Nightly Ramble:Election Polls Now Within Margin of Error; Obama’s Speechwriter Quits, Endorses McCain; More

Welcome dear reader to the most intense nightly read on the ‘sphere.. The Nightly Ramble.

• Less than a week away from the election and Obama is still losing ground. The trend has continued over the last few weeks to the point now where both Rasumussenand Gallup are both reporting numbers within the margin of error. If the trend contunes through next week, and I see no reason it shouldn’t,  we may well find out if those veiled threats from the Democrats about race riots will come true. Bottom line is for all the predictions that have been ourportion on the newswires, nobody has a freakin’ clue what’s going to happen… but I’m fairly sure it’s not going to be nearly as much a liberal success the Democrats have been making it out to be.
• I note with interest thatone of Obama’s speech writers has switched sides. Of course the Dinosaur media hasn’t noted it. They dare not.
  

  Imagine if a speechwriter for John McCain had switched sides and announced she was going to vote for Barack Obama. Would she not be featured bigtime in the mainstream media complete with new thrills running up Chris Matthews leg? Well, this did happen except that it was an Obama speechwriter, Wendy Button, who became disillusioned with The One and switched supporting McCain. Here are the highlights of Wendy Button’s explanation of why she made the switch:

  Since I started writing speeches more than ten years ago, I have always believed in the Democratic Party. Not anymore. Not after the election of 2008. This transformation has been swift and complete and since I’m a woman writing in the election of 2008, “very emotional.”…
  …The final straw came the other week when Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher (a.k.a Joe the Plumber) asked a question about higher taxes for small businesses. Instead of celebrating his aspirations, they were mocked. He wasn’t “a real plumber,” and “They’re fighting for Joe the Hedge-Fund manager,” and the patronizing, “I’ve got nothing but love for Joe the Plumber.”

  Having worked in politics, I know that absolutely none of this is on the level. This back and forth is posturing, a charade, and a political game. These lines are what I refer to as “hooker lines”—a sure thing to get applause and the press to scribble as if they’re reporting meaningful news.

  As the nation slouches toward disaster, the level of political discourse is unworthy of this moment in history. We have Republicans raising Ayers and Democrats fostering ageism with “erratic” and jokes about Depends. Sexism. Racism. Ageism and maybe some Socialism have all made their ugly cameos in election 2008. It’s not inspiring. Perhaps this is why I found the initial mocking of Joe so offensive and I realized an old line applied: “I didn’t leave the Democratic Party; the Democratic Party left me.”

  The party I believed in wouldn’t look down on working people under any circumstance. And Joe the Plumber is right. This is the absolutely worst time to raise taxes on anyone: the rich, the middle class, the poor, small businesses and corporations.

  …Not only has this party belittled working people in this campaign from Joe the Plumber to the bitter comments, it has also been part of tearing down two female candidates. At first, certain Democrats and the press called Senator Clinton “dishonest.” They went after her cleavage. They said her experience as First Lady consisted of having tea parties. There was no outrage over “Bros before Hoes” or “Iron My Shirt.” Did Senator Clinton make mistakes? Of course. She’s human.

  But here we are about a week out and it’s déjà vu all over again. Really, front-page news is how the Republican National Committee paid for Governor Sarah Palin’s wardrobe? Where’s the op-ed about how Obama tucks in his shirt when he plays basketball or how Senator Biden buttons the top button on his golf shirt?

  Well, look, such movements can only be reported as moving toward the left. There’s far more at the link. Go and read.

• I note with a shrug, the earthquake in Pakistan, this morning. Initial reports are 150 dead, and likely, in reality, far more. Joyner notes:
  

  Baluchistan, the area in which the earthquake took place has been engaged in a low level of insurgency against the central government in Islamabad for years. There was a terrorist incident there just a couple of days ago. The present Pakistani government is holding on by its fingernails and its response to the earthquake will probably be phlegmatic, which is, unfortunately, probably as much as it can manage. That probably won’t further ingratiate them with the Baluchis.

  Yeah, true, but then again, what would? Look, even assuming Pakistan’s government could mount the rescue efforts needed, given who we’re dealing with they’d reject it.  Certainly, if the US tried to help, they’d get the same. It’s cold as hell, but there it is; The world-sized butt-boil that is Baluchistan has probably solved itself, in large part. The wonders of nature.

• Obama is now accepting untraceable donations. He likes to tell us he’s popular based on the donations, but how many are illegal? 
• Speculation from Time magazine’s online folks is that Biden is being reined in by the Obama camp, but I doubt it. In light of the fact that Obama’s not done a press conference in over a month, now, I suggest they’re hdiing, considering it safer than answering actual questions as Biden has gotten tripped up on several times, now.
• So, the LA Times is hanging onto the Obama tape? Why, when they seemed to have no problem releasing the tape from Ahhnold. an you say ‘In the Tank?” I knew you could. Meanwhile, the Times continues to lay people off. Do the math, folks.
• Speaking of the press… I mentioned yesterday the Christian Science Monitorwas going to a weekly paper setup? Nope. Story NOW is they’re going to be web only  I suppose this is to be considered ground-breaking… that is after all the way things are moving. But I wonder how many will see it so… and I wonder, too, what paper will be next? Could Bill Keller flying Coach be any indication? Gannett, which your humble blogger worked for breifly when Grok was clan leader, is cutting back, too.  I gave the MSM my advice, in my comments on the CSM in  yesterday’s Ramble. Failing to take that advice means they will not survive, as such It’s really that simple. They may not, anyway, but it’s the only shot they have, the way I see it.
• Billy Beck:
  

  Mickey Kaus:

  “Still, as Bernstein notes, we knew Obama believed in ‘redistributive change.’ The question is always what that means. Traditionally Democratic pols leave it alarmingly vague, with no identifiable stopping place at which enough redistribution is enough. Obama is no exception.”

  I would like you to consider that in the light of something Ayn Rand said more than forty years ago:

  “When opposite basic principles are clearly and openly defined, it works to the advantage of the rational side; when they are not clearly defined, but are hidden or evaded, it works to the advantage of the irrational side.”

  Billy goes on to make a seperate point from there. But I’m struck again about the conversations on the topics of rationality and Education we had here and here recently. Follow also the back and forth in the comments here. It’s all of a piece, people, and it’s not hard to follow.  In fact, I’d suggest it’s hard NOT to follow. As I say at Q&O this morning, One cannot possibly avoid the correct path so carefully and exactly, by means of stupidity.

• OK, I posted yesterday’s Ramble before I noted the market was going up.Seriously up.  It’s up today a bit too, at this writing… around 3pm. But not nearly as much.  Eventually, as I keep saying, this stuff take care of itself, given the chance. I note the news sources weren’t saying much about it. Perhaps the market kinda slipped off their radar?
• Oil, in response to the huge market push is now up above $67… pretty much on par with the market increase, and not unexpected.
• The BitsBlog  Eric Blair award goes to Nancy Pelosi.
  

  But I do tell you that if the Democrats win, and have substantial majorities, Congress of the United States will be more bipartisan,” said Pelosi.

  It’s one of those imoments where you know she’s not kidding and it hits you how incredibly biased she really is….another extreme leftist who thinks herself in the center of the country.

•  This is what happens when sports figures… who it must be noted, are usually not the brightest bulbs on the tree to begin with… try to talk politics.
• Obama’s supposed to be on all over the place tonight.  My take; That’s what the DVD collection is for.
• As we go to press, the fed has lowered the prime interest rates to 1%.