who cares, promise new deal with it later.

Foreign Policy:
B Rack has a distinct advantage here since he did not support the war in Iraq while Hill Dawg voted for it. But then again, the practicality of both candidates post-war solutions are stupid. Both want to get out within 3-6 months out of Iraq. I am no foreign policy expert but imagine this: you go to a country, destroy their security apparatus and infrastructure first then help them train their police and army and secure them. The training is not complete and you want to suddenly leave? huh? There will be more chaos than before if the US leaves Iraq right away. This should be far more planned than they are making it out to be. So again here, the practicality of both solutions is not good.

Ecomony:
Both candidates have huge long plans with specific dollar numbers on how to save the country from economic peril. And both are dubious. B Rack for example promises to save home-owners from losing their homes, bring back jobs from China and India, limit the effect of corporate lobbyists, and invest in alternative energy. Really? One look at both candidates campaign finance donations would reveal that they are equally in bed with all the corporations. And wait till the Oil and Car company lobbies against imposing stricter mpg on cars and investment in non-carbon energy resources. Again, Practicality of this happenin': Not Very good.

Experience:
I find it mildly amusing how almost everyone in the media has taken it for granted that Hill Dawg is so much more experienced than B Rack! Really? How exactly? By running behind your husband and trying pass secret healthcare laws? and how did that turn out Hill Dawg? The reality is she is a near two term senator and he is in his first term. But he has been in the Illinois Senate before and so their political/lawmaker experience evens out. Get this: none of them have had executive experience of any kind, neither has run a government or corporation at any level. So Hill Dawg, stop bullshitting people. The way the American Presidency works is you surround yourself with experienced experts on all fronts and listen to them. The President's pivotal role is to bring politicians and people together so that they can buy his/her vision.

So, is there any doubt who can unite people? I will leave it that.